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.

Rocking Challenge!

I couldn't resist telling you guys about the most awesome challenge happening right now over at Craftster. 

This month, thanks to Ticketmaster, Crafster is showing the love for live events from concerts, to Broadway shows, and more!  Your mission this month is to craft a project that shows major love to one of your favorite live events or productions!  Concerts, sporting events, family entertainment, music festivals, arts & theater, you name it!  You can use any crafting mediums of your choosing as long as your project features or pays homage to a live, ticketed event of some sort! 

Maybe your project will actually incorporate that old ticket from the very first play you ever attended.  Or maybe you'll create a project from scratch such as an awesome concert ticket embroidery pillow!   Perhaps you could create the perfect music festival headband, bag or other accessories.  You could even create an epic quilt from all of those concert tshirts you've been hoarding over the years.  

Ticketmaster has provided a bundle of prizes for the challenge this month!  The first and second place winners will be selected by the online community voting poll here on Craftster.  The third place winner will be selected by a panel of judges at Ticketmaster!  Oh!  And a little birdie told us that the panel of judges would love to see some sort of nod to barcodes, locks, etc. (security-related concepts) included in the winning project.  How cool would it be to add a secret barcode to your project?

Additional Rules and Details:

• Entries open to US and Canada.

• Craft your project during this challenge period (Apr 6 2015 - May 10 2015) only.  Projects created before this timeframe will be excluded from the voting poll.

• On May 1, 2015, there will be a special folder created for entries.  Post your entry on the specified entry board during the period of May 1 - May 10 11:59:59 PDT 2015.  No sooner.  No later.

• Voting will happen from May 11 - May 18 2015.

• The winner will be officially announced on the first business Monday of the next month (in our June newsletter), on this thread and on the Craftster blog.  Ticketmaster will also feature the winners on their blog, Twitter and Facebook!  We will contact you via Private Message, after the announcement, to get your prize package information.

• Enter only ONE project.  Your entry can have multiple components to it.

• If cheating of any sort is discovered, the applicable entry and votes will be disqualified.

Originality:
It's probably impossible to know whether your project is 100% original, has never been posted on Craftster, or made by anyone else in the past.  But if your project was definitely inspired by something you've seen before, please give credit to that project. 

Prizes:
At the end, we'll set up a poll right here and the winners (US or Canada) will recieve:
Ticketmaster prizing:(1) Grand prize, first place winner (voted by Craftster community):  $250 Ticketmaster gift card(2) Second place winner (voted by Craftster community):  $150 Ticketmaster gift card(3) Third place winner (voted by Ticketmaster):  $100 Ticketmaster gift card
Gift cards can be used to purchase events on Ticketmaster.com / Ticketmaster.ca.  Ticketmaster will also feature the winners on their blog, Twitter and Facebook!
As well as:(1) their project in the Featured Projects area(2) their project in the Craftster Blog(3) and a prize from us at Craftster.org -- any one item from one of Craftster's online shops!



You can read more about the contest and get inspiration HERE. 

Mooshie Stitch Mondays: Cable Plait Stitch

Another stitch common to Mountmellick embroidery is the Cable Plait Stitch (aka Braid Stitch).

As always, Needle n' Thread has a great video tutorial for this stitch.

I drew two lines to help guide my stitching and practiced with two types of floss.

DMC floss on the left and #5 pearl cotton on the right.

I really like this stitch. It isn't too difficult to learn and I think it has great texture.

In my whitework project this week, I used part of this pattern I found on Pinterest.

Stitches included: Cable Plait, Chain and Satin Stitch.

The leaves are pearl cotton and everything else is stitched with DMC floss.

Want to read more about the cable plait stitch??

Vetty Creations explains the difference between the cable plait stitch and plaited braid stitch.

Click here to see another video tutorial.

Patterns: Summer Flowers

I have a feeling I may have mentioned the Summer Flowers pattern by Sarah Jane before but I couldn't resist this lovely stitching by Bloom, especially as the little pouch is laying on a gorgeous patchwork pencil case made from a pattern in the Little Lady Liberty book by Alice Garrett.

Learn the Back Stitched Chain Stitch

I’m so thrilled to be sharing my first post on Feeling Stitchy! I’ve been a reader of the blog for a long time and it’s very exciting to now be a part of it.

