Blue Celtic string

I like Celtic knots very much and have used them in my quilting, like the Celtic knot on my double wedding ring quilt. But I could never draw one. I found a link at Tangle Harmony to a new challenge at Creative Doodling. Judy posted a link to a YouTube video with very easy instructions to draw a freestyle Celtic knot and challenged us to have a go at our own design. I drew my string with a light blue colored pencil and after drawing the Celtic knot I colored it completely blue. At one edge I shaded it with dark blue. The twelve parts are filled with 13 different tangle patterns. It was fun and easy!

Sheaf stitch

The TAST stitch for week 35 is sheaf stitch. I stitched my 2 x 2 inch sample on 18 count Aida. I’ve used different threads: perle 5, 8 & 12, stranded cotton and silk floss and Stef Francis spun silk with flames. The bottom row is a variation I found in my book Stitch Sampler by Lucinda Ganderton, it’s called Old Wheatsheaf.

The Old Wheatsheaf was my inspiration for the row just above it, a laced sheaf stitch. I stitched both rows in perle 5.

This 8-point star is done in stranded silk.

Take a closer look at this sampler on my Flickr-page.

Old sheaf stitches

The TAST stitch for week 35 is sheaf stitch. I have a few CQ samples to share, but I start with my TAST 2007 sampler. This is the first part, stranded floss on muslin.

The second part on the same sampler. I started with the beaded sheaf stitch, I wanted to make a bottle shape. A few days later I added more sheaf stitches and turned it into a guitar. (It’s so much fun to read my TAST 2007 notes again!)

A seam on my ATC Ladybugs, also stitched with stranded floss.

A beaded sheaf stitch with stranded floss on my ATC Crazy about purple.

This last sample is a seam on block 3 of my Crazy Monday quilt. The thread is rayon.

I think I’m going to stitch on my Aida sampler this week.

Linked double chain stitch

The TAST stitch for week 34 is linked double chain stitch. This morning I finally had time to stitch a few rows. From left to right:

1. stitched in Stef Francis spun silk with flames
2. stitched in perle 5
3. a variation inspired by Nancilyn’s sample in  perle 8, I decorated it with detached chain stitches in cotton a broder
4. a variation in DMC color variations perle 5, large double chains and a small twisted chain
5. a similar variation in Stef Francis perle 5, large double chains and a small chain stitch instead of a twisted chain
6. a variation in perle 5, small double chains and a large twisted chain
7. a similar variation in Stef Francis perle 5, small double chains and a large chain stitch instead of a twisted chain

Vicki’s tree

This pretty tree arrived a few days ago. It’s made by Vicki for the book page swap at Stitchin Fingers. It’s the last page for this swap, so now I need to start thinking about making a fabric book with these pretty pages.

Work In Progress Wednesday - August 22

I’m very happy with my progress; I finished quilting the last flowers! I’m still thinking about what to do with the background and the borders. Suggestions are very welcome!

the backside of my quilt

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Old linked double chain stitches

The TAST stitch for week 34 is linked double chain. This is my TAST 2007 sample. It’s stitched with different threads, from top to bottom: orange cotton a broder, 3 threads of stranded floss, perle 5 and organza ribbon. At the left side I made a variation with perle 5, I added an extra step with 3 chain stitches next to each other.

This is an ATC I made a few days after I finished my TAST 2007 sampler. It’s stitched on felt with perle 5.

This is a seam on my crazy ornament Flip Flop. It’s also stitched with perle 5.

My last sample is a progress photo of my PLOS sampler Birth. I stitched the green linked double chain with perle 8.

I enjoyed flipping through my photo’s and reading my old notes for this post. It gave me a few more idea’s to experiment with this stitch.

Pekinese stitch

The TAST stitch for week 33 is Pekinese stitch. I wanted to build on the experiments in my Pekinese stitch ornament and combined the Pekinese stitch with herringbone stitches for more contrast. First I stitched all rows of backstitches and herringbone stitches. Then I made the Pekinese stitches with 4 threads of yellow stranded silk. I turned my work for every second row of Pekinese stitches. The herringbone stitch is done in 2 threads of stranded floss. The backstitches are all different threads, from top to bottom: perle 12, Stef Frances spun silk with flames, perle 5, 4 threads of stranded floss, perle 8 and perle 5. This 2 x 2 inch or 5 x 5 cm sampler is stitched on 18 count Aida. There’s a bigger photo of this sampler on my Flickr-page.

Peter The Dragon

Yesterday my third fabric book page for the swap at Fibre Fever arrived. 
It’s made by Helinä. I like this dragon very much.

