A little bird told me….

Hello everyone another three weeks has flown past, the garden is in full growth and the weather is warming up. I have managed to make some progress on my peacock sewing etui designed by Jenny Adin-Christie. It may not look like much but I have prepped the little birds body by covering it in a number of layers of felt. So here are all the pieces I have completed so far…..

I do hope that you are all enjoying the spring weather and getting some sewing done!

Thanks for dropping in.

Happy stitching.

Please check out the other talented ladies below to see some lovely examples of work.

We are a small group of crafters using a variety of different techniques. Please check out the fabulous stitching by all the other members of the SAL. If you are interested in joining us you can contact Avis for details.

Avis, Claire, Gun, Constanze, Christina, Kathy, Margaret, Heidi, Jackie, Sunny, 

Megan, Sharon, Daisy, AJ, Cathie, Linda, Helen, Connie, Cindy, MaryMargaret

Final stages of the Goldwork Octopus

I can finally see an end to my RSN Goldwork module. In class I made a start on the cutwork along the two central tentacles – I have to admit that this has gone in, come out again and then back in! I am still not totally happy about the edge as it looks a little uneven.

All I need to do now is complete both sides and then the piece needs to be mounted. I think that this is the first piece of work that might actually make it on the wall!

Thanks for popping in, Happy sewing!

Chipping away!

The last time that I posted progress on my RNS Goldwork piece I had began to chip the area around the large oval worked in Japanese thread. Once I had finished this I decided that some of the tentacles needed chipping to balance up the design as there were too many open spaces. The area around the eyes also needed to be chipped to cover any felt showing.

I also decided to keep the spangles along the lines of the tentacles. The picture below shows how much extra chipping I added to the tentacles.

The final stage is to add the cutwork over the string padding – but I think I need to be in class to complete this bit as I am not totally confident about the angle of the metal threads.

Thanks for popping in. Happy stitching!

Feathering the Peacock Etui: SAL 75

Hello everyone it is time already to catch up on what everyone has been up to over the last three weeks. I have managed to make a little progress on my peacock sewing etui designed by Jenny Adin-Christie. Last time I posted I had finished the large tail panel and so I then started on the back part of the bird.

Last time…..

The back panel is worked in gimp thread – which I found rather difficult to work with. Each row of feathers is worked in three different shades of gimp. The central line which will run down the back of the peacock is worked in sequins and Swarovski crystals.

This is how far I have managed to get…..

I am not totally happy with this part as you can see the second line in has splayed too much at the end – I did consider taking this out and starting again, but this would destroy the gimp thread and there was not enough left to make a second attempt – Oh well, we live and learn!

Thanks for dropping in.

Happy stitching.

Please check out the other talented ladies below to see some lovely examples of work.

We are a small group of crafters using a variety of different techniques. Please check out the fabulous stitching by all the other members of the SAL. If you are interested in joining us you can contact Avis for details.

Avis, Claire, Gun, Constanze, Christina, Kathy, Margaret, Heidi, Jackie, Sunny, 

Megan, Sharon, Daisy, AJ, Cathie, Linda, Helen, Connie, Cindy, MaryMargaret

RSN Goldwork Octopus

I have been slowly working away on my RSN Goldwork piece behind the scenes and have made a little progress. I have finished all the couched Japanese thread work, plunged and sewn back the ends on the underside of the piece. All the tentacles have been outlined in pearl purl, Japanese thread or a gold twist. I am trying to decide if I should use spangles along the length of some of the tentacles.

I am currently working on filling the top ‘head’ with gold chippings. This is a very time consuming process as each of the chippings is only 1mm square in size!

Hopefully I can keep up this progress and finish this piece soon!

Thanks for popping by, happy stitching!

Penguin Progress

I have been working on a 3D Penguin goldwork design by Georgina Bellamy of  @thatembroiderygirl . The pattern and instructions can be found in ‘Passion for Needlework’ published by @inspirationsstudios . As always they provide a good set of instructions with lots of diagrams included, which I find very helpful when trying to envisage each process along the way. The last time you saw this little fellow he was at the road kill stage. Much of the felt padding had been laid down and now this has been covered in metal threads. There is still a long way to go, but this is what he looks like now.

Next steps will be to finish off the back and continue on to the head area before tackling the front of his body.

Thanks for popping in.

Happy stitching to all!

The tale of the tail! SAL 74

Hello everyone! I hope, like me, you have been able to enjoy the spring weather. I love this time of year as the garden starts into life again and holds so much promise for the coming year (before all the pesky critters attack everything!). With the half term holidays coming to an end I was able to get a little bit of stitching done – including my SAL piece!  My little peacock sewing etui designed by Jenny Adin-Christie now has a tail!

Here is what it looked like last time we met….

But I am pleased to say that I managed to cover all the white lines with metal thread.

I then backed the piece, cut it all out and finished off around the edge with a metallic ribbon. And now the tail looks like this….

Thanks for dropping in.

Happy stitching.

Please check out the other talented ladies below to see some lovely examples of work.

We are a small group of crafters using a variety of different techniques. Please check out the fabulous stitching by all the other members of the SAL. If you are interested in joining us you can contact Avis for details.

Avis, Claire, Gun, Constanze, Christina, Kathy, Margaret, Heidi, Jackie, Sunny, 

Megan, Sharon, Daisy, AJ, Cathie, Linda, Helen, Connie, Cindy, MaryMargaret

Ships Ahoy!

Another dumpling pouch – they are so quick and easy to make and this little one has a nautical theme for a boating friend. I embroidered a little caption on it along with lots of French knots! I think the stripy binding really lifts it.

The little fish zipper charm was a lucky find!

Thank you for popping in, happy stitching.

Making a little progress…

Oops, sorry everyone for this late posting. I set off early yesterday to the Stitch Festival in London and by the time I got home I was exhausted (and skint!). I suddenly realised that I was supposed to post an update on my SAL. To add insult to injury I have managed this time to do a little stitching on my Peacock Etui. This is where I was at last time….

And now I have made a little progress………….

I’m sorry that the photo makes it a little tricky to see – but I have been working on covering all the white lines with metal thread. Would you believe that this is a whole days stitching?

Thanks for dropping in.

Happy stitching.

Please check out the other talented ladies below to see some lovely examples of work.

We are a small group of crafters using a variety of different techniques. Please check out the fabulous stitching by all the other members of the SAL. If you are interested in joining us you can contact Avis for details.

Avis, Claire, Gun, Constanze, Christina, Kathy, Margaret, Heidi, Jackie, Sunny, 

Megan, Sharon, Daisy, AJ, Cathie, Linda, Helen, Connie, Cindy, MaryMargaret

Oh dear!

Sorry to say that I have not touched my SAL project over the last three weeks as things have been very hectic!

Happy stitching.

Please check out the other talented ladies below to see some lovely examples of work.

We are a small group of crafters using a variety of different techniques. Please check out the fabulous stitching by all the other members of the SAL. If you are interested in joining us you can contact Avis for details.

Avis, Claire, Gun, Constanze, Christina, Kathy, Margaret, Heidi, Jackie, Sunny, 

Megan, Sharon, Daisy, AJ, Cathie, Linda, Helen, Connie, Cindy, MaryMargaret