Friday, July 28, 2017

Silk Stitches

Every few days I pick up my stitching--usually, when I don't want to 
concentrate on knitting--
This is my Snowman Christmas blocks--I turned to my embroidery box with
all my threads (wish I had more!!) and pulled out my handspun silk bobbins--

I had forgotten I had these to stitch with--The silk is single ply
and the above has been dyed with indigo

My handspun silk pulls nicely through the cloth and is strong
to resist any tugging--no breaking on this yarn!  
Oh, how I love the indigo color!  I think one day
I'll stitch all my blocks with indigo silk thread (handspun, of course!)

I also have other natural dyed handspun silk threads in
my handy dandy box--I did these when I held a natural dye
workshop--not hard to make a small skein and throw it in
the dyepot along with the other skeins--here I have some
over dyed greenish gold--dyed yellow, dipped into indigo--yellow and
blue make green!
I also use madder, cochineal and logwood--


Thursday, July 27, 2017

WAKE UP!

Well, wake up!  You are in control of this situation!  I have been knitting on Estonian Sampler by Elizabeth Ravenwood (Ravelry).  I like the blues in the yarn but not the brown--what's the problem?  The yarn is HANDSPUN from roving----dud, I'm in control of the spinning!  I'm in control of the color arrangement!  I'm in control.......................So, here I've spun this first skein with the brown and I'm knitting away thinking--I really don't like this brown stripe and just the other day, I realized--I was in control!!  I can take out the brown bits and just spin the blues--
Here is the roving that I spun up with the brown color

The roving without the brown

Throw away brown--NOT!  I'll save these bits for another challenge

See that brown stripe--don't like it!
It sure did take me long enough to finally
realize--I AM IN CONTROL!

Wednesday, July 26, 2017

Well, OOPS!

I'm thrilled!  I finished my Christmas quilt!  This is the one I should have bought the kit and didn't; then searched for the right fabrics--well, it's done, finished, complete--well, almost!

I spread it out on the floor to take a photo and only your camera can pick up your mistakes in a flash-there it was!  The big mistake--well, it was only a small mistake, but it was there!

Thought I would have seen it sooner, but NO--already had the borders on and I was ready to press--one small block, NO, two small blocks turned the wrong way!  I could leave it and call it
my path of redemption, but I couldn't stand it.
RIP It--or frog it as they say in quilter and knitter language!  
NOw, off to the quilters it goes!

Tuesday, July 25, 2017

Christmas In July!!

In order to cool out during this HOT month of July, we can think about the winter months and sew up something fantastic!
Here's a cooool row by row quilt that could work for Christmas and January--
lots of snow featured!!  You can find this free pattern here

Another row by row The Spruce


Monday, July 24, 2017

Ode To Age................

Today is my mother's 97th birthday--unbelieveable!  She certainly didn't think she'd survive to be this age--neither did we! My brothers have arrived from Scottsdale and Dallas to celebrate with us--although, this will be a short visit--I think Mother relishes the fine moments we spend with her--I'm sure she won't remember tomorrow whether we were there or not--but, for the time being--we're present to wish her "Happy Birthday!"



Sunday, July 23, 2017

A Mystery for You!

Once again, I'm traveling--so, here is a mystery I found that would be fun to do
the other half of this year--it runs through February, 2018.


Meadow Mist Designs has already posted the fabric requirements.
The cutting instructions will be posted August 6th and
each first Thursday there after.
I know I'm going to go through my stash to see what I
can use--this mystery will be for two sizes--lap and queen--

While I'm traveling, I will be thinking about fabrics/colors.

Saturday, July 22, 2017

Flamenco! The Dance...................

I really didn't know much about Flamenco, the dance.  Oh, I've seen it performed but the history was totally off my radar until the visit to Santa Fe's International Folk Art Museum--the display was awesome!  Costumes galore............



"The art form developed over several centuries from Gypsy, Moorish, Andalusian, and other roots. Flamenco music and dance became popular in the early 19th century as café entertainment.
Canto (“song”) is the core of flamenco, and like baile (“dance”), it has three forms: grande or hondo (“grand” or “deep”), intense, profound songs, tragic in tone, and imbued with duende, the transformation of the musician by the depth of the emotion; intermedio (“intermediate”), moderately serious, the music sometimes Oriental-sounding; and pequeño (“small”), light songs of exuberance, love, and nature."
Flamenco is danced around the world--here is silk dress from
Japan

Would love to see this dress in action!

Madrid Span dress 1970-1980

Madrid, 1965--bought to New Mexico to wear at
New Mexico venues and the first year of the
New Mexico Festival Flamenco International

Variety of costumes worn by men and women

This is one of the costumes that Maria Benitez would
wear in her exciting dances--A native New Mexican, Benítez is best known for the work of the company she and her husband Cecilio founded and direct, Teatro Flamenco.


I love the detail on the dresses

especially the crocheted collar

Just imagine the sway of this skirt--
Feria Dress, Seville, Spain, 2011
The small shawl is cotton dated 2014 from Seville also

Towards the middle of the nineteenth century, various agricultural fairs took place around the city of Seville and many gypsy farmers wives began attending these fairs wearing handmade dresses which they had crafted from old, everyday clothes. They were often adorned with ruffles and frills in order to make the simple fabrics more beautiful and aesthetically pleasing. 
During the Seville Ibero-American Exposition of 1929, members and representatives of high society attended the event wearing the traje de Sevillana (pronounced tra-hey), and thus, the dress received its first official recognition.
From that time, the popularity of the dress began to spread outside the borders of the region, eventually becoming a truly distinctive element of Andalusian culture. Maintaining its most recognisable features (fitting, cut, and accessories), the dress has accompanied the evolution of the regional flamenco tradition and has spread even further, both nationally and internationally.

The mantón or shawl is the most spectacular part of the Flamenco costume.  The shawls’ vibrant colors and exuberant designs exude the culture of Andalusia and give an extra outlet to your interpretative potential:  In your hands, the mantón opens new vistas of sensational dance movement.
The Spanish mantón is actually a square piece of cloth, hand-embroidered through and through by women who live in Seville and have over 50 years of experience in crafting hand-made shawls. All of the Flamencista Shawl Collection is made from the finest materials available. All of the shawls, the product of exquisite haute-couture craftsmanship, are hand-sewn and hand-embroidered in the capital of Andalusia. 
In 1808 the invasion of Spain by Napoleon's forces
prompted anti French sentiment.  The resistance to all things French led 
to an enthusiasm for regional Spanish folk culture.
Traditional dress, once considered the purview of farmers and
peasants, became the fashion among the elites of urban society.
This same style of dress became the style worn for village
fiestas and was eventually adopted for the stage.
Handed down from generation to generation, flamenco was
originally performed within families or communities or
Gitano (Spanish Romany) origin in southern Spain. 



Beginnings of New Year Ideas

I'm already thinking about the new year and new beginnings--2024 was a lost year as far as new quilt starts--there was not a one began. ...