Meet OTIS

Otis started out here, kind of ghost like. He is a star minder. He tends to go invisible so you will never see him all, just parts of him. Parts of him tended to become visible as I stitched. Looks like he's not willing to reveal more of himself at this time.

OTIS the star minder

 I did finish this piece last night and I think it will become part of my moon quilt.

 

 I think OTIS will be with me from now on so you might see parts of him appear in other pieces once in awhile. He is kind of shy but a very gentle being. Not sure exactly what he does yet. As he reveals himself, I will let you in on his star minder duties. Click on the images for a closer view.

"Only those who can see the invisible, can attempt the impossible." Einstein

finally getting this thing called bobbin lace...

It's taking me a long time to master this craft. I started repeating patterns to help me learn. Repetition usually does it for me. I used a linen thread for this 6" border and did each one in a different color so I wouldn't get bored. I've made 4 little cases that will hold bobbins and lace tools and each one is decorated with a laced edge. They measure about 6" x 4". Click on the images for a closer view.

3 cases made with upholstery scraps and 1 with a moire. all lined with cotton.

the backs of 2 of them

they will hold all kinds of lace tools and bobbins

I'm working on a piece right now with lots of beads. I got carried away with the colors and it looks like something a clown would wear but I'm getting good experience working with the beads and for the first time am able to follow the pattern without too much help. Should be finished with it soon and will post it then.

Playing with the Wyr-Knittr

I played a bit more with the Wyr-Knittr. Completed a little basket that was a bit floppy so I did a button 9-patch on the bottom and added a bead on the inside for weight. It's a perfect size for catching left over threads. The truth is that I wasn't having fun stitching it together or it would have been much larger. It has a crocheted edge to pull it all together.

I've been stitching on the piece that came together last week from leftover scraps. I put some white cord through the Wyr-Knittr and made a couple of small tree trunks that I stitched onto the discharged trees and then embroidered on some leaves. And on the right hand side, a being is developing. Not real sure yet what he will look like. He might be a star maker by trade.

Opened up 3 eco dyed bundles. The bottom cloth is silk with purple oxalis. Not much of the purple remained. It kind of looks like 2 flowers behind a fence. The top 2 cloths are cotton that were wrapped with eucalyptus leaves. I think I will be sticking with silk from now on unless I'm using onion skins. All the leaves and flowers seem to make stronger imprints on silk.

More discharging and the Wyr Knittr

I did some more experimenting with discharging with Soft Scrub. I just used regular stencils this time that I've used in the past for quilting and with Paintstiks. They're not perfect but all are usable. The trick seems to be to start with a small amount of the Soft Scrub and add some as needed. I just used a piece of card stock to spread it around.

this is a blue shot cotton despite how it looks here

Arlee mentioned the gizmo, the Embellish-knit, on her blog yesterday and it looked very familiar. Turns out that about 8 years ago I bought the Wyr Knittr which is the same thing but made to be used with wire instead of yarn. I pulled it out last night (the package was still sealed) and have been playing with it. I couldn't make it work with the wire but it works great with yarn. It makes a great I-Cord and I started coiling and stitching it together for a small basket.

a variegated soft alpaca yarn

The Star has a face...

The star has a face. It's not the face that was planned but stitching the face on velvet was difficult.

 

I've decided that this piece, when finished, will be stitched to a pillow. I'm slowly  adding other elements.

I tried some discharging with Soft Scrub. I used a tree punch to make a stencil. I added the discharged trees to a piece that came to be while clearing scraps up from my table. Lots more stitching to be done, especially on the trees.

Stitching and Waiting...

I've been stitching on the piece I showed in my last post. Still a lot more to do and there will be a reverse piece on the right side that still needs lots of stitching. I'm thinking that velvet star needs a face.

Here are some close-ups. The round moon is pieced with 3 different pieces of silk.

I have 3 dye bundles that I will open in a couple of days and 2 new ones that will have to wait a few weeks. The bundle that is showing a beautiful purple was just wrapped yesterday with some leaves from my Purple Oxalis plant along with some eucalyptus leaves that came from a wonderful friend. I hope that purple holds up in the wash.

Purple Oxalis