Slow stitching - Wool trivets/ hot pads/art/home decor

 

I have been working on wool trivets for a while and have finally finished a few which I will be posting over the next few days.  You can see my first one here. 

I cut 7" squares from felted wool which my daughter gave me a while back - one from a red wool coat and a harlequin one from a black wool sweater with a diamond design.  I rounded the corners  I hand stitched a navy die cut flower to the red one.  I added a small piece of yellow/orange cotton below the center and stitched all the way around with cotton embroidery floss using running stitch to secure the cotton to the flower.  I then placed the flower onto the red square and stitched all the way around with navy embroidery floss using small stab stitches until the circumference had been secured to the square.  I added some long stitches on each petal to give it a bit of dimension.  I did not add anything to the black piece as it was already nicely decorated.  I stitched the outside edge with camel embroidery thread using the blanket stitch.  I then added black cotton cording by whip stitching into the top of the blanket stitch.  Worked really well.  I added a hanging loop using cotton cording so it can be displayed as art when it is not being used to protect a surface from a hot dish or teapot.  On the other hand it could also protect a table from a vase of flowers, a candle or a sculpture.   Therese

Sewing & slow stitching - chicken pincushions made from scraps and filled with poly and cotton

 I have finished another set of chicken pin cushions!!  They are very cute!!  The process of making them used up some scraps and orphaned blocks (4"square or so) along with small orange pieces for the beak, the comb and the tail.  Then, came the slow stitching - black beads for eyes and then the stuffing!!  I put poly fiber filling in each corner and then filled in the sides some.  I added some of my own stuffing - bits of fleece and cotton scraps too small anything else which I cut into tiny pieces - then I added some rice and then another piece of poly fill to keep everything in place while I hand stitched the bottom opening closed to finish off the pincushion.  10 in this batch!! That makes a total of 22!!  Therese

Sewing - slow stitched potholders with quilted backers

Two potholders that I have created using a slow stitched fabric collage on one side and a quilted square on the other side.  These are cacti on one side.  

 

This is another set featuring a dog and a cat which are slow stitched fabric collages with quilted squares on the back. 

These two feature tea cup fabric collages with quilted squares on the back

These two feature two fabric collages of flowers again with quilted squares on the other side.

These last two feature little bird fabric collages with quilted squares on the back.  

It has been a wonderful experience to create the fabric collages and then to use some of my scraps and acquired pieces to create the other side of these potholders.  I have added two layers of flannel with a layer of terry cloth in between.  I have laid the collages/flannel pieces front to front and added the terry cloth and then stitched around the edges leaving a gap in order to be able to turn them inside out.  After turning I pressed each one well then I hand stitched the openings closed.  I top stitched the outside edge about 1/4" from the edge in black.  I added another row of stitching 3/4" from the outside edge in order to secure the layers more firmly without interfering too much with the fabric collage.  I have added a simple hanger of heavy weight cotton cording in the middle of the top side which I stitched in and out and tied it off with an over hand knot.  These can displayed as small fabric art collages, hung in a kitchen as potholders and/or used as a trivet for hot dish on the dinner table.  Therese

Cardmaking - embossed handmade paper with two fussy cut and watercoloured hearts

Another card for a special occasion!!  I started with a deep burnt orange card and embossed the center of a coordinating piece of handmade paper (my own) with a spiral design (CB).  I stitched on two strips of the same cardstock using white thread and my sewing machine.  Framed the middle section very nicely.  I watercoloured the fussy cut hearts (Melonheadz) and then adhered them to my card over the embossed area with 3D foam tape.  Therese

 

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Cardmaking - embossed & stitched handmade paper pieces with embossed vellum and fussy cut heart with a bow

As a new month starts there are always special occasions that deserve to be celebrated!!! 

I started with a white card, tore the lavender handmade paper ( my own) into four pieces, embossed them with two different embossing folders and then stitched the edges with white thread.  I tied the thread ends on the back and then adhered them to my card front.  I embossed a piece of vellum (SU) which I adhered to the front of my card with double sided tape.  I watercoloured the heart  (Melonheadz) and then added gold glitter pen to the dots on the bow.  Fussy cut it and adhered it to the vellum with double sided tape.  

Good to be cardmaking again after a fairly busy summer with camping, company and canning.    Therese

 

Slow Stitching - wool trivet with stitched embellishments

I have been working on some wool trivets cut from some felted wool that my daughter sent my way several years ago.  I used a lavender piece and a brighter purple piece (8" square with slightly rounded corner) to which I stitched some wool elements made of a lighter wool fabric.  The flower was die cut (SZ) and the leaves were hand cut and them I stitched their edges down with simple straight stitches along the edges using cotton embroidery thread in coordinating colours.  I added a line in the leaves and straight stitches and french knots in the center of the flower.  

I cut a balloon from yellow wool, stitched the edges with straight stitches all the way around and all through the middle for a bit of texture.  I added a black cotton string which I couched with black embroidery thread.  

I laid them back to back and then added a row of straight stitches all the way around in a light lavender cotton embroidery thread which combined them into a unit which is stable and will serve very well as a trivet for a tea pot, a warm pie or a pan of brownies.   I have a few more cut and they will show up as they get stitched up.  Therese

 

Slow Stitching - balloon squares

I cut out a few extra balloons as I was preparing the squares for the other balloon quilt squares so I ripped out a few more off white cotton backers (8" x 9") and then stitched my spares onto them.  You can see that the two bottom ones are different.  These were too light compared to the others so I coloured them with Inktense paints which gave them a motley look but was not what I preferred for the other blocks.  So these will go on a different quilt -maybe as a row or a line depend on what I decide to surround them with.  On hold until I get inspired!!!

Therese