I don't know where this dream was taking place but it was in a two story house where a group of us were stitching upstairs and all of the canvases, threads, and supplies were downstairs. I wasn't actually stitching but instead I was walking around with a handful of canvases and watching other people stitching. Occasionally I would wander downstairs and pick out threads for the canvases I had been carrying around. I know this wasn't a particularly strange dream but I think it came about as a result of reading through the posts in Needlepoint Group on Facebook right before I went to sleep. All those fun projects that everyone is working on! I want to do them all! In my dreams, right?
Did I dream that I finished my second Golden Cracker this week? No, I did actually finish the Candy Twist Cracker. This one was quite a fast finish or seems like it anyway. The next one should be arriving in another week or so. Such a fun little project!
My turquoise and gold egg is moving towards a finish, too. I know that each week I say how much I love this From Russia with Love series but I can't help it. They are small, quick to stitch, and incredibly beautiful. Can't wait to get back to work on this one this afternoon.
Now, moving on to the July 4th March. I stitched the white cap on the little girl after padding several parts of it with felt. The ribbon ruffle along the edge of the cap will come later when the majority of the stitching is finished. I am not entirely happy with the middle section of the cap and wonder if any of you have suggestions on how to deal with the problem I am having with it. This particular section is padded with three layers of felt with four strands of silk horizontally Satin stitched over it. The problem comes at the edge of the felt layer. The threads tend to separate where they cross the felt edge and expose the felt underneath. I added extra layers of Satin Stitch in this spot thinking that more threads would solve the problem but that doesn't seem to have helped. Any ideas? I may email Amy this week and ask for her help.
The majority of my stitching on the March this week was on a few sections of the fence. When I look at the photograph, it seems like such a small amount of work but it took hours to stitch. I love the Gloriana silk that Amy chose for the fence. I may work a little more of the fence this week and then move on to the Flag Bearer.
Many thanks to those of you who offered suggestions last week for how to handle the coils of "hair" that will be added to the wig on the baby. I appreciate your taking the time to give me your thoughts!
Hope you all have a great week ahead!
I've been thinking about your padding problem. You could do chain stitch all around the perimeter of the padding and then put the satin stitch on top. I suspect, however, the problem is your tension on those satin stitches. You may be pulling them too tightly in that place. The satin stitches should just rest on top of the felt. Do ask Amy what she suggests as the photo isn't really good enough for me to be sure of what's going on. I'm sure she has seen this problem before with all her stitching experience!
ReplyDeleteI love how the march is coming along! It really looks fantastic. As for the cap, I haven't done felt padding on a needlepoint project, but I have used this technique in embroidery. Here is the process I use: first make sure that your three pieces of felt are not the same size. For example if you were covering a shape the size of a quarter, the first circle would be the size of a dime. Tack that first layer down. Then the second layer would be the size of a nickel, tack down. Finally the third layer, the size of the quarter. Doing this keeps you from having a big drop at the edge, which would cause your threads to split and the felt to show. Lastly, before you start covering the felt, a row of split stitches around the perimeter of the felt is usually stitched. This way if any edging would show, it would be your split stitch and not the felt. Hope this helps.
ReplyDeleteHello....you stitch beautifully! I am a finisher..and beginning stitcher. I would love to finish for you..Happy stitching!
ReplyDeleteMelinda- Thanks for sharing your sweet dream! I want to escape somewhere for
ReplyDeletea stitching retreat...with no responsibilities, no worries, no kids, no pain, no work...only stitching, hot tea and food is brought to me! That is my dream of late. I hope to finish my Sweet Pea Sampler today...but am having a very high pain day(arthritis), and my Olivia has a Girl Scout track meet, then there is mucho work to do for the new website...? I am waiting for the pain med to kick in and then I think I will shirk all of my duties and just stitch!
Hi Melinda,
ReplyDeleteI think Monica has the best method for the hat. I love the way this canvas is coming to life you really have made a lot of progress on this piece. Your latest egg is beautiful. These eggs are very addictive. I am stitching the blue one now.
Have a great week of stitching,
Linda
On your
ReplyDeleteNoel, where did the stitch guide come from, would love to make it.
Thanks