Candi's Sampler Block

I posted a picture a few days ago of Candi's block I received to work on in the CQI "On the Seamy Side"Sampler Round Robin. I have now finished my work on it. This go round the stitches to be used were fly stitch and spider web roses. In the picture above is the first motif I did on Candi's block. I made three spider web roses with a shimmery organza ribbon. I placed them on a bed of fly stitch leaves done in a variegated thread. I added rose buds and a sprinkling of clear beads.
This is one of the seams I did on Candi's block. I made a double scalloped line of chain stitch in variegated thread and added groups of three straight stitches with a gold bead at the end of each stitch. Lastly, I added those trust spider web roses again with a bit of fly stitch greenery, all done in silk ribbon. This seam was inspired by one I saw recently on Sharon B's In a Minute Ago blog (her link is on the right under Check This Out). It didn't end up looking much like Sharon's so I don't know if she would want me giving her the credit! lol
This was the second seam and it is just a very simple fly stitch topped with little pearls. Very simple. If you look below the seam though you will see where I may have lost my mind. I kept looking at the silkie on this block, especially her gorgeous hat with the ostrich feather flumes. I kept thinking .... EMU FEATHERS!! So, I went ahead and added some. I sure hope Candi likes them cause they are there to stay! Of course, they can always be trimmed and shaped into a more pleasing shape when Candi gets the block back.
This last picture is the whole block after both Clairee and I have stitched on it. It will be heading off in the mail to its next stop tomorrow morning.

My work on this block gave me a couple real challenges. These two stitches (fly stitch and spider web roses) aren`t high on my list of stitches I use often. When I first did the motif with the pale pink roses I had scattered silk ribbon french knots around it in two or three colours. My initial instinct was to scatter pearls but I had already used them on the fly stitch seam so I thought that might have been too many pearls. But those french knots bothered me because they seemed too busy. Took them out - even though I virtually never `reverse stitch` - and then of course you can`t take out silk ribbon work without leaving a mess. So where each french knot had been there is now a clear bead and I am happier with the end result.

Following my trusty A - Z of Ribbon Embroidery book I marked circles for the spider web roses. I thought I would use that water soluble pen. Seemed to work fine. Afterwards I used a q-tip and water to moisten the marks and set it aside. When I went back I looked at the back first and that gorgeous variegated pink thread had run! I was almost afraid to turn the block over but luckily nothing ran on the front! Whew - got off lucky that time!

The last challenge the block gave me I didn`t rise to meet. I have looked at what I have done and I am vaguely unhappy with it and I think I have boiled the problem down to one of scale. What I did - and cannot now undo - is to make things that are too large for the block. I should have gone with more delicate looking stitching. But, unfortunately, I can`t fix that now (Sorry Candi!) . Hopefully someone further down the round robin circuit will find a way to balance out the block better than I have done.