Some beautiful examples of English antique smocking and to think this was work wear! This was posted on Marie-Louise Avery’s site which I would recommend you visit for the great recipes and beautiful photography
Month: July 2017
Victorian Crazy Patchwork
I have to make a sample for my City and Guilds portfolio and I wasn’t very thrilled about it. With dark colours, black velvet, over-ornate stitching and every embroidery stitch invented it’s not my cup of tea at all.
However after a little research it seems it falls into two categories. It was a way of using up every scrap of cotton or wool by poorer people to make a quilt but women from richer classes, who had no need to work, it was another way to keep themselves occupied. With the wealth to buy rich fabrics such as silk, tulle, satin and velvet and trimmings it seems it all got a bit out of hand until the resulting patchwork was so encrusted with frills and furbelows, embroidery and beads, it was no longer a practical bedcovering and must have weighed rather a lot. It could be used to better effect for tea cosies, cushion covers or waistcoats.
As you can see I completely ignored the usual dark colours and used bright cottons. I have used feather, chevron, cretan, herringbone, and blanket stitch so far.
I’ve added one piece of lace and will add some ribbon too but maybe not buttons and beads!
The feather stitch is rather wonky as I managed to break my left thumb nail off including down on the nailbed. I didn’t realise how much my thumbnail is used to position and hold threads in place – it’s very difficult with a plaster and no nail!
Still a few more seams to cover and another sample is finished.
I am joining eveyone at Kathy’s Quilts for Slow Sunday Stitching. Why not have a look at all the beautiful work which you can find here
Japanese Fabric
I don’t usually do posts just about fabric but from ordering to receiving it took only 5 days for this beautifully packaged fabric to arrive in the UK all the way from Japan.
I wanted some Alice in Wonderland fabric but not Disney as it is too bright and the wrong colours for the quilt I want to make for a special little girl. This fabric is perfect.
If you would like to order some yourself you can find it here
Can’t wait to start!
Miniature Quilt Finish!
Oh so slow, you would think a miniature quilt would be quicker to make than a full size quilt but this seems to have taken ages. At only six by twelve inches it would hardly keep Barbie warm. My next hexagon qult is going to be for the bed!
It isn’t as wobbly as in the photograph, I must work on my photography skills.
I used Liberty Tana Lawn and started off piecing with Auril but ended up using invisible nylon thread. I found the nylon very hard to work with as it formed loops and knots very easily which were hard to find and undo – it is invisible afterall! I used glue to make the 1/4″ hexies which was very quick and simple to do – and quick to remove at the end.
Still it has been packed off to the Isle of Wight ready to go with four other quilts from Region 8 of the Quilters’ Guild up to Birmingham for the Festival of Quilts in August. It’s not a competition entry but for a display by the specialist group ‘Miniature Quilts’ within the Guild. It is the first one I have ever made and probably the last; I don’t think my eyes can take the strain even with a magnifying glass
I shall have to start a new project for Slow Sunday Stitching over at Kathy’s Quilts. Now I am off to see what everyone else has been up to.
One Block Wonder Design Helper
Not invented by me, but a great help if you can’t get started with your precious fabric
Hexagon Go-Slow Sunday Stitching
I think I have taken Slow Sunday Stitching to the extreme with these flower pots, but I have an excuse as the last picture will reveal!
They are to be appliqued to a background rather than finish the quilt entirely in hexagons
…and the reason they have taken so long? See below!
The flower on the left is made from ‘normal’ sized hexagons of 1 1/2 inches. Can you guess the size of the others?
If you would like to see more slow stitching posts why not pop over to Kathy’s Quilts where you can see what more sensible people make on Sunday. You can find the link here
Happy stitching everyone!
thecraftyyak 