I forgot to scan the big Fat Cat embroidery!

The pattern for this comes from HERE. It's from the DMC website.

I embroidered a smaller version HERE but have since removed the whiskers. The big one will be made into a pillow too. It was a good oppotunity to use a variety of threads and a time or two, I even tried a different stitch from what was indicated. Eventually, when the 2nd pillow is made, I'll show them together.

Here's another 5 bells. I'm done for this year. They are quite small. I'm wondering if I should make a larger version next year but these are good for tree or package ornaments and card inserts.

I finally finished the Hedgehog I'm going to teach. I wanted something more basic than what I did before which had a lot of added details. This group struggles with just the cord so I've got to come up with a refresher that will have an impact.

I've been getting lots of pre-class info from Karen's Class. The benefit of seeing what the current class is doing is that you have a barrel-full of inspiration in the process. I plan to work in white but I want to do something in color later. I just don't know what color so white is best for me right now. I'm amused by the "footcloth" terminology. Mine will be a sampler. Hopefully something I can hang on the wall. I've been watching her button class too. Looks like fun but I think it's included somewhat in this one anyway. I'll be doing TAST at the same time so I think I'll be submerged in stitchery for awhile!

I finished this up this morning. I got a bit discouraged by all the "gaps" around the edges. I'll be keeping this one for reference. The original is done in white but I wondered if the little bow would really show up that way. I may try another one in white next year. My stitching should be better by then!

Progress in RPL

I've just started the stocking. I was going to make the white part more solid and may go back and do it over but I want to see how it looks lacy first. The second segment will be green and the bottom red. I'm already wanting to make a second one in different colors and filling stitches. It's about 4 1/2 inches tall so it's good size.

I've actually done 3 of the 5 bells but these two are my favorites so far. I learned a new wheel. It's done on top of the netting and is done on its own, ended, and then each new one is separate. I got better at it as I went on. The ground net is not exactly the best but I'm learning I can put these wheels on different backgrounds so I may not do it exactly like this again.

I love the lacy netting on this one. I used the wheel for the bell clanger here and really like it. I may have to stiffen it to use it as an ornament, but I like this one best so far. I'll have to make a second one the same so I can give it as a gift. I'm too attached to this one to give away! These are meant for gifts!

RPL

If you read my blog in the past year, you may have seen the last version of this. I made up the pattern five times on one strip and then completed the needlelace bits one after the other. It went really fast. And they were so pretty - so I'm doing it again.

This one is a stocking from Romanian Point Lace, Christmas Ornaments, Book #1 by Sylvia Murariu. I've done the tree and the trumpeting angel in the past.

For the most part, I find it just as easy to make up my own patterns but Sylvia has lots of good stitches in her publications. I like how she did this stocking, incorporting the bow in the outline.

I'm a little irritated with myself for misplacing the Waller book on stitches. It wasn't very long ago that I had it. WHAT did I do with it? Replacement costs are atrocious and I know I didn't lose it. It's here somewhere.

So I'm taking a break from some of my other laces and working on this for a bit. Taking the bells with me to an evening with a lace friend, in fact, tonight.

I got sidetracked this weekend while downsizing my fabric stash. This fabric has potential so I made a quick embroidery to see how it worked out. It needs to be damp-stretched but I also need to figure out exactly what I'm going to do with it. I think it will hold lavendar so I just need to figure out if it will be a cover bag or permanent bag. That means do I make it so that you can replace the sachet filling by making this a "pillowslip" for the bag or will it be stitched shut? I think the cover is more practical, allowing one to refresh the contents, but it does take more time to finish. So that's in the works to finish off.

I thought I had the embroidery marker on my light box when I traced this off but I realized quickly it was a permanent fine point sharpie so you can see the lines here and there and they won't ever go away. A sample for my eyes only! I need to make sure I change out pens on the light box!

I'm planning on taking Karen Ruane's wonderful embroidery class at the beginning of the year and sorted my fabrics out with that in mind. You'd think I'd spent a lifetime planning this with the white fabrics I have - a whole storage bin full, all textures and kinds. I'm really looking forward to it and have ideas brewing already!

I'll take this off my pillow sometime today and insert it in a clear glass globe. I'm excited about how it turned out!

