M-M #9 & A Winner Update

update: forgot to draw for the HOW Ornaments and Frosty Flakes blocks yesterday!!
it was posted way back in August on my 100th post and didn't close until the weekend after Dawn Hay finished her Frosty Flakes posts.......which was Wednesday I think.  See what you miss out on if you only LOOK at pictures ..just did the random number generator and guess who won.............
this is what she won........

the stuff from my former header (I took it down last night and am going to find somethine new, so the licorice twist quilt will fill in till then) plus I am including some suprises for her...

Woohoo my Sweet Paulette, will email you shortly, Congratulations! sorry I couldn't give everybody something. I have such great followers and get such nice comments!!

NOW, FIRST, If you're looking for the Fall into Fall giveaway click next link and go here....

http://beetreedesigns.blogspot.com/2010/10/fall-into-fall-will-you-win.html

Oh my gosh I got so many wonderful emails, sometimes I cannot keep up , I still have about 40+ to answer and more keep popping in there.  Still having the problem with no-reply bloggers and "anonymous" people. 
 On another note,  here is the reworked grey tabby "Pudgie" fat cat pattern PDF link.

If you're not here for Fall into Fall, then you must be here for MYSTERY MONDAY HOW #9,  My oldest granddaughter and I were picking up the remnants late yesterday afternoon of her paper "free for all" from Sunday morning grrrrr, when I decided what I wanted to draw for this week even though I had some extras from last week...will save those for later.  So I got the paper and pencil box/crayon box and drew a picture, one with a little twist of words that made her laugh!

And after I stitched it decided it wasn't quite right.........and  since the crayons were sitting there anyway, decided to add a little color to the center, then I got carried away and did more.  My suggestion to you is, if you decide to crayon yours.......DO it before you stitch!!

so here you go.....

a pear in a partridge tree!!! hee hee hee!

Now I didn't start on this till late afternoon, and then I had to go make more soup because it definitely was a soup weekend, Saturday was taco, yesterday was potato and now we have enough for several more meals. We freeze taco, not the potato.  I regress, anyway I was stitching, re-assessing and then adding color and answering the 200+ emails (yikes!!) and even though I was up till 3am talking to a lady in France about the language barrier we had. (  She had used this foreign word in her message and I told her I wasn't familiar with it, laughing the whole time (the word was "housework")  hahahahaha!! )

anyway, due to this and that I didn't get the next one completed , but it is far enough along for you to use your imagination on the finished product... 

and to go with the pear in a partridge tree,

a little wren and holly

here's both

here's what pattern will look like, but the pdf is sideways (11 x 8.5 insead of portrait at 8.5 x 11),.  It will print okay. The link to google docs is below it

HOW # 9 - a pear in partridge tree and wren with holly

Okay, I think this is not one of my best days.  Am behind at finishing ornament today, and posting, then realized I left pdf at home for pattern and only had .jpg to add here, so, had to mail it and wait for return via other daughter who says she can convert jpg to PDF but says she was busy so it took a little while and while I was waiting........ on top of that................

horrors of horrors,

a cutie pie named Janet, one of my formerly "no reply" bloggers from Friday just emailed me about the ornament drawing, I said "Holy Carp, Batman, I completely forgot to do that yesterday!   So now all you ornament entrants from the last few weeks are going to have to wait until I get home from work!!!  But Thank YOU, Janet for reminding me...!!!

SORRY you guys,  well........it is Mystery Monday, why not make it more of a mystery, like where I left my brain??.....drawing for that this evening... sorry no new entrants for that giveaway, unfair to others who got in on time!

But there's still the Fall into Fall giveaway, if you haven't done that yet. 

Will be talking to some of you at lunch or this evening when I get around to answering emails again.

So what's up with you, hopefully nice weather at least, nice cool, crisp autumn and spring days, depending on where you are??

Mystery Monday HOW #7

SORRY......I DID NOT GET THE PDF FOR ANATOMY OF AN ORNAMENT FROM YESTERDAY DONE AND ATTACHED, IF YOU NEED IT, I WILL GET IT ADDED THIS EVENING

but here are the ornaments for this week.......after last week's color fiasco,  I hopped back into my comfort zone and stayed with one color stitching.  Whew, soooo much easier!!!

Mystery Monday HOW #7

PDF LINK 

NOTE the 3-D WHISKERS

I did this one like Carrie's version with no extra piece for back blue fabric(notice folds on front).  It is cut about an inch larger all the way around each edge, once folded, the stitchery hexie covers up raw edges of blue hexie, note I stitched stuff on back of blue BEFORE attaching to snowlady see next photo.  The lighting is weird and the colors are off, it looks turquoise.........is actually fabric color in above pictures.

HOW # 7 LINK to Google docs for free PDF of Pattern

more later...............gotta go, this will get you started!

anatomy of a HOW

First of all here are my stitched ornaments from last Monday, was a crazy week and I just finished them this morning. I am not real happy with them ( not real thrilled with the colors I chose)...........am a redworker, have trouble choosing more than one or two colors sometimes, lol!!!  AND.....

several have asked how I put the Hexagon Ornaments of the Week (HOW) together............I'm sorry I didn't write better directions.  Am so absent minded that I just assume people know what I meant, forgetting there are other ways to put them together or that there are beginners that need explanation, I am sorry.  Sooo here is how I've been putting together the ornaments lately.

