Welcome November?

I declare, I thought things would get better when the smoke from the wildfires cleared. That hasn't been the case. There have been a few days of good air quality but every time I step outside it seems to be toxic. Our mailbox is just across the street with half a dozen others. I can't even go get the mail - with my mask on - without being negatively affected. The physical reactions are not as severe as they used to be, at least not usually, but they are still disabling. The worst part of it now seems to be the emotional toll. When I have two good days and then a string of four or more bad days it gets depressing. On top of that I'm having to curtail my quilt making activities in order to facilitate healing in my left elbow. There's been progress on that front but it's not enough that I feel I can start back up again yet. {sigh} The last thing I worked on was auditioning focal elements for the Queens of 'Ween quilt-to-be.

This was the first potential layout I tried. There are others but I'll share them in a dedicated post. I haven't been in the mood to play with any of the blocks I've already made. That would require emotional/creative energy I just don't have at the moment.

Fortunately there was a small needlepoint case I started some time ago I was able to pick up and work on. It's a duplicate of a kit I stitched up last year. Well, nearly. I changed the colors to better fit the taste of the intended recipient.

This is the original:

This is a teal fox on a gray background. I really didn't want to stitch another gray background. And I wanted to use some of the hand dyed flosses I've been collecting. I chose a purple for the fox, lavender and a neon green for the plaid and chevron stripes. I stitched quite a bit of those colors before turning my attention to the background. Not a smart decision as it turned out.

Every color I tried for the background was either too dark and would blend into the fox's head or too close in value to the lavender floss and become visually mushy. I was concerned that the lighter value hues would blend in with the fox's white whiskers. This light orange seemed to be the best choice from what I had available to me. I'm not happy with it but I wasn't prepared to take out all the lavender stitches to try another shade. It is what it is. Now the question is, what next? (I ask that question a lot!) Holding these small cases with my left hand doesn't seem to aggravate the elbow, as long as I don't stitch for too long a stretch at a time. I have a couple more blank cases on hand, I just have to come up with a pattern and then the color palette. It's these decisions I struggle with when I'm not feeling up to snuff.

Another aspect of the emotional toll of chemical sensitivities is that I don't have the energy to visit other blogs. I have to be careful not to get overwhelmed by the activities and energy that other creatives appear to have. That would only serve to deepen any depression I might be experiencing. The one lesson I'm learning from this affliction is the art of self preservation!

SAL Follow Up

I've put the finishing stitches in the flying geese needlepoint case! (See previous post.) I chose to take the easy way out and use just one color along both edges.

Now I have to figure out what to pick up next... 😊 Our next stitch along check in will be on 11 November.

SAL in October

I almost forgot! I knew that our every-three-week check in would be today. I've even been working on a current project the last couple of days. But then I got distracted by a book I'm reading and all thoughts of the Stitch Along disappeared from my consciousness. Ain't that the way?

As regular visitors are aware, I've been vacillating between embroidery and needlepoint projects inbetween the quilt making I do. This time around it's been needlepoint in my hands, specifically this small case that started out with a blank face.

I'm not sure this is the most recent photo of the work in progress. Seems to me I've shown it to you at a later stage. Oh well, this is the photo I found for 'before.' And here is where it's at now:

Since I'm having to restrict my quilt making activities (see previous post) this project has come in handy. Holding the case in my left hand doesn't seem to upset the elbow of that arm unduly. Consequently I've made quite a bit of progress! All that's left are the compensating stitches that will have to go in along the edges.

That's tedious work. I'll be stitching through at least two layers of canvas - four in the corners - as well as trying to cover the mesh as much as possible right up against the zipper fabric. I use a size 18 tapestry needle for the bulk of the stitching. I'll switch to a 20 or 22 for what's left. All of these colors are samples of the hand dyed embroidery floss available through the Victorian Motto Sampler Shoppe. I use a full six strands on this 14 count needlepoint canvas. There's a give away going on over at the Shoppe, you should hop over and put your name in the hat!

I may very well be the last in the group to get my post up. Participants are scattered all over the world in varying time zones. In fact, Clare in New Zealand has just joined us. Welcome Clare! If you haven't already been to see what everyone else is working on I encourage you to do so. 😊

Avis, Claire, Gun, Carole, LucyAnn, Kate, Jess, Sue, Constanze, Debbierose, Christina, Kathy, Margaret, Cindy, Helen, Steph, Linda, Heidi, Jackie, Sunny, Hayley, Tony, Megan, Catherine, Deborah, Connie, Clare

Turkey Tracks and Quilter's Elbow

I recently showed my newest Turkey Tracks blocks...

That brought the number in my collection up to 42. Originally I thought I would set the blocks the traditional way, with narrow sashing and cornerstones. Then Kate left a comment on that post that got me to thinking. She suggested a single fabric in a strong color, leaving out the cornerstones. I didn't have a clue what I could use that would tie all the blocks together so I put them on the wall to see what there was.

My first reaction was that a straight grid setting would just be boring.  I also considered a strippy set with columns of the Turkey Tracks blocks alternated with possibly a colorful, large scale print. That would leave enough blocks leftover for another small quilt.

Then I went for broke and tried a diagonal setting.

This picture does not include all the blocks, nor are the colors distributed evenly, but this setting made my heart sing. 😊 Plus I can set the blocks side by side, just the way I prefer (no sashing or cornerstones at all!). I'll use more white-on-white for the setting triangles, then maybe a colorful border or frame and border.

I've had to take the blocks down for the time being. The next time I feel really well I'll put them up again and try for a pleasing distribution of the colors and prints. I've only done a few diagonal set quilts in the past but it shouldn't be too challenging. The worst part may be cutting the large triangles and then any border strips. This is where Quilter's Elbow comes into the story. It's a sharply painful condition in my left elbow. The doctor diagnosed it as Golfer's Elbow. I've only ever played Putt Putt golf, and the last time I did that has to be more than 35 years ago. So I've renamed the condition Quilter's Elbow. I suspect I injured that arm when I fell a few months ago but didn't notice the injury because other body parts hurt worse. Then I exacerbated the injury by continuing to use that hand and arm for rotary cutting and such. Now I'm trying to give the elbow a chance to heal. Sure makes for slow progress on my creative endeavors!

Scrap Happy in October

It's time for our monthly report on what we've done with scrap materials! This effort is hosted by Kate at Tall Tales From Chiconia and Gun at rutigt in Sweden. Not everyone works with fabrics, and not everyone posts every month but everyone's blog is certainly worth a visit! 

I've only made a few blocks to add to my Parts Department...

One "Lego" block (12") and three 6" Ships to begin with. Then I sewed up a couple more families of flying geese for my Remixed Geese project, an 8" postage stamp star, and my regular 6" Shoo-fly and Hole in the Barn Doors.

 

In the middle, down at the bottom, you can see an example of why I enjoy the Hole in the Barn Door pattern so much. I just love putting fussy-cut images in those holes!

Here are the links to the others who are trying to use up their scraps. Welcome to Connie who is joining us for the first time!

Kate, Titti, Heléne, Eva, Nanette, Lynn, Lynda,
Birthe, Turid, Susan, Cathy, Debbierose, Tracy, Jill, Claire, Jan, Karen,
Moira, Sandra, Linda, Chris, Nancy, Alys, Kerry, Claire, Jean, Johanna,
Joanne, Jon, Hayley,  Dawn and Connie