This is a project I found for my lace group to do but Cathy K. is the one who reinterpreted it and made it possible. The class is at the next meeting. I met up with Cathy and another lace guild member, Sally, to do it ahead of time. The pattern is originally from Petra Behrends. I have the original pdf but can't find the online source that I got it from!

Here it is off the pillow! See how it spirals so nicely???

And now it's in the glass ornament.

Here he is! I decided to block him even though I don't typically see instructions for blocking RPL. I'm still looking for improvements.

Maybe less foot detail? Sometimes simpler is better. I might do the white version without feet and see what I think. I can always add them later. I will probably change up the filling stitch on the back above and below the arch. I still like the arch there. I won't be using the ruffly braid on the white version either although I like it. I'll be teaching the white version and I don't want it too complicated. Most of the members already have trouble doing the basic braid so to add a ruffly one in the mix might be too much for now. It can be something to work towards later.

Petie the Hedgehog is still not done. He needs two more feet and a nose. And it's really a WIP. I intend to make the traditional white one and hopefully, the filling stitches will work out better. I forgot that RPL is done from the back side and it's when you take it off the base that you see the finished motif. Since I've already got the ear and eye on the back side, I guess that's the finished version!

I used size 20 thread for the outline and size 70 for the filling. Maybe it's too big of a jump but I still like it.

Dorset & Grindle Buttons

In September, I'm presenting/teaching the program/class for my Lace Guild, recently renamed Lafayette Lacemakers, and it will be about Dorset Buttons. Dorset buttons were popular in the 1600's and 1700's as a cottage industry. They were typically made from the discs of the horns of Dorset Sheep. The technique evolved but with the advent of the Industrial Revolution in the 1800's, machine made buttons became cheaper and faster to make. The history and evolution is very interesting if you have time to research it.

The program will be about these buttons specially, the ones made on a ring, a plastic ring in this case, which is covered in the buttonhole stitch and then spokes are formed with thread which are then woven in needlelace stitches. I can't believe I didn't show these buttons made in early July on either of my blogs! This particular style is the easiest. Of course, the colors I've used here are not traditional but I was playing and I like color. I believe they were all done in finer tatting cotton.

One type of button, referred to as a "knob" button, used a wadded up piece of cloth which was then somehow glued into a small ball and then stitched over. I can't remember if it had a fabric circle over it first or not. I won't be teaching this method since there isn't enough time but I will show them samples and give them instructions they can follow up with on their own if they wish. I found a tutorial for a Grindle Button, a Dorset Button variation, by Kelly over at Mackin-Art. She graciously gave me permission to use her instructions.

I found a package of wooden discs at Hobby Lobby in the jewelry section. These are 1/2" wide. Once the button is finished, it looks much bigger.

I cut a circle of fabric and gathered it to fit over the disc. Initially, I tried to put a bit of fiberfill in there too but it was too much effort to keep it in place and sew up the gathered fabric.

Here's how the top looked. In my second button, I made sure the fabric was just a smidgen bigger and made sure it was really smooth and taut at the top.

Here's the underneath side. As you can see, all the raw edges show. I stitched over them at the end but it still wasn't my ideal finish.

I used size 8 perle cotton and made 8 spokes, securing them through the center hole. At first, I was doing my wrapping wrong. If the wrong side was going to show, it would have been right. Rather than go back and do it over, I just started where I was so then the end result was a flat sort of center top before you see the spokes forming. I'm sure variations like that happened all the time.

One suggestion was to make a buttonhole loop for the shank. I'm sure it would last forever but it took extra time and was fiddly.

My next button blank probably came from Hobby Lobby too, in the craft wood section, but it might have come from Michael's Crafts. These discs are 3/4" wide.

This time I cut the fabric circle larger, not just because it was a larger disc but to hopefully have the center meet in the back when gathered up. I didn't take a photo but it did look better. Again, I used size 8 perle cotton and this time I started the wrap at the very beginning so the spokes start a the center.

When I finished the back side, I used a brass split ring as a button shank. It looks better than the first button, largely because I learned from my mistakes the first time around. If I have time before the meeting, I may try out a few variations in the needlelace stitching that I've seen. I'd like to use a different kind of thread too.

