really supposed to be completing a report for school....so randomly sharing instead...

....but I don't have all the information (it's a collaborative report) and I can't find the spark to get me to start the damned thing......so......to the Blog Batman...

I mentioned a little while back that my Community classes make a project of the month and this month was the Dilly Bag..

The basis of the dilly bag was from the tute kindly shared by Jeni of In Color Order and she graciously let me use it for my Community classes.  I created a small foundation pieced panel for the front so my ladies could practice the skill....and they came up with some gorgeous bags....

a couple decided not to use the panel and someone else decided to create a log cabin block for the centre instead - brill!!

I know there's more completed, which I don't have a photo of yet - but I will take one and share.  Great job ladies :)

The next project will be a zipped and pieced cushion cover - I still need to make up the sample and instructions and hopefully will have my machine back tomorrow.....

I really do need my machine for Saturday and Sunday: Crib Point Community House has a quilt show this weekend (7 Park Rd, Crib Point for those on the Mornington Peninsula this weekend) and I'm going to be demonstrating - I've decided to demonstrate a simple market/tote bag (because it's quick and hopefully won't bore the onlookers!)  and some piecing (which I can use in my sample cushion cover) so I also have to prepare for that - I really would really prefer to sew using my new machine - thank goodness the old one is still available as a back up.....and I'll have to do all the prep today as it's school all day tomorrow (when the report I'm procrastinating about is due..) and my eldest son has just invited us to dinner tomorrow night - that doesn't happen often as he's a baker and works unsocial hours, so we really jump on any chance :) 

I've just re-read that last paragraph and have to say my old english teacher would have put a large red cross through it all and told me to reconstruct according to the rules....

Speaking of large red crosses - another assignment we had for school this week was to illustrate an emotion using a limited colour palette and using chain stitches and french knots.  I am not an embroiderer by any stretch of the imagination and when I finished mine, couldn't decide whether it was anger or lust.....then thought, X marks the spot - surely lust???

I also played about with a technique I found in a book called 'Layers of Stitch' by Valerie Campbell-Harding and Maggie Grey - it's using stained newspaper and fancy machine stitches - it's also the piece I broke my machine on -  The top piece was me practicing my fancy stitches then on the bottom piece, as I changed from normal straight sewing to decorative sewing, I omitted to allow the automatic base plate to reset which allowed the needle to viciously attack the metal underneath - so I had to use the back up machine and I can see the difference - it's really obvious in the text line....love the technique though and will use it again...

Hahaha - hope you're still with me - this is a looong post - who knew I had so much to share!!

Lastly though, I played around with an idea for my folio cover that I started a week or so ago - using a very high-tech tool.......

a piece of cardboard marked in a circle with needle holes and through which you thread a 'web' which you then weave a circle with other threads/wools etc

I was shown this method at a Twisted Threads day I attended on Saturday and thought the sample I made looked like the middle of a gerbera (the flowers in the drawing I used to create the folio cover) so I used it, along with some polyester black fabric, to make a kind of flower.....not really sure about this...I'm thinking I need to FMQ them (great suggestion by Susan - thanks!)....but I'll play around with the idea before I commit either way..

close up of the woven centre.  I used black perle threads as well as a variable red/black and some strange knobbly polyester stuff I acquired at school..

the 'gerberer' on the background - I think it needs to be smaller - and obviously needs a stalk and a couple of other heads :)

Ok - enough already - getting onto that report and my prep for the weekend right now.....well, after lunch....