Barefoot Shepherdess

Sampling :: Goldwork

Up until this point, I've not had much more than a passing interest in goldwork.  While I found it quite striking and beautiful, it honestly wasn't my style nor did it seem like a very applicable technique.  That said, I was really looking forward to this class-- after all, when else would I have the chance to try it out?  It would be a big task just to gather all the supplies...  And even one who usually prefers simple + natural enjoys something fancy too, at times!

In two and a half hours, we went over the basics of goldwork.  To transfer the design, we used the prick & pounce method, then reinforced the pattern with yellow watercolor paint.  I couldn't get the line as thin as I wanted, so you can see it peeking out below the wings and limbs.  Then we padded the body with felt to give him some dimension before covering him with different goldwork stitches.

But how tricky it is, to handle goldwork threads!  And I thought rayon was difficult.  While the stitches themselves weren't complicated-- it was all essentially sewing down the gold thread-- making the threads stay in place was hard for me to do, especially over the mounded surface.  I wanted to practice using these threads some more, but since we mostly only get enough material to complete the assigned project, the above spool is all I've got now.

Maybe that's for the best anyway, as I think I've had my fill of it for the time being.  It's nice to try something outside my usual scope once in a while, but I think I prefer to use metallics as accents, rather than the focus.  So I wonder what I should do with this little bee...?

Sampling :: Blackwork

A really tiny sample, this time.  I didn't think this little brooch was nearly enough to get a real feel for the technique and the effects one can create with it.  A sampler of stitches would have been more informative...  But I did learn that I'd like to explore the technique some more, so perhaps I'll start with just that!

Anchor Marlitt

I also learned that I don't really like rayon embroidery thread-- it's so awfully slippery to work with!  With each stitch I made, it had a tendency to want to slip back the way it came, which often led to loose, unsightly stitches.  It didn't help that we were using evenweave fabric-- with its characteristic open weave, the thread could escape more easily.  To compensate for that, I tried to pull a little more firmly, but that just caused the fabric to pull.  It made me wonder if this was really a good choice thread for blackwork (at least for beginners)...  Or if there's a good method to working with rayon thread, I'd love to know!

Just two classes left now... It'll be goldwork, next time.

Sampling :: Silk Shading

Or otherwise known as long & short stitch.  It's a technique that I've long wanted to master, so I was excited to learn that it was the focus of our third class.  Our project was this flower--

But boy, it's slow-going!  At least for me.  Two hours of stitching, and this is all I've got to show for it.  I've used long & short stitch in the past on a small scale for my own projects, but this was the first time I've tried it on something as big as this.  And it can hardly be considered 'big.'

Part of the reason why it's taking me so long is that I'm taking care not to have the two strands of floss I'm using to twist within the stitch.  If I stitched naturally, the threads would do just that as I seem to have a habit of turning the needle about 90 degrees each time I pierce the fabric.  And the way that looks just drives me crazy.

To counter the twist, I'm conciously re-turning the needle in the opposite direction before I finish pulling the needle through the fabric.  It's rather awkward and requires me to pause with each stitch, but I'm hoping that with time, it will become a single, smooth movement, as natural as the current one.

Speaking of the thread: our instructor used the terms 'silk shading' and 'long & short stitch' interchangeably, but in truth, we were using regular #25 cotton embroidery floss.  In that sense, I feel that it's not entirely accurate to call this silk shading.  While the idea & effect is the same, I think the result would have been much different if we used silk threads!

The only silk we did use was the silk dupioni fabric.  I had a preconceived notion that it would be a difficult material on which to stitch, so was pleasantly surprised to find that it's sturdier than one would think.  And I really like the crisp puncture one gets when pulling the needle through the fabric-- almost like piercing a thin piece of paper.

After working on it here and there for a week, I finally got the flower bloom finished--

I don't know that it looks quite natural... something about it looks sort of rough.  Looking at it now from this distance, I feel like I made the color transitions too jagged.  If I had used shorter stitches, maybe the colors would have blended more softly and smoothly...?  I'm also not satisfied with the parts where the petals curl (bottom & to the left of the bottom petal) as it really doesn't look that way.  Is there a good method for making this look realistic?

