Blackwork in white

Blackwork in white
Originally uploaded by Jam_mam.

Well, here's some in white. Not so difficult to see on the waste canvas as I feared but I would recommend good light :) Sadly this idea didn't work - it was meant to be a sort of seam treatment but the pattern is too wide, I think, or is it that the seam is too short?

Anyway, the contrast of white on dark fabric works well and I think it is the contrast that does all the work in blackwork - it is possible to use lots of different colours of thread - maybe a varigated thread on a large piece would look good too.

There are possibilities of decorating this with beads and other additional embellishments but I really needed a narrower and perhaps more geometric pattern I think. Maybe I could try working it over the top of the seam, rather than next to it - if i had two dark fabrics adjacent. Anyway lots to think about, and I had the perfect excuse to buy a new book this amazon listing should let you look inside :)

Blackwork hand - finished!

Blackwork hand
Originally uploaded by Jam_mam.

Dampen the waste canvas with tap water, be careful with delicate fabrics as water marks can stain. I used a moistened towel to dab the whole of the waste canvas. (The photo is taken when the background is still wet hence the translucence of the fabric. It is possible to pull the individual threads out without dampening the canvas but this requires more force than I like as I do not want to move any of the blackwork stitches.

Once the waste canvas has absorbed the water the 'glue'(I think it is actually starch) that holds the threads together is released and you can then pull the threads out one at a time to leave the blackwork stitches on the background.

As these cq pieces are relatively small the threads are straight forward to remove but you do need to do them one at a time so it does take a while.

Tomorrow i see if i can do it with white thread!

Linda asked how this process compared to / used cross stitch. Other than the fact that I took the design from a cross stitch source, and that I first heard of waste canvas in relation to cross stitch it doesn't at all.

All in all, an effective method of adding motifs to cq that is straight forward and does not require any special skill. :)

Reading the Blackwork posts

Please remember to scroll down the series of posts on blackwork starting with the post called 'How to add blackwork to your CQ' and read them moving up the blog to the next entry. :)

Finished sewing ... not qite over yet :)

DSC01232(1)
Originally uploaded by Jam_mam.

I chose this design as i wanted a dense coverage of the hand to make the heart in the centre stand out clearly. i have also found that if you use to open a stitch on small areas (e.g. fingers) it is quite difficult to see the pattern and know where to sew.

On the larger crinoline lady which i stitched for the AlL that jazz block i used several different patternd to fill the shape, but as this hand is quite small i kept it to one.

The pattern was taken from this book. All the blackwork patterns are stitched in simple backstitch through all layers of the fabric using the grid provided by the waste canvas as a guide. nothing difficult, just time consuming, it took me an evening to fill in this hand.

The next step is to remove the waste canvas.

Beginning to sew

DSC01231(1)
Originally uploaded by Jam_mam.

Using backstitch and one strand of Anchor stranded thread (black) I stitched around the design over the lines marked on the canvas.

Waste canvas is really easy to use. Don't be put off if you haven't used it before. The stitches are worked through the holes in the canvas using it as a guide for fabrics which are not evenweave. Usually used for cross stitch the technique can also be used to apply other embroideries to materials it would otherwise be difficult to produce even stitches on. linda at Chloe's place uses it to sew the crosses which are the framework for her chicken scratch.

Another advantage of using waste canvas is that once tacked onto the fabric underneath it provids enough suport to the fabric that no hoop is needed making it easy to hold the pece in your hand as you sew.

In this phot I have also started to fill in the little finger shape with a blackwork pattern.

How to add blackwork to your CQ

DSC01228(1)
Originally uploaded by Jam_mam.

First outline the design onto the waste canvas, I used an ordinary ball point pen, and 14 hpi canvas.

This hand is taken from a book of Donna Kooler cross stitch designs.

Once you have drawn the outline onto the waste canvas, tack the canvas over the area on your cq block where you want to stitch the blackwork.

Unbeknownst to the maiden

Unbeknownst to the maiden and her mother the wise women met to exchange spells over the wrapping. They chose a special venue for their meeting, a place where they were among their own kind and unlikely to be disturbed by negative energy of the uninitiated. Amidst the treasures and glories of the embellishing world they brought forth their wraps to admire the work already thereon and to consider their next additions.

