2010 ESD Enchanted Challenge: Fairy Treasure - Keeping Me Company

As I work on my Fairy Treasure project Madie likes to snooze under my sewing machine desk! She was there while I pieced and sewed it together and even now when I embellish! She's keeping me company! ;)

2010 ESD Enchanted Challenge: Fairy Treasure - Pieced Blocks

I finished piecing the blocks and got them cut to proper size today! I believe this is the final configuration and it's ready to sew together! I bought a few new green fabrics that I also included so some centers aren't the same as I originally planned, but I think it's better!
The rules stated to use half the fabrics included in the package and there were 13 pieces and I used 7 all six of the greens and the shimmery-striped fabric that the fairy silkie will sit on. It was for sure a challenge because some of the greens weren't my fave shades so I had a puzzle to mix and match all the different shades of greens. I love how it turned out with lots of texture.
I also cut out the silkie in an oval shape and I love how the leaf beads look around the edge! I need to buy another string of the leaf beads! LOL I'm also thinking of ways to add more foliage around the silkie too.
As for my little background story I think my fairy's name will be either Emerald or Peridot I can't make up my mind which, but Peridot is a more golden-green so I think it may fit better. Which do you all think her name should be?

2010 ESD Enchanted Challenge: Fairy Treasure

I just got my 2010 ESD Enchanted Challenge package in the mail!!! WOO I'm naming my mini-quilt "Fairy Treasure"! So excited to start working on it, I love all the greens I'm going to use for it! I just love the idea I got for the theme about lost treasures that this little fairy finds and is fascinated by so she gathers them and tucks them in safe little spots. And so this marks the beginning of a beautiful journey exploring her gorgeous green world!

A Dress for Elizabeth! ♥

Elizabeth has a dance this week and it's a special one the Eighth Grade Prom, so she came over to work on a dress for it! What she found while going through my fabric stash were some formals that I had bought at the thrift store but hadn't cut yet! LOL After trying on lots of them this purple one seemed to be the closest fit and the easiest to alter! I don't sew clothing...so I had no clue how to go about fixing it so it would fit her...THEN...I had the idea to cut off the top part, cut off the straps, and fold down the remaining "top" so that it was rounded and reattach the straps! Even this seemed impossible to me but somehow we managed! HAHA What I did was have it on her fold it under to look the shape we wanted and then made a running stitch (by hand) along the top to hold it in place...then as I was doing that Elizabeth loved how it looked gathered so we ended up gathering the top front edge and that fixed the need to take in the sides too!!! I also did the running stitch around the back too but left if flat, then I hand sewed the straps into place and then later reinforced them with the sewing machine. THEN Elizabeth had the idea to tie something around the waist and so we found a white ribbon and tacked it onto the dress on a seam and then it gets tied around the waist after she gets it on (there are no zippers etc. it's a slip on dress)! OH and Hubby helped by hemming the bottom! ♥
After we finished working out all the kinks of the dress we cut a piece of white lace from my stash for her to use as a wrap or like she did in the photo below tie it in the back to look like a bolero or shrug.
Voila! Two non-seamstresses but very creative gals created a pretty good looking formal if I do say so myself! LOL

Craft Room Update

I've been slowly improving my craft room it's cool looking back through my posts on it's progress! It's still not completely finished but I got a huge part of it up and running and it's a dream come true!
Above is a photo as you walk in the door! The board on top of the little chest of drawers is padded fabric and can be ironed on! How perfect is that!

As you can see it's a U (well more like J haha) with my work station in front of the window that's where I'll do my embroidery and embellishment etc. Then a little swivel to the right and I have my sewing machine, and a little swivel to the right again the padded board for ironing as I piece! And I can always set up the ironing board there too! The little desk that the sewing machine is on we got at Staples it's just a little cheepie computer desk that we didn't install the keyboard slide out so it's the perfect depth!