The leaves are to be completed in couching stitch using silver metallic thread, but after completing one, I felt that it didn't balance well with the flower.  Someone in my class thought the same and added color using green fabric ink before stitching with the silver, which looked much nicer.  I've never tried fabric stenciling before, but perhaps it's something else I need to learn...

So lots to work on with this piece still!

Spring Cleaning

Would anyone be interested in helping me destash these Japanese cotton print fabrics...?

I once collected cute prints, but realized that I prefer to use plain fabrics for my own projects.  A few of them are leftovers from things I've made.  Some have been washed once, others are straight off the bolt.

Here are the details (length x width):

{ top row }

me-in baby cotton double gauze, pears & apples (prewashed)-- 36cm x 45cm, ¥200

me-in baby cotton double gauze, carousel (unused)-- 50cm x 110cm ¥700 sold

moco*moco by Harumi Sugihara cotton fabric (partially used)-- 50cm x 40cm, plus a little extra ¥300

Nous Partons cotton fabric (partially used)-- 48cm x 50cm ¥300

D's Selection brown houses cotton print (unused)-- 30cm x 110cm ¥400 sold

Kokka Little Red Riding Hood cotton print (unused)-- 25cm x 110cm ¥300 sold


{ bottom row }

Cosmo Textiles Co. sheep & shepherd cotton print (partially used)-- 50cm x 108cm with a little piece missing and another 22cm x 45cm plus a little extra, all one piece ¥500

Shinzi Katoh christmas print, white (unused)-- 50cm x 106cm ¥800 sold

Shinzi Katoh christmas print, green (unused)-- 50cm x 106cm ¥800 sold

Lecien red mouse cotton print (partially used)-- 36cm x 50cm, with about 15cm x 15cm missing ¥150 sold

Lecien grey bird cotton print (partially used)-- 36cm x 50cm, with two small hexagons missing ¥150 sold

Lecien dark teal cotton print (unused)-- 36cm x 56cm ¥300

green stripes (washed, but unused)--26cm x 54cm ¥150

blue stripes (washed, but unused)-- 26cm x 54cm ¥150  *two pieces available*

Prices are all in Japanese yen.  Shipping is separate-- please email me with your location for an estimate.  Payment via PayPal only please.

Thanks for looking!

Sampling :: Canvas Work

It's been an awfully cold winter here in Japan this year.  There's been record snowfall on the western half of Japan-- two or three times as much as usual!-- and while we haven't had any of that, it's just been really, very cold.  In the mornings, I can even see my breath in the bedroom often times!

On days like this, what better way to stay warm than cuddling up in a cozy blanket with the current issue of my favorite embroidery magazine?

Stitch Idées, No.14

Though I suppose current may be a bit misleading, as it actually came out in October.  It's a biannual magazine, so I didn't feel a particular rush in ordering a copy until now.  But what finally motivated me to get it was that this issue features canvaswork, which was the focus of our second embroidery class.

This time, the assignment was this small motif composed of leaf stitch, using three colors and accents with silver thread.  Up until now, I've always had an image of canvaswork as a grandmotherly form of needlework-- bright-colored-acrylic-yarns-on-plastic-canvas sort of thing-- but after seeing various samples and trying it out myself, I realized there was so much more that can be done with it.  And as with cross stitch, there's something soothing about methodically counting and stitching to a set pattern.  Which, of course, makes it very addicting.

This piece was to be a part of a measuring tape cover, surrounded by pink silk taffeta, but in looking at the finished sample, I didn't think it showed off the embroidery very well as it appeared to be almost buried in the taffeta.  So I decided to turn it into a needlebook cover--

I still have to get the rest of the materials to complete it, but I do like the way this looks much better.  I'm looking forward to getting this finished!

The magazine offers cute ideas & patterns for canvaswork--

There's also an introduction to a Japanese counted stitch embroidery method called kogin-zashi (こぎん刺し) that looks simple & stylish--

Some of these designs are reminicent of Fair Isle or Scandinavian knitting motifs or traditional cross stitch motifs.  But these are classic patterns for kogin-zashi too, the floral one representing a plum blossom--

And on page 108--

I made it into the reader's gallery again!  This time, it was my secret garden embroidery composition.  I'm really happy about it.

Now off to search for some nice evenweave fabric...  Do you have any favorites or recommendations?

