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Tuesday, June 19, 2012

Featuring Mary Fanslau!

Per my previous post, I am the instructor for the Sew Cal Gal's FMQ challenge. I joined the Facebook group and have been having a ball watching all the amazing projects being created.  It's amazing what a little talent and imagination can produce!  I came across Mary Fanslau's project where she created a beautiful chair cover out of a vintage linen and was blown away.  I knew she would inspire you too and asked her to share her photos and story.  You can visit her blog at:  cantstopstitchin.blogspot.com.  Thank you Mary!

Some time ago after Cindy showed what her FMQ ideas could do to an old linen, I began collecting linens.  What attracted me to this piece was the little roses.  A friend recently repaired a broken leg on our birds-eye maple tea table! I love this unusual table, and thought "if I just had a little chair in a light color wood, it would go so nicely, and I could sit with a cup of tea and enjoy the view from our window". Wouldn't you know, the next day I spied this little chair by the side of the road with a tag "FREE" on it. Into my car it went and I finally knew what this months FMQ challenge piece would be! I took the chair apart, threw away the cover, washed the seating, and began creating this linen quilt to cover my chair!

R received a gift of olive green fabric and some cones of embroidery threads which  I wanted to include in this piece.  I used a bendable ruler to mark the shape and to go around the roses where i added some feathers. In most of my FMQ pieces, when not practice pieces, I usually have the thread color blend in, but after watching Cindy's lessons on the Superior Threads site, regarding the purple quilt, I thought I would try this green thread for the square and pebbles around it. I love the threads!

I also FMQ-ed heart shapes around the little white daisy's to help them stand out more on their own.   Using more peach thread, I did a second square around the green one then added feathers, following up with peach pebbles around the open weave work that matched the original little circle embroidery on the piece.



 
A few coats of a fabric finish (scotch guard) to the seat, (it may help preserve the fabric from staining) it is now complete.


             
I do believe it is time for tea.

Thank you Cindy  ~ wish you were here in New England to join me...
                                                                                                              

6 comments:

Doreen said...

So inspiring! Gorgeous! Thank you, Cindy, for featuring Mary's creation! Now, I must go investigate some linens I have acquired over the years.

Rosemary Dickinson said...

Simply beautiful! I would hate to see someone actually sitting on it!! Just so pretty and so well done.

Joanie's Trendy Quilts said...

Mary's work is inspiring! I too will have to go find some linens stashed away somewhere. So sweet of you to feature Mary

Joan said...

Mary that is just georgeous. What an inspiration to us all. Congratulations on your featured articloe with Cindy.

Leeanne said...

Stunning!! I really want to give this a try. I have really enjoyed your video's Cindy, very inspiring!
I hope Mary doesn't let anyone sit on that beauty!

Mosaic Magpie said...

Beautiful! I love the use of the colored thread. Great job, but I would hate to sit on it! On second thought you will enjoy those cups of tea even more, sitting on your throne!

Deb