My first tatting

Sometimes when you look for something you find it everywhere! I wanted to learn tatting for quite some time now and I had already bought a tatting shuttle. I forgot all about it until I saw this lovely octopus. Then Miriam wrote about her experiments with tatting and she added a link to a good tutorial. She told me which yarn she had used, so now I could give it a try. I looked at the video over and over again and this is the only result that looks a bit like tatting!So the tatting shuttle was not the tool for me and I remembered that there was a link about needle tatting on Needlework News not so long ago. I watched that video and remembered I had a trapunto needle. This needle is 6 inch long and has a blunt point. I tried it with some light blue cotton yarn and it went very well! I just tatted watching the video. The size of this one is 5 cm (2 inch). Over the next few days I tried different crochet yarn to see how small they could be with this needle. Only the two small ones are not done with this needle. For those I used a long needle (for mending socks) with a sharp point! It was tricky, but it worked. I used Pinguin cotton 12 for the white one and DMC cotton 80 for the variegated one. This last one is only 5/8 inch or 1,5 cm!

I want to try more, but I have to buy tatting needles first. I hope I can find them here!

Encrusted Crazy Quilting 10

A few days ago I stitched the last embroidery stitches on my second class block. Now it was time to add backing fabric, batting and binding to my first block. This block is 8 x 8 inch and the fabric for the binding was 10 x 10 inch, so it was just enough! I used the same reddish linen fabric from the top right corner for the backing fabric and embroidered the label on it. It was a scrap from a dress from my youngest daughter. I enjoyed working on this block.I finished this block yesterday and today I started finishing the second block. I embroidered the label at the backing fabric and prepared the strips for the binding. I hope to finish this second one in the next few days. There’s a more detailed picture of my first block here.

Embroidered stuffie swap

Two months ago I was in a swap for an embroidered stuffie. Mary made this pretty Anubis for me. It arrived before I had finished the gnome for Lisa. I used a pattern designed by Andrea Zuill and I made a mirror image to make a matching backside.

But after 2 months the little gnome is still travelling, so I made a new stuffie for Lisa. This time I used a pattern designed by Mollie Johanson, to match the gnome if it ever arrives! I’m glad this mushroom arrived after a week.

Maybe you already saw this mushroom on an ATC I made with a lot of French knots.

Slipped detached chain spider

A visit to the Flickr TAST-group helped me solve the last problem on my 10 x 10 inch crazy block. I saw these lovely slipped detached chain palm trees and I thought that one of them looked like a fat dragonfly. Then I knew I could use this stitch to make a spider! It was too late to stitch him, so I made a simple drawing.Today I embroidered the spider on his web. I used a blue/purple variegated chenille thread for the detached chain stitch body. His head is a French knot with a single wrap. Then I added two straight stitches inside the detached chain stitch. For the legs I used a blue perle 5.

My block told me it’s finished, but I have to get used to this idea! So I will put it aside for a few days before I can say it’s finished!

Encrusted Crazy Quilting 9

In the Flickr TAST-group I saw some lovely flowers here and here. They were the inspiration for a floral spray on my 10 x 10 inch crazy block. I made the slipped detached chain flowers with perle 5 and I added a 2 mm bead. Then I made a fly stitch at the bottom of the flower and added an extra line in the same way as the slipped detached chain flower, but closer together. I used the long tail of the fly stitch as a base for the thorn stitch.This is a sneak peek of the floral spray on the bottom right corner of my block.

Ladder stitch

I spent most of my creative time on my crazy block. I’m happy with it so far, but I have some different ideas for the same place on my block. Therefore I wanted to step back from it for a few days. That gave me time to catch up with a TAST stitch from week 15, the ladder stitch. I’m quite sure I’m inspired by the lovely examples I saw at the Flickr TAST-group. I show you a few details here. You can click on the pictures to see the details bigger. I started with burgundy perle 8 at the bottom. Then I made a blue ladder stitch with perle 12 and beads at every 4th rung.My next example is done in perle 8 with brown and yellow. I switched colours every 2 rungs.

This was a fun experiment with green perle 5. I started with 2 rows of ladder stitches side by side. Then I made one big ladder stitch of it, I only used the stitches on the left and right side. Afterwards I added a very small ladder stitch with pink perle 5 using the stitches on the inside. When they were so close together I could not make a new rung I made a few backward chain stitches and finished it with some backstitches.

This last example is done with perle 12 again. I made the ladder stitches wider every few stitches and I laced it with a satin ribbon. Then I filled the rest of the space with needle weaving with the same blue perle 12. I secured the ribbon with French knots.

If you want to see my complete sampler, just take a look at my Flickr-page.

Collaborative zentangles part 2

In May I wrote about the collaborative zentangles Tricia and I made for each other. You can see the one I finished here. And now Tricia has finished the one I started, she added some lovely patterns! Just take a look at the big tangle at her Flickr-page.

