First Quarter Challenge Drawing to a Close

First Quarter Challenge Drawing to a Close

A Daily Dose of Fiber challenge is coming to an end. I challenged everyone to take at least five minutes a day and do something creative. I personally had been doing this for a while but I wanted to add increased blogging on my personal blog. So I blogged every day during the challenge and I do have to say it was a challenge especially when I was traveling. I don’t own a “smart” phone and I don’t seem to be very mobile when it comes to online stuff. But I got a lot of creative stuff done and creating every day has been fun. Many times when I didn’t really feel like doing anything, I made myself get started because I had to do my 5 minutes a day. Once I got started, I ended up spending much more than 5 minutes because I quickly became involved in what I was doing.

Beaded Book
Beaded Book

So what did I accomplish with at least 5 minutes a day? In January, I spent the first half of the month completing my beaded book and making a beaded tassel for it. I also made three felt appliques, two turned edge appliques, two shadow appliques and a felt applique book. I researched broderie perse, the Bronze age, Kyrgyz design and reverse applique. I made a couple of pieces of flat felt, painted some commercial felt and finished the slipper bottoms for my husband’s slippers.

Applique Felt Book with Hand Stitching
Applique Felt Book with Hand Stitching

February was my travel month so I wasn’t quite as productive since I had to go to the Buyers Market for the store and attend my last stitch class. But I did manage to frame some of my work for a mini exhibition, do a little machine applique, learn some new types of bindings for books including hand stitching and machine stitching, make a machine stitched book page, felt some cat toys, work in my sketchbook/studio journal, do a little Kantha stitching while traveling, finish up the last of the felt appliques, make a shadow applique card for hubbie for Valentine’s Day, try out a new painting technique, carve some linoleum stamps and make some stitched greeting cards.

Felt Applique with Couched Cording
Felt Applique with Couched Cording

In March I have been finishing up the last of my stitch class homework. I have almost completed two machine stitched cut back applique pieces, I practiced some new hand stitches, I completed my 5 page machine stitched book, I went and picked up 200# of wool and took it to the processing mill, I started reading up on yurt building, I did very tiny blanket stitch around one of the book pages mentioned above, had a painting party at my house, learned new insertion stitches for small book bindings, laced my Kantha bird in preparation for mounting, matted several of my print to stitch pieces and made some grey scale croppers.

MINOLTA DIGITAL CAMERA

Whew… I think I need to take a nap!

14 thoughts on “First Quarter Challenge Drawing to a Close

  1. I need a rest just reading your accomplishments Ruth! I particularly love your felt book and the (would you call it ) ‘shadow work’ at the bottom .

    And now all you have to do is make a yurt!!!! Simples! 😉

    1. Thanks! It is amazing what can be done in just a few minutes a day. And I’m excited about the yurt, it might take more than 5 minutes though 🙂

  2. It was a wonderful challenge, but I intend to keep up the good habit learned from it.
    The bead book is beautiful and I enjoyed watching you video as you turned the pages.

  3. Wow Ruth, you must be a workaholic like me. lol You have accomplished a lot of quality work during this time. I am sure you will continue to do this, as will I.

    1. That’s what my husband says Judy but I enjoy doing it so it’s not really work. I will keep playing with fiber as long as I can.

  4. you are an inspiration! I have had a list if projects since Jan 1st (all felting of one sort or another) which I need to pull together for an exhibition at the end of June. So far I have done loads of planning, added to my list and bought supplies, but only completed 2 felted bead necklaces, 10 buttoned felt heart brooches, 6 felt bead bracelets and one piece of flat felt (picture) I think I need a leaf out of your book (yes-and the beautiful beaded and appliqued one!) and just set myself a target of 10 mins a day -love all of your stuff!!! you deserve a big pat on the back!

    1. Thanks Denise – I hope you’ll try the 10 minutes a day and see how it goes for you. It really is just a matter of getting in there and doing it.

  5. Oh Wow Ruth now your just showing off lol and you work to 🙂 You’ve accomplished so much this quarter and they all look beautiful, I reckon that yurt will only take you a couple of hours haha Seriously though, Well Done on everything, your amazing 🙂

    1. I wanted to show that even if you work and have other commitments, you can get your creative play time if that’s your priority. Oh, the yurt is already finished – LOL!

  6. Wow, you can take the rest of the year off now, Ruth! You really did get a lot done and it’s all gorgeous 🙂

  7. Wow Ruth I knew you had done a lot but seeing it all written out it boggles the mind. You are so right that just getting started is the hard part. You make me feel like a complete slacker. 😀 Did you realize how much you were getting done while you were doing it?

    1. It is kind of amazing what you can accomplish if you set your mind to it. I am always amazed when I look back, how much I get done. And I have even been slacking off in the evenings lately.

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