This is where I start. So if you want to keep a nice copy print 2 copies. I cut the pattern apart. 

I cut from thick stiff interfacing for ornament A- 2 of the biggest templates and one of the smaller one, and the same for ornament B, two large, one small.  From FABRIC cut a piece bigger than each of  the templates too, the two smaller ones for each ornament are in your stitch background fabric and the big ones in contrasting fabrics.  The first one I did only has fabric on the back, the second one has 2 pieces of felt for the large templates.   I stitched the felt back before attaching to the front.  I like two sided ornaments and since then I have either added stitching on the back or adding other surprise backs for the people who win my giveaway (are you registered? you have until the Sunday after Dawn Hay's last Frosty Flake posts)  

Here is what I cut for ornament A along with my pieces from last week.

I usually attach the front stitching with some lazy daisy stitches but this week since the stitching intentionally fell off the edges here I just attached the front to the back hiding the stitches between the layers.

Here is the front and one of Dawn's frosty flake outlines for the back.

Then you have to stitch the back to the front like I did on the reindeer one from a couple of weeks ago below, here's the back & front.  (same fabric bad lighting)

match up edges and stitch together like this below.

 

showed the red because the brown and blue was too dark to see on the photo.

BUT WAIT....................

Carrie P from A Passion for Applique cut her fabric larger than I did so it would cover more of the template and appliqued her bird on the the side with the fabric folds, eliminating the need for extra back piece fabric and interfacing.  Look at the beautiful job she did stitching below.  Now if you look close she has her folds to the front and it looks GREAT.  SO yet another way to finish them, Thank you Carrie.  Go visit Carrie and see all the beautiful thing she does.

So I tried on on my ornament B this week

It worked fine,  but wish I had had yardage of this fabric for the back then I could have fussy cut it to get the snowflake in center, but it was a charm square, so it is off center some. added a few stitches on back for interest before I attached front stitching hexie.

will attach a PDF FORM  of tutorial in the morning with my next Monday Mystery HOW #7

Don't forget if you're a quilter with a blog and want to be part of a REALLY BIG giveaway go to Debi's Fall into Fall blog, CLICK on my sidebar for a link.  She's looking for 200 bloggers to participate and thousands to enter?

Mystery Monday HOW #5

Mystery Monday Hexagon Ornaments of the Week (HOW #5)

see below for link

skinny legged reindeer

reindeer with hexagon ornaments and a button nose

click HERE for link to google docs for a PDF of stitch patterns. and don't forget to register on my 100th post giveaway if you'd like to recevie a set of the HOW ornaments in reds or blues along with a set of Frosty Flakes blocks.  Sorry I was late, just got stuck trying to think of something to draw.  Nothing looked cute, new and fun out of the 30 something sketches I did.  I finally just picked a couple and stitched them........ have fun!! I am going to go work on the crown royal quilt for other daughters friend.  Black with purple, black and even more black!

Mystery Monday HOW #4

Wow what a week last week at least 4 GO giveaways, nah, I didn't win.  But there are some lucky people out there who did.   Sweet Paulette can hardly drag herself away from the one she got!!!   And there's more chances this week..............keep on the lookout.  Word is that Ryan Walsh from I'm just a guy who quilts is going to have one to give away......................He said he had some exciting new to share on Monday!
After you've visted here GO! to Ryan's and chack it out.

I've been working on the baby quilt and Mystery Monday Hexagon Ornaments of the Week.
Notice on sidebar I made a blog button to grab for my blog.   Here are the ornaments for this week!

Hexie 4 A

Hexie 4B

Here are all of the "HOW's " so far........... If you want to learn how to make the custom twisted cord ornament hangers go back a couple of posts to twisted cord tutorial. CLICK

 At the end of the Frosty Flakes BOW, eventually will have your choice of blue OR red ornaments along with a set Dawn Hay's blue OR red Frosty Flakes Blocks (blocks only on these not whole quilt)  if you've entered my giveaway contest to win them............WHAT? you're not entered.................go read my

100th post and then enter there. 

BUT YOU HAVE TO GO HERE TO GET THE PDF TO DOWNLOAD IF YOU WANT THE ORNAMENT PATTERN.

CLICK ON WORDS UNDER THE PICTURE TO TAKE YOU TO GOOGLE DOCS

where you can download patterns for

 Hexie 4 a & b  HOW#4 enjoy!!!!!!

