Features

Morning people,
I've just popped in to point you to a couple of links, I'll be back later tonight with the Grow Your Blog post.

Firstly, the lovely Pam at Threading My Way has featured both my alphabet chart, and my blog.  If you don't already read Pam's blog, you should go over and check it out.  She has ongoing linky parties for a wide range of sewing subjects so there are tons of inspirational posts, pattern reviews and tutorials linked up.

Secondly, my lovely Tiff is having her turn over at Speedy the Cheeky Housebunny so go on over and give her some comment love, she needs it, she's a diva who doesn't even have her own cushion!

spiral rope

Morning ladies, completely forgot to write a post for today so I'm sneaking one in now!  I've been working on my crewel embroidery and last weekend was about secret sewing, so I've very little to show you.  I'm afraid it's beadweaving again.  I know these posts aren't popular, but it's important to me to keep a record of what I've made and I do love this craft, so you'll just have to put up with it!  Actually you don't, you can just skip the post...  

I made this necklace from a pattern in the book The Beadworker's Guild Introduction to Beadwork - Bracelets.  It's not a very inspiring looking book, a bit old-fashioned, but the information and instructions for all the stitches are really good.  I made this with size 11 seed beads.  I don't know where they came from and I don't know what brand they are but they were all different shapes and sizes, which is fine by me.  

The beads in the middle are silver, they're a little difficult to make out.   It didn't take me long at all to make this.

The pattern was for a bracelet, but of course you can just keep going to make a beaded rope.  I made a toggle clasp (my first ever!) using instructions in Seed Bead Stitching by Beth Stone.  I honestly do not remember getting this book.  I found it on my bookshelf whilst I was looking for something else and I love it!  If you fancy a go at beadweaving, I'd highly recommend this book.

I made the loop a tad big.  I wore the necklace this week and it did fall off once, though I noticed as it was hanging of my boob!  The rope doesn't have much weight to it to keep tension on the clasp, so next time I'll make a smaller loop.  

Needlequest January - Needle painting

Good morning ladies, I hope you had a good weekend?  Mine was slightly frustrating.  There were interfacing issues, machine tension issues, bobbin misbehaving issues...  But I did get some things done.  Unfortunately, I can't show you yet!  Instead, I thought it was about time I did a post for Needlequest.  

Elizabeth over at Sew in Love is hosting a monthly needlework challenge to help us focus on and improve various techniques and areas.  January's challenge is Needle painting.  Needle painting is a form of needlework that can be very realistic when done well.  It involves a lot of silk shading and is often done with silk threads.  

My piece is a crewel embroidery kit that I bought a few years ago.  Now, this piece is never going to be as realistic as other needleworkers can produce, firstly because I'm a complete beginner, and secondly because crewel doesn't have the same shine as silk, but it does use the same techniques and so this is the project I've chosen.  I hope this is OK Elizabeth?  This is also one of my challenges for Something Old, Something New, and I suspect my followers on Instagram are sick to death of it.

I bought the kit online a few years ago, and promptly got stuck in .  I did quite a bit of it, see:

And then I ran out of wool.  I hadn't wasted much, hardly any, so it was just one of those kits with not enough materials to complete it.  I wrote to DMC and they ignored me.  I wrote again and the ignored me again.  That went on for a while.  I was also trying to match the threads whenever I went to a craft show or needle work shop, I carried samples with me.  No luck.  Finally, I decided I should start again.

I ordered a load of skeins of Appleton's Crewel Wool as it's kind of hard to judge colours on line.  I think I've cracked it with the blues, but I've had to go back for another round for the greens, I'm still waiting for them to arrive.

I had some linen twill which I'm using as the ground fabric.  I know that I own crewel needles and chenille needles, both used for crewel work, but can I find them??  Nope, I can't.  How frustrating.  Instead of another fruitless trip to HobbyCraft, or rather HobbyCrap, I had a look in my stash and found some darning needles that work just fine.

This is how far I've got:

Sorry about the blurry photo.  I've always taken crap photos but they seem to be getting worse.  My camera tells me everything is "out of focus!" no matter what I do.  I'm coming to the conclusion my camera is shit.

Anyway, not much done.  I started that upper left flower, decided I didn't like what I'd done, consulted my Beginner's Guide to Crewel Embroidery by Jane Rainbow, ripped it out and started again.  

Now, having been doing a bit of research and stalking experts' blogs such as Needle'n'Thread, I now know how to do a long and short stitch.  On the first version, I worked a row of stitches, all very neat and the equal.  I did a long one (2 holes of the linen), a short one (1 hole) all the way to the end.  For the next row, I did them all as 2 holes.  This is NOT how you do long and short stitch.  Take a look:

See?  No realism at all.  Not that this second attempt could be called realistic, but I do think it's an improvement.  Here's a comparison:

I know the colours are different, instead of trying to slavish match them, I just picked which ones I liked.  Can you see the difference?  Now, part of the reason I did the Long and Short stitch like that was because of the cover picture:

I'm not sure who stitched the example or if it was based on a real piece or what, but it's just the same as my first version!  I'm glad I've changed the technique though.  I much prefer these flowers.

