Crewel Embroidery - part 3

Hello dear readers,

The highlight of today's post is Stem Stitch. The small section, where the tendril twists around the stem (I am visualizing this to be a vine :)) is covered using stem stitch.  I started with a light shade along one edge and gradually worked my way up to darker shades. 

The first row is completed.

This picture shows first and second rows completed. 

A closer look at the two rows of stem stitch.

The final picture shows all three rows of the stem stitch. It also shows the center of the flower covered with Long and Short Stitch. 

If you would like to learn stem stitch, please click here

Happy embroidering :)

Sukanya

Crewel Embroidery - part 2

Hello readers,

In today's post I want to share two sections of the Crewel embroidery - Buttonhole Stitch and Block Shading

Buttonhole Stitch

An unusual choice for a filling stitch, don't you think? This was my first reaction too. 

Typically, this stitch is used as an edging stitch and well, for Buttonholes!!

But since the stitches are so close together, not much fabric is seen. And it works as a filling stitch.

Below is a close up look at the Buttonhole Stitch that I used in my project. The little knots (purls) at the bottom where the thread forms a loop gives it a visual appeal. And makes the stitch strong.

If you would like to learn this stitch, click here.

I worked the Buttonhole stitch in rows. Starting with the light shade at the top and moving to dark shades at the bottom.

This was my first section. I undid the stitches a few times until I was happy with the result.

OK. Moving on to the next section...

Block shading

Block shading is similar to Long and Short stitch. It is a filling stitch with a gradual change of shades. 

This is one of my favorite stitches! I did a long post on Long and Short Stitch a while ago. You can read about it here.

  

This was an easy section. Got it right the first time!

I worked with three different shades. 

 

 

  

 

Happy Embroidering!

Sukanya

Crewel Embroidery

Hello everyone, 

In the next few posts I would like to share my work on Crewel Embroidery. It was a fascinating project for me - working on an embroidery that is over a thousand years old and learning many new stitches along the way.

A little Introduction 

Crewel embroidery was popular in the 17th and 18th century England. The popular choice of fabric was linen, which was stretched over a frame and held in place using tacks.

The embroidery gets its name from the use of crewel wool for the stitches. This gives the embroidery a raised appearance. You can find crewel wool from suppliers online or specialty embroidery stores within your local area. Kits are another great option to try this embroidery.

Until next time, 

Happy Embroidering :) 

Sukanya

Elegant Feather Stitch on Kurti

Hello readers,

Season's Greetings! It's been a really long time. I wanted to end the year 2020 on a positive note, by resuming my blog. I am happy to be back, in this familiar space to share and catalog what I really enjoy doing!

And today, I would like to share a really simple but elegant stitch, the Feather stitch. I have used it on a neckline and sleeve hem of my Kurti.

Unfortunately, I did not take detailed pictures of my work. But here's how I did it. 

I started at the top of the neckline on one side, followed along the neckline and ended at the tip of the V opening. Since I wanted the design to be as symmetrical as possible, I started at the top on the other side and ended at the tip of the V opening.

If you would like to try this stitch, here is the tutorial for Feather Stitch.

I would like to end today's article by saying 'Thank you' to my wonderful family and friends for motivating and inspiring me to start blogging again. 

 

Wishing everyone a Happy and Safe 2021!

Sukanya

Feather Stitch

Hello everyone,

Here is a short tutorial on Feather Stitch.

I have used a checkered fabric here to demonstrate the symmetry of the stitches.

Step 1. Bring the needle up as shown.

Step 2. Push the needle down at a point diagonal to the starting point and bring it up at the point shown, keeping the thread UNDER the needle.

Complete the stitch by pulling the thread up (but not too tight).

 

Step 3. Repeat the previous two steps on the other side.

Continue in the same way alternating the sides.

Try to keep the stitch length uniform and aligned as shown below

Applique Work in India.