By using appropriate colored fabric and thread, my lace guild members can make these buttons to embellish their costumes for the Feast of the Hunter's Moon, a reenactment of the French and Indians trading at the Fort every year. You have to dress in period correct attire to participate and since it took place in the 1700's, the buttons will be perfect.

Any further samples will probably be in bright colors too!

Update on RPL Hedgehog

I spent way more time this evening on a single filling than I needed to. I meant to scan this before I started the second filling and then forgot. The top filling is new for me and I'm not overly happy with the way it turned out. I'll leave it since I plan on doing more versions of this happy critter, mostly to have a sample of that particular filling stitch.

Tonight I stitched the center portion. I actually tried to do a feather stitch and it wasn't working out at all so I clipped it and started over. It's been so long since I've done an arch that I screwed up more than once, but again...I left it as a sample. The shape is what I was going after here.

I don't know yet how I'll do the bottom segment but I do know I'm going to do the entire face in ecru and in a denser stitch, probably the net stitch. I may go ahead and do that before the bottom segment which will give me more time to think about what I want to do there.

I might end up doing like I did with the bells, making several patterns to work on at once. It's helpful to have them all lined up and see what works and what doesn't. I haven't decided yet if I like it in the multicolor brown. I plan to do some in white and possibly some in a solid brown.

I'm using size 70 tatting thread for the filling and I'm wondering if that is too fine? I wanted the delicate-looking thread look but it's harder to work with. This one is very much the prototype!

Here's the next phase. I used a fan braid for the back and added a loop in the middle instead of leaving it wide open. I couched it down differently. I'd been watching some videos of RPL on the Lace News YouTube Channel and found a series on RPL in a different language. I have no idea what was being said but I did notice the braid was held in place by stitching through the center instead of couching. I'm not sure this would work all that well with the plain cord but it works well for the fan braid.

The braids are crocheted in size 20 thread. I have some tatting thread in size 70 in both brown and variegated brown that I plan to use for the filling on the back. I will probably use an ecru for the face. I don't like using size 10 for the cord. It seems too coarse for me and while I know the cord is traditionally crocheted in size 10 and only sometimes in size 20, I think size 20 is the biggest I want to go. In fact, for some things, I may make the cord in size 40 and do the needle lace fillings in a much finer thread. Traditions are meant to be challenged sometimes.

I did learn that the fan cord only unravels at one end so you have to start couching where the braid starts so that wherever you end, you can cut off about an inch away and have plenty of thread for stitching after you unravel.

I'm anxious to get started on this now. I have ideas for the nose and eye and the ear but I'm still not sure how I will do the feet. It will come to me, I'm sure.

I've been wanting to design a RPL hedgehog for several weeks now. I found some instructions about drawing the basic shape, drew one, and then I scanned it.

Then I inserted the scan into a word document and adjusted the frame twice to get two different sizes. I still have the original so I can continue to tweak it if needed. I decided to use the smaller of the two for this project.

I've also been experimenting with braids, thread size, and color. The braid most commonly used is this one and it's crocheted in size 20, Twilley varigated brown. I also crocheted a "fan" shape - I don't know exactly what it's called as most directions tend to refer to the cords as #1, #2, etc. I've seen this called crocheted ric-rac too, in a context having nothing to do with RPL. (Romanian Point Lace in case you aren't familiar with the term)

I have the fan shape ready to couch down for the back. It will give a ridged appearance which I hope will suggest the prickly spikes found on hedgehogs. Well...I don't know if they are prickly or not for sure since I've never seen a real one. What I haven't decided yet is whether to use a few rows of the fan cord or just do the outside/outline. I would space them far enough apart to do needlelace fillings between the lines. I'm also not certain about the other features but I'm thinking of beads for the nose and eyes. I can do a buttonholed strip or circle for the ear but it will probably be a strip, like a loop. I'm still stuck on the feet and mouth. I could skip the mouth but I think it adds character.

The great thing is I can do several versions and decide what I like best later. I have some size 70 brown variegated that I can use for the filling stitches. I have the same size in brown which is probably what I'll do the front in. It's also possible to have several rows close of the fan cord for the back. That would leave all the needle lace for the front. I think I just figured out the mouth but don't know how to explain it clearly yet.

