Hugs from Helen

Colourque Tutorial and free pattern

woops, time has gotten away from me and I forgot to let you know that the Tutorial and pattern for the little Colourque peek I showed on Facebook is now up at The Wantobe a Quilter blog

Pop on over now to http://www.sewwequilt.com/  to see and download it – there are heaps of great prizes up for grabs also!

in fact the prize is the most gorgeous fabrics from Shabby Fabrics – just my style – I want!

Oh – and hello and welcome to all of you who are popping over here to say thanks – Its sew nice to meet you all

hugs

Helen

a Proud Mum

I loved art at school- wasn't great at it but loved it – and am still determined one day to go back to art school..

but for now I can live the dream through my special girls.. so I am going to have a little boast and show them off!

Last Friday night Miss Tess was awarded the Year 7/8 Prize for the best Portrait in the Young Archies Exhibition – this is like a younger persons Archibald portrait competition run across the state of Tasmania – for this portrait of her not so happy sister

Her big sister Molly had this painting hanging also in the Year 11/12 category – inspired by new friends she met last year on her Challenge trip to Namibia

 

I am always amazed at the quality of artwork coming out of our schools here. There were some amazing portraits from kindergarten to Year 12. This was done by one of Molly’s friends and fellow art students Brittany – those eyes….

and this was the overall winner done by a 16 year old girl also from our school – amazing.. (sorry about the quick snap with an extra head in the bottom right corner)

so for now, I will admire and appreciate the talents of our youth… and give them credit where credit is certainly due..

hugs from a proud mum

Helen

oh btw – the exhibition is open to the public at the Arts Centre Hunter St Hobart  daily until the 9th October

Stitched Sunday – The Cretan Stitch

Today brings us our last stitch tutorial and the final page (for now) for your stitch book. Next week I will begin the instructions for you to make up your book to hold all of your wonderful practise pages and designs – should you wish to.

A reminder of your requirements to make the book can be found on this post here – you have one more week and can still order them if you want yours to look the same as mine.

So, to today’s stitch – the mighty Cretan!

also known as Persian stitch and longarmed feather stitch – sometimes known as quill stitch when it is stitch as a long line.

Traditionally used by the women of Crete on clothing – hence its name.

The stitch can be used within a shape – like a leaf – or on parallel lines as decoration. It can be worked closed or open giving many different looks.

so- how to do it?

It is actually quite similar to the Herringbone stitch except the ‘hat and boot’ is vertical rather than horizontal. It may be useful to start with two guide lines.

Bring the needle up at A, down at B and back up at C – the thread is under the needle  B &C are a little vertical stitch.

pull through until firm and the needled thread is distorting the first stitch – putting that little bend in there.Now take the little vertical stitch at the top of your row.- again make sure the thread is under the needle

continue like this to make a nice even row of stitches.         to vary this stitch we can do several things- first change the distance between this point

and this point

making them very close makes this tight stitch sometimes referred to as quill stitch – it looks like a lovely little knotted stitch doesnt it?

or you can change teh size or your little vertical stitch – the amount of threads you pick at this point of the stitch (between B&C)

The closed quill sample above uses quite large vertical stitches – actually to the middle of my two lines so both the top and the bottom stitch meets in the middle. But if you only took a teeeny tiny stitch here – even just one or two threads you get a different look again – of course you can be spaced apart or close together for even more variations. If you space them apart you can use a contrast thread and do another row over the top – you will sometimes see 3-4 different threads used over the top and in between well spaced stitches.

You can see lots of examples and inspiration on my pinboard here.

Our practise page today is a little sampler similar to our Herringbone page. Firstly have a practise changing spacing and stitch size and these horizontal lines to help. For our design I have put just guidelines (Circles) on the pattern sheet and then filled them like this:

    Using the centre two circles and the purple thread I stitched quite closely with an equal stitch length for my vertical stitches – ie, the ‘C’ point sat in the middle of my two lines. (like this example)

Of course because you are going around a circle the points on the inner circle are a little closer than the points on the outer circle. I then stitch colonial knots on every second inner point and every outer point of my Cretan stitches.

Using the next two lines I stitched a Chevron stitch in the pink thread. Using green I stitched a lazy daisy between each outer ‘v’ and fly stitch over each outer hat. A purple French knot was placed in between each fly ‘v’. on the inner side I stitch two pistil stitches in hot pink.

Using the next two lines and the purple thread I stitched a row of quite widely spaced Cretan stitch. I think swapped to a pink thread and stitched another row over the top. Using the green thread I stitched a running stitch around the outer edge between each stitch.

Using the last two outer circle guides I stitched a large Cretan stitch in the purple thread. Think of dividing the space into four equal sections to judge the size or your little vertical stitches.

