Thinking about Terrie and hoping she is doing ok.

How do you get time to go away looking at quilts while make all of those lovely mugrugs Norma Superwoman with speedy hands

Hi everyone. I came home yesterday from a trip to the Netherlands and have not been online while away. What a nice surprise to log on and see, you have received your mug rugs. Thanks for all your nice comments. It's such a pleasure to make them and try to figure out something you'll like.
It is nearly midnight here, so I need to rest now, but I will tell you about my trip later. I have seen an awful lot of beautiful quilts

Nancy, I didn't realize our paths were so similar, with the self-taught quilting. And the reading.....same here.

No hidden talents here, I'm afraid. Zero athletic ability, would *love* to be able to sing, but do not have the voice for it, and so I design/sew/quilt and that seems to be going well so far I dabble in photography, but nothing more than hobby level with a point-and-shoot camera. These days I'm throwing all my creative juices into quilting, and very much enjoying that, so I think I'll carry on in that fashion for a while

Norma, your tulip mug rugs are just so lovely! I simply adore the shape of them, and how you make each one unique. Lorchen, your blackwork/needlework is outstanding!! I've ever only done one thing of embroidery, and man was that time consuming!!! The embroidery on one 6" quilt block I made, a simple music staff, treble clef symbol and outlines of 2 notes = 6+ hours of work for me. No thank you! Kudos to you managing something so intricate and lovely!

Another beauty, Norma! Your stuff is always so gorgeous!!

My mother grew up on a farm so was raised doing utility crafts. When we were little, she sewed our clothes, darned our socks, and knitted our sweaters, mittens, hats and scarves. This was while also taking care of a very large garden and working full time as an actuary. Not to mention raising us. She didn't quilt, although she did start a quilt in the 70s that consisted of 4" pockets of scrap fabric that were filled with old panty hose and tied in the center. She just made a bunch of these pockets, but never got them put together. We found these after she passed away and I've got them and will make a quilt for each of my sisters and myself. It's been fun going through these since there are fabrics from all of our clothes when we were little and some of my dad's shirts. After I left for college, she started doing cross-stitch, crewel, needlepoint and other crafts. Right now I'm in the middle of finishing up her unfinished cross-stitch.

But I went on my own path. I never had home ec in school and wasn't interested in sewing when I was a child. But when I was in college I had a friend who did cross-stitch, so I picked that up. I also got interested in sewing and bought a cheap sewing machine with insurance money when my father died. At that point I sewed mostly clothes and stuffed animals. I also bought kits and did needlepoint, crewel, etc. I did a lot of crossword puzzles and one of the things you always saw in those was "tatting", so I also bought books, a shuttle and thread and learned to do that. After college I got interested in quilting. Nobody in my family quilted, but I had had friends who had family quilts, and I really wanted one for myself so I got some books and started figuring out how to make one. So that's my path into the quilting world.

My oldest hobby is reading. I've been a voracious reader since I was first old enough to pick up a book. And now I'm addicted to my Kindle. I love movies. I dabble in sports and have competed for fun in softball, soccer, ski racing, rowing, biking and running. Hard to believe since I'm also obese, but I come from tough stock! I'm also a big animal lover, with a dog and 2 cats in my household.

Not very exciting, but that's who I am.

Nancy

Well, the ladies in my family have always had to work outside the home so I had no one to teach me. So, when I wanted to learn a new needlework project, I would work and study incessantly until I became proficient in it. I love Hardanger but I didn't spend enough time to learning it to get really good at it. Lorchen, your grandmother's work is wonderful and your Blackwork is great tool.

I do sing, but not professionally. Mostly, my passion is needlework, of just about any kind.

Lorchen, your blackwork is beautiful. I seem to use that word alot here. But we have so many beautiful things here.
This is my wonderful mr from Norma. Yes Norma, I do love the colors and your quilting is beautiful. Norma also sent me some of the rattail cord and a beautiful postcard she made. Love them all. Thank you Norma.