Hello Everyone:

I am excited to begin the series on applique work in India. Applique work is practiced in many parts of India and some are more popular than others. It is mostly done by hand but sometimes, it is done on a sewing machine and later hand-embroidered. The work you see today are examples of the applique work from the state of Rajastan and are completely done by hand.

I am sure that most of you know what applique work is. It involves cutting pieces of a fabric and stitching them on top of another fabric to form a design.

This white on white/white on cream appliqued pillow cover is characteristic of Rajastani applique work. "Tree of life" which is the central design here is a widely used motif.

Here is a a close up of the bird that is appliqued. If you look closely you'll see some stitches to mark the eye and the neck of the bird.

Here is another close up of the animal that is appliqued again with a few stitches to mark the eye, neck and the body.

Next comes an interesting twist to applique - the reverse applique. It is just as or more appealing than regular applique. In reverse applique also, two layers of fabric are used. The bottom fabric is revealed when the top layer is cut, tucked under and hemmed. It is a beautiful piece, isn't it?

Here is a close up. I hope you can see how the top fabric is tucked under and stitched.

Finally, a treasured piece from my wardrobe. This piece has Rajastan written all over it!! The lower fabric is a red 'Tie and Dye', otherwise known as 'Bandhani' in India. (It is a dyeing technique practiced in Rajastan). A long strip of this fabric is first hemmed in place, and then the design is carefully cut out from the upper fabric.

I hope you can see the design better here. The applique design is continued to the sleeve as well.

Another close up of the same design.

I have more to share on applique work including a short tutorial. Will see you soon!!

Happy Embroidering,

Sukanya

Long and Short Project: All done!!!

Hello everyone:

I am back to share my completed project :) ta-da .....

The project was very fulfilling and relaxing. It took a little longer than I anticipated, but mostly because I could not devote much time to it in the last few months.

For this particular stem, I began the short and long stitch at the bottom and went all the way up. This makes for a very interesting finish because there is no split stitch at the bottom.

After I completed the long and short stitch on all the stems, I went back and added a few veins in a single strand of dark green thread using stem stitch.

That's all on this project. Thanks to everyone for all your wonderful comments during this project. In my next post, I will be getting back to Indian Embroidery, talking about Applique Work.

Till then,

Happy Embroidering.

Sukanya

Hello fellow bloggers and friends:

I am back to share my progress on the long and short project. Thank you all very much for those thoughtful comments and the patience!!

I am almost done with the project. And here it is.

As you can see I have about 10% of the work left before I can frame it.

Picking up from where we left off..., the first thing I did was complete the flower center in shades of yellow. It was quite simple and easy, being a small area. The stamen in French Knots was also surprisingly easy and super fast. I haven't used French knots before but it is quite easy to do.

The next part I worked on was the base of the stem in different shades of green. I divided this into three sections and outlined each section with split stitch. Next I drew guidelines, very lightly using a pencil to mark the direction of the long and short stitch. This is a very important step. It is also a good idea to draw them every time there is a change in the direction. I may have mentioned this before - I had to undo a petal completely because the direction of the stitches were wrong.
Lastly, I outlined the long stem and the turnover leaf to the right using split stitch. As you can see, I have just started working the long and short stitch on the long stem.

I am actually quite excited that I am almost at the end of the project. I hope to be done within a week. See you then!

Happy Embroidering!

Sukanya

It is been ages....

A Big Hello to All the Readers,

Hope everyone is doing well! Thanks for all the comments these last few months. It has indeed been a powerful motivator!!

I initially wanted to take some time off, put away my embroidery and spend the summer with my kids. But I really did not anticipate to be gone for so long!! :) I almost had to relearn the whole process of photo editing, uploading and so on...

Well, I made some progress on my long and short project. I finished all the pink petals of the Iris and moved on to the green Sepal. I also managed to outline the yellow Stamen. Here it is...

The yellow outline is done using split stitch and this stitch is always the one recommended for long and short stitch work.

Covering large areas is definitely easier than the smaller ones. I admit, the first petal was challenging but by the time I got to the last one, my confidence and speed were up!! :) For smaller areas like the greens (after some trials) I found that reducing the length of the long and short stitch produced a better finish. Yes, it seems very logical and obvious now, but it didn't occur to me then! :)

Here is another close up of the whole area. I am about 3/4 of the way into the project. Next, I am going to be working on the yellow Stamen. Part of it involves closely bunched up 'French knots'. I am looking forward to that!! :)

If you are thinking of a long and short stitch project, please take the time to choose the threads carefully. It does matter a lot. Alright then, I will post my progress again soon. It WONT be 6 months from now!! :)

Have a wonderful weekend.

Sukanya

A project using the Long and Short Stitch.

Hello everyone,

I am back after a nice family holiday. My son got to try the drawing caddy during our trip. It worked very well and he loves it!

I am currently working on a piece using the Long and Short Stitch (L&S). I have often been tempted to, but postponed trying the Long and Short stitch. Why?? Perhaps the fear of producing imperfect results. So, finally a couple of weeks ago I decided to give it a try on a "grand" scale. Why not, right? : )

Iris flower - This is my work in progress.

As the name suggests, this stitch is primarily rows of alternating long and short stitches using many shades of a color to fill a design. The result is phenomenal. The image seems to come alive. And it is very much like 'painting with a needle'.

A close-up of the above piece.

After some research on books and resources on the L&S Stitch, I found that there are quite a few to choose from. Trish Burr has written a lot of books on this topic. She even has a free project to try on her website if you are interested. Mary Corbet from Needle N Thread has some great instructions on her website that you can follow. My choice was a book titled "Royal School of Needlework Embroidery Techniques", written by the Royal School of Needlework in the UK. The book is fantastic. In fact, the design I am working on is from this book.

I am embroidering on silk fabric that has a cotton fabric backing for some stability. The threads are the regular DMC cotton strands in many shades of pink, yellow and green. BTW, the book calls for Anchor threads. I had to find the DMC equivalents.

Here is a close-up of the large petal.

The reason you are not able to clearly see the outline of the design is because I have used running stitch to trace the outline. (You can see the stitches in the picture below). This is a recommended method for silk fabrics, because pencil and pen marks cannot be easily removed.

Here is another close-up.

I am working on the petal with the scalloped edges at the moment.

Well, if you haven't tried this work yet, please do so. It is so..... satisfying. And to help you here are a few things I have learnt so far:

* Choosing the right shades is very important. It is half the battle won.

* If you are a beginner, keep your daily goals small. It is important that you get every stitch right. Believe me, removing the stitches is no fun.

* Before you begin any section, get a feel for the design. If you were to take a pencil and draw in some strokes, how would you do it? Working this stitch is very similar.

Alright then! Will post again soon with the progress and pass on any notes I make.

Sukanya

A mom and son project!

Hello everyone:

What I would like to share today is a special sewing project that I did along with my son. It is a 'hanging caddy' for storing all his drawing tools in the car. My son likes to draw when we travel, even if it is a short trip to the grocery store. So I wanted to organize his crayons and markers and pencils so that they are easily accessible. And here it is...

I have only shown a few markers and pencils in the picture, but this kit can store a lot more markers, crayons, pencils, erasers, ruler and so on. I have also provided an extra row for miscellaneous things. The best part of the project are the cute buttons that I found at the craft store. The box came with buttons in all shapes - crayons, pencils, ruler and even a sharpener!! Overall, I liked the way it has turned out and my son loves it :) He is very much looking forward to our next road trip.

The kit can also be rolled and carried if necessary. The pockets are deep enough. But I am yet to finish this last part. I might add a button on each of the strips to secure them.

If you would like to make something like this, start with some simple measurements, such as the place you wish to hang the caddy. Then make a list of the things that you want to store in it, measure those as well and go from there. If you interested in making something similar to the one I have made, leave a comment or send me an e-mail at eagerneedler@gmail.com. I can send you the measurement template along with some brief instructions.

Have a fantastic week ahead!

Sukanya