A confectionery of ribbons

Firstly, let me say a warm thank you to everyone, who left such sweet comments concerning Fiona's heirloom quilt. I'm happy to say this pretty has gone home with Fiona to live happily ever after in her glorious 100 year old school house. Oh and I might add Fiona did love it....so much so that she has given me a few more stitching orders for me to fashion.....really, really fun tasks....but more about those another time.

After finishing Fiona's quilt, and having completed a few humdrum orders I hankered after a little more fun stitching. Boring orders punctuated with some pretty stitching always perks me up.

My fingers were itching to fashion oodles and oodles of pretty ribbons into oodles and oodles of floralicious delight!!

So, whilst away on a little road trip last weekend, meandering along the countryside in our faithful ole tin lizzie, in celebration of a BIG birthday of my significant other,  I sat happily in the passenger seat coaxing silken and shiny ribbons into  bloom after bloom, collecting them all together on the dashboard.

My, my......don't pretty ribbon flowers add to the countryside??? Me thinks every dashboard should be bedecked with a ribbon blossom or two!!

Back home again..........high tea anyone??? Tier after tier of French wired confections of pansies, roses, fuchsias.....so, so delectable.......so, so much eye candy!!

We cannot only have a pretty, tiered cake stand of ribbon delight to tempt the eyes, now can we?? A 'must have' is a Royal Albert, fine bone china teapot, overspilling with a pretty palette of blossomy delight!!

Mmmm.....very pretty, I hear you say.....but what is the purpose for all this ribbon delight??

A little over a year ago I fashioned another heirloom quilt for a very dear friend, whose home (which both she and her husband designed and built) and everything she and her family owned was destroyed in a devastating bushfire. I wrote about my friend and the fashioning of her quilt here.

I decided I wanted to stitch a lovely cushion to send to my friend, to perhaps sit alongside the quilt that I had fashioned. My friend and her husband have been very kind and and generous in their friendship to my husband and myself these past couple of months, so I thought I would thank them with this little gift. A cushion is always a fun pretty to stitch. AND......fashioning a basketful of gorgeous, ribbon delight is always the best fun.

I chose a pretty cream bridal damask that I had stored away in one of my armoires. It has climbing roses and leaves rambling their way across the fabric. The basket is a vintage doily which lends itself very nicely as a basket.

So......let the playing begin!

Each blossom was stitched to the basket; pretty, ruffled roses, fancy-faced pansies, dainty fuchsias and scrunchy, green leaves. I added a snippet of a doily and a pretty bow.....and voila......all pretty as a picture. I always find it joyous stitching baskets of overspilling flowers with their pretty, blossomy faces smiling back at me. I never tire of coaxing shimmering and silken ribbons into fanciful bouquets of blooming fantasies.

In closing my friend and her husband decided not to rebuild as the costs to do so were too exorbitant and prohibitive. So many  building codes, rules and regulations would have the costs go through the proverbial ceiling. They have since bought another home and are slowly beginning to gather and collate treasures. They are slowly continuing their biography, in which new chapters will be written and new memories shaped. My friend perhaps will tuck this bouquet of flowers somewhere near her heirloom quilt in her boudoir adding to the basketful of memories which our friendship of many, many years enjoys.

Wishing you all a lovely weekend.....I don't suppose there will be any fashioning of pretty ribbons for me for a little while, as that bright pink front door has opened once again to those delightful kiddos who visit my humble abode and stitch a little.......toodles!

Linking up to Mary's Sweet Inspiration Linky party.

Something Sentimental

It is holiday time down here and I have been having the most pleasurable of weeks. With the bright pink door at the Kim Sharman School of Excellence closed to students for two weeks I have been catching up on some orders. A lady, Fiona, asked me if I would stitch a wall hanging which would become a family heirloom. Fiona's dad recently passed away and she hankered after a wall hanging, incorporating some photos of her grandparents, her mum and dad, and her siblings. She also said I could do whatever I wanted!!!

Fiona intimated she would like pretty embellishments that evoked a sense of nostalgia. Heirloom....pretty embellishments....nostalgia....complete carte blanche in what I fashioned....all these words are music to my ears!! AND.....to be given complete freedom in whatever I wanted to create.....well....it doesn't get much sweeter than that!!

Fiona asked perchance, if I had some pretty laces and bits and bobs to incorporate into the wall hanging. Now let me see........do I have enough pretties with which to embellish?? Yes indeedy, I think I might have a few!!!! Actually, I have an Aladdin's cave overflowing with a bounteous supply of all manner of lacy and embroidered treasures! Who needs a haberdashery store anyway??

