Hearts and Roses

Good morning fellow crafters ~ I thought I’d show my latest two creations.

Hearts are a symbol of love and roses are an ancient symbol of love and beauty. They are two of my favorite things. I have a collection of hearts made from various materials, and in my cottage gardens I also grow roses.  I love their scents, colors and forms.

In my needlework, I enjoy creating them and here are my two latest pieces. They are made with felt, silk ribbon and embroidery floss.  The silk ribbons are colored with alcohol ink markers.

I’m just learning to embroider with silk ribbons and enjoy it very much. Using the alcohol ink marking pens is nice too as I don’t have to have all colors of ribbons, just white in 3 sizes.  Can any of you tell me where I can get 5/8” organza ribbon and also places to buy silk ribbon? I bought the ribbon I have from Thread Art.

Very good videos online for ribbon embroidery are by Crafty Attic.  I would buy from her but she accepts PayPal only. You will enjoy her videos.

That’s it for now.

Happy Creating whatever your medium ~ FlowerLady

What I’ve created lately ~ mostly works in progress

Hi Folks ~ Here it is feeling like summer already, being in the air-conditioning feels wonderful.  I try to work in gardens in the mornings, needlework whenever I feel like it, here in my little creative space.

Here are my latest creations. I crocheted the flower and the butterfly. There is silk ribbon embroidery, beads,  old lace, fresh water pearls.

This is my first attempt at a pincushion.

Silk ribbon embroidery and I used alcohol ink markers to color the ribbon.

I am new to silk ribbon embroidery too and am thoroughly enjoying it.

I didn’t stuff it enough. 

When I showed my friend and fellow needle worker and told her I realized I didn’t stuff it enough she told me I have to ‘overstuff’.

Next time I will.

I added a crocheted edging.

Here you can tell it wasn’t stuffed enough.

I love creating hearts.

I loved and was loved and hearts are an expression of love. I miss showing my dear husband my creations. He was my encourager, my love.

This photo was in different lighting than the one taken below.

This piece below was made for a widow friend for her birthday. White silk ribbon embroidered then colored with the alcohol ink markers.

The embroidered part is 2 3/4 inches high by 4 1/4 inches wide.

I love creating. As you can tell, all but the framed piece are works in progress as I’ve not decided yet what to do with them.

Happy creating to you whatever your medium.

FlowerLady

Oh my goodness ~ where have I been?

 

Not here that’s obvious!  I’m sorry for not posting more on here, but as most of you know, my life was turned upside down 9 Dec. 2012, when I lost my dear husband of 43 years.  It’s now 15 months later and I’m more at peace, God is my strength each and every day and life goes on. I miss my husband daily, the grief just isn’t as bad and knowing he is with God, perfectly well, gives me joy.

**Added 1 April ~ I have been blogging all along, just in my main blog FlowerLady’s Musings. Blogging has been a blessing and a help to me during this time.**

I’ve been doing some needlework, embroidery and crochet.  Have just started learning ribbon embroidery and am loving that.  Next on my list of things to get is an order of alcohol markers for coloring silk ribbon.  All I have to have is white silk ribbon and that makes it easier and coloring the silk the way you want it will be fun.  I can’t afford everything I would like to try, colors of hug snug seam binding, or silk ribbons, so I’m just going along and enjoying what I have and can do.  I am ‘learning’ and that helps with grieving and keeping my mind young and active.  My husband would love seeing what I’ve been up to lately.

Now let’s see what I can find for photos to share here.

These next few are a from last year.

A crocheted purse.

A crocheted prayer shawl, for a breast cancer survivor.

Embroidered and beaded heart with a crocheted beaded edging.

Embroidered hearts.

This is the sign over friends of mines shop. I did this from a photo I took of the sign. The background color is about the color of their shop.

I’ve got it wrapped in plastic. The overall size might be about 7 inches by 12 inches.  I can’t really remember. They loved it.

These have been done this year.

A crocheted granny heart.

This is a heart cut our of a wonderful piece of fabric and I outlined and filled in the designs on the fabric.  This is still a work in progress.

This was crocheted for brother-in-law and sister-in-law.  It is draped over a love-seat.

Ribbon embroidered flowers, French knots, I just noticed that I’ve not taken a photo of this since adding beads around the edge at the junction of each stitch, if you get what I mean.  These ribbons were hand colored with water colors, except for the larger green ones, that was the color of the ribbon.

This is my latest piece, which I’m still working on. Silk ribbon, crochet, antique edgings, fresh water pearls and beads.

 

That’s it for now.

Happy Creating whatever your medium ~ FlowerLady

Latest creations

Good morning everyone ~ Sorry I’ve not been here lately, but as you know, my life has changed drastically. I’m just starting to get into my new groove, even though I miss my dear husband every day and the tears flow whenever they feel like it.