I spend a lot of time stitching, but there are so many stitches I've never mastered, or even tried. So I’m going to work my way through an encyclopedia of stitches, learning and teaching you as I go!

Starting, well, now, I’ll share a quick how-to for a new stitch on the first Saturday of every month! You’ll notice I may not always do things the traditional way, but I like putting my own spin on things and making the stitches work for me.

So, let’s jump right in, shall we?

For my first post I started with an easy one- The Back Stitched Chain Stitch!

This is essentially just a combination of those two stitches, so I’m guessing most experienced stitchers will be able to jump right in!

I’m using contrasting colors of thread (stranded cotton) so you can easily see the two different parts.  Start by making a chain stitch across your fabric. I actually work chain stitch a little differently than most (it’s backwards!), which I’ll explain below. If you like your way, just skip to the next section!



Begin with an anchor stitch. Come up with your thread at a point just below your anchor or previous stitch. Pass your needle and thread through the anchor stitch, pulling all the way through. Then insert your needle back into the same hole you started with. Repeat until you have a chain as long as you like!

When your chain stitch is in place we’ll go back and add the back stitch.

Begin by finding the end of your chain and come up with your needle just after the “hump” of our first chain stitch. Back stitch into the final stitch of the chain and pull all the way through. Come up again just over the chain stitch and back stitch into beginning of the previous stitch. Continue until you’ve backstitched through the whole thing.

And that’s it! You can experiment with different color combinations, types of thread and even weight.

In the picture above I used several different combinations and stitch sizes. From top to bottom: single strand perle cotton in fun, loose loops and another in small, tight stitches. The bottom three back to stranded floss, 2 strands of pink and one strand of blue. Then 4 strands of pink, 2 strands of blue and the bottom example is 4 strands of pink, 4 strands of blue.

You can see how different this stitch looks in all these different forms, and I hope you feel inspired to add this fun texture to some of your embroidery! It would definitely make a great thick outline stitch, as well as be an interesting fill texture and sampler accent as well.

I chose to use this stitch to lend some fun texture/color to a little hoop I made inspired by The Avett Brothers, who just wrapped up a three night concert stay in my hometown!

I went back to my stranded floss and used an almost ombre color scheme. The ampersand is all done in our back stitched chain stitch, and the chain stitch lent itself nicely to all the curves on the fancy font. I also did some double rows to make parts of it thicker, so you can see how this would look worked side by side.

Well, that’s it for this month. I hope you enjoyed learning with me! If you stitch something using the back stitched chain stitch, be sure to upload it to the Flickr pool so everyone can see! Be sure to leave me a note in the comments if you have any special stitch requests, or have any questions and I'll see you next time!

Welcome to Whitney!

Hello all - I am wonderfully proud to introduce our last (but certainly not least) new blogger on Feeling Stitchy - Whitney! On her blog, Whitney Makes, you'll see wonderful handmade projects Whitney is working on - and I totally fell in love with her talented beaded bird, below!

Whitney will be using her monthly posts to take us on a journey through an Encyclopedia of Stitches - isn't that awesome? So, along with Michelle on Mondays, Wendy on Thursdays and Whitney once a month, it looks like we'll be learning a lot of stitches, no? So exciting!

Everybody, please join me and welcome Whitney!

Friday Instagram Finds, No. 2

Welcome back to Friday Instagram Finds! I've found three awesome embroiderers from Instagram to share with you this week that I think you're going to love!

@merriweatherc
Danielle, of The Merriweather Council, is an absolute dynamo! In addition to her gorgeous hand embroidery work, she's also one half of She Percolates, an awesome podcast that highlights amazing women and their successes.

I have a thing for granny chic cabbage roses, and pairing that with typography is fresh and fun!

A photo posted by The Merriweather Council (@merriweatherc) on Mar 25, 2015 at 8:42am PDT

Danielle's phrenology hoops are one of the most genius things I've ever seen, and has me thinking, "Why the heck didn't I think of that?!" They are seriously so clever, and any word could be stitched in it.

A photo posted by The Merriweather Council (@merriweatherc) on Mar 2, 2015 at 7:00pm PST

Sometimes it's the simplest things that make the biggest statement. The colorful lines on these pendants would pair so well with any outfit.

