Make it So

I've been commissioned to make two more necktie pillows! As I've mentioned before, I learned the hard way that paper piecing is the right way to go. Undoubtedly I'll be working with small pieces of silk and polyester; both cut on the bias so the stability paper piecing provides is important.

Mrs. S who would like the pillows for her two sons, had a photo of a family quilt that she admired. It's made up of several blocks, but the traditional bow tie block was the one that Mrs. S really admired.

So I powered up EQ and came up with some samples. These would be 14" square pillows:

 

Initially Mrs. S. liked #3 best, but ended up selecting #2. I think it's a great choice too.  

My next step is to make a sample. Remember it's important that I can paper piece the design. Here's what EQ gave me:

 

If you're initial thought was Eeeeeeeeeek! That's pretty much what I said too. But, I thought I'd give it the ol' college try.  Since the pattern doesn't really lend itself to paper piecing, I stabilized the fabric and cut out enough to try one 1/4 of the block.

 The end result wasn't pretty. So much so that this is all I'm willing to share: 

 So what to do? Luckily, my friend Kathy F. invited me over to practice EQ, so I was able to take my project with me. With Kathy and friend Betsy's help, we increased the block size to 6" (rather than 3") and added two lines. I think you'll agree that we came up with a much better alternative solution.

I ended up with a better pattern and ultimately the end result will be better as well. Here's an idea of the finished block:

How will it actually stitch out with a variety of neckties to work with? I'll have to wait and find out, but at least I have a game plan that will provide a great result.

 

Decorative Stitches are a Good Thing

I really enjoy the Craftsy classes. And one of my favorites is Stupendous Stitching taught by Carol Ann Waugh. In the course you learn great techniques; including both hand and machine embroidery.

One of the first things you do is develop a Stitch Bible. And this is mine:

It is actually a sampling of every decorative stitch available on my machine. I've had other quilting instructors recommend something similar. One that I saw looked like an old fashioned sampler that could have been framed it was so beautiful. In my case, you can see that I was going for the 'utilitarian' look rather than a piece of artwork!

It's not difficult to do; just be sure you use a stabilizer with each page. That is very important so that the stitches lie flat. In my case, I knew I wanted to use striped fabric so that my stitches would be straight. (As you'll see, I still wasn't totally successful, but trust me it looks better than if I had winged it!) After you get all of the pages done, you can put them in those clear notebook pockets if you like. In my case I just stacked them up, stitched from end to end and then added a fabric binding to hide the stitching.

Oh, and one other thing you can do...you'll see in the example below that I tried some of the stitches with different stitch lengths/widths just to get an idea of what I could customize.

As I mentioned before, putting something like this together isn't difficult, but it is certainly tedious. I had over 100 stitches to sample! But, I have to say, in the end it was definitely worth it and I'd recommend everyone give it a try. I've used my little book on many occasions and I'm not sure I'd have turned to my decorative stitches so often if I only had that little card to refer to that came with my machine.

Give it a try and I'll bet you'll be glad you did!



Downloading an Embroidery Design

There are a lot of sites that provide embroidery designs. And for some of us that is a good thing! One that I've used is called Urban Threads. It has some great contemporary designs. In this post, I'm going to write about selecting a design and how to use it.

Magpie Quilters has a challenge we're working on; everyone has a piece of linen/cotton and is to embellish one square for each member of the group. Only rules are that the finished piece is to be 3.5"x3.5", a clear quarter inch band around the perimeter (to allow it to be sewn into a project), and the embellishment must include some green. Pretty simple, eh?

When I sat down to decide what I wanted to do, I knew I'd like to do some hand embroidery and maybe some beads. Then I started to think about the design. hhmmm. There are flowers, geometrics...oh, and there are Celtic Knots. I have a soft spot in my heart for Celtic Knots. 

So I went onto the Urban Threads site to see what they had. There were a few different Celtic Knots to choose from. After looking through them and deciding what I wanted to do, this is the one I selected.

You can see that when purchased, the design can be either for hand or machine embroidery. In my case I wanted it for hand embroidery.  Next I considered what I'd have to do to get that pattern on fabric myself (via light box - assuming I had one!) I thought the price of $1 was reasonable. Once I paid the fee, I received an email from Urban Threads with the download which I saved to my hard drive:

 As I mentioned previously, I don't have a light box, so I had to look for an alternative to get the design on my fabric.  I shrunk the pattern down to about a 3" square and printed two copies. Then I got a piece of freezer paper, ironed it onto my fabric and ran it through my printer. Voila!

The nice thing about having the design on a bigger piece of fabric is that I'm able to put it in a hoop. I decided to use the simple back stitch  with a very fun and colorful embroidery thread.

I'm really pleased with the result. I'll use the same Celtic Knot again and change it up a bit.  Maybe some  beads...love to use beads. If you're interested in adding embroidery to a project, give some of the web sites like Urban Threads a look; you might find something inspiring that will really compliment your project. Happy stitching!