Pineapple Heaven

Hurry, hurry! A New Giveaway!

2010-07-01T18:56:00.000-07:00

Hurry, hurry! Read all about it! My Crazy Quilting friend, Cathy Kizerian's Crazy by Design is having a Giveaway on her Blog in celebration of the opening of her new Etsy. Don't delay! There are two prizes to choose from. The winner will be announced on Friday, July 9th at mid-night. Simply leave a comment on her Blog to get at least one chance to win. Hurry, hurry! If you wait too long that only means there will be more chances for me to win, LOL! Only kidding! Even if I don't win... I think I've already won because I just had to purchase a few of her lovely laces on her Etsy. You will see why... a great place for stash building. And, it gave me a few more chances to win one of her Giveaways. Cathy is also featured as a guest blogger on Pam Kellogg's Kitty and Me Blog. Go and read all about it and by signing on to Follow both their blogs you will get even more of a change to win. Hurry, hurry! Good luck to everyone.

Tot ziens... Till next time! ~Ing

WHAT'S NEW!

2010-03-04T14:56:00.000-08:00

No! It is not NEW that once again it's been a few... since I've posted. I just can't keep up with blogging... that's all there is to it! Enough about that... So what NEW!....

I've joined a new group! The CrazyQuiltingInternational Group. It's a great group of Crazy Quilters with so much to share and learn from. I joined this group after I had met some of the very talented ladies at the 2nd Annual Stitch Shenanigans CO Crazy Quilting Retreat last year in Breckenridge. I think I have mentioned about most of these ladies in the last post or so. Anyways, in order to be able to join-in on future RR... I, rather we.. (new members) are first asked to join-in and complete what is called a 'Fabulous First Timers' RR - FFT#11. I'm in the 11th group to do this. There are five of us in this group, me (of course), Karen K., Michelle J., Victoria S., and Gayle S. We are not necessarily new to Crazy Quilting, but we are new to stitching on this group.

For some of my non-CQ friends that might read my blog and don't already know what a RR is... First of all it stands for Round Robin... I and my four new friends (except Karen. Hi Karen! We already know each other from CQ4Newbie's group... so we are *old* friends, LOL!)... We all make our own crazy patched block and when all of us are ready we send our block to the next gal. I sent mine to Karen, she sent hers to Michelle, she sent hers to Victoria, she sent hers to Gayle and I now have hers (Gayle's)... get the picture!?? LOL! Now I'll go upload some pictures of my block and Gayle's CQ Block which is what's NEW that I'm working on...

This one is mine. Felted Wool is what I used to crazy patch my block this time and I chose pastel, Springtime colors. I'm hoping that all the gals will stitch the seam treatments and embellishments with a Spring Flower theme on my block... similar to the beaded flower motif I did in the center with a Forget-Me-Not flower...

... and there, next to it, is my lil' signature... again, LOL!

This next block is Gayle's. I have her block to stitch on this time around. She pieced her block using Fiber-Di's method. Diane's method (I think) is using 5 chosen fabrics and piecing the block using this pattern of 10 patches. I think Gayle did a fabulous job and I like her choice of where she placed each fabric patch. I like how your eye roams around the whole block, rather than just on one spot and I like her choice of fabrics... minus one. Sorry Gayle! It is nothing to do with her choice of fabrics, but it is to do with my own discovery... which is that I don't really care to stitch on Velvet or Velveteen... and is the patch I chose to stitch on. (go figure!!? LOL) This is the very first time I've stitched on Velvet. I'll explain as you read further...

