Friday 29 September 2017

Friday Homework for Lesson 37: Hungarian Stitch

Today I am well in time to present my homework for Sunday Stitch School!

It was easy and fast work to fill in the canvas square with the Hungarian Stitch:


No need to comment.

Wednesday 27 September 2017

WIPW - Catching Up

For Work In Progress Wednesday I can report on my catching up on the Sunday Stitch School's Reference Chart.

I added these stitches:

1 Anundsjö
2 Back
3 Cross
4 Danish Knot
5 Emire
6 Four Sided
7 Gate
8 Heavy Chain
9 Interlaced Running
10 Japanese Darning
11 Knotted Satin
12 Lace
13 Mountmellick
14 Norwich
15 Open Chain
16 Punchetto Valsesiano
17 Q
18 Renaissance


Tuesday 26 September 2017

TAST 146: Whipped Chain Stitch version 2

TAST stands for Take A Stitch Tuesday which is an online course of stitches on Sharon Boggon's Pintangle. Join in and learn. If you want to do it from scratch, there will be a rerun starting next year.
Read more about it here.

As I have explained before, I want all the TAST stitches in one (private) collection and will give them the chronological number in the order I learn them. 
So now it is time for Whipped Chain Stitch, Version 2, which I will call TAST #146.



By whipping the chain on both sides you get a nice 'knitted' pattern. Or one could take it for the Magic Chain Stitch.

On the reference chart:

Sunday 24 September 2017

Sunday Stitch School - Lesson 37: Hungarian Stitch

Here at Sunday Stitch School, the geography lessons could go on forever, with all geographical names there are. Today we are moving Northwest from Rumania into Hungary with the Hungarian Stitch, which I found in Mary Thomas's Dictionary of Embroidery Stitches.

It is used for Canvas Work and fills an area beautifully.

Now I wonder why it is called Hungarian Stitch. Most examples of embroidery from Hungary show very colourful, Satin Stitched floral designs.
Furthermore, today's stitch looks nothing like Hungarian Braid Stitch, a beautiful braid based on the Chain Stitch.
Instead it is similar to Hungary Stitch, which is also known as Bargello Stitch/Florentine Stitch (among other names). These stitches have an undulating flame-like pattern and can be seen on the borders of some Hungarian work. Is it from these borders the stitch has got its name?
Many questions the teacher can't answer today! Can the students?

Mattia tells me its French names are either point hongrois or point de Hongrie.

Anyway, let's get down to stitching.

Work Hungarian Stitch like this:





After 3 vertical Straight Stitches, jump one space and continue.

Make a similar row in a contrasting colour.

 Repeat row after row.

On my Aida sampler.




Homework:
Fill a square on this 'fake' canvas.





Friday 22 September 2017

Friday Homework for Lesson 36: Rumanian Stitch

If only all homework involved such a lovely stitch as the Rumanian Stitch....

It was a delight to make this flower, and it was worked very quickly, too.

The stem is in Stem Stitch and the centre is filled with French Knots, the rest is all filled in with Rumanian Stitch.


In the picture below you can see why the stitch has the nickname 'Economical Stitch'; most of the thread is on the front.

Thursday 21 September 2017

Help! Please!

Help!

Please, I need your help to identify this stitch.
Have you seen it before?
Have you worked it?
Do you know its name?











As you can see it looks like the Stem Stitch, but it is worked like a staggered Back Stitch.

The difference is most obvious on the back.

A friend of mine showed me this stitch. It was taught to her in school in the South of England. Her needlework teacher was a skilled court dressmaker.

Is this a dressmaking stitch rather than one for embroidery? If you have any information, please let me know.









Wednesday 20 September 2017

WIPW - Reference Charts

I am doing catch up for Work In Progress Wednesday.

If you have not yet taken part in TAST, the online stitch course run by Sharon Boggon of Pintangle, I highly recommend it. A re-run will start in the new year.

In 2014 I made a TAST Reference Chart to have an easy-to-see chart from where I could pick suitable stitches for my various projects.


I filled in the various stitches up to #144, where I took a break.



Finally I have begun to do a number of the shelved stitches. Yesterday I posted about TAST 145, Whipped Chain Stitch version 1, and here it is on the Ref chart:
The second chart is now completely filled in, and I have labeled the third chart with numbers and names.

There are nine shelved stitches to fill in.


-------------------------

When I started the Sunday Stitch School, one of the promises to myself was to make a similar chart for those stitches, as stated on this first Lesson.

I have been too lazy to even prepare the grid chart, let alone, to fill it in. Last night I made the grid.
So now begins the hard work of filling in the 36 stitches I have posted so far:
 starting with # 1 Anundsjö Stitch

THIS will be my Work In Progress Wednesday project for some time.

Tuesday 19 September 2017

TAST 145: Whipped Chain Stitch Version 1

Now that the Trinity Green quilt is off my hands I will catch up on some TAST stitches I have not had time to work yet.

