Rengin "blazes a gothic trail!"

Rengin's work on Hideko's block has me so excited. Again this block is from the new RR "Victorian Ladies".

One of the things I feel strongly about is teamwork in RRs and just because this is a DYOB (do your own block) in my mind that does not translate to "do your own thing". There is a theme and the blocks are sent out as a unit and when finished should still work as a unified body of work.

So being first and setting a path for others in the RR to follow is especially  important...  Well Rengin has not only just set a path she has "blazed a dramatic trail"  If I were following this block, at this moment I would have every black piece of lace I owned spread out on the table.

Hideko chose all black and white images for her Victorian ladies and requested a "gothic" look...  The black laces Rengin chose are so reminiscent of the black iron fences, railings and balconies of that era and are the perfect mood setter for Hideko's block...

Hideko's blocks had not only black and white images, the other patches were of a very neutral hue except for one very delicate subdued print... Rengin handled this print with great finesse and did not overwhelm it with heavy pink roses...  The tiny pink flower beads repeat the small flowers in the prints and pick up the colored patch to the right and carry it across the block...  Rengin carried the black from her laces into every seam... The image is framed beautifully with the black laces and the tiny Victorian charms are a perfect addition.

Since I talked about balance yesterday I want you to notice how Rengin put the fan lower left... This patch needed something to balance the block but not overpower the delicate patch..  This neutral fan does it nicely.

I love how bold and dramatic the black lace is juxtaposed  with the delicate stitching and print ..A job well done and these blocks have the potential of being a spectacular set when  all are finished...

Why can a RR block go wrong and does it matter anyway!!!!

This post is in response to an email I received yesterday... Not every block goes out and returns the block of your dreams... and here are some of the reasons why..

What the block owner has written in the booklet is too little and too vague...  She has forgotten to mention she hates orange, anything plastic and abhors any spiders on anything....  Her team (I always like to think of us as working together as a team) immediately feels adrift on the block and would love a little more direction... It would have been more helpful if she had added she loves lace, roses and all butterflies..
I have been guilty of being too vague and when the block comes back and I'm not happy with it I have myself to blame... If you are in this situation why not ask the owner a few questions?

What the block owner has written in the booklet is too specific and restrictive...  I have been guilty of this also.  Once I asked for colors to be limited to what was in the fabric...  And everyone did that and what a boring bunch of blocks that was...  If you are in this situation, toss your ideas out... Could be the block creator will love it..

Also by being too restrictive you may be putting out demands unable to be met by someone on your team... someone who may be unsure of bullion roses or expanded seams for example and if that is all you want than you might be disappointed and the team member will be frustrated.  Be flexible.

Also by being too restrictive you might be stifling some creative additions...  Encourage people on your team to contact you if they want to do something other than you asked and be open minded.  I have a a favorite block of mine that is a perfect example...

This block went out and Leslie did all the whimsical lace and bead work by the silkie and added a cluster of buttons above the silkie...  Then the block went to Ati who wanted to put a cluster of roses above the roses and move the buttons elsewhere.

Ati wrote to me as block owner AND to Leslie as the previous stitcher about her thoughts and we both told her go for it...and she did.

But as is the case in EVERY RR,  the block is never complete until it is home and the block owner has her go at it...  In this case I decided I didn't want a trail of buttons and wanted a trail of hearts instead.  So the all the buttons (except the big red one) went into my button box and I added my trail of hearts.  Obviously the point being is communication and the exchange of ideas..but the owner has the last say about everything on the block....

But sometimes things go awry because not everyone can work as a team...  The block arrives home out of sync the owner has every right to move, change, or edit the block to her satisfaction...and indeed she should because we don't want blocks languishing in drawers unloved...  Sometimes the creator of a block sees it in an entirely different light when it arrives home.... There are very, very few blocks that have arrived home to me that I have not modified..  Team members should not be offended in anyway... They did their part and the block moved on.. 

As I have said many times before what really matters is NOT the block but everyone being challenged, learning along the way and making friends..... You cannot grow in a vacuum and working with others is always stimulating.   I've been reworking an old RR block for Kerry (beaded dragonflies)  and one corner just wasn't speaking to me. At the retreat someone walked by, leaned over my shoulder and whispered "You should put put a frog there!"  I could have jumped up and hugged her.  I would have sat there forever and NEVER thought of that... I can hardly wait and what an impish frog it will be!!!!

Answer to question on RR etiquette

 When you work on a block do you infringe on another's work to make it flow??? Or should the owner of the block..... add the extras? ......Linda in NM

Well personally I rarely disturb anyone's work...But on a couple occasions I have needed to move something but I ALWAYS contacted the stitcher and owner for permission. 

On my left is a good example of teamwork in just that kind of situation..  (This is my block  in 2008)  In the top photo Leslie had done bead work and added a button cluster just above the silkie.... When the block got to Ati that is where she wanted to do a floral spray...  She contacted both Leslie and myself for permission to move the buttons. (second photo) She added her floral spray and moved the buttons lower left.

And it all mattered not as when the block returned home to me I replaced the button trail with a trail of hearts... I used the smaller buttons here and there and painted a rose on the largest one and put it by the silkie.

This is just a small section of that block and one day I will do a critique on the entire block as there is a lot to learn from it and it was an incredible bunch of stitchers...

So in answer to your question....Being last to work on the block before it goes home certainly give you a little more freedom and allows you to add here and there overall to bring things together before it goes home.  But the general rule is to not to infringe on other's work and do leave the final design decisions to the block owner.... But if you need extra space or for some other reason, CONTACT the stitchers..  Teamwork and communication are absolutely vital in RRs.

Now having said all that I DO often work into, mesh with, and extend stitching of others... and on the left is a good example... I needed a lot of space for my hummingbird vision and wanted to use that worrisome little corner  so I worked all over and through someone else's seam work.



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