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Barnstable County Fair wins
Tue Jul 27, 2010 10:24 am
[  Mood: Happy ] [  Currently: Watching David Starkey's Monarchy ]
Well, it's been over 2 and a half months since I posted an update, so it's finally time for an update. I picked up my pieces from the Barnstable County Fair yesterday, so I'm going to subject you to some pictures.
This is a picture of all of the items that I entered in the fair:
My Hare Pyns won Best of Show. The comments from the judges said that they couldn't find any suggestions to improve it and that they all wanted one. 
I also finally finished Lancaster Manor Pocket about a week before the fair and took it along. It won a first place and the Judge's Choice from one of the Judges.
I think I'd have won a silver bowl if I actually lived on Cape Cod, but I did get a bit of prize money.
Hare Pyns has detail pictures in previous blog entries, but here are some details of Lancaster Manor Pocket as I know I haven't posted them. The stitching was designed and taught by Wendy White of Wee Works and the finishing was taught (mid June) by Marcia Brown of The Binding Stitch.
This is the House side:
This is the Sampler Side:
And this is the inside. The picture is how I entered it, so those aren't really scrimshaw pieces; they're photocopies that I made and cut out so that they'd look nice for the fair and I wouldn't have to worry about them getting lost or taken.
Thanks for letting me brag!
Robbin
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Celebration of Needlework
Tue May 04, 2010 6:48 am
[  Mood: Sleepy ] [  Currently: Stitching ]
Is this day over yet? I want to be back at Celebration of Needlework, especially since work was crazy and is now in this weird waiting period but will soon go crazy again. So I'm going to have lots to do when some decisions are made but now it's just frustrating.
Anyway, I'm finally getting back into the swing of things after being away for a few days. I headed up to Celebration of Needlework on Thursday morning after paying a visit to my dentist to see about a tooth I cracked on Wednesday. (I get to go back tomorrow and hope it can get a good temporary repair, sigh.)
When I got to Nashua I checked in and went right to Vikki's booth. I had a couple of big pieces with silk ribbon embroidery on them and Vikki's resourceful husband hung them on pieces of Vikki's lovely silk satin ribbon. I also had a small fob to put on display and another little piece I'd made.
Vikki's booth was so colorful and the ribbon made you just want to touch it. It's too bad the floss wasn't there but hopefully that is worked out and Vikki will be up for another visit next year with floss in tow.
Vikki showed me to model for the little needlebook she'd made out of her silk satin ribbon for a Make-it, Take-it project and I said she needed to show them how to put some flowers on to decorate it when she taught it. That's when she told me she wasn't teaching it, I was -- in about 20 minutes!
I'll admit, the first class was a bit of a rush. The class was a great deal -- two cards of ribbon and the material to make the book. The problem was I realized it was best if I demo'd things, so I kept dashing back to to booth for supplies! I had a few students and convinced them that they could all do this (with no model to show them) and they went on their merry way. At least with the second class I knew a bit better what to expect.
Between classes I spent time with Vikki and Laura in the booth or wandered the floor a bit, picking up the few things I knew I needed to get. Nothing really exciting -- a couple of easel backs for frames, some more stitcher's hand cream. I got Vikki's new pearl and bought a piece of linen to try out some pulled work on it. During the day Grace stopped by as well and I caught a picture of the booth with the silk and Laura, Vikki, and Grace:
I think Grace was checking out the silk paper as she thought the teacher of the class she'd just taken would like it. Grace even made a cute model that night of a folding box using the paper and brought it the next day. (No, I don't have a picture and I really want the info on how to get the book to play with these box ideas because it was a fascinating piece.)
Of course everyone had their official nametags, but I managed as requested to get a picture of Vikki modeling the nametag that I made for her:
Many people liked it and I may teach it as a project for one of my EGA chapters next year. I guess that means I need to finish up my own nametag!
Laura was also teaching her perforated paper ornaments and she had great charted designs and a wonderful display of her models. The picture isn't great but here they are:
She also had a great display of other projects that used the ribbon for stitching or for finishing. The register table had lots of Vikki's little items (mother of pearl, etc) on them and people were picking those up, and the other side had a table with linen, paper, and some models that people had sent along on it:
Vikki also had some gorgeous silk satin ribbon in various widths. The wide ribbon we used for the MITI (though she would let people who took the class come back and buy more if they asked) and the rest was out on display:
After the mall closed Laura had to go home and Vikki and her husband kindly took me out to dinner. They are great at innovative design, and you have to see their truck and travel trailer -- it was made from the boards that they took off of the windows at the factory and a great example of reuse of materials in action:
Thursday night I went to the stitchers lounge and spent my stitching time finishing up the needlebook I started when I was teaching. This way Linda had a model available for Friday and Saturday when she was doing classes. It was sitting by the register and I guess people thought it was cute as her classes seemed well attended. (I know I hooked a couple of people while I was working on it.) Here's the front of the book open:
And here's the inside with room to store needles:
I know Vikki had several designers who liked her ribbon or were fascinated about the new silk paper, so hopefully she'll get people who really want to try out her things. And hopefully a few more people will try some silk ribbon embroidery as I know people from the class came and bought some more ribbon.
