I finally got into the studio today. I didn't know what to do, except clean house, but what fun is that? So, as we say in French comme ça va (as it goes), I decided to start a new project. New projects generally create messes, so as we also say comme de fait (as it does) I made the already big mess beaucoup plus much bigger.
But the mess is worth it! Because look what I pulled off. Today. I know. It is after Christmas. That's okay. I just had an itch. It's been weeks, WEEKS I say, since I went into the studio and turned on a machine.
Today would have been my dad's birthday, so I figured I needed a little creativity to counteract the tears. It worked. Making a few little happy things and praying a rosary tonight are two great ways to fight the depression of the holidays.
And look how happy! A couple of little hearts. Some strings of beads. Red flowers. Shimmery satin flowers.
It took me almost all afternoon. I got stuck on those red flowers. That's what happens when you don't have the correct materials. I really wanted some red flowers. Three attempts in, I decided to use the smaller one. Then finally, I remembered the basket of sheer fabrics. That worked beautifully.
I have bolts of white satiny fabric, so I used it to make some little hearts, two I embellished with ready-made trims from a drawer. And with some small squares, I made what might be closed tulips. They are cute in person, I'm not sure about in these pictures.
Some gold ribbon serves as string for one of the pieces and strings of small beads work for the other one.
The tassel on the right is actually a ribbon trim that I just sewed into a circle and added beads to create a head. The strings of beads on that piece are the ones I strung before Christmas. I decided that they weren't showy enough as single strands and planned to made a few more to make into some sort of tassel. Well, here's the tassel I came up with.
Each piece has six or seven strands of decoration and every strand is different, which is what I like most about them. They look great with the purchased decorations but add some uniqueness to the tree. They may even add a little elegance but, being handmade, they are also simple and homey.
Can you guess where I got my inspiration?
I've started a new project using scraps. All was going along fine, until I ran out of scraps! Can you believe that? I want a quilt that will be larger than 45 inches square. That's not much of a quilt, unless it's for a baby.
I don't think this one is for a baby. Though that's the closest I am to knowing what it is to be. Anyway, I was really out of scraps! That meant only two choices: cut up some yardage to make scraps--which somehow defeats the purpose--or pull scraps from a bin of a different color.
The empty bin gave me nine nice 15" x 15" panels in beige, tan, and light brown. Great for a nine-patch kind of quilt, but do the math.
I dug around in the other bins and found that the red, blue and green bins are all spilling over. I pulled red. Why not? I thought it would give a bright, happy contrast to the neutrals.
I'm not happy. I don't know what's wrong, but I don't like what I'm seeing. I also haven't stopped doing. What is it about something not working that makes me keep at it?
Oh, yes, I'm bipolar. I'm the laugh and cry at the same time kind of chick. Imagine you love everything at once and walk away with nothing. That's me. If I have too many options, I can't decide. If I have only two or three choices, I can't choose. Of course, I may make a spontaneous, fast decision and run with it. All the way. Goodness knows what's to happen if I discover that it was a wrong decision. I may ditch it and move on or fight for the wrong thing till the end with no apparent reason whatsoever. I'm all over the place at the same time. Maybe I should get back to that project problem.
So not like a project and keep making the project? Yeah, I do that. In fact, I'm in the very midst of that. I thought about adding a third color and that may still be the answer, but this red/neutral combination is just not what I expected it would be.
I guess that I'll either figure it out or make the ugliest quilt top and set aside for, I don't know. Forever? It wouldn't be the first ugly quilt top. And whether I ditch it or finish it, that wouldn't be the first time either.
Finished or Not Friday? I'm may be both finished and not. How often can you say that?
Link Up Parties
But the mess is worth it! Because look what I pulled off. Today. I know. It is after Christmas. That's okay. I just had an itch. It's been weeks, WEEKS I say, since I went into the studio and turned on a machine. 
And look how happy! A couple of little hearts. Some strings of beads. Red flowers. Shimmery satin flowers. 
Each piece has six or seven strands of decoration and every strand is different, which is what I like most about them. They look great with the purchased decorations but add some uniqueness to the tree. They may even add a little elegance but, being handmade, they are also simple and homey.
