Velvet heart collage with embellishments

This photo close-up shows the basted collage silk georgette pieces and the bullion fringe pieces with old French lime green sequins.



Velvet heart collage close-up

When I design, I work with the negative space in a composition. My vision was to have the design elements in the heart  go from one side to the other.



My first design for 2014 ~ Lime green velvet collage

What a luxury to spend a few hours designing! I started this late last night and finished it at 3 AM. The piece will be submitted as a class, to several guilds. While cutting velvet for orders, I came across this lime green velvet. I cut a piece from a silk georgette blouse, that I found at a thrift shop, to layer on top of the velvet. For a pattern, I drew a heart onto a paper bag and then laid the pattern on top of the velvet and traced around the pattern with a sharpie.

I fused a linen fabric to the back of the velvet with MistyFuse. I used linen because it was what I had just used to finish a memory pillow and had fabric scraps in the right size. The finished heart is 6"x8".

To assemble - Cut several pieces of the georgette blouse and arrange on to the velvet heart.  Then add a small strip of metal fabric to the silk pieces. Add a strip of my new rayon hand-dyed tape "Shades of Ireland" (love, love this ribbon), a strip of Peacock RibbonRuffles followed with silk ribbon embroidery using 4mm and 7mm silk ribbons. I took apart a 1920's metal bullion fringed tassel and tacked the fringe pieces into place. Then added Victorian buttons followed with seed beads and charms. For me, it is adding the old vintage bits, that create the appeal.

I used a deep emerald green damask dinner napkin for the heart backing fabric. I think I have enough of the silk georgette fabric to make plenty of class kits. What fun!

Hibiscus blooming in our sunroom

What a gift to see this little blossom. In the fall, I bring in our three pots of hibiscus. I have no luck getting them to bloom in the sunroom, during the winter months. But this bloom appeared last week and it was a bright spot during the misery of the cold.

No sunlight and cold temps for months, are never relished by any of us here at the farm.
I think this hibiscus would make a great watercolor or collage!

Memory Pillows

1. These small cushions are a great way to display a favorite photo of our loved ones. I have two more cushions to finish. Not a good photograph, displaying the results.  I print the image onto the fusible fabric that I use for reproducing our vintage images. The resolution is excellent. I print the photos in black and white to avoid the distraction of color. All the braid and fringe are hand-sewn to the edges. I use brocades for the backing fabrics, that I've collected from Scalamandre. I add a label on the back of the cushion with the date and name of the persons in the photos. Each braid trim, around the photograph is embellished, with a vintage button from my stash.

Organic Snacks for friends and pets

 

At night, the kitchen and the dehydrator have been "humming". This year I wanted to give organic gifts to my friends. I'm still working on crazy quilt sleep masks! The basil sun-dried tomatoes are  the best, even eaten by themselves. I made organic dog treats in three different sizes for the smallest of dogs and for friends' larger dogs.  Jack would sleep beneath the oven and he ate his share of broken dog treats. Finally, after years of searching for the best organic granola recipe, I've found it! The cashew kale chips simply vanish. I add a bit of red pepper. There  is always kale in the dehydrator. The apple chips are flavored with ginger and lemon juice. And the fragrance from the lemongrass bath salts and the Eucalyptus/Patchouli shower disks, wafts through the downstairs while I mix up different batches in the kitchen. If you would like the url for the essential oil site, pls leave a comment!  Place one of the disks in the bottom of the shower, in the water stream. The fragrance of Eucalyptus and Patchouli fills the shower ~ the perfect way to start the morning, especially if you feel a cold coming on.

20% OFF Sale on our Entire Site through December 9th!

Through December 9th, your order at www.ribbonsmyth.com is 20% off!

Any order of $25 or more, automatically receives 20% off their order. The discount is taken at time of check-out. Great time to stock up on ribbons, vintage images, trims and our doupioni silk packs!

 

Pictured, is a crazy quilt Christmas Tree skirt, that I made for my mother. Each year, it is great to see it displayed beneath her tree. She displays holiday pieces that her children have made for her over the years.



Happy Thanksgiving to Each of You!

Many Thanksgiving Blessings to each of You! 

 

God Bless YOU and God Bless America!

Organic Bath Salts Christmas Gifts

I'm working on Christmas gifts and this is one of the items that will go into Victorian hat boxes, that I've been collecting. I will add Crazy Quilted Eye Masks to the boxes. Once my last class is over, the sewing machine will be humming! I've been collecting for months, small vintage cut-glass cruets and old glass containers, for the bath salts. Each jar needs a bit of ribbon and a label. I had labels made for all the items. The bath salts blend is made with Lemongrass and it smelled heavenly in the kitchen while assembling the salts. I purchased stalks of Lemongrass at the grocery store and dried in the dehydrator and then cut into small pieces.  My plan is to fill several old glass wine decanters with  bath salts blends, and keep those near the bath tub. While making these salts, I received a huge bag of fresh lavender stalks from a friend in Oregon. Those are drying and will be great in another bath salt blend.   The therapuetic benefits of Epsom Salts is amazing.

 

On Saturday, I also made 250 organic dog treats. Jacks's little bed lies beneath the oven, and he was happy to "test" the dog treats, made in 3 different sizes. Using over 18 cups of organic oats, pineapples, papaya, coconut, and cups of pecans, harvested from my Mother's pecan trees, I made batches of our favorite granola. The dehydrator was humming with basil sun-dried tomatoes.  What a treat to spend time in the kitchen, creating. 

Teaching at "Art Is You" in October 2014

 

Thrilled to be heading to Stamford, Connecticut in October 2014

 

Will be teaching one of my fabric cuff projects!