Rooted in Mississippi

Despite what many people seem to think, Mississippi NeedleArts is alive and well!  We are still the only chapter of the Embroiderers’ Guild of America in the state. Although we are small, we meet monthly and have had a wide variety of educational programs over the last year and a half.  This Saturday, we will begin working on a Brazilian Dimensional Embroidery (BDE) project using the Bypass Heart, a free pattern from my web site.

Since my sample was stitched in silk buttonhole twist and not rayon threads, it feels like cheating to call it BDE.  I really need to sit down and stitch another sample in EdMar, but I seem to find other things to do, like yoga, belly dance, etc.  I also took road trip to Canton to see Lisanne and wander around the square with my friend Anne, after we had lunch at Petra Cafe.

I suppose I will have my chance to stitch tomorrow, while I am sitting around the house waiting for the plumbers to show up and reinstall the big water filter.  Maybe I can get inspired to collect my materials and start building a little nest on the sofa. I think I have old episodes of Project Runway and House still on TiVo to keep me company.

Comments(2)

I gave a lecture on Crazy Quilting to the Mississippi Quilt Association June Gathering last Friday at about this time.  I was surprised by how many people were there! I had not spoken to crowd that large in many years and I am not ashamed to admit I got a little dry mouth.  I wish we could get that many people excited about embroidery in our fair state. They used the facilities at the Rankin County campus of Hinds Community College. They were an interesting group and I really enjoyed my time with them.

I think it went very well, but you never really know how you come off in these things.  Rhonda gave me some very nice feedback, as did a few member who stopped to talk to me afterwards.  I took a ton of things that could be passed around, so they could examine my work and see some of the blocks, projects, and techniques up close and personal.  I was well prepared and well versed in my subject matter and I wrote out my lecture in advance instead of just depending on notes.  I did ad-lib a little, but I wanted to make sure I did not leave anything out of my history and examination of current trends.

I also set my cell phone to vibrate when I had 15 minutes left, so I could wrap things up in plenty of time and let the program get back on schedule.  Personally, I think ending on time is almost as important as giving them good information.

Comments(3)

I created several samples for class tomorrow at the Flowood Library. All of them, except for the crow, were just basic free hand drawings. FYI, the circles can be made into pins or covered buttons. While I was working on samples, I remembered that when I learned to punch over a decade ago, we used AIDA. It was one of the few fabrics available, but it was also good for learning, because it is easy to visualize needle placement when you are working on a grid.

By the way, the crow design was from the book Miniature Punchneedle Embroidery.

I have already heard from Cynthia. She is in town tonight and will be there in the morning.

Comments(2)

Well, I decided to make the last ATC a punchneedle design. I had not used size 12 Perle Cotton, so that is exactly what I chose to use for this crow. I can definitely say I prefer other threads and flosses, even with all of the rethreading.  I just thought it was important to try something new before class. The perle cotton has too much twist and comes out a little ropey for my taste. I prefer a softer thread, because it creates a nicer nap.

The crow is not my original design, it came from one of the punchneedle books where it was intended for a pin, I just changed the shape of the background to make it work as an Artist Trading Card. I will not be able to actually finish it until after the class on Saturday. Folks always want to see the back side.

I am looking forward to the class and introducing the chapter to the Cameo punchneedle.

Comments(1)

I had a good day on Wednesday, I got plenty of sleep, I took a nice yoga class, then ate lunch with Rhonda at Aladdin’s. We chatted, I saw some of her new things and she loaned me a serger to see if I like it enough to buy one for my business.

I am teaching a punchneedle embroidery class on March 29th and a silk ribbon embroidered Iris Vest two weeks later. I need to get my classes down and make some proposals to the craft center and maybe even set some things up for ARTichoke.  I should probably work up some proposals for EGA too.

Today I am taking my supplies up to ARTichoke to work on Artist Trading Cards.  I need to get a few more finished to complete the challenge from last year on CyberStitchers.  I really want to be able to send everyone their ATCs before the next general meeting.

I also want to share a few pictures of dog cuteness and one of them is even fiber related!

