Tag: Embroidery

Sashiko Embroidery


unikatissima Sashiko Embroidery

Links of entry

Actually I don’t want to talk only about Sashiko embroidery but about Sashiko embroidery on paper – I just prefer to embroider on paper ;-))

I discovered Sashiko embroidery one day when surfing the internet and found the results just beautiful!
The basic principle (as far as I understood) is that Sashiko embroidery is mostly a shape filling embroidery and the lines are worked as ‘dashed lines’ where the spaces between the dashes are about half as long as the dashes themselves (simply check the tutorials (for ‘real’ Sashiko embroidery) in the links, they explained it better).

 

unikatissima Sashiko Embroidery
Then I saw one day that our toilet paper (top left on the picture) doesn’t only have a nice pattern but that I can use the pressure points for a Sashiko embroidery by using alternately the left and the right side of the points as needle entry points.
Therefore I trace-pricked the pattern on paper (bottom right on the picture) and embroidered it in two colours.
I find that you can’t see any more on the result that it is made by ‘cheating’ from toilet paper ;-))

 

unikatissima Sashiko Embroidery Here a look at the backside.
I will glue it on a card and send as a greeting card.
To people who use different toilet paper ;-))

 


Links:
Sashiko Tutorial
How to do Sashiko Stitching

Google image search result for ‘sashiko’

Sun Card

unikatissima Sun Card

Links of entry

Recently I needed a card for a man which had to show the colours wine red and gold.
What is more I wanted it simple yet elegant and I think that it worked out ;-))
(Click the picture to get an enlarged view.)

 

unikatissima Sun Card Inside The pattern shows inside, too.
Because I didn’t like the writing to be directly on the wine red I put a crème coloured paper in.

 

unikatissima Sun Card Template You can click the thumbnail of the template to download the enlarged template. The template is about 10 cm (appr. 4 inches), if you like to have a different size you will have to adapt the print size.

Simply lay the template on your card and prick all holes where you want to thread the yarn through (there are several possibilities, just try it).
Then weave in the thread.

 

Note: If you use an overlong thread you only get a thread tangle.
That’s why I worked in rings that I finished one by one.
You can find the technique that I used to thread the yarn through the hole in the entry Starburst Card.
I finished the ends of the threads on the backside as invisible as possible by laying them side by side and glueing them on.
In case that the backside of your card doesn’t look nice you can glue on a different coloured paper on both sides, that looks very good and conceals all imperfections.


Links:
Here at unikatissima:
Starburst Card: I show there how I weave the thread through the holes, here I did it the same way
Entries with the tags ‘paper’ and ’embroidery’

Garden Decorations

 

Links of entry

After I presented Jewelry for the Garden some time ago and yesterday the Tomato Tube Leaves I want to present today three more garden decorations from joghurt cup lids and acrylic yarn.

 
Instruction for the 1. decoration, the 2. decoration, the 3. decoration

 

1. decoration

unikatissima Garden Decorations As you can see the ornament can be used for a greeting card as well ;-)

 

unikatissima Garden Decorations a
I used a transparent joghurt cup lid (from a 500g joghurt cup) and variegated acrylic yarn.
Additionally you will need a darning needle.

 

unikatissima Garden Decorations a Template Cut a broad rim from the lid and prick 16 holes.
Then weave a spiderweb through the pre-pricked holes.

You can click the thumbnail of the template to download the enlarged template. The template is about 10 cm (appr. 4 inches), if your lid size is different you will possibly have to adapt the print size.

 

unikatissima Garden Decorations a
Weave the spiderweb: always over and under the threads, as long as you like.

 

unikatissima Garden Decorations a
Subsequently I complemented the yarn with another with a matching colour and wrapped both around the broad plastic rim.
The crochet hook made the work sometimes easier but isn’t necessary.

 

I glued the ornament onto a card but you can attach it to a wooden stick, e.g. a kebab skewer, too, and put into a flower box or a flower bed.

 

 

2. decoration

unikatissima Garden Decorations b I made this ornament with a lid from the same joghurt and with acrylic yarn, also.

