My project: Pattern Couching

This is one of the projects I have been working on this summer.

BUT, this is my project, 51 pages about Pattern Couching. Choice of two projects with instructions

I agreed to do this for my guild and so I am going to let them be my pilot class too. After they are finished going over it and I get their feedback, I will revise the instructions and then it will be available for the general public…Hopefully my DH will have figured out a webpage/site for me by then.

This was not only a study of Pattern Couching for me, I had to enhance my stashes: books and threads Enhance I did…all for learning. I love it when I can say to DH, “but I had to get it for this project.” never mind that some of those threads I didn’t use this time…there is always another day (lol)…But we know that these threads just become part of the bigger picture…stash. And of course when that next project starts these leftover threads won’t be exactly right…Life is good.

There are more greens (Shamrock piece) than golds and other colors because I had  decided from the “get-go” that the Celtic Knot project needed to use
the same colors as my finished Jean Taggert Gaelic Gold class. Not a Sept 11^th
and an October comes by, not a mammogram goes by, that I don’t think about Gaelic Gold and Jean and the victims of 9-11. I was privileged to take this class  in 2001 at the Washington DC ANG Seminar; it was the last national class that Jean taught. I loved every minute of this class.  I came home amid 9-11 and decided to finish this piece right away. I entered it in the NAN Exemplary (http://www.needleart.org/Exemplary02/Exemplary02.php ) in 2002 and on the entry form (just reread it…it is attached to back of picture) I read:

“I either said prayers for Jean and the victims of 9-11 or said
prayers of forgiveness for the bad words I was thinking stitching some areas of
this piece.\

There are more good prayers (stitches) than bad ones.”

Gaelic Gold also became known as “The Hail Mary piece” at my house. To this day it is one of my all time favorite pieces. It is fitting that I show this here…It is breast cancer awareness month and Jean succumbed to breast Cancer soon after this.

I also got a new computer, upgraded programs and even learned a few new tricks while writing these instructions. Amazing the things I am learning…so I guess you can teach old dogs new tricks. Stayed tuned…

The rest of the week-end, I am getting the instructions printed, AND then taking the week-end off! On Monday will begin teaching project for guild, go to lunch, and then next week it is back to the grindstone… starting another teacher project. I really like writing and graphing projects for other designer/teachers; I love to see the creative process of others and their style of teaching. Writing instructions is like being able to stitch without ripping…one little key stroke and I have “frogged” the error.

I’m off to fix my lunch and then I see a nap in my afternoon…

Thank you for stopping by and spending a few moments with me…hope you have time to stitch today! ttfn…sue

Mother’s Day week-end and Mondays

Mother’s Day week-end the best ever!

Saturday spent the day visiting….

Stitching….

Visiting….

Eating….

And the best canvas of the day went to Judi M. visiting her sister Kathie Q. The canvas is from Julie Pischke (http://www.juliepischke.com/)and a stitch guide was designed by Marlene Doak.    It is a Gecko tote and just too cute; those geckos are wonderful. And then of course when I finally set down to stitch (ha-ha-ha) I saw the rest of the canvas. Oh my BIG and cute!!!

Sunday was a food fest…My husband took me to for cinnamon rolls and coffee then it was off to church with our youngest son and his family. Got an orchid corsage from his family…the orchids are beautiful. Then brunch at an Italian Restaurant I have wanted to try for a long time; I had pasta, pasta and more pasta. An afternoon with ice tea, a book and nap…some of my favorite pastimes…then a steak dinner to top off my day. Mother’s Day was good.

Of course I have no idea what happened to Monday…it just came and went…with A LOT of HEAT I might add. I have decided that the weather in the Midwest is different at best. I am not going to complain about the heat…especially since there are friends that are in much more peril than I and trying to keep dry. I finally gave in last night and turned my air on but trust me when the temperatures go back to normal the air is off and the windows and doors back open. I will not miss Spring!

Oh yes, yesterday I spent my day researching laidwork. Most of the information is found in books about Goldwork or metal work. I’m not sure I just didn’t confuse myself more than I was already confused. Now I have about 10 books with book marks all over my work area…I think I’ll just give this a rest, mull over all the information floating around my brain and stitch. Maybe as I stitch some of the questions I have will resolve themselves or become more apparent. I’ll share as time goes on, but today I’m off to stitch.

I hope everyone has time to stitch today! ttfn…sue

My NAN Entry

Two posts in one day…

very unusual for me but when I have the time to catch myself up I need to take advantage…so…

This was my entry into the NAN (http://www.needleart.org/) Exemplary as a Non-Original Professional with instruction. It is as yet an untaught piece by Eileen Aird, who owns Ridgewood Needlepoint, Ridgewood NJ. (http://www.ridgewoodneedlepoint.com/index.php?p=main)  I have permission to use the picture and to talk about the piece from Eileen. This is a class teaching piece designed by Eileen and as yet not taught…I knew about it because I did the stitch diagrams and page layouts for the student handbook.