Gayle requested a Christmas theme on her block... only minus the Santa... just things like Wreaths, Stars, Bells, Poinsettias, those kind of things. I'm thinking... not a 'kiddy' Christmas, but a 'decorations' Christmas. I chose to do a Wreath that I made with a Christmas trim I bought from the Piecemakers and then weaved a red ribbon around it. I'm not quite done with it yet... I still want to "bling" it up a notch and use beads or whatever I can find to attach to it. I've also discovered, from other needlework I've done, that it's better to leave the beads or other type "bling" embellishments for last. My friend Janet stitched a Pine branch on my Autumn Season to Season block I did with the CQforNewbies Group [I'll show it in a not too distant future post] and thought I would try it myself on a seam. Trust me... it is no-where close to looking like Janet's Pine branch, but at least I tried my best. I used DMC Rayon threads. First I did a chain stitch branch seam with a brown thread and over that I used straight stitches in green thread for the Pine-needles. I am also not quite done with it... I plan to make some beaded ornaments to hang from the branches. I also stitched a "lucky" Spider-web in the corner of the Wreath patch and will be adding a beaded Spider. I tried to keep it Christmas-y by using a silver, tinsel-like thread. It is very thin and I love to work with it. I wish I knew the name or what brand it is. It's on a small spool, but doesn't have a label on it and I can't remember where I got it. I also have it in gold and used it on the 2nd seam. First I used a thinker gold metalic thread by DMC and did a chain stitch with it, then I used the thin gold thread to add straight stitches to it. It is also a seam treatment I 'borrowed' from Janet that she used on my Autumn block. Thank you Janet! This is where I discovered that I don't care to stitch on Velvets... the stitch or stitches kinda gets lost in the pile of the Velveteen. The stitch becomes shorter than the length I intended it to be. Here you will see that the stitch doesn't look shorter, but only because I started it longer. I hope you can understand what I'm trying to say. I'm not finished with this block, but I loved working on Gayle's block. I'm hoping that if you click on it... that it will enlarge to see it better... I hope!! Here it is so far:

I guess you could say my stitches of choice (this time) was Chain stitch and Straight stitch.I'll post the end results after the due date. I think it's coming up soon so I best get on with it. More later?.... :)

"Good-Jus" Give-Away

2010-02-08T16:37:00.000-08:00

Hi Everyone! Great News!! One of my Crazy Quilting friends, Debbie Q. in ME, just created a blog of her own a few days ago. We are all so proud of her... We've been bug'n her to start one for quite some time now. Well... It's so purdy! I am admittedly a little jealous... Only because my blog is just so plain! Don't know how, yet, to do all them fancy things on a blog. But that's a whine story and I just don't have any cheese to go with it now. So, on to the subject. Like I said... Debbie lives in Maine and has the cutest lil' Maine accent and at the CO Retreat (see my last post)... she would always get teased about it. There was one word she used, quite often, around all the other ladies' beautiful stitching and stuff. To me it sounds like she's saying "Good-jus", LOL! For Gorgeous! Can you just hear it? ggggg ;) Too Cute!! She is only about five-feet tall, but is a big sport about her accent and all the teasing. What's all this leading too, you ask? I don't know... I forgot! Oh, yeah... Go and see Debbie's "Good-jus' blog because she's doing a "Launch My Blog Give-Away". It's great stuff she's giving for Crazy Quilting, Stitching, Mixed-Media Arts or even for Scrapbooks. I didn't really want to post about it here on my own blog... at first, because the chances get less for me to win, myself. LOL! But tell you what! (and don't tell her, okay!?) If you happen to win... you'll give me all the 'Silkies'! Promise!! But don't tell her!! LOL! Just kidding... No! But do go check it out.... great stuff! Good Luck!! The give-away ends on Feb. 15th.

Hugs, ~ Ing

"QUITE DIFFERENT" (for me) CQ BLOCK

2010-02-05T15:10:00.000-08:00

Hello there!

Thank you for taking the time to stop by. Yea-yeah I know! It's been a couple'a weeks [again] since my last blog post! LOL! Some that know me, know that I don't post much... anywhere, but when I do... make sur ya pur yurself a cuppa!!!.... :)

I've been trying to piece a "quite different" kind of CQ block. Something I haven't tried before. I'm almost finished with it, but I still have to stitch around the edge with a blanket stitch and mark or stitch where I want all stitching to end. I need to get it all done and mailed out so that it gets delivered to Karen in SC by the 15th of this month for the "Fabulous First Timers" RR that I signed up for on the CQI Group.