 

unikatissima Garden Decorations b Template Cut your joghurt cup lid following this template (click the thumbnail of the template to download the enlarged template. The template is about 10 cm (appr. 4 inches), if your lid size is different you will possibly have to adapt the print size.)

You must also cut the black lines in the petals, but they must not reach the edge.

 

unikatissima Garden Decorations a
Begin ‘in’ a petal and weave both wings of the petal in eights until they are completely covered in yarn (from the center to the left and back to the center, from the center to the right and back to the center, repeat).

 

unikatissima Garden Decorations a
Then prick a hole in the center of the flower and weave a net (in a contrasting colour) (see photo).

 

unikatissima Garden Decorations a
Weave the yarn around the threads, always over and under the thread.

 

unikatissima Garden Decorations a
If you use the ornament as a pin or for a greeting card it is enough to weave only one side of the flower, otherwise you must work on both sides.

 

 

3. decoration

unikatissima Garden Decorations c Of course this ornament has been made with a lid from the same joghurt and with acrylic yarn ;-)
This time a darning needle is absolutely necessary.

 

unikatissima Garden Decorations c Template Cut and prick your joghurt cup lid following this template (click the thumbnail of the template to download the enlarged template. The template is about 10 cm (appr. 4 inches), if your lid size is different you will possibly have to adapt the print size.)

 

unikatissima Garden Decorations c
Simply embroider the pattern: always in and out and if you like, back again.

 


Links:
Here at unikatissima:
Jewelry for the Garden
Tomato Tube Leaves

Here on this page:
Instruction for the 1. decoration
Instruction for the 2. decoration
Instruction for the 3. decoration

Chainstitch Card

unikatissima Chainstitch Card

Links of entry

I just wanted to show once more how beautiful embroidery on paper and cardboard can be ;-)

Here I cut a beautiful blue patterned square from a magazine and glued on white cardboard.
Then I drew very faint curved lines with a pencil, pricked holes along the lines and stitched them with a chain stitch.
Looks fine, doesn’t it?

I find though that the chain stitch looks much better on straight lines or wide curves than on sharp turns (it ‘inclines’ somewhat), that’s something one could pay attention to when drawing the lines.


Links:
Instruction for chain stitch

Here at unikatissima: Embroidered Matisse Cushion

Individually Shaped Cards

unikatissima Shaped Card

Links of entry

I found an instruction on how to make shaped cards.
I really liked the flower cards e.g., but I’m more one for thinking in words than in pictures. All I could think about when needing a ‘Get well soon card’ was therefore making a card from the letters G and B (in German, ‘Get well soon’ is ‘Gute Besserung’) ;-)

 

unikatissima Shaped Card (Click picture to enlarge)
I joined them with an embroidery stitch (running stitch back and forth) and embroidered some little ‘flowers’ ( I looove embroidery on paper ;-)).

I like it and I hope that it ‘helps’ ;-)

 
Two more views of the card:

unikatissima Shaped Card unikatissima Shaped Card


Links:
Creating Shaped Cards
via Nuttnhoney Great Tutorials

Instruction on how to make the Running Stitch
Instruction on how to make the Running Stitch (Vorstich) (German)

Here at unikatissima: Paper Crazy Quilt

Cross Stitch Heart

unikatissima Cross Stitch Heart

Links of entry

Valentine’s Day makes everything more heart-ily somehow ;-))
Besides I wanted to show what you can do else with the heart template of the day before yesterday (Beaded Square Stitch Heart), viz. a really nice cross stitch heart.
I didn’t have any Aida fabric or similar, besides I always prefer to embroider on paper or fine cardboard ;-)
I therefore glued some plain gift wrap paper on fine cardboard, pre-pricked the holes (which you should always do when embroidering on paper) and embroidered my heart with metallic sewing threads (instructions on how to embroider the cross stitch see links below).
Subsequently I connected the border holes, cut the cardboard into a nicer shape and glued it on a greeting card.
I really like it ;-)

 

unikatissima Heart Chart Click picture to enlarge and then simply print.

