Slow stitching, a skirt, a stencil & some spools ...

Hello, and I'm happy to report that Kate Atkinson's 'Shrines of Gaiety' is a proving an excellent read, and I'm halfway through and lovin' it. Luckily I've finished the Jude Hill inspired slow stitching, so that's not a distraction any more. I was going to add further details to this - a couple more feathers, a stylized comet flaring through the sky, more spirals - but when I reached this stage it felt complete, as if adding more elements would make it too busy. I didn't get the expression on the moon's 'face' completely right, but it was as good as I could manage.

In between devouring chunks of 'Shrines of Gaiety', I nipped into town, and did the obligatory rummage around the charity shop, my purchases joining those from the other day. A pretty skirt that'll be cut up for patchwork - it's about a size 20, so there's lots of fabric to use - and that cost 99 pence. As did the stencil of the three kings bearing gifts. I want to stamp those onto plain material and embroider them in vivid colours.

Today I also found these beautiful wooden spools, six of 'em at 50 pence each. One even had the original paper around it, so the thread wasn't discoloured by age or dust, it still had that brand-new sheen to it.

There was a basket of old threads. Most were on plastic spools, but burrowing into the basket I found these vintage wooden ones.

Don't you love the old labels too?

The spools were a lot chunkier than the usual wooden ones I've previously bought, as you can see in the photo below where I've added a plastic spool for comparison.

Must've been my lucky day, huh?

Comments

Sari scraps, PVA, a couple of books and a necklace

I'm typing this as snow's falling, and has been steadily all day. It's not settling to any great extent, though I bet by tomorrow morning the paths will be slippery with ice. Which always makes me paranoid about falling over and at the very least looking undignified, but at worst breaking a bone or twisting an ankle. Oh well, it's ideal weather to stay inside and craft, isn't it? I finally got around to listing packs of sari scraps on Etsy this morning. I only made up six bundles as I've no clue whether they'll sell or if I've set a reasonable enough price point. Time will tell. This is a link to the listing, if you're interested. This vaguely pink fabric isn't from one of my Etsy packs. It's from a bit of experimenting I was doing yesterday. I'd seen a post on Instagram showing how a DIY version of batik could be done without using hot wax. The Instagrammer used PVA instead, and I wanted to try this out. The glue's su

HOW TO MAKE: these decorative birds

I suggested yesterday that I'd run through how to make a fabric bird wall or window hanging (can't think of a snappier title for it than that!) so here goes. I'll start with the first decorative hanging I made. It's something you could make in any colour combination you want, and would look good hanging at a window with translucent beads that'd catch the light I used five birds for this, but you could make it longer if you prefer. (Incidentally, if you're wondering about what's hanging off the bottom on this, it's a metal Christmas decoration, shaped like a lantern. For some reason I thought it looked appropriate to leave it there, looped over the end.) WHAT YOU'LL NEED TO GATHER TOGETHER: Assorted scraps of fabric for the front of the birds - aim for a mix of colours and textures. Silk looks good, as does anything with embroidery or intricate patterns. You might aim for a hippy-ish boho look, or maybe you're more the minimal Scandi

What are you watching? Part One

Another cold, bright day, and I spent the morning indoors, reluctantly dragging a vacuum cleaner around before getting down to the nicer task of adding wadding to the back of this patchwork. Backing fabric's now tacked on, and it's ready to be stitched. I also squeezed in some reading. I'm currently immersed in 'Transcription' by ever-excellent Kate Atkinson, who can be relied upon for a well-written book. The book I recently finished - hmm, not so good. I'd fancied a lightweight cosy crime, something easy, quick to read, and picked 'A Pen dipped in Poison' by J.M. Hall. Oh my, I've never come across a story in which so many people sigh. Characters sighing all over the place! There's a fair amount of frowning too, and one character is constantly depicted as stirring a cup of coffee, supposedly to indicate thoughtfulness. Seriously, if I was in a coffee shop with her I'd be snatching that spoon out of her hand and yelling 'For go

rubykittyruby

Search This Blog