Tag: embroidery

This one took a while, partially because that yellow thread stitch to the right of the negative space square took a lot of thread, and I ran out and had to reorder, and also because my interest in this project seems to wax and wane. For instance, I finished it several weeks ago, but it sat waiting to be washed and stretched for a long time.

I like the overall result though.

Here’s a closeup of the left side. I like my double zig zags with the maroon and gold. And the simplicity of the turquoise running stitch next to it. The wrapped purple guy was when I started to incorporate stitches from Pop-Up Embroidery.

Here is a closeup of the right side. The yellow floss eater also came from Pop-Up Embroidery. I wasn’t very good at it. And then, for some reason, I decided I needed to make a billion figure-eight knots right next to it. You can see that the final bits were stitches that didn’t take long to make.

The back, for those who enjoy.

When I published the side two post, I discovered that I never chronicled side one, so here is side two:

And here is side one. I initially thought this project would be a good one to use up the bits of thread I had left from other projects, but I only had to run out of thread one time before I reached the top to abandon that plan. (You can see the little lime running stitch next to the white chainstitch in the middle not quite making it to the top.)

I also learned by doing. It’s best to start on one side and work to the other side. I initially added a line here and there, but didn’t like how much some of the things were getting beat up from the hoop, so everything after this panel was worked left to right.

One more panel to go! (And then I still have to make the bag…)

Starting with this Thanksgiving, we will have people sign their napkins, then I will embroider over them.

Ideally, over the years, they will have many memories of shared meals.

I think it’s also nice that I’m embroidering on napkins that my Aunt Carol embroidered.

S. North and I went walking, and in the process she lost her very fun handkerchief. So I took two of the stash I took home from 7611 and added some embroidery.

They are a little fragile. I accidently made a tiny rip in one as I was putting it in the hoop. And they have some flaws. But these were fun and quick to make.

The swoopy green thing is an N for North.

A quick check of the archives shows that I forgot to take pictures of side one. I guess I will include pictures of side one when I finish side three.

So what is this project? I need a bag to hold my square dancing shoes, and I found an online tutorial for making a four sided bag with a square bottom. I decided to use some of the fabric from a mystery pack I bought when I was in Cannon Beach and emborder, leaving a square on the fabric. (Get it? Square dancing bag with a square?)

I’m quite pleased how things are coming along. This one is better than the first side. On the first side I started in the middle and worked my way back and forth higgledy piggledy, but this time I worked left to right, and the stitches didn’t get so beat up.

Here’s the back, for those who want a look.

And here’s a closeup. It’s fun to look at the different stitches and how they play together.

Here’s a closeup of the other side. Those blue stars turned out so well. And I enjoy how I cut them off on either side of the square.

Onward to the next panel!

Another blackwork embroidery done. Here’s my completed sampler:

And here is where you can buy your own.

Making all those small, short stitches is very calming. I like using the lazy daisy as fancy frame embellishments.

The sampler bonus was this cute bat stuffed animal, which will stay in this format until someone cleans out my estate.

My next project will be something of my own design, and I’m quite excited to start!

I finished Kiriki’s sampler a few weeks ago, but took my time washing and stretching it. Let’s have a look.

I like the overall result of my stitching, but I do wish the ink transfer had been darker. It’s almost invisible.

The embroidery turned out well. I really like that rose in the center of the skull’s forehead made out of bullion knots. And I also enjoy pistil stitch, which made up the flowers on the top of the skull.

This pattern came with the sampler club bonus. (I think it was the reason I bought this, the haunted house, and the crow, because they were the last available samplers that included the sampler club bonus). It’s a cute little candy corn cat, which I have diligently embroidered and which will stay in this form until someone comes to deal with my estate.

This took me the entire summer, and I’m not sure why, as the finished sampler fits in a 6-inch hoop. Maybe I need the motivation of more colors? Maybe all this blackwork was just straight stitches in different ways, and I got bored? Not sure.

I’m pleased with the results, though. And that floral lace looks really pretty. I’ve learned to make the sample stiches surrounding the main picture the last thing I do, so I’ve had adequate practice. Even then I pulled out many stitches where I didn’t get the needle in just the right place.

The bonus item was quite fun and stitched up quickly. They make a fun combo.

Back views!

I think the back side of this looks a little creepier than the front. The house looks disheveled from this side.

And the back of this one had a thread stuck to it. I was too lazy to collect the scissors and cut it off before I took the picture.

Here’s the final result of this piece, last referenced in this post.

I’m quite pleased with the result. And I will be taking it into work to catch the drips from my tea and water vessels, as I will be sharing a desk on the one day a week I’m in the office.

This view shows that it ended up rather thick, but I think that works well. I used part of an old shirt of Matt’s for backing, and I like how bright the blue was.

The upside of using Bankie as the filling is that this item has very good energy.

The red pillowcases I use are wearing out. The material is thin with holes and the seams are coming unraveled. As someone with time on my hands, I figured I would mend them with big patches. The size of the patch indicates just how decrepit this pillowcase has become.

I finished one corner, then noticed a few more holes, so I needed to add a patch.

You can see the technique. Cut the patch, draw a swoopy line, then tack the patch to the pillowcase, then big running stitch.

And you can see how much of the pillowcase is becoming a patch.

I used variegated perle cotton thread, and also a blanket stitch for the edges.

The seams needed a lot of assistance, so they got this cavalcade of stitches.

Close inspection of the other pillowcase found similar problems. It was at this point that I looked up the cost of new sheets, decided I could afford them, and discarded this project.

That’s one of the best thing to come with my middle age. When I cry uncle, I get rid of the project. It doesn’t need to be hanging around reminding me I haven’t finished it.

It’s the time of finishing many things, including this sampler. This is the third of three Dropcloth Samplers I bought in October 2020 with an Etsy gift card from Linda Johnston. Here is the first one, and here is the second one.

I think this is the sampler that has a tutorial on Creativebug. I couldn’t find information about a few of the stitches, so I did all of the sampler but those stitches, then signed up for the free trial and learned those stitches, then watched the tutorial for the schoolhouse sampler.

This sampler came with printed color, which was a fun addition. I’m pleased with how it came together.

Some favorite things: the shag carpet look of the turkey work, how great the brown and red look against the yellow background, and that I was patient enough to even stitch over the printing with the name on it. You can see that I wasn’t really into the close herringbone.

Also fun? I ordered the wrong color of DMC floss, and so I had this hot pink salmon kicking around. It made a great frame using split stitch. I also enjoyed the Cretan stitch. I was not a fan of the Japanese darning stitch. I had to draw guiding lines on the sampler.

Here’s a shot of the back.