More vintage ladies for your embroideries

By on 4-19-2011 in Digital Images + Collage, Fabric Postcards, Original photos

Two more pages of Godey Ladies for you. These ladies along with the earlier page are all from the same vintage McCall’s transfer book. I love them all. They remind me of “Gone With the Wind” with the ladies and their long, hooped, swishing skirts.

Vintage Godey Ladies

A set of tea towels embroidered with these lovely women would make a great hostess gift to take along with you when you attend your next holiday party. One could also adorn a journal cover as well.

Vintage Godey Ladies

Redwork or bluework could make your lady stand out on a crisp pure white cotton or muted earth colours on an ecru background would give them a vintage appeal.

Christmas Alphabet to enhance your Christmas embroideries and quilts

By on 4-19-2011 in Digital Images + Collage, Fabric Postcards, Original photos

A wonderful Christmas alphabet was published in the Mc’Calls Christmas transfers, Vol II. A Santa stocking with your child’s initials could make a great Christmas tradition. Embroidered onto a quilt block in a table runner, it would make the best hostess gift.

ABCD

Adding a few beads to the letters would make them extra festive.

EFGH

IJKL

Whether you embroider white on red or red on white to give it a red work appeal this alphabet fits the Christmas season.

MNOP

QRSTUVWXYZ will be posted tomorrow. There is still time to whip up two or three initials for this holiday season.

Catnip Capers …. a summer quilt of kitties playing in the sun

By on 4-19-2011 in Digital Images + Collage, Fabric Postcards, Original photos

Catnip Capers was done for a woman who truly is the mother of these cats. Her favourite flowers are sun flowers and I thought what better than to put the cats in a sunflower garden enjoying the sun on a hot hazy day. The butterflies and dragonflies along with ladybugs are all present on this summer noon along with a hazy sun directly above. The cats are playing and rolling in the grass with one (there’s always one) looking down on them with humour.

catnip capers

These cats started as embroidery outlines. I painted and coloured them in Photoshop using a Wacom Bamboo tablet. Once they were fully drawn and coloured in I used filters to give them a soft furry look. The sunflowers have stuffed middles along with some of the petals that have been sewn down onto the quilt background. Other petals are double sided giving the flowers a 3D look. The stems are twisted cord, ribbon and embroidery floss. Large leaves were cut and sewn with a raw edge and then fray stop was used to keep them from fraying. The brown-eyed susans have button middles and the flower petals are simply a piece of gathered strips that has been cut with a pinking blade and doubled. The chickweed flowers were made on a daisy loom with ribbon and seed beads sewn for the centers. The little forget-me-nots are made with dark silk from men’s ties and mauve lame. Simple small yoyos turned backward and sewn down with more seed beads. The dragonflies, butterflies and ladybugs are buttons and embellishments. This quilt was an absolute joy to make from start to finish.

Christmas tabby cat and some cookies for Santa’s thank you plate

By on 4-19-2011 in Digital Images + Collage, Fabric Postcards, Original photos

Christmas is just around the corner, but there is still time to embroider a kitty or two. These images are also part of the vintage Golden Books colouring book.

Christmas kitten playing with ribbon

This tabby cat is so cute. He has the greatest smile on his face. Embroidered in Christmas colours he could adorn a stocking or cavort around a tree skirt.

Christmas Cookies

Do you need a plate of cookies for Santa? This one has several and treated individually they would make cool decorations, embroidered and beaded or painted on felt. They could also be painted onto wood for a more permanent ornament.