Thursday 27 June 2013

Stitching and Sketching



Another late post. Ah well, while we aren't blogging we are living life! So it follows I must have been doing a lot of living!

I've certainly been doing an fair amount of stitching and sketching. I finally finished my Mystic Moonstruck Hare cushion, and it went with me to lovely Lizzy Doe's house warming party on Tuesday night; I think she liked it. You can never have too many cushions, and the hare is one of Lizzy's special images.


Not an easy cushion to photograph, as it is quite plump. The words say: Leaping, Lilting, Landbound no longer, Thou Mystic, Moonstruck Hare.  I searched all over the place for a short poem about hares to stitch around the leaping hare, but came up with nothing I could use. So I wrote these lines myself. Originally I had "leaping, lilting , landlocked no longer....' because I loved the alliteration, but then I realised that the hare is not landlocked, wrong word entirely. Earthbound would probably have been the best substitute, but I wanted to hang onto a bit of that alliteration so Landbound it is. A compromise.


Detail of  fastening. I don't do zips. To be honest I usually sew all round and unpick when necessary!


          The text is stitched using a whipped running stitch. The spacing gave me a lot of grief!


                     I'm very fond of using variegated wool when I work with felt or flannel.



There was a super spread at Lizzy's, she'd spent hours and hours preparing a vegetarian -vegan even - feast, and we all took a dish of something to add to it. I think she will be eating the tabbouleh I took for the rest of the week - it was a HUGE dish! And very garlicky.


                                               Part of the spread...there was lots more!

I was so enjoying working with the felt I had to start another cushion. The ground fabric is an old blanket, which last saw light of day as the base for Katy's "One Bird" cushion. The pattern is from the French magazine Quilt Mania, and designed by Kate Harmon.I would normally design my own, these naive flowers are not difficult to draw, but the design was there, ready to go, and I was working on impulse. (same old, same old!)


I'm using a mixture of hand-dyed felt and felted woollen blanket. I've tried to keep the colours fairly muted, I didn't want bright primaries this time.


I use a simple stab-stitch, which I prefer to blanket stitch. When all the applique is completed I shall embroider using wool yarn and cotton perlè, as I have used on one of my quilts; lovely to look at and very enjoyable to stitch. I might also add a row of triangles down each side; even when I 'borrow' a design I like to add my own elements.


I took this with me when I had a doctor's appointment the other day, I had time to wait so sat in the car stitching away happily.

On the sketching front I am still stuck with copying but I think it is good practice anyway. I did have a go at sketching a trout from a ceramic model Jim provided. I have to re-carve my trout block!


Not brilliant, but truer to life than the very 'carp' looking creature which I had previously carved! Now I just have to reduce this to a usable size.


                                                   Cabbage. You guessed, of course.


     OK, so I'm no water-colourist either. But I love filling this sketch book with images and colour.


                     I did a quick little carving and stamped out this 'proof' using stamping inks.



I'm trying, I'm trying. So many other things get in the way of sitting down and just drawing and drawing. Like music! I have promised myself I will sit down each day and actually PRACTISE not just PLAY. I'm a bit naughty about it but I know it makes sense.

So, to finish up I'll leave you with a couple of photos I took leaning out of my sewing room window - a bit tricky as it opens the wrong way for taking photographs!



It was a rather dull day when I took these photographs, so not the crispest images. However today - like yesterday - the sun is shining - HURRAH! I'll ignore the somewhat cool breeze! I hope it's nice where you are, and lingers on throughout the weekend. Have a good one, Y'all!

37 comments:

  1. You have been busy - love both the hare cushion and the floral design too. Pretty garden you have there as well.

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    1. Thank you! The garden is just about at its peak performance level - it all goes downhill a bit after this! Lx

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  2. You have been busy! Your cushions are lovely ... the colours in the second are gorgeous.

