K3N Cloth Tales Slow Stitching Challnege 2024
Week 51 - Grid Journaling Slow Stitch Style.
I stitched my 4 squares onto a piece of blue cotton with a foundation layer with stem stitch. Four different colors.
I then cut a few snippets of fabric to stitch at random in these squares.
It turned out quite bright and I was happy with it.
K3N Cloth Tales Slow Stitching Challenge 2024
Week 50 - Stitching Text.
I chose fabric with lines I could follow.
As it is snowing heavily today that is the word I chose.
I used stem stitch. Added highlight to the lines then used a white pencil to draft my letters. Then added a snowflake in the square and offset the empty corner with smaller snowflakes.
Really happy with this one.
It's week 49 of the K3N Cloth Tales Slow Stitching 2024 Challenge.
This week's prompt was Stitch by Chance.
I put 6 prompts in a box and then pull one by one by chance and executed the technique.
1. Leaf (1)
2. Seam (2)
3. Color (1)
4. Applique (1)
5. Couching (5)
6. Patch
I pull 6 prompts and was lucky to get seam so I could add a bit to my piece to make it square.
This was fun!
K3N Cloth Tales Slow Stitching Challenge 2024
Week 47 - Wrinkle Stitching - wrinkling a piece of cloth then stitching along the fold lines creating a random pattern. Filling in the spaces you have created with the stitched lines.
I chose three pieces of pink linen as I needed something perky.
I scrunched it up then basted it to the foundation piece. The stitching in pink the same as the fabric is the original wrinkle stitching.
Then, I got carried away. I wanted colorful but I may have filled it in a bit too much.
It is what it is. It is what I needed today.
K3N Cloth Tales Slow Stitching Challenge 2024.
Week 43 - Sensory Stitching
This week's focus is using our senses when stitching.
The sense of touch as we are stitching. How does it feel when the needle and thread goes through different fabric? Elements to excite our sight as we see our piece. Do we hear the needle as it goes through stiff fabric?
I chose a black fabric with a hint of herringbone texture to it.
I added the couched yarn, the button, the pom pom trim, the lace, the corduroy and the netting for my fingers.
The button and colors for my eyes.
The taffeta fabric below the button certainly engaged my ears as the needle went through that fabric. Also there was printing on the piece of white tone on tone fabric in the bottom left hand corner and as I put in my seed stitches it was more difficult to push through the printed areas.
K3N Cloth Tales 2024 Slow Stitch challenge.
Week 42 - From the Same Cloth - Pulling Threads and Running Stitch.
This is a piece pale yellow linen.
I pulled thread from the bottom area and stitched them into the cloth above.
Lovely finished piece and a very simple process.
Week 40 - Enso Circle - Zen Buddhist philosophy - symbolizes an expression of life, showing both the beginning and end
My top layer is linen and my foundation cloth is similar.
I used a large tip permanent Sharpie marker to make my mark.
It is quite open.
I like the puckering of the fabric which has taken place. I place the pieces so the color were offset.
It looked a little empty so I put a shell button in the bottom.
This is a stitched piece for K3N Cloth Tales slow stitching challenge 2024.
Week 36 - Needle Weaving - I used Pearl Cotton.
I prepared by foundation piece by placing a piece of olive green felty fabric onto a piece of poly cotton in light green. Folded over the edge to the front and stitched it with sewing thread. I then basted the middle with the same thread.
I laid down my warp thread in navy blue pearl cotton. Drawn lines or a couple lengths of tape may have ensured more even top and bottom edges.
I then wove my short lengths of pearl cotton and wonderful colors all along the length of this little weaving. I used the head of the needle to go over under all along the warp threads. Tacked the ends and started again with a new color. It was nice to use pearl cotton - worked really well. The shape is organic and that is all well.
Week 34 in the K3N Cloth Tales Slow Stitching Challenge - prompt - Mola Inspired Reverse Applique. This is practiced by the Guna people of Panama.
I designed my own geometric pattern and I used 4 layers of fabric. True blue, then lime green, then royal blue and finally tangerine orange.
This was quite stiff - the top & bottom layers were poly cotton, the lime is silky and the blue is for sure polyester.
The shapes are a square, a triangle, a rectangle and a circle.
I used sewing thread to based around the edge. Found embroidery thread to match each color and outlined the shapes with running stitches. Debated about adding additional stitches and decided against it.
I have caught up on my slow stitching. This piece is for week 31 of K3N Cloth Tales Slow Stitching Challenge.
The shisha are the small decorative mirrors on Indian clothing. I chose a plastic sequin since I anticipate this piece being put into a possible quilt. This is washable.
I decided to use a piece of salmon colored linen on a cotton foundation cloth. I also decided to make a paisley pattern with the shisha at the round end. I traced with a white marker.
I managed the stitching on the shisha. The proceeded with satin stitch. I had a really hard time when I stitched through a single strand.
I added the a blanket stitch around the outer edge of the paisley then closed it with a row of back stitch. After my problems with the satin stitch I took the easy way out.
I used 3 strand embroidery thread in several colors. I made several circles around the shisha. Then I followed the inside edge of the with a couple of rows of satin stitch. Then I added the daisy flower and filled the field around it with satin stitch. I used gold, teal, purple, yellow, and pink thread in various places.
I put a border in blue at the bottom and an upper in gold.
This week's prompt in the K3N Cloth Tale's Slow Stitching challenge is "Nature of Cloth".
Kathryn explored her bundle of fabric. How does it feel? Does it pass the needle test? Does it ravel? Does it have texture?
Once we had selected our fabrics then we were to make a fabric collage.
I chose a corduroy, wool plaid, orange cotton, yellow cotton and a small triangle of mustard colored silk.
