Another Week

I have been working on my leaves and the lattice framework for my blocks. I am really pleased with the way they are coming out. The dark green strips have to be sewn on by hand with a slip stitch from the front because there is so much beadwork right to the edges of each piece. I have made tubes out of a heavier weight fabric & have turned them so the seam allowances are inside, and am stitching them together. I have 6 together as a unit now, and have done another row of 3 which need to be added to the original six. Then I'll need to finish the May block before I can do that last row. I don't know if I can wait til May to do it, though! I am pretty jazzed about the finishing of this piece. It's kind of taken over my life! LOL! There will be wider borders of the same green fabric all around and then I plan to mount it onto a board. I was thinking foam core board because it's light and the piece is already heavy enough, but it may not be rigid enough. Masonite would make it too heavy. Hmmmm..... still thinking!

I have made three dimensional leaves to attach at each block with the name of the month on it. They are made from photos of
two different leaves, and I have used Steam a Seam 2 to fuse them to green fabric for the back. Then I have done picot stitch
all around the edge to finish that off. The abbreviated name of each month is stitched on to the face of the leaf using size 15 beads. I have used light beads on the lighter leaves and dark beads on the darker leaves. I want that "information" there, but not to come out and hit you in the face.