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    1. Hi JAne, thank you, I wanted to avoid using really bright colours. Now I have to find a cushion 'inside' that this will fit! (I haven't cut or sewn up the sides yet, so there is room for error!) Lx

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  3. Loving the felt work...I wish it was more wearable,I want a felt wardrobe! EE xx

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    1. Hello Ethel, thanks for popping across. Well, I really don't do coshes, no way, have no ability to do the 3D thingy. except for hats. I do felt hat covers...if you scroll back to some of the Molly photos you will see me in my felt covered top hat. Hmmmm....I could probably manage a waistcoat, thinking about it.......!

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    2. That's CLOTHES! ETHEL NOT COSHES!! Sometimes my keyboard gets a bit above itself! Lx

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  4. Hi Lynne,your garden looks beautiful! The cushion is lovely too, I like the stitch and the puffyness (no such word!) and I was wondering -if you have used the blanket fabric before -how it washed?

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    1. Hi Felicity! I know what you mean by 'puffiness', it looks a bit like quilted `Trapunto work, doesn't it? It's because some of the felt is quite thick, being felted blanket.

      Well, the blue blanket was a gift from a fellow Stitch & Bitcher, so it has been laundered as any blanket would. It isn't felted like some of the dyed felted blanket I have used - for example the orange vase and the pale pink of the flower. To get that effect you wash a blanket at a higher temperature than usual, and you have to be careful you time it just right, or you will over-felt it and make it too stiff to use for stitching - though you could make slippers or bags with it, and a BIG needle! The Felted blanket pieces I have, I have cheated and purchased them at quilt shows. I can't think who does them, but if I remember I will mention it in a post. AH! Yes, Madeline Millington does felted blankets biut no idea how to contact her, I ddi a workshop with her some years ago and purchased some then. But there are other options. Hope this helps! Lx

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  5. I did enjoy reading your post so much. Love what you've made and also the things in progress. Quite relaxing and very inspiring and I just need a 36 hour day with little need of sleep to do all I'd like!
    Thanks Lynne...
    Jo x

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    1. Hi Jo, thanks, I am back to stitching after a bit of a hiatus. I know what you mean about time - I always say I'd like a bit of elastic to stitch on each end of the day to make it stretch a bit! Lx

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  6. Oh my, Lynne ! What a lot of lovely things you are making !!!!
    Love that "folk" tree with birds blanket with felt stitched on !
    Ahhh sketching is great, and so rewarding then making stamps !
    Love your garden !!!!! (looks quite familiar ;-) !)

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    1. Hi Els, I do enjoy working with the felt/felted blanket, so forgiving! The sketching is a bit hit and miss, and I still can't draw from life - except the fish (well, a model!) And yes, I do put a lot of garden pictures on here, you should know every inch by now! Lx

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  7. Gosh Lynne, you're just so creative! You seem to be able to turn your hand at anything, I love what you so with felt, ever time I try it just looks like something an under 5 would do, well actually theirs would be superior! :) x

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    1. Ah, Ada, that is the secret of naive art! Why do you think I do it?? Because I look at it and think, coo, even I could do that! Felt is great, no hems to turn, and using wool to stitch with slightly larger stitches makes everything less fraught, it is so relaxing stitching away with felt. Go on, give it a go, that naive, child-like look is exactly what you are aiming for! Lx

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  8. Dearest Lynne
    I love your cushions and stitched, felted work. You are too clever! As for the fastenings, simply genius. That hare is gorgeous and i love the colours you chose. Also a very yummy, my kind of feast food. All in all a delicious post to feed my senses xxx thank you always for your great comments, i too make a point of buying children's books for the illustrations, i am very precious about keeping all of Alice's books xx happy weekend lovely Lynne x Penny

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    1. Hi Penny, and thanks for a lovely comment! Re the fastenings - they are a cheat because a) I don't do zips, and b) I don't do proper button holes! So no kudos to me!

      I am having as very very rainy day today so am hoping it bucks up for the weekend, and for you too! Lx

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  9. Lots of cushion love from me ... the hare cushion especially is wonderful Lynne, truly, I LOVE it!

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  10. What a lovely busy post. I love the cushions the fastening is so pretty much better than a boring old zip. ~ Sarah x

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    1. Hi Sarah, heehee, just shows you what us non-sewers can manage when we put our minds to it! Lx

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  11. Very nice and crafty. I restarted my next rag rug last week but only did 2-3 days worth, little by little I always say! Raining here at the moment (didn't trust the weather forecast so currently have 3 large pots of emptied bath water sitting in the garden, ah well.

