Block 5. Butterfly and Owl

Here is block five finished.  I couldn't put this one down, it kept saying "put this here, add that there...." until in the end I couldn't put anything else anywhere else.  I like to cover every seam, I hate bare seams although I don't mind something trailing from one patch across a seam to another patch. Anyway as soon as this block is blogged, I am off to start block 6 which is sitting on the dining room table all ready and waiting.

The large Butterfly lace motif has been hand-dyed in mauve and lemon and then beaded with mauve beads.  The Forget-me-nots are tiny blue buttons while the tiny little Owl at the top was a cute brass charm that my husband wanted me to use on the block. 

New Crazy Quilt Happening

I have retired from full-time work.........yayyyy, clapping hands.........so at last I can get back to my crazy quilt which I started over five years ago.  I have just finished the first four blocks with about twenty more to go.  I have put my cream-on-cream crazy quilt on the back burner for now because I need to remove all of the gold brass charms and replace them with gold thread embroidery. As the charms tarnish and go dull and dark, there is no way that I can clean them without marking the cream fabrics and laces - I don't know what I was thinking of, putting metal charms on the blocks. To see the cream-on-cream blocks check out the post for May 22nd 2011.

So I am back to the coloured one and I'm really having fun. I have no idea when I start stitching just what I am going to finish up with. It's like the blocks are telling me what they want putting on them next. Here are photos of the first four blocks which may all get sewn together into a very colourful and busy crazy quilt or they may get separated by strips of black velveteen fabric. Definitely NOT black velvet though or the house and my nose will be full of little specks of velvet pile.

Block One. Peacock is hand-dyed and sequins added to his eye and tail. I thought he went well with the Peacock Feather fabric to the right of the bird.

Block Two.  Angel block.

 

Block Three.  Floral Bouquet Block.  The floral embroidery in the centre was recycled from the lid of a trinket box which I did for a magazine article featuring Rajmahal Threads. The embroidery was all worked in a single thread. When the black fabric box got shabby from use, I unpicked the lid and used it on this crazy quilt block.

Block Four.  Fans Block with some gold metal fans which started life as a pair of earrings.