March Wanes

Even though March roared in, it doesn't look as though it'll be creeping out in a lamb-like fashion. The weatherman warned that more snow and an artic vortex is coming our way. !
Aw, c'mon! It's almost April!
My DH shared his cold with me. Sometimes I think he takes that "share and share alike" concept just a little too far!    lol      So that means I've just been doing some simple stitching.
Lots of buttonhole stitch, buttonhole lace, and a few french knots on the wrapping cloth so far.

I laid out the completed wrapping cloth pieces (and 2 awaiting tacking) to guage just how large my wrapping cloth might be when all the pieces were edged and joined together. The measure on the tape is at 48". I suspect the finished cloth will be ~ 3.5' x 4.5' if I don't add more pieces (except to fill in holes)

This piece of lutradur was painted with metallic paints. I then drew a pattern onto the surface with a brown sharpie.
Using 2 of  Lorraine's threads, in variegated green/yellow/blue  I began to backstitch.
(#8 perle cotton colours #28 and #158)

The metallic paint made the surface glow beautifully and the result reminded me of  beautiful verdigris on copper.

 I began to stitch on a second piece of painted lutradur. I used another of Lorraine's variegated threads for the fancy stitched hexagons.
(#8 perle cotton colour #6)

I love how rich this looks.

 I wanted to play with some paints, so I made several background pieces. These will turn into cards, or doodles, or maybe backgrounds for stamping or gelli prints.

 I love the drips and watching them merge to create new colours.

Wanting a bit more play with paints, I made a pile of small doodle-bits. Some may be a bit dark, but I'll have fun experimenting.

a small selection

 Using gel pens, markers, gelatos and paint, the following 3 pieces took shape. I may use them on cards or in a journal, or as a tag. They are fun!

You can see the shimmer of the metallic paint

These doodle-bits could become addictive. ;-)

Will I add stitch to some of these?
Maybe.



That's my week. I hope yours has been a fun and creative week, too.

Hugs from Suz

Spring!

Well, according to the calendar, spring has arrived. Someone ought to have a wee chat with the weather about that because it's still stuck in winter. We had a few snow flurries yesterday with more snow in the forecast over the next few days.........grumble......
I've been stitching a little on the wrapping cloth piece.

3 pretty lace flowers were added to the top of a small pocket with buttonhole stitch.

French knots fill the openings in two of the layered prairie points, their flaps held open with bullion knots.

3 shell sequins are attached and joined with bullion knots.

another pocket edged in buttonhole lace.
The lazy daisy half-flower on the left echoes the flowered fabric

another look

Now that all the edges have been buttonhole stitched, this wrapping cloth piece is now finished.

 This next piece has been tacked and is awaiting embellishment with thread and needle. I love that strip of lace running along the width of  the broderie anglais, repeating the look of open eyes.........
The large piece of wild fabric is a pocket.

Work on the Crewel Piece continues. Flower number 2 shows a little progress. Each little shape is layered satin stitch, so it takes a bit of time to embroider.

a bit of a closer look

I need to use a magnifier and bright light to see clearly enough to stitch such small sections. It's a bit fiddly, but my hope is that it'll all be worth the effort once it's completed.


I hope your week has been a pleasant and creative one.
Happy Spring!

Thanks for visiting.

Hugs from Suz

Ides of March 2016

Yes, it's the middle of March. Already.
There has been a bit of stitching over the past week:

3 more Dorset Buttons were added to the stash

 Although there was a bit more added to flower #2, it's not enough to show. I did, however, add a darker green to the three top leaves in flower #1. I used whip stitch into the back stitch edging, and I think those leaves no longer seem to disappear.

The wrapping cloth piece in progress. Lots of bullion knots, some french knots, and buttonhole stitch has happened. I shaped the tag and buttonhole lace into a cup. 

There's a bit more stitching to add to this piece.

a closer look at some of the bullion knot edging. Although not shown in this photo, the lace on the wild fabric pocket has now been edged with buttonhole stitch.

I did play with my gelli plate and made a series of gift tags. Unfortunately, the irridescent paint doesn't really show up in the photos.

I may add stamping to some of the tags.

The red amaryllis finally bloomed! 4 large blossoms on this stalk. Isn't she a beauty?

It certainly brightens up the living-room on grey spring days.


That's my week. I hope yours has been a creative and blessed one.
Thanks for visiting.
Hugs from Suz

More Paint, Stitch, and Dye

Inspired by an article in "Stitch" magazine (#83), I prepared a piece of dupioni silk for painting. First, I added a backing fabric of cotton, right sides together, and stitched around three sides to create a pocket. Once it was turned right side out, I added several horizontal lines of machine stitching across the silk in two areas. I sprayed the silk with water and began adding fabric paint.

It looks very wet in this photo. I used an old credit card to apply and smush the paint onto the silk in vertical strips. I later used a paint brush to work the paint into the fibers, and smooth it around.

See how much lighter the colours look once the fabric and paint have dried?

I began to add some machine stitching in white and yellows to the painted fabric. It's a bit difficult to see, so check the close-up below.

I've used three shades of yellow so far.
The plan is to add layers of stitch in the colours of the paint onto the silk. Then, later, adding heavier types of thread by machine and by hand.
This is an experiment, and so far, I'm enjoying seeing what happens.

On the new wrapping cloth piece, a wee bit of buttonhole lace has been added to this loop.

The following photos show some of the results from my snow-dying experiment.

Depending on where a piece of fabric was in the dye sandwich, they varied from pale wahes of colours to bright and bold splotches.
Sometimes the dye helped a pattern to show better......

there were some amazing skies.....

very soft patterning.......

dark areas.......

subtle washes......

sometimes the white stitching on the fabric acted as a resist to the dye

does anyone else see a deer?

sometimes the stitching absorbed more colour than the fabric......

hello rorschach........

 results on silk.......













This fabric came from a sheer blouse with white flowers. The sheer fabric absorbed the dye beautifully to create a new striking fabric.

This is a pile of the fabrics I dyed. I'm pleased with the results.

The crewel piece has progressed a little bit from this:

to this:

I'm not sure if those three pale green bits at the top of flower 1 should have more definition on the outline, but I can always add a darker thread later.

I've made a start on flower #2. Lots of padded satin stitch on this one.

This little Dorset Button has lots of french knots.

It's just about the size of a quarter. A second one is in the works.

This ATC sports  a seahorse--my own design--and only needs a backing stitched on before it's completed. Tatted in white thread, I used fabric paint to add a bit of green and turquoise.

 Tatted in a beige and metallic thread, these flowers were also coloured with fabric paints.
Both ATC's and the Dorset Button will be heading out in the mail for someone special.






Well, that's it for my week.
I hope yours has been a fun and creative one.

Hugs from Suz