On other lace fronts, I'm doing yet another butterfly in bobbin lace but this time in a fine silky thread. I've only got half of it done after 2 sessions. Normally, I'd have it mostly done in just one but it hasn't gone that way this time.

I'm also driving myself crazy trying to remember where my lucet is. My guild is having a teacher on Saturday to show us some new ways to use it.

Well...late pasta supper is making me very sleepy. Good night!

Wow! Practically the whole month without an entry but I guess I have been gone a lot and haven't had much time to do other laces.

I started this during our last bobbin lace session and then finished it this week. I didn't have my instructions with me and had to wing it. The wings are a little different but until I find my instructions, I won't know why. Even so, I was encouraged by the fact that I could come up with something that worked.

I've been debating between working through the new book I got and venturing out on my own. I suppose I could do a bit of both if I ever get my other pillows workable. Other than taking my cat to the vet tomorrow, I don't have anything specific planned so that might be a good time to make the cover for my new pillow, finish my roller pillow and maybe, just maybe, finish the travel roller pillow.

I also want to do more embroidery and needle lace. It's already near the beginning of August, the 8th month of the year. WHERE has the time gone???

I've got so many entries to make in my Lucky Find blog too.

I found the pattern for this Fat Cat on the DMC Threads Blog last summer and have been itching to stitch him ever since. So, on impulse, I started him earlier this week and was enjoying it up until last night. It just wasn't turning out as pleasing as I hoped and you know how you kind of lose interest in a project when that happens?

I finished the embroidery last night and damp-stretched it, hoping the removal of blue transfer lines and a smooth finish would help but instead, it just seems very amateurish. Everything is a learning experience though. I did not use embroidery floss. I was using the thread I typically tat with which was laying all around me. So it was an experiment with thread and with stitches. I did pretty much follow the suggested stitches but I would like to do one now with specific colors and with embroidery floss. I have plenty so there's no reason not to.

I reduced the pattern to a small size, less than half the original. I still like the smaller size and will probably use that again. I will also use a color scheme and shake the stitch type up a little. I messed up on the tail. I messed up on the whiskers. I couldn't get the double stitch cross stitch right so changed to French Knots. The blue transfer pen I use really makes the lines too big. I might use a different method to transfer the pattern next time. I'd also like to add some beads and maybe couch a few fancy threads down. I might use a different colored background too instead of white. It does look better in person than the photo.

This is my roller pillow in process. The bolster was something I made for something else but then I remembered it seemed the same size so I dropped it in. I'm debating on whether to unstaple the velvet and add more padding or just continue from here. I really wanted a bolster on a dowel and didn't realize until we had the class that it wouldn't be. Still...it's the only roller pillow I have so I should get it done.

Here's the cookie pillow I bought last week....just need to cover it, hopefully sometime this weekend.

This is my latest lace acquisition not related to tatting. I bought the bobbins at the L.A.C.E. group's Lace Day in Downers Grove at the weekend. I wasn't going to get them but then I noticed they were squared off which means they won't roll all that much and the fact they were obviously handpainted appealed to me. Some groups use laser printing or stamping. I like the personal touch. I even know the painter's name. It's Kate Wild who is a member of L.A.C.E. I haven't met her unless she was at the table with the wood findings for bobbin lace and I only spoke with the ladies there briefly. Still, it's just a matter of not being familiar with the members. I may well have met her at some point.

Another reason I bought them is that I recently read that if you want to keep track of your workers, you should paint a pair of bobbins black and use those for your workers. Well....if I did that, I would also paint some pretty flowers or designs so why not use bobbins already painted on? Most of my decorated bobbins are spangled or need to be spangled. I haven't touched the wooden ones yet but my fingers are itching to.

On another note, I met with my friend Sally last night to lace and I had wound all my bobbins, including these, with the notion that I would make a roseground edging that was in the same book as the insertion I just made.

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHA!

The instructions tell you literally NOTHING. I went back to earlier chapters and I did find out that SE meant sewing edge. I have actually done that before but Southard's description of how it works was vague and confusing. In the edging, she has you putting 8 pairs over one pin but gives you no clue on how to go about using them. I know they are for the half stitch edge, but HOW? She makes a big point in a later chapter, which is titled something about ways to start without instructions (mind you I said LATER chapter) about knowing how to figure it out. I do get that and in fact, the bookmarks I've done already have been very helpful in providing some guidelines, but this book still lacks some crucial bridging.