A photo posted by The Merriweather Council (@merriweatherc) on Mar 18, 2015 at 12:52pm PDT

@wildflower_threads
Christa of Wildflower Threads creates beautiful embroidery, often in miniature in her sweet hair accessories and jewelry.

Look at all of the stitches that Christa incorporated into this, "love wildly" hoop! It's a colorful and modern version of a sampler.

A photo posted by Wildflower Threads (@wildflower_threads) on Apr 1, 2015 at 8:59am PDT

This necklace pendant may be small, but the little scene with flowers and grass is absolutely precious!

A photo posted by Wildflower Threads (@wildflower_threads) on Mar 28, 2015 at 1:17pm PDT

These embroidered bobby pins are so fun! They are so dainty and ladylike.

A photo posted by Wildflower Threads (@wildflower_threads) on Jan 15, 2015 at 7:39am PST

@thekitschystitcher
Sara, The Kitschy Stitcher, is fearless in her embroidery, and she tries fun techniques and flosses to create fun and original pieces!

Even though we only get to see a little bit of this piece, it has some great stitches going on! The French knots (one of my favorite stitches) in the basket look like a bountiful bunch of flowers spilling out, and check out that gorgeous chain stitch for the bike chain - how clever!

A photo posted by ✂Hand Embroidery for the home✂ (@thekitschystitcher) on Mar 31, 2015 at 5:53pm PDT

Check out this crown in miniature full of bling and metallic floss!

A photo posted by ✂Hand Embroidery for the home✂ (@thekitschystitcher) on Mar 26, 2015 at 8:36am PDT

Do you see what I mean by using fun techniques? Sara used watercolor pencils to create depth to this portrait of Bacon, the French Bulldog.

A photo posted by ✂Hand Embroidery for the home✂ (@thekitschystitcher) on Feb 26, 2015 at 3:45pm PST

I hope you've enjoyed edition number two of Friday Instagram Finds on Feeling Stitchy! Please leave comments below to let me know what you thought. If you find a great embroiderer or stitch-related needle worker who you think I should feature, be sure to tag one of their pictures with #feelingstitchyig, and I'll take a look!

While you're on Instagram, make sure you follow Feeling Stitchy! We're @feelingstitchyishWe'd love for you to stop by and say hello :)

Friday Instagram Finds, No. 3 will be published Friday, April 17, 2015.

Craftster April Hoopla Along: Nature!

April is here and that means another month of the Craftster Hoopla Along. This month's theme is Nature. The details of the monthly hoopla along are below and don't forget to check out Craftster.org for more details and to post your stitching. You could win a prize in the monthly random drawing! 

Details:
We have officially shaken off those winter blues and are ready to get out and enjoy nature! This month's theme is all about the outdoors. You can stitch up anything to do with nature: birds, bees, animals and flora. Feel the sun on your face as you become one with nature and one with your hoop.
You have until April 30, 2015 to be eligible for random drawing

Prize:
Your choice of a Craftster Skully T-shirt

See this month and past months challenges HERE. 

Patterns: Mr. X Stitch 52 Week Challenge

Mr X Stitch is currently doing a challenge where he creates a new cross stitch pattern each week for 52 weeks. The patterns so far look fantastic and it's definitely worth checking out Mr X Stitch for both the past weeks patterns and to keep an eye on it for the new ones!

Diary of an Intern: Julia at Hand and Lock, week 2

Hello fellow stitchers, I'm back with my latest update about my work experience at Hand and Lock. As it draws near to a month since I started my internship, it feels I've reached a milestone. Reflecting back on the last two weeks, I recognise I am currently on the steep rise of the 'learning curve'. As tasks have become more complicated it sometimes feels I am taking one step forward and two steps back.

However, through this hindsight I notice how much I am absorbing and learning from watching, listening and through my own practice. I suppose this process can be likened to any newly learnt skill. Working with such outstanding and talented embroiderers and designers can be overwhelming and it has amplified how much more I wish to grow. This really is a once in a lifetime opportunity to develop my skills as much as I possibly can.

Spring is in the air in London and Hand and Lock are currently sampling for their Spring Summer 2016 collection. It’s really exciting as we are also able to contribute ideas. As interns we are generating embellishment samples and this week I have been given the creative freedom to create some fabric origami samples.