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    1. Arrrrgh! Dc same here, blummin' rain, I know you have to have some but puhleese! Get a sense of proportion, weather-maker!

      Slow and steady is exactly my way of approaching rag-rugs, rem...considerably slower than you, if I'm honest!! Lx

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  12. I do like your hare poetry and the alliteration is great.

    It's a lovely cushion - all your stitchery is so very, very good and such a pleasure to look at. Although my fingers wince at bit at all that hand stitching - so much of it - you really must have the patience of Job!

    And your garden as shown in that last photo is flipping awesome - just beautiful. (My sewing room window also opens the wrong way for taking pics and I have to lean out far and hold the camera round - very tricky and huge risk of dropping the blessed thing so I don't do it often.)

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  13. Hi Wendz, thanks for popping by. Do you know I used to HATE sewing, really, really hated it. But since becoming a quilter I love the serenity of hand stitching when there is no rush; I love the materials and yarns and threads, and the colours. So really there is no patience required. THAT would come in should I have to sew a dress or something, UGH! I just don't have the dressmaking chops, I'm afraid!

    Yes, that window opens from the bottom up and not very far, so you just have to snake your arm out under with the camera and point and hope for the best!! Lx

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  14. Gorgeous cushion - afraid I'm a lazy wotsit too and just sew round cushions and unpick when and if necessary!

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    1. Ha! Me too, Maggie, that's my usual solution, but I felt (no pun intended!) I should do some proper openings for this one! Hope you're ok haven't seen any posts lately........

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  15. What a colorful post! Your "same old same old" is just so sweet - the colors and stitching. And what a great idea to keep a design notebook.

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    1. Hi Cynthia, thanks for posting! Yeah, in so many areas of my life I find worry levels of impassivity! I have just made another musical instrument purchase TOTALLY on impulse after having seen a guy play one at folk club the other night! And my new melodeon is barely out of its wrappings! Ah well, hopefully all this activity will keep me going long into my elder years! Lx

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  16. Hi Lynne
    I've been out all day at a Summer Fete and buying plants in a garden centre, so sorry I'm late replying.
    I was nearly in tears yesterday over it but eventually I managed to find what to do. I've still got to sort out LillyBo Qulits blog.
    Go to www.bloglovin.com/help and click on "how to claim my blog" you should manage it from the info there. I had already signed into an account to access Neet's bloglovin button so they already had my email. I'm not doing facebook.
    Let me know how you get on, I'm in the rest of the day. Any problems email me your phone no and I'll ring you to see if I can help. Hope you can sort it.
    What was that about "if it ain't broke, don't mend it" ???
    Jo x

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    1. Hi Jo, good of you to write - I am SO fed up with this business, I don't mind clicking here and there but not to keep coming up against the same stupid brick walls! I will at once do as you say and hopefully put things right. Lx

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  17. I love the cushion and the words you wrote and then stitched are perfect. I do love the pencil sketches of the poppy head and the garlic too - I always love a plain pencil sketch more than anything else.

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    1. Thanks Jay, the sketching ,alas, does not come easily! I keep hearing how "Everybody" can draw, in the same way as "everybody" can sing - huh! NOT TRUE!!!!!! But I am trying. Lx

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  18. Hope you are sorted... I am, Neet, is, Twiglet and Wipso are too.... but I bet so many are floundering
    Jo x

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    1. Well, eventually - after having to reset my password, signed up with bloglovin. But I see no evidence. I 'followed' you with it i.e. it seemed to work, but there is nothing actually on my blogger page that shows me, and no sign either of the "follow me with bloglovin" button on my blog front. In fact there is absolutely NOTHIN about bloglovin anywhere on my blog! When it says transfer your google blogs with one click - I can't find that either! SHeeeeeeeesh!

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  19. LOVE LOVE LOVE my hare cushion!!! Thank you!! xx

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    1. You are very welcome, Lizzy, chuffed to bits that you like it! Lx

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