That time of year

This post has nothing to do with embroidery but I love it when my stock of empty jam jars starts to get full again. I am not a big fan of cooking but I love preserving. I even made my first tomato sauce today, with tomato's from my garden and its fantastic so I will be making more of that while the tomato's are cheap.

My first ever tomato sauce from the Ladies a Plate recipe book, fantastic.

 

amazing nature

It is amazing that when you are in the garden collecting salad for dinner you notice that your cucumber plant has spelt your name!! happens all the time !!!

new quilt on its way

 

This is my new quilt pinned up in the studio. As soon as I saw the fabric I am using for the skull I knew it had to be a skull! it is just perfect! It will have green leaves and stems coming from the flowers in the end but I have just started the needle turn on the main areas to get them held down. I love it. Skull teeth are always tricky but these seem to be working OK.

House quilt finished

hand quilting in the summer is not a good idea, I must remember that in future, just too hot.
I have finished my free cut house quilt. I made the blocks at a fantastic quilt retreat in November.

The Tula Pink green was perfect for the sashing, with Brandon for a border.

so glad I put a plain fabric on the back, you can really see the quilted house shapes.

 

My box of scraps still looks as full so not sure if making scrap quilts works!

mixed media

This piece of work is stitched onto a page from an old book. The page is about the invention of the telephone. I bonded the paper to fabric then used straight stitched to create the tones of the face. I had entered it into a drawing exhibition but it did not get selected, so I can now post the full image. I am really pleased with how it came out and will put it into my next exhibition.

 

I have up-dated my class page for this year. If you would like more details about the classes or if you are interested in organizing a class please drop me an email dixdean@clear.net.nz



100/100 bag moths

Day 100 had to be wire and beads, I love the shape of these wire bag moths and the shadow they cast on the wall when the lights are on.

 

This 100 day project has gone pretty well I think, apart from my slump over Christmas. The bags look very cool in our hall so they will stay there for a while.

Class info

Just a short post to let you know that the bookings for my icon class in Auckland, New Zealand in July are now open to non ANZEG guild members. This class is 4 days, you will bring your own image of a face and we will spend time designing your icon, learning how to long and Short stitch the face and some simple goldwork for the halo.
For booking info about this class you can go to www.conference2016.co.nz

99/100 bag moths

Todays bag moth had to linked to my step into technology, what else do you do with the thin sleeve that your new tablet come in? make a bag moth!!

98/100 Bag Moths

A Gold thread Bag Moth today.

 

 

I have just taken a leap into the 21st century and purchased a tablet and set up an instagram page. it is called @dixeysoul, same as this blog, I can't cope with to many names!! So if you are on instagram please take a look. This blog will always have my class details etc, the instagram will be mostly just pictures of my work, hoping to inspire some young embroiderers. Lets see what 2016 brings!

 



bag moths 96 and 97

Both my children hate the feel of labels in their clothes, so as soon as we get anything to wear I have to cut the label out, this bag moth has the labels from a new T shirt ( well new from the op shop!)

A fabric twist from the selvedge side of some Kaffe fabric.

95/100 bag moths

This bag moth is made from the spiral binding of an old calendar, I always take the wire off so we can put the pages in the recycling bin. I just had to add some silver thread to make is sparkle.

94/100 bag moths

I love this fabric, the blue spots were perfect to add some yellow stitching.

another catch up

Trying to do a 100 day project over Christmas and summer holidays is not a very good idea, I didn't work that out when I started on the 1st of October.
So I had a catch up day today and made 5 bag moths. I am so close to finishing I didn't want to just stop because I had missed a few, so here they are. I am  back home now so back to one a day until I get to 100.

gathered up calico, a short, fat bag moth

a twist of frayed calico

calico with snips, I like this one, will do this again but have the snips stick out more

coloured pencil on paper

back to the wire that I love!