With Flounce and Ruffle...

This pretty "Ninetta, the Magpie Girl" is a project completed as part of Alma Stoller’s STITCHED , a series of online classes taught by a variety of teachers. The instructor for this one is Carrie Payne of Believe Magic blog. The Magpie Girl is based on The Thieving Magpie, a Rossini opera. Ninetta, the servant girl, is blamed for stealing valuables from a wealthy family and is nearly hung for the crime. Just in time it is discovered that the magpie bird, lover of shiny treasures, is actually the one who purloined the items and hid them in his nest. A happy ending- Ninetta lives! Carrie designed her project so that the ruffles of the dress could “hide” some little treasures. We began our project with a collaged and quilted background, then added the Magpie Girl image and crafted her dress. My background incorporates many of those decorator fabrics and samples that have found their way into my fabric stash. I like them for their shine and fancy embroidery elements.

"Ninetta" has an earring, bits of lace and trim "stolen" from a quilting friend’s workspace, a tiny clothespin, and lots more concealed in her tiers of muslin ruffles. My version is scaled down in size from the original pattern so it makes a nice size wallhanging.

I twisted some yarns together, and couched them in place for an edge finish, and added a couple of large, shiny treasure beads dangling from the corner. "Ninetta" was lots of fun to sew and assemble, and I’m already planning a Christmas version! I’ve got plenty of treasures in mind for that one.