I really enjoyed both of my classes (with Betsy Morgan and Lauren Sauer) but don't ask me when I'll show you progress pictures as I have far too many projects in progress right now!
Robbin (who liked the little needlebook so much that she needs to make another one for herself)
Posted By: Robbina 6 Comments (Post your comment)
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Another little thing
Sun Apr 25, 2010 10:41 am
[ Currently: Stitching ]
I've been playing around with my silk ribbon and silk satin ribbon, and I decided to see what I could do with some wider ribbon. The stitching was all done freestyle, and don't ask what type of flower these are supposed to be  . I'll just call them a wildflower!
Anyway, I folded the ribbon in half and then did some stitching above the center. It took about half an hour and I made it up as I went along.
Then I folded over the raw edges and wip stitched along the finished sides to put it together. I pinched the top sides with the seams in the middle to make a humbug shape and then wip stitched those together, adding the hanging ribbon at the middle. I stuffed it with a bit of fiberfill and some lavender; I meant to add a bit more weight for a scissor fob but I forgot.
The light ribbon is a bit eye catching for the dark background and it might be nicer with something that is closer, but it was easy and cute. I'm going to try a pointsettia on some green ribbon as I think this would make a cute little thing to give away as a Christmas ornament and they would take me less than an hour to make -- probably less if I don't have to stitch stems!
Here's how it looks on the side, btw:
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Bother, bother, bother
Sun Apr 25, 2010 10:34 am
[ Currently: Stitching ]
I just put together a blog entry and the posting didn't work. Here's the short version:
I finished Needlemania 2 part 3 yesterday:
Here is the latest on my SALexandre:
Here's Copperline with the 3rd part done. We had class for part 4 (the outside) last Tuesday and I'm not sure when I'll get it finished.
And this is almost the latest on my Townhouse -- the inside pieces. I've started on the outside pieces and want to work more on that soon.
I've worked on a few other things but I don't have photos of them right now, I'll I'll upload some more after Celebration of Needlework.
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Another fun ribbon finish
Fri Apr 16, 2010 2:06 am
[  Mood: Fed Up WIth Life ] [  Currently: Working ]
Good grief, work has been crazy this morning. I'm just getting to my morning tea now and I decided I deserved a break.
Anyway, I wanted to show you another piece I just finished. Guess who this is a present for:
Vikki will be at Celebration of Needlework and I thought if she didn't have a nametag she should have one that she should have one that shows off her lovely supplies and what you can do with them. The cross stitch is in a random pearl spool color, which is great coverage on dark card and the bigger holes let you get away with it. (#5 is too big; I think this is a 12 but I'm not positive, it could be 8.) The vines are premium silk in a dark Luteous green and the leaves are BeLeaved. The ribbon for the flowers is from a d-bag because that's what I could find that matched the pearl.
I learned a few things, a big one being that stitching on silk satin ribbon is a lot easier than on perforated paper. With the paper you have to worry about your trailing threads and the ribbon doesn't matter. Of course the paper doesn't pull like I managed to do with the ribbon -- I'll just consider that part of the charm. I did the work on the straps all free form; one side took maybe an hour or two. I just stitched a vine and then filled in flowers. (On the tag I did the main flower first and then the vines and added little flowers. The round ones and dots of the i's are french knots.)
I also learned that trying to get 7mm ribbon through the holes on perforated paper is hard. The paper did tear, but only in one spot so you really can't tell. You're also stuck putting sittches where the fabric allows. On the plus side, it's easy to stitch on and makes a good nametag base. I cut another piece and put it on the back (using backstitch to attach the two and sinking the end thread so you don't see the ends) and slipped some green cardstock paper in a close color in between so you don't see through the holes. If I left the holes open it would be so easy to attach guild pins or things like that to a nametag, something I may try. (You could pin them up the sides of the ribbon instead of stitching on it, too.)
Once I was finished I had a great idea. When I make another one, I'm either not going to completely close the back or I'm going to attach a third piece of card and make a pocket. It's a great place to keep a lunch ticket or official nametag if you want to wear something special looking instead. Just like most of my clothes, my nametag is going to have pockets, too.
Robbin
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Stitching for Literacy
Wed Apr 14, 2010 3:11 pm
[ Currently: Stitching ]
Bother, I hate when I type in the wrong window and lose my post!