I joined the CQInternational Group last year after I came back from their "2nd annual CQI Shenanigans' Retreat" up in Breckenridge, CO. This post was going to be about the "quite different" CQ block I'm finishing up. It is, but I'll get back to that in a bit... First things first, LOL! Anyways... Two of my very, stitch-talented, CQ friends, that I first *met* on the CQforNewbies group, had gone to the very 1st CO Retreat. Through pictures and tales of the Retreat, it looked and sounded like so much fun and when they told me that they both had plans to go again to the 2nd Retreat, I told them that even though I wasn't a member of CQI, I really wished I could go too, so that I could meet them both in person. Soon after I told them of my wish, I received an invitation from Leslie, one of the CQI co-owners. Well, I was so excited, I could hardly stand myself, LOL! Not only did I get to meet Lauri and Janet, but also other friends that I *met* on the Newbies... Gerry H., Debbie Q., Diane M., Connie K. And... I even made some new friends as well... Kerry L., owner of CQI, Cathy K., moderator of CQI and now also a co-owner, and "La Chef-de-Resistance"... Gerry K. and a few other nice ladies that are members of the CO CQ Guild. It was so much fun to meet all these very talented ladies that I hope to be able to do it again later this year. We'll see!!! BTW... click on each of their names and you will see just how Stitch-talented they all are. (If it works, thanks go to my friend Lauri. She helped me learn how to do it.)

Okay, now to the subject at hand... my "quite different" (for me) CQ block. The reason I say different is because I made it using wool felt/felted wool... or what ever it's called, it's Wool. It is not the *usual* kind of crazy quilt block that is made with either or all or a combination of... Cotton, Rayon, Linen, Velvet, Satin and/or Silk. I really hope it will be okay to send off as my CQ block for the FFT #11 Round Robin. I didn't use a 'stitch and fold' method of piecing. As a matter of fact... instead of using any stitching/basting method it is held together by using my Clover (nayy) five-needle Needle Punch. I then used an all purpose, woven, fusible interfacing that I ironed on to the back in hopes that it would adhere to the fibers that were punched and came through to the backside and even after doing that, I will hand stitch an additional muslin backing, using a blanket stitch at the outer edges of the block. I hope the gals in the group will see it as a Springtime Garden and will stitch with floral themed seam treatments and embellishments. Here are a few pictures of the my block: Oops! They're on top... Oh well!!

Hugs, ~ Ing

MY PINEAPPLE SIGNATURE

2010-01-06T23:09:00.000-08:00

Do I like Pineapples? Yes I sure do! There is more than one reason why I like them. One is because the Pineapple is used as a symbol of Hospitality or to me it says "Home Sweet Home". Also, I think it is a very unique looking fruit, it's tropical and I like how it tastes so very sweet. Hey now! That almost sounds like me, don't it?!! HA HA! Just kidding! Anyways, it is my fruit of choice. I like all kinds of fruit, especially tropical fruits, but the Pineapple is my most favorite.

I like the Pineapple symbol so much that I had this idea, when I first started Crazy Quilting and Stitching, to use them as my way of a *signature* for whenever I stitched on someones Crazy Quilt block. I stitched a Pineapple of some sort on most of the Round Robins or Swaps that I've joined in so far. I will show more detailed pictures of these blocks in future posts. These are pictures of some of the different Pineapples I've stitched on them.

The very first Pineapple I made was by using an oval shaped bead and then used criss-cross stitches over it to hold it in place and give it more detail. Then I added silk ribbon stitches for the leaves. This was a CQ heart I made for Peggy R. on the Newbies.

The next one was a CQ heart, made for Wilma in Holland. Here I cut a piece of wool felt and worked back stitches over it, criss-crossing from one side to the other and used silk ribbon stitches for the leaves.

