Oct25

Winter Farm Fun – Day 1

Posted on October 25, 2014 by lindam55

The weather was much better today than yesterday. A beautiful blue sky and bright sunshine … Even though we were indoors, the beautiful autumn weather was still uplifting.

Upon arriving at the class this morning I was delighted to see that the canvas Winter Farm Fun is even more gorgeous than the picture I had seen. This is the type of canvas that has intimidated me for many years – beautifully painted with stunning shading.

Winter Farm Fun – Karen Cruden for Ewe and Eye

Although i have one or two in my stash, I have hesitated to try to stitch them as I thought the stitching would actually detract from the piece. I could never imagine how to recreate all that shading. Well, now I know. The coverage is very light on this canvas with lots of open stitches so that the painted canvas shows through!

Suzie Vallerie, the owner of The Enriched Stitch, is teaching the class along with two assistants. The class is very relaxed and no one from the needlework police is in attendance. Today we worked on the sky, which is stitched with Accentuate (not an easy thread to manipulate) as well as the snow (done in a darning pattern), some of the trees, and the red house on the left side. Here you can see my progress on the house – the exterior walls are done in Weeks Dye Works and the roof in Kreinik. Tonight I am going to try to finish some of the threads that have been started, just so I can start off tomorrow without a lot of spaghetti.

Red House

The hotel facilities are terrific and the grounds are stunning. After we finished stitching for the day I took a walk around and even visited the beach. Then I had a massage which I really needed after a day of stitching.

Long Island Sound

My Room

Rear of Water’s Edge Resort and Spa

And I was remiss in not posting that we each received a lovely “goody bag” upon check-in at the hotel. All the necessities – a bottle of water, a needle magnet, a very cute little accessories bag, and chocolate!

Day 2 tomorrow after which I will be heading home. Please keep your fingers crossed that I-95 through Connecticut is moving smoothly!

Happy stitching!

Oct25

Good by, Phoenix and Seminar 2014!

Posted on October 25, 2014 by suesci

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The last day of the last class and soooo much learned this week as well as new friends met and enjoyed. Ironically, I rarely saw NJ people while I was here, but several new friends I bumped into time and again! Hope to see them again at one of the seminars!

Today's class on Jasper had us working on boxes in the middle column as well as the one on the right. This is the third class that I have taken this year where the design lent itself to learning new stitches. These seemed to be sampler classes where the stitches were incorporated into the design, for instance the map of the United Stares, the High Country Winter taken earlier this seminar as well as Jasper, the current class. There have not been many repeats of stitches which I find pretty amazing.

When class was over today, one woman said that one important thing that she learned was how to compensate

along an oblique angle which we did in several boxes that were sectioned by a large page X in the middle. I had not thought about that, but I struggled enough in the beginning to agree that we DID learn how to do that these past two days. This is a project that I look forward to completing including putting the jasper on the backgrounds.

Jasper, Day 2

The banquet tonight ended a good week with a beautiful favor made for EGA Seminar by Puffin &Company, the magnet people. It is a magnetic scissor keeper of a dream catcher with EGA 2014 on it. There is also a cord for the scissors and two counting pins. It is awesome! It is so useful! It will bring back many good memories.

Banquet Favor

After a visit with Rosie's mom, we will be back to NJ and stitching on our pieces.

Sue

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Oct25

Farewell to Another Great Seminar!

Posted on October 25, 2014 by rosielunde

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Hi, Everyone —

We had another wonderful day with the lovely Toni Gerdes! We stitched on all but a few areas of our Jasper design. The unstitched areas are “easier” versions of stitches that we already did. Sure they are…

Jasper — End of Day 2!

Tonight was the closing banquet and I must say that EGA does banquets well.

I’ve started packing — tomorrow Sue and I will fly to California for a short visit with my Mom.

Cheers! Rosie

Oct24

Shopping!

Posted on October 24, 2014 by lindam55

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So earlier today I said that I was heading to Westbrook, CT for a stitching retreat. Along the way I stopped at Stitch by Stitch in Larchmont, NY. I had been to this shop once before and hadn’t really planned to stop on this trip. However, yesterday I saw a Facebook post from the shop that they are having a 20% off sale on all Halloween canvases. I happened to mention it to my husband who had accompanied me on the last trip to the shop. He emphatically stated that this was a great shop and I had to visit again (he and the daughter are my worst enablers).

Of course I forgot to take pictures, but the shop is a great find. Lots of canvases that I haven’t seen in shops near us as well as threads galore and all those needlework toys! Betty, one of the owners, is terrific and so helpful. Oh, I did pick up a few canvases …

Purchases from Stitch by Stitch in Larchmont

Then I headed up to Wilton, CT. I printed out directions from Google Maps, but decided to test using the phone app as a GPS unit. She and I did not get along at all – whenever she had to reroute me because I hadn’t followed her instructions, she simply kept quiet for a while. So I still used my printed directions.

