There's always the steps before....

There were no blocks in yesterday's mail so it will be Monday or Tuesday before we can get to the post office again.. So I will get as much as I can done on my challenge block... I finished the bodies of the peacocks... but before I can attach them I have to add the silkie...

Frames are the challenge for June...On my plan I had the silkie framed with larger cherry blossoms and still plan to do so but there still needs to be another frame beneath the blossoms... I've chosen an antique gold braid... BUT before I can do that there needs to be snow on the mountain.. I played around with fabrics and lace and finally settled on a lovely piece of silk from Kathy K. for the snow...

I did find the original peacock sketches I did last winter... Obviously these are going to be very stylized peacocks.. I'm now leaning to having the 2nd peacock walking instead of sitting.... mostly because they have this elegant gait and long legs. For me a plan is just the first step on a path of endless alternative decisions..

The Big Day for Demo Dog!!!

Tomorrow is a big day for Morris. It is the first class of "Puppy Kindergarten." The very first class only the owners come...no dogs...EXCEPT for one dog who will be used for demonstration and guess who???? Of course when one is chosen for such an important role one must dress accordingly... So Morris will be wearing his Demo Dog T-shirt replete with a rhinestone bone... I know he'll do me proud!!!

Another milestone yesterday was the annual shearing of my sheep.. When it was really nice the shearer was out of town and when he was available it was raining so much they were too wet to shear... It poured Wednesday but was clear and windy on Thursday so he dashed over and did the job... It was a good thing because it was raining buckets again today... He did all the work but I was exhausted just shuffling them around... They look so nice and tidy now and they even had a manicure... Now once the weather clears I can start milking.
Below are before and after pictures...

Challenge Block 2010 - progress

Often I try something I really like on a RR block and then hate to send it off.. Some of my best work is resting somewhere around the world.. For the same RR that I worked the poppies I did this peacock for Cathy L.'s block doing a paisley for the wing and fancy fibers for the tail which really should have been much larger but I ran out of room. The peacock body was a good way to use that awkward little corner. I loved the paisley for the wing and always wanted to do it on a block for myself.

So now's my chance. In fact I am going to do two peacocks... one horizontal and one vertical... Last night I cut out paper peacocks and ovals in various sizes and played around with them on the block... finally decided on a larger size then I originally planned so the peacocks will be the major focus and also heavily beaded... I will do each in two sections to make them easier to work on. I drew the the upper bodies on the felt and then had to decide on thread....

In upper right corner of the block there's an intense aqua satin patch and I decided I was going to have to use glossy rayon to complement the satin. Not only rayon but Lauri B's "neon" threads... I first used them in her "out of your comfort zone" challenge and just knew I'd never use them again... Now I'm thinking I need to buy another package... Bet that'll make her grin!!!

p.s. Cathy L. posted that it was Ruthie that I did the poppies for... Thanks Cathy!!!

They're in the mail!

Well blogger is working now so I'm holding my breath.... I've two RR blocks that are in the mail as I write... The first is this black and blue Art Nouveau RR block from Cathy Kizerian... Luckily it is just starting and I'm first to choose and this block just screams drama to me..... I have lots of yummy black lace and black faceted beads... I can also see a dramatic blue, art-nouveau iris...and of course lots of outlining in gold... Her dress is shaped just like an iris.... Hope Cathy didn't specify this as the top as I plan to shift it around anyway...... I know Cathy would forgive me....

The second is from Ritva in Finland and I'm the last in this rotation... She had a little red in each block except one and Lisa worked on that....which is great because I wanted one with some red... All over town now the big red poppies are blooming.... Sometime ago I did a poppy and want to do one again with different materials...and this is the perfect block for it. It will probably be a little art nouveauish since I'm thinking along this theme anyway. Somewhere I have some crinkled red ribbon I want to try and I also have this wonderful book Allie recommended on 3-dimensional embroidery .... Embroidered Flora & Fauna by Lesley Turpin-Delport. Being last I can be a bit relaxed about the deadline and I know Ritva will forgive me too..

Last year I was an angel and helped to fill in on a RR when someone had to drop out... I embroidered these poppies and for the life of me I can't remember who this block belonged to... if you read my blog would you let me know?

Back to the 2010 Challenge Block

I loved doing the CQI challenge block last year as it afforded me many new techniques to try... I started off with good intentions this year but got overloaded with too many other things.

Now I want to catch up and get back on track with this project. I started of piecing with curves which was a stretch because the piecing is not my favorite and I use the same piecing pattern for ALL of my blocks. Then I used colors I've NEVER used before... Nicki even had to send me fabric as I had none of this color palette in my stash..

I did have a rather loose plan in mind and I will have to study the block again as I can't remember all I had wanted to do by this rough sketch.

January was the piecing and fans and I did get that done...I did a beaded fan, fan seams, and a fan using mesh. I had decided to skip the velvet in February so to catch up I have to start with birds in March... I know I wanted to do a peacock so I best put on my thinking cap and do a peacock in a way I've never tried..... This yearly challenge is such great fun that I don't want to miss out...