Sequin waste

OK, back to hearts again!  This one is made on felt, with a crimson velvet heart and a little one cut fron sequin waste.  This week at TAST, it is detatched chain stitch, so I did some lazy daisied, using the sequind waste holes as a guide, the started to do detached chainn stitches on the background, and I thought, what if I put two together, it might look like a little heart, and it did!  I also did a chain stitch around the edge in god thread, threading a red bead throught the loop and it looked quite cute.  finished off with some beading and voila!

But still not up to posting stuff, although I am feeling much better today.

We'll see, thanks for the good wishes.

Frayed heart and another TAST

Today's ATC is very simple.

I like frayed edges, so I made a heart with frayed edges, put it on a 21/2 inch charm square, then added another charm cut in half and frayed to the sides.  I stitched everything down with running stitch and added some lazy daisies and beads.  To finish the top and bottom edges, I sealed them with clear nail polish then blanket stitched over it.  It is backed with a playing card.

As I said the other day, I am participating in a challenge called TAST2012 along with hundreds of others.  It is Take a stitch Tuesday and our challenge is to use the hand stitch put up each week on Pintangle.  I have been a bit behind, but I did a bit of work and am now up to date.
This week's stitch is chevron stitch

Here are some of my ideas for this stitch, in my sketchbook.

and here are some shapes I did with it.  On the right is a close up.  If you click and enlarge, you will see that this is not what I intended to do, because my guide marks are still visible.  I did a shell shape and then I didn't like it, so I unpicked it and did something else.  I must say, my stitches got so small in the centre of the spiral and the top and bottom of the oval, that I really couldn't see quite what I was doing, but it turned out well anyway.

He who works with his hands is a laborer. 

He who works with his hands and his head is a craftsman. 

He who works with his hands and his head and his heart is an artist.

St Francis of Assisi

Working with your hands

First Love and TAST

Since I had to make an ATC for The February swap on Stitchin Fingers, I decided to do a few different ones on the theme, which naturally, was love for February.   I now have twenty, in various stages of  disarray and as I just got home and had no ATC, I did a quick one.

Basically, the background is collaged bits on the theme of love, then a little metal heart charm.  Some gold letter stickers spelling out THE word and some glitter.  So now there is no excuse for not making a valentine!
Over the next few weeks, We will all probably get very bored of  love and hearts, but I was so surprised when I sat down to begin designing.  It was actually quite fun.  I usually avoid hearts as a design element, but I filled a whole page with scribbles, which I haven't photographed, because they are still packed from my trip, but will show tomorrow


Now that it is week six in TAST2012, I have my week 5 sample finished, lol.  Week 5 was herringbone stitch.

The top sample on the gree chiffon in a dark green was my first one.  A bit boring, I thought, so on the one below, in a paler green thread, I went back over it and looped a purple thread around it.   See Sharon B's handpicked highlights, here. I'm afraid I was not very adventurous this week, but now I am home and able to stop worring about going anywhere, I'll work harder on this week's sample, which is....  Chevron stitch.

Ah well, I think my inbox will just have to wait until the morning, with all the other housekeeping that has not been done for a few days as I'm a bit tired.


Happy creating.

TAST week 2

Week two for TAST is buttonhole stitch.  This landscape ATC is done entirely with buttonhole stitch.


I found a poor, dead butterfly and put it in one of my little books with pockets

Very morbid, I know, but it was just too beautiful to leave.
And then I sketched it.

I don't know why I tend to do this when I sketch moths and butterflies - that is, only finish one side, but I do (perhaps I'm just lazy)
Here are a few other sketches from my book, whilst you are waiting for me to meet my deadline tomorrow. (or late tonight, maybe)

A quick outline for a landscape.

A fish I want to use in a layered piece.

Some teacups from a home decorating type magazine.

A design for a beaded embroidery.

And finally a shell which was sitting on my desk.

Now, off to finish my Tangled textiles challenge!

Make a playdate with Art!

another metal ATC and my doodled bird in progress

Today's ATC is another embossed foil one, a leaf, which I have painted with nail polish.  It is sewn onto some more of my collage background with chain stitch and french knots and bound with organza ribbon.

some of you probably remember this bird from one of my artbooks.

I actually have a small quilt in process using this design.

here it is with the outline quilting done

and a close up
I have now started the doodling in the feathers

I am really enjoying doing this ddodling and have been practising lots of doodles in my quilting scrapbook

Here's a close up.  I think I need to go over the stitching more than once as it is such a thin thread and I'm sure there will be some scope for beading when it is done.



Happy stitching, don't forget to check out Lisa's ATC and the TAST page

fly stitch and some running water

today's ATC is about two challenges in the one task.  I decided to combine TAST (Take a stitch tuesday) on Pintangle with my ATCs and here is my first result.

Just a little fly stitch swirl.  TAST is a weekly chellenge run by Sharon B at Pintangle.  I'm pretty sure she has near a thousand participants, as there were over a hundered a month ago when she stopped adding to the list
I sketched out my design for this as I was getting confused

And I also drew a little spiral on my fabric as a guide with an iron off pen.

And now, a little peek at a fused collage a' la  Laura Wasilowski (Quilting arts TV episode 401)

Here is the basic fused picture.  This one I am going to embroider by hand in the evenings.

I have begun with some swirly water (close up on right).  Mostly, I will use straight, running stitch, lazy daisy, seeding. blanket stitch, but of course, now I will have TAST to inspire me as well!

happy stitching!