Crazy for Roses part 3

Here are the blocks in the bottom row of my CQ, Crazy for Roses. This first block, on the left side, features a fan. The black velveteen curved piece on the outside of the fan actually has my city and state embroidered on it, but for privacy reasons, I blurred that out of the picture in PhotoShop. The black piece in the bottom left corner of this block has a rosebud that I painted on, using white acrylic paint, then I beaded around the outline of the rose. More silk ribbon roses are on each side of the fan:

This is the middle block of the bottom row. I embroidered a third quote about roses that I like. I also embroidered the outline of a rose on the red fabric. The lace on top of this block is a piece I cut off some extra lace I've had for 19 years. I originally bought the lace when I made a dress for my brother-in-law's wedding, but I bought too much.

This is the block on the right bottom of the quilt. I used a stencil and some acrylic paint to paint the butterfly on the right side. The gold heart in the bottom red patch has the initials of my three children.

I don't think I mentioned this earlier, but the borders for this quilt are made of red velveteen. When my daughter was 3 years old, I bought a few yards of velveteen to make her a Christmas dress. I was pregnant with my third child that fall, and I was absolutely exhausted, so the dress never got made. Seven years later, when I was making this quilt, I remembered that red velveteen sitting in my armoire and decided to use it for the borders. See, it's good to have a stash and not throw away fabrics and laces. You never know when they may be useful :)

Happy stitching!

Crazy for Roses part 2

Here are the blocks in the middle row of my crazy quilt, Crazy for Roses. I had trouble getting a good shot of the block on the left. I think the shiny fabrics kept making problems. The heart in the black velveteen patch in the center of the block was made with silk ribbon embroidery roses. Mike is my husband's name.

For the middle block, I embroidered my initials. I also used pearl beads to accent the letters. The large ribbon rose was purchased for this block:

The main part of this block is another quote, this time from an old Petra song (I think it's from the late 80's or early 90's). When I was making this block, I sent an email to Bob Hartman to ask if it was okay to use the words on the quilt. I was a bit surprised that he even emailed back, but he said that it was fine. The rose picture on the bottom of the block was one I found online at a copywrite-free website. Unfortunately it's been a few years and I don't remember what site. I printed it on transfer paper, ironed it onto cotton sateen fabric, and appliqued it onto the block.

That's all for now. Have a fantastic day of stitching!

Crazy for Roses part 1

Although I made my first crazy quilt in 2007, I've never posted any pictures of it. So I've got a few to share today. I call this quilt "Crazy for Roses." Roses have always always been my favorite flower. I love their beautiful shape and their scent.

Shortly after I became interested in making a crazy quilt, the quilt guild that I used to belong to had a challenge to make a quilt in the style of the 1800's. Although I didn't finish it in time for the challenge, I thoroughly enjoyed the process! The blocks are all 9" square, and the border is about 7" wide.

This block is in the top row, left side. I love quotes, so I embroidered the famous Shakespeare quote onto the center of this block. Then I added a variety of fabrics, embroidery stitches, beads, and buttons. On the right side of the block, I sewed a curvy vine, then placed some rose buttons going up the vine.

The block, above, is one of my favorites on this quilt. I hand-stitched these roses with a satin stitch. I got the idea for this block from, you guessed it, Maria Wilson Beardsley's c. 1883 crazy quilt, pictured in Penny McMorris' book, Crazy Quilts. I was so thrilled when I found the rose ribbon that's on the seam between this block and the next one!

This is the third block on the top row. That white is a textured ribbon I found at an antique shop. I satin-stitched the purple butterfly at the top of the block. I also embroidered the year I made this, 2007, and some small flowers. The blue circle in the white patch in the lower right is a Czech glass button I found at International Quilt Show.

My son wants me to take him to Target, so I better be off. I'll post more pictures of this quilt in the coming weeks.

February block finished

Here is my completed block for February for CQJP 2012. I finished it the other night while watching my latest obsession, Downton Abbey:

First I added French knots to the ends of the feather stitches. I used 7 mm silk ribbon for the outer stitches and 4 mm silk ribbon for the inner stitches. Then I added three clear glass seed beads around each of the larger French knots. They don't show up real well in the photo, but they add a lot of texture to the block. I also added gold seed beads to the end of each buttonhole stitch. I sewed a few white seed beads to a few spots on the flowers that surround the monogram. Finally, a button and bead cluster in the corner of the lace to finish things up:

February block for CQJP

Here is my bare block for February, which will be part of my 25th Anniversary crazy quilt:

Since I love the blocks in antique crazies, I modeled this block after the four corner blocks in the quilt "Aesthetic Dress Crazy" by Caroline Kountz Jones, showcased on page 49 of Cindy Brick's book, Crazy Quilts.

When I was making my first CQ, I bought an old hanky that's monogrammed with an "S," since my last name starts with S. I didn't end up using it on that CQ, so I decided to use it on this block. The edges of the hanky are plain (you can see at the top or side of the block, where the fabrics extend past the 6" stitching). I added lace on the two sides of the hanky.

Here's the block with some embroidery:

For the edge where the lace is sewn onto the hanky, I used three different-sized button-hole stitches. Then I made a diagonal chain stitch at the top of every third button-hole. I added some feather stitching to the backwards L shape, with some of the stitching holding down the edges of the lace.

That's about all for now.

Finished January Block

Here is my finished block for January for CQJP 2012. This block is for the 25th wedding anniversary crazy quilt I'm working on. To see other blocks I've made, click on the "Anniversary Quilt" label at the end of this post.

This block commemorates the two trips my husband and I have taken to Canada, in 1994 and in 2011. The first trip was without kids and the second was with kids and with another family who we're close friends with.

Awhile ago, I thought I saw some small number beads at one of the local craft stores, but when I was working on this block, I couldn't find them! So I decided to just use a thin Pigma pen to write the two years. From now on, I guess I need to just buy things for this quilt when I see them. There's nothing wrong with a big stash, right?

When we were in Toronto last summer, we went to the top of the CN Tower. Since I had already made some of the other blocks for this quilt, I bought a tie tack to go on this block. I think it looks great in the triangle-shaped fabric:

At Niagara Falls, I couldn't find a charm or tie tack that was specific to the Falls, so I bought this Canadian Maple Leaf:

January block continues...

I've got most of my beading done on my January block for CQJP 2012. Here's how the whole block looks:Here's the seam by the lace on the left side. Besides the clusters of 3 seed beads, I put a larger clear bead on the lace in the center of each motif:

Here's the seam on the far right side of the block. I used sead beads, bugle beads, and large beads that look like donuts:

On the ribbon/trim on the right side of the block, I sewed a mother of pearl button with three gold seed beads inside each of the three shapes that I had previously outlined in embroidery:

Finally, I added seed beads to this seam treatment on the left side of that ribbon/trim. I just love that hand-dyed silk ribbon I used in this seam. The variegated colors are so pretty:

That's it for now. Have a fantastic week!