Lorchen,
That blackwork is amazing...I'm googling it as I write this note. I really like to do embroidery and all mine is by hand also but never knew about the kind you do. If it was cross stitch i would admire it but have no desire to try it. I admit that I quit doing cross stitch and sent all my stuff to my daughter who has the patience that I don't have.

This link came up on Google search: http://www.blackworkarchives.com/index.html

Can't carry a note so never sing in public--only in my car, don't know how to draw and that left some sort of athletic endeavor. So, my other vice is golf which I took up so to play with my dad (who has since passed) and my husband (who doesn't play much anymore--difficult with oxygen tubing) but I still love the game although my handicap index has gone up to 18, and play as much as the weather permits.

Ok Lorchen, I am so embarrassed to have thought the beautiful work in the center of my mug rug was cross stitch! Elizabethan Blackwork! I have to admit I've never heard of it before. Thank you for teaching me something new!

I'm posting a picture of the center of the mug rug for all to see the beautiful leaf design. I hope it comes out better than the last photo.



I am envious of all you that had mothers and grandmothers who taught you needle work. I learned to sew in 7th grade home ec and have loved it since. My grandmother Geneva was evidently a very good sewist, but she died long before I was born. I like to think that she passed the needle work gene to me.

My mother is not allowed to even thread a needle. She invariably hurts herself somehow! I have a couple of funny stories about my mom and sewing. However, my mother has always been my biggest fan and supporter. She bought me a 1957 Singer sewing machine when I was in junior high and the rest is history! I admire my mom for encouraging and supporting me, even when she didn't understand why anyone would want to sew.
Well, that's enough of that!
Have a good week everyone!

Geneva

Rita, if you had my sort of working life (including my line manager), you'd need a 'stress buster' every day you come home from school. Needlework, quilting, and listening to classical music (or a little jazz, like Sidney Bechet) are perfect and work for me most of the time.

I'm not particularly fast, Rita. But I have the luxury of no husband, and children grown up, so once I get home from school, my time is my own.

Most cultures have something similar to Elizabethan Blackwork. The biggest difference between traditional Redwork and Blackwork seems to be that Blackwork is often used to fill in shapes with a repetitive pattern. Redwork is predominantly outlining motifs in red thread. Most of the time blackwork is done on linen (or other evenweave fabrics) and the threads are counted in order to achieve the patterns. Personally, I'm not punishing my eyes by working on something like 32-count fabric (32 threads of fabric to the inch), but prefer 25-count evenweave fabric, and then use two threads of embroidery cotton.

Sooooooo, lounge lizards, I have outed myself, and I know that Rita has an amazing singing voice, ..... but what do you all do that we don't know about?? Come one, amaze us!!

Lorchen your redwork (?) is beautiful. Honestly you must be the fastest stitcher this side of the Atlantic. I really don't know how you do so much in such a short space of time. I hope you pass your skills on to your grandchildren. I am sure your grandmother would be very proud of you now. Her hardanger work is beautiful too.

Jane, I do all embroidery by hand. One of my grandmother's taught me when I was about 6 or 7, much to the disgust of my mother, who thought needlework was a total waste of time. I'm very grateful to my grandmother. She was a very stern lady who must have found it very difficult that her only grandchild was a little tomboy with quite a lot of attitude. But every time I pick up needle and thread, it's thanks to her patience and perseverance. Her needlework was so much superior to anything I'm able to do. Just have a look at a piece of Hardanger work she made when she was just a teenager. My father's family was part Danish, and so the Scandinavian influence comes through.



I have to admit that I used to teach Elizabethan Blackwork about 30 years ago or so. I really need to get out some of my work and take pictures....... Well, I'll surely get around to that when I eventually retire.

Did you do that by hand, Lorchen, or is there an embroidery cd with that style on it? It's too hard to get a clear close-up of the picture.

Actually I just skimmed Geneva's picture without checking it close up before you mentioned it Lorchan . Love the leaves in the pattern