There is one very simple edging that I think I might be able to do. I did not lace at all last night. I read the entire time. I will attempt this simple edging but then I will go to another book. I got a new one last week, the newer Torchon book that is wonderful, packed with photos and in color and STEP-BY-STEP. Once I've got all that down, I'll be happy to try to figure out how to lace something that is missing instructions, but not til then. So needless to say, I was extremely frustrated last night. Again, I wonder how they ever thought they would keep bobbin lace from dying out with the way they've "promoted" it.

I've been trained to "train", to write training plans, and put them in action so when I see poorly written instructions, it really bothers me. I should just move on to something that DOES work and stop getting all worked up about it.

I was excited to get this done last night and have time to tat too! I even went to bed early...which means "on time".


So the top corner is a little off, but I do have the whole top solidified. After looking at the other again, I guess it's not a big deal to have it open. I was also reading something in one of my books about how to start off so you don't have a split between threads.

I love the way the color in this shows up. I stopped being so concerned about getting the cloth stitch so straight up and down but I did make an effort to keep it lined up with the way the pairs initially came down from the previous part. The twists are meant to give it some space.

I'm anxious to get my new pillow, weekend after this, which will be flatter. Then I will take this one apart and flatten out that dome in the center. At the time, I thought that would be desireable and was worried about it not being high enough! I also have a roller pillow to finish up and a travel pillow to finish up. I think I will wait on the rose ground edging for that so I can perhaps do several inches. That means I'll have to redo the pricking. I guess I should do a sample first.

My very first Rose Ground!

I was very happy with this one, in spite of the mistakes. The pattern did not say how to begin, hence, the gap at the top. Some books think you're smarter than you are. LOL! The sequence is really very easy for rose ground, at least in this sample. I wasn't crazy about the cloth stitch squares. You can't get the threads to be nice and be evenly spaced as well as straight up and down. The sample in the book wasn't either but that's what I wanted!

So I started a new one last night and think I sort of fixed the top but I'll bet the corner will be split. The ecru sample is done in size 30 Cebelia. The one I'm working on now is in size 16 Finca and is a lovely Rose color.

The one I want to try after this in the same ground is an edging, which will also be a challenge. Then I saw another edging made up of hearts, the only one so far that I've really wanted to do.

I finished up this bookmark last night. I started it Tuesday night and was close to finishing it. I chose to make all the fans from the same whole stitch instead of changing the middle two. I guess that's a good sign when you feel comfortable making changes according to your own preferences. I haven't blocked it yet but it will be a gift for a friend. I'm very happy with this one.

I've borrowed a few more books from I.O.L.I. but as usual, most just tell you how many pairs to use and the size thread. Guess I have a lot more reading to do! In fact, I should probably take a break from doing and spend some time studying.

I would like to finish a couple of the pillows I have in the works too, and maybe organize my equipment. So much to do, so little time!

I had some errands after work last night and then after I got home I realized I should have picked up some supplies for the stained glass jello I'm making for my granddaughter's graduation party on Saturday so I went back to Walmart. It's only 10 minutes away but that was still a chunk of time lost in my evening. So by the time I could sit down and do something, it was creeping up on 8:30 p.m. I didn't want to wind bobbins but I did finish up a tatted motif I tried out.

I've been wanting to embroider for weeks. Not sure why but I just do. I keep printing out free patterns I find online. So, remembering one I still had laying on the printer, I went about finding fabric, the transfer pencil, the light box, and then transfering it. It's a very simple pattern but I thought it would be just enough to curb the craving. I got one flower head done and started another. i have two more I think, and then the stems and leaves which are very simple. I'm challenging myself to do more than backstitch, stem stitch and outline stitch. I couched down a thread on the first flower though you can't hardly see it now with all the French knots. It really took me quite a while to get the couching part done. I was basically making up my plan as I went along and I still am! I used a chain stitch for the beginning of the second flower and that's as far as I've gotten. The end result may not look as polished as a pre-planned stitching but I'm exploring and having fun. I'm going to forego the beads and fancy threads on this one, keeping it simple but varied from my normal mode.

