Wednesday, April 26, 2017

Spring Things

Hello!

Well Spring has definitely arrived where I am, but it has been cloaked under grey and mostly rainy skies.  I thought a little crafty update with some colourful things might be the best rememdy at the moment.


 My daughter bought me this lovely transferware jug for my birthday.  I was especially happy to put these sunny daffodils in it:  I think blue and white transferware was made for yellow daffodils, don't you?


On My Hooks

These scarves are thankfully not needed at the moment, but I was happy to complete them and use up some more yarn for my stash reduction challenge:


A simple crochet linen stitch and two chunky 'mystery' yarns went into this one.  It's a bit skinnier than I would have liked, but I used up every bit of both yarns.  I wish I knew the brand name because it is really soft and lovely.



 This is my Ravenclaw-Inspired scarf I made for the Harry Potter CAL/KAL on Ravely through the Victorian Podcast Studio.  I used Red Heart Soft yarn, and the pattern is called the 'Mindless Scarf' by Knotted Nicole on Ravely.  This is probably my favourite scarf pattern as it is so easy to work up.  The scalloped sides happen as you go, so once you reach the length you want you are all done.

Moving to something more Spring-like, I hooked up this crescent shaped shawl from the book,
Poetic Crochet by Sarah Kay Hartman.


The pattern is called 'Avalon'.  I used a yarn called Bamboo Pop, in the colourway 'Soothe'.
The yarn is 50% cotton, 50% bamboo, and is really soft and has a lovely drape.


 I wouldn't say this is my favourite colourway, and it was a bit difficult to find the right pattern for it, but now that it's all done and ready to wear I feel more happy with it.

My last hooked project is another mesh shawl using ribbon yarn.  I had this left over from the crochet mat in one of my last posts.  While these are very quick to work up, I have to say I am done with ribbon yarn shawls!  This is my fourth, and this is the last!


While I have been working on lots of different crochet projects, I have been trying to be more disciplined with my cross stitch.  Since January I have been trying to work on one or two projects only, just to to get some of these WIP's completed.


 I was happy to get this one finished, just because I was tired of working with all that DMC 310!  I stitched this on a light pink evenweave fabric I dyed myself, and made a few colour and design changes to the chart.  While it did seem I was just slogging it out for a long while, I am really happy with the finish.  The chart is from the May 2012 issue of Cross Stitcher Magazine.



This project is a gift for my son, who turns into a teenager in July.  I bought the pattern from Holly's Hobbies on Etsy, and changed up the floss colours to some that were a bit brighter.  I don't know which I'm happier about:  the fact that I completed another WIP, or the fact that I have it ready three months before his birthday!

As a little reward for finishing two projects, I did start something new!  This is 'Spring Bird' by Jeanette Douglas.  I bought this chart while on vacation in March.


 The whole time I thought I was stitching on 40 count linen and was feeling very impressed with my advancement as a stitcher.  Well, pride does come before the fall, and it was only when I could not find a frame that I realized I could not have been stitching on 40 count linen:  I was stitching on 28 or 30 count!  Thank goodness there were enough silks in the embellishment pack to finish the design.  Now that I won't be able to display it in a pretty, vintage looking frame, I will have to turn it into a flat-fold or something.

Keeping with the Spring theme, I then stitched this Sheep Sampler from Elizabeth's Designs:



 There is a companion piece to this, but after all those specialty stitches from this design and Spring Bird, I think I will leave it until next year!

Every once in a while I like to do just plain embroidery.  I guess it's not really plain, because some of the stitches can be quite complicated, but all I wanted to do was make a few straight lines with thread on fabric.  I found this embroidery in a past issue of Bustle and Sew magazine:  I think maybe 2015.


 Originally I was planning on painting the hoop white, but I found some white seam binding that belonged to my grandmother and thought I would try wrapping the hoop instead.

Just for the record, here is another picture without that piece of fuzz between the 'P' and 'R' that I only just noticed!



Moving on to sewing, I wanted to make some things with some of the pretty fabrics I also brought home from my March trip.

First up is a small, quilted patchwork table topper using two packages of mini charm squares:


There is no batting between the layers:  just some white flannel on the back so it lays nice and flat.


 I couldn't resist this photo:  the colours just went together so well!