I liked this piece because I live close to the Kansas City Country Club Plaza (http://www.countryclubplaza.com/);   and  I always try and buy and want to stitch pieces that depict the Plaza. NAN is held on the Plaza too, so if you come you will see the Plaza from your room. The Plaza is a great place;  shops, hotels, fine dining, carriage rides, and is usually decorated for the season. This time of year we have bunnies on the Plaza and it is a tradition with many families to go to the plaza and have your picture taken standing by the bunnies. At Christmas, the Plaza is a winter wonderland; all the buildings are outlined with electric lights and it is a magical place. Until a two years ago there were no stop signs and few traffic lights on the Plaza but with the enlarging population, and less thoughtfulness of drivers this has changed.

I thought Eileen had chosen interesting architectural buildings to demonstrate needlepoint techniques. The curved dome on the right of the piece only had the left lines marked on the canvas, so as the student you are to mirror this on the right side making the dome symmetrical. To help the illusion of a smooth curve a couching technique is applied to this  roof. The building on the left uses mirror stitching to present perspective and change of direction. And the center tower shows perspective by using similar stitches that either vary in size, direction or variation. This was a fun piece to stitch and a great intermediate class to try beginning mirror and compensation techniques as well as good stitches to use as architectural elements.  

This will be a great teaching piece and does not only represent the Plaza but any architecture that has a Spanish, Mediterranean or Middle-Eastern elements. I enjoyed stitching this piece and it will hang in my dining room in a place of honor with my other Plaza pictures that I frame.

ttfn…sue

Wonderful World of Needleart

Grab a cuppa and get lost in the wonderful world of needleart…

One of the reasons you have not heard much from me is last week The National Academy of Needleats or NAN (http://www.needleart.org/) was in Kansas City for their annual assembly and exemplary. I am have not been in a position to take a class since family obligations seem to interfere every year, but I do go “ohh and ahh” at the Exemplary several times. Every year I say this years Exemplary was the best and this year was no exception. I’ve spent a couple days trying to reference some of the needle artists so you can see wither the lovely pieces I saw or just representations of their work. I think we all learn by looking at art.

Since I can’t take pictures I’ll try to tell you some of the highlights. Not only is there a judged exhibit but there are several special needleart displays on loan also. This year there were several special exhibits. The first special exhibit was Fiber Forum (http://www.egausa.org/html/fiiber_forum.html) , it is part of the EGA (http://egausa.org/) There were 21 pieces on display and each was unique in it’s own way. You can see several of the pieces that were on display in Fiber Forum gallery (http://www.egausa.org/html/fiber_forum_accepted_works.html) : My Guardian Angel and The Green Man by Paet Van Dyke-Burcham; Twirl and All the World’s a Stage by Ayelet Lindenstrass Larsen; Study in Gray (pictured as “Texture” in Fiber Forum) by Wanda Linsley. Also notice Carpe Diem by Catherine Jordan (see below) , it was displayed another year and is magnificent. Others artists featured were: Perseverance and The Roadrunner (http://www.needleart.org/Exemplary06/Exemplary06.phpby beve s. handwerger; Autumn Night and Coneflowers in the Wind by Peggy Huffine; Appalachian View and The Arrival of Autumn by Cathrine Jordan (http://www.catherinesdesigns.net/index.htm); Optical Autumn by Wanda Linsley (http://shadowboxvideo.com/wanda/index.htm); Celebrating Day Break by Marie Miller; French Seaside Scene and New Mexico Mountain Storm With Fire by Helen J. Rumpel (http://www.sfaol.com/store/rumpel.html); Fantasy Garden and Pomegranate Sweet by Karen Schueler; A Dark and Stormy Night and My Imaginings by Carol Lynn Stratton (http://www.egausa.org/html/apprize_stratton.html).

Another fabulous exhibit was Spiderwomen or Charlotte’s Spiderwomen…their name comes from “Charlotte’s Web” by E.B. White. It is a group of 10 or 12 very lucky and talented  ladies that study with Charlotte Miller (http://www.needleart.org/Miller/Charlotte.php). Artists that displayed were: beve s. handwerger ( you can see beve’s work featured almost every year as a ribbon winner at NAN {http://www.needleart.org/Exemplary.php}), Molly Holt, Charlotte Miller, and LaRee H. Morgan. On the table they had spider webs and spiders made from threads and beads…too cute. Charlotte and LaRee both had pieces titled “Postcards from Taos”, each was unique…beve also did a “postcards from Taos” but it was not shown here but you can see hers on the NAN website (http://www.needleart.org/Exemplary06/PostcardsfromTaos.php) I hope more of these ladies will display their needleart next year…I would love to be a spider on their walls!

“2009 Lifetime Achievement Award”  Each needleartist is is honored at the Assembly and also displays pieces of her needleart in the Exemplary.This years honorees were:

Pam Godderis Dangerfield (http://www.fibreessence.ca/PamGodderisDangerfield.html)(http://www.canadianliving.com/crafts/other_crafts/a_fabric_artist_and_her_inkjet_printer.php)

and Judy Jeroy (http://www.egausa.org/files/tapestry/tapestry_mar06a.pdf) (http://www.amazon.com/Creative-Crewel-Embroidery-Traditions-Innovations/dp/1579901875). I refered you to this book because I want everyone to be as enabled as I am going to be.