This CQ heart I made for myself. This time I crocheted a tiny little Pineapple that I found on the Internet. It was a free pattern and credits go to Pottage Publishing.

It is such a cute little Pineapple that I used it another time on another one of my own blocks I made for a swap on the Newbies Group. It was the Season to Season Summer Block Swap and I was partnered with my friend Gerry H. in CO. We each made our own block, stitched and embellish half of it and then my partner does the other half and we would get our own back when finished. This picture only shows my portion and the Pineapple. Gerry's portion I'll show on a future post.

There are more that I will post later. So what do you think of my Pineapple signature?

The Beginning - My Very First CQ Block

2010-01-04T15:11:00.000-08:00

This is the very first Crazy Quilt block I made. It is also known as Crazy Patchwork. The class was given in a neighboring town at a quilt shop called Quilter's Studio and taught by Melanie Murphy. She was a very sweet and very talented lady. This block was taught and made by using the sewing machine rather than stitching it by hand. She told us that it was easier to teach Patchwork by machine in a classroom forum, but that in the old Victorian days not many could afford a machine. Therefore, all the patchwork stitching and embroidery was done by hand. Ever since I learned how to piece this CQ block, every other block I have made after that, I stitched by hand. Not that I don't like doing it with the machine! As a matter of fact, I think I will be using my sewing machine whenever I get ready to piece together a whole Crazy Quilt for myself. It can be pieced together much faster than by hand, but the reason why I like the hand stitched method more is because, to me, it is more a creative way of doing it. However, if and when I do decide to piece a block by machine, I will definitely and always do everything else... like the seam treatments and motifs, etc, by hand.

As you can see... my first block is an UFO. For you that don't know what that means... it means an Un-Finished Object. However, I think this will be something that I will be working with again soon. So now I can refer to it as a WIP! Okay... that means a Work In Progress. :)

Okay... now I have to figure out how to post the picture. Wish me luck!

WELCOME Again!!!

2010-01-01T13:54:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year and Welcome once again... family, friends and to all who have come to visit here on my new Pineapple Heaven Blogger. Actually, this is my original blogger, however, I am starting it all over again. I don't like how I did it before. So.... since it's the first day of a brand new year, 2010... I will give my blogger another go and start anew. A short explanation as to why I am doing this and some of you already know this about me... I am not one who likes writing all that much... and the telling of whatever it is that I want to say... it takes me forever to compose and then it hardly ever turns out the way I had in mind. Therefore, I decided that I will be using my blogger now mostly to just post pictures of the things that I wish to show and share. Things that I have made or done or places I have been to or plan to visit or whatever. This way... I might post on my blogger more often! Ya think??... Hopefully!!! :)

There are so many different arts and crafts that I would like to do or still wish to learn. I already know how to Crochet, but one NeedleArt that I have discovered not so long ago, one that I wish I had discovered much earlier in my life and something that I am now totally in love with... is Crazy Quilting. Mostly, it is all the different types and methods of Embroidery, the creative ways of Stitching and all the types and ways of applying Embellishments that go along side with Crazy Quilting, that is what I truly love about it. I discovered Crazy Quilting towards the end of November of 2006 when I met some very nice ladies on the Internet on a Yahoo Group called Crazy Quilting for Newbies. Since joining the Newbies I have made many friends and have learned much about this beautiful NeedleArt from many of the talented ladies in this group. I have also purchased many fine books about Crazy Quilting and Stitching. Many of which I got with the help from my sweet sis and I now have a very nice collection. For me, these books are a great way to learn about it. There are so many good ones out there that it's hard to pick just one favorite. Maybe later, in future posts, I will share many of the ones I own. I still have lots to learn and the other great source where I have gotten hands on learning is from a great little country store called 'Piecemakers' here in Southern California. http://www.piecemakers.com/ It is still about a 2 hours or so drive from where I live, but oh so worth it. How lucky I am to have them. I will definitely be taking many more classes there this year. So much to learn... so little time...

Thank you for visiting here. ~ Ingrid (aka: ~ Ing)