Many strangers, women of craft but not those entrusted with this special mission, were drawn by the light of the wonderful work already a part of the wrapping's glory. They crowded around our wise women and asked in hushed, awed tones to be told the story of the wraps journey and it's purpose. Oh how they admired the handiwork of the chosen stitchers, and how they praised the idea of passing such knowledge to the next generation in the person of the maiden. Adding their own good wises and creative energies to the project they blessed the wraps with even more beauty.

Our own wise women discussed the next steps and, drawing on the inspiration of their surroundings, left the meeting renewed in their determination to cast yet more wondrous weavings onto the wrap. Slowly and irreversibly the wrapping was being transformed as much by the attention and care it received as by the stitches themselves.

Far away on the other side of the world the mother came to hear of this meeting and of the plans the wise women had for the wrapping. She marveled that such a small beginning had grown into such a momentous undertaking, and her heart was glad.

It is in our intentions and in our dreaming as well as in our doing that we truly reveal our inner strengths and the lessons for future generations.

Blackwork Cat

Blackwork Cat
Originally uploaded by Jam_mam.

Yesturday i started this cat in blackwork, actually it's brown work ;) as i couldn't find any back thread. vbg. Today i finished it and of course found the black thread too :) The contrast is fine here with the help of the camera flash, but in 'real' life it's a little too close to the background fabric and doesn't 'sing' but I live and learn :)

i first used blackwork on the 'All that Jazz' block and wanted to try out some more since then. I have decided to make this block a sampler of blackwork and to experiment with different sized pieces and colours of thread, and to work on that contrast!

My next motif is a hand which i intend to do in black and then I want to try some white pieces. i expect this might create a few problems as the waste canvas I am using is white too and it may be difficult to see where I have sewn and where I still need to do.

I also plan to try different numbers of threads as I have only used single strands thus far, what difference to the appearance does using 2 or 3 strands make?

After that i need to experiment with different patterns, some which cover the area less or more densely.

Anyway, all of that is for another day. For today I am quite pleased with my little pussy, at least I know now where i want to go, and some of what i want to find out on the way.

seaglass2

seaglass2
Originally uploaded by Jam_mam.

After starting a thread on a craft forum to discover if there is sea glass (beach glass) in Australia I thought i'd post a photo of some of my collection. B can't find any near her house but has some from the other side of the planet where her DD lives.

Why do i like it? I have various other bits and pieces picked up on the beach in the 4 years we have lived here. I have shells of course and I have various crab skeletons, large and small, and a small mammal skull. But I do have a soft spot for, and deliberately seek out the sea glass. I now have so much of the white/clear glass that I have stopped collecting it and I'm concentrating on the coloured glass, mainly blues and greens as you can see.

I would really like some red!

I prefer the pieces that are well worn and rounded by the sea's motion and the rubbing of the sand. I have thought of buying one of those 'mill's'(?) that you polish gem stoned in and making my own, but that would be cheating.

I think the beauty comes with the location and the company. Beaches remind me of my childhood in the Carribean, of being young and free. When we have a good day on the beach I think of it as memories in the bank for my children. I think that when they look back on their childhoods if they remember days on the beach then they will think they had good times.

The one thing you don't get from a scan is the translucent (or should that be opaque) quality of the glass. You really need to hold it up to the light.

There is also something magical about being able to pick up broken glass without cutting your fingers.

I like the idea that the sea is softening the waste we throw away and making the ugly polution beautiful.

I like the idea that sand is transforming the glass which is made out of sand.

I like the idea that one day I may make something from it, and that I may not.

Country walk Plessy Woods

Country walk Plessy Woods
Originally uploaded by Jam_mam.

These are the winter days i like, no wind to speak of , none at all once in the trees, and a moderately cold day, about 5 degrees, lovely and warm once you are walking.

Trying out the digi to see how it copes shooting into the sun, not bad. The colours don't really show up, there was so much green and the sky was blue (between he heavy grey cloud banks).

