Finished at last ....

Finished at last and just 10 days before our 40th anniversary.

Here is the entire piece..  many of these hankies belonged to my late mother-in-law.. The base is a vintage table linen with crocheted edge.  The entire piece is about 34" square.

 

We had our first date on Halloween and flew to Hawaii 3 weeks later on Thanksgiving and got married.  It was definitely love at first sight.  We met at a bridge game and 40 years later he tells me almost daily that I'm still his favorite partner.  Here are close ups of different sections..

Here you can see the button trail upper right.

I'm really happy with the way the border turned out.

This brooch is one I have save for years and years and this was the perfect spot for it...

 

And as a recap my inspiration for this project was this counted cross stitch sampler I did when we got married in 1976.

Final decisions and ribbon search.

The end nears.... Update:    The narrower of these two trims is the one I had for years and years and goes beautifully but it is just not wide enough for the look I want.. So it is at this stage I go a little crazy just to get the right thing.  I found the wider trim on ebay  which coordinates  but it was $33  for 5 yards/... and I knew I would regret not getting it and settling for something I didn't like.  The color was a tad off when it arrived but I soaked it in some coffee and it is perfect.  I will also use the rattail and cording pictured. 

I have the perfect 1/4" pale pink velvet ribbon to add but I only have 2 yards of it so have been searching the internet in vein for more.    I may have to give up on the velvet ribbon. I can find lots of velvet ribbon but it is either the wrong width or the wrong shade of pink.  I want a very soft shade and the only one I found was shipped from China and you had to buy a full spool so I will look some more today.  Of course it would have been easier if I would have thought of the ribbon months ago...

The wider trim is not the best quality so will all have to be carefully hand sewn to keep it straight..  I can use the heavier trim as a guide.

I have squared up the backing taffeta but  I will have to do a little tap dancing when it come to adding the main piece as it is anything BUT square..  It will require a lot of fine maneuvering to have it look square..  and FINALLY an egg...

Recap of Anniversary Hanky CQ

 

The inspiration for this project was a piece of cross stitch I did for our first anniversary.   If you look closely at the bottom you can see it says... Ron and Gerry Krueger . 1976.  It has had a prominent place in our living room for the last 40 years...

I wanted to do something special for the 40th anniversary coming up this year..











I had been collecting hankies for years and had all these lovely hankies.. and with all the hearts and roses it seemed like a match made in heaven.

 

Now what to use for a foundation?  I had an vintage tea table cover of lace and linen.. The linen had several holes and was stained spots.  I had just waiting for the perfect project...  The linen center is about 20" square so it is a substantial piece.  It not a piece I can carry about to work on.

 

So I began  by doing the main focal point  of a floral heart and bluebirds.

Once I got it done the rest just seems to follow...I surrounded the focal piece with laces and began the secondary bluebird images. Except for replacing one hanky that didn't work, there were really no big problems or decisions...  It all just flow from my heart.  I never worked on it that I didn't think of our marriage and all the memories.

 
 
And where am I now... well except for a few bits and bobs the center piece is finished.  After a long an extensive search I finally found a piece of moire' taffeta the perfect color to mount it on.  In the indentation where you see the arrow will be embroidery.

 

 The embroidery is elaborate and dense and will be in harmony with the floral part of the main focal point. After spending about 18 months on it, I don't want to hurry it now but hope to have it done by our anniversary in November.

 

So can you find the bluebirds and their nest on the whole piece? ...it gives you a sense of the  scale and

of the size of the piece

 

 

Getting back on track...................

For those who weren't following or can't remember, my inspiration was this sampler I stitched when my husband and I were married in 1976.  I wanted to do a CQ to commemorate our 40th which is coming up this fall.  It was a difficult piece to carry about and in the last months of caring for my mother it was set aside.









I had this vintage tablecloth which had this lovely crocheted border but the linen in the center was stained and had hole.  So I decided  to cover it with a  foundation for this piece using vintage hankies..

I had gotten this far with it before I got sidetracked.  Two bluebirds morphed into 8 bluebirds.  I still have the charms and beads to add and lots of foliage to finish. But the end is in sight.

I had wanted from the beginning to back it with a soft blue moiré taffeta which proved almost  impossible to find.  When I visited Susie W in January 2015 we scoured the garment district and fabric stores with no luck.  I did find a piece of blue silk the right color but I had my heart set on the taffeta.  I finally found a piece on line and used the silk on the corset blocks...

