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Mary Corbet

writer and founder

 

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

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January 23, 2014

Speaking of Blackwork & Projects, This Looks Fun…

 

Amazon Books

Were we speaking of blackwork? Well, we were last week!

You know I have this thing for “15 Minute Projects” and “grab and go” projects. That’s what the Hungarian Runner is right now. And when the Hungarian runner is finished, I’m going to need another “15 minute” project to fill in those 15-minute gaps this year.

Now, granted, I do have the Secret Garden projects going, but those are “studio” projects – I work on them in my workroom only, because that’s where I can photograph things, take good notes, and prepare overly wordy articles for you.

Blackwork Journey
Continue reading “Speaking of Blackwork & Projects, This Looks Fun…”

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January 21, 2014

Hungarian Redwork Runner – A Little Progress

 

It’s been a while since we last glimpsed this red-on-white, never-ending, ever-present, long-neglected project of mine – the Hungarian Redwork Runner.

It’s called the Hungarian Redwork Runner not because it’s technically Hungarian redwork. It’s a Hungarian design, worked entirely in red, with two stitches only: the chain stitch and the Hungarian braided chain stitch.

Hungarian Redwork Embroidery Project
Continue reading “Hungarian Redwork Runner – A Little Progress”

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January 20, 2014

Reverse Chain Stitch Speeds Things Up

 

I’ve been using chain stitch a lot lately!

And there’s good reason for that. First of all, chain stitch is a versatile stitch, great for outlining. But chains stitch also makes a wonderful filling stitch.

Besides its versatility, there’s the whole Easy Thing going on. It’s one of the basic embroidery stitches, easy to work for any level of embroiderer.

Besides exploring chain stitch in tambour embroidery, I’ve been using the regular surface embroidery stitch called chain stitch (with a needle) on the Hungarian redwork runner that I started eons ago. There’s a lot of chain stitch on that piece – mostly in the form of squiggly or curly lines.

Did you know that you can speed up chain stitch a little bit – especially when working curls and swirls on line patterns – by switching to reverse chain stitch?

Reverse chain stitch looks exactly like chain stitch, but it works up in reverse. Let me show you how:

Reverse Chain Stitch
Continue reading “Reverse Chain Stitch Speeds Things Up”

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January 17, 2014

Hungarian meets Blackwork: Reader’s Embroidery

 

A few years ago, these Hungarian embroidery patterns began to appear on Needle ‘n Thread. If you haven’t read about them and how they came to be here, you can read the backstory of this collection of patterns in this article, which features the first pattern offered, which I called “Golden Circle.”

Mary Martin of Larkspur Stitchery on Facebook stitched up Lilly’s Golden Circle design in blackwork. She did a fantastic job, and I love the way she adapted the design for blackwork.

I thought it would be fun to share her Hungarian blackwork piece with you, in hopes that it might inspire you, too!

Hungarian Embroidery Design in Blackwork
Continue reading “Hungarian meets Blackwork: Reader’s Embroidery”

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January 16, 2014

Needlework Tool: Thread-Tucker-Tweaker-Fixer-Thingy

 

Quite a while ago, when I was writing about tambour embroidery, a reader asked about a tool in my tool box that showed up in one of my photos.

Well, I would have answered the tool question a little more clearly and directly, except that, in all honesty, I didn’t know what the tool was called.

Sometimes, I call it a Tucker Tool. Sometimes, I call it a Tweaker. Sometimes, I call it by its long name (invented by me) – it’s a Thread-Tucker-Tweaker-Fixer-Thingy.

Not knowing its official name made it somewhat difficult to look up, but I did eventually find it online. I discovered that it has an official name – it is a Stitch Fixer.

I wasn’t too far off!

Let me introduce you to this handy tool that’s been in my box for years, and that I use All the Time, for All Kinds of Things.

Stitch Fixer Needlework Tool
Continue reading “Needlework Tool: Thread-Tucker-Tweaker-Fixer-Thingy”