Stitchy Snippets - Bold and Beautiful

Here in London the nights are drawing in as a winter chill spreads through the city. It may no longer be sunbathing weather (although I'm not sure if we really even have that in our summer!) but it is perfect weather for stitching! Liz Payne's gloriously colourful embroidery has brightened our day and I hope you find it inspiring too.

Bold and bright patterns of colour and shape are integral to Liz Payne's work. Her work is densely textured with hand embroidery, beading and fringing, which all form additional pattern within her designs.

Commonly, Liz will start out by painting fabric and canvas which are next adorned with embroidery. Known widely for her art pieces, Liz also embellishes shoes and designs her own range of bespoke jewelry.

Liz talks about her work: 'I’m not shy of using colour in my work (sometimes every colour!). Using stitch I’m able to introduce a textural dimension to my work, drawing the viewers eye into and across the intricacy of the details.'

Take a look at her Etsy shop 'Flirting with Yellow' to see more of her work.

Stitchy Snippets - Embroidered Sentiments

Take a tour through these beautiful illustrations by Australian based artist Laura McKellar. Her passion for different artistic mediums is evident in her work, which includes photography, textiles, fashion and graphic design. Laura's stunning textile pieces are initially worked and edited on the computer often incorporating photography then digitally printed onto fabric to be further embellished with hand embroidery. Her colourful palette is sure to brighten any chilly, Fall morning. Find out more about her work here.

Thimblenest Thursdays: Embroidered elbow patch tutorial

Regardless of which hemisphere you're in right now, the season in most places is cardigan-friendly (not too hot, not too cold). The following tutorial will show you how to brighten up a cardigan or sweater with embroidered elbow patches.

Materials:

• knit or woven fabric for patches (minimum 4" x 6"/10 cm x 15 cm)
• cardigan or sweater
• embroidery design (the clover design I used is found here)
• lightweight interfacing
• pinking shears
• embroidery thread
• water-soluble fabric marker
• patch pattern (mine was 3.5" x 5.5"/9 cm x 14 cm)
• seam roll (or a rolled up magazine, catalog, etc.)

Prep Cardigan & Pattern/Embroider

Try your cardigan on and mark your elbow point (and where you will center the patches) on each sleeve using a pin, chalk, or fabric marker.

In Word, Inkscape, or another program, draw and print an oval the size you want your finished patch to be.

Cut out the patch pattern and trace its outline onto both pieces of patch fabric.

Transfer your embroidery design to the center of each patch oval. Make sure there is at least 1/4" between the outer edges of the design and the entire outside edge of the patch.

Embroider your design.

Prep Finished Patches

Cut close to traced outline of your patch, leaving a little extra allowance. 

Adhere interfacing to the back of each patch.

Carefully cut out the patch with pinking shears, cutting directly on the traced outline.

Find the center of each patch by folding into quarters and mark.

Center the patch over the elbow point you marked on the cardigan sleeve.

Sew Patches to Cardigan

Pin or hand baste the patch securely in place.

Sew the patches permanently onto the sweater using the Twisted Lazy-Daisy Edge Stitch, blanket stitch, running stitch, or another of your choice.

Tips

Originally I planned to make my patches with knit fabric, but ultimately I loved the subtle gray and white stripe and woven won out. I think this project would work well with either knit or woven fabrics. 

Sewing patches onto a preexisting sleeve was more challenging than I expected. Inserting a sleeve roll into the sleeve allows you to use both hands and maneuver the pieces more confidently as you stitch.

Because of its circular shape, the patch will want to shift some as you stitch. Try and go with it, but make sure you keep the centers of your patch and sleeve aligned.

If you use this tutorial or any other project from feelingsstitchy.com, please be sure to share them in the Feeling Stitchy Flickr Group.

Let them eat cake

When I first decided to teach myself embroidery, I ran out and immediately purchased Jenny Hart's Sublime Stitching book. One of the techniques that Jenny introduced in her book was to start with an already patterned piece of fabric, and simply embellish it with embroidered details. (Anna Maria Horner does this to great effect, as well.) What a simple (but brilliant) idea!


I still haven't done it myself yet -- it's on my ever-growing list of to-do-somedays -- but I'm newly inspired by what Becky (aka MyFabricObsession on Flickr) has created. She started with an already-striking print from Tula Pink's Parisville line and went to town with her needle and thread.

Stunning, no? And that added flower? Genius.

What about you? Have you done this before with your favorite printed fabric? We'd love to see what you've created. And it sounds like a wonderful stitch-along idea for a future month, don't you think?

Hmmmm ... I'm slotted to host a stitch-along soon ...

The Scrappy { Hoops } - A Modern Swap

In case you don't know by now, Flickr is a hotbed of crafty swaps. I've participated in many, many great sewing and quilting swaps over there, and it seems like embroidery swaps are really gaining in popularity and momentum.

If you've read my other posts here on Feeling Stitchy, you know that I love to blur the lines between fabric, sewing, quilting, and embroidery. And if you want to see some examples of how these different elements can come together to create wonderful works of art -- all framed in a simple embroidery hoop -- look no further than the Scrappy { Hoops } swap.

The Scrappy { Hoops } a group "dedicated to creating and receiving the coolest modern and urban fabric hoops for their homes!" The insanely talented swappers in the group combine different materials and techniques to bring their visions to life.

But enough words. I've compiled a collection of beautiful & inspirational photos to give some flavor of what you can find in the group. Click on each photo to learn more about both the maker and the recipient of each piece.

Want to get involved? The group recently wrapped up round 1 of the swap, and I've heard some buzz about a potential round 2 ...

Photo courtesy of sandy (paperpoppies) on Flickr
Made by JenniferLGB

Photo courtesy of Sarah @ pingsandneedles on Flickr



Photo courtesy of Miss-Print on Flickr



Photo courtesy of Angela - fussycut on Flickr



Photo courtesy of Poppyprint on Flickr



Photo courtesy of stitches&scissors on Flickr
Made by asquared(w)



Photo courtesy of Miss-Print on Flickr
Made by {safieh}



Photo courtesy of rosaechocolat on Flickr



Photo courtesy of bearpawandbearpaw on Flickr



Photo courtesy of Aneela Hoey on Flickr
Made by sewdeerlyloved



Photo courtesy of sewdeerlyloved on Flickr
Made by yearofhandmade



Photo courtesy of badskirt - amy on Flickr
Made by creationsbyrachel



Photo courtesy of verykerryberry on Flickr
Made by safischer1



Photo courtesy of daveandsusi on Flickr
Made by verykerryberry



Photo courtesy of suzettra on Flickr



Photo courtesy of amandaquilts on Flickr



Photo courtesy of mccuisti on Flickr



Photo courtesy of sandy (paperpoppies) on Flickr



Photo courtesy of stitches&scissors on Flickr

A Stitching Library of Beauty

Buttonhole Stitch

I don't know much about this artist from Germany, but I spotted her work when searching for special embroideries. This method appears to use already printed fabric and embellished with stitches that enhance that pattern.

Detached Chain Stitch

Her Flickr name is Veri's Kleiner Winkel. I love all the color splash and detail.

Algerian Eye Stitch

I was very inspired by this work and I hope you are, too!

I was poking around the interwebs and came across this wonderful website, The Mexican Dress. You can download a pattern to make a billowy cotton dress, tunic or peasant blouse for you to embroider in colorful, fanciful designs. Living in Austin I often see Mexican embroidery, and it's truly inspiring with its flourishes, florals and birds. A dress like this makes a great canvas.