August TIF challenge - balance in my life???

"What is balance to you? Do you maintain a balanced life? How do you balance aspects of your life? That is the challenge this month - balance." This was the challenge that Sharon offered to us for August.

Well, since I had done very little on July's TIF when August arrived I had plenty of time to think about the question. And think I did!

Balance! That was something I managed very well in the past - many years ago when I had 4 children living at home, I worked fulltime and still found time to do the chores around the house and time to spend in the garden and, even time to work on whatever craft appealed to me at the moment. Sadly now I am retired with only two of us to cook for - verylittle demand for my attention - I find that balance is something that no longer exists in my life!

How could I show this? I talked about it at length whenever we stopped for a cup of tea (why do I need more of these breaks than I ever did? Perhaps that is one reason I have less time than previously!) One morning it occurred to me that I have the balance of a yo-y0. I am totally rapt in whatever it is I am doing at the moment and everything else tends to suffer until I can't stand the mess any longer! Then there is no stitching done until I catch up.

have used algerian eye (the diagonal one came from Fangel's Danish Pulled Thread Embroidery (thankyou Paula of Beauty of Life for the loan). pulled satin and Algerian filling stitch as well as ringed back stitch. The threads are all Finca or Anchor perle of various sizes. The one exception is the yoyo filling which is metallic machine embroidery yarn (thankyou Grace for that hint).

As ever I am not quite sure I am satisfied with the end result. May it not have been better to have done the ringed back stitch in the variegated yarn with the other pulled thread in the natural? Also perhaps the outline of the hand and yoyo should have been a stronger colour. Ah well, there is always next time when I will give more thought to these aspects. Nonetheless I do spend hours agonising over colours for these challenges before I take a stitch.

I have recently picked up the A-Z of Bullion Knots so I have also been practising some of these on calico scraps. The results are very mixed up to date but it seemed a good idea to practise whenever I am at a loss.

A postscript - In this post I have also reached a milestone - for the very first time I have managed to add a hyperlink! Hallelujah!!!

Pulled Thread sampling

As I have said a number of times - I really enjoy Pulled Thread work and the effect it can add to an embroidery. I have difficulty in deciding how a particular stitch in a book will look when it is acutally worked on the fabric. Since I have begun to use it as background in my little embroideries I have wanted to do a sampler to have as a guide. However in my usual fashion it was always something I would do 'one day'.

Then along came the stitchin fingers Stitchalong - here was the impetus I needed. I find the idea of stitching a sampler tedious (that was what I had so much trouble doing when I was in primary school - I hated that dirty piece of fabric covered with thread marks that caused me so much angst! Mary Thomas' stitch dictionary has an incredible series of pulled thread samplers so I decided to be a complete copycat and follow her illustrations. Here is the first example of Algerian filling - an interesting one, I think, that will be most useful when I want a subdued background.

When you look at some of the beautiful work done by Sharon and Mara (I wish I could add hyperlinks!) mine is very tame but I have no doubts it will be useful.

In between time I am looking at the TIF challenge for August (yes, I know the month is half over, already) and thinking about the theme for the month "Balance in my life"? How interesting! I am sure that I don't really manage much balance in my life these days so it is a challenge.

July TIF Challenge

Hello everyone. I am so sorry that I haven't managed even one post in such a long time. I spent six weeks totally absorbed by Sharon Boggon's Studio Journals course. The course was, like all of Sharon's, a tremendous course but I was left with no spare time.

Over the six weeks I did very little embroidery but did start this piece. It is derived from two kaleidoscopes that I produced during the course. I became totally addicted to making these using www.krazydad.com/kaleido .

The challenge for July was Half Way Mark - my interpretation is very simplistic - this is the first side of a biscornu that I embroidered.

This is very late and I need to start my August exercise since we are well into the month. The second half of the biscornu will probably wait until I have stitched the August TIF.

June Take It Further Challenge - Shell, Stash and Stories

This was a delight to stitch. The theme and colours that Sharon provided us with this month were made for my project!

