All together now...

I’ve FINALLY finished the little red basket quilt top!  Color me happy because all those French knots on the border made me delirious!  It took an entire 20 yard skein of Thread Gatherer size 10 pearl silk in "Old Lace" to do the job.  That's a whole bunch of French knots!  The effort was worth it and I'm looking forward to quilting this piece.

My blogging absence can be explained in two words:  deadline and spring.  I had a sewing deadline which I have met.  Can't show you what I was working on just yet.

And Spring!  Nothing is lovelier than Spring in the mountains.  We have had a cool season and lots of rain.  The flowers have been particularly spectacular, especially the hybrid rhododendrons.  The native rhododendron in our neighborhood will be blooming soon.  Here are a few flower photos from my garden.  Can't you just see them in appliqué blocks?

Rhododendron

Poppies by the mailbox

A bank of rhododendron near the front porch

Columbine

Columbine

In addition to gardening, I've been doing quite a bit of hiking.  Here are a couple of photos from last week's hike to Crabtree Falls on the Blue Ridge Parkway.  This spot is a wildflower paradise.  The galax were blooming profusely on the forest floor.  Galax is in high demand by florists for their long-lasting leaves and they are becoming scarce because of illegal poaching.

Galax

Crabtree Falls on the Blue Ridge Parkway

So I have been busy with the other parts of my life, but sewing is always at the top of the list.  I'll get back to blogging regularly now that my flower and vegetable gardens are under control.  I have just started a new block and in future posts I'll show my progress and offer tips for complex appliqué.  Until then, happy stitching!

More Little Red Baskets...

Here are the rest of the little red baskets for the small quilt I’m making. The fabrics are all Daiwabo taupes.  I think they're looking really cute and they are super fast!  Using the prepared edge technique for appliqué, it only takes a couple of hours to do one of the more complicated baskets.  The easy ones are even faster!   Once the appliqué is finished, it's on to the fun part -- embellishment.  The basket above makes use of some lovely Mokuba organdy flowers that I dyed.  The ribbon bow is a lovely taupey color called "twig" from Mary Jo Hiney Designs.  The feather stitch on the basket is done in silk floss from Gloriana Threads in "alpine taupe" and "dried roses."  I am always fascinated by the names for colors!

This basket has a more minimalist design and looks a bit Native American to me.

This basket features what my husband calls "whirly flowers."  They are done in Gloriana 4mm ribbon, "dried roses."  The Queen Ann's lace is Gloriana silk flass in "gilded pink" and Thread Gatherer's "honeysuckle white."

The simplicity of this little basket is sweet.

This one is a bit on the fancy side.  The flowers are 7mm ribbon from Gloriana in "gilded ink"  and Mary Jo Hiney in "floribunda."  In the style of Japanese quilters, I used French knots to highlight the handles and upper rim of the basket.  The Japanese quilters will put French knots in abundance just about anywhere to achieve a beautiful outlined look!

Stay tuned for the little quilt top all put together -- it's coming soon!

In the meantime, March Madness is a big deal at my house. Although my husband was briefly unhappy that his Kentucky Wildcats didn't make it to the big dance this year, we're happy to have a great team to cheer to victory -- the University of Miami!  GO 'CANES!!!

Little Red Baskets

Several months ago, I began working on some little red basket blocks inspired by Japanese design and fabrics.  Now that I'm home from Appliqué Academy, I've had time to get back to them. There's this gorgeous large leafy print with Queen Anne's Lace flowers that I've been saving for a dramatic border and it is the inspiration for the colors in these little blocks.  More on that later when I have the rest of the blocks embellished.  In the meantime, here are the baskets I've finished with embroidered flower embellishments.

All nine blocks are appliquéd.  They were very fast -- gotta love that!  The blocks will finish at six inches and there will be a total of nine blocks in the little quilt top.  I'm planning to bite the bullet and actually hand quilt this little piece myself.  Wish me luck!

In quilting news, be sure to check out Tresa Jones' new blog:

        Baltimore on the Prairie

It's full of inspiration and reflects Tresa's positive, giving nature. 

And here's something to make you laugh:  Stella seems to think she's top dog.  Probably because she is!

Here in Florida, it feels like Spring is just around the corner.  As we head into that magical time of transitioning from one season to the next, I wish you gorgeous days with time spent stitching something you love!

A Sweet Detour...

A funny thing happened on my way to the next Baltimore Album block!  And it’s all the fault of my dear friend, Patsy!  She tempted me with a picture of a darling quilt by Japanese designer, Yoko Saito.  You can see a picture of it on her web site,  Quilt Party

Anyway, Patsy and I both love this little quilt.  Plus, she’s in Miami and I’m in Boone and we miss each other.  So we both ordered the book that contains the patterns, “Floral Bouquet Quilt” from One World Fabrics.   Then, we started planning and swapping fabrics and totally got into trouble.  In short order, we were both stitching away and here are my first two blocks.

The first one took about 3 days to complete.  The second one was more like five days because the embroidered Queen Anne’s lace isn’t hard but it takes longer than you might expect.  We’re not trying to break speed records!  It’s just that Patsy and I are both more than a little gratified to finish something in days, not weeks or months.  I've had to reacquaint myself with operating a sewing machine!  These little blocks give me a sense of accomplishment even if they’re not as complex as Baltimore Album blocks.

I have taken a few liberties with the patterns and added lace – the beads will come later.  I love the Japanese taupe fabrics and the scrappiness of the blocks.  I have some of the Yoko Saito fabrics but am digging in to my stash of  Daiwabo fabrics, also from Japan.  They are like "buttah" to stitch!  You will find links to quilt shops that carry Japanese taupe fabrics by clicking on "Places to Visit" on the right.  

Coincidentally, the Queen Anne’s lace is blooming here in the mountains and it’s especially lovely this year.  Here are some pictures from my morning walk.

I’ll soon return to my first love, Baltimore Album appliqué.  But for now, my little trip to Japan has been a sweet detour.