Owl Needlebook

So this needlbook was actually started long before the last one that I had posted. It was one of those projects that kind of just got set aside and I only really remembered it after I completed that other one for the swap I was in on Craftster.
I really liked that owl so much that I wanted to keep it but figured since I already sort of had my own that I may as well keep my end of the bargain.

This little fella was needle felted; the white part from loose fibres, and the creamy part of crochet fabric. It was kind of an experiment as the fibre content of the felted yarn is actually mostly synthetic (!!) but it seemed to work out just fine, especially in the case of the loose fibres. In anycase, it's been embroidered with crochet cotton from the stash, a few pieces of bought felt. As you can see from the only in-progress shot, my owl has a heart. When I was attatching the wing I wanted more reinforcement, had red felt and thought, "why not, really?"


The embroidery of my name isn't terribly clear in these shots, however you can see that this book can hold both the rediculously large needles and your more standard sizes. (Truthfully though there are only two actual needles in the picture, all my needles are off some place stuck in various pieces of fabric, so I improvised for the sake of illustration with some pins.)

There are a number of different stitches used, back-stitch, lazy-daisies, bullion stitch, french knots, satin stitch, fly stitch, chain stitch that's been run over, misc. running stitches, overcast, and a really lame attempt at Japanese darning (though in my defence sewing through what was once crochet fabric, with varying density throughout the new felt cloth, made it very difficult to keep the more geometric pattern even).

Truthfully I have had this fella done for at least a week, however this week has been an uphill battle to say the least. Between being fought back by my camera, my makeshif light-tent imploding, losing my camera cable, a cat that is pooping and barfing everywhere, finishing my taxes... and the big whammy, I've been laid off; on Friday I was told Monday was my last shift which hardly left me with the ability to make plans for anything else. They think maybe they will have work for me again in a month, but who knows really. I've been left scrambling tring to figure what I am going to do about it all. I have actually been embroidering a lot, and if I can convince my ol' man to come out so that we can get batteries for my camera, I am thinking I will be able to post in progress pictures of that hanky that I have been working on so much lately. Lourd knows now I have the time...

*LE SIGH*

Craftster OTT Swap - Owl Pincushion

My partner in the swap actually received a few days ago but every time I opened my image editor, to fix up my photos, it would crash, I got frustrated and left it alone each time. If you click on the picture you can see the full size, but it is a big picture! The item itself is under 4x4" which was part of the rules for the swap, though I don't have any exact measurements. It is, if not obvious, a little owl needlebook; I have one of my own in the works that has been a WIP for some time now actually, and is completely different than this one. Yeah I am lazy it seems like.

This one is made of some bits of cotton from my stash, felt on the inside for a little more structure and felt for the "wing" pages. Embroiderized, I had fun trying out a few new stitches and there she goes!

TheSapphireMoon sent me a lovely little beaded snap wallet in return. It was a really fun little swap to participate in.

PS. I'd like to thank the one or two individuals that keep coming to check my stuff out. I know I am not the most reliable in posting, but I definately appreciate you sticking around to take a look-see.

Free Embroidery Pattern

So I have been having a pretty sh*tty go of it for a while now. I am so cross and drained.

In hoping that spring would just warm up and stop snowing already, also in the need for cheer, I have designed a sun-shower set of embroidery patterns. My favourite is the happy sun, with its rosy cheeks (not sure if that is apparent) and its wavy sunrays; followed closely by the very cute cloud. You should be taken directly to the full image by clicking on the above image, that is if I did the code correctly. The patterns are free to use for personal projects, please don't use it to sell, redistribute the pattern, or alter it and claim the design as your own. If anyone uses the pattern I would be absolutely thrilled to see what you make of it! So if you don't mind, email me and show me. :D

Finger Puppets

I can't believe it has been basically a full week since I last posted anything. I must seem lazy. I really have no excuse for myself, save that I have a few bigger projects on the go, working nonstop and few recently completed things to share. However here we have it, a sort of big "little" project. Felt finger puppets, 25 little birds for kids at the local children's hospital. Sorry the picture is small and on my carpet, but I was in a rush to get them out!
I hope to make it up to you in a few days, that is, if I can stop procraftinating...

Damask Inspired Cutwork Hankie, Work In Progress

How is that for a nice long title? I am suspecting this to take a while, I am hoping 15 hours tops, but I would not be surprised if it meandered into the 20-25h range. I am looking at the viability of hand cutwork as a saleable craft in this day and age. And the more I look at it the less likely it seems mainly due to the time involved and reasonable recompense for that time. Maybe if I do something simpler and forgo hand turning a rolled hem (break my heart) for the quicker, but less supple and lovely, machined hem.