I'm using one of my Q Snap frames and I bought a cheap seat stand to work with it.  Of course, as soon as I got it set up, Mr CA piped up "I could have made a better one than that!"  Yes, thank you Mr CA.  This one will do for the time being.

So that's where I am.  I'll show you more updates in a week or so.  It's really hard tracking my progress as I embroider in the evenings, when there is no light whatsoever, I take rubbish Instagram photos, but I can't get a decent shot with artificial light.  What's that?  You can't get a decent shot anyway?  Yeah, I know!

Rosebud necklace

Yep, more beadweaving.  I promise I'll show you something else soon!

This is another kit from Beadmerchant, purchased at Harrogate.  Again it was a beginner's kit, but I loved the pattern.  Another great kit with all the supplies needed, far too many beads in fact, and a full spool of Nymo thread, these kits are great value.  No, I'm not sponsored by them, maybe I should be!

This design was called Autumn and it fits the colours perfectly.  I had a bag of the small brown seed beads, size 11 I think, and a bag with mixed beads that I used for the buds.  I had size 15s, size 11s, Delicas and drop beads which makes a lovely variety.

It was very easy to do, the hard bit was making the buds "random".  I'm not good with random!

More beadweaving to come!

Famous Colin

Colin is being featured today at Speedy the Cheeky Housebunny's blog, go and see him here!

Appliqued Colin

I think you all know that I have 4 lovely bunnies at home?  Last Saturday was a meeting of the fab East Midlands Quilt Guild of Moderness (I can't remember what it's called!  How bad is that!) at the fab Stitchcraft Studio in Grantham.  It's well worth a visit if you're in the area, as well as rooms for Guild meetings and classes, they have a shop stuffed full of fabric and a cafe.  Kerry wanted to do a demonstration and workshop of the Turned-Edge Applique method and our homework before the class was to find a photo.  Well it had to be one of the buns.  I chose Colin as he is white with brown patches.  Tiff is all brown, Ellis is all white and Harry is all black so I thought Colin would be easier.  I had no idea what I was in for!

That was my homework.  I had to find a photo, trace it and then enlarge it.  Kerry gave instructions on how to enlarge it in Photoshop to which my brain went "duhhhhhhhhhhhh?".  Luckily I had a brainwave and took it to work to enlarge on the photocopier.  I then traced this enlarged version on to freezer paper (which they no longer stock in Hobbycraft.  I went in for freezer paper, beading needles and grout and came out empty handed!  Sort it out Hobbycraft.)

Above is what it looked like by the end of the class, and after about half an hour at home later.  Yep, I had my doubts but you shouldn't doubt Kerry, she knows what she's doing!  I may have got more done than this other than for two reasons.  Firstly I'd taken my sewing machine, but not the foot pedal or power cable.  Secondly, and much more excitingly, Trudi showed me the basics of FMQ!  If you don't know Trudi, she is a master quilter.  No, scratch that, she's THE master quilter.  Seriously, go and have a look.  I desperately need to practice what she showed me and I had intended to do that on Sunday afternoon, but after finishing Colin, my machine threw a wobbly...

So this is the completed Colin from the back.  No the back of the bunny Colin, that would just be his great big round bum, this is the back of my applique Colin.

And here he is from the front!  I was so happy!!  I put it on Instagram immediately.  I've only just discovered Instagram.  I mean, I knew it existed, I don't live in a bucket, but I couldn't get it on my phone before.  I'm still finding my way round.  If you want to follow me (and why wouldn't you?!?) I'm thecraftersapprentice.  Think you need an @ symbol before that?  Or a #?  Or is that Twitter?

Here's Colin with his photo.  Not bad eh?  I think I captured him quite well. 

I put him on some background fabric.  I bought this fabric a couple of years ago, no idea what it is, but it seemed perfect for a bunny as it's a bit grass lice.

Then I turned him into a cushion.  It just has a basic envelope back and I decided against quilting him in the end, so no binding either.

Mr CA didn't notice until later that evening, but he was quite impressed and agreed it looks like Colin.  I might have to have a go at the other three, I need to get some good photos with shadows on them and stuff (according to wise-woman-Kerry). 

Disclaimer:  No bunnies were harmed in the making of this cushion.

Something Old, Something New and the 2014 Finish Along

I'm joining in with two challenges this year.  OK, so I'm joining in with a few more than that, but these are the two where I need to link up what I propose to do.



For the Finish Along I have 7 projects that I propose to complete before the end of March:
1. Restart and finish Crewel Flowers

2. Finish hooking my rug

3.  Finish Jacob's quilt.  So far I have cut 16 squares so a long way to go with that one!

4. Sew chair cushions for my dining room.  I have completed 1 piece of patchwork for 1 chair and now I've lost it...

5. Handquilt/machine quilt my And Sew On quilt.

6. Finish the wrist warmers I'm crocheting.

7. Cross stitch the last Silhouettes picture for my dad.

If you want to join in, you have until the 17th January to link up your list.

For Something Old, Something New, I only have 1 month, but only 2 projects.

My Something Old is the crewel flowers.  I don't intend to finish it in January, but at least make some progress.  See photo above

My Something New is this little ribbon flower kit.  Should be achievable. I can't find it to take a photo.  So that will be a double pronged challenge - find the kit and then make it!

If you want to join in, you can link up here.