 


Links:
Kids Stitch Diagrams and Instructions ­ Part I
Tutorial moved to: Kids Stitch Diagrams and Instructions ­ Part I => scroll down
At Embroiderers’ Guild: Cross Stitch
What else you can do with cross stitches (at Embroiderers’ Guild also):
Pattern Making with Cross Stitch

Flinkhands Kreuzstichanleitung (German)

At crossstitch.about.com: About Aida fabric
At Wikipedia: Stramin (German)

Here at unikatissima: entries with the words ’embroidery on paper’,
especially the Paper Crazy Quilt and the Crazy Quilt Photo Frame

Sketch for Card

unikatissima Card Sketch

Links of entry

Pages of the heart presented once weekly a card sketch for making cards. Together with the beautiful cards made by others it is always an inspiration for card making.

On the photo you see a card I made following the weekly sketch #9 (but I turned it around).
The card background is stamped with bought as well as self-made stamps and the daisies are hand embroidered just as the paper crazy quilt.

They are re-vamping the website, so it is a little more laborious to reach the articles: Go to the articles site and search there (left navigation bar) for ‘Weekly Sketch’ in the categorie ‘Cards’.
The result will compensate for the trouble :)


Links:
At Pages of the heart: Card sketches
Browse them by going to the articles site and search there (left navigation bar) for ‘Weekly Sketch’ in the categorie ‘Cards’

Here at unikatissima:
Eraser Stamps
Paper Crazy Quilt

Bargello

Bargello

Links of entry

While working with polymer clay I found a tutorial on how-to make items with a Bargello-look.

Then I made a little research to know what Bargello is (links see below):
It seems, that the first ‘Bargello craft’ was embroidery, but then the quilters worked Bargello-looking quilts, the polymer clay people made those items with a Bargello-look and the stampers and cardmaking people use this technique on paper. And I made my Bargello digitally as you can see on the picture ;-)
What a versatile technique ;-)


Links:
Embroidery:
Wikipedia: English entry for ‘Bargello’

Defining Bargello

How-to make Bargello needlework:
Bargello Work
Bargello needlepoint

Quilting:
How To Make Bargello Quilt

Polymer Clay:
Tutorial on how-to make items with a Bargello-look
Bargello Swap
Tutorial on how to make a Bargello pattern as cane and as sheet

Stamped Paper:
Bargello (English) (with explaining pictures)

Flexagons

Flexagon Flexagon Flexagon Flexagon

Links of entry

Flexagons a quite interesting things: a kind of card with four sides, and you can flip from one side to the other, back and forth.
But to better understand what Flexagons are, how they work and how you can make one for yourself take a look at the Flexagon page.
On the photos you see the four pages of my first (and up until now last) flexagon. (Click on thumbnails to see the photos.)
It doesn’t work so well, because it is to bulky:
I made them from cardboard to make them lasting longer, glued then cotton on to the cardboard, because I thought that fabric would bend better if you flip them over and over and then glued on the pieces of my hand-embroidered and tape-transfered collages on the appropriate places.
Next time I will see to it that they get slender.
But anyhow: I love my flexagon ;-))


Links:
Flexagons

And if you want to embroider your collages:
English Embroidery Stitch Diagrams – Deutsche Stickstichbeschreibungen
(see also Paper Crazy Quilt)

If you want to know more about image transfers
Easy Photo Transfers (different techniques)
Image Transfer
Packing Tape Image Transfers
(see also Artist Book)

Here at unikatissima:
Paper Crazy Quilt
Artist Book

Bead Picots

Bead Picots

Links of entry

Bead picots are a beautiful way to give you work a neat border.
I was therefore glad to find this tutorial on how to make bead picots tutorial on how to make bead picots.
On the photo you see a freeform bead embroidered pin I made; I worked the bead picots all around the pin.
I also made once a little book (given away without taking a photo ;-(), where I used the bead picots to border the paper pages – it look great, too.
Next time I’ll make an Artist Book, I will use bead picots on the paper, as well as on the next crochet purse I will make (but no one knows when this will be ;-)), perhaps even the next greeting card I’ll create and who knows what ideas I’ll get by then ;-)


Links:
Bead Picot Instructions
The original site doesn’t exist any more and is now available through webarchive: Bead Picot Instructions

Here at unikatissima:
Freeform Bead Embroidery
Artist Book