Tuesday, April 27, 2010

The Red Quilt


I just have to share with you this story about a Red Quilt.

"The red quilt was made up of my years in Europe, each piece of the quilt a souvenir purchased in one of the places I had visited.

While traveling with the family whose children I cared for, I noticed that other people collect statues, trinkets or similar items to remind them of their travels.  I always found these things too gaudy and sometimes too bulky to carry with me in my on flight baggage allowance.

The pieces of fabric I picked up would not always come from your regular quilt shop but from markets and other unusual outlets, sometimes in the guise of a hankie or scarf, the most unusual was the back pocket of a pair of fabulous jeans.  I will admit I did get a lot of wear out of the jeans before I salvaged that pocket.

A red quilt was not what I initially had in mind either.  My favourite childhood colour red was still my obvious favourite as my samplings had been mostly that. It was then suggested to me by the very proper lady of the house, that I quilt them into a token of my time spent in Europe.

Now days, my children pull out the red quilt and ask where each piece of fabric is from, I am happy to say, I can almost remember all."

I just love this story. Whilst the Red Quilt shown above is not the quilt in question, it no doubt has  history attached to it as well.

Making a red quilt has always been on my "to do list". And here are a few I found for inspiration. Hope you like these amazing red quilts as well.






I think I will start my red quilt fabric collecting today.
Until next time, happy quilting
Warmly Lenna
www.stitchingcow.com

Wednesday, April 7, 2010

Embroidery Mini Quilt Swap


I am very excited to announce that The Quilting Gallery and Stitching Cow have joined together to bring you an embroidery mini quilt swap. It's going to be lots of fun!

Head on over to Michele at Quilting Gallery to read all about how you can Join in. Click here for more information.

Hope you enjoy!
Warmly Lenna
www.stitchingcow.com

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

Free Stitchery Pattern and Tutorial


Here is a free stitchery pattern and "how to" tutorial for you to enjoy.The pattern for this project can be accessed by clicking the link below.
Click here for your free stitchery pattern "Bee amongst the Daisies"

Stitchery Pattern -Step One

Iron your background fabric. It is best to choose a light coloured, closely woven fabric such as Homespun or Calico for this project.
Transfer your pattern onto the right side of the fabric (if it takes more than a minute to work out which is the right side, then it doesn't matter!)

Use a fine tipped water soluble marker and a good light source. A well lit window will do. Include all the pattern markings including the outer border which is the finished size of the design. You will notice that I have traced lightly. Being too heavy handed will make removing your markings more difficult. You could also use a sharp lead pencil, although pencil can be harder to remove as well. And I should also mention that I do not recommend a permanent Pigma pen for obvious reasons!




Stitchery Pattern - Step Two

For working the hand embroidery stitches I highly recommend using an embroidery hoop and a number 9 or 10 Crewel needle. The hoop will help to keep your stitches an even tension. Choose  a small hoop, my favorite is about 6" or 15cm in diameter.  Click here to read more about embroidery hoops.



A fine needle is also important and will help to achieve a quality result. A crewel needle is designed for use with multiple strands of thread and will make threading much easier.Click here to read more about embroidery needles

I have used a variegated red DMC thread for this stitchery project, although it would look great in other colour combinations. Click here to read more about threads for embroidery.

Stitchery Pattern - Step Three

Now that you have the correct equipment it is time to start working the hand embroidery stitches. This stitchery project is made up of 5 basic embroidery stitches.

Straight stitch, Back stitch, Running stitch, Lazy Daisy stitch and French knots.

To help you with these embroidery stitches I have put together a video demonstration of each stitch. There is also a video to show you how to start your embroidery without having to use a knot, and there are no loose ends to worry about either.Click here to view the embroidery stitches.

Stitchery Pattern - Step Four

Once your stitchery is complete, remove any markings with cold water.
Press your stitchery face down into a towel. This is important so as not to squash your embroidery stitches flat.

Trim back the panel to the desired size. Your stitchery is now ready to make into a small wall hanging or to incorporate into a cushion, bag or quilt.

Click here to get a copy of the free stitchery pattern for this tutorial 



Hope you have enjoyed this free stitchery project.
Warmly Lenna

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