Tag: unikatissimas

Serendipity Collage

Serendipity Collage

Links of entry

Create a lot of similar but not equal little squares to be used in card making, inchies* ‘production’ and other paper arts.
Take matching papers, tear them in pieces and glue them on a sheet of paper. If you like to, stamp it, paint it (to blend them a little) or doodle on it.
Then cut the embellished sheet in squares.

* What is an inchie? An Inchie is a 1″ square of art. I’ve seen them (in internet) made from paper, then embellished in innumerable ways or even sewn from fabric, also embellished in uncountable ways (see links beneath).


Links:
Once I have found lots of instructions on how to make Serendipity Squares, but I can’t find them back ;-(
Therefore I link here results of the Google image search for ‘Serendipity square Collage’:
Stamped Serendipity Squares (English) by ScrapFriends

Serendipity Technique Tutorial (English) by Art Without Anxiety

Serendipity Technique Tutorial (German) (select ‘Serendipity) by Anja`s Artefaktotum

Amendment (29. April 2008)
I found back my links and here are the missing ones:

Serendipity Squares (English)
Serendipity Do! (English)

Serendipity Squares Scrapbook Layouts: Search for ‘Serendipity Squares’

Serendipity (German)

Inchies – Inchies
Google image search for ‘what are inchies’
Google image search for ‘what is inchie’
Flickr search for ‘inchies’

Coloured Yarns

Coloured Yarns

Links of entry

I like to work little pieces where not much yarn is required and I like to use a different colour and colour shade with each piece.
Unfortunately I can’t afford to always buy the shades I like: on the one hand it is too expensive and on the other hand I don’t have enough place for such a big stash.
Therefore I like to work with four to six sewing yarns in similar shades and – if I am in the mood – one or two metallic sewing yarns. They don’t take so much place and I can get much more subtle shades by combining them then I ever could buy.
I put the chosen yarn in a dessert bowl, so that they don’t roll away and begin crocheting.
Coloured Yarns I worked the Crochet Chamsas I presented yesterday with this ‘technique’.

 


Links:
Here at unikatissima:
Crochet Chamsa

Crochet Chamsa

Crochet Chamsa

Links of entry

I always liked the Chamsa (English Wikipedia entry for ‘Chamsa’) because it seems to me to be a sign of peace and friendship.

One day I crocheted a Chamsa to use it on a card.
Have fun with my original crochet pattern (and if you use it, please give credit).

First you work three rounds, then you continue in rows.

(Instructions on how to crochet with a magic ring and how to crochet the double treble crochet: see Links beneath)

Click picture to enlarge
Crochet Chamsa

Links:
Crochet Chamsa pattern

English Wikipedia entry for ‘Chamsa’
German Wikipedia entry for ‘Hamsa’

Magic ring
(Google results)
The Magic Adjustable Ring: A Better Way to Begin Crochet in the Round (English): very good illustrated instruction
Häkeln lernen: Der Fadenring (German)

Double Treble Crochet
(Google results)
Tutorial Double Treble Crochet (English): very good illustrated instruction
Tutorial Double Treble Crochet (German)

Starburst Card

Starburst Card

Links of entry

I love many of the string art patterns, but I would never make them, because I find them on the other side quite old fashioned.
Although the I thought that I could use the pattern to create a card.
I pricked the holes of the Starburst pattern Starburst pattern (template here template here) from The Art of Thread Design The Art of Thread Design into my cardboard and measured the length of thread. About 8m (about 26 feet ;-)). Then I started to weave the thread through the holes. I hadn’t finished the first two stitches when my thread became a firm knot. Totally entangled. Absolutely un-detangable.

Therefore I had to try something else with new thread.
I thought (what I should have done beforehand ;-)) that in string art they use pegs (nails) to fix the thread at the predefined points. Then I realised that I could have a kind of pegs too: if I weave the thread over and under the holes (from hole 1 to hole 2, 2 to 3, 3 to 4 etc) and back, I get a coloured frame where the holes are, I get pegs, because one thread goes from the front side to the back side and vice verso (see picture).

Starburst Card-Thread weaving
Click to enlarge

Now I could wrap the thread around my self-made pegs just in the same way they are doing it in string art around the nails.

I enjoyed working on the Starburst pattern, but at one end it is very narrow and I only could use two layers in place of three.


Links:
The Art of Thread Design

Starburst pattern instructions
Starburst pattern template

The original site doesn’t exist any more and is now available through webarchive:
The Art of Thread Design

Starburst pattern instructions
Starburst pattern template

Beaded Spiral Beads

Beaded Spiralbeads

Links of entry

I once found in internet photos from some spiral beads beaded from seed beads. Because I really liked them, I figured out how to bead spiralbeads.
The instruction is in German, but I drew explaining pictures that (I hope ;-)) say it all.
You begin in the middle. First you increase the circumference of the bead in the first 3 rows, then in rows 4 and 5 you work straight to create the sides of the bead and from row 6 on you decrease in the same way you increased before.
I then created the necklace *Summer, Sun and Spots* and the bracelet *Little Black Dress* with such spiral beads.
The beaded strings for the necklace where made in tubular peyote stitch (here an English instruction). After having finished them, I sewed them on.
The bracelet ‘strings’ where made in flat Herringbone weave (here an English instruction).


Links:
Beaded Spiral Beads (in German)

Spiral Beads Necklace *Summer, Sun and Spots* (in German)
Spiral Beads Bracelet *Little Black Dress* (in German)

More instructions on:
Tubular Peyote Stitch (English)
Tubular Peyote Stitch (German): click ‘Anleitungen’ in left navigation bar, select ‘Schlauch-Peyote’

Flat Herringbone/Ndebele Weave (English)
Flat Herringbone/Ndebele Weave (German): click ‘Anleitungen’ in left navigation bar, select ‘Flaches Ndebele’

Freeform Bead Embroidery

Freeform Bead Embroidery

Links of entry

As I said before I really love freeform work.
I once even wrote a tutorial on freeform bead embroidery (in german).
First I show how to embroider beads (with explaining pictures).
Then I tell how to encase a piece of cardboard with your fabric to use as cheap alternative for an embroidery hoop (with explaining pictures too).
And in the end I show how to begin with your freeform embroidery (which for me is always the most difficult part) (with explaining pictures too).
The item on the picture is a bead embroidered button I once made.


Links:
Freeform Bead Embroidery (in german with explaining pictures)

Here at the blog:
Categorie Freeform
Freeform Needlework

Freeform Needlework

Freeform Needlework

Links of entry

I enjoy working freeform, that means that I don’t know how the crafted item will look in the end.
Although the choice of materials gives me a pretty good idea about the general appearance ;-)

One amazing application for freeform is needlework, just freeform crochet or freeform knitting, but I prefer doing both on the same item.

Once I wrote a (german) tutorial that can be found at creadoo: Faszinierendes Freeform.
A very good english tutorial can be found at knotjustknitting.com while clicking on ‘what is freeform’ in the navigation list.


Links:
creadoo: A german craft community
Faszinierendes Freeform: A (german) tutorial on freeform needlework

knotjustknitting.com – A website dedicated to freeform crochet
An english freeform tutorial can be reached by clicking on ‘what is freeform’ in the navigation list