..off for a stitchin' day...

This one is coming along nicely......

.....tiny seed stitches around one of those gorgeous birdies...

...and a few "faux-shishas".

I'm off for a stitching day with Sandra...

...two women...

...lots of threads...

...lots of chatter....

Goodness knows what ideas will come out of it!! :-)))

You all have a happy Wednesday too...

x C

...more chemanthy...

Hardly any snow left on the ground now...

...and I'm stitching away listening to the gentle sound of rain on the window pane.

Not too keen on the amount of water coming down...

...but I do love the pitter-patter. It's soothing :-)

Plenty of bits and bobs have been done over the last couple of days...

...and this little green baby is finished.

I indulged in some more "chemanthy" circles...just LOVE that stitch!!

Back to it....

....got loads of printing to do this afternoon :-)))

x C

Tidying find...

The three days spent tidying my workroom over the confined-to-quarters-holiday not only gave me back a wonderful un-cluttered space to create in...

...but also turned up a few long-lost friends...

...one of which was this old Indian print block.

Isn't it a beauty?!

(Although I understand why folk buy these by the basketload to put in nice, elegant arrangements by the side of the picturesque fireplace, I DO wish they'd leave them alone for those of us that want to USE THEM!!  OK....grizzle over with......)

This block has been well used and had to be scrubbed with my special 35p plastic toothbrush from LIDL that is kept for this very purpose....

...but there are a few blank spots where the wood has begun to disintegrate.

No worries though...

...that's why we have a mug of varying sizes of little paintbrushes isn't it...

...to fill in any gaps. :-)

This piece has now been "Bondawebbed" to some black felt...

...the machine loaded with suitable thread...

...and my treddle-peddle foot is itching to get going!

It will, of course, have some hand-stitched crosses too... :-D

Have a happy Monday

x C

French goodies and new work...

Of course I tried to get some vintage lace bits...

...especially at the flea market in Chartres on the Sunday Morning...

...but failed miserably!

What I did find there was this little book...




...stuffed full of "les mots sages"...

...that will find their way into some small pieces of mixed-media collage.

Just look at the marbling too....




So, with no vintage lace on the horizon, I plumped for new instead!



Luckily there was the delightful "Mercerie du St Pierre" in Montmartre, where I was able to pick up these beauties (for collage too).





(This last one will make gorgeous window nets in a not-so-little French house!)

Now a happy bunny!

Since I've been home, I've been getting stuck into a few new things...

..like brightly coloured Indian-flavoured stitching..



...and small sample pieces for my new exhibition theme, "Stitched in Stone", inspired by ancient Mayan stone carving.



This one is a complete departure ....

..and it's going to be both fun ....

...and a major challenge, because some of the pieces will be 1m x 1.5m.

Machine quilting is a new method for major work....

...I hope it all goes ok....

...as I have rather large walls to fill in August and November! :-o