And lastly, (phew!) another project from Bustle and Sew using some of  my new fabrics:



I have a hard cover for my sewing machine but it's so bulky to have hanging around.  This is much prettier, and gave me another opportunity to play around with free motion embroidery.

I started off with a birthday picture so I'll end with another.  We had Afternoon Tea at home and it was just perfect.  The treats came from the local bakery; sandwiches were made by me, and a good time was had by all. The kids even dressed up so that was a gift in itself!


 The floral tablecloth was definitely overkill, but it was my birthday party!

Well once again that was an extremely long post, so thank you for making it this far.  I hope warmer  weather is at your doorstep (or cooler, depending what hemisphere you're in) and your flowers are blooming.

 Until probably next month,  Happy Days to you and thanks for stopping in!

xo  Jenn



5 comments:

Robin in Virginia said...

Jenn, what a great catch up post. Your needle and hook have both been busy. Happy belated birthday! Your table setting for your tea party looked fabulous.

Carol said...

Oh, Jenn, I'm always in awe of how much you create each month--and in so many areas! Crocheting, quilting, cross stitching, embroidery--wow--do you ever sleep?

Love all of your projects, but the two that stand out the most are the darling sewing machine cover and the lovely Spring embroidery finish. That is so sweet. I am usually not a fan of things finished in hoops, but the way you covered it with the seam binding really makes it lovely.

Hope your May is just as successful and you have many hours to create!

mrs. smythe said...

Hi Jenn! Gorgeous and inspiring as always. Happy Birthday - your daughter looks like she's a great gift-giver. That jug is beautiful, and, you're right, it looks fabulous filled with daffodils. Congrats on getting through so many projects. I was especially impressed with the cross-stitch. Loved the "Make Do and Mend" and also the "Genius" pattern. My oldest daughter would definitely like something along those lines. Fun to find cross-stitch that would appeal to teens. I love the colors and style of the "Spring Bird" - also the beadwork around the edges. I didn't realize you could combine beading with cross-stitch. Cross-stitch has really added a lot since I last looked for kits and things years back. You make me want to start a project! And, great idea, wrapping that hoop. Clever. Finally, love the colors of the quilt and all your pretty tea things. Looking forward to seeing what next post brings. Oh, and thank you for the warning about ribbon yarn shawls! :)

Becki said...

Belated Happy Birthday greetings, Jenn. I have an April birthday, too! While your tea party picture was the last thing posted, I'll first of all say I love that you did that for yourself.

I'm so glad to see another post with more of your beautiful projects. I want you to know that you've been something of an inspiration to me. Since reading your last post (in March) when I have been tempted to buy more yarn I remind myself that "Jenn is trying to crochet down her stash", and "what a great idea I thought that was when I saw what she had made". So far it's working, but I can't tell you how many times I've put yarn into an on-line cart when a sale advertisement comes into my inbox. So far I've managed to back out and leave the yarn sitting there. We'll see how long I can keep that up. I love the latest things you've crocheted. I think that crescent shawl from Poetic Crochet is very pretty. I understand what you're saying about it being difficult to find the right pattern for that yarn, but I do think it's lovely in that shawl.

Your cross stitch is beautiful, as always. That GeNiUS picture is genius! I love it!
And not knowing what a flat fold is, I looked it up. What a great idea for displaying - anything, really. When looking at the first SPRING embroidered picture, I didn't notice the "fuzz". I went back to look at it and suddenly it popped out at me. I would have never noticed on my own. But I totally get that once you did, it would bother you. lol

Your sewing projects are great inspiration, too. That table runner is perfect with your tea pot and tea cup. And what a pretty sewing machine cover.

I'm only sorry now to be done and to have to wait another month to see what you've created. I'm so impressed with all the different types of thing you manage to work on - and YAY! for so many completions! I hope you have a great May.

Brigitte said...

This is just another wonderfully creative post, full of all the lovely things that you come up with during the month.

All these scarves are so lovely, and you also managed to finish some stitchy things. And they all reflect your spring mood. I particularly love Spring Bird, such a lovely design. It will look great as a flat fold.

Great to see your new table topper and the new sewing machine cover.

I love the table that you set for your birthday party. Everything comes so beautifully together - the flowers, the tea cups, the tea cosy with the stitched spring flowers, everything is perfect. It must have been a wonderful tea party. And happy belated birthday!

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