The Stitch Up

Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas

My last Christmas craft for the season.  I finally managed to put the finishing work on some fabric I bought in Paris years ago to use it as a tablecloth.

This is one of those projects that I pull out around the holidays but have never finished.  I actually thought I'd bought more fabric and would need to cut it down to an appropriate tablecloth size, but ultimately it was a bit short of standard tablecloth length.  These are maybe the risks of purchasing fabric in a country where you don't speak the language AND don't use the same system of measurement.  BUT - for my small kitchen table, the size ultimately worked just fine.

Because the fabric was essentially pre-cut this ended up being a VERY quick project.  I used a wide size quilt binding tape to finish the tablecloth and I think it came out really nice.

I like the way this came out.  It is a Christmas pattern but I think I can get away with it for Valentines Day as well?  I like the pattern so much I hate to pack it away for just once a year.  

After all the crafting, baking, shopping and wrapping, we're having a very quiet Christmas and it's a perfect way to start winding down the year.  I hope everyone is finding peace, calm and having a Merry Christmas.

Angels We Have Heard On High!

My friend and I were finally able to do our Christmas craft exchange.  I always love seeing our different takes on the craft for the year.  This time we chose Christmas Angel tree toppers and as always it was a super fun project and really put me in the Christmas mood.

There are a number of different ways to do this.  I used a few different tutorials to get me started and give me some ideas.  If you're interested in this project some good places to start are with a few youtube videos that walk you through the process.  I liked this one from Carly Sunshine Crafts and this one from Mi Cottage Crafts.  You can find the porcelain angel faces and hands on Etsy.  The cone I used is available on Amazon.  My friend actually found a pre-lit plastic cone that she was able to use for the base.

I started with decoupaging a little message onto the cone for my friend.  

I'll say that if you use the paper mâché cone, it might be a good idea to paint it white as it does show through a bit through a white satin or other fabric.  As I ended up layering my fabrics it wasn't too much of a problem.

My friend is Italian so my "vision" was to come up with a design that celebrated some Italian aspects of Christmas.  I came up with a nod to the feast of the seven fishes and a ribbon banner reading "Buon Natale".

I didn't do much sewing.  It was mainly draping and then hot gluing fabric in place.  The only sewing I really did was to embroider the banner and then some fish designs on the back of one of the fabrics.

I loved this angel porcelain doll head I found - she looks like a botticelli angel!  

I layered a green silk on top of the white that I had embroidered with fish.  I'll have to upload my sketch as I included some italian words in the design, but it doesn't show up too well.

I added some additional gold silk over all of it and hope it looks very angelic!

My friend is an avid thrift store aficionado and estate sale pro.  Her take on the tree top angel utilized tons of vintage costume jewelry that she's collected over the years.  The angel she made sparkles and shines even without being lit up.

But when she does light up - she is the perfect Christmas tree topper!

I am fully in the Christmas spirit - I hope you've all had time to enjoy the season and are getting ready to snuggle in for a wonderful holiday!

 

Hark the Herald Angels Sing

I've been busy with Christmas crafts already.  The main project I've been working is a tree topper angel which I'll brag all about once I know my friend has received it in the mail. Just in case my friend stops by the blog ahead of its arrival I don't want the surprise to be spoiled!

In the mean time, I worked on a side craft to compliment the tree top angel to share with our friends that don't get involved in the yearly Christmas craft exchange.  

Angel Wing ornaments!  I thought of this after researching some ideas for the wings of my Christmas tree topper.  I ended up finding a few tutorials on Pinterest, but primarily used this tutorial from Whitewood and Linen.  I also used this wing template from Shop Island Greetings on Etsy.  The author of Whitewood and Linen very optimistically recommended that you could just draw your own wings, but after a few attempts just did not come out the way I wanted, I went with the very nicely drawn template from Shop Island Greetings.

I searched out a quote on friendship and wings, printed it on fabric and attached to the wings.  This was a nice project to use some of the Christmas fabric scraps and fat quarters I have around.  

I packaged them all up with some Christmas treats and sent off to my friends with lots of love.  This year has been long and a bit tough for everyone, especially for two of my friends who are teachers and have been working through all the extra demands this last year has brought.  I hope this small package will bring a smile to their face and remind them how much they mean to me.

