Wednesday 13 April 2016

WIPW - A Giant Step

For this week's Work In Progress Wednesday post I think I have taken a giant step forward.

Kjolsäck
Inserting the bag's body and lining into the groove of the purse frame was not as difficult as I had thought. The piece of white plastic (see last week's post) I started out using was helpful, but a dining knife was even better.
After fixing the fabric to the metal with black thread I added a row of decorative aqua Cross stitches.
The frame is held in place firmly.

Next I made the 'kavelfrans' or napped edging. I have made this 'wooly worm' differently in the past,  this time I wanted to speed things up by using the sewing machine.
First I made holes in two pieces of stiff cardboard, inserted two bamboo skewers and wrapped them with wool.
I placed the 'ladder' on top of a bias tape and slid it under the presser foot of the sewing machine,

stitched down the middle until I had a loopy worm.
Each loop was cut open.
With a comb and brush, I separated the strands of wool, then held the napped edging over the steaming spout of a boiling kettle, until the fibres had felted together.

It was then time to stitch the sides and bottom of the bag together with the edging in between.
Construction was easier and quicker than I had thought, and I am rather pleased with the result.

Next step will be to make a cord with the 'slynggaffel', or lucet in English. This black yarn is a bit too fine, I might have to make the cord in a different colour...


31 comments:

Stitching Lady said...

You made a wonderful and exquisite purse, unique. I like the fringes. I have a similar lucet made from wood. It will be interesting to see how you did the cord.

Lyn Warner said...

What a lovely rich and original piece! I like the idea of attaching the frame with black thread and then doing more decorative stitching over it. Thanks for the tip of using a dining knife to slot the bag into the frame.

Queeniepatch said...

Thank you, Anneliese.
The lucet is supposed to be a viking invention, and I am sure before plastic they were made of wood. The good thing with plastic is that the surface is slightly slippery and the yarn slides easily off the fork.

Queeniepatch said...

Hello Lyn,
Thank you for your kind words.
I had to use a dining knife to push the fabric into the rather narrow groove of the purse frame. The black cashmere and the kimono silk for the lining were folded so there are four layers of fabric that had to be stuffed into the groove. With thinner fabric you might need to add a string (and some glue) to add 'stuffing' and hold the fabric in place.
On this bag, the cross stitches became a decorative way of securing the fabric to the frame. Had it been a plain bag I might not have used any such fancy stitches.

Shami Immanuel said...

Nice purse queenie. Professionally made. Idea of fringes is nice.

Séverine said...

your purse is beautiful, I like the 'kavelfrans'.Thank you for the explanation.

Queeniepatch said...

Ha, ha, I don't know about professional. These bags are part of many folk costumes in Sweden and women always made their own, I don't think there were many, or indeed any, who had folk costume making as their livelihood. THESE days, you can buy many parts of the costume made by someone else though...
Have a stitchy day, Shami

Queeniepatch said...

Hello, and thank you.
I have made the kavelfrans in three different ways, and this was the easiest. It is very untraditional, though, as these folk costumes and their accessories were always hand made.
Happy stitching!

Pamela said...

Beautiful! Great finish.

margaret said...

what a beauty and loving what you have done with the wooly worm it really looks great. Seeing the lucet reminds me i have one somewhere must have a go with it

Queeniepatch said...

Thank you, Pamela.
It's not finished yet, I have made the cords, but the felted tassels are still in the making.

Queeniepatch said...

Thanks, Margaret, for your kind comment.
Making cord with the luces is SO much faster than a kumihimo board; the cords are completed and the felted tassels are still soapy. It will take a couple of days before I can add some surface embroidery on them. Hopefully all is completed next Wednesday! So on to the next project...

crazyQstitcher said...

A delightful Eyepopper, Queenie. I especially like the cross stitches to match the embroidery. So attractive.
I've seen your kavelfrans before but it was differently made. I'll make a sample for reference in some future project.

I have a few small purse clasps but have never attempted using them - looked a bit difficult to me.

Queeniepatch said...

Eyepopper, yes, I think any colour on a black background makes the stitches stand out.
This was by far the easiest, fastest and less painful method of making kavelfrans.
On the instructions for the purse clasp there is a way of pushing in a piece of string to fill in the gap between the fabric and the metal. In my case the cashmere and the lining took up all the space so the dining knife was the best trick. If you have a go, good luck!

City Krafters said...

Lovely purse is it for you? Colour are amazing just fantastic.
Love it. Love it.

Queeniepatch said...

Yes, it is for ME, for ME, for ME!
It was amazingly fast to make! The wrist warmers and collar I made a couple of years ago took such a long time.

Anonymous said...

What beautiful work, the little purse looks so lovely!

Queeniepatch said...

Thank you, Susan.
It was fun to make. I used Appleton wool and it's so soft and lovely. You know all about soft wool, with all your knitting and wool embroidery, so you if anyone can understand.

jacaranda said...

Beautiful stitching, I had not heard of a lucet. Great way to make your fringing on the machine using the cardboard and skewers, I have now learnt something new. Stay safe.

Renee said...

Such a gorgeous purse! Beautiful work. :) You have been on my mind with news of the quakes.

carorose said...

It doesn't look like my last comment made it through so I will try again.
I love your purse it is stunning and I have taken note of how you did the fringing. Glad to hear you have a Lucet, everyone gives we the weirdest looks when I use mine. I think it is the best to make cords.

Queeniepatch said...

Thank you, Jenni, for your concern. Here in Tokyo we do not feel the tremors, (but of course our hearts tremble with each news bulletin).
It was so easy to make the fringe on the machine. The first one I made, some years ago, in the traditional way (basically winding yarn over a wooden ice lolly stick and then stitching the loops together with a chain stitch), my hair got white with frustration and my fingers red with blood as I struggled with the needle!

Queeniepatch said...

Thank you for your kind thoughts,Tokyo is far from Kumamoto and we are safe here, but of course very concerned.
it was fun to make the purse, and now it is completed I will post the final pictures on today's WIPW.

Queeniepatch said...

Sorry to hear your previous comment didn't reach my inbox.
It was very satisfying to make this purse (now completed and will be on the blog shortly).
I agree, the lucet is FAR easier and faster than a kumihimo disc or loom. I bet people give you funny looks; I have yet to use mine publicly. It would be good for air travel as you need no sciccors, needles or other sharp items.

https://linsartyblobs.blogspot.com said...

A lovely decorative purse. I'd not heard of a lucet, or I've forgotten about them which is a big possibility.

Queeniepatch said...

I bought this lucet, which is called slynggaffel in Swedish and is supposedly invented by the vikings, at Festival of Quilts in Birmingham. I am sure it is on sale at other textile shows in the UK.
Anyway, it is fast and easy to work, kind of instant result!

https://linsartyblobs.blogspot.com said...

I shall have to look out for one.

Annet said...

What a great idea to speed up the process of your kavelfrans with a sewing machine. Love your bag!

Queeniepatch said...

It saved me a lot of time, and my poor fingers were very happy, too!

Tanya said...

Clever, clever! I would never have thought of using the sewing machine to make the fluffy part! I have made cording like that but I don't know where my tool went. Your embroidery is fantastic!

Queeniepatch said...

Thank you, Tanya. I so admire, and envy, you who have made good friends with yousr sewing machine. My ELNA and I don't always see eye to eye, and I was wondering if she would like stitching through the loops of yarn or not. Luckily she did not protest and I got the napped edging done quickly. Now I am introducing ELNA to paper foundation piecing, and she is gradually enjoying the tast of paper and fabric!
The lucet is supposedely an old viking tool, so if felt right to use it for this Swedish bag.