I wanted to do a more complex design this time just to keep interest levels up, so I sketched something up that had been inspired by damask patterns. There are a lot of pins holding my curved bridges in place untill they are worked, I have never done curved bridges and I don't think I have ever seen them done intentionally on handworked pieces, uncharted territory! I have a plan - I think. I am also terribly excited by the fabric, no 2 yards of which are the same, I have a lot of it, in different colours, and a lot of ideas for it.

Embroidered Heating Bag Cover

This is a project that has been awaiting its completion for just about a month now I estimate. It was one of those projects that makes you go crosseyed. At first I thought the blue was an awesome addition to pink and black, but working with it was something else entirely. Satin stitch, whipped chain stitch, running stitch and french knots on a piece of stash scrap.
I like the idea of removable covers for heating bags, because the idea that the bag cannot be washed and gets all full of body dirt just makes me kind of grossed out. Please excuse the hairs on it in the picture. Pussums, my kitty, is friends with the heating bag and he likes to snuggle its warmness.

In kitty news, Puss is adjusting to his meds, slowly. He's regaining some balance, but he still looks pretty drunk sometimes. Also he is getting his saucy personality back which is a major plus in my opinion. He's still not 100% but working on it :)

Bio-Hazard Surgeon's Mask

It has been a while, hasn't it? In anycase here is a surgeon's mask. Hot off the press. Just for you.

There are loose tails because I am on the fence about this project. I am not sure if I want to classify it as a failure or finish it and be happy. I am not too pleased with the workmanship on it, the only thing I am happy about is the hand turned edges along the top and bottom (I always derive pleasure from turning edges for some reason). I am terrible with drawn shapes, the pattern I drew was off from the start, so the embroidery is just not geometrically accurate. The circle part of the symbol is more like a fat triangle; I didn't even follow my own drawn lines in some places so there are a couple stumpy branches on the biohazard symbol. To make matters worse the functionality of the object has been compromised, in making room for the embroidery I changed the pleats. There needs to be more pleats, they need to be more shallow and they should span from top to bottom; the result is a squished nose when this mask is worn! The sides where the straps are attatched are too stiff leading to strange puckering. It is shoddy, even so, I love the appeal of the mask, so this is why I am torn.

This is the third surgeon's mask I have made, all told. The first was a prototype that I was generally pleased with, the second was a test to improve some concerns, this time was an attempt to address aesthetics. It is a project I pick up from time to time, the others were done some time ago, and I contemplate the topic every now and again. I am developing the "pattern" for it as I go along. I think that I am doing well enough, never having seen the real thing. I think I may just chalk this one up as a learning experience and when I get the itch to make surgeon's masks again, probably in a season or two, I will have fuel for improvement.

Why? Well I am not sure.

Happy Holidays

Happy Holidays! I just made it through Christmas by the skin of my teeth. I finished everything on time, for everyone though just barely. Being the big goof I am, I managed to give away the ornaments I made for my father and inlaws before I got pictures, or even finished writing the patterns. While I think I can complete the last snowflake pattern from memory, I will have to wait untill I am next visiting my family to get the needed pictures. It shouldn't be too long from now. In the interim I have this little pin to show for myself. Measuring with a fingernail, it is approximately 3.5cms. It's a little simple monogram H, for Hall, for no reason. I needed to have a little selfish project after all this Christmas crafting. It was worked up fairly quickly from felt scraps, some leftover embroidery floss, and a safety pin. The stitches are slightly abused: satin stitch, blanket stitch and whatever it took to attach the pin. The pin now resides on my wool coat, bringing a little colour and a touch of the alphabet to the party.

Olivine Hankie

This is a hankie that I embroidered as a Christmas present for my mother. Knowing that my mum will not be reading this before Christmas, I feel safe in posting this. It is my first attempt at cutwork and I think it turned out rather nicely. The olive-branch motif is recycled from an earlier embroidery of my design. I had decided to use the motif because my mother is originally from Santa Barbara, California; I have only visited there when I was very young, but my memories of it are very mediterranian and I automatically think of Santa Barbara when I think of olives. Also when my mother moved to Canada, she brought and taught her love for olives to my father who she met here, (he apparently never used to like them, now he admits he couldn't live without) and then eventually to my sisters and I. (I admit I can't live without either).

It is worked, wholely, in a double strand of regular polyester sewing thread just because I couldn't afford to go out and buy floss (if you can imagine) and I liked the colour of the thread I had on hand. It is mostly buttonhole stitch, with a little whipped backstitch for the black outline and whipped chainstitch for the letters; there is plain chain stitch and a teeny tiny running stitch for the shade in the olives. The running stitch is more woven in as they are only a single strand of the fabric in width and in space apart. There is a little satin stitch on one of the olives that boarders onto one of the open spaces, and it is also used in the hand-rolled hem. The fabric is cotton linen, if I recall correctly; it's been in my stash for a while so exact fibre content is mysterious. It is approximately 30x30cms and took me probably something on the order of 20 hours, half spent on the embroidery, half on the hem. If there's any more one could say about it, I'm not sure.