Hope everyone's Christmas crafting, planning, shopping and baking is going well!  Excited to share more holiday cheer in the next two weeks!

So Close!!

I am really close to finishing up the needlework bag kit I've been working on for the past four years off and on.  I finished the needlepoint of the two panels and now I'm ready to sew in a lining and then sew the two panels together.  Luckily I had some assistance in cutting out the two panels:

The directions for how to put the lining in and sew the two pieces together are not exactly detailed.  This is all you get:

I did find some similar project online however and they were really helpful in providing some guidance on sewing a lining into a needlepoint bag and finishing the project.  I think the best overall guidance I found was on Makezine - it's a start to finish project for a very cute needlepoint bag so if you're looking for an entry level needlepoint bag - that's a good one to start with.

I've started sewing the lining in now and hopefully will have the bag all stitched together by the end of the week.

It's very exciting to be approaching the finish line on this one.  I can't wait to share the final product!

 

Spanish Embroidery of the American Southwest

Within the mix of textiles I think about as being part of the Southwest frontier include the brightly embroidered shawls, blouses and quilts that originated from Mexico and its Spanish origins.  In doing a  little research, the majority of what I think of as Spanish or Mexican embroidery is the "Colcha" embroidery.  [1]  Colcha embroidery was originally used to mend holes in bed spreads called Colchas and the Colcha stitch was a method that preserved yarn at a time when textiles were the result of a long process of collecting wool from sheep and turning it into yarn. [2]

 

The wool on wool Colcha embroidery is one of the few textiles developed and made in New Mexico during the Spanish Colonial period.  [3]  Wool used for Colcha embroidery was dyed using indigenous plants and the designs reflected the animals and plants that women saw in their daily lives. [4]  While commercial yardage and yarns did eventually become available and started to influence styles and compositions of embroidery, the remoteness of the regions in New Mexico where Colcha was practiced meant that women had to be resourceful and the Colcha tradition was further defined by the use of recycled textiles. [5]

 

One of the best resources I found on Colcha Embroidery is the book "New Mexico Colcha Club" which covers the history of Colcha embroidery as well as efforts by a group of women in New Mexico to preserve the technique and share its history.  [6]  The book explains that the Colcha style uses just one stitch - the "Colcha" stitch - rather than a combination of stitches.  [7]

 

 

(Photo from the book "New Mexico Colcha Club")

 

The author of "New Mexico Colcha Club" believes that the Colcha stitch provided an easy and extremely flexible stitch that could be used to cover a large quilt faster than any other stitch.  [8]

 

 

(Photo from the book "New Mexico Colcha Club")

 

The availability of factory made cotton fabric and finer plied yarns mentioned above did result in a new branch of Colcha embroidery with a change in design.  [9].  Designs of freestanding motifs were used more than a covering of the entire ground with a continuum of stitches as with the wool on wool style.  The Colcha stitch was still the fundamental, dominant stitch in the wool on cotton branch of Colcha embroidery but additional types of stitches - chain, stem, satin and split stitches - were also used.  [10]

 

 

(Photo from the book "New Mexico Colcha Club")

 

Colcha embroidery died off at the turn of the century as the textiles used in the Southwest  became more of the purchased, factory made variety and less of the wool that was locally woven and decorated.  I've read a few different accounts of women who made a concerted effort to preserve and teach Colcha embroidery.  "New Mexico Colcha Club" covers the efforts of Maria Adela Teofila Ortiz Lujan to establish a social club that met monthly to share patterns, work on Colcha projects and enjoy each other's company. [11] The history of Colcha embroidery was also preserved through the Spanish Colonial Arts Society in New Mexico which acquired and displayed historic Colcha embroideries.  [12]  The tradition of Colcha embroidery continues to be carried out by women in New Mexico, including Esther Vigil the daughter of Teofila Lujan.  Ms. Vigil  displays her Colcha artwork and has taught classes on the history and technique of Colcha. [13] 

 

 

(Photo from the book "New Mexico Colcha Club")

 

I think a lot about what attracts me to quilting, embroidery and other textile art forms.  I get glimpses of it when I read about preservation efforts of traditional techniques or stories of women who enjoyed the same textile hobbies hundreds of years ago that I enjoy now.  These fiber art forms provided women over the centuries with a creative outlet and an opportunity to bond and socialize. It's an art form that's more likely to be taught from mother to daughter, or between friends than taught in a formal setting but it should be preserved and celebrated in the same way that painting or sculpture is preserved. I so admire the effort it takes to maintain historic techniques when the world wants things quicker and easier each decade.  Reading about historic textile art forms and the women who defined them is always inspirational for me and I hope you all were inspired as well!