I have my cork board which I pinned a bunch of swap items and pretty things but I also put a couple of push pins up to hold my current project to get it out of the way, the square Q-snap sits right on them!
Right next to the door I have a Design Wall hanging you can see the Tree Project on it right now. It's supposed to hold blocks on it without using pins but my cream blocks are too heavy to stay up for too long, if I want it to stay up longer term I still need to pin.
Then my hubby put up shelves for me to have my supplies in reaching distance! Wow did they make a huge difference! I gained and freed up a ton of space just from having them put up! Now the bookshelf I had a lot of my supplies on is free for all my various embroidery, crazy quilting, beading, tatting, etc. books as well as other things!

On the door I got a hanger for the iron and ironing board when not needed!
Also I got hooks to store my hoops using vertical space! Now they aren't stacked somewhere with the possibility of getting lost under things or cluttering up space!

A Sweet Ballerina CQ Heart: Tutu & Flower

I kept adding to the gift for Bekah she's gonna LOVE LOVE LOVE everything! Here's the Tutu I bought and then I made a shabby flower pin with shading to look like the roses in the Ballerina Heart!
Her birthday party is this weekend so I'm going to try to get a vid of her when she opens the gift, she is so cute and gets so excited about all her gifts that it's fun to watch! We always say we should get her on video! LOL

Monogram Tote Bag: J

Here is yet another Tote bag for a birthday girl in my Small Group!
Her fave color was purple so I created a purple shabby flower to embellish her monogram. She also loved polka dots so I chose a green with white polka dot fabric for the J I thought it would compliment nicely. Then I had a piece of Hen & Chicks Tatted Edging that I had tatted and saved in my stash and since Jessica is creative herself and does crochet I thought she would enjoy some tatting, who knows she may want to learn to tat! She already wants to learn embroidery! LOL
Anyway I used purple fabrics for the shabby flower and a printed organza that had purple flowers on it. I cut out the flowers out of the print and the frayed sheerness of the organza acted like a lace element! I used a large purple bead in the center of the flower! I also made a small bud to go with the flower and it is using a small flower shape with some scraps of the organza in the center just gathered in the center.
Then on the handle I tied some strips of the organza fabric and a strip of purple fabric!

A Sweet Ballerina CQ Heart: Framed

With Rebekah's birthday coming up I framed the Sweet Ballerina CQ Heart! I also ordered a light blue Tutu to go with it!
On the back I put a pretty wrapping paper and then printed a label that reads "To Rebekah, A sweet ballerina who will always be my friend! Love, Melissa"

Fabric & Lace Flower: Black and Silver

This flower I made for a bridal shower where the bride's colors are Silver and Black! I know she'll love it! I glued a pin-back on the back of it.

I made this one a little differently by making 3 of the larger flower blobs 2 of them the silver fabric and 1 is lace fabric. Then in the center I also did lace fabric strips but I also created a tassel using a thin black lace and silver metallic thread then attached that to the center gathered it up and then added a button to the center!

Fabric & Lace Flower

I saw a really pretty flower tutorial and just had to try my version of it!!! Here is a link to the Shabby Flower Tutorial. I didn't care for the center of hers so I did it a little differently by adding a tatted flower that I made a long time ago and it sat in my stash waiting to be used and a pearl thingy-ma-bob (it's not a button but it's not a bead either but it had a metal eye sticking out one end).

I did like she said and cut 2 larger (9 petal) blob shaped flowers, and 1 each of a medium (7 petal) and a small (5 petal) blob shaped flowers and crumpled and frayed them. (I made my small one too small so I had to re-cut it. Make each size just barely smaller than the other.) Then I added lace bits and sewed it all together added the tatting stitched it on and added the pearl thingy. Then I went around the back and gathered it like she said. But there I stopped I didn't do any gluing but I did tie some pink eyelash yarn around the pearl.
Now I'll just back it with a pin-backing and either use it as a pin or a pendant. You could use this for anything really I could even see sewing this (or a smaller version) down onto a crazy quilt.

Monogram Tote Bag: A

Here is another monogrammed tote for one of my small group girls!
I had seen one of the blogs in my feed (Allie's in Stitches) had mentioned Broderie Perse which got me interested so I google searched about it! It's a form of applique using a printed fabric that you cut out the print and applique it onto another fabric.

So having this in the back of my head I got the idea to use a floral print for the decorations on this monogram! I just cut around the print and took the easy route by raw edge appliqueing it with invisible thread and a straight stitch on my sewing machine!