Of course when Fiona said she wanted pretty.......I did double check that she really meant pretty. When given half a chance to 'do pretty', here in my humble abode the embellishment bomb detonates with lace, ribbon, vintage pretties, buttons, beads etc etc......AND.....I do tend to get carried away. As Fiona has five sons I wasn't quite sure if what was in my brainpan would sit well in a home where there are 6 humans of the male kind. She assured me that my creation would be displayed on a wall in her bedroom, the one room in her home where femininity rules! I might add Fiona lives in a 100 year old school house!! Lucky Fiona!!

I photocopied the photos on some photo transfer fabric, heat set the photos with an iron and then rinsed them in cold water for about a minute.

After stitching the photos onto the backing fabric, I then began playing with all my pretties I had gathered up and began to stitch them in an arrangement that was pleasing to my li'l eye!

As is always the case with a project such as this, I am afraid I made the most unholy mess in my sewing room, because I always find when stitching a project like this, I need to find the exact snippet of lace or a tiny embroidery that I know is somewhere, but cannot quite remember in which suitcase or hat box it is waiting ever so patiently, so that it might cast a little beauty to the project on hand. Hence the upturning of many a suitcase is required and the burrowing deep, deep down into the disarray of pretties......into the mayhem........is mandatory! A lot of time is spent in arranging the perfect pretty in the exact position.

Fiona wanted me to include some gorgeous hand embroidered doilies her grandmother had lovingly stitched many, many years ago, so I machine stitched the names on these to make them a little more personal.

I adore hand stitching. I find hand stitching to be therapeutic; it gives me much pleasure and satisfaction. I adore adding little snippets of lace, remnants of embroideries, a little satin ribbon here and there, a fragment or two of antique motifs, some beads, buttons, a vintage piece of ornamentation........a smidgen of a doily. It really is the best fun.

With every heirloom piece I stitch I always love to incorporate a vintage glove holding a few stems of pretty blooms. After all, every bride in a bygone era always wore a beautiful pair of gloves on her wedding day. In this instance I fashioned some pretty roses using French wire ribbon.

I bordered the quilt with edgings of an assortment of vintage tablecloths. I feel they add to the nostalgic feel of the quilt.

It has given me much pleasure to sit in my sunny sewing room this week and stitch this heirloom quilt. With each stitch I have thought of Fiona and the many treasured memories that encompass her family. I hope when Fiona gazes upon this quilt many reminiscences will come to mind of the happy and cherished moments spent with her loved ones.

This last week of the holidays I have a few more orders to stitch but I don't suppose they will give me as much joy, as the stitching of this nostalgic-filled quilt. Oh well.......such is life.

May you all have a sunny week filled with a li'l stitching. 'Tis toodles from me!

'Tis Easter time

'Tis Eastertime and whilst the bunnies are scampering across the country side delivering oodles of chocolate treats; in my humble abode the itty bitty 'meeces' have decided to come out and play.

Whilst all the critters are away, the meeces have scuttled out of their hidey holes to have a tea party atop a table dressed with a pretty, crochet tablecloth.

There's Rufus playing peek-a-boo inside the teapot!

Oh he's a cheeky little mouse!

Sweet, sweet Lobelia dressed in her Sunday best, is stirring the cream. Oh do be careful, Lobelia, we wouldn't want the cream to curdle!

There's George and Matilda seesawing on a teaspoon. Weeeeeee.......'tis such fun teetering on a teaspoon.

There's Bridget and Seamus twirling round and round in pretty teacups. Bridget is clapping her tiny hands for joy. Don't get dizzy now!

There's Walter clambering up a pile of sugar cubes. Oops....be careful Walter, don't topple over.

The cute li'l meeces are having the funnest of times, smiling and giggling as they party to the melodic tune of Tea for Two.

Looks as if the itty bitty meeces have enjoyed the most tea-lightful time! You had better stop those shenanigans now and scurry away.....it won't be long till those rascally bunnies return. Perhaps there will be some leftover, chocolate goodies for you.

This sweet, sweet musical piece was a gift from my husband many years ago. It is an ENESCO musical piece, which when switched on, the mice stir the cream, pop up and down in the teapot, seasaw up and down on a teaspoon and twirl round and round in tea cups; whilst the tune Tea for Two, mellifluously sweetens the quietness. It is very sweet.

 This Easter time may you experience a sweet renewal

of faith, hope and joy.

Wishing you all a safe, happy and blessed Easter.