I then used a green thread and stitched a fly stitch over the end of each inner stitch – joining the fly stitches at the half way point. I add a colonial knot at the end of each fly stitch using the hot pink. A lazy daisy was placed between each outer ‘v’ of the cretan stitch and finally a green thread and running stitch was worked over the outer ends of the Cretan stitch.

Which then gave me this! Isn't it delicate and pretty, not sure what I’d use if for but for now its a page in my stitch book.

You can download your pattern page here Download Cretan stitch

 

I do hope you have enjoyed either learning from scratch or maybe challenging your embroidery skills a little further. I’ll be back next week with those gorgeous woollen hearts to embellish with our newly learnt stitches and make into a stitch book to savour and pass on to your children, grandchildren and more to keep the love of embroidery alive.

hugs for today and happy stitching

Helen

Wantobe a Quilter?

or are already a quilter – there’s always something new to learn…

just an advance warning as I work on a secret project for a guest blog post next week at http://www.sewwequilt.com/

What is this you ask? well you NEED to know – the Amazing Madame Samm – she must be amazing as she has had donated the most amazing range of prizes worth thousands of dollars from the best known in the industry – all in the name of spreading the passion of all things quilting and stitching to Wantobe quilters  and its ALL FREE.

 

 

It has been going for some time now – actually from the 1st August and runs for 3 months with 5 guest posts each week (which means 5 lots of prizes, 5 tutorials or free patterns or just inspirational things)

I think I am going to introduce Colourque to all of these new quilters so watch this space next week – as you can see it all too right here.

Right now I have to finish the project and prepare my post…. so its off to work I go… and you should go and check it out – yes right now!  lots of great stuff there.

hugs, Helen

I heart trees – says Miss Tess

Miss Tessie is obsessed with trees right now – if you follow my pinboards and have seen her picks you will believe me. So, still on the campaign of redecorating her room, this weeks project I was ‘made’ to work on had to include a tree…

So, we chatted, brainstormed and came up with a design Then Tess traced, cut, chose from this pile of fabrics, cut, peeled and stuck before handing it back to me….

To make it into this…. 

 

She went to be feeling very pleased with herself – and my Tree!

Which now goes with this -

Which I think I showed you a while back.

It really didn't take too long – the final free appliqué quilting/stitching only took about an hour (I didn't background quilt – I wanted to but she didn't) – and was all just fused appliqué with free machine quilting/appliquéing  - really quite simple and no perfection expected!

I wonder what the next project she asks for will be? One day, if it ever gets finished we will show off her new room..

hugs for today

Helen

A best Friend

A best friend doesn't care when you're broke,

being a bitch, what you weigh, if you don't see them for months,

if your house is a mess, what you drive, about your past,

or if your family is filled with crazy people.

Your conversations pick up where they left off,

even if it's been months or years apart. They love you for who you are.

Everyone needs a best friend or two – My best friend will celebrate her birthday in a couple of weeks and again I will not be with her to share it – sometimes I am not the best best friend, moving around the country and being busy with life… but I hope, like the verse above I saw posted on Facebook, our friendship will survive… as my kids would say BFF

hugs to you Bec,

Helen

Some Beautiful Show n Tell

Jeanie from  – Ye Olde Schoolhouse – www.yeoldeschoolhouse.com yeoldeschoolhouse@wi.rr.com

emailed me this lovely and different version of her Life Is Beautiful quilt – I too love blocks on point I really like this version. Jeannie made up four more of her own designs to complete the quilt and will have them available in her BOM program as soon as her next lot of patterns arrive!

This is one of her own designs

  just for our US friends – we know you are very proud of your nation so this would be the perfect inclusion.

thanks for sharing with us Jeannie

hugs, Helen

Stitched Sunday – the Bullion stitch

This would be one of my favourite stitches – not to do, but to admire. I spent years admiring them and perfecting them to look just as good as those in my Inspirations magazines (yes I have every issue!) I think they can be so delicate and soft and beautiful or bright and cheery depending on their application – but they are not easy to perfect so  I will give you as many tips as I can and then I have quite a challenge for you in your ‘page’ this week so you can really practise.

First and possibly most importantly you should use a different needle to get a good bullion – the straw or Milliner needle – this needle is long with a sharp point and a smaller eye but the important bit is that the eye and the shaft are the same width/size so that the wraps slide over the eye easily.

