My Ship Came In

Oh yay and yippee skippy -- my ship came in!

Actually this is one of my Millefiori designs (#893) and I have it available as a pdf file with a traceable pattern (available at retail only). You can see it again on my www.Millefiori-BE.com website.

I used my Interlocking Stem Stitch (the same border as I used on #876 "Ruth's Gazebo") for the ship sides. The stitch was also handy as a rustic fence on this Millefiori design, "Meadow":

But today I'm going to share some photos I took using that little ship. (I also thought it might be fun to stitch on a tote bag, but the vest won out!) I incorporated a couple of my other designs and made a crazy patch vest. Most of the embroidery was done with my sewing machine, and I added a lot of ribbons and beads and other trims. Here are some pictures.

 On the front lapels, I stitched my Millefiori designs #928 (Kaua'i) and #929 (Lana'i). There are a couple of close-up photos just below.

 This is the back of the vest where I stitched "My Ship Came In":

And here are more photos - can you tell I had a really good time?. . .

Ric Rac makes lovely waves, doesn't it?

Here are some detail photos of the design, "My Ship Came In":



It's wonderful to have a job you love - and a special bonus, to have others enjoy the work, too!

By the way, I have several other designs that I've reprinted. They are listed on the first page at my Millefiori-BE website (link above).

Rosalie

 

I Dreamed A Flower . . .

A few nights ago, just before I woke up, I dreamed a flower. I dreamed all of the stitches, petals, counts, woke myself up around 5:30 am and drew out a picture.

Then I stitched it. I liked it well enough after the first 3 steps that I stopped stitching. But since I was stitching bullions, I wanted to share a technique that works for me.

I use a hoop when I stitch, so my long bullions and cast-on stitches are worked with just the eye of the needle in the fabric:

Before completing the stitch, I can hold the loops or wraps against the needle, flip the hoop over and pull all of the floss through the eye of the needle and then back it out again to a short 3-4" fabric tail. What this does is to remove all of the kinks and twists that collected during the wrapping and/or looping process. 

 

Once the floss is smooth from start to end, I can pull the needle through the loops or wraps and (in the case of this bullion) work the wraps down to a narrow diameter.

 

Everyone has a best way; this has worked for me because I make so many petals or whatevers on a very short fabric bite (more dimension).

 

After I made those 5 bullions (18 wraps on a 1/4" fabric bite), I did the ole' "Wrap 'n Gather" slipping the needle under all five bullions 3-4 times and pulling tight to snug them up as "proud, upstanding bullions" -- this is a handy-dandy technique for wearable items because the bullions or cast-on stitches that are wrap-n-gathered won't need shaping after laundering.

 

In a second color, I added the 18-wrap bullions over each 'rib'.

 

The flower I dreamed the other night had a total of 3 bullions over each rib and ended with a circle of cast-on stitches around the edge. I never got that far because I liked the way this flower looked. Now. At. This. Moment. (My mind subjects itself to a whim on a whim.) Here's what I ended with:

I don't know how original this is - I just know that it popped into my mind while I was sleeping, all of it starting as a dream. It's a fairly simple technique, so someone else may have tried it, too.

 

Fluffy (actually, the neighbors said his name is Victor) from next door came over to watch. This is his favorite spot. He likes to beg for food. I was calling him "Tubby, Tubby, Two By Four" [couldn't get through the kitchen door], but stopped because it didn't seem kind.

He thinks that if he hypnotizes me, I will feed him. (Actually, it does seem to work...)

 

I don't dream flowers too often; sometimes they look like a nightmare that got lose. This morning I had another dream. I dreamed that I lost my car keys.

 

This little guy is burying the sunflower seeds dropped by the chickadees, waiting for them to get "ripe", and therefore "yummy". To squirrels.

Rosalie

 

 





 



Lazy Satin Daisy - An Interesting Dimensional Embroidery Technique

If you are looking for a small space-filler for a crazy quit or a pocket or a wearable, this stitch and flower are a lot of fun to embroider. I named the design "Fairy Duster".

I called it the Lazy Satin Daisy, and have described it in some of my Brazilian dimensional embroidery books, My Book of Stitches and Take A Stitch by me (Rosalie Wakefield).

It's easy to do -- made with offset lazy daisy stitches, their starting points close together, the "tacked end" slightly farther apart. It makes a pretty flower petal, too. 

The leaves are completed with satin stitch, and those tendrils have been renamed from "Travelin' Tendril" to "Lazy Tendrils", also in my books. If you look closely, you'll see that they are also lazy daisy stitches with one side of the stitch much longer than the other, either couched or stitched with Brazilian outline stitch (floss held below the line of stitching) -- fun to do!

Rosalie

Frame Your Brazilian Dimensional Embroidery: Make A Little Art Quilt

In my last post I wrote about one of my Millefiori designs, #8005 "Wind Chimes". I decided to "frame" or finish it as a little art quilt. Here's a picture:

I found it was a good idea to select fabrics first and coordinate them with my floss colors. This was particularly helpful when I stitched another Millefiori design (#993 "Field of Flowers") in one color only, EdMar's 100% rayon floss #227, Pale Sea Green.



That little quilt was finished with a fabric called "Fairy Frost" by Michael Miller. If you'd like to see detail photos, you can search through that Blog Archive in the right column here until you come to May 1, 2011 posts, or you can do a search for "art quilts".