"What stories could our stash tell us and what stories will it provide when we use it." is my interpretation of the theme.

The shell, I have based the stitching on, is a beautiful specimen that I inherited from my mother. It sits in the bathroom and the children love to listen to the song it sings. I would love to know the history of this shell but, unfortunately, I can't translate that song. I don't know where or when it was acquired but it was a very long time ago - more than 70 years.

The subject for this month's TIF for me had to have some relationship to my mother who was not an embroiderer but was a knitter and dressmaker, extraordinaire. She shared these skills with me although I never achieved her level. Nothing was wasted or thrown out if it could be used for another purpose. I inherited much of her stash as well as her stash collection propensities. While this particular shell can serve only as an inspiration it is certainly a symbol of that stash.

Time spent stitching just flew. I managed a new pulled thread stitch - Algerian eye - and made some woven spiders for the first time. Both of these I will use again. I tried some cast-on stitches for texture but I am still unhappy with my efforts there.

Now it is onto July with a new theme and colour scheme and a stitch along with Stitchin Fingers - but before then, Sharon's new and exciting Studio Journal begins on Saturday. I will be busy in July.

May TIF - Version 2

Finished, I think. This time I used the colour challenge as well as the theme for last month's TIF. While my small granddaughters will probably love it, it is a tad pink for me!

I love the butterfly - definitely an improvement on Version 1. There is something about pulled thread work that appeals to me enormously - both the process and the product.

I am not so sure about the total piece and can see some things I would do differently in Version 3 (not sure when I will manage to do that one). It needs to be in portrait mode but I find thinking in landscape easier - can't imagine why. Maybe Version 3 should be in monochrome. Is that the wrong order in which to work?

Interestingly, I used only DMC floss for the buttonhole wheels and missed the texture of the perle from the previous piece. I haven't found much difference in my work previously except for ease of use - perhaps as my techniques improve (ever so slightly) the differences are becoming more marked.

On the Loom once more!

The loom is singing along again this week. Although I had not done any weaving I was thoroughly sick of looking at the black and white warp . It has been on the loom for almost two years.

To finish quickly (and start a new warp sooner) I decided to use one colour only in the weft - three coloured double weave instead of four - and produce a series of samples. After two inches with an Iris weft it was Marine's turn. What a shock! After weaving to free up the loom I was suddenly interested in what was coming off it! There should be just enough warp for fabric for a vest. It is interesting and is a lovely indigo colour.

Embroidery is not at a complete standstill - I am slowly stitching a second version of the May TIF and enjoying the process no end. However the June TIF is still only an idea.

Thankyou for the feedback

How wonderful! Thankyou to everyone who generously made comments on the previous two entries. I do learn so much from this helpful criticism. Despite my uneasiness about the piece I find that objectivity is difficult to achieve so I really appreciate the effort made.

I certainly hadn't occurred to me how wrong the black is in the butterfly but once Meg said it I realised, how true- maybe a dark blue or a very deep black brown would have been much more satisfactory.

Megan's suggestion that I shift the butterfly is a good one. Originally I had intended to use long and short stitch but when I thought about the sett of the linen weave I decided on the French Knots. I am fairly limited in my stitch vocabulary - I keep trying to expand it but it seems to take considerable time to improve my proficiency in each new stitch. I do try to include a new one each month. This time I was happier with my Bullion so it stayed in the piece. Hopefully the stitch-along with Stitchin' Fingers will help me improve my techniques.

Deb you have made me understand my feeling regarding the knots in the butterfly and the flower textures - the butterfly is meant to contrast with the flowers but I think it turned out to be a very 'uncomfortable' contrast. I am not sure how else to describe it.

No, I did not weave the linen - it is my favourite fabric for stitching - 26 count I think. Not great for long and short stitch without a backing.

I will certainly try another one - same design, more or less - different colours and some different stitches. Thankyou for all the positive things you have said.