I had explored this technique with the dress that I made for the Hand and Lock Prize. It has been a lot of fun to experiment further with new patterns and concepts. I have been working on a shell motif which may be layered to give detail. Where the paper is normally folded in regular origami, here we have applied a pleat. I could happily while away many hours doing fabric origami.

Another real joy during the last two weeks has been becoming familiar with the different applications of embroidery depending upon its purpose. For example embellishment on a shoe, sash, scarf or military uniform can require a different approach. To begin with the obvious, different needles and threads should be used depending upon the material and expected result. Some tasks are better to work in an embroidery hoop and others in a frame. When applying a stitch, account needs to be taken into the precise angle of the needle along with careful manipulation of the thread as it travels through the material.

At the moment I am stitching hand embroidered badges onto leather, which will eventually be made into slippers. They are adorable 'coats of arms' framed by two bunny rabbits. However these two harmless emblems have proved quite a challenge for me. Understandably they should be attached with an 'invisible' stitch and they are to be edged in gold. The most challenging aspect for me was anchoring these delicate badges so that they remained precisely in position whilst sewing through a tough fabric. This may sound straight forward but it is a little trickier than it seems as you can't simply pin them because it will damage the handwork.

Following a traditional and meticulous method has been my solution to the task and now it is well underway. The best part about it nearing the end of the month is that I feel I have learnt so much already and there are still two more months left.

Hi, I'm Julia! Based in Amsterdam, I am an embroidery enthusiast with a life long passion for textiles. I will be contributing during my work placement at the prestigious Hand and Lock a London based, embroidery and embellishment company with 250 years of heritage.

Join me every other Friday for my Diary of an Intern posts!
Find me on Facebook.

Thimblenest Thursdays: Twisted Lazy-Daisy Edge Stitch

In two weeks I'll be bringing you another project tutorial. As I started pulling that post together, though, I realized that I didn't know a great stitch to give it the finish I wanted. After searching in vain for an edge stitch that: 

1. accommodates a curved edge 

2. could be used for joining two (preferably knit) fabrics together

3. and provides a dressier touch than something like blanket stitch, 

I decided to invent something I'm calling "Twisted Lazy-Daisy Edge Stitch". By outlining the steps for this stitch here today, my next tutorial won't need to include directions for that project and this stitch. By the way, I found this post helpful in developing the directions below.

Here we go . . . 

For the purposes of this tutorial, I'm joining the circle above to the square. 

Mark dots around the inside of the circle, spacing them your desired distance apart. The dots indicate where the top of each stitch will be. For this circle, my dots were 3/8" (0.95 cm) from the edge of the circle; I eyeballed the distance between each dot. The next time I use this stitch, I think I will decrease the amount of space between stitches.

Pin the circle to the square and thread your needle. In these pictures I used three strands of embroidery thread, but two worked fine during some of my practice runs.

Bring your needle up through the square fabric right at the edge of the circle, and directly below one of the dots.

Insert your needle back down through the fabric slightly to the left of where you brought the thread up, and continue back up through both thicknesses, coming up through the dot.

Continue pulling the thread up until just a small loop remains; stop short of pulling the thread taut. Twist the loop one turn to the left.

Above you can see the difference between a stitch that is twisted and one that is not. I felt that adding a twist added a little more finesse, as well as strength to the edge of the fabric that is being secured.

Now, just like with lazy-daisy stitch, bring your needle up just inside the top of the loop, holding the loop in the general area of the small dot; then go back down through the fabric just outside the top of the loop.

Bring your needle back up just above where you twisted the loop and then go back down just under the twist. One stitch is complete!

Begin the next stitch by coming up at the edge of the circle in line with the next dot to the right. Continue stitching until you have completed a full circle. I'll be back in two weeks with a fun project that uses the Twisted Lazy-Daisy Edge Stitch; see you then!

Craftster Find: Baroque Lovebird

If you are on Craftster than you are familiar with one of my favorite members, Ludi. Her needlework is absolutely amazing in every way. She is constantly pushing the envelope with technique, color and size. The piece featured here, Baroque Lovebird, was part of a Craftster swap. The entire piece is about 4.5 inches in size. You can read more about it and see more of Ludi's beautiful stitching on Craftster.org.