Fancy Stitches and Ribbon Embroidery…..June 26, 2013.
Needlework is as much a part of me as breathing. Maybe it’s in my blood since I’m from a long line of needlework people. My mother had several sisters and each one of them did some type of needlework. For a time I owned a crazy quilt top made by my grandmother, but I had a cousin who griped and complained until I gave it to her. One sister knitted, while another did crochet and my mother tatted. 
To get on with my story, I have no project going at this time and when I sit in my chair I’m lost. I absolutely have to come up with something to keep my hands busy. I knit premature baby caps for a national organization; however, I get tired of doing the same thing.
Crazy quilt work is among my favorites, but getting ready for the fun part is work. The pieces are put on a base first before the fancy stitching takes place. I have several books about this kind of work and I can spend hours just browsing through them. One time John and I were in a Marietta, GA quilt store on his birthday and I bought a book on ribbon embroidery for his birthday. Needless to say, he was ecstatic!
In doing this work I try to include as many different kinds of work as I can — see tatting in bottom of the above picture and no crazy quilt is complete without a spider web — that’s a sign of good luck. I’ve had no training in ribbon embroidery, but it is 
absolutely beautiful when done correctly, but it’s very tedious. These clips are taken from a table runner, where I included some prize ribbons we’ve won in quilting, as well as flower shows. I’ve made a crazy quilt for each of our girls.
Our oldest gave me a stitched saying one time that read “When I in Glory stand, a crown perhaps upon my head, but a needle in my hand.” Its definitely a part of country living.
Paula Robson
Such beautiful work.