Still working on the coif. I added some embroidery thread – blue and brown.
Art Project: The Coif Continues
Category: Embroidery
Art Project: Needles Out
Finally broke out my needles in the first time in forever during October.
Want to see my pretties in process? I took some pictures on where I am on October 8, 2019. Hopefully I will finish a few of these.
First, I took a Beadwork Coif class at the beginning of the month. I had to make the coif before the class, now I am slowly beading the project.
Next, you might remember my ongoing apron projects. I’ve been working on this green one on and off for most of a year. Mostly off. But I pulled the pleating strings out of the smocked area this month and finished pulling out the threads to do the drawn work along the bottom. Now I just need to finish gathering the ladders for the drawn thread decorations. Of the things I am working on, this is the most likely to be completed this year.
I started the dragon towels last year during tax season (2019). Did another big push in July, and haven’t added a stitch since. It should be a set of four towels when complete. Biggest challenge with this one is following a pattern carefully, one of the reasons I dislike cross-stitch so much. If it wasn’t so pretty when it was done, I would give it up.
Then the BIG project. A complete set of mix-and-match Flemish garb with “heavy metal” embroidery. It will be six garments all told – two undergowns, two overgowns, and two aprons. I have completed one undergown (summer 2018) and one overgown (October 2019), the sewing portion. Working on the second undergown and overgown (the red apron gown is below). Then sew the two aprons. Then embroidering ALL THE THINGS!!! Well, four things: the two overgowns and the aprons. It will be AMAZING when done. … If it gets done.
That is always the challenge. Getting it done. So many pretties, sew little time.
Art Project: Lacis
Lacis Project – Lady’s Room Door Hanging
Originally conceived in 2004, I complied the design from patterns found in Renaissance Patterns for Lace, Embroidery and Needlepoint: An unabridged facsimile of the “Singuliers et nouvezu’=pourtraicts” of 1587 by Federico Vinciolo and Patterns Embroidery: Early 16th Century by Claude Nourry & Pierre de Saincte Louie. The project comes as two wall hangings; one will be a Lady’s Room door hanging showing Spring and Summer and the other will be a Lord’s Room door hanging featuring Fall and Winter. Pages from the book where I transcribe the patterns include FV89 (Spring), FV90 (Summer), and CNPSL61-63 (letters).
The full pattern for the Lady’s Room is 127×378 squares. The pattern has 8 major segments including the top and bottom borders, plus the right and left borders which are being completed as I work my way down the design. I actually started the first wall hanging in May 2011 and completed the top border in September 2011.
The project then was set aside as I worked on other things, like writing, moving, job hunting, etc. In March 2017, I have decided to make a concerted effort again on the project and put a week of 2 to 3 hour nights into it after doing taxes. So after 20 more hours, I got a second border section done. At this rate, it I don’t get distracted again, I should have this completed in mid-June and can start work on the Lord’s Room door hanging. (I got distracted – so it has stalled out again.)
Materials being used: Store bought mesh (unknown material) and Cotton Crochet thread size 10 (due to cost – I am going through a lot of thread).
Tools used: Large tapestry needles, scissors, and a 12-inch embroidery hoop.
SEPTEMBER 2011 PICTURES
First Border Completed (Sept 2011)
MARCH 2017 PICTURES
Art Projects: Smocked Aprons
Smocked Aprons as Prizes
On Saturday the 24, my local SCA group held its annual event. The lunch is a potluck, and I had a .Brilliant.Idea. late last year to supplement the potluck by hosting a cooking competition. The cope-de-resistance to get people to enter items for other people to eat is having a kickin’ prize. November last year I started making four possible aprons for people to win. Not just any aprons, mind, but smocked apron, with drawn hemwork, all done in linen and by 100% by hand.
Out-of-my-ever-lovin’ mind, I was. I needed four aprons because the local cook’s guild has four colors of aprons for their ranking and, of course, I had to have one in each color because I didn’t know who would win.
All but one were completed in time for the event. Guess which color I needed for the winner? Bingo, the one undone. So I took the apron to DragonCon and sewed like a fiend in the backrow in panel after panel after panel – from Science to Space, Writing to the Apocalypse (maybe more literally then just the panel’s name). Then I did the last bit at home in time to deliver the prize to the woman the next time I saw her after she won. Go Me!
All the aprons were done in Honeycomb smocking and had Hound’s Tooth as the first row of drawn work. Red and Green also got lines of Interlacing.
Art Projects: Drawn Thread
Drawn Threadwork made my May
This month I taught a class on Drawn Threadwork. Related to the class I ended up making a couple of towels as examples, to work beside my students, and to drum up additional interest in the class.
First towel completed (May 19) – 15 hours
I love Drawn Thread embroidery because of its speed; this 17 inch by 30 inch towel took under 15 hours to complete when many of my embroidery projects can take over 100 hours. The four lines of drawn threadwork include Hound’s Tooth, Interlacing (Variation), Zig-Zag, and Interlacing (Basic).
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Second towel completed (May 26)
The lines are as follows(top to edge of fabric) – Hound’s tooth bottom; Hound’s tooth top; drawn thread 2 lines; drawn thread 4 lines; Double ladder interlace (6 gather for each ladder); drawn thread 4 lines; drawn thread 2 lines; Zig zag; Hound’s tooth top.
All white fabric untouched are 6 lines wide. All gathers are 8-thread gathers unless stated otherwise.
And enough of that for a while. Hopefully my students enjoyed the class as much as I did prepping for it.