I am so fed up of grey and we have had too many grey days, often so dark that the lights stay on in the house all day.

This place was full of bird song too, just what the Dr. ordered.

Plessy Woods January '06

Plessy Woods January '06
Originally uploaded by Jam_mam.

Such a lovely wood and especially good this time of year as it is almost empty. little one especially pleased to see so much mud! "Wellies are for mud!" Squelch, squelch!

Plessy Woods Jan '06

Plessy Woods Jan '06
Originally uploaded by Jam_mam.

No sewing today :( but lots of walking. Yes, here's the sun! rather washed out and weak but just what i needed after a hard week :) It was very refreshing to see so much green (in between the mud). this was taken at about 3pm and you can see how low the sun is already. Little one managed to climb all those steps unaided - lots of grunting and "I do it!"

red hot socks

I will be taking part in this KAL red hot sizzling socks as soon as i get some red sck wool :) yipee another excuse to stash expand VBG Once I find out how to add a button for this (Doh!) that will appear on the blog too. Meanwhile, just think red socks - these ones are for me to KEEP!

The wrapping is embellished

pink1
Originally uploaded by Jam_mam.

Here is the wrapping as last seen before beginning the next leg of it's journey.

The intense heat of the Australian summer has not damaged it's emerging beauty and the wise women are taking steps to protect it as it travels those lands so distant from the maiden's own.

Lands where day is night and summer is winter. Lands where mythical beasts roam dusty plains and deserts. Creatures only dreamed of in this place, live side by side with our wise women of the challenge.

Each resting place for the warp becomes a hive of industry for the sewer as she begins to work her magic on it. Each patch becomes a memory of those labours for the cause.

The lady Roz has added a magic symbol 'm' which will forever tie the wrap to it's eventual recipient, the fair Mairead. Placed in a fragrant garden, surrounded by love and cystaline forms of emphemeral creatures, the symbols power will transcend earhtly constraints and last as long as the wrap itself lasts. Forever calling the maiden back to gaze on it's wonderous face.

Now the next embroiderer in our chain has the wrap in her hand and ponders her decisions. Choices which will live on with the wrap and with the young Mairead through life's wending ways and twisting journeys and hopefully work their mystery's to bring her back to these creative arts now and in the future.

For this is the mother's wish, that one day the maiden, perhaps not for many years to come, will come to know the joy, challenge and triumph known to these women who worked the wrap. The joy that is creativity, the challenge that is design, and the triumph that is in spreading beauty to others.

Mairead's CQ adventure continues ...

Some time ago, in the cold and misty land to the north, a young maiden was tempted by the treasures in her mother's sewing basket.

 

Mother, wishing to initiate this maiden in the ways of her craft, gathered together a band of wise women who agreed to share their knowledge and skill. The young maiden was helped by her mother to construct a simple fabric wrapping in which to carry the wisdom, and together they sent this wrap off into the distance with many thankful wishes for the success of the wise women's mission.

 

Many moons passed and reports began to filter back to the cold and misty land to the north. Sightings of the wrap were spoken of in hushed wispers, as the people of the project began to marvel at the intricate wonders wrought in the maiden's honour. Beautiful patterns and tantilising textures were added to the wrap and it's beauty began to attract admiring glances from all lucky enough to see it. It travelled the globe to places warm and sunny and full of vibrant embroidery and embellishment.

 

At each stopping something of the knowledge and enthusiasm of the wise woman of that place was transferred to the wrap.

 

Do you want to peek at the wrap as it travels on it's journey? Pictures of the progress thus far can be seen at http://sharonhunting.blogspot.com/2006/01/ms-block.html and at http://cqcrazy.blogspot.com/2005_12_01_cqcrazy_archive.html

 

And now the journey continues ...

Finding Fabric in Furniture

Listening to BBC Radio 4 this morning I heard this wonderful story about finding old clothes in a piece of furniture during restoration http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/hometruths/20060123_chaise.shtml

 

This led me to http://www.concealedgarments.org/ where there is a resource of 'found garments' and their stories. I wonder if you've ever found anything in old houses or even hidden inside furniture :)

 

 

snail's trail christmas variation

snail's trail christmas variation
Originally uploaded by Jam_mam.