They come in many sizes – choose the size that fits your thread.

okay, to our hoop

The line represents the bullion stitch

Bring the threaded needle up at A

down at B and back up at A  - leave the needle in the fabric (both ends)

Hold the thread with your right hand and rest the hoop on the table or your lapplace your left finger under the needle lifting it up from the fabric

     and wrap the thread clockwise around the needle, slide each wrap past your  finger to the bottom of the needle close to the fabric (the finger stops the wraps from flying off and loosely tangling)You need enough wraps to cover the distance between A and B for a straight bullion (if you want a curved bullion you do too many wraps to fill this space) Slide all of the wraps close together evenly to the bottom of the needle then – with your left hand (thumb and finger) hold the wraps whilst you pull the needle through with the right hand.keep pulling all the way through, all the while holding those wraps.     You will not likely have perfect wraps once you pull through – see little loopies and uneven wraps – don't panic, we are not finished yet  hold the thread taut with the left hand and place the needle under the wraps. Whilst you pull the thread run the needle up and down along the underside of the wraps – they will even out and tighten up around the thread. You may need to use a finger nail to push them down to sit tightly and evenly togetheruntil they look like this – then you put the needle back down into the fabric at B to finish and anchor the stitch.

There are many ways you can use a bullion to represent flowers, animals etc etc. My favourite of course is the rose – you can see lots of these around my house and studio.

but the rose is not the easiest stitch to do…

so lets go through it step by step

You can stitch a rose in different shades to make it look more realistic and you can do one row of petals or two (or more if you wish). The number of wraps will depend on the type of thread you use and the size of your rose but I will tell you how many I used for this sample just to give you an idea.

Start by making two straight bullions side by side. 

Using Presencia Finca Perle #16 thread i used 7 wraps for the centre bullions.

Now we have to think of stitching a stem stitch around the centre but each stitch is a bullion. I like to start my first stitch around the top of my centre (you could use a different shade thread here) – i used 12 wraps. When you finish and anchor your first bullion see that the needle comes up to start my next bullion half way along the last bullion (as in stem stitch)Continue around the centre tucking the last bullion inside your first stitch. I try and do five bullions for the first row of petals (four can sometimes make it look squarish)    Now you could change colours again and do another row of petals – use approx 15-18 wraps this time and about 7 wraps to get around.

Todays ‘page’ is not so much a design but a sampler of different uses of Bullions. It might be a challenge and will take quite some time but you will be experts by the time you finish.

The circle outline is stitched in chain stitch with a running stitch outline. I have placed some running stitch filler into the grass area.

The lavender is stitched with a feather stitch with bullion flowers. about 6 wraps each. these flowers are bullion circles – points A and B are at the same point (just take a one thread stitch) – you do lots of wraps – up to 30 until it lays down in a circle – you may need to couch the top edge down into place. Put a french or colonial knot in the centre and backstitch the stems. These flowers have a satin stitched centre, bullion petals – two bullions with points A and B being the same for both – about 12-15 wraps. The stems are backstitch with the leaves being stitched the same as the petals – about 18 wraps so the curve slightly. These flowers have bullion petals – 12 wraps, french knot centres, stem stitch stems and fly stitched leaves. aww cute little butterflies, bullion bodies with lazy daisy wings. and dont forget the little bunny hiding in the stems… bullion body and head, french knot tail and lazy daisy ears.. The rose has a chain stitch stem, lazy daisy leaves and bullion flowers and buds.

for more ideas and inspiration check out my pinboard. If you are an overachiever check out the pear!

You can download this weeks page here…. Download Bullionstitch

Only a couple more stitch lessons to go and then we will start our stitch book cover with everything you have learnt. I do hope you are still enjoying it

until next week- happy stitching.

Helen

Where have I been?

I have been a very slack blogger of late – I must admit a lack of blogging inspiration – it takes all my time to prepare and write your Stitched Sunday lessons and that is as far as I have been getting.

Sometimes, being a designer in the solitude of a studio is a wonderful, peaceful and inspirational place to be – but it can also be quite isolating – that is when my blogging and facebook friends and community become very important to me, you can be here with me as I work through my day. Keeping my spirits up, keeping the adrenalin and inspiration flowing, keeping me sane and together…. so please stay here in touch and keep me company and I promise I will write to you more often….whether it be important, ground breaking news or just a thought or emotion.

Last week I did leave the hectic peace of my studio to spend a few quality days of fun with my wonderful family in the sunshine… We mixed it with the rich and famous – well as close as we’ll get to them..

  

View Full Album

It is sometimes important to remember that my family will not be here with me forever and I don’t want to get to a later stage in my life and not have these memories to cherish…

We all know how precious life is, sometimes we just have to stop and remember that in the hectic pace of business and living. I wish I could do it again next week…will just go and buy that lotto ticket

hugs to you all, be back soon

Helen

Stitched Sunday – herringbone and chevron stitch

Today we are working on two related stitches - the Herringbone and the Chevron. Both stitches are widely used in crazy patchwork type works and in combinations with many other stitches.

