November went more quickly than I expected, and I am still waiting for the part for my sewing machine. Thus, I have a somewhat legitimate excuse for not completing the average two-a-month quilts as set forth in The Plan. The back-ordered part is on its way now, I'm assured, so maybe by the weekend, I'll be quilting away on Poppies & Peonies, and then tackling the 3 x 3 discharge piece. As for the other items on my to-do list for November, there's really no excuse for not getting some of my new ideas sketched out. Guilt sent me to the computer yesterday to pull up some reference photos to get started on that. But instead, I got sucked in by my photo manipulation program. Not an altogether bad thing, as it turned out. What happened there got my mind thinking in a different direction, a bit "aha" in nature, and my simple idea for grass silhouettes could turn into a series.
Variations include negative images as well as reducing to 2 colors and kicking in a diffusion filter.
I also finally made some headway in manipulating photos of eyes into black and white images for use on Masks - these are my mother's eyes when she was in her 20's. Masks, but the way, has been the real winner in this saga of "life interrupted" by the machine waiting for a part. No way would I have put this much time into the hand quilting of it this far in advance of needing it done. Whereas I was a bit tentative in where to begin the stitching, I have finally gained some confidence in the "let it happen" nature of picking out the design left by the resist painting method.
I did get the sleeve on "Falling Leaves" and the rest of the inking done so it is ready for exhibit. But I don't really count that as a quilt done for November, as it was primarily finished in October and counts towards that month. I did not work up a quick version of "Southwest Fantasy" since the machine was down (lame excuse since I could have pulled fabric, cut shapes and generally gotten to a point of needing that machine), but I did do a color sketch of an idea rising out of the mountain ash berries topped with snow. Right now I'm just thinking fabric postcards to try out the idea - maybe it will go on the December list...after the November items left undone.
Ah December - I really don't have much hope for stellar productivity, although maybe I'll surprise myself. The holidays always bring major distractions, but perhaps I can stay ahead of it this year. Then again, I couldn't keep myself from starting this knitting project on Thanksgiving Day. I have fond memories of knitting during the holidays - something I could do when my presence was required in the family room. So naturally, Thanksgiving and Christmas brings the urge to the fore. In this case, I've wanted to start these fingerless gloves for months, and now's the time to be wearing them. I'm using a free pattern rated easy, but that I am finding a bit confusing. I was totally unaware of knitting in the round on anything but circular needles or a set of 4 double pointed needle. But this pattern calls for tiny #2's in a set of 5. I feel like I'm knitting on skewers. Oh wait - I essentially am! The yarn is a merino wool spun by internet friend Connie Rose and as you can see, it is a winner!
Variations include negative images as well as reducing to 2 colors and kicking in a diffusion filter.
I also finally made some headway in manipulating photos of eyes into black and white images for use on Masks - these are my mother's eyes when she was in her 20's. Masks, but the way, has been the real winner in this saga of "life interrupted" by the machine waiting for a part. No way would I have put this much time into the hand quilting of it this far in advance of needing it done. Whereas I was a bit tentative in where to begin the stitching, I have finally gained some confidence in the "let it happen" nature of picking out the design left by the resist painting method.
I did get the sleeve on "Falling Leaves" and the rest of the inking done so it is ready for exhibit. But I don't really count that as a quilt done for November, as it was primarily finished in October and counts towards that month. I did not work up a quick version of "Southwest Fantasy" since the machine was down (lame excuse since I could have pulled fabric, cut shapes and generally gotten to a point of needing that machine), but I did do a color sketch of an idea rising out of the mountain ash berries topped with snow. Right now I'm just thinking fabric postcards to try out the idea - maybe it will go on the December list...after the November items left undone.
Ah December - I really don't have much hope for stellar productivity, although maybe I'll surprise myself. The holidays always bring major distractions, but perhaps I can stay ahead of it this year. Then again, I couldn't keep myself from starting this knitting project on Thanksgiving Day. I have fond memories of knitting during the holidays - something I could do when my presence was required in the family room. So naturally, Thanksgiving and Christmas brings the urge to the fore. In this case, I've wanted to start these fingerless gloves for months, and now's the time to be wearing them. I'm using a free pattern rated easy, but that I am finding a bit confusing. I was totally unaware of knitting in the round on anything but circular needles or a set of 4 double pointed needle. But this pattern calls for tiny #2's in a set of 5. I feel like I'm knitting on skewers. Oh wait - I essentially am! The yarn is a merino wool spun by internet friend Connie Rose and as you can see, it is a winner!
1 comment:
Hi Sheila,
Thanks for the mention. Look forward to seeing your completed gloves with my yarn!
Mainly, though, I want to ask why you're pushing yourself so hard to be extra productive? Everything that's supposed to get accomplished will, so slow down and take it easy. You're working too hard!
Hope you have a wonderful weekend.
Hugs,
Connie
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