Anyway, short version -- Funk and Weber designs has done a Stitching for Literacy campaign for a number of years; Nordic Needle was a big participant last year. This year a number of shops and groups have joined in, from Stitcher's Village to various LNS to EGA. Our Mayflower Sampler Guild program speaker couldn't make it last weekend, so we decided to make bookmarks. Various members contributed supplies -- Fran Colburn of Legacy Designs (I think I have the name right) brought linen and designs, Wendy White of Wee Works and Tokens and Trifles sent Trinkets stitching cards and we had free designs for them available, Denise DeMore, our program chair brought threads and ribbon, and I brought my HDF d-box. (Like a dbag, but all collected together and even more fun!)
Anyway, a number of people picked out designs and materials to stitch. There was to be a drawing for anyone who finished something that day, but we put it off because no one finished. The official ending is May 6th, but we meet in a library and decided to skip entering drawings from groups in favor of giving what we can make to the local library. (One EGA rep wisely reminded anyone who was also an EGA member to log these as outreach hours. )
Oh, well, that's just an introduction in case you want to Google the names (sorry, not looking up links again) and make a bookmark, as lots of places are having drawings, or would just like to support a great idea. Or just have fun playing with things to make a bookmark. I know I saw a post with a great picture of a bookmark done on Vikki's perforated paper for the project and it's a pefect medium.
I must say, people did have fun looking through my d-threads and picking out things to stitch with. (I'll also admit that I put a few purples in my pocket so that they didn't disappear. ) I picked an overdyed red and an old skein of Hunter green for my design, one that several people were doing. It will say "So many books So little time" but right now it looks like this:
I don't have tons of stitching time but Fran's design is Be a reader with a Bee design instead of the word and it's so cute I might try doing it on Vikki's paper. (Fran had some of it there, whether obtained from Vikki or elsewhere, and people were trying it, so I might do it on what I have should I finish what I start or give up sleeping or something.)
After that, I decided that the best bookmarks would be something that could be quickly stitched but still enjoyed. So last night I played with some great new silk paper-like fabric to see if I could stitch with it. I've got a Cricut cutting machine and cut out a couple of different shapes. I used some double sided bonding web and started with these bases:
With a bit of top stitching I had two fun bookmarks, a turtle and a flower. (I swear I spent more time looking through books trying to decide what would fit that flower stem than I did stitching either piece! I finally decided that if I was just learning to read I'd probably love it even if it wasn't botanically correct and stitched what I knew how to do best.)
Here are my finished bookmarks, on silk satin ribbon that I finished on the back with more fusible web. (That stuff is great. I bought some thin pieces instead of sheets when I got it on sale today!)
After that I decided to play more with my paper and my growing ribbon collection. I didn't have a big piece, so I decided to cut something out. As you can see from the outline it cuts well but I didn't judge too well on the size and my first little basket was VERY tiny!
I stitched a small flower (not the best, but it was getting late) on the larger cut out and glued it together, and now I have a very silly little 'popcorn' cup. I can see I could have fun with some stitched scrapbook ideas!
I have some WIP pictures, too, but I'll save those for the next post.
(Okay, it started out as the short version. You know I'm not good at short versions. )
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Some finishes, old and new
Wed Mar 10, 2010 3:25 pm
[ Currently: Stitching ]
Just thought I'd share a few more pictures.
This is a small scissors sheath that I finished in my Olympic stitching moments. The front:
And the back:
Here is the assembled photo album from my Mayflower Sampler Guild; I put it together back in October, I think, and never remembered to post a picture. The outer edge is stitched in long arm cross stitch, which is the same stitch used as the border to the needlebook in Hare Pyns. I changed it from cross stitch and it was great -- I actually ran my threads under the stitch on the front of the piece as I took periodic tacking stitches to attach it to the album. We put the albums together ourselves (covered them with fabric, bound in the pages, etc). I'm going to use it to hold pictures of prize winning needlework when I get around to printing out some pictures.
And here is a Chickadee broach that I stitched on 40ct silk gauze; I started it as a class at Spirit of Cross Stitch in 1996 and finally finished it in 2008! It had so little left to do that I have no idea why I put it aside for so long. Working on the gauze is really easier than people think, if you can get used to the continental tent stitch and not travelling behind uncovered fabric. It does help to fasten threads off with a sharp needle.
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Bunnies in my blog
Sun Mar 07, 2010 6:36 am
[ Mood: Happy ]
As promised, here are some pictures of my Hare Pyns completed. Mary Ann asked about the edge on the needlebook. What you're seeing is actually wool felt that has been cut with craft scissors (scallop edge). The way the instructions are setup you're meant to apply a page of felt to the inside of the main case and then put the cover over that, with wool felt sewn to the back of the stitched piece. I decided to put the felt on the back of the stitched piece (which I just did with overcast stitches in a matching floss) and then attach the second piece of felt to the front of the case (which I did with backstitches into the felt on the front). That way my case can be a separate piece if I want it that way. I did attach the needlebook to the main case, after it was finished, but I can take it off if I decide I want to.
