Stuff and things

Good Afternoon, ladies! Hope you're having a wonderful day.

I've started embellishing the seams on the first block of the Midsummer CQ. Not much to show yet, though. I should have something picture worthy this weekend. Originally I was going to use just blacks and greys but VERY quickly realized that the threads were so close to the fabric colors that the embellishing would only show up upon very close inspection. Well, after all the work I'm going to put into this baby, I want somebody to be able to see it, dontcha know! So, I'm adding subdued colors to the black blocks, too. This "work in progress" is going to be changing constantly I can tell!

As you ladies in the comments rightly guessed, I was a tad worried about appliqueing over the seams because of the bulkiness. However, after doing the first couple of seams, I've realized that they aren't that bulky and the applique would probably do fine over them. Also, as Jo noted, it would be rather tricky to keep the flow going along the seam. So, I'll do the appliques after the seams. I think I might also pad the appliques a bit to give the impression that some leaves are closer than others. We'll see.

I've never done any real applique before and although it is a relatively simple exercise, I need all the help I can get! I picked up Applique - the Basics and Beyond. It's got several different methods in it and I'm looking forward to playing around with them to find the one I like best. Do any of you have a preferred method for applique?

Since I was book buying, I picked up The Art of Embroidery: Inspirational Stitches, Textures, and Surfaces Oh, this is a yummy book. I'm hoping to sit down with it tonight and give it a thorough going over. It has lots of ideas for reproducing natural textures in embroidery. I'm hoping it will help me enhance the landscape portion of the quilt.

In other business, Glenn and I did some wardrobe enhancement this past weekend. End of summer sales are the best! ;0) Glenn found two more outfits for work, plus some new shoes; however, I really scored. I got 5 or 6 outfits for wearing around the house, and I needed them sooo badly. Since we moved to Phoenix I've taken to wearing tank tops and capris because I can stay much cooler that way, but I only had a few. Not any more! Now, if I can just find some work clothes, too, I'll be set. I guess we'll have to do some more shopping...... darn.... ;0)