The camera greatly exaggerates the pattern of the moiré.  It is really very subtle.  I had wanted to add some SRE in the indentation in the sides but again it is awkward to work on with a hoop and difficult to carry about at this stage of completion.

So I pinned the piece to the taffeta and basted around the indentation. I used the quilter tape so I didn't have to mark a line where to baste.  I did put a tailor's tack on one corner of the quilt and taffeta so when I reapply the quilt it will fit correctly..

When I remove the quilt I have the basted area marked and it will be easy to put in a hoop, carry about and add just a touch of SRE.  I would really like to have it finished and enter it in the fair this fall.  I have never entered a piece in the fair but this has special memories with every stitch...  Happy Valentine's Day...

My evolving attitude toward CQ borders...

During the years I was working on the suffrage quilt I really didn't give that much  thought to the border.. My thinking was just a simple silk border as anything too elaborate would detract from the quilt...  But as created it, I found that the exact opposite was true.   The more elaborate the border became, the more it enriched the quilt... So I ended up with a very wide crushed-velvet border topped with a wide heavy cotton lace which has a inner border of a sequined trim.... Each corner is heavily embellished with lace, velvet flowers, beaded leaves and antique buttons....then the outer edge has the lush cording...

When I was finishing the suffrage quilt, work on the hanky piece came to a screeching halt.  It is very close to the end waiting its turn and is pinned on a board where I look at it while working on the jacket.  My initial thought was to mount this piece on a lovely damask linen tablecloth (which I have been trying to  use  forever.). 

But now I see that the damask would do nothing for the lace border and thinking that maybe it would be much better to mount it on blue velvet or brocade... with additional delicate ribbon embroidery in the recessed areas which would anchor it to the background. And then maybe even more lace, stitching, and velvet ribbon on an outer border.  Ah yes just need more hours in the day...

The bluebirds have landed and the popcorn ritual...

All the bluebirds are stitched on the anniversary quilt. Once I finish the foliage I can start on the embellishment in earnest.  I have a large collection of my most special treasures saved for this piece.

I have the dubious talent of turning a simple project into something complex and time consuming.  I had planned for just two birds and now I have 8. Now I want the foliage by the birds similar to  the foliage in the focal point which will mean about 400 French knots.

But for a couple days it is going to get a good stretch and rest on this foam thing I found in the barn..

It is something left from days we had a booth and it folds.. It opens quite large which is great as this piece is too large for my bulletin boards.  Sorry about the lighting.

Our dogs love popcorn and my husband has preparing it down to a fine art and he shares with the dogs.  They eagerly watch while he is popping it and the minute he sets 2 paper towels on the floor, they position themselves and wait... They each get a few kernels in turn until it is all gone.  They wait patiently for their turn and stayed glued to their spot...

Back to anniversary/hanky piece

Now that the suffrage piece is finally done I can start thinking about what is next in line.... First up is back to the hanky quilt which is really my anniversary piece.

I have all the additional stumpwork bluebirds done and ready to cut out and applique onto the doily areas... I worked on them while sitting with mother...

 

In case you had forgotten, I posted a sampler I did in 1976 to commemorate our marriage.  Since we are coming up on our 40th anniversary (40 wonderful years I must add) I wanted to do a special piece of needlework that incorporated both CQ and bluebirds... plus lots of hearts and flowers...  Hopefully I'm starting soon enough to take my time to add all the special detail I want and also to get it done in time. 

 

Washing, Ironing and Thinking!

My hankies are laundered and need to be ironed and I laid out my table cover to get my brain working... I do like the floral focus off center and since I'm in the bird mode I can even see more bluebirds on this piece... 

My new computer arrived and it has Windows 8 which is very fast but unfortunately most of my software is not compatible with it and most is not even sold any more.  I'm thinking that I will have to keep the old computer going just to use that software.  Also the text on Win8 is so much smaller that it is very difficult to read..  It is a mixed bag...  I'm still trying to figure out where everything is.... 
 

Birds are done!

The bluebirds are done and ready to cut out  to add after the hanky-panky quilt is pieced.  These are stitched on a cotton handkerchief backed with fusible tricot interfacing so I can cut them out without fraying.
Their beaks have not been stitched.  I will do that after they are cut out and appliqued to the floral piece.