 

There are lots of ways to finish our embroidery -- making small art quilts is just one idea. Of course, one of the best ways to share our Brazilian dimensional embroidery is to stitch or make them into wearable designs - vests, jackets, totes. It's a great way to share the work we love with others.

Rosalie

 

Reverse French Knot: A Stitch for Brazilian Dimensional (or any other) Embroidery

Here's a picture of a hollyhock I found blooming in my side yard a week or so ago. Isn't it pretty?  It has absolutely nothing to do with this post except that I think it's pretty.

Back in "The Olden Days" - yes, even when I did my first embroidery on those dish towels and dresser scarves my mother provided, I had SO much trouble with French knots which liked to disappear beneath the fabric.

Then I grew up and discovered Brazilian embroidery. I still had problem with disappearing French knots, but a fellow stitcher in one of my first B.E. classes patiently showed me her version of the French knot. I've done this ever since and haven't ever lost a knot, so I thought I'd share the technique with you.

I call it a "Reverse French Knot" (It reminds me of a colonial knot, worked upside down...).  Here's a picture:

And here's my explanation:

     Bring threaded needle up from fabric. Grasp the floss coming up from the fabric. Point needle toward the fabric, cross needle over the floss and "scoop" the floss around the needle 2-3 times. [A] (It's like stirring batter in a bowl.)

      Next, flip the tip of the wrapped needle up and over the floss [B] and point the needle down to the fabric and go through the fabric to finish the Reverse French Knot.

This "crossover" of the floss beneath the wraps will secure the stitch on top of the fabric.

This is how I have been happily making French knots for the past 20-plus years. I thought I should write the directions and add them to the "What Works For Me" notes I like to make. For those who have stitched my Millefiori design #8005 "Wind Chimes", you have already seen it. 

By the way, there is enough interest in this design that I am planning a small reprinting, and it should soon be available for you to stitch. If you'd like to pre-order your copy, just email me at link shown on this page. I'll save a copy for you.

I also published this stitch/technique in my latest book (Millefiori #8000 My Book of Stitches). In the index it is listed as a "Reverse Colonial Knot".  It's either colonial or French, but it works. Here's a picture of my book. People are calling it "The Pink Book". It is almost 300 pages of pure stitching excitement, and it's available at my www.Millefiori-BE.com website and is also available at www.Amazon.com:

 That's all for now.  Back to my embroidery . . .

Rosalie

 

 

Candleflowers on September Morning

As I headed off to Flower Dreamland last night, I thought about the really short, previous post about my Millefiori design #916 "September Morning" [still available] and how I could have been a bit more 'sharing'.  So I'll do that now.

At times it's easier to just hang out "inside the box", but think of what you can do by considering "What would happen if....?" or "Nobody said I couldn't...."

 

I'm writing about the Candleflowers that are the centerpiece of this design as shown above. The Candleflowers were first used on one of my LadyFlowers named "Mandy" from my book, My LadyFlowers [by me, Rosalie Wakefield]. Here's a cover photo from the book:

Top row, far right. That's my interpretation of a mandevilla flower, "Mandy". Here's a close-up:



I named the technique "Candleflower" and used shaded Boucle floss (or you could use two colors, or more). For "Mandy", shown just above in shaded yellow, I drew this pattern:

When I stitched "September Morning," I used the same technique for the Candleflowers but just re-positioned the stitching lines:

And ended with a design that looks like this:

Here's how.

     You'll need a tapestry needle, 2 or 3 colors Boucle (the nubby stuff) 100% EdMar rayon floss, plus one strand Lola in a complementary color. You could even try other fibers - Rainbow Gallery and others have lots of pretty textured threads. [Note: These are both wholesale merchants, but if you email me, I can put you in touch with some retailers, or you can ask Google.]

     I added sparkle at the 'flower' center with 4mm fire polish Czech beads. These are the little faceted beads. But you could use anything. (A button with a kitty's face comes to mind on this slow-moving Monday morning...) A pearl to match the floss would give an elegant look to a 'bridal' design:

The possibilities are limitless. Above is just a quickie sketch - you could add leaves, beads or French knots along each of the stem lines.

 

With Lola, backstitch the dashed lines of the pattern and add 2 little straight stitches in the circular area (west/north/east points).

 

Next, thread up a tapestry needle with Boucle. Come up at the base of the "circle" and work counter-clockwise, through the double straight stitches and on through the backstitch closest to the circle. Repeat one more time so you have 2 threads going through each of the backstitches.

Continue around, dropping to a lower backstitch for each pass around. Change thread colors to get the finished effect you like.

 

Finish by adding the bead, pearl or button with a kitty face at the center of the candleflower. You could also finish a design by adding some Lola bullions at the base.

 

Wasn't that fun?  Wasn't that EASY!

 

The idea here is to get stitchers to think 'outside the box' - also known as being creative, which is what Brazilian embroidery enthusiasts are best known for. When you find a flower you like, try it in different ways, different positions. When you are stitching a design and you aren't too thrilled with the instructions for a flower shown (meaning they might be hard to decipher), be adventurous and change the flower to one you like, and make the design truly your own.

 

My kitty, Cuthbert, thinks he is as cute as a button and wonders if you might like to use him in the center of these candleflowers??

Rosalie

 

Autumn

This is my Millefiori design #916 "September Morning". It would be fun to stitch in other seasonal colors, too.