Pam and Judy displayed more than a dozen of their works and one was more beautiful than another. I always think it is interesting to see how our style changes over the years and both these needleartists had pieces displayed spanning a 10-15 year period. It is mind boggling to me to think that they can stitch so many beautiful pieces in so little time…I am definitely not managing my time well.

The final special exhibit was the Collection on Loan. These are pieces from the permanent collection of NAN, some are Accesion pieces (http://www.needleart.org/accession/), others Honors pieces and some are just donated works of needleart. Accession pieces are pieces chosen by the Education Advisory Committee of NAN from the pieces completed by all the Level II graduates of the Teacher Certification program. The pieces selected represent advance level work and displays excellence not only in stitching but also color and design. The Honors pieces are a culmination of years of study and research in some aspect of needleart. The Honors program takes many years of study and requires the candidate write a thesis, make an oral and visual presentation at the Assembly, and present an original embroidery reflecting this study for the permanent collection. This collection is housed at the Gregg Museum of Art and Design at North Carolina State University in Raleigh, NC (http://gad.ncsu.edu/?s=home). Click on textiles>collections>textiles> search> NAN. I found 51 entries, but you could probably list each piece and see it here. The pieces on display this year were: Accession pieces: Marie de Medici by Joyce Lukomski 1978; Butterfly Purse by Caela Conn Tyler 2006 – Honors Pieces: The Palena of the Holy Child by Bety Bunker 1988; Three Creche Figures by Mary Lou Helgeson 1983; Three Chinese Purses by Mary McMenamin 1984; Romance of the Paisley by Gene Wright 2002. Also on display was a Wedding Jacket donated by Mindy English.

This years Honors presentation was given by Joan Thomasson (http://www.joanthomasson.com/) and her piece was The Creation Sampler: In the Beginning. It is a magnificent piece! I hope it will be on the NAN website soon.

NAN also had four teachers graduate from Teacher Certification and each of them had a display of her notebooks kept for certification and original pieces she had stitched for the level of completion. Level I teacher graduates were: Diane Herrmann and Vicki Nessel. Level II teacher graduates were Toni Gerdes and Marsha Papay Gomola. When you are looking at the winning pieces from former years, look for these names.

There were the 78 judged entries in the following categories:  Non-Original Amateur(with instruction), Non-Original Amateur(without instruction), Non-Original  Professional (with instruction), Non-Original Professional (with out instruction), Original Amateur, Original Professional, Mixed Media Amateur, Mixed Media Professional, Japanese Embroidery Amateur, Japanese Embroidery Professional. And then every other year NAN has a challenge, this years was Hats and there were entries both in the amateur and professional divisions. There are special awards given: Judge’s Choice (just what it means…each judge gives a ribbon to the piece he/she likes best), and Best of Show (chosen from all 1st place winners). The Academy also presents special awards: The Exemplary (embodies excellence); The Muse’s Kiss/The Peg Laflam Award(innovative); The Academy Heart ( evokes emotion); The Hope Hanley Award (demonstrates the most promise for expanding the potential of the art of canvas); Linda Calsing Award (love of history and travel); Betsy Robb Award (excellence in silk and metal embroidery); and The favorite (chosen by popular vote).

I cannot list the winners because I would do one of two things: (a)- leave someone out or b) not give the proper credit. Also since NAN puts these on their web page I think it would be presumptuous of me to do so, but I will let you know when this happens. But all the entries were lovely and there are some very talented people stitching. I am always in awe of the Japanese Embroidery…it is magnificent and no small undertaking. I know in my heart I do not have the patience to do this but it is beautiful!

And last but not least were the pieces that will be taught at next years Assembly, these will also be up on the web page soon.

Thanks for reading and I hope you liked the links. I going to fix myself a potta and go explore a few of the links I found while writing this post and to read my bookmarked blogs I have long overlooked.

ttfn…sue

Another TIF for March & a quick gift

  Yesterday, I went to local ANG guild meeting and the program was Blackwork. I could have used the suppilied thread but since I knew I would probably complete this at the meeting and I happen to still have the colors from the March TIF still in my stitching box…Well…It was just a given…another TIF and an ATC too!

   This little Blackwork technique was worked in 2 methods: The flower and leaves were worked in a “Back and Run” Stitch; it is a back stitch followed by a running stitch.

    The border on the bottom is a “Double Running Stitch”.

Then I committed a great faux-pas… I missed one of my only two Granddaughter’s birthday! It was kind of a honest mistake but it made me feel awful. I sent her an IOU ticket and today took her to lunch complete with cake and a shopping trip.

    

Her gifts were Webkins http://www.webkinz.com/ and cash stash pad. I made the cash stash pad with unused $2 bills and a glue stick. Make sure all the bills are sqared up on one end and rub over a glue stick. I also put a tiny piece of ribbon over this glued end. Then I made the cover using legal sized paper. Glued the cash to the inside and folded. And a gift anybody would love to get. I think I’m out of the dog house now and I won’t make this mistake again!

ttfn…sue