I think it gives it a pretty yet edgy feel and I think it looks sorta Shabby Chic-ish! LOL

I also tied a strip of the fabric with the raw edges frayed into a bow on the handle.

More New Couch Pillow Covers

I had started some Pillow Covers for our couch and had finished sewing up the floral print covers, then I found the perfect fabric to compliment it had prepped it (pre-washed, cut out all the pieces) and then it sat unfinished for almost a year!!! So I finally dug it out and started sewing them together. It's a pretty cream fabric with a lace print on it. I know it's hard to see but if you click on the photos you can see a little better. Here's the link to the Pillow Cover Tutorial.

Fabric Flower Fun!

I found a Fabric Flower Tutorial that I loved and decided to make some! I liked the look of the double flowers in this flower tutorial in a smaller fashion but prefer the method of petal mading in this flower tutorial. The bottom layer has 6 petals, and the top layer has 3 petals with a button or bead in the middle! Then I either sewed a loop of fabric or elastic onto the back, but pretty much anything can be attached to the back to use them in tons of ways!

To make the different sizes I just used different round objects to create the circles the same way you'd make different size yo-yo's.

The smaller flowers I used a spool of thread for the circle.

This is a small one with elastic on the back that I slipped onto my new puppy Ginger's tiny collar.

This bigger flower I used a 1/3 Cup measuring cup for the circle it has a fabric loop on the back and I slipped it onto my pink pearls for a pendent.

Here's another on my dog Madie's collar it also has elastic on the back. She didn't like the bigger flowers so I made a small one using a spool of thread for the circles so that she barely notices it on her collar.
I also made one for Bekah in a blue floral fabric with a big blue bead in the center and made it a headband by attaching a large elastic loop custom fit for her head.

Cream Tea Cozy Finished!!!

I finally finished the finishing touches to my Cream Tea Cozy and sewed it up!

A Sweet Ballerina CQ Heart: Finish

I've finished my work on the Sweet Ballerina Heart! Now all that is left is to frame it!
I added light blue bugle beads to the seam treatment on the left, and I added a Silk Ribbon Embroidery Motif that I created using sweetheart roses, french knot loop flowers, ribbon stitch leaves, and pink Swarovski crystals.
Then I made the heart into an applique (here is a link to how I did that) and I added a couple of bits of lace on opposite edges!

Monogram Tote Bag: K

We have another birthday in our Small Group so I created another monogrammed tote bag this time with a 'K'!

Krystal loves green so I cut out the 'K' in green with polka dots fabric and then cut another fabric around that sort of like a matting. Then I sewed it onto the tote using a zig-zag stitch. Then I added a piece of hand dyed cheese cloth and a purple yo-yo with green sequin stars in the center. Then I cut a strip of the cheese cloth and a strip of purple organza and tied a bow to the handle!

French Knot Loop Flower

Here is a video for the French Knot Loop flower in Silk Ribbon Embroidery.
Enjoy!
Here is a link to the video on YouTube:
French Knot Loop Flower in SRE

FAQ: Silk Ribbon Embroidery

• What does SRE stand for? ~ Silk Ribbon Embroidery
  

• Do you have Tutorials for SRE? ~ Yes, here is the link: Silk Ribbon Embroidery Tutorial Archive

• Where can I find SRE patterns? ~ Honey Bee's Silk Ribbon Embroidery Patterns these are my very own creations for you to use. Please give me credit for the pattern and do not sell the pattern or use commercially, Thank You. You can also search online for SRE patterns or use vintage patterns by interpreting the pattern for SRE (example - flower circles could be spiderweb roses, small flowers could be sweetheart roses or knot flowers, leaves could be interpreted in lazy daisy stitch or ribbon stitch instead).
  

• What SRE books do you recommend? ~ Here is a link to some of my favorite embroidery books including SRE: My Favorite Embroidery Books

• Do you need special fabric for Silk Ribbon Embroidery? ~ No you don't need special fabric for silk ribbon embroidery. A good rule of thumb for choosing fabric to work on is any fabric that your needle (usually size 22 chenille for 4mm silk ribbon) can pass through you can use.