 

References:

 

[1] Deborah Busmeyer, A Stitch Out of Time (July, 2016) https://www.newmexico.org/nmmagazine/articles/post/art-nm-97074/

[2] Busemeyer

[3] Lynne Robinson, Colcha: Stitches and Stories (June, 2019)

[4] Robinson

[5] Robinson

[6] Nancy C. Benson, New Mexico Colcha Club, Spanish Colonial Embroidery & The Women Who Save It, (Museum of New Mexica Press, 2008)

[7] Benson, 48

[8] Benson, 59

[9] Benson, 70

[10] Benson, 71

[11] Benson, 103

[12] Benson, 109

[13] Benson, 155

2020 End of Year Wrap Up

I didn't get as many Christmas crafts done as I had hoped this year however, my friend Teresa and I did do another Christmas themed craft exchange since last years Elf exchange went so well.  This year we decided on Christmas nesting dolls and we got crafty with it.

 

I decided to try making a set of dolls based on the Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer cartoon.  I made Hervey the elf, Rudolph,  Yukon Cornelius, Sam the Snowman and the Abominable Snowman.  I'm not a skilled or practiced painter so I sketched things out a bit before I picked up the paint brush which helped.  Overall this was a really fun project and I'm happy with how everything came out.

 

My friend made a more traditional matroyshka style set of nesting dolls with a Christmas spin and they are so cute!

 

Teresa is pretty amazing with a paint brush.  I don't think the photo captures how perfect the tiniest nesting doll is, but it's amazing.

 

As always I had a lot more crafting planned for the Christmas season.  I wanted to make more progress on the table runner I started last year, plus FINALLY complete the tablecloth I've been planning for years.  But despite the fact that COVID has made this a much quieter Christmas season without as many social obligations, work and trying to get gifts out to everyone in time for the holidays put me off my game a bit. 

 

In general, this year was a learning one for me.  I had what I thought was a great plan to pick out 3 or 4 WIPS to do each season so I could really move through my backlog of projects.  And initially I had some good momentum and thought I'd really cracked the code on working through my stash. That lasted about one season. 

 

The WIPs I chose for the Spring season took much longer than I'd thought they would and it threw off my plan for the rest of the year.  The needlepoint bag and the knitted shawl are both still in progress - although the shawl is much closer to completion then the bag .

 

While I didn't get all the projects done that I'd hoped this year, I did learn quite a bit about pacing myself, setting realistic expectations and accepting that sometimes life will throw the occasional twists and turns that might change my plans.

 

I'm hoping to use all of those lessons in the New Year with my NEW PLANS to work through some WIPs. (Yes I am undaunted by last year!) I'm still focused on using the materials and projects that I currently have rather than buying new items - just another resolution to add to my list for 2021!

 

Wishing everyone a Happy New Year that brings health and happiness to all!  See you next year!  (Sorry I can't help myself)

Summer is Actually Still Spring and Inspiration

I vastly underestimated how long it would take me to finish my Spring projects. Either that or I underestimated how much life in general would get in the way of my important crafting deadlines.  Since we are well into Summer, my Spring Bohemian projects are really now Spring/Summer Bohemian projects. It's a little bit of a bummer as I had some desert themed projects in mind for Summer, but there's always next year!!

WIPs

Despite not wrapping them up, I have made some progress on my projects. I'm close to finishing up the Art Quilt project "Little Selfie on the Prairie". This started with a sketch and then I more or less played it by ear to create a portrait with fabric.

I'd planned to give this a crazy quilt look with some finishing stitches.  This has ended up being a little tough with the appliqué layers.  I should have done a lot of the crazy stitching on the background fabrics first, then appliquéd the girl and wagon on after, but - you make, you learn right?  I'm almost done with the stitching now and I think over all I'm happy with the result.