I placed a circle of stitching around the intersection of these fabric pieces. Then random running stitching, seed stitching, with a sprinkling of French Knots. This was a lot of fun to make.
I am catching up on my slow stitching now that the floor has been installed and all the furniture is back in place.
This is week 32 of K3N Cloth Tale's Slow Stitching challenge. Prompt - Inspired by Judy Martin. K saw Judy's show in Birmingham but was inspired by an older piece.
The piece took 3 years (over 1000 days) to complete and was over 200 feet long and titled "Not to know but to go on". The idea to stitch every day and take things as it comes.
I chose the items to couch from one of my scrap bags and just laid them down as they came along. Started with one color and just changed as that one ran out. I couched yarn, ribbon, rickrack and cording. I really loved how the tiny rick rack looked couched. All kinds of ways to stitch it as well. Of course, there is as many colors as the rainbow. I then stitched in between the couched rows till I was happy with the whole piece from either side.
Not sure how this will make it into my squares as it is too long. Can I fold it effectively, I am not sure.
Getting caught up on my slow stitching challenge.
K3N Cloth Tales slow stitch challenge - week 29 - Mandala.
With many things packed away due to renovations I chose felt for this challenge. I added a white cotton foundation piece behind a 5" square of white felt.
I cut a turquoise circle then a yellow medium sized one and then a smaller green one. Felt allowed me not to worry about raw edges.
I started with the yellow lines on the green, then the white blanket stitch around its edge. The turquoise points on the yellow followed then the triple bird foot stitches in pink and purple thread on the yellow. The green back stitch outline along the outside edge of the turquoise circle. Followed with the long white stitches on the turquoise then the French Knots in the green wedges. Finally, the purple short and long stitches around the outside edge.
Week 27 of the slow stitching challenge on K3N Cloth Tales.
Prompt: Stitching on a real leaf (pressing and waxing leaves)
It was designed to help us be mixed media artist and have the experience of stitching on material which is not fabric.
I did not create a hole in mine though I could have but after putting the time I decided against it.
Kelly green felt one layer. I chose matching thread for the veins, darker for the central rib and blanket stitch in the same kelly green around the edge. The French Knots the same color.
I stitched my patterned cotton fabric strips onto a navy square with navy thread. The leaf was stitched with leaf green thread so they would be more visible.
K3N had posted on Instagram last week that she would be using a pressed real leaf in her piece this week. She recommended we press one if we did not have one at hand.
I knew that a real leaf was not going to work for my end project so I decided to create myself a felt one. It was designed with no idea what the final challenge would be.
I regret not having a hole in it but I did not want to cut the thread for my knots.
It is supposed to be an Aspen Leaf.
It is week 19 and the prompt this week is Kintsugi - the Japanese practice of mending broken vessels with gold.
I chose a blue scrap - possibly hand dyed. Not batik as it was nice to stitch. I cut the blue to create my fissure. I layered a piece of yellow cotton between the blue and the foundation layer.
I chose to stitch the wavy edges of the blue pieces first with an overcast stitch.
Earlier I had checked what I had in my tiny supply of pearl cotton.
I had a yellow but I thought it too bright.
My sister suggested tea dyeing it. That worked wonderfully.
In the end, I chose to mix the two. I ran 2 needles one with each color and I just used them alternately along the curve of gold. We need to cover the fabric underneath completely so it took a long time to stitch it.
It's week 18 in the K3N Cloth Tales slow stitch challenge.
The prompt was pocket and visible mending.
Today, we take pockets for granted and in general I need at least one in every garment. Such, was not the case for women in the 1600-1700s. Was it because they were considered to own little so they did not have to carry anything?I would think at least a hanky.
This is why tie on pockets were created to wear under your dress. It was accessed through a slit in the skirt. These were precious. I chose blue fabric for my Mom and added a piece of Dad's blue plaid shirt. The bit of yellow is the nod to visible stitching. The tiny heart is for my Mom. Kathryn did an eyelet so I did one to try it out. The pin is there to hold my 3 things to the right in my pocket. I created little tags from fabric and permanent markers. A fishing rod for my Dad, a seed packet for my Mom because she would be all in by now and the 50th is to remember my 50th high school graduation this year with white and green - our school colors..
Here's my piece for week 11 - prompt Kawandi and Respect Traditions. This challenge is hosted by Kathyn at K3N Cloth Tales.
Kawandi means quilt in Siddi people of India. Traditionally, the edges are all folded over then stitched to a base foundation and an extra layer of fabric is added in the middle after the outside pieces are stitched. Grains of rice are added to the quilt to wish the recipient full bellies. The kawandi is considered naked with out the puhlas (flowers) in each corner.
I chose a blue cotton base fabric and stitche my first pieces all the way around the edge folding the base layer and my top scraps as I went. I chose to leave raw edges on the inner pieces of the piece as it was too difficult to turn over edges on such small pieces of fabric. I confess that I forgot my puhlas so they were added at the end. I am so grateful to Kathryn for sharing and presenting videos so well prepared and educational.
This slow stitching piece is due to a challenge from Katherine at K3N ClothTales.
Week 1 was fabric weaving.
Her word was Community.
It represents stitchers of different varieties represented by the horizontal and vertical strips of fabric. The circle in the center represents the unity among stitchers. I added a button in mine as well.
Lessons learned: Basting in the forms of pins is very important.
My piece is only 4 inches square so long sewing head pins is quite cumbersome. The rows fell apart and I had to re do them so that was not fun.
I chose a navy embroidery thread with 3 strands as I wanted it quite bold. Looking at it now I see that my end stitches would have looked better on the back than the front as they go opposite of the rows stitches.