I learned to embroider when I was a kid, when everyone was really into cross stitch (remember the '80s?). Eventually, I migrated to surface embroidery, teaching myself with whatever I could get my hands on...read more
Contact Mary
I learned to embroider when I was a kid, when everyone was really into cross stitch (remember the '80s?). Eventually, I migrated to surface embroidery, teaching myself with whatever I could get my hands on...read more
Contact Mary
March 10, 2014
After showing you these chatelaine scissors from Simply Scissors last week, I figured this morning would be the Perfect Monday Morning for a give-away.
If, like me, you’re trying to recoup from the Dreadful Time Change this weekend, you need a pick-me-up, anyway!
March 7, 2014
I’m having So Much Fun embroidering the leaves on the Secret Garden project!!
The small and medium-small leaves work up really quickly if you’re using fishbone stitch and fly stitch, which we talked about the other day.
And with hopes of spring springing eternal, the green is a mood lifter right now, too. Winter’s loosening up its hold here in Kansas – the sun is shining, the temperature is creeping upwards, almost all the snow is gone, the birds are singing cheerily of a morning. And stitching green leaves makes me ever-hopeful that spring is just around the corner.
Today, we’ll look at a full shot of all the vines finished and a good amount of the small leaves finished, and we’ll discuss some more tips for working the small and medium sized leaves on the project.
March 6, 2014
Scissors here, scissors there. I know I put my scissors … somewhere!
Does that ever describe you? I’d like to say it doesn’t describe me, but there are times, you know – times when I fuddle about, looking for my scissors.
There are all kinds of devices to help us avoid Fuddling About for Scissors. For example, I wrote about this wooden tool caddy that serves as a scissor, pencil, and tool holder. I use it all the time!
Another example: Scissor Pulls – I wrote about them here, and I’ve got instructions to make several varieties of them in my Lavender Honey & Other Little Things e-book. Scissor pulls are handy – I love them! They make great gifts, are fun to personalize, and they’re easy and quick to embroider.
There’s another kind of decorative device that’s been used for years and years, for keeping your scissors (and other tools) close to you. It’s called a chatelaine.
March 5, 2014
You will find small leaves in great abundance on the Secret Garden Hummingbirds project!
And while stitching too many of one shape in an embroidery design can become tedious after a while, the nice thing about leaves is that there are So Many Options for embroidering them.
Today, since some of you have expressed interest in starting the leaves, I thought I’d give a brief overview and some pointers, so you can plow full speed ahead.
March 4, 2014
Occasionally, I like to go strolling about online for little needlework browses. Usually, these are prompted by blog posts of other needleworkers, by newsletters, or just by my own curiosity, to see what’s going on with other embroiderers or needlework-related enterprises that I’m interested in.
When I do this, I keep a list of links that I think would be of interest to you, too, and when I have the chance, I like to mix them all up in an article, so that you can go browsing, too.
Not that I would ever advocate Procrastination or any similar Heinous Habits … but really, sometimes, it’s just Fun to procrastinate! Think of it as Relaxing. Think of it as Garnering Inspiration.
Ah – the Justification of Procrastination! I could write a book on the subject.
So, pour yourself a delectable cup of coffee or tea, and let’s go meandering together!
March 3, 2014
Before moving onto the leaves on the Secret Garden embroidery project, I wanted to show you how I muted some of the vines on the project, by adding a little twiggy brown into the mix.
March 1, 2014
If you were the type of person to daydream about embroidery thread, what type of thread would you dream about?
For me, it’s silk.
I can dream about silk embroidery threads all day long, if I let myself.
Today, I’m going to let myself.
Ok. I don’t mean I’m spending my day with my head in the clouds, staring out the windows, picturing the world enrobed in silk threads. I’m not going to have conversations with imaginary skeins of silk. (Well. I don’t think I’m going to, anyway…)
But I am going to think about silk. I’m going to sort silk. Test silk. Touch silk. Group it, organize it, mix it up again. And I might even dabble with some preliminary stitches with silk threads. My goal today is to make decisions about silk, and so – poor me – to do that, I have to surround myself with silk embroidery threads.
I know. It’s such a tough way to spend the day.
