I feel very out-of- season posting this, and it is really, really on my to do list to some how finish this month!  I have loved this project, but it has been a slow one for some reason to finish.  I do love it, and I am going to be so happy to have it completed.  I think I often become a bit anxious about doing this finishing part, and then become "stuck".  Does anyone else feel that way?  For instance, with this project, I was very sure on doing the embroidery and embellishment parts, but I've never quilted with wool before, so that was a little bit of a hang-up.  I also had some difficulty finding the beads that I needed.  Back in December, I decided I was going to stop procrastinating on this project once and for all!  

It is interesting even how this project started.  I had first purchased the kit to make little ornaments.  Then, I happened to be in Barnes and Noble at the cafe looking through stitching, quilting and sewing magazines while having some tea (one of my favorite things to do!!!).  Much to my surprise, Simply Vintage magazine had the ornaments finished as a quilt!  I was so surprised!  I just loved the way they were displayed as a quilt, so decided on making this project.  The finished quilt is quite small.  I did many of the recommended embellishments for the embroidery, with a few changes.  For instance, I used metallic threads for some of them, and also added a few extra embellishments I thought would look nice.  Once it is quilted and has a binding, I will post more details about this, hopefully soon! 

This is a pattern I've had in my stash all kitted for quite some time.  It is from 2014- Snow Sampler by Country Cottage Needleworks.  Its been quite cold here in New England these past few weeks, so I thought it would be a nice start for some winter stitching.  I'm using all of the recommended threads, which are DMC.  For the linen, I did make a change and am using a 32 count Belfast linen in the color raw/opal.  It has a greenish/white shimmer to it.  It is so beautiful!  The linen is very tightly woven, so I've had to do some picking apart at times.......

I am working on another vest project.  Originally, I was going to be making a vest for a class that I was taking through Master the Art of Sewing.  I had signed up for a workshop with Kenneth King, the sewing guru that was presented by Master the Art of Sewing on working with faux furs.  Its nothing that I've ever done or thought about, but I found it really intriguing, and had seen information in Threads magazine before on working with faux furs.  The presentation Kenneth King provided for Master the Art of Sewing, was really terrific.  With his presentation style, he kept things moving and provided a variety of tips and techniques for working with faux fur.   

For the class, we were to be constructing a vest using Butterick 5359 pattern.  I noticed that the style I wanted to make, view E, had very wide shoulders.  I myself, are more narrow in my shoulders, so I thought that it may be okay, but I wasn't sure with a really thick fur.  I initially purchased the wooly grayish blue fur that I shared in my previous vest post.  It didn't seem really like fur, and I thought for my class that I should go all out, and really select something that I could apply the techniques to.  I ended up with this very plush rust-colored fur.  It took me a little bit to find a lining, but I did find the perfect silk lining at a local fabric shop, called Apple Annie's.  

I decided to use a slightly different vest pattern from the one suggested for the class.  A good friend of mind constructed a faux fur vest from Simplicity 8219 (view A).  The shoulders are not as wide, so I thought it would look really nice with the type of fur that I purchased.  I'll be sure to post an update soon!  I'm hoping to maybe finish it this weekend. Fingers crossed!  I have finished some of the construction of the outside, and am really excited to wear this.