TAST #83 Siennese Stitch

Take A Stitch Tuesday is a way to learn new stitches initiated by Sharon of Pintangle; click here to learn more.

#83 of the TAST stitches, the Siennese Stitch, is easy and fun to do. I made a row in two shades of grey and then individual stitches in horizontal and vertical position.

These stitches make me think of all the Tokyoites celebrating winning the bid for OS2020. Arms stretch up over their heads, accompanied cries of Banzai! It translates into 'Cheers!' in English although the kanji (Chinese characters) 万歳 means 10.000 years. Will the event last for 10.000 years? Is it a 10.000 years' wait for the games? Will taxpayers need to pay for the event for 10.000 years? Or will the good feeling, the legacy, last for 10.000 years? Let's hope for the last meaning! Banzai!

A knitted sweater

It has been a long time since I made a 'project' with a TAST stitch - I used to both add a few rows of stitches to the sampler, and then make a picture or something.

When I was working the sampler for Raised Chain Stitches versions 1 and 2, I thought they would make a nice knitted look, as they resembled the Knit and Purl knitting stitches. A project started forming in my head.

In summer, a good friend gave me this book:

In spite of the title, the book is mainly about stumpwork portraits, and has a different approach to that of this excellent book, that I have enjoyed using for so many years:

Here was a great opportunity to try out the new book, and 'knit' a sweater with the two Raised Chain Stitches.

First I made the face. I chose to make a male face, a first for me. This involved paler, beige lips, bushier eyebrows and adding ears. Maybe the biggest difference was how the eyes are worked. Instead of the version by Fay Maxwell, where Detached Chain Stitch and French knots are used, Jan Messent's method is worked in Stem and Satin stitches:

Next came the 'knitting'. I first made a paper pattern for the three parts:

I selected a mustardy shade of Anchor #8 Pearl:

and a piece of scrap fabric I had no other use for. I drew the body and the two sleeves with iron marker (charcoal pen):

The foundation stitches were worked in narrow rows:

If you want to learn the two different stitches please go to Pintangle and the instructions for Raised Chain Stitch Version 1 and Version 2.

The finished result is here. Version 1 in blue and Version 2 in mustard:

Dressing the man involved cutting out the parts and appliquéing them to the background fabric.
I also made a book for him to hold. As I have never written, let alone published, a book, I thought this was my chance, hence the title 'Stitches for Life' by Queenie Patch.

The hands were the trickiest part, and after failing making them according to Jan Messent's method, I had to do them 'my way'.

The most enjoyable part was the knitting. I know it's not very neat, but doesn't it look like a well used, comfy, hand knitted sweater?

WIPW - Does this qualify as progress?

First of all, WIPW stands for Work In Progress Wednesday, and you can read about it here.

What qualifies to report on 'Work In Progress Wednesday'?
Well, if shopping is a kind of 'progress', then I have to report that I have bought wadding for the Kafferepet quilt. At least a small step towards completion!

Finding wool batting in Japan is hard, buying such from overseas is expensive, so the choice is between cotton or polyester wadding. Both are sold in pre-cut sheets, but usually the width is 90 or 100 cm, and the length 100 cm. I find it an awkward size; if you want the quilt to be 1m square you have NO margin whatsoever. Should you need, say 60 x 60 cm, you have strangely shaped left overs. Stitching together lots of these odd pieces for a new quilt is a kind of patchwork craft in itself!

This time I followed Julie Fukuda's advice and went to Yuzawa-ya to buy thinsulate from the bolt. It is 130 cm wide and I got my 110 cm cut, (and the little bit left on the roll for free). It appears that I will have some strangely shaped left overs anyway!

Now for some REAL progress. I have let the TAST #56 Sailor Stitches sprout on the cushion. You see them on the left.

Harvest Moon

Claudia, this is for you.

In the beginning of January I blogged about this wall hanging of the the first sun rise of the year.

It is a actually a two sided quilt with the harvest moon on the back.

We enjoyed the beautiful full moon the other night.

 (The three smaller 'moons' underneath are the headlights of aeroplanes flying in to land at Haneda Airport. Pity about the electric power lines cutting the cloud in two.)

Anyway, I took out my two sided 'kakemono' moon quilt and displayed it in our 'alcove'.

The moon is made of two layers of machine lace and sits on a piece of dark navy velvet.

I also displayed some tsukimi dango. Mine are just ornamental and made of fabric, but the real things are Japanese sweets made from steamed and pounded rice, shaped into balls and piled neatly onto a wooden stand, called san pou.