The knit shawl is in progress.  I'm finished with the first color, and have just moved to the next, which is a darker grey.  Two more colors after that so it's got a ways to go but this was another project that involved some new techniques to me, so I'm happy to be learning as I go.

Last but not least, the needlepoint bag - it's so much stitching!!  I finished one side, I'm almost done with the straps and then it's just ("just") finishing the other side.

At this point I think I'll still be working on this needlepoint bag through the end of the year, but it's so pretty it's worth the time!

Inspiration

I've been reading a book by Lisa Congdon called Finding Your Artistic Voice.  It's really helping me identify ways to focus in on what I want my "voice" to be as an artist.  I'm realizing that a lot of the things I've been doing this year with the "Bohemian Frontier" articles, some of the WIPs I've prioritized, and the themes I've been creating for each season are all methods I've been using to pursue a concept - I just haven't put everything together into a cohesive "voice".

Lisa Congdon's book recommends some exercises to get you to work through your inspirations, practice what interests you and get to that original idea or style that makes your art your own.  One of the exercises she recommends is making a "Family Tree" of your inspiration - making each branch one of the things you're inspired by.  I loved that idea but decided to make it an inspiration quilt drawing.

Congdon also has lots of interviews with other artists who give great advice on the process of creativity.  Overall, Im loving the book and I think even as a hobbyist I enjoy what I'm making so much more when everything is kind of clicking together and I think her books helps get you to that place.

 

 

 

Progress with Patches

The end of Spring was officially June 20th but I am still working on most of my crafts for the Spring.  The one thing that I was able to wrap up this week is the patched jeans project.  I started off by repairing the worn out areas of the jeans.

To do the mending I used some tips from the book Mending Matters.  It has great tips for mending denim and also includes some nice essays on slow fashion and using mending as an exercise in mindfulness.  One of the passages from the author Katrina Rodabaugh that I really liked was "...the point is not to have a perfect closet filled with perfect garments, but to cultivate mindfulness-mendfulness-and make deliberate choices, focus on what you can do to make a positive impact, and gain a deeper understanding of your true preferences and style.  Mendfulness is also about growing a deeper understanding of how clothing is constructed, where fiber originates, the exact material content of clothing, and the working conditions of the fashion factories you support."

As part of the repair process I found some denim scraps that matched my jeans, pinned them in place and started stitching.  

The mending style recommended in Mending Matters is similar to Sashiko.  Even though its just patching and mending, the end result is a pretty pattern.

To apply the patches to the jeans, I used two tutorials: one from Sincerely Colleen and one from chezlin.  Both recommended tacking down stray threads on the designs with Mod Podge as a first step to making the patches.

Once the Mod Podge had dried, I used fusible web for the back of the patches.  Then I arranged the patches the way I wanted them and ironed them onto my jeans.

I'm not sure whether I didn't iron correctly or the beading prevented the material from adhering but the patches weren't really secure so I also stitched around each of the patches on my sewing machine.  I like the end result although I'm already thinking that it needs some additional patches and maybe some embroidery along the seam.

My other Spring project are coming along pretty well although I'm only about half done with the needlepoint bag.  It really is such a big project, I'm thinking it's going to take all of summer to finish, so I'll probably be rolling it over into my list of projects for the Summer.  Still, I have one side almost totally complete which feels good.

The art quilt IS close to completion.  I have all of the parts combined and my plan now is to just enhance it with a little embroidery.  I have in mind some crazy quilt stitching for the background.  I'll see how it looks on the hills in the background and then decide how to go forward.

I like how the colors are coming together but it does need some extra detail.

Last but not least, I was really dragging my feet on the knit shawl.  Truth be told, I just didn't really understand the pattern I'd intended to use as I'm still too much of a novice with knitting.  I decided to go with a very simple, triangle wrap pattern by Mama in a Stitch.  I'm not too far on it yet but I feel more confident about my ability to complete the shawl with this pattern.

I'm giving myself until the middle of July to finish everything but the needlepoint bag and then move on to new projects for the Summer.  