Sampling :: Mountmellick

In order to learn some new techniques and hopefully a few tricks that aren't found in your average embroidery book, I enrolled in a class on English embroidery techniques at the end of January.  It's only six, two-and-a-half hour long classes-- really, just enough time to try out each technique on a small project-- but I think it'll be a great way to figure out which methods I'd like to learn more in-depth.

The first class was on whitework-- specifically, Mountmellick embroidery.  Rather, I should say 'Mountmellick-style' as the traditional method is just white on white, while we used gold thread also.  The assigned project was a monogram using couching stitch and french knots, with a crown above and accents of gold.  The white sections were fairly straighforward, but I had a hard time deciding where and how to add the gold.  In the end, I settled on using it as highlights on the monogram and as a striped decoration along the bottom of the crown.  I wasn't a fan of the bulky look-- another characteristic of the method-- but it did turn out to be sort of pretty, I think.

One thing that worried me was that the blue pattern lines wouldn't wash out entirey... and, it didn't.  I soaked it, then washed it more vigorously than I probably should have, but there's still a faint blue shadow to the whole thing.  The carbon tracing paper I normally use isn't so uncooperative, but this one is really stubborn!  Is there a good way to get this out?  Since it is supposed to be whitework, I'd like for it to be all white.

LOVE Handmade

I'm still trying to catch up...

In the middle of January, I participated in a group show with fellow Etsy artists at Gallery 7 in Yaesu, just a few blocks from the Tokyo Station.  The weather was far from ideal-- cold, rainy & grey-- not the most appealing time to head out to a gallery, but while it was dreary outdoors, it got pretty lively inside.  I had a great time meeting and talking with everyone.

Thank you to those who joined us during the weekend!  For more photos from the event, please hop over to my Flickr photostream.

Hello February

Now that it's February...

Happy 2012!  It's been a really hectic start to the new year here-- before I knew it, a whole month had gone by.  So where in the world did January go...?

Well here, for one:

25 hand embroidered pincushions, to be exact.  These were made for a custom request at my shop.  It took me a lot longer than I anticipated to make them all-- for being so small, the embroidery takes more time than one would think.  I feel relieved to have them finished, finally!

Still, I'm a little sad to have to part with these...  For despite all the pincushions I make, I don't have a single favorite set aside for my own use yet.  Lined up like this, they make such a pretty picture-- sort of like a pincushion quilt!

But this isn't the only thing I've been up to... more on that next time!

M a k e

That's exactly what I've had to do for the past month and a half: make, make, make.  Make things for my shop for the holiday shopping season, make attempts at new designs and make preparations for my first ever 'event.'

A couple of weekends ago, a group of Etsy sellers in the Tokyo region got together to participate in Make: Tokyo Meeting 07 at the Tokyo Institute of Technology.  This was our collaborative booth-- each box represented a different shop.  My box was on the far right.

Though the focus of the event was on technology-based creations-- robots, machinery and such-- they also had a section for handmade goods, which was where we were.  And what variety we offered too!  Each shop had its own distinct style, which hopefully, made it fun and interesting for the visitors to explore.

We even had a workshop section at our booth, offering button-making and wood picture frame-making (that by one of the sellers).  Kids especially, seemed to enjoy the button-making, happily showing off their original buttons once they were finished.

Since Etsy still isn't well known in Japan, this event provided a good opportunity to gain exposure for the online craft market.  In fact, many people were interested, both from the standpoint of sellers and shoppers.  And interest in our shops ranged from children...

... to adults.

Truth be told, I was somewhat nervous going in to the event, not knowing what to expect, but with the other sellers there for support and camaraderie, I ended up having a really good time.  And I was surprised to find that talking to customers wasn't so hard and actually... fun!

All in all, it was a great experience.  And now, I'm off to re-make things for my shop...

Simple Wristwarmers

Just your basic wristwarmers with dark bronze beads on linen-colored yarn.  Made for a custom request.

I usually prefer my beads to blend in more with my yarn, so that they are visible in some lights and almost disappear in others.  But I really like the contrast on this one.  Perhaps it works because there are so few beads-- they aren't overly assertive, but keeps the wristwarmers from becoming too plain.

I wonder what an additional row or two of beads-- maybe in staggered rows-- would look like.  Whatever the case, another instance of less is more.