Wooo Hoooo!!! I finally overcame my fear of forgottten skills and finished the big one!! (The Marie stocking) The lower picture is showing the seam embellishment, which was lots of fun once I got started. Then, (top left picture) I started to play and create!! In the beginning on this one, I determined to absolutely use nothing but what I have in my stash - and everything in red, green, and gold. Would you believe, I had to buy nothing!!?? The only

problem I had was making myself stop. I had, in the beginning, thought to stay with tradition and history from years of studying and loving the Victorian crazy quilt - and then a new, very very talented friend and crazy quilt artist, unbeknownst to her, encouraged me, with all the wonderful fibers and fabrics and threads and beads and metallics we have at our disposal, to make it joyful and uninhibited and just plain exuberant. If you haven't found this lady, look at www.alliesinstitches.blogspot.com/ and sigh and dream and enjoy as I have over her work. With mine, in the off and on 9 years or so I have been working on "interpreting" crazy quilts in my own medium, needlepoint, I have endeavored to recreate with threads and stitches the textures of the fabrics themselves - and silks, velvets. etc. (even the houndstooth check is a "freehand" I have worked out). The laces and trims I have charted, as they are worked as an integral part of the stitching and not just lace glued or sewn on as some designers have done. The seam embellishments are done on top of the finished stitchery, and then - JOYFUL MOMENT the silk ribbon flowers are added. and a few beads here and there. And then I had to force myself to stop and plan the next one. The three mini-stockings are new also, and incorporate the animal skins I love for the beauty of their patterns and colors. I was especially pleased with the way my new "leaf trim" works with this theme. And my French Knots didn't fall out. MAJOR ACHIEVEMENT!! I will have the painted canvases for these and others similar as soon as I figure out how to write the stitch guides and instructions. Also, it's hard for me to put down the stitching now that I have it figured out!! I have spent happy hours studying Allison's beautiful work and figuring out how I would interpret a spray of yellow flowers and a scattering of small roses over several needlepoint patches!! WHAT INSPIRATION!