WIPW - Keep Calm and Carry On Stitching

My idea is that if in these times of the Corona virus outbreak you Keep Calm and Carry On Stitching, then you will have some Work In Progress Wednesday results to report.

Freeform Embroidery
The additions were:
Point a la Minute,

Tvistsöm
Chequered Chain Band

Crazy for Crazy
A paisley shape was stitched with Alternating Magic Split Stitch
and a seam was worked with Indian Edging Stitch.

Sunday Stitch School Reference Chart
Last week I printed out the names for stitches 80 - 127 on fabric.
These labels were then cut out and fused onto the chart, and finally stitched down with invisible nylon thread.

The new area is marked in red.
Please note I have already added the names of the next two stitches, but not done the actual embroidery yet.
The next question is if I can find enough new stitches to fill in the entire chart...

Keep Calm and Carry On Stitching, and Stay Safe!

WIPW - Support Fabric for Hoop

Work In Progress Wednesday

Freeform Embroidery
I worked a new and an old Sunday Stitch School Stitch into the Freeform Embroidery:
Laced Wheel Stitch (on the left) and Russian Chain Stitch (on the right).

Crazy for Crazy

The pieces have been basted down, and strips of support fabric have been added around the octagon shape. This will make it easy to place the octagon block in a hoop.
The first seam I embellished has a green cord couched down with Herringbone Stitch.

Sunday Stitch School Reference Chart

needed more labels so I typed them out and printed them on these sheets of A4 fabric.

The next job will be to cut out all the labels, iron them into the right square of each stitch, and finally stitch the labels down with invisible thread, just like I have done with the other stitches.

Tvistsöm Cushion

is still slumbering on the 'Corona Vacation Shelf'. I haven't wanted to risk public transport to go to the shop to get more yarn yet.

WIPW - Launching Circles and Tvistsöm Cushion

This week Work In Progress Wednesday is featuring four things:

Freeform Embroidery
Here I have worked several of the Fly Stitch varieties.

From the left, Reversed Fly Stitch, (previously worked Fly Stitch), Double Fly Stitch and Twisted Fly Stitch.
Other 'flies' will be added next week.

EXTRA! A New Sunday Stitch School Reference Chart
had to be made as the previous one was full.
Here I have another 54 squares, and as you can see the first space is already filled with #107 Tvistsöm - Vertical and Diagonal (part of my homework report for Friday).

If I can fill every square on this ref chart I will have a total of 160 stitches in my Sunday Stitch School collection.
So sometime at the end of 2020, if I can keep up the work, this chart will be full...

NEW! Circles
For the last three years, when I have met my friends Julie and Tanya in Tokyo Dome at the Tokyo International Great Quilt Festival in January we have set ourselves a challenge. The first was Mola, the second was Cathedral Windows.
I made these bags that double as cushion covers:

Mola

 Cathedral Windows (front)

Cathedral Windows (back)

The challenge for next January is Circles. Julie and Tanya are already done, but I have only just started.

I guess the bag/cushion cover I have started on will resemble the Cathedral Windows pattern as I am using a method called Japanese Folded Patchwork.

The parts are made up of circles and squares, and I have cut out a number of green circles, made a line of Running Stitch along the circle. I will place the smaller round cardboard card inside, pull the thread to gather it around the card, press it with a hot iron, insert some pink squares, fold over and have a square with curves. Together these squares will form circles...

For the back I will use this print I found in the UK. Some of the inserted squares will be made up of Indian brocade, fancy dress fabric with machine embroidery and sequins, and other scraps of pink.

NEW! Tvistsöm Cushion

I have fallen so in love with Tvistsöm that I want to make a cushion. I started copying the star pattern on my existing cushion, and will create a new pattern.

Considering it is still too hot and humid for my liking, I think I have had a good week.

WIPW - Reference Charts Updated

I have made a lot of progress this week, but not all is craft-related.

The sewing machine has been hard at it, making small covers for medical equipment, a boring conveyor-belt type of job.

Anyway,  while the sewing machine was set up I decided to update the

TAST and Sunday Stitch School Reference Charts
with text.
I had worked all the stitches, but not put on labels.
With a word-processing software I typed the numbers and names, then printed that information onto iron-on fabric, and pressed fusable web onto the back.
I cut the labels up and ironed them into each cell on the chart.
From experience I know that the glue of the fusable web does not withstand constant use of the chart, so I stitched the numbers and names down with nylon thread.

Both the TAST and Sunday Stitch School Reference Charts are now updated.

Crazy for Crazy
I have started on the beading but only added a handful so far.

Cathedral Windows

I counted the 'panes' on the leaded grid I completed last week, and found I needed 31 pieces of 'glass'.

I cut out squares of batik and arranged them on the grid.

 Each square is pinned down and the black 'lead' edges are turned over.

This naturally forms the arch that makes the Cathedral Windows pattern so beautiful.

So far I have stitched down 12 out of the 31 pieces of glass.

I hope to have all done by next WIPW so that I can start exploring the second method of making cathedral Windows.

WIPW - A Catch Up and A Start

WIPW is GREAT!
It stands for Work in Progress Wednesday and was started by Sharon Boggon of Pintangle.

Once I got into the habit of reporting my progress on needlework or quilting project every Wednesday, I seem to push myself to have at least a little bit of progress to blog about. With this routine I can see and measure how a project develops. It was good to hold onto it with the Trinity Green quilt as there were so many stages and it took such a long time. Without it I just might have been tempted to shelve the quilt.

So what progress have I got to report on this dull and cloudy Wednesday in Tokyo?
A catch up and a start.


Reference Charts

TAST: I have filled in #147 Raised Cretan

Sunday Stitch School: I have added every one of the 38 stitches learned so far:

I had to use a piece of waste canvas to get the Hungarian stitches even, but it was worth it.

There is space for only four more stitches, then I will have to make a new chart.

New! MOLA

Whenever I visit a major quilt show in Japan (Yokohama International Quilt Week (sadly no longer hosted) and Tokyo International Great Quilt Festival) I enjoy admiring Fumiko Nakayama's stunning Mola quilts.

Last January at the TIGQF in Tokyo Dome, my friends Julie, Tanya and I decided we would challenge ourselves into making something Mola.

Tanya has already made some charming Japanese zodiac signs, and Julie is working hard on a waist coat.

It is high time I got started on the bag I am planning to make.

Not having much of a clue as how these quilts are appliquéd, I went to the library and borrowed one of Ms Nakayama's books. I have also checked the internet for information.

First I had to draw some kind of design. I settled for a floral motif.

I also needed to try the technique out on a small sampler. So I traced a star on a piece of black fabric, placed a red and then a brown piece of fabric underneath. I basted the three layers together. Then I cut open a slit in the black fabric and started reverse appliquéing the black fabric so the red would be visible. 

Once that was done, I cut the red fabric and revere appliquéd it, too. As you can see I am not finished yet.

The next step to learn is cutting slits outside the star and adding small pieces of other colours underneath like you can see on the book cover (turquoise slits at the top).

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

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.