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TIF February

Sharon posted the TIF Challenge for February at the very beginning of the month and I'm just getting around to posting some of my thoughts now. The concept is "what are you old enough to remember?" The color scheme is a mix of blues and taupes--I think of my grandfather when I see those colors. Who, I suppose, would qualify as someone I'm old enough to remember since he passed away several years ago. I'm not sure how I would put together a piece like that, though.

Most of the stuff that I can remember is pretty dull (at least to me)--cassette tapes, big chrome boom boxes, high tops, big hair, pogo balls, Cabbage Patch kids, Garbage Pail kids, Big League chewing gum. Basically I'd be stuck with an homage to the 80s, which I don't especially want to do.

So I guess that I am going to think some more about Pampa and those colors. Actually, as I've been typing, some ideas have been coming to me. He was Pennsylvania Dutch, which lends itself to traditional quilt blocks--there is even a block called Shoo Fly!

Here is the palette so you can see what I'm talking about:

The Pillow-finally

Front of finished pillow. Taken using a very rudimentary photo "box"--I really need to make a collapsible light box using foam core. I think that will improve my craft project pictures immensely.

And the back. I didn't have a wide enough piece of the purple to make a back without piecing, so I decided to add the green, too. I really like the pieced backings that I've been seeing on a lot of quilts. I think they add a lot of interest to what might otherwise be somewhat monotonous.

Anyway, that's the sum of my January TIF project. I've posted these photos and a few others to my flickr page and also to the TIF Design Challenge group flickr page. Back soon with my thoughts on the February challenge. Plus some exciting stuff that happened over the weekend!

Finished!

This is my completed block for the color component of the Take it Further Challenge. I decided NOT to continue on with the embroidery in the interest of time. I'd really like to focus on completing these challenges within the time-frame since meeting deadlines can be an issue. In addition to managing my time better, that also means knowing not to bite off more than I can chew. And as a total newbie to embroidery, I knew that three days before the end of the month was not the time to try my hand on a nearly finished piece.

I have actually sewn this block into a pillow but have not been able to take a good picture. I hope to do that Friday when I will be home during the day when the sun is shining!

Coming Together

Laying out the pieces for the log cabin block. There was math involved. It was hard! But I was reminded how much I like puzzling out patchwork and how satisfying it is to see a block or pattern come together.

My crafting and cutting table is right in front of the only window in our apartment that gets decent afternoon sun. So I was very much in the way of Miss Fey--as you can see:

TIF: Idea Sketch

A sketch I created on Publisher to help me think about how I want to lay out my TIF piece. I've been so enamored of the log cabin pillows that I've seen floating around blog land and thought this was a good opportunity to try my hand at one. The words I intend to embroider (this may take a while) and I also want to embellish with some more decorative stitches or motifs. If you haven't guessed, I decided to go ahead and combine the two parts to this month's challenge--partly for time and partly just to see if I could.

I need to get cracking--only seven days until this month is OVER!

***If you click on the picture, you can see the whole thing.

 

Beginnings

Thread and fabric for the color component of the TIF Challenge.