Wednesday 12 October 2016

Diamonds on the Soles of her Shoes

Another WIP which has been on going for a few months is finally complete!

Thanks for DD2 (for only needing one shoe liner to make her shoes fit perfectly) and to Debbie for the fabulous green and gold fabric (the photos don't do the colour justice - it's a lovely dark emerald) for helping to make this happen.

Quilt ideas come from the strangest places!
 I used the liner to make a matching stencil out of freezer paper.  Then I used Markel paint stick and rubbing plates to make the other shoe shapes.

Stitching the shoe liner on, then stitching around the edges of the stencilled shapes followed (once the paint stick had cured and stopped smelling!).

Then came lots of kantha style stitching.  Fun to decide which lines to echo and when to make breaks in the stitching.
 I bought some lovely variegated Sashiko thread from The Cotton Patch in the summer. This project shows it beautifully!

And why 'Diamonds on the Soles of her Shoes'?  I don't know!  I've always loved the song, and I think that the idea of having decorated sole 'prints' like these made me think of it again.

Fun, and I need to get on and find a place for this to hang.

Not much machine work to show this week - but I have started back on the 365 challenge.  I'm running something over 2 months behind at the moment, so plenty to do if I'm to catch up by the end of the year!  I'm not making any promises, even to myself about this particular project!

Happy October sewing, everyone!

5 comments:

  1. Interesting project! I too love the song.
    A story I encountered when visiting Russia, way back when, was that only prostitutes wore shoes with red soles, indeed that was "how you could tell" - probably a myth! Hmm, researching it online [risky!] reveals that they would chalk their price on the soles of their shoes; that could be quickly obliterated...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I hadn't heard the story of the coloured shoe soles from Russia, Margaret! That's fascinating to learn!
      Isn't it amazing when you read something on a blog it really takes you on a journey of discovery. Thank you for the info!
      Barbara x

      Delete
  2. I was fascinated to learn how you made this pretty piece! Wonderful Kantha stitching! You have such patience I'm now off to investigate rubbing plates further on google!
    Thank you, for the mention of Paul Simon's song ..... I've spent a happy half hour over on utube reminiscing that and other songs it lead me to!
    Love your patchwork squares too! Great progress.
    Have a stitchy week!
    Barbara xx

    ReplyDelete
  3. Oh Plum this is amazing, Love it and how you built it up; a great wee tutorial, love how the Kantha style quilting came out, I love doing sashiko quilting now on my quilts it is easier on arthritic hands LOL Hugs Glenda

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for leaving a comment! I always appreciate it and will try to respond.