I just discovered I had this in draft mode without the photos! Here's the first version finished up. I changed one of the flowers and I think I was going to show it before and after. Oh well. This is not the best photo. One thing I noticed is that the flower on the right doesn't show up very well as some of the variegated is white and it's on a white background. At the time, I had the blue transfer pencil showing and it wasn't as noticeable as it was when I rinsed and damp-stretched it. I also managed to embroider my name on this one. I usually don't do that part well.

Here's my second version which I was happier with but I'm still not happy with the flower on the far right. I was also disappointed that some of my thread colors ran. They were from some thread I dyed years ago with easter egg dyes and they simply never quite got to be colorfast.

But, as I said, I had fun exploring and I played with some new stitches and methods. I plan to do even more!

Life has been busy lately but I've still managed to get some lacing in. I finished up this bookmark Tuesday night. I started it the week before at our regular BL session but did not touch it again until this week. I had to add in thread for the workers all around and you can see the thick places near the bottom. Other than that, I'm very happy with it. This is the pattern I took as a class last year in Downer's Grove with the L.A.C.E. group. I was extremely frustrated then so being able to figure out what to do has been very gratifying. Instructions were limited on the sheet but it was enough! I plan to make another with more thread added on the workers.

This is a buttonhole stitch I found in a vintage publication that I've been playing with. I used the same thread I tatted the motif with to try one edge with. It's a Lizbeth size 20 - hmmm..maybe size 40 - thread but I don't know the color. I really didn't think it was size 40 but look how much smaller it is than the white edging which is also size 20.

Here it is closeup but if you click on the picture, it will show even bigger.

I added a second row on the white and really like how it turned out. I believe I have some pieces in my collection done exactly like this. Now I know how it was done!

Pretty Linens

I went to a local antique store yesterday during my lunch hour on a whim. I found a few nice things. These embroidered napkins will be fun to work with. I love embroidered napkins and tend to buy them at stores like this when they aren't too much. I think I paid $1.25 for this set which is in perfect condition. They will become gift envelopes or gift bags.

Then I found this knotted doily, an example of Armenian Lace or Mediterranean Lace. It's also in excellent condition and only $2 plus 25% off.

Here's a close up. I hoped to get even more of a close up so you could see the way the knots play out. Lovely work!

At the same booth (still 25% off)I found this wonderful drawn-work runner. I did not see the dark spot at the time. It sort of glared at me only when I took the photo! It's starched and pressed so I don't know if I will be able to get the stain out but it's certainly worth trying.

Here's a close up of this one too. The fabric is so fine and it amazes me how the embroiderer was able to work it so precisely. The work itself is perfect so I hope I can get the stain out!

I'm working on a bobbin lace bookmark, the fan one I did at L.A.C.E. last year. I think I understand it better but we'll see once I take it off the pillow. I haven't even taken it out of the bag since Tuesday night. I was so tired last night and took a small nap. Then the weather was so bad, tornado warnings non-stop and almost constant TV coverage as the front passed through. My week has been extra busy too and frankly, I would take a nap right now if I could! I really want to go through the remainder of the storage bins again and be done with them so hopefully the drive home will wake me up!

Here's the finished sample. The square is 4" and I used different threads on each edge to see how they worked up. There's DMC size 20, DMC size 40, Perle Cotton size 8, and 3 strands of white embroidery floss. I guess they are all DMC brand.

My base row of stitching got better with every edge so I don't think that part had anything to do with the thread. Surprisingly, the size 40 was the hardest to work with. It kept knotting up. I ended after 2 points and cut my thread, turned it around and threaded from the other direction. That helped but it was still less manageable than the other threads. I thought maybe the sheen from the perle cotton and the embroidery floss might look nicer but it wasn't all that noticeable.

Of course, to make the edging look its best, you have to do a little math, deciding on how many points, how many spaces between points and stitch your base line accordingly. I was just practicing the stitch so I didn't bother with that. The directions didn't give mention to that either until the end.

So, I could make my points wider by going over 4 or 5 stitches instead of 3 and I could have them closer together. I'm not sure I'd have to have even one space between points. I'm going to hem a few more squares to play with but this time I'll hem them by machine. Much faster! And they are only samples.

Aha! I just found another printout in one of my folders that shows a slightly different way of doing the points but much denser. Hmmmm...will have to try that one!