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 9, 2011
Yesterday, working with my one-and-only student right now, we transferred an embroidery design onto a piece of velveteen. We managed the transfer in three steps instead of two. I’d like to show you the beginnings of the work, and tell you about our decision process along the way.
August 8, 2011
Here are five points that are helpful to know about hand embroidery needles:
August 6, 2011
Here are five points that deserve emphasis when considering the ground fabric for hand embroidery:
1. Importance of the ground: The “ground fabric” (the fabric on which you work your embroidery) is as important as the design, threads, colors, and techniques that you employ – and sometimes, it’s more important!
August 5, 2011
Here’s a brief (really brief!) update on the Talliaferro Royal Persian Blossom design that I’m working in conjunction with our stitch along over on Ask & Share.
August 4, 2011
Lately, I’ve taken to considering the scale of embroidery projects that I work. “Small” and “large” are relative terms when it comes to hand embroidery. Sure, a small four inch embroidery design, when lined up next to a large forty inch embroidery design, will look small, no matter what.
But there are times when a four inch embroidery design can be huge. Let me show you what I mean!
August 3, 2011
The other day, I posted photos of a mystery stitch, and received some really good response from readers who offered a variety of ways to construct the unknown stitch. Today, I’ve got a couple pictures of a hand-made lace, and knowing that many of you are very knowledgeable about lace of various types, I thought I’d post the photos and see if you can come up with the type of lace, or perhaps determine the techniques involved in making pieces that look like this.
The photos come from a reader who recently visited an exhibit at the Utah Quilt Guild museum. They had a display on lace, with various types of lace exhibited and named. They called these two samples “Mystery Lace,” as they didn’t recognize the type, with a request for any information. The visitor took photos and sent them on to me, and I thought it would be fun to send them on to you! I’m no lace expert, that’s for sure!
August 2, 2011
This is a magnificently complex rectangular design from Lilly’s Legacy, a collection of Hungarian folk embroidery patterns drawn by graphic artist Lilly Baróthi Zathureczky between the 1930’s & the 1960’s. Today’s design was drawn in 1945, while Lilly was living in a refugee camp in Reggio Emilia, Italy.
Unlike most of her other drawings I’ve posted so far, this one is not completely colored. Just a corner has been painted, with the outline of the rest of the design drawn in ink.