Dragon ornament

In April last year I made a dragon for the Stitch Explorer March challenge. I finished the embroidery in 15 days! That was the first time I got carried away by my embroidery. I bought a frame a few weeks later, but there was no time to frame it then. Last week I was looking for some things in my stash and I found it again. Now there was a different problem; I didn’t like the square frame! I like the shape of my dragon and decided it should be an ornament. I stretched it over an old CD with a piece of batting. For the back I used the same fabric, embroidered a label on it and stretched it over a second old CD with a piece of batting.Then I sewed an organza hanging loop on the back of the part with the dragon before I sewed them together. I decorated the edge with a burgundy velvet braid. After 15 months it’s finally finished! There’s a larger picture of this ornament on my Flickr-page.

I wrote about the making of this dragon here.

Buttonhole wheel cup

I had a lot of fun with my buttonhole wheel cup sampler. This stitch is very addictive, I couldn’t stop until my square was filled with stitches! The threads I used are perle in size 5, 8 and 12. There’s a large picture of my sampler at my Flickr-page.

Encrusted Crazy Quilting 8

After finishing my up and down feather stitch sampler I started with the embroidery on the seams of my second class block. This block is 10 x 10 inch. Today I finished my last seam with an up and down feather stitch above the lace. I added bullion knot rosebuds.

Herringbone stitches, straight stitches and French knots.

Twisted lattice band.

Crossed buttonhole stitch with detached chain stitches.

Sorbello stitch, chevron stitch and detached chain stitches finished with French knots.

Fly stitches.

Note: Blogger added some wrong links to my pictures!

The cat and the owl

Another round in the stitchery swaps. Tricia made this cute cat for me. She found the pattern in the vintage pattern pool. . . . . . and that’s where I found this owl for Courtney too!

Up and down feather stitch

Yesterday I decided to do the up and down feather stitch before I’m going to catch up. I started with the rows at the edges with different threads and angles to see the possibilities. Then it was time to have fun with this stitch! I made a flower with a yellow spiral trellis heart and blue detached chain stitch petals. The up and down feather stitches around it are done in perle 5 and 12. Then I added some bullion rosebuds and a twig made of bugle beads. It’s a great stitch! There’s a bigger picture on my Flickr-page.This stitch is part of the Take A Stitch Tuesday challenge at Pintangle.

Encrusted Crazy Quilting 7

Last Sunday I finished my 8 x 8 inch block for this class. I joined Stitchin fingers last Friday and I added a bigger picture of this block to my page. Now it’s time to move on to my 10 x 10 inch block!

Square knot drizzle stitch

When I was trying double drizzle stitches, I had to think about Lakshmi’s square knot flowers. Why not combine these two and make a square knot drizzle stitch!

Here are two pink square knot drizzle stitches and a drizzle stitch between them. I used perle 12, a milliners needle and I stretched the fabric in an embroidery hoop. For this tutorial I used 2 different colours. That way it was easy to see how I made this stitch and it yields a nice variation with two different sides! This stitch is not difficult if you are familiar with drizzle stitches.

Bring 2 threads up through the fabric and unthread the needle, just like you would do with a normal drizzle stitch. Put the needle back into the fabric slightly above the point you came up and secure the needle by bringing it up a bit further. Bring one thread to the left side of your needle, the other to the right side.

Take the thread on the left side and make a loop over your needle.

Take the thread at the right side and take it over the looped thread, under the needle and through the loop from the back to the front.

Pull both threads gently at the same time to make the first half of your knot.

Take the thread on the right side and make a loop over the needle.

Take the thread at the left side and take it over the looped thread, under the needle and through the loop from the back to the front.

Pull both threads gently at the same time to make the second half of your knot.

Continue making knots until you have the size you want. You always make the loop at the side you see the last loop on top. If you look at this picture, you would make the loop at the left side.

Bring your needle carefully upright again and thread it with both threads. Hold the knots between your fingers and pull the needle through the fabric. Pull the threads through the knots.

This is how it looks on one side.

And this is the other side!

Two more variations. The one at the left side has a bead at the top. I did this by adding it to the threads with a second needle before I made the last step of this stitch. The one on the right leaning forward is a half square knot variation. If you make the first half of this stitch only, it will twist. If you make the second half of this stitch only, it will twist the other way!

Chasing butterflies

This crazy ornament was a birthday present for a quilting friend. It’s also the result of the first 5 weeks of Sharon’s class ‘Encrusted crazy quilting’. I attached a velvet braid at the edge. The size is almost 5 inch. This cat reminded me of my first cat chasing butterflies. He never caught them, but I always enjoyed looking at his silly attempts.There’s a bigger picture of him on my Flickr-page.

Encrusted Crazy Quilting 6

Another quick update of my progress on the 8 x 8 inch block for Sharon’s class.The button cluster at a different view.

Tatting and beads in the centre. I received this tatting in a swap last year. I also added some beads to the lace above the fans and some more stitches to the velvet braid.

A clef in detached chain stitches.