Sunday, April 27, 2014

Odds and Ends but Mostly Odds


I finished another 12 inch block for my Crazy Farm lap quilt.  The Crazy Quilt Journal Project somehow keeps me on track with getting at least one block completed per month.  

I embroidered a windmill in back stitches. On the sunflower patch I added a strip of ribbon with sunflowers on it. I tacked it down with some blind stitches and added some tiny sunflowers of straight stitches and french knots which look more like rudbeckia (black-eyed-susans) than sunflowers to me.  Then I crocheted a sunflower and tacked it on. (Note to self: maybe I should add some french knots in the center to make it look more like the sunflowers on the ribbon.) 

I didn't want to detract much from the printed fabric so just did a bunch of straight stitches in a v-shape. On the lime green section I did some lazy-daisy flowers in variegated thread.  The lazy daisy stitch is one of the first stitches my grandma taught me. 

And here we have a tractor (button) without a driver in the fly stitch field. 

Here I did a stem stitch in perle #8 in kind of a pea vine free form squiggly meander and then added some leaves.   

Finally, I added a feather stitch with straight stitches and french knots. 

And here is how it looks joined up with three other blocks. 


For Christmas I like to give sets of embroidered dishtowels, crocheted dish cloths and potholders. I finished up a dishtowel yesterday as well as a dish cloth.  That finished dish rag look wonky but it isn't. I'm in the middle of another dishcloth that I hope to finish today. (My retired husband does the dishes and swears by these.)

Slow Sunday Stitching slows down for me in the spring and summer months since I spend a lot of my time off work out in the garden but I still like to stitch a few minutes each evening after dinner and before bed so...

I hope to get a couple of blocks ready for CQ and another dishtowel stamped and ready for embroidery some time today, Slow Stitching Sunday. 

Join the virtual sewing bee, Slow Sunday Stitching, at Kathy's Quilts, if you are doing any hand work. 

9 comments:

deb @ frugal little bungalow said...

Love to see the farm quilt grow...that windmill is just wonderful! :)

Willow River Piecemakers said...

Sunflower is amazing - awesome stitching as always! What a great idea for xmas gifts - darling!

Carla A Few Of My Favorite Things said...

Love your farm theme. I guess growing up on a farm these things bring back a lot of memories. I want to start one of these as soon as a I get a few more projects done. I think I need to start collecting some supplies!

Tanya Quilts in CO said...

That dish towel is precious. I have not made any in awhile, thanks for making me think about them again.

Quilter Kathy said...

Wonderful inspiration for Slow Sunday Stitching... thanks for sharing your stitches!! I would love to give tea towels for gifts... where do you buy the towels to stitch on?

Teresa in Music City said...

I love those dishcloths too! Nothing like them in the stores. Your crazy blocks are wonderful - such fun and interesting stitch designs :)

Chantal said...

Your farm quilt is soooo beautiful!!! Those sunflowers are adorable ... and so tiny! Amazing work going on here and a lot of patience. Love it. Love it ALL!

Cindy Nielsen said...

You have some lovely projects going. I really like you stitches on the crazy quilt blocks and the dish towels. Thanks for sharing.

Julierose said...

I love your Farm quilt! I am finally picking up work on my Nouveau Ladies and am having trouble picking out thread colors as the blocks are already pretty elaborate in their look...I wonder if I should just use black or white to pull them all together...what do you think??I am pretty new to Crazy Quilting, but an old hand at embroidery...hugs, Julierose