More Free Motion Stitching

View near Mud Lake - Machine stitched

We had a great time at our quilting retreat and I spent almost the whole weekend working on this piece.  I was determined to master free motion work so I just stitched away all weekend (aside from eating the wonderful meals we took turns preparing, drinking wine and talking....).   I will post pictures of the retreat next week.   I was pretty satisfied with the results of my machine labours and have continued since my return home to work on more pieces which I will post later this week.   I learned about changing needles often, I tried to get my head around all the different needles for different processes, still struggling to learn about threads and tensions etc etc.   I must say that it is great to be able to complete a piece in a weekend.  I can't do that with hand stitching.   However,  I still feel a lot more relaxed after an evening of hand stitching.  I think there's a lot more swearing that goes on (and talking to inanimate objects ie the machine!) when I am machine stitching.   But I am trying to remain calm even when the stitches bunch up behind the work and the machine begins its ominous clunking noises.    I stop, check my threading, check the tension, look to see if there is anything caught in the machine - then, if all else fails, I stop and have a cup of tea.:)

Inspiration near Mud Lake

Here is the photo that inspired this piece.    We have a lovely area down near the Ottawa River with a small pond called Mud Lake which is a haven for many kinds of birds and waterfowl.  This was taken on the river side.

On my way home from the quilt retreat, I stopped in at Loblaws to pick up a few things.  When I came out, this is the sight that greeted me.  Luckily I had my camera with me and quickly took some shots.  What a spectacular sunset!   Sadly a couple of days later it seems I missed a magnificent aurora borealis.   Ah well another time....

Urban Sunsets