Playing with paint

Playing with paint
abstract art

17 September 2014

Busy Busy Days

I think all my blog friends must be despairing of me ever coming back, but like a bad penny I always turn up eventually.

These past few weeks have gone in a whirl and there are more busy times to come....will get to that.

Through it all I have managed to have a finish of one of the later pages....and may have to extend my expected finish date the rate I am going.

This page is about playing with textures.  I attended a workshop at the quilt group last year where we learned a couple of techniques.  This one was free motion stitching layers and then burning the top layer.  Well I used that as a background for a collage, something I am coming to love, but still learning.


The leaf on the right is  a piece of crazy patch from many moons ago, and carried the leaf shapes across to the second piece of burned fabric.I stitched the seams in gold thread. The check leaf on the left is the same pattern as the  taffeta fabric I had my first long dress made from when I was 17.

At present I am home, but for the past two weeks have been helping Himself prepare for a hip replacement operation.  He came over to see the surgeon, and was fortunate enough to get a date this month so there have been a flurry of visits to various people, and lots of paperwork. 

We spent a week at serenity getting things organised there.  The op is next week, and he is here with me now.  I have had to wrap him in cotton wool because the surgeon said if there is even a suggestion of broken skin he wont operate because of the chance of infection.

He will stay with me again after the op, and then I will go back to Serenity with him until he is able to look after himself again. 

This afternoon I have escaped to the back room where the computer is determined to have some time to myself.

While I was at serenity I had a couple of days sewing with my friend and old neighbour, Julie.  She has been working on a schwalm cushion cover I started her on about 5 years ago, so it was good to see how much she is achieving with a bit more encouragement.


Julie is a great friend, with a lovely nature and is very supportive of me.
Here is a photo of her piece.  She had never even heard of pulled thread work or schwalm before she started this so even though it has been a long time project she has done well. She was always an enthusiastic learner and took to everything I taught her with enthusiasm.


The weather was lovely while at the farm, and the flowers are all coming out in bud.
 From top left my yellow orchid, pic of the bush, azaleas, marmalade bush, rainforest tree with seeds, monsteria , iris in bud, old faithful purple crucifix, and a white iris.  The garden there is so neglected it is lovely to see some of my plants surviving

It is almost wine o'clock now, a time I look forward to at the moment
happy stitching my friends till next time.......



12 comments:

  1. Does sound as if you are busy, and still on going

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  2. Good to see you are working on your pages again Shirley, it makes me realise I should not have thrown out a lot of my samples I did when I did city and guilds, I only kept the ones I really liked the techniques of.
    Thinking of Frank as he is about to undergo the op and your tending him afterwards.

    What a lovely cushion your friend is doing, I do have a book on schwalm but not done any yet!

    The flowers, none of the second row I have seen before. It is good to see what grows elsewhere, here of course we are entering autumn and the leaves are falling off the trees now,

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  3. My goodness, you have been busy. I hope the hip replacement surgery goes well. A friend of mine just had that done this spring and she is doing very well now.

    It's good to 'see' you. Your friends' work is lovely. That's not something I've tried and by the looks of it, it would take me years too.

    May you have peace and strength in the weeks ahead.

    Love and hug ~ FlowerLady

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  4. So glad to see you again in your blog.......

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  5. Sending best wishes for a very successful surgery and speedy recovery to Himself.

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  6. A lovely blog post worth waiting for, friend. Julie has done really well on the schwalm. Good luck over the coming weeks and don't over do it - that is an order! Love your leaf page - you really know how to put the colours together

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  7. Oh, Shirley! You have had, adn will continue to have your hands full! I love your beautiful leaf pages! I have never heard of BURNING! Goodness...it sounds quite scary!!! Anyway, the leaf page on the right I adore! So fallish too. Just gorgeous! Best of luck to His Highness in his operation. You are such a loving and wonderful person, Shirley! I think you are awesome! I sure wish we lived closer! It's always amazing to think of how we have met from so far away! You are just a peachy peach!
    God bless you, Shirley! Oh, and BTW, you are looking fabulous! Lovely photo of you and your friend, Julie. Tell her, your other friend, Julie, says hello! Is she a blogger, by chance???
    I am wanting to make skeletonized leaves for card making today, or soon. http://www.wikihow.com/Make-Skeleton-Leaves

    Love ya---Julie

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  8. I love your leaf page! I had never heard of burning the fabric but you sure did create a nice texture for your piece. Your friend's schwalm work is beautiful. Looks like your garden is doing well. Best wishes on the surgery, take care of yourself too.

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  9. Full marks, Shirley, for experimenting :-)
    Say "well done" to your friend, schwalm is not easy.
    xx

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  10. I am jealous that Julie gets to learn, in person, from the best! Schwalm is something I'd like to take the time to learn. I love all things intricate.
    Lovely reading about your updated goings on.
    Hugs to you and don't forget to take care of yourself as you take care of him.
    Maria

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  11. LOL wine o'clock. we live by that clock!
    you look great in that photo relaxed and happy.

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  12. How did I miss this post? lovely photo of you, Shirley! Hope all has gone well with Himself and his operation. Glad your garden blooms are surviving without your TLC. Hope they'll all be in good form to welcome you both when you return to Serenity, Take care.

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