Embellished PEACE symbol

Bakers Dozen (The-bakers-dozen) is Group of 12 very talented ladies who every 6 weeks creates something new and different. Each project we have a word that one of us has chosen as the "word" of the month so to speak. We use the word to inspire us to create something (mostly mini quilts) in any medium we choose. The word for this project was "SYMBOL". Please stop by our Blog and check out all of our creations.

When thinking about the word "symbol" I immediately thought that the word meant a picture of something that was universally understood and that is why I chose the PEACE sign. Of course it had nothing to do with the fact that I grew up in the 60'& 70's and as you all know, those hippie days were all about Peace & Love.

To create my Peace sign I started out by drawing one on a piece of green wool felt. I used green to blend in with the floral theme should any show through my embellishing. I gave myself a 1" border all the way around to work within.


By layering silk ribbon embroidery, french knots using pearl cotton, lots of beads and plenty of my mini dyed lace motifs, I think I did justice to this symbol. I had thought of moutning it to a light background to be used as a pillow but hubby has suggested it might look better on the back of my blue jean jacket. We'll see.... any suggestions?

Top:

Left hand side:

Right hand side:

Bottom half:

I Love Mermaids!

When sign ups were announced for an Under Water Scene (UTS) 6x6 RR on CQI, I immediately jumped in as I love the ocean and everything related to it. Of course the color blue has a lot to do with it along with mermaids and all the other creatures of the sea. I received Carolyn's naked block about 2 weeks ago and finally had some time to sit and sew last night. I completed it just about an hour ago. I showed Rob and he said "you aren't seriously thinking of giving that away?" Had to tell him it wasn't my block to keep... that a RR is when you embellish someone elses block and then mail it off to the next person. Have to admit that this is one block I would love to keep... hey Carolyn... how much do you love me? (wink wink)

The minute I saw the landscape of her block I knew what I wanted to do. I cut out a beautiful little mermaid out of some cotton fabric my friend Elaine gave me and then dyed up an awesome dolphin lace motif (one of my favorites) and off I went into CQ never never land.



When Rob and I got married (Maui 2004) we spent a day swimming with the dolphins. We had originally gone out on a kayak trip but half way out the couple that was with us decided they didn't want to go - the old hippie that was giving us the tour decided to take them back to shore and let Rob and I continue on our way as we had told him we've been kayaking for quite a few years. (There was NO way I was going back LOL!) About an hour out we came up on a pod of dolphins (about 20+) just playing around We jumped in and they gave us a show that we will never forget. The mamma dolphins were playing with their babies and swimming right next to us all the while jumping and spinning in the air. OMG! The beautiful music that they were singing under the water was something we will never forget. This went on for about an hour until a tour boat came by and idled and watched us play.... slowly the dolphins swam away. So.... this block that I made for Carolyn is in remembrance of that beautiful day and wonderful experience.

The making of a Lace Butterfly

Thank you for all for the beautiful and sweet words of comfort regarding the loss of my kitty Brat. She is dancing with the butterflies now and at peace.

Since I love butterflies and they are one of my favorite CQ embellishments to create, I thought I'd show you how I make mine out of lace. here is a little tutorial for you.

#1

Pick a piece of lace that reminds you of wings and cut out a pair... by using your imagination you'd be surprised at all the different wings you can find in laces.

#2

A few samples of some wings made from various pieces of lace.

#3

Now, find a place on your CQ block that you want your butterfly to rest and sew in place. Most pieces of lace you won't find "built in" antennas so just embroider them in place or try using a couple of tubular beads.

#4

Grab few beads for the body and head... in this case I love using flat back pearls. Would
you believe I bought a 99 cent bracelet at AC Moore and took it apart for the beads.

#5 Ta da! A pretty little butterfly all in place.

Goodbye my sweet little Brat

Brat Seavey - came into our lives on February 4, 1996 at the approximate age of 2 and left us today, October 8, 2010.

As I sit here crying with a broken heart, I know Rob and I did the bests thing for our darling Brat the Cat. Today, at 4:00, we drove her to the Cat Clinic and said our goodbyes. For all our friends who met Brat or took care of her from time to time, I know you will miss her too. She was a beautiful cat and had so many funny ways about her...... how am I ever going to look at a can of whip cream the same.

Cold, covered in ice and snow, Brat was found by my borther-in-law outside of his house during a winter storm. I originally took her in to care for her thinking since she was obviously a house cat (no claws) and that someone would soon claim her. Little did I know she would become a permanent family member for the next 14+ years. Lots of "Family Loves" and laughing took place during these past years but the last few months have been really tough. Today I found out that in human years, she was 84. Her kidneys were going, she couldn't hear and she was loosing balance and eye sight. Rob and I both knew she was in pain with all the crying and knew it was only a matter of time before she would leave us.

I kept asking Rob "Are we sure" and his response was just what I knew in my heart "it's time" Why does it hurt so much? I held her in my arms cuddling her like I always did whispering " mommy loves you" and then felt her body go limp..... I miss you already Brat... I miss you. Thank you for all the love and wonderful memories, for all the affection and tenderness, for all the laughs and especially for all the "family loves" you brought into our lives. You were and always will be the Queen of our home.

Crazy Quilt RR - Art Nouveau

With summer winding down, I think I will finally have time to get back to updating my blog on a regular basis. I know you've probably heard it a thousand times already but... where did the summer go? For that matter, where has the year gone? ....it seems to me like it was just the beginning of spring.

Over the summer I was in numerous Crazy Quilt RR's. In the next few days I will share some of my work as well as some of the beautiful blocks that I have received back from the ladies of CQI (Crazy Quilt International). I love this group - everyone is so creative and so giving of their time and talents. To all of you wonderful CQI ladies - thank you ! thank you!

Mid-summer I signed up for an Art Nouveau RR which involved swapping 6x6 naked CQ blocks . Each of the 5 ladies in the group sent along 5 naked blocks to be embellished. One by one we got to choose one block to complete and then pass the rest on to the next participant until all of the blocks were ready to be sent home to their owner. The fun part was deciding which beautiful block to work on for each lady. The following are the 5 blocks that I created. My signature I hoped to leave behind on each piece was some of my dyed laces .... I almost feel naked not adding a piece to a block.

Created for Carolyn:

Creat for Colleen:

Created for Alice:

Created for Darlene:

Created for Cathy L:

Featured below are the six Art Nouveau blocks I sent around to be embellished. 5 of the ladies each pick one block and embellish it leaving the sixth for me to complete.

My naked blocks:

Work by Colleen:

Work by Cathy L:

Work by Alice:

Work by Carolyn:

Work by Darlene:

Thank you ladies for making this a beautiful swap - loved every minute of it and can't wait to do another RR with you again.