And don't forget about the GO! giveaway at Ryan's

bees a buzzin' around the mystery stitch

mystery stitch alternate center bee

For those of you wanting the alternate center here is a scanned copy of my work and a drawing.  Click on  the words under the drawing to get the link to google docs for download. 
Did you guys check out the back side of my redwork mystery stitch yesterday?  Not too bad, not quite up to great-grandma's standards, but not bad.
For those of you who may be unfamiliar with the vast array of stitches out there check Mary Corbet's Needlework n Thread site.  It is filled with oodles and boodles of anything that has to do with all things about embroidery.  A master stitcher she provides drawings and videos, pictures of lots of stitches, and  free patterns too.  Anytime you need an embroidery question answered, start there.  Don't be confused by the ads etc all over her site, just scroll around, down the sides and the bottom for the goodies.  The SEARCH box is all the way at the bottom in the red footer.  here are sone links

Mary Corbet's video tutorial on french knots, a pistol stitch is just an elongated french knot.

Mary Corbet's fern stitch tutorial video, how to do the center portion of the leaf.  Note, my stitches are long and could be snagged you may want to do outline for all???

monday mystery stitch, the final part

MONDAY MYSTERY STITCH

Well, this is the end of another monday mystery.  I had fun.  I hope you did too.  First I apologize for my pictures, I am terrible taking pictures and the lighting is worse.  

Take a look at my examples.  I left the red and cream as is because I was planning for it to be a doily of sorts and have a candy dish sitting in top of it, so no one would see the center anyway.  The rest of them have a finished center.  I embroidered the centers before I got a clean drawing to give you, so they vary slightly, and I intentionally put my own spin on the teal and lime..... If you want the bees, email me and I will get them too you. 

Here you go...............

Trimed for sewing,

DMC498 on cream

my favorite tool when turning curved pieces inside out.....pinking shears, gives you a nicer curve than when you just trim close with regular scissors.

Don't forget to clip corners too. 

This one below is off just a little but close enough, I missed the inside corner slightly.

My candy dish doily, now if I only had a candy dish full of starlight mints.

BLACK & WHITE

For this table topper, and less fuss, use the circle rather than trying to sew around each of the petals.  I added jmbo rick rack for fancy edge. I think I forgot the flash, this really is the black and WHITE one, lol!

Next up, black, creams, tans, browns on a tan tone on tone print

For this one I needle turned appliqes it to a black and tan print background, top stitched the applique.  Then

went back added a row of stitching on the background for a little extra detail. I squared this one up to 12.5" cut 3.5, strips, (2-3.5" x 12.5", and 2 pcs 3.5" x 18") cut 2.25 binding strips and managed to join my binding at the bottom the way you are supposed to.......That is something that has eluded me for ever........My mom and the quiltin' chicks have shown me numerous times and it never stuck then last month when I had to bind the snowball quilt I had to ask for help again, but I remembered what they taught me............(If any of you have trouble joining the ends of your binding let me know and I'll do a tutorial.  I need something to remind myself anyway. )

This one is going to be a wall hanging, but if you notice I still have the quilting and tacking down the binding to do yet.

Now for the TEAL & LIME

I made a throw pillow out of this one.  I squared the center up to 11 inches and added corners.  To add corners, cut 2 squares 8.5inches then cut them once on the diagonal.. They are cut oversized.  Find center of edge and center of each triangle and pin, make sure that the "ears that hang over are even.  Sew 1/4"seam.  Now do the opposite corner and repeat finding centers etc with another triangle and sew.  Press open, pushing the seam towards the triangle. Now do the other corners, and repeat the centering, sewing nad pressing with the other corners.  Square up and add pillow back.

As always click on the words below the picture of the diagram to get the pdf for it at google docs.

mystery stitch center

HOPE YOU ENJOY THESE MINI PROJECTS...........

UP NEXT MONDAY, A QUICK PROJECT FOR 5" or LARGER SCRAPS.
 You also need some batting scraps.  

monday mystery stitch plus

First off. HAPPY FLAG day!!!!!

now.............

Imagine me singing, loudly and off key, because I like to sing loud that is truly the only way I can .......off key.........LOL!!!!!  I am singing the pre-school song from Sesame Street, I believe....................... 

"One of these this not like the other, one of these things just doesn't belong.  Can you tell which thing is not like the other, before I finish my

song"........yes, the tan one, and it's NOT FINISHED!!  So sorry, but I am even further behind than you think.  I had hoped to present to you not only the last petal, but finished items and directions..........now you will have to wait until next monday.  Oh well it's just more anticipation, Theresa, lol!!!!  So far this is how they look, sorry they are not all pressed.

I finished this lime and teal one at about 12:30 last night

finished the black and white about 7:00 last night

the red one has been done since week 1 or 2. 

mystery stitch part F

But several good things happened, I got some of my patterns available to buy as instant downloads from my blog, anyone insterested can see the side bar or scroll to the bottom of the home page.  And this week/weeknd I had some very nice converstions or (emails) with such great creative people Dawn Heese from Linen Closet Quilts, Vicki from  Sew Useful Designs , Judith from Creative Studios  Theresa from Stitchin Friends, and Robin from rsislandcrafts about designs and patterns and selling from blogs.  So great to bounce ideas off of each other.  Theresa is playing along with the monday mystery stitch, check out her stitching. 

Please time go visit all these blogs. There is some great stuff from some really nice creative people!!!!!!

I have to back to work......you go blog hop and stitch, and come back later.  Cyndi