First, Rudy did me the honor of modeling the sample socklet from the class last weekend. It was knit from yarn I spun that weekend. I am not likely to knit from my homespun without washing it first in the future, but this was for class. I have enough yarn to make a second sock, so that there is a pair.

Princess is digging some really giant holes in the back yard. This particular has gotten even deeper since the photo. Ironically, she abandoned it for another spot on Tuesday, but went back to it after the heavy rain. She spends about half her days completely covered in mud.  She really seems to have fun while she is out there.

Comments(3)

There is tremendous satisfaction in actually finishing things!

I also finished Barbara Jackson’s Strawberry Trio! It was a great little project and I worked on it in front of the television.

We also worked out the plans to do a Punchneedle Basics class for our Mississippi NeedleArts chapter on March 29, 2008. Many thanks to Lisanne at P is for Primitive for helping me get the cameo punchneedles for the class. It is free for members and just $25 for non-members. I just need a head count before the class, so I will know how many kits to purchase.

Comments(3)

The classes at P is for Primitive went well and seem to have been a big hit. We had a full house on Friday, but several no-shows on Saturday. It is just kind of funny, since the Friday class was an after thought and the Saturday class was technically overbooked. We started the classes worried that Lisanne would run out of beginner needlefelting kits and ended up with extras on everything.

Lisanne surprised me by being one of the students on Friday and she made not one, but two bunnies over the two days! Actually, everyone who stayed through the whole class was able to complete a rabbit, so they went home with something tangible. I have gotten some very good feedback and even some requests for more patterns, so I think that qualifies as a success.

Yesterday afternoon, Lisa and I took some embroidery over to the Flowood Public Library to meet with a reporter from the Rankin Record. He is doing an article on Mississippi NeedleArts. I was tickled when he was able to recognize the crazy quilted piece on his own. I look forward to seeing the article. This Saturday will be the first time we will not be open to the public, since we will be participating in the Barbara Jackson Crewel Workshop.

Today, I will be at ARTichoke and I will get to see how I actually did in February.

Edited to add some dog photos!

Comments(2)

A poor guy came to my door with a hard luck story and asked for work.  The nice neighbor has wanted the bush cut down by his driveway for some time. The man said he would cut down the bush and trim some trees and bushes for a set dollar amount.  He took the money, he only cut down the one bush (no trimming) and he managed to slice the cable line that provides our internet access.  Actually, he cut the wire in two separate places.

I will post about the bunny class tomorrow.  I am behind in everything, but I plan to do my best to catch up in the next day or two.

Comments(2)

I made another rabbit for class. Here he is sitting on top of the kits for students.

All of the kits are packed and ready for class. They have wool roving, beads, crystals, wool thread, plus beading needle and thread for sewing the eyes. I need to make another run out to the store, to pick up some darning needles.

I have all of the instructions and the pattern diagram done and printed. I am so glad I took the plunge and bought the color laser printer. Not only will these not bleed if they get wet, it was able to do two sided printing without any manual intervention! I specifically got the printer for instructions and it worked like a charm. It has also been wonderful for printing price tags and fabric bands.

It was such a beautiful day today, that I cooked hamburgers on the grill.

On a sad note, I got word that Dee Stark passed away unexpectedly on February 18, 2008. She is the author of “A Spider Web for Luck” a book about symbolism in crazy quilting. According to her obituary, the memorial service will be held on Sunday, March 9, 2008.

Comments(5)

The rat is finished! Happy Chinese New Year y’all!

So is my submission, or submissions, for the Craftsman’s Guild. I took a whole box filled with forms, photographs and samples up to the Guild this morning. I am actually a couple of days ahead of the Friday deadline. I suppose that is better than a couple of days late. Now I have to sit around and bite my nails and wonder and worry about how I will do with the jury!

I bought the last bits to complete my kits for the Needlefelting class that I am teaching in Canton at P is for Primitive. They will actually be cute, with all the parts stuffed into one of those large plastic eggs. Oh, and the beads/crystals for the eyes will be inside a smaller egg for safe keeping. I love eggs and bunnies…which is kind of crazy since I do not celebrate Easter. Oh, well, the older I get, the clearer it becomes that G-d has a sense of humor.

Comments(4)