This was my first visit to The Enriched Stitch in Wilton. The store did not disappoint, although Route 7 hasn’t improved in the 20 years since we last lived in White Plains and traveled those roads. The store had lots of different canvases and threads, and was bustling with shoppers on their way to the retreat. I found a gorgeous Christmas canvas, that was even better when I was shown the finished model. It was a stand-up music box. Stunning! Here’s the canvas (I forgot to take a picture of the model).

The Enriched Stitch Purchases

Both Mary Susan, the woman who wrote the stitch guide as well as stitched the model, and Ginny couldn’t have been more helpful. I also ordered a canvas that I had seen on the shop’s website and was on display at the shop. It was spectacular on the website and absolutely incredible in person. It’s called Harvest Moon, also by Ewe and Eye.

I couldn’t capture the image but here is a link to the finished piece. http://enrichedstitch.myshopify.com/collections/ewe-and-eye/products/harvest-moon-1

I finally arrived at my ultimate destination and am thrilled with my room. My room is off by itself just above the lobby and there is a great sitting area right outside my door. I’ll include pictures in a subsequent post. Now I’m going to get ready for the Meet and Greet!

Happy Stitching!

Oct24

Mini Stitching Retreat

Posted on October 24, 2014 by lindam55

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Although I am not able to attend the ANG/EGA Seminars quite yet, I do try to save some vacation days for local classes. Today I am headed up to The Water’s Edge Resort and Spa in Westbrook, CT for a two-day stitching retreat run by The Enriched Stitch, which is located in Wilton, CT. We will be working on a painted canvas designed by Ewe & Eye exclusively for this shop.

I will be making stops at Stitch by Stitch in Larchmont, NY, a fabulous shop that is having a 20% off sale on Halloween canvases and The Enriched Stitch which I have not yet visited. Reports on the shops as well as the retreat to follow!

I am going to take advantage of being at a spa – I’ve already booked a massage for tomorrow evening, knowing that my back will really appreciate it after a day of stitching!

Happy stitching!

Oct24

I’m finally blogging

Posted on October 24, 2014 by rfmarion

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I tried signing up this morning and was successful. I really have nothing to say except that I can actually blog now!

Oct24

Angels among us

Posted on October 24, 2014 by suesci

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Now it is my turn to be an angel for Toni Gerdes! She is very easy to be an angel for. Aside from passing out the kits as students arrived, I have had to call for an extra chair and more paper towels. Not bad for the beautiful pin I am wearing as well as the angel magnet Toni gave me which is on my canvas.

As Rosie said, we are both in Toni's class today and tomorrow stitching Jasper. Just looking at the colors used, you might not think that the piece had any life to it, but the variety of stitches and the different textures and shades of the threads definitely bring it to life. I learned the hard way today how not to open a skein of Soy Lustre and with the second skein we opened, I learned how to do it correctly. I have about a two hour job ahead of me untangling the first skein! (And I was being so careful!). The other thread that is a bit difficult to manage is the Edmar bouclê.

Soy Lustre, 1, Soy Lustre 2 and Bouclê

This is the time when you can see just how fast (and accomplished) a stitcher Rosie is when you compare the day's output on our two canvases. But I remind myself that this is not a competition. I am having a good time and feel good about what I was able to do today, even if it was only to learn how to open the Soy Lustre! My favorite stitch so far is the Double Dutch stitch which can be found in the large rectangle on the left side. There will be a color change in the threads as I progress down the block, and this will also be a rectangle where some of the leopard and autumn jasper beads will be attached.

Note the angel pin and Double Dutch

Only one more day of class. I am ready for a stitching retreat so that I can work on some of these pieces. Or maybe all I need is to set up some stitching dates for some of us who have unfinished pieces to gather and STITCH!

Sue

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Oct23

Jasper — Day One!

Posted on October 23, 2014 by rosielunde

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Hi, Everyone —

For the first time — Sue and I are taking the same class at seminar! It is “Jasper” with Toni Gerdes. Most of you will realize that this is the third class I’ve had from Toni — this year! And the second — this week! Toni has groupies and I admit that I am fast becoming one of them. Her designs are spectacular and her instructions and classroom manner are A-Number-One!

Jasper is very different from Navajo Blanket. Whereas in Navajo Blanket, the thread and stitches were wool and heavy enough to emulate a woven blanket, in Jasper we are using silk, cotton, soy, and even some wool threads. Toni says that she wanted this piece to have the texture to go with the rocks that will be used in the design and she also wanted it to be a sampler of different, unusual stitches.

When Harold and I were in Sedona (see rosiesmidnightsun.wordpress.com) I went into a store that sold beads. Among the “beads” that were sold were many, many varieties of Jasper. It seems that Jasper can be blue, green, coral, gold, and beige. In our piece we are using Leopard Jasper and Autumn Jasper beads. It is beautiful, but I can’t help thinking that it will go better in my Mom’s house than in mine.

