Lampwork Loves

I am in love with lampwork beads. They work so well with semi precious stones. I also love the look of the Greek silver beads and I think they make the necklaces I have made this winter more delicate. Here are the latest ones which have already found new homes as Christmas presents.

 

 

 

 

Winter Workspace

My normal workspace is a bit dark and cold in the winter so I have decamped and taken over the conservatory. On the rare days we get a bit of sunshine it is the most glorious spot but even on dull days there are plenty of distractions. I leave all my beads out and just have a play every now and then. Here are some of the end results.

 

 

Rag Wreath

Kevin and I had fun making rag wreaths. I used fencing wire which we got for the co-op and wound it round 3 times. Each wreath takes 1 yard of fabric and I used 4 different fabrics. I folded the fabric in half and cut it and then in half again and that was just wide enough for the strips. I used poly/cotton fabrics. The green paisley was a crepe mix so I knotted that twice as it was a bit floppy. We really enjoyed playing and the end result looked very effective.

 

The first one took me about 2.5 hours but Kevin soon used the Frederick Taylor style of management and we polished off the second one in less than an hour. I have ordered some fabric in the sale to make more for next year.

 

 

Tea Cosy

Ryan wore the hat I knitted him last year for three months. It kept his head warm and protected from those east winds in London. They come all the way from Siberia. He liked it so much I made him a mocha coloured one for this year. He doesn't mind that his friends called it his tea cosy hat!

 

It knits up very fast in Drops Big Merino. The cable is unusual because it is worked over 9 stitches moving 3 stitches at a time back and forth. It is a bit of a pain but only one row and worth it for the finished result.  

 

 

Dahlias

The wonderful dahlias that Kevin grew this year were the inspiration for my latest stitching. I found this dress in the charity shop and thought the colours were perfect for Breda's kitchen. There is even a butterfly.

 

 

Christmas Wreaths

Our display is up in the library until the beginning of January.

 

 

Needle Cases

I used a felted landscape piece I had made to make two needle cases. One is for one of my Liberty Stitch friends and the other is for me.

 

 

West Along

When my Dad was very old (95+) he used to keep himself amused by watching the crows in the trees opposite the house. He would watch to see if they flew east or west and he would have a bet with me on which route was the most popular that day. I always lost the bet! I still smile every time I see crows and as Dad's favourite route was always "west along" this is my inspiration for my next piece of stitching.

The most important stitch is what Sukey calls "stab stitch" You go in and out the the fabric in almost the same place with the stitches being about 1cm on the back. Use the very fine 60wt thread and use black for dark fabrics

 

 

My lovely Dad

 

 

In this blog post I will go through the stages of how I completed this work. My tutor is called Susannah Sindall and I attend the Liberty Stitch Textile Group that she runs. You can see more of Susannah's wonderful work and the work of the group here

https://www.facebook.com/thelibertystitch/

 

 

 

 

You need calico, embroidery needles and very fine 60wt thread
 

 

A selection of fabrics, the blouse came from a charity shop

I pinned the background and added a layer of organza for a misty effect, I might change that

Susannah kindly supplied an image of a crow

I traced him (in reverse) unto black fabric that had been stiffened with iron on interfacing

On his turquoise organza background ready  for the first stitching, think I will get rid of the flowers and add a moon.
 It is all about playing



I used the stab stitch to stitch a fine layer of black devore fabric over the crow and then another layer for his wing. He got a beak too


Then it was time to add a layer of lace to soften the background, some fine chiffon on his head and some leaves in the foreground. I will stitch round the wing too

 

 

The back of the stitching 

 

 

 

Ready to fly West Along

 

 

Whitstable Days

My latest stitching is finished. It was inspired by the wonderful days I spent beside the sea at Whitstable. My favourite drive on the way home was through the lonely marshes passing all the birds and the waving grasses.

 

Happy Days.

 

 

Cheating!