TAST stands for Take A Stitch Tuesday which is an online course of stitches on Sharon Boggon's Pintangle. Join in and learn. If you want to do it from scratch, there will be a rerun starting next year.
Read more about it here.

As I have explained before, I want all the TAST stitches in one (private) collection and will give them the chronological number in the order I learn them.

It is time for Whipped Chain Stitch, Version 1, which I will call TAST #145.
Simply whip a row of Chain Stitch!



I added this chain in the last box of my TAST Reference chart
and will have to make a new chart as well as labels for them. WIPW work!

Sunday 17 September 2017

Sunday Stitch School - Lesson 36: Rumanian Stitch

Welcome back to another geography lesson here at Sunday Stitch School. The focus today is on Europe with the Rumanian Stitch.
It is also spelt Romanian Stitch, and has these other names, Antique Stitch, Economy Stitch, Janina Stitch, Oriental Stitch and Indian Filling Stitch.
In Swedish it is called Rumänsk Söm.
In French, Point Roumain or Point Roman. (Thanks Mattia)

I came across this stitch in the library book  'American Crewel Embroidery' by Keiko Arakawa.

Ms Arakawa explains that it is the main stitch used for filling in plants and animals in American Crewel embroidery. It was developed by the early settlers in New England in the 17th century to save yarn and is therefore also known as Economy Stitch. It is a surface stitch which leaves only little wool on the reverse side.

It was not until I checked Rumanian Stitch in other stitch dictionaries and on the internet that I found that the traditional (English Crewel) Rumanian Stitch is 'uneconomical' and uses up considerably more crewel wool.

Compare:
Traditional way 1-5                                       American Crewel way A - E



I have worked the stitches in Perle on Aida to show clearly where the needle enters and exits, but this should of course like all Crewel Embroidery be worked in wool on linen. Then the stitches will fill the motif beautifully.

On my Aida sampler:


Homework:
Trace a floral design from the book, and fill in the petals and leaves with the 'economical' Rumanian Stitch.






Saturday 16 September 2017

Friday Revision Homework - Stitches 31 - 35

Sorry to be one day late in presenting my homework. My excuse is that 'life got in the way' and just before midnight, I was simply too tired to do the blog post.

---------------

Four of the five Sunday School Stitches used this time have Chinese or Japanese in their names.
That is why my Sunbonnet Sue is on a field trip to Asia, to Japan, to be exact.

Like so many tourists these days she has rented a kimono and is tottering along in her wooden 'geta' sandals, keeping the sun out with her waxed paper umbrella, or is it raining,  and swinging a bamboo basket bag.



First I made the sketch and planned where to use the various stitches.

Then I used a rubber molding mat and a blue fabric crayon to make a subtle pattern on the kimono.
The waxy crayon was easily set with a hot iron, and did not smear anything while I stitched the details.

This is how I used the stitches:







Where is the Friday Homework for Sunday Stitch School?

Teacher: Where is the Friday Homework for Sunday Stitch School?
Student: It's on the desk right in front of me.
Teacher: Hand it over.
Student: It's too late. I'm too tired.
Teacher: You and your excuses!
               OK, you'd better produce something special tomorrow then!


Wednesday 13 September 2017

WIPW - Trinity Green Finished

Work In Progress Wednesday can finally report on a FINISH:

The

Trinity Green

quilt of small green triangles is completed.

This project started in the middle of April last year, so has taken one year and five months.

The point with this quilt was to use up all my green stash, but I also got a lot of extra pieces from friends near and far. THANK YOU!



In total 9.234 small triangles were cut and pieced on paper strips. These were joined together into long 'snakes',


then sandwiched with long strips of green 'pasta'.

Once the whole quilt flimsy was assembled, the paper backing had to be ripped off.

The quilt was then sandwiched and basted, and quilted in the ditch

With the aid of a walking foot and one of the fancy stitches of the sewing machine, the 'pasta' sashing was quilted with 'snails' or 'waves'. In spite of that 'aid' the snails slid hither and dither, and the waves ruled the sea. What I want to say is that the quilting was hard work!

Finally I put on a binding and quilted it with the same stitch.
I took the easy way out and did not mitre the corners, but I did put on a hanging sleeve.

Here Trinity Green is hanging by the daybed.

On the bed it has a nice overhang.


The variety of green hues changes with the light of the day. Overcast skies in the afternoon in the pictures above and

with hazy evening sun in the picture below.


A clever graphic designer once commented on Trinity Green: 'the finished thing is bound to be stunning-like emeralds scattered on a bed! '

That was just what I saw in the morning sunlight on this wonderful Wednesday, when I can finally say, 
Trinity Green is Finished.
To all my friends and followers, Thank You. I am so grateful for your support and encouragement during these 17months.