As I am making blocks for the other members of the row by row quilt swap I have decided to make a block of each pattern I produce in my own fabrics to keep. last year I made 11 blocks for a friendship block swap. Some of them were really nice blocks (if I do say so myself) and I wish I had thought of doing duplicates then too. Anyway, this year I will make an extra block. So, Di's block was snail trail and I have made one in my christmas fabrics for me to keep. I haven't decided whether to use these in my finished row by row quilt or to keep them for something else.

As you can see this one came out very differently from Di's blcoks. The strong colours of Di's blokc and only using two fabrics for each one made the curve of the snail's trail very obvious. Here the different prints were confined to blus and red but with less definition to the finished design. I think the centre blue was probably a mistake as it is too light and doesn't allow the pattern to be seen very clearly. Instead I have ended up with a square within a square arrangement which I am quite happy with. I have one foundation pattern left and may attempt this again with darker blues in the centre, may.

So how do I read blogs

I usually find new blogs through links from ones I already visit. SharonB's blog inaminuteago is especially good for this. Recently I have stopped visiting some where there are less frequent posts as I still visit each one individually to check if there are any new items rather than using some kind of service to advise me of new postings - this was just taking too long. On a new blog I read the most recent posting first and then scroll down if it catches my interest following links as I go.I never look at profiles, i'm really interested in what people have written and not who they are. I might look at a profile after I have visited a blog many times but usually not at all. I do try to leave comments on new blogs if I can think of anything constructive to say as I remember how I felt about receiving those first few comments on mine, delighted. It is stilla htrill to know people are reading what I write and I have the thing set up so that it emails me any comments that are left.

CQ Book

CQ Book
Originally uploaded by Jam_mam.

I needed even more retail therapy - at this rate I could afford the real thing! Therapy that is! Anyway Border's were having a student discount day with 20% off - sadly they didn't have anything I really HAD to have but as I HaAD to have something (well, it was a bargin) I got this. It's really very similat to her other books (published in 1995 I'm not sure if it might even superceed them) but there are some photos I haven't seen before in it and some pages at the back where she shows her journalling process for a few projects complete with drawings and notes. As I am just beginning to journal things I found this interesting, the ISBN in case anyone is interested is 0-914881-85-X. It's the inspiration rather than the stitch diagrams that I'm after although the stitch combination pictures are always useful.

Talking of ISBNs, Sharon asked for the one for White on white from yesturday's blog entry - here it is - 1-904485-18-9, published by Coats Crafts UK in 2004.

Quilting with a difference

Quilting with a difference
Originally uploaded by Jam_mam.

One thing that puts me off embroidering quilts is the time invloved especially when you also hand quilt - as I usually do. So here's the answer, combine the two, enbroider as you quilt.

Quilting with a difference

Quilting with a difference
Originally uploaded by Jam_mam.

One of the things I like about this book is the lovely clear step by step diagrams, I haven't used the book yet but I'm thinking of looking for inspiration for the making up of the friendship block swap from 2005 and the row by row quilt I'm doing now.

Knitting book - again

Knitting book
Originally uploaded by Jam_mam.

Uninspiring front cover - but this book covers so much more than what I think of as finishing. If you get a chance to browse this book do take it - I think it is a perfect way to begin the move from knitting other people's designs to designing your own items.

Finishing Techniques for knitters

Finishing Techniques for knitters
Originally uploaded by Jam_mam.

Internal view chosen at random to show how much information is contained in this book. Hopefully this will illustrate what I mean about moving on to designing your own garments.

White on white

White on white
Originally uploaded by Jam_mam.

Managed to get a copy of this book by Janet Haigh, which I have been looking for for a while. Love the white on white stuff and will get back to finishing the christmas ornaments sometime (probably as next christmas approaches.

White on white internal

White on white internal
Originally uploaded by Jam_mam.

Page shows just one of the beautiful projects in the book and on the facing page the diagrams of different stitches, and yes, I do know I don't need any more stitch directories :)