Herringbone – is a cross like stitch which is great for even bands or in combination with many other stitches and variations. It is traditionally stitched from left to right on two parallel lines but of course all of these rules are there to be broken. There seem to be many names for it including:

Mossoul stitch, Plaited stitch, Catch stitch, Witch stitch, Russian Stitch and Russian Cross Stitch and Persian stitch

Variations can included couched, threaded, laced and double – just google to see some variation ideas.

So, how to do it? You will get the hang of this quite quickly but it may help to have lines to begin to get an even stitch, particularly for straight rows.

bring your needle up at A on the bottom line. Take it down at point B on the top line – (the angle you begin with does not really matter as long as you continue with the same angle.) and bring it back up at point C – this could be about 1/8” /2-3mm away from point B but again as long as it is always the same each time it doesn't really matter.

 

So in a nutshell – up at A, down at B and up at C (in one scoop stitch) – the thread remains under the needle.

pull through until firm

now we move back to the bottom line once again. Keeping your angle the direct opposite of the first stitch it will cross over to pick up the small stitch at the bottom – points D and E

Continue along your lines making an uneven cross stitched band.

The example above is quite widely spread, the one below is taller and more closely spaced – both are correct, both have the same angles and sizes along the row so both look great.

Now you can also stitch a closed herringbone stitch – this looks like, on the wrong side – two rows of backstitch, and is used for shadow embroidery when worked from the other side.

closed herringbone -

see, from the back it looks like two rows of backstitch.

Chevron stitch: a close relative of the Herringbone and again stitched traditionally from left to right on two parallel lines.

bring the needle up at A and down at point B – now picture three evenly spaced points at the bottom with point B being in the middle– the idea is that we want a little shoe on the bottom of our two diagonal stitches and a little hat at the top.

So take it down at B and up at C and pull through until firm. (the thread is above the needle)

Now go back down at Point D and up at point B once again, pull through to form the shoe.

 

now we head back up to the top and repeat the process – keep the angle of your upward stitch equal (well opposite equal) to your down stitch- take the needle down and to the left with the thread below the needle, pull the thread through and then go down 2 steps to  the right and back up in the same middle hole your ‘up’ stitch went down in. There you have a hat! –sorry if that is confusing – all those ups and downs…

continue along your line in the same manner to make a band.So there you have it, play play and play, try first to get this traditional even and symmetrical stitch and then break the rules, try curves, changing the size of each part of the stitch and combining with many of the other stitches you have learnt.

Some samples in my studio

herringbone with a fly stitch and lazy daisy at the top and bottom and small straight stitch over each cross.

two rows of herringbone in combination with lazy daisy’s, french knots, straight stitches and cross stitches.

 

 

Chevron stitch with fly stitch, lazy daisy, cross stitches

a double chevron stitch with some adornment stitches on the hats and shoes.  

you can see many more samples and combinations on my pinboards here.

So, our page this week – its a little different to our previous pages – you are just going to trace or draw circles as guides to play with your stitch combinations rather than trace every little stitch.

Download Herringbone&Chevron

I stitched all of the pink bands first.

I started in the centre circle and stitch chevron stitch from this circle to the next – for chevron stitch on a curve you will have your outer hats wider apart than your inner shoes.in between the next two circles I stitched a closed herringbone stitch to give a solid tight band.

Leave a space and using the next two rows stitch an open herringbone stitch – again its curved so like the chevron your inner points are going to be closer together than the outer points.

finally on the outer two circles stitch a chevron stitch once again.

Then we go back and stitch all the embellishment and filler stitches. 

in the centre I stitched a lazy daisy in green inside every ‘shoe’ with a purple fly stitch at the top. I then placed a purple colonial knot on each hat.

in between my next two rounds of pink I stitch a purple fly stitch with a long tail which filled up the complete space. The tops of my ‘y’s sat at the feet of the herringbone stitch.

With the purple i stitched a small straight stitch across the outer crosspoint of each stitch. With  green I added colonial knots in between each inner stitch and a lazy daisy at the outer edge of each stitch.

finally on the outer band I placed a colonial knot on the inner side of each stitch and a lazy daisy sitting on each hat. Then with purple I stitched a fly stitch over each show and a pistil stitch either side of every lazy daisy.

But of course you can embellish and play as much as you like using everything you have learnt so far!

You have come so far and I know some of your are keeping up, others are not- that's fine, there are no rules… BUT I am having a little break with my family to find some sunshine so next week we won’t be having a new stitch! you will have time to do some catchup stitching.

So I hope you all have a great week and we’ll meet here again in two weeks time to learn the bullion stitch!

hugs and happy stitching

Helen