I’ve been embroidering with ribbon and love it.  I’d like to know where you ladies who do ribbon work buy your ribbon and also ribbon seam binding.  I’m on a budget so need good prices.  I’ve bought some from Walmart, ribbon that is, not seam binding, as they didn’t have that kind.  Walmart doesn’t have a great variety, but it’s been a start.

I’ve been making little fabric covered journals. which I’ll be putting in my little Etsy shop when I re-open it. I emptied it when my husband left this planet as I didn’t want to deal with selling and shipping then. I’m getting ready now, as I updated my bank and credit card info, also my profile. Now I’ve got to take photos and write out descriptions and get items listed. I’m a bit of a procrastinator to say the least.  I also miss my dear husband’s love and encouragement.

Here are some crocheted, beaded edgings I’ve made also.

Happy Creating whatever your medium.

FlowerLady

Latest Creation ~ Give Thanks Journal

 

I’ve been reading a wonderful book I just ordered from Amazon. It is ‘1000 Gifts ~ Dare to Live Fully Right Where You Are’ by Ann Voskamp. I got inspired to create a little cover  for a thanksgiving journal. You can read more about the creation of this journal in my other blog.  The post is Life at Plum Cottage.

I really want to learn how to make those beautiful, fat fabric journals, but haven’t found a good you-tube video, or directions anywhere. Maybe I’m just not looking in the right place. If any of you can send me in the right direction, I would greatly appreciate it.

Happy Creating ~ FlowerLady Lorraine

Why I’ve not posted anything since September

 

A follower contacted me via email this morning asking if I was ok, because there is nothing new on my blog since Sept. I’ve been posting to my two other blogs ~ FlowerLady’s Musings and The Continuing Journey, and forgot all about this one.

We thought my husband possibly tore his Trap. muscle on the left side of his neck from doing car work and some other stuff at weird angles. That was in August when he woke up with horrific cramping in his neck that lasted for an hour or more. I looked up severe muscle cramping in the neck and came up with the Trap. muscles. If the muscle was torn, it could take up to two years to heal. My husband wasn’t one to go to drs. he had an aversion to them, because of things done to him for bedwetting when he was a boy, so I gave him herbs to calm and heal, massaged his whole body with essential oils for healing and calming too. We prayed for his healing, we had hope, we prayed if it was God’s will to take him home, whatever the problem, then to just do it. I told God if He wasn’t going to heal Mark, then I released Mark to Him. That was hard. Neither of us knew that that was exactly what was going to happen. God took Mark home on the 9th of December. He would have been 65 on the 20th.

I asked for prayer here. You can read more here “He’ll Be Waiting” and here in my new blog “The Continuing Journey.”

This past month has been very rough for me and I’m just taking things slowly.  God is with me, sustaining me with His love, grace, peace and strength.

I am doing a little stitching, but not much yet. Mark would want me to continue what I’ve been doing, but I sure am going to miss his love, encouragement and input on all my projects.

Be thankful for your many blessings. let the petty stuff go, be loving, forgiving, encouraging and live each day to the fullest.

FlowerLady Lorraine

P.S. I did make this for Mark in the last week or so he was here on this earth. He liked it.

Front

Back ~ He called me ‘Rainey Wife’

The two pieces that I am working on right now.

The heart below is what I’m working on mostly, as someone is interested in this piece. There is quite a bit more done on it, but still more to go. I work on it a little here and there, keeping track of my time.  It is amazing how much time goes into something like this.

I listen to sky streaming music while working in my little creative space. I open up my spreadsheet that DH (dear husband) set up for me that figures my time when I enter figures, then I pick up needle and thread and start again. This piece is a real joy to work on, it makes me feel happy. I love hearts and flowers. This heart is being mounted to the background fabric that it is laying on here. Right now I’m adding a lace edging, which is being sewn on with perle cotton using the French knot stitch, which is anchoring it to the background fabric. I have a bit more of embroidery I want to do and more beads to add too.

This is the other piece I put aside for a bit. I keep looking at it to see what all I want to do to complete it. I have enjoyed making this and the scripture verse is a favorite of mine. I’ve got more ‘sand’ to add.

There is something so calming and enjoyable working with threads and beads. I can’t explain it, but I know others that do this kind of work know what I am talking about.

Here’s how my little creative space 6ft. x 8ft. it looking these days.

Part of my ‘stash’ sitting on the floor so that I can get to bins and shelves.

Thank you for visiting, thank you to those who have become followers and to all of you for your kind and encouraging comments.

Oh yea, I did find some carbon type paper for tracing designs onto fabric, found it at JoAnn’s Fabrics.  So I look forward to using that.

Have a great weekend and happy crafting ~ FlowerLady Lorraine

***

Take your needle, my child,

and work at your pattern;

it will come out a rose by and by. 

Life is like that -

one stitch at a time

taken patiently

and the pattern will come out all right

like the embroidery. 

Oliver Wendell Holmes