Embroidered Pendant Project - part 2

Hi Everyone 

I have a very small bit of progress to report today. Yesterday was mostly taken up with a special family birthday so not much work done ! I had a lovely time so all is well.

I have done a little embroidery trial on the wooden blank, although it’s just an experiment to check thread size and ways of finishing of the threads. If you called in earlier in the project you will know I’ve chosen a range of coloured threads, inspired by one of my blouses. I did have six colour options and in my first trial I’ve used only four. The main issue will be finishing off the threads, I’ve been talking about this throughout the project and as I thought, it’s the most challenging aspect. Obviously, the more colours, the more ends there are to secure. I’m almost convinced there needs to be a backing created to hide the knots created each time a change of thread is introduced. I like the idea of making a felted piece of fabric to stick over the back of the pendant, in a complimentary colour. I’ve also thought about cutting a piece of commercial Felt to size or possibly a piece of handmade paper ? I’ll try each of these ideas later today.

In the meantime, here’s a quick look at the first test piece of embroidery:

                       

I’m hoping to test out another couple of ideas for my embroidery patterns and my only thought is not to include a traditional cross stitch pattern on the blank. I’m not sure why but I feel it’s not quite my thing ? However, I’m not ruling anything (definitely) in or out at this stage. I  also need to work on the ‘chain’ part of the necklace and finalise the closure part of the chain. Look back yesterday for more on the chain.

Thanks for calling in today.

Embroidered Pendant - construction (1)

Hi Everyone

I’m sharing the part (1) results of my Embroidered Pendant Project today ie the braided chain element. Read back yesterday for more detail on the project. After several attempts, I’ve decided to go with a very simple braid for the necklace. I wanted something which will compliment the embroidery element but not too dominant. I’ve developed a kumihimo braid using 4 strands of S-Lon cord. I used a single cord in a darker Blue colour and three cords in a brighter Teal. This cord is a 0.5mm 3ply nylon cord. I decided to make an 80 cm length of braid which includes enough (I hope)  to develop a short decorated and beaded end feature. I’m not totally sure of how the ends will turn out ? I’ll go with a development approach for the ends but I’m happy with how the braid is looking so far.

              

Using the Kumihimo disc for braiding this 4 strand cord is a little tricky because of potential ‘slack’ tension. I needed to re braid sections as I developed the cord. However, it’s working out ok and seems to be a good alternative for a chain. I’ll keep going with the cord and work on the ends later today. It’s the ends of the braid which will make or break the final cord.

Thanks for calling in today.

Embroidered Pendant Project- continued

Hi Everyone 

I’m picking up my latest project again today and I’ve got a plan which is in two parts. I’ve decided to go ahead with making the necklace part of the project (first) using a couple of blue colours. The necklace element will be a simple four strand kumihimo braid. My idea here is to produce an interesting but quite fine braid. I’d like the braid to compliment rather than dominate the pendant. I see the embroidery being the focus of the piece. I’ve also chosen the colours of the second element ie the embroidery bit. As per my blog from last week, I’m using the fabric of one of my blouses to inspire the colour scheme. Here’s a quick look at the materials I’m using :

                    

Hopefully, I can start the braid later and test out the colours I’ve chosen. At the moment, I’m thinking about using three strands in the teal colour and one strand in the blue. I’m hoping this will give more of a subtle combination.

I’ve thought about the embroidered pattern on the blank too, there’s a very simple idea (for filling in the holes) in my head and sill go with that to start. My only concern is how neat and tidy I can make the different coloured threads, when changing colours. I’m sure I can find a way !

That’s about it for today. I’ll be back with some progress tomorrow.

Thanks for calling in today.

Fibre Friday - 26/1/18

Hi Everyone 

I think most Fridays - it can’t be Friday again ! However, it is Friday and its time to look back at my weekly fibre news. Lots of exciting stuff to share !

The big story is -  I’ve finished knitting my Garland Sweater and I’m very pleased with it. There is a way to go re the finishing techniques and I also need to adjust the length of the sleeves. I think, I’ve made the sleeves approximately 3-5cms too long. It was difficult to try on the sweater while I was knitting the final neck part so decided to leave the sleeves until I had finished all the remaining knitting parts. It’s very pretty and the colour is beautiful. The sweater is lovely to wear, it has a great feel with some really interesting elements. I particularly like the rib sleeve feature and the cropped, very wide body. So, I need to sew in the ends and sort the sleeves. The pattern suggests blocking the garment and then turning the neck band inwards and sewing in place. I’ll get to this later today and hopefully will be able to wear my sweater next week. This has been a very enjoyable knit. I can see myself knitting a second in a different colour and possibly adapting the style a little. I’ve also got quite a bit of yarn left and am already thinking about what I can do with it ? I may hold it together with another yarn and develop a Nuuk. More on that next time.

        

My next knitting story is a new pair of socks. This is my Miss Mitchell Socks Pattern, I’m writing up this new design as I go. This time I’ve started toe up and am knitting the main sock part ‘two at a time’, I’ll knit the rib on each sock using DPNs and add Afterthought Heels. The leg of the sock will get a bit of a pattern and I’ll introduce another colour - more on that next time.

The other new knit this week is a Spindrift Shawl. I’ve already knitted this pattern in a finer yarn. This time I’m using WYS fleece Gems dk (Peridot colourway) and will add an edge of Artesano Alpaca Silk Lace (Tabby Grey colour way). More on the Spindrift next time. I’ve literally just started the Shawl but it’s already looking lovely.

My last story for this week is some spinning!! This is a little project I’ve started for a friend. I’m not sure exactly what the fibre is ? It’s dyed in lovely variegated range of greens. I’ve prepped the fibre a little and developed a few rolags and will test out a few different ways of spinning. The fibre feels very dense and I’m favouring a simple spin from the braid rather than the rolag approach. I’m finding I need to hand card the fibre in small batches to get the best results. Here is a quick look at the job so far :

      

Thanks for calling in today. Have a great weekend. I’ll be back on Monday.

Silver Job

Hi Everyone

Today, I have a simple but experimental Silver job. I’m making a couple of rings. These rings have been prepared (a little) to the point of shaping. The

 

The left hand ring will be developed into a type of ‘spinner’ ring and the rings on the right, a ‘stacking’ - three part ring. The Stacking style ring will also get a few ‘Pebble gems’ from last weeks design work ideas. Read back last Thursday for more on the latest new design work.

The little pebble feature is running through the spinner ring, referenced by the thinner silver ball wire. Each of the stacking rings (right photo) will get a silver Art Clay pebble. This Pebble idea will feature in my new Collection, again discussed briefly in last weeks blog post.

Hopefully, I can finish these designs today and decide which pieces will follow. I think, at the moment, there will be earrings and a broach. I want to develop some small earrings, for an ‘everyday’ type of jewellery, I’m not sure exactly where I’ll go with this one ? but the Pebble theme will feature. I also need a broach for a hand knit cardigan. The broach needs to be very delicate and lightweight, I don’t want to damage my cardigan ! This is quite a challenge. At the moment, I’m thinking I need something similar to a ‘safety pin’ style. I think, I can come up with a design which incorporates the pebble characterist.

Thanks for calling in today.