First Day Progress on Jasper!

After class, Sue and I decided to check out “River Ranch” which is an entertainment water park that is part of our hotel here in Phoenix. We both floated around the lazy river and then did some exercises in a lap pool. While we were floating we noted that there was a miniature golf course, a day care center, a ghost town, a water slide, and concession stands. It seems that this is a great resort for families, but I think they are overwhelmed by all the “ladies who needlepoint!”

Cheers! Rosie

Oct23

Wednesday is Tour Day at EGA!

Posted on October 23, 2014 by rosielunde

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Hi, Everyone —

Tour day is one of my favorite days at seminar because I just love visiting new, interesting places.

Our tour today had several stops. The first was at Cosanti Bells. Our tour guide, Jim, kept saying that we were going to Arcosanti after Cosanti Bells. And even when we got to Taliesin West he called it Arcosanti again. Arcosanti and Cosanti Bells ARE related, but our tour did NOT include Arcosanti, which is closer to Sedona. Arcosanti is an experimental city that was designed to be self-sufficient.

The Cosanti Bells stop was mostly a shopping stop so that we could buy bells. I walked around the site and saw the molds which are used to make the bells. There was no commentary about the process, but I must say that the bells were beautiful and had a Southwest feel to them!

Cosanti Bells

Molds for Consanti Bells

Next we went to Frank Lloyd Wright’s “Camp” at Taliesin West. Wright built Taliesin during the depression when his third wife suggested that since he didn’t have any commissions that he should teach. Taliesin West still functions as an accredited school for architects — during the winter months. During the summer, the students migrate to the original Taliesin in Wisconsin. The students must learn by doing — including building their own “tent/rooms” on cement slabs on the campus.

“Taliesin” means shining brow. Wright believed that the architecture should fit into the environment and not overshadow it. Therefore, the structure sits below the top of the mountain and no structure is higher than the surrounding trees in this case the Palo Verde trees.

We were lucky to have a wonderfully informed tour guide to take us through the Taliesin facility. We started with this petrograph that was found on site.

Taliesin Petrograph

It was from this petrograph that the symbol/logo for Taliesin is derived.

Taliesin Logo — Depicts Two Hands Clasping!

Since I know that Sue has some wonderful pictures of the facility, I wanted to show this one:

On the left in the picture is the Taliesin West kitchen. If you are familiar with Wright’s history, he twice lost his home to fires that started in the kitchen. Here in the desert, he built the triangular pond so that he could form a “bucket brigade” in the event of another kitchen fire!

The triangular shape of the pond and of the roof and of the windows was intended to reflect from the triangular shape of the mountains behind Taliesin. Someone in our group asked about the orange fabric and paint that featured prominently in the furnishings of Taliesin. We were told that it was “red” and that Wright used four colors of red: Chinese Red (which seemed orange to us), Red, Taliesin Red (brownish), and Fire Engine Red which he used only for his many cars (and which all of his students also used for their cars). So they made a long red caravan as they made their way from Wisconsin to Arizona and back every six months! “There go the Wright boys!”

We also learned about a sculptor that came to Taliesin West while Wright lived here. She did a bust of Wright and then everyone tried to persuade her that sculpture was her true calling. She is now in her nineties and still lives at Taliesin. Below is a sculpture tat she completed within the past six months:

“Equilibrium” by Heloise Crista

Most of her sculptures only have about ten copies made before the mold is destroyed. The base on which this (and her other) sculptures are displayed rotates so that you can view it from all sides!

Finally — a lovely sunset from our hotel was a nice way to end our day!

Sunset at the Pointe Hilton Squaw Peak

Tomorrow Sue and I both begin “Jasper” with Toni Gerdes.

Cheers, Rosie

Oct23

A day away from stitching

Posted on October 23, 2014 by suesci

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Tour day! Rosie and I went on the same tour today with the high point being the tour of Frank Lloyd Wright's Taliesin West, an architectural school that is still operating today. He purchased the land in 1937 and began the place and program as a camp. The early buildings had canvas roofs which were rolled up every spring when the school returned to Spring Green, Wisconsin, and Taliesin East. The tour guide was excellent describing the history, the philosophy of FLW and his approach to architecture and the environment. Maybe these photos will give you an idea of the setting.

Building blocks formed from rocks, pebbles and a minimum concrete

He was very interested in Asian art. He acquired a number of Chinese friezes but they were broken into pieces. He had some of his students reassemble them. They can be found all over the property.

Chinese artwork

Shortly after his death, the third Mrs. Wright received this fountain dragon. After placing him in several locations on the property spouting water, she moved him to his current location. She decided that a dragon does not spout water, but breathes fire! Now it is hooked up to a gas line and during events the dragon breathes a flame of fire lighting up the area.