Anyway, here are some finished pictures. The one additional piece that you'll see is the pincushion, which is made from the lining fabric with buttonhole stitch around the edge and spiderweb stitches in the center once the spokes are stitched.
Here's the case from the front with the accessories around it (including bunny scissors and some of the threads on the thread holder):
Here's the inside of the case so you can sort of see how it was made and how the pieces fit inside:
And here's the outside view, open, with the little bits again, in case you didn't see them and don't want to go that far back in my blog!
And since I'm showing off bunnies, here are some pictures of Bunnies in the Garden by Ellen Chester of With My Needle. The threads are Old Willow cotton threads that are listed on the chart (but no longer made, I think) but the ribbons are Vikki's. I thought you'd be interested to see the ruching on the pin cushion and the scissor sheath. (The sheath actually has a divider inside to hold the ruler separate from the scissors. I couldn't find a place to fit the ruler in the case and I didn't want them to rub.)
Here's the outside of the case:
And the inside:
And some detail so that you can see the ruching on the pin cushion:
And this pincushion detatches -- it is stitched on the back and has two loops that fit over buttons with a little bunny hidden underneath.
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Some little finishes
Mon Mar 01, 2010 4:05 am
[ Currently: Working ]
I thought you might like to see some of the little things I've done some finishing on lately.
First, this is a little piece that I stitched during the Olympics and finished last weekend to send back to my MIL for Mother's Day (although of course she opened it early). I'm going to stitch it again for my mom, probably my next purse project. It was fast and worked up nicely. I have and extra frame and plenty of 32ct fabric, and enough thread left over -- all I need to do is get another back for the frame when I'm at Celebration of Needlework.
This is a small piece that I stitched when teaching over-one stitching to one of my EGA chapters. It's a good example of fabric not to use. I think if you scroll back you'll see it in progress, but I finally made it up into a fob. The Nightmare (or something close, this is a mystery spool) looks great with the blue, left-handed Dovos I got a Celebration of Needlework last year.
Here's the front:
And here's the back:
And ta-da, here are 2 smalls for my Hare Pyns set. The needlebook, which I decided to make separately and then attach into the case. This way if I decide I don't like it attached there it can come out completely.
And this is the sheath (and you can see the top of the rabbit scissors sticking out with the fob attached). Since I cut the felt a bit oddly when making the backing to the stitched piece of the needlebook I had to decide whether to make the back page of the needlebook bigger or have felt to put around the sheath. I decided to put it on the needlebook and back the sheath with linen since I had plenty of that. I think it probably was cleaner to sew together that way.
This still needs a small pincushion (mostly fabric with a bit of stitching on it) and then the set is complete. When it's done (hopefully today) I'll post pictures of the whole set and try to get a view of how it looks inside, especially now the the needlepage is attached. I'll try to fix that flash bounce, too.
I have another little sheath I'm hoping to get put together later today, too. It's great to get some of these things done!
Posted By: Robbina 7 Comments (Post your comment)
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A few rotation updates
Mon Mar 01, 2010 3:50 am
[ Currently: Working ]
While waiting and hoping someone will come on-line again at work today, I thought I'd update some progress pictures. Here's the latest progress on some of my pieces:
Here's my SALexandre -- now it has some letters and all of the border is done. I have to be in the mood to work over one on to work on this, but I like how it's coming along:
This is the latest on the Townhouse -- another big inner attachment point finished; 3 little ones to do and some color to add, and I hope to do some of that this coming week if I can find time:
And my Case for Color finally has some color. I stopped because the other Jewelweed pearl I had is too heavy for where I want to use it and that pink isn't right against the border. I've ordered more floss (and hanks of #8 and #15 pearl -- I don't like working with the #5 so I'll only use it for the attachment places as it's too heavy anywhere else anyway, and any other white in here will be lighter weight). Gay Ann suggested basting and starting with my flowers and working out, so I might do that on the upper piece and see where it goes and then decide what I want in the lower piece. I may or may not use ribbon; I have to see if I find ribbon to go with Attar of Roses as I have those colors and like how they look. That is unless I fall in love with one of the new ribbons, but I don't love the Quince family and I think Sea Pinks will be too bright. Anyway, here it is for now -- all of the outline is at least done. I doubt I'll work on this soon.
I think Lancaster Manor pocket and Copperline are getting attention next.
Posted By: Robbina 0 Comments (Post your comment)
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