Our Christmas display for the library is knitted wreaths. I know they will look lovely but I just couldn't face knitting (and sewing up!) lots of little objects so I cheated! I bough a twig wreath from Lidl, went through my stash and here is the result. I think I might keep it intact and display it in my craft room afterwards. The only trouble is the balls of yarn I used are ones I had earmarked for my next weaving project.

 

Need to buy more yarn.  

 

 

 

Inspiring Place

How could I not be inspired by the lovely place I go to for my stitching workshops? The walk along the lane, the gorgeous house, the beautiful trees and the studio in the woods. Here is my "Hydrangea Days" in progress. I need to sew on the flowers, add stalks then see if it needs anything else.  

 

 

 

Hydrangea Throw - It's finished!

Here is my hydrangea throw, all finished. I will block it and it will keep Katie nice and snug this winter.

 

I made 63 granny squares 7 across and 9 down. I think next time I will make even numbers and increase the size of the border as it folds more easily with even numbers. A lesson learnt!

 

 

 

 

Dahalias

Kevin has been growing dahlias in his raised beds and they are just coming into their own. I LOVE them.

 

It has inspired me to do a flower picture as my next stitching project and I found the perfect dress  to cut up in the charity shop. I think the embroidery is wonderful but I think I may have to use it sparingly on a very plain background. Greens and golds???

 

 

 

 

An advanced student

Nora had lost some of her earrings so she came to me to make some more. She knows what she is doing now so it took her no time at all to make 10 pairs and we had a good chat too!

 

I used the time to make a necklace using the beads Kevin and I made at the workshop in Devon. I will treasure this.

 

 I also used some semi precious stones that are new to me. They are a jasper and have shots of blue in them. I used them with small laboradite beads. I love the way the beads pick up the colours you are wearing and are much more blue when you wear denim.

 

 

 

Borders and Time

I keep being asked how long it takes me to make a single size throw. The answer is I don't know! I fit it in around everything else. I tackled the latest one very methodically. I worked out the colours for the granny squares and each day I did 1 row in 1 colour on 5 squares. I sewed in the ends on 5 squares a day and when joining them it was 1 row a day. I did 1 row of border a day and the final border all at once. If I achieved more than that it was a bonus!

 

I used the scallop border for the first time. You first do one row of double crochet going into the gap between the trebles then the two holes in the treble. In the next row you do 5 trebles into one stitch, miss a stitch and single chain to bring he scallop back down then miss a stitch and back to 5 trebles.  

 

 

 

 

Stitchers

Here is a photo of the textile group I have joined. We are hard at work on our projects.

 

 

 

Stitch WIP's

I have two more sea pictures in progress so I don't get bored!. The beach huts will probably be smaller and both pictures need lots more details. French knots on the hydrangeas?

 

 

 

Stitch Stash

I need lots of fabric for my new obsession. I hunted in the charity shops in Connemara and came home with some treasures. Sky is always difficult to do so a transparent scarf was a useful find. The others suggest bogs and moorland and gardens to me.

 

 

 

Continuous Join

I decided I couldn't face sewing my granny squares together so thought I would try the continuous join method. I used the tutorial on the patchworkcrochet.co.uk blog and Lucy's blog at Attic 24. It is easy enough to do but one of those things it is difficult to get to grips with initially. I used silver grey for the joining row and I will use the colours and more grey in the border.

 

After you have joined the first row of squares together you go along the bottom of the first row. I slipped stitch into the beginning of the corner, did another slip stitch across the middle and slipped stitch into the beginning of the corner in the next square. I found this was the best way to make the corners sit neatly.

 

Here is a photo taken halfway through. I have now finished joining and I just have to do the border now.

  

 

  

 

 

Sherkin Shore

I have wonderful memories of my first visit to Sherkin Island. It was lovely to be out on the water and to see Baltimore and the Beacon from the sea. We walked down to Silver Strand and took our time about it. The air was cool, the sea and sky were a true summer blue, the hedgerows were filled with wildflowers and butterflies.

I could picture it in my mind when I was doing this stitched work. We spent happy hours there with the kids and Ryan promised to buy the island for me when he grew up. He is working now so I might call him on that promise.