Marilyn asked if I colored the background on the floral piece and yes indeed I did.   I added a few drops of my all purpose alcohol ink to a tablespoon of water and gave the background a little color.... I was testing on this hanky before I dyed the one with the ribbonwork...

Ready Birds & Lavish Lace

I did have many quiet hours "mother sitting" last night and have the CQ Hanky center ready to add bluebirds.  At this point it can wait until we meet as a group to start the hanky project.

At the request of Diane M.  I did a Block Talk post on being lavish with lace. ..tips and techniques.  If you love lace or would like to use more lace....pop over to see "Being Lavish With Lace."

Hanky center progress

This is how far I am on the centerpiece for hanky quilt.  My husband's plane was delayed last night and I spent three hours waiting in the baggage area.  Luckily the light was good and I had my stitching.

I had originally planned to do this on a damask napkin but the texture was all wrong so I used a high quality men's handkerchief.. With last night plus the sitting during the transition of mother's move back to assisted living, I'll pretty much be able to finish the center... Nothing passes long hours for me like stitching.

The birds are just paper cutouts to help with placement of flowers.

Not only did I have a lot of hankies with red roses and hearts (on the left), I had a lot with blue and pinks to mix in with the rest.

This was my inspiration.  I did this for our marriage in 1976.  The reflection of the glass makes the color weird.













And it is all going on here!

I'm hopeless

I promised myself resolutely, irrevocably, that I would not start another project OR even think about another project, until the suffrage quilt was done.  But alas I have failed again and am a wimp of major proportion (literally).

 Last Saturday my CQ stitchers met here and brought their collections of hankies which were amazing.  I had wanted to save mine until after the suffrage quilt and use that fabulous table cover which is good sized... But then I thought "maybe just a little piece".............. but then again how many hanky quilt will I do.  I had better do the table cover to begin with... Sooooooooooo  I got it out, pressed it, and added the fusible tricot to the back of the linen...

I placed hoop there to get a feel for the size of center motif I want to do... This is really an incredible piece of vintage linen and I love being able to get it out of the bin.

Last spring I painted some buttons for Valentine's Day which had a heart of forget-me-knots.  At the time I thought would be fun to do something similar in embroidery and ribbon work.  It would make a great focal point for the hankies and wouldn't take long... And of course I have been wanting to do bluebirds and I can do them off block and add after my suffrage quilt is really done.... Cathy K posted some ribbon bluebirds on Pinterest that made me want to do them.  In fact I may add 4-5 bluebirds

When I sorted my hankies I had a LOT of hearts and roses.  I don't really want a Valentine quilt but I do want to aim for romantic.

So since a central focal point will be on a vintage damask napkin, it will be easy to tote about and the actually attaching the hankies can wait until after the suffrage quilt.

This piece of counted cross-stitch which I stitched almost 40 years ago will definitely be my inspiration.  And I'm off and running AGAIN!!!

Most dogs would  be grateful just to be allowed on the couch... But Morris has to rearrange all the pillows and blankets on the couch every time he wants to nap there.

Hummers vs. swallows..and my beloved sheep.

I love it when I have a lonnnnnnnnnng anticipatory period before I start a new project and can play with lots of options.  This hankie project is just one of those projects.  Since it was last spring when I did birds I want birds...

First I wanted to do swallows... mainly because I've never stitched them and also because they mate for life and are symbolic of fidelity... But I also wanted lots of ribbon and stumpwork flowers so I have settled on hummingbirds... swallows are insect eaters and hummers just go with flowers.  You can find lots of hummers I have stitched but all except one have gone out to others on round robins.  These were for Diane in a stumpwork RR.

I did this one for Ritva in Finland and always wanted to do it again for myself and this might be the perfect project.

My hankies have arrived and they are indeed cutters and all have a stain or two... BUT all are lovely and lots have tatted or finely crocheted edgings.











This last couple weeks I have found myself in situations with folks I haven't seen for  years and invariably they ask if I still have sheep...Everyone knew how much I loved them.. So I have been thinking about them a lot...especially since Susan E. did the lovely post on Scotland which links to a 13 minutes video about a shepherdess. Any woman who can shear sheep wearing a skirt could easily be my very best friend.  The sloe-eyed girl in the middle is Ruby and to the right is Topaz..my fabulous beauty.  It was Ruby who had twins the last year and I gave one to Pitiful Pearl whose lamb was stillborn.. The ewes were the most gentle loving animals.