Do You Ever Think About Letters?

Do you ever think about letters in your embroidery??  How about just a monogram on your crazy quilt?  I know that I have many books that have been published by our favorite authors.  Like Judith Baker Montano and Marsha Michler.  There are many other authors that have great "alpha inspiration" but have you gone to a site or a blog that offers free vintage photos and other things and looked at their "alpha offerings" and just passed them up?  Have you ever looked at them really close and said this vintage alphabet would look great on my crazy quilt?  Can you see it embroidered with flowers and beads on your crazy patch?  I do.  I see these alphabets dressed up all kinds of ways.

I frequently spot really great vintage alphabets that come from other sites and are free for you to use for your inspiration.  One of my favorite spots is The Vintage Moth.  (http://www.thevintagemoth.blogspot.com/) Here is the alphabet I found this morning:

This french alphabet is so elegant and feminine.  It is easy to see this one dressed up with embroidery flowers and beads. 

If you are looking for alphabets you can practically find them every where in antique shops, you library.  It is very easy to find the alphabets on the web.  I found these real quick this morning:

This one is from http://www.frenchknots.com/ they have a beautiful site full of inspiration.

These amazing Victorian letters are from http://www.freevectorgallery.com/ .  Can you just imagine what you can do with this alphabet?

This alphabet I found at http://www.funphotoeditor.blogspot.com/ .  I really like this one it is very artistic and elegant.  I really can see all kinds of ways all of these alphabets can be embroidered on our crazy patch blocks.

Now I pose this question to you: How do you see these alphabets on your crazy patch block?
Just take a minuet and think about it.  How would you embroider and alphabet on your block?

This is the challenge I make to you: Take one of these alphabets and embroider a monogram on your crazy patch block.

How will you embroider it?  With floss?  With perle cotton/silk? With silk ribbon?  With a combination of all?  Will you embroider flowers with the letters?  How about beads?

What possibilities!  Please take up my challenge!  Let me see what you can come up with.  Please come back and post a link to you creation.  I would love to see it!

Have a wonderful Sunday!

TTFN
The Lion.

Let's Talk Stocking Swap

I have a new computer.  Yes, I broke down and got one while my PC is in the hospital for computer STD.  My darling son the apple of my eye decided to go on porn sites with my hub of the Crazy Quilting world.  So my poor computer is infected.  On the up swing of it all I decided that it was time to get my lap top that I had been thinking of getting.  Now I can carry everyone to work with me and "play" at lunch!  I am working on adding all of my printers and cameras onto this computer so that I can add up-to-date photos of all my work.  In the mean while................Let's talk about: The Lions Stocking Swap.

I promised myself that I would not take so long to announce it this year so that all my cyber friends from other countries can plan on being in on all the fun!  Now I am thinking on the theme this year.  HHHHUUUUuuuummmmmm............

The first year it was good old Santa Clause.  Last year it was Angels.  There are many, many more things that we think of when we think of Christmas.  What do you think of when you think Christmas?

I have been toying with several themes.  One of them is birds.  I remember one Christmas my mother made glass balls with birds on them.  She found paper Christmas napkins with birds on them.  She kind of rough tore the picture of the birds out and glued them to the Christmas balls.   Then she glued clear glitter on them and made them look frosty and snowy.  She also made center piece candles that way also.

AAAHHhhhh the memories!  Christmas is a magical time of the year.  I LOVE Christmas!

So what do you think??  Are there any suggestions on the theme this year?

TTFN
The Lion

My Time Away

No, it was not work this time that has taken me away from my art.  To begin with my mother was in an accident in Dallas.  She went to stop at a red light and the guy behind her did not.  She thought that she was okay but started feeling faint.  She was transported to the hospital where we found out she has an enlarged heart.  She is home now but she is on a heart monitor because her heart rate keeps dropping below 50 beats per minuet.  She is fighting the prescribed treatment.  She of course wants a quick fix that will never happen.  Mothers gotta love them!

One other big thing that happened is I lost my best friend of 15 years.  He was blind and old and I knew that the day would come........  My cocker spaniel Minnie Me left for heaven and I just have not been right since.  Every time I think that I am better I break down and cry again.  I know that I will be okay but in the mean time I am going to pick myself up and get back into the game again.

My plans are to get pictures taken of my blocks that I have done for The Lost Pines Crazy Quilt Group and get them posted.  I will finish up a swap project and get it out next weekend.  I have a couple of other blocks that I need to get embellished and put into the mail.  OH!  Lets not forget the Lions Stocking Swap!  I will be announcing that within the next month.  Also if you live in Texas and in the Bastrop area, I will be planning a weekend block party.  It is going to be a retreat of sorts.  I will be making plans for that.

Here is the next thing that I am going to be doing.  I will be writing a couple of posts for K.N.A.S.S. the StitchMap blog.  You ought to take a peak at it.  You just might want to join Map!

TTFN
The Lion