Year: 2015

I decided that I couldn’t leave my feather stitch sampler looking unfinished so I added beads after all 🙂

(Click the photo for a larger view).

I decided to use them to pick out the coral, the “gravel” at the bottom and some bubbles (or as my daughter called them, fish eggs).

After adding the beads, they looked a little like an afterthought, so I added some french knots to both side borders to echo the shape of the beads with stitching. I think this makes them look more like a frame because they’re now slightly different to the other lime green seaweed and a little darker. Since that’s what I wanted, I’m happy.

I also had a go at learning some other feather stitch variations and some experimenty bits.

From the top (from the Batsford Encyclopaedia of Embroidery Stitches by Anne Butler unless otherwise stated):

1. thorn stitch
2. Spanish knotted feather stitch (from Mary Thomas’s Dictionary of Embroidery Stitches. It’s in the Batsford book but the instructions aren’t very clear)
3. knotted feather stitch
4. maidenhair stitch
5. inverted feather stitch
6. chained feather stitch
7. floral feather stitch
8. On the left – whipped triple feather stitch worked in vintage knitting rayon with a firm twist. I found the instructions for whipping it in this style in “Dorset Feather Stitchery” by Olivia Pass.
9. right: whipped feather stitch (called laced feather stitch in the Batsford book but the technique is what many embroiderers know as whipped).
10. bottom: single feather stitch

I also tried stitching on an applique because I’d read about it in Dorset Feather Stitchery and wanted to try it.

My favourite “new” thing is shaded double and triple feather stitch bands, which I read about in the Mary Thomas dictionary. It’s really difficult to make them neat on plain calico but I kind of like the messiness. Plus if I want them to be perfectly neat I could always rule lots of little diamonds first.

I’m having a blast learning lots of new stitches. I’ve mostly used just the basics before (stem stitch, blanket, backstitch, running stitch and French knots, with a little pekinese stitch and some shisha mirrors), and have only just ventured into using anything but 6 strand embroidery floss, so everything is shiny and new.

I have two ideas for next week’s stitch. No doubt I probably won’t be able to decide again and end up doing both 😛

I decided to embroider one last little thing with buttonhole stitch before getting stuck into this week’s feather stitch sampler. Introducing the first of what will probably become a new obsession, an embroidered brooch.

The flowers and leaves measure just 2 inches or 5cm across and are worked in buttonhole stitch, or close blanket stitch (whatever you prefer to call it) with two strands from 6 strand embroidery cottons in variegated orange and green.

It has a plain unbleached calico back with some fleece batting in between, all held together with the satin stitch edging. I sewed a brooch pin on the back but you could sew the finished patches to anything if you want them to be permanent.

Whilst I used a vintage transfer for the flowers, the project was inspired by “Embroidery Emblem”, a Japanese embroidery book that I bought in Sydney a few years ago.

I love the idea of creating little embroidered fragments and using them as objects in their own right. Maybe I’ll try a bracelet or two as well.

Now, on to this week’s TAST sampler which will be mostly feather stitch.

I don’t think it’s a surprise that I’m going to stitch an underwater scene 🙂
I thought I’d work the fish with a stem stitch outline and leave it as a sort of negative space fish amid the garden of feather stitch seaweed and coral. I’m going to try and obliterate that darn crease with a heck of a lot of stitching. And beads. Yeah, beads.

I’m having a lot of fun with these samplers just starting with “I wonder what will happen if”…

I think I’ll start with the border.

Some useful links:
TAST on Facebook
Sharron’s TAST FAQ on her website, Pintangle.
Free vintage stitch book downloads.

I’ve recently worked a couple of samplers using blanket stitch on vintage transfer designs, so I thought this week I would do something totally out character and stitch my sampler on a grid.

I think this is cotton aida. It’s very soft and the threads shift about a lot. I dyed it using some vintage dyes about 10 years ago. I don’t recommend using dyes from the early 1970’s like I did though, because they arced when I set them in the microwave! Scary stuff. The last thing I want to see in my microwave is miniature lightning and ozone…

Anyway, on to the pretties!

My week 2 TAST sampler.

I used just two very basic blanket stitches.

All of the rows of stitching are variations on basic blanket stitch and “up and down” buttonhole stitch that have been reversed, layered, whipped with other threads or with the vertical stitches going in different directions. I used crewel wools of all different thicknesses, from extremely thin to bulky crewel wools, ize 3 mercerised cotton (yummy shiny stuff), a little bit of stranded cotton and thick cotton a broder.

Starting with the border at the top and going clockwise:
Whipped blanket stitch in thick crewel wool whipped with size 3 mercerised cotton
Blanket stitch in 3 strands of stranded embroidery cotton
Layered blanket stitch – 3 strands of stranded cotton
Crewel wool (like tapestry wool only the strands can be separated) couched with 4 strands of embroidery cotton (2 strands each of two different colours).

I love the finished sampler but I’m not sure I enjoyed stitching it as much as I usually do because I was confined to the grid. Since I haven’t played with all the variations I wanted to try, I might do another blanket/buttonhole stitch sampler with a more freeform setup like my first one.

I was already working on some samplers before TAST started and used quite a bit of buttonhole stitch.

These flowers are worked in buttonhole shading using Appleton crewel wools. You can print the design for free here on Knitting-and.com.

My other sampler is worked in Dorset feather stitchery.

Dorset feather stitchery uses a lot of blanket, feather and spiked chain stitches. Whipping the stitches with another colour totally transforms them. In this sampler all of the small curlicues and pinecones are worked in blanket stitch whipped with a second colour. The flower shown below is also whipped blanket stitch but it’s whipped with the same colour. I also tried a few variations on layered buttonhole borders.

If you’d like to know more about Dorset feather stitchery find a copy of “Dorset Feather Stitchery” by Olivia Pass. You won’t have too much trouble as there are many, many copies available online for very reasonable prices.

Now, should I have a go at a more freeform sampler or should I get a head start on next week’s stitch? Decisions, decisions!

Some useful links:
TAST on Facebook
Sharron’s TAST FAQ on her website, Pintangle.
Free vintage stitch book downloads.