Everything is still so weird with the constantly changing COVID rules and requirements.  I'm finding a lot of help for anxiety and generalize worry by concentrating on some simple projects and being in the moment for an hour or two each day, just contemplating stitches or gauge or thread.  I hope everyone is able to find some peace in these crazy moments with a little craft. 

Bohemian Spring WIPs

Time to move on to a new round of WIPs!  It's Spring and we've been doing some weeding and planting and trying to get outside as much as possible, but after a really nice week of warm weather it's been cold and rainy - so a perfect time to snuggle inside and get crafty!

My theme for the next few months is "Bohemian Spring":

I took this photo at a shop in Phoenix and then did a little graphic work on Picmonkey!  I tried to choose 4 WIPs with a little bit of a 'hippie' vibe.  I've put the inspiration photos on my project board with my "theme" photo.

Without further ado - here's what I'll be working on:

1.    Embellished jeans 

As part of my effort to reuse and recycle I've been saving jeans that wear out.  Some I'm cutting up into squares and they will be part of a quilt project I'm planning for the Summer.  But for jeans that are more "gently" worn, I want to just repair any holes and then fancy them up with some embroidered patches.  I have a sweatshirt with embroidered birds that does not fit great and I wasn't wearing it too often.  SO - I just cut the birds out and I'm going to use them to embellish the jeans.  I also bought some cool notions at Mood on one of our trips to New York a few years ago and I think one or two of those will go with the birds I'm using.  I'm also thinking to add some additional patches that I'm making from designs from a Tattoo coloring book.  So far, I've spent some time transferring the designs and organizing all of the embellishments on my jeans.

I think once I've embroidered the additional designs I'll pin everything on the jeans to make sure that I like the placement.

2.    Needlepoint Bag

The next project I've been working on off and on for awhile.  It's the Bergama Shoulder Bag from Anchor Crafts.  I bought it a couple years ago at Craft South in Nashville.  It's sold out now unfortunately so I'm glad I picked it up when I did but it's a big project to complete and kind of unwieldy to work on so its been slow going.  In order to get it done in the next few months I'm utilizing the husbands saw-horses so I can handle the large frame. It's working pretty well.

I've been working on a small section each night and I'm making some progress!

3.    "Little Selfie on the Prairie" - Embroidered Art Quilt 

I sketched this out last year with the plan to make an appliqué, embroidery art piece.

So far I've picked out the fabrics and I should be able to fuse the background together this weekend.  After that I'll need to make patterns to appliqué the girl and wagon and then start embroidering.  I'm excited to see how it turns out.

4.    Gradient Half Pi Shawl

I bought the Gradient Half Pi shawl pattern at Fibrespace here in Virginia a few years ago.  I also bought some really pretty yarn to make it with!  I'm nervous about this one - my knitting skills are still pretty basic.  If I do have trouble I've found a lot of half pi tutorials on YouTube so I'm hoping I can follow along.

So those are the plans!  Writing it all down here has helped to keep me on task so far so I'm enjoying the process.  I hope it's also enjoyable to read about!
 

Mask Break

I took a little break between seasonal WIP efforts to make some masks for family and friends (and myself!)  At this point, in my state, it's still optional to wear masks but people are encouraged to wear them when out and about.  However, some of my friends are in locations where masks are mandatory, so I thought I'd make a bunch and hope that the masks are helpful.  It's also an opportunity to show my friends and family that I'm thinking of them while we're all going through this.

I used the face mask tutorial from Melanie Ham - I tend to learn best with a visual tutorial, but Melanie also provides a written version of the tutorial on her website.  I had some elastic left over from past projects but if you don't have elastic she also has a tutorial for a face mask using ties.

In addition to hopefully being useful to everyone, this is a pretty great stash buster.  I'm going to try and fit in some additional time to make more masks for friends as well as some of the groups needing face masks locally.  My friends are also talking about getting together online for a virtual happy hour and photo of us all wearing the masks - so I may update with a group pic!

I'm still finding a lot of comfort in sewing and crafting.  It's a great way to check out a bit from what's going on in the world and just focus on a project - even when the project is a face mask to protect us all against infection in this pandemic.  I hope everyone is finding similar escape with your projects and staying safe and healthy.