• I'm having trouble pulling my needle through the fabric, what's wrong? ~ Make sure you are using the correct size needle, size 22 chenille for 4mm silk ribbon and larger or smaller if using 7mm or 2mm silk ribbon. ~ If it's just being a little tough try using some little round rubber needle grabbers that you can get in the quilting section. ~ Another thing to check is sometimes when doing a knot you can tighten too much and it makes it hard to pull through, remember to loosely tighten so it's tightened just enough to look right but not too loose that it falls out. ~ One last thing is make sure you are using silk ribbon and not polyester ribbon it makes a huge difference, polyester is too heavy and thick.

• How do long or short do you leave your beginning and ending tails in the back and how to you secure them? ~ You only need to leave the tails long enough to secure it either with another needle and thread or by piercing it as you work. Here are some links that show those methods: Getting Started in Silk Ribbon Embroidery (Includes How to Iron, Thread Needle, Knot/No Knot) Straight Stitch/Padded Straight Stitch (Includes Piercing the Tail)

• Do I end off or drag the ribbon to the next working spot? Example - If making leaves on either side of a rose, do you tie off each separately or drag the ribbon across the back? ~ In this case the leaves are probably very close together and you can just drag the ribbon to the next leaf spot. Usually if the length between stitches is above an inch it's better to end it off and start fresh at the next spot and coming back later with another needle and thread to secure the tail. It also depends on the stitch if it's easily snagged as well, if it is then it's better to be safe and take another needle and thread and secure the tail in the back instead of dragging.

• Where can I find/buy Silk Ribbon? ~ Silk Ribbon can be hard to find you can look for it in any craft store but you may need to visit a specialty needlework store, or buy online. I usually find that the best prices and easiest access is Online. I have a few links to Online Shops that sell silk ribbon Here. Don't compromise and just get polyester ribbon it has a completely different thickness and feel to it. Once you use actual silk ribbon the difference between it and polyester ribbon is like night and day! Do some research and find a sale or good deal for silk ribbon online you'll have a much better time doing SRE if you have the right tools. Brands that I've used and consider good quality are: River Silks, YLI, RibbonSmyth, ThreadArt, Bucilla. (No affiliation, just have used their products for myself and liked them)
  

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***I'll update the FAQ's as I receive more questions, feel free to ask me and I'll do my best to answer.

A Sweet Ballerina CQ Heart: Progress

I've been working and working and working and so far here is what I've done!
I added a bow to her costume and some netting to her bodice along with a rose done with a bead in the center and straight stitches around it in a similar fashion as a bullion rose is made.

I wanted to mimic the lace crossing on the ballet slippers so I used a metallic silver thread!
I also created a bullion rose motif with little daisies and forget-me-nots!

I stitched in the ballet slippers with satin stitch and straight stitches. Of course every ballerina needs music to dance too so I created a musical note seam treatment using straight stitches and lazy daisy's for the round parts of the notes. I also did a little bullion knot rose bud with stem stitch stem and lazy daisy leaves.
I also added a little braid that used the same colors as I'm using on the little pink fabric seam!

A Sweet Ballerina CQ Heart for a Sweet Ballerina!

The other day Rebekah was visiting and saw hanging on my wall a CQ heart and she exclaimed that she loved it and asked if I would make her one! LOL Granted she is 5 years old (about to be 6 soon) but she is also my friend! ;) Another amazing thing about Rebekah is even though she is still a little girl she already appreciates embroidery and crazy quilting! I have a video of her when she was 3 years old enjoying a block and she still enjoys seeing what I'm working on and what her Mom is working on too!

Rebekah by the way is a ballerina and I've even gotten to take her to dance class before and she always loves the ballerina figurines they have in a case there. She also loves blue! So I searched through my image collections and found this pretty blue ballerina and printed her onto fabric and pieced up this heart. The fabrics are really difficult to capture the true colors, I feel that the print and the rose print fabric are accurate, but the green print is a bit too bright in this photo and the blue Dupioni silk looks a bit darker then in person as well in the top photo. In the photo below I feel shows more of the softness of the colors better and the blue Dupioni silk. It's a very soft sweet block and I hope I can eventually capture an accurate photo.