Happy Mail day again.......

Friday was another happy day for me with the incoming mail.  I had been expecting some new yarn, which was on order for a short while.  This is baby camel hair, handspun, from Canada.   I purchased this from Kiri at www.yayforyarn.com.au  It feels so soft and I'm dying to start another scarf for one of the girls.  I hope you can see the colour clearly enough, it's 'camel'...................

Yet another treat for me was the arrival of some very good quality wool felt.  I have had a thing for gathering together wool felt of late, the needlecases and all that..............  The colours in this bundle are just beautiful, as is the quality.  I purchased these from a store in Victoria, the service is excellent and I shall be looking forward to when I 'need' something more from Sandra at www.winterwoodtoys.com.au  I've photographed these with a piece of William Morris print, as I'm hoping to use the dark navy and this print for the inside of one of my needlecases.

And now, ta da, last, but by no means least, I have to say how lovely this little ATC is.  This was made by a lady I've met on various sites.  She says she is very new to ATC making, but this one is so pretty.  I hope the little card I sent as a swap reaches her safely.  Thankfully, when you click on this photo to have a closer look, it is not so squished looking!!!  You can view some of her creations on her blog:  http://socr8v.blogspot.com/

Another TOM tried.......

............and rethinking the square red button!!!

 
Well, it's done, and I'm so totally happy with this piece of experimentation.  When the girls over on 3CS asked us to try water colour crayons, etc., I decided that I'd finally found a way to use a beautiful piece of wool felt that a friend had sent me about two years ago.  It's one of the lovely dyed pieces you can buy from Colourstreams here in Australia [www.colourstreams.com.au].

When I started working on this, all I could think of was a rainbow.  So, I began colouring each section as if it was a 'square' rainbow.  I wanted the corners to having flowing lines, because the dyeing on the felt was 'flowing'.  It seemed to need 'something' so I found out some crystal shred/angelina fibre look-alike, which I spread sparsely over the surface of the painted area, then covered it with fine black tulle.  After ironing, it just took on a life of it's own.  It's hard to see how beautifully sparkly/blingey it is with the camera.  The black stitching seemed the way to go, as black always brings out colour.

When I thought about the 'inside', I thought I'd need to anchor the felt with a big button, and therefore the stitching might show through to the outside, hence the need for the square red button [to hide said stitches].  However,  I decided it was more prudent to fuse the black lining to the stitched outer, and just machine stitch the felt to the lining prior to fusing.  Then I only needed to cover that stitching with a button, so no need to stitch through to the outside.  I managed to buy a square red button, but it has become part of the stash now, and waiting for the next time................

Enjoy..............

An SOS.......the dog and the duck....

Had an urgent request to babysit yesterday, which meant quite an early rise, as I had a distance to travel to play 'grandma'.  

I thought I'd share the glorious sunrise from yesterday.

Our little lady just loves animals, and has quite an odd couple when it comes to pets.  Her dog and duck are good mates believe it or not.  I tried and tried to get a photograph of them 'together', but it wasn't happening yesterday.  I think the duck has the upper hand!!!!

As you can see the duck is in 'duck heaven' happily spending it's days in a large dam quite close to the house.  I will keep calling it an 'it'.  It goes by the name of Molly, but has grown to be quite large, and I have a sneaking suspicion that it might be a male.  I haven't been around ducks for a long time, so please anyone, help me out here!!!!

Water Colour Pencils

I'm currently doing some fabric colouring as part of the 3CS Technique of the Month programme.  We've been asked to use water colour crayons/shiva sticks.  I don't have the water colour crayons, but have tried out my water colour pencils again.  

This is a square of firm woven cotton that I've drawn up into sections.  It's my 'rainbow square'.  I'm not entirely sure how the final product will look, as I'll be stitching and embellishing as I go along.

I'm hoping to make this into a small parcel needlecase, similar to one done by a friend and fellow blogger.  You can view her version on her blog:


http://dians-beachtextiles.blogspot.com/2010/05/needle-book.html

This photo shows the colour after I've painted/dried the fabric.  I've used textile medium/water in a 1:2 ratio, and ironed the fabric after drying.  Now, here's hoping it looks the part...............

Out & About

This morning on rising, we were greeted with one of the thickest fogs I've seen for a long time.  It took hours to disperse, after which I thought I'd look for something interesting to 'snap'.  Many of the webs were high in the trees, but I managed a shot of this one.  The second photo shows the droplets of moisture clinging to the web.

I could hear 'the boss' working at the shed, so thought I might see some interesting 'shapes' to photograph in readiness for some Photoshoping in the future.  There are many interesting bits and pieces in and around the workplace.  I was fortunate to find him welding, and this shot didn't look too bad.

I hope readers will enjoy these few old things that took my eye.  I'd love to do some fabric 'rusting', but haven't quite worked out what to do yet, nor done any real research on the subject.




Now, hopefully this post will look the way I hope it does, and thanks to a fellow blogger for her patience and explanations on 'how-to get it right' [we hope].  At the moment we are enjoying a glorious autumn day, although we really would like some rain.

UFO Fever

Just lately I've dragged out a few projects in the hope of resurrecting my enthusiasm for them. I did want to do them in the first place I suppose, so why are they not finished???

I've noticed several other ladies who seem to be in the same frame of mind.

I will just share these two pieces with readers. The applique was supposed to be a cushion, but I am leaning now towards making it into a wall hanging, as I feel it might suit my sister's decor in one room. It is one of the few 'kit' things I've ever purchased, and a design by one of our well known applique and fabric dyeing specialists here in Queensland [http://www.diannejohnstonproducts.com.au/].

The other piece I started as an experiment in texture more than anything. I began with a simple rectangle of delustred satin, following with chain stitches [varied stitches and threads], in wavy lines. Again, I originally planned a three-fold envelope type purse, but taking it out now and looking with 'new' eyes, I'm wondering if I shouldn't make a little 'dorothy' type bag with it. I have lots of lovely gold cording for the 'drawstring', and only need to place a few more beads in the selected areas. I would welcome any thoughts on this matter, as the jury is not out on this one yet!!!!

Blogging glitches

Hi everyone, I'm not sure what is happening with Blogger, but please forgive me if you have commented and it seems to have 'disappeared'. I have had several comments just 'go' on me in the last few days.

Thank you to those who visit and care to leave a message. It is much appreciated.

A very bleak morning here for me, and two spits of rain, but I am not holding out hope for much. I suppose it will be just enough to bring a new south-westerly wind.