Work In Progress Wednesday - August 15

There was not much time to quilt this week, I have another fabric book page to finish. But yesterday evening it was too dark to stitch, so I quilted about an hour. First I finished the vase I started last week.

Then I started with the last flower at the left side. I only quilted the petals and the circle in the centre. Now I only have to quilt the other petals and a few hanging flowers at the left side. Time to start thinking what to do with the background and the border. Suggestions are very welcome!

And a photo of the backside of my quilt. It finally starts to look like a vase.

Visit Pin Tangle for more info about Work In Progress Wednesday.

Old Pekinese stitches

The TAST stitch for week 33 is Pekinese stitch. It’s a stitch I used recently, but I want to share my samples chronological, so I start with my TAST 2007 samples. 
I made rows of Pekinese stitches with perle 5 on evenweave . . .

. . . and a circle with 3 threads of stranded floss on muslin.

I stitched my next sample for Sharon’s PLOS class. Here you can see how I pull the thread through when I stitch more rows of backstitches.

And these are the finished diamonds. The left one is done in brown perle 12 and a metallic thread, the right one in brown perle 8 and perle 5.

This triangle is done in blue perle 12 with a metallic thread. It’s part of the same sampler as the diamonds.

And this is my recent experiment for Issue 3 of the Ezine &Stitches. I cannot share the details, but there’s a bigger photo of the complete ornament on my Flickr-page.

Mode - Fashion

All pages in my altered book are painted. The background of this spread is gesso with acrylic paint. I decorated it with photo’s and words from magazines. The dashed line and the borders on the photo’s are done with an old black permanent marker. I made swirls with a yellow gelly roll pen. There’s a bigger photo of this spread on my Flickr-page.

It was inspired by this step-by-step journal spread.

Cast on stitch

The TAST stitch for week 32 is cast on stitch. First I tried a pansy with 2 threads of stranded floss. Sharon showed how to make these in her PLOS class and it was still on my to-do-list. I don’t like my pansy, I placed the cast on stitches to far apart.

Then I did some freestyle embroidery on my rust dyed sampler. I used cast on stitches, French knots and bullion knots. The threads are blue Caron Wildflowers and brown cotton a broder.

I also stitched 4 cast on stitches with perle 8 on my black linen sampler. The other stitches are square herringbone, bullion knots and buttonhole wheels.

Visitors in my garden

I took this photo after a shower of rain. I think the bee was surprised by the rain, it was soaking wet!

 My sunflower is very heavy right now, it’s as big as my hand.

I noticed lots of butterflies on my Buddleja Davidii, so I had to take a few photo’s and a video. This butterfly allowed me to come very close.

Work In Progress Wednesday - August 8

Lots of progress this time! I started with the last flowers at the left side, but didn’t finish them. I wanted to see the difference with a quilted vase. The top part of it is finished.

This is a better view at the backside of my quilt.

And an overall view of the quilted parts at the backside.

Visit Pin Tangle for more info about Work In Progress Wednesday.

Old cast on stitches

The TAST stitch for week 32 is cast on stitch. It wasn’t easy to decide which samples I wanted to share, so it’s a big post today. Of course I start with my TAST 2007 sampler. It was the first time I tried cast on stitches and I had a lot of trouble with my tangled threads. I used stranded floss (2 and 4 threads), a variegated machine embroidery thread and dark red acrylic knitting yarn.

The next time I used cast on stitches was on my dragon ornament for Stitch Explorer. Here I was filling the last space at the bottom. There’s an olive green cast on stitch in the bottom left corner. It's all done with stranded floss.

This is a detail on my ATC Sampler CP. A green cast on stitch between pulled thread, herringbone stitches, chain stitches and buttonhole stitches. All stitched with 2 threads of stranded floss.

This is a detail on block 7 of my Crazy Monday quilt. The bottom of the cupcake is a whipped buttonhole stitch. The topping is a spiral trellis stitch and the cherry is a cast on stitch. All stitched with stranded floss. The cupcake is only 5/8 inch tall!

This is a seam on my first encrusted block. Feather stitch in perle 5 and cast on stitches in perle 12 on velvet.

A detail on my embroidery Nefertiti. I think the cast on stitch is done in perle 5.

And a detail on my embroidery Touch. The cast on stitch is done is stranded silk.

Algerian eyes

The TAST stitch for week 31 is Algerian eyes. I stitched my sampler on 18 count Aida with different threads: perle 5 & 8, Stef Francis spun silk with flames and stranded cotton & silk floss. The size is 2 x 2 inch or 5 x 5 cm. There’s a bigger photo of this sampler on my Flickr-page.