Stitch Explorer Challenge

Here is a little sampler I embroidered for the final Stitch Explorer Challenge project. I combined some laid stitch samples (couched filling, laid trellis) with chicken scratch. Of all the new stitches I learned this year, chicken scratch is my favorite. I know I will be playing with that more in the future. Thanks to dear Sharon B for a fun year of stitching!

Well, I’ll be Darned!

The design on the top reminded me of leopard spots. When I was working on the rows, it occurred to me that the same pattern could be easily modified to create a primitive little floral border. Okay, this could become addictive…

First Attempts at Pattern Darning

This month’s Stitch Explorer Challenge is pattern darning. I had never tried it before. Once you establish a rhythm, it’s kind of fun to see designs emerge from simple running stitches.

Another Stitch Explorer Example...

This is another example of a contemporary style stitchery done on an unconventional background. I started this piece awhile back and just finished the embroidery yesterday. The blue is lint (from a Snuggie Blanket’s initial washing) embellished onto a felt background with wool roving, novelty yarn and tulle on top. I just need to add a postcard backing and satin stitch around the edges.

Stitch Explorer Challenge WIP

This month's Stitch Explorer challenge was to incorporate something unconventional into an embroidery project, either in the background or in the surface stitching. For inspiration, I reviewed my notes from two excellent courses I had taken with Susan Sorrell: Personal Symbols and Fertile Earth.

For the background, I used a piece of painted cotton from a fabric printing project gone awry (why do I have a seemingly endless supply of those?). For a little texture, I added a few small pieces of fabric made using snippets of leftover thread from other projects. A plastic mesh onion bag from the grocery store was added on top followed by a piece of tulle. The sassafras leaf was made from wool felt embellished with wool roving. It was outlined with floss and then whipped with variegated rayon ribbon. The veins were stitched and whipped with variegated wool yarn. I think I will probably add some beads to the leaf and (possibly) some stitches to the background.

I have had so much fun with this and it has sparked some ideas for future exploration… I love when that happens!

Needleweaving

I finally got a chance to work on this month’s Stitch Explorer challenge. I had a great time learning these woven stitches! I used raised needle weaving for the flower petals. For the leaves, I followed Sharon B’s wonderful tutorial on the closed needlewoven picot leaf stitch. These stitches are simple and quick and substantial. I will definitely be using them in the future! The background is a piece of upholstery fabric with wool roving felted onto the surface. Free machine stitching was added with variegated thread. Underneath, I used Peltex for support – no need to hoop!

Woven Picots and Wheels from TAST

Other than just searching for inspiration on the web and in embroidery books, I haven’t begun this month’s Stitch Explorer (needle weaving) challenge, so I thought I’d post my woven picots and wheels from 2007’s TAST challenge.

“Feed Me, Seymour!”

I just keep picking this darned thing up and adding stitches… It’s beginning to remind me of Audrey II, the man-eating plant in “The Little Shop of Horrors.”

Still Playin...

A Little More Casalguidi...

I wanted to try stitching a deep curve, still using a felt strip as the base. I basted the felt down, covered it with satin stitches, pulling them a little tight to create some dimension. Then I proceeded in the traditional way, adding foundation stitches and working the stem stitches over those.

I really like the organic nature of this stitch.

Snake!

This is my first stab at the Casalguidi stitch… what fun! For the base, I used a narrow scrap of felt instead of bundled thread. And for the stem stitches, I used variegated rayon thread.

I haven’t done much stitching in the past week or so. I have a ganglion cyst on the index finger of my left hand (I’m left-handed) and it broke open while I was gardening. It was looking pretty nasty and I wanted to keep it clean and bandaged for awhile so it wouldn’t open up again. It just about drove me nuts not to be able to draw or play with a needle and thread…

Assisi Embroidery: A Simple Rose

Here is my current sample for Assisi embroidery. I traced a rose from my sketchbook and outlined it with black back stitches; then added variegated back stitches to the background.

Another TAST Blast from the Past

I found another 2007 embroidery sample that is (kind of) Assisi-esque. Here, rows of linked double chain stitches were used to fill the negative space.

Assisi Stitch, Sorta...

I was wondering how to approach this month’s stitch and remembered that I had made up (during the TAST challenge in 2007) a quick little sample of an oak leaf with the shape voided and the background filled with twisted satin stitches.

Jeepers Creepers!

Here is another combination of felt and trellis stitch. I lightly needle felted the eye shape, iris and pupil to the felt background; then worked several rows of trellis stitch over the top to create the dimensional eyelids.

Mon Chapeau

Well, Annie Whitsed issued a trellis stitch hat challenge and I just had to join in. This is my tribute to red hat ladies, everywhere. The brim flips up all around so I tacked it down in the front. I didn’t have any red silk ribbon, so I made a bow of narrow satin ribbon and tacked it to the back.

By the way, a few years ago, before I ever knew what blogs were, I had a few embroidery and crazy quilt sites saved to my favorites. Annie’s website was one of them. Lots of inspiration there…

Spiral Trellis Stitch

I’m on a bit of a felt kick, lately. I wanted to try the spiral trellis stitch as a flower center. I love how it stands up really well off the surface. It will come in very handy for stitching all sorts of flowers, real and imaginary.

Another Trellis Leaf

This time, I cut out the center of the felt leaf and embroidered the trellis stitch inside the open space. I'm still having trouble with uniformity of stitches, but I'm having fun, anyway...

First Try at Trellis Stitch

I cut a simple felt leaf shape in half and lightly needlefelted it to my base fabric. Then I outlined all the edges with chain stitches. The upper half was done in size 3 perle cotton; the lower half in size 5. I see possibilities with this stitch but, whew, it’s gonna take some practice…

Scratched Out...

I finally filled in the remaining spaces in my little chicken scratch sampler. I thoroughly enjoyed playing with this – and I’ve only just begun to scratch the surface. The possibilities are limitless!