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
August 25, 2011
Today, I’d like to give you an opportunity to win a copy of Trish Burr’s new book, Needle Painting Embroidery: Fresh Ideas for Beginners. (That link will take you to my review, if you’d like to read it.)
August 24, 2011
The bullion knot is a terrific little slug-like stitch. Oh, that sounds ugly. It’s a terrifically beautiful stitch, and you can make terrifically beautiful things with it!
It’s a terrifically versatile stitch, too.
And at first, it can be terrifically intimidating.
To help you with the latter point, I have a how-to video for the bullion knot. In the video, I’ve worked the bullions with the fabric in a hoop that’s stretched somewhat tight, but not tight enough to prevent me from making the bullion knot easily.
Today, we’re going to look at the bullion knot, worked on fabric that’s framed up very taut in an embroidery frame. When the fabric is very taut, and when you’re working in a frame with two hands available for the stitching (you don’t have to hold the hoop with one hand), there’s a slightly different method you can use for making a bullion knot. You might find it much easier to approach bullions this way.
August 23, 2011
Would you believe me if I said that embroidery can be strenuous work? Most people wouldn’t! But it can be – depending on the type of embroidery.
Lately, I’ve been working on some fairly intense embroidery projects. The kind that require concentration. The kind that require space in my workroom. The kind that are not transportable. I can’t sit and chat with friends or watch a movie and do them. In fact, when I’m working on them, I become rather anti-social.
But I like embroidery to be a social thing. I like to embroider around people. If I want to watch a movie of an evening with friends and family, I like to have something to do with my hands. I like to grab a project and take it with me on long car rides, or if I’m going somewhere that will inevitably require a wait.
For these situations, I usually have a few projects set up that I call grab & go projects, or “social” embroidery projects. Most of them are casual embroidery items that I give away.
August 20, 2011
Needle Painting Embroidery: Fresh Ideas for Beginners by Trish Burr is hot off the press – and I think it’s definitely a “must have” for any embroidery library. If you’re keen to learn needle painting (a.k.a. long & short stitch embroidery, silk shading, thread painting), then Trish Burr is one of the best needle artists to learn it from, and this book is going to be one of your favorite resources for both instructions and projects.
August 19, 2011
Yesterday morning, I finished setting up a slate frame for my little goldwork class. Having run out of twill tape, cotton webbing, and any other stuff pre-made into sturdy strips that I could sew onto the sides of the linen for lacing the frame, I had to improvise.
August 18, 2011
Here’s a nice little stylized rose border that can be used for your hand embroidery projects. It’s a repeatable design, so you can make it as long as you wish. The pattern prints (from the PDF below) at 3″ wide.
August 17, 2011
A couple weeks ago, we looked at 5 points about hand embroidery needles, and 5 points concerning hand embroidery fabric.
Today, I’d like to propose 5 general thoughts about hand embroidery and invite you to add your own thoughts. When you think of hand embroidery in general, what ideas or insights would you share with other stitchers or with folks who are just getting interested in the art of embroidery?
Here are 5 points that I think are worth considering about hand embroidery in general:
