Monday 24 February 2014

Final sample Chapter 3!

I am obviously not completely on top with blogging yet!

Here is the final sample for the Chapter.


Honesty in whip and feather stitch with background enhanced with whip stitch.

Sunday 23 February 2014

City and Guilds Level 2 Module 2 Chapter 3 completed

Chapter 3 - Thread and stitches

A lovely opportunity to get more thread! I have a three drawer Madeira 40 box of lovely threads but had few of 30 strength so purchased sets of colours from Barnyarns and have now got them as a beautiful display on my stash cupboard doors. They were on the windowsill but got too many to store they, so my work-room looks a lot more organised and tidy now.


Page 24. My 30 threads with others shaded in colour ranges. Variegated and metallics bottom right.


Vermicelli

So, the first exercise was to free embroider vermicelli stitch starting large and reducing in size on a range of fabrics. 


Page 24. Vermicelli on black felt with red thread, reducing in size

I managed to not touch the other rows of stitch most of the time. This isn't the easiest stitch to do freehand, but with practice, I will improve. I then changed to unsupported calico on a hoop with a variegated thread


Page 24. Vermicelli on calico

A couple of close calls with the stitches very close. The variegated thread looks nice. I did have difficulty getting this small sample in focus on the camera.


Page 24. Vermicelli and zigzag vermicelli on purple velvet

This was not very good. I didn't support the velvet and had real difficulty getting the hand motion that I needed to create the stitches as I wished. I don't have a zigzag vermicelli stitch on my machine to try the automatic version. 

Granite stitch

The exercise was to make a small picture using granite stitch, so I stitched a red imagined flower shape in granite stitch and then placed a square of contrasting green in granite stitch around the flower with a stem and the idea of a leaf (straight-stitched). This is quite pretty. Doing very small granite stitch is not simple and hurts my thumbs if I do it for too long!


Page 25. Imagined 'poppy' in granite stitch

I then used a piece of random dyed felt and using the colours suggested by the dye dispersal used granite stitch to create contours on the felt. 


Page 25. Granite stitch on random dyed felt

I made larger granite stitches this time and found that the result was easier to get. Less sore thumbs from less tight circular actions. I think that this is very pretty and can be developed more in the future.

Whip stitch

The top tension was increased to maximum and I stitched on black felt for this sample.


Page 25. Whip stitch on black felt

All free- embroidered, with black felt supported on a hoop.

The left hand side uses a small stitch length with a variegated thread on top and yellow in the bobbin. The central stitching is done with purple thread on top and gold in the bobbin and the right-hand with red thread on top and yellow in the bobbin. 

I am reasonably pleased with these results but feel that I may have to by-pass the bobbin to get a better outcome. I have never done this before but sort of worked out that if I didn't take the bobbin through its tensioning plates, I would remove any bottom tension. So I did this for the next exercise. I do have a spare bobbin race but haven't done anything with it yet as I have been a bit nervous of making adjustments and not getting it correct. I must be more courageous!

Feather stitch

Bobbin tension by-passed, I put red 30 thread on top and yellow in the bobbin. I the top section I probably stitched too slowly to get the effect I was looking for, although I did stop every now and then to deliberately create little bobbles


Page 26. Feather stitch on black felt.

In the centre right of the sample, I used faster hand movement which pulled the bobbin thread up more and created a good feather stitch. I then changed to a red thread on top and metallic in the bobbin and a medium fabric movement which also creates a good effect.

Moss Stitch


Page 26. Moss stitch on Cotton

For this sample I used some simple cotton and a variegated thread in the bobbin and monfilament on top. The sample was supported in a hoop with top tension at maximum and bobbin tension bypassed. 

Once stitched, Bondaweb was ironed on the back and then a piece of calico behind that. The monofilament was removed (not easy as I couldn't see it!!) and the bobbin threads were then free loops on the top of the fabric.

This was fun, I have never tried this technique before. 

Final sample

This sample was to be stitched onto a transfer painted or random dyed fabric base. I chose a piece of beautiful random dyed felt and mounted it in a large hoop. I then selected the colours I thought would be good with the fabric. 


Random dyed felt and threads 

Page 27. 

I chose honesty as my flower and drew this is air-dispersible pen. I used 30 lime coloured three on top and a variegated metallic thread in the bobbin with the bottom tension bypassed. I stitched the flowers  in feather stitched and the stems in whip stitch. 

I then used the other colours, blue, hyacinth and fuchsia with lime in the bobbin to create an outline. I do think that the honesty sort of vanished in amongst the rest of the stitching but don't mind as this looks quite organic and almost like a cabbage. Lovely!

So before I fixed this into my book, I photographed the back and really like that as well. Delicate and really like a cabbage. 

Back of stitched sample.


I enjoyed this chapter and look forward to using the thicker 'threads' in the next one.






Sunday 16 February 2014

City and Guilds Level 2, Module 2 Chapter 2 completed

Making Patterns

I made a small collection of different patterns both natural and manmade


Page 14 consists of images of natural altered natural and ceramic and stone pictures that I have taken around the world. I have been lucky to have travelled widely, always with a camera and take photographs of unusual items when I see them



Page 15 - the top five images are all architectural where the architects have used pattern in their designs. The two 'other' patterns were found just be opening my wardrobe door. I like pattern particularly Indian block printed fabric designs. 

The bottom four images are bottom left x 2 images of cow parsley, which is one of my favourite countryside plants. It is in every hedgerow where I live. I then cut a stencil trying to depict the plant. I found this quite tricky as the seed heads are very tiny and didn't make a great job of it but used some handmade paper and stencilled it with blue acrylic paint and sponged gold ink from an ink block alongside. I have just purchased a scan and cut machine which means that I will be able to scan a drawing into the machine and it will cut my images accurately.

Symmetrical patterns

The lovely tiles from St David's cathedral were interesting. In the final two, I recognised rotational and mirrored patterns 

Printing

I drew an imagined flower using a craft knife cut the petal shapes and stuck them to card with Pritt stick. I created and handle and marked the top of the newly created print block. Unfortunately the petals are not obvious in my photograph, but they will be obvious when used to print. 



Page 16, drawing, negative foam cut and block

I had a few pieces of brown and cartridge paper which I had painted previously and decided to use these as the base of my symmetrical block samples. So using brown painted paper, red acrylic paint and my block I made a pattern of straight repeats


Page 16. Straight repeat pattern.

Using the same block on a previously painted white cartridge paper, I blocked spot repeats with blue acrylic paint.


Page 17. Spot repeat pattern

Again using some previously painted brown paper, I used yellow paint and created a blocked half-drop repeat pattern, which looks subtle and attractive although there was a small splurge of green on the paper when I started. 


Page 17 Half drop repeat pattern

Cutting a stencil for rotational symmetry

I chose a simple design taking the idea of a Charles Rennie MacIntosh rose from a china coffee cup and traced it, then made a stencil with a craft knife and drew a pencil stencil to see how it would look. Then I tried it with yellow paint on some hand made paper, which has Shakespeare text included in it! I also lino cut the rose and used sponged gold ink from an ink pad an a light spongeing of silver ink, I made a little image. I decided that the rose would work with my block to make the patterns for the chapter.


Page 18. Lino cut, drawing, stencil and images created with the stencil and lino blocks.

Using my stencil, I used a piece of transfer painted polyester satin and blue acrylic paint to make mirror image block patterns - I think that the rose now looks like an angel fish!


Page 18. Mirror Image pattern

Using the same fabric as the previous sample and the same blue acrylic paint, I made some rotationally symmetric patterns noting the angle using the marking on the back of the block to find the marked top and rotating it through 90 degrees each time.



Page 19. Rotational symmetric pattern

Using a piece of transfer printed polyester satin, I block printed and stencilled using my home-made rose stencil and three commercially made blocks. I used good paint with my stencil in half drop pattern, a leaf block with green acrylic paint again in half drop pattern and a small flower block using yellow acrylic paint in a more random pattern as it would blend subtly with the sample colours. I was very pleased with this and think it would make a lovely summer skirt. I then added some free embroidered stitch around some rose petals in gold and one with a pink thread.


Page 19 Half drop symmetry with blocked patterns and stitch

I continued to experiment with colour and pattern using transfer painted paper on polyester satin, my block and stencil. I am attracted to half drop symmetry and continued to use this on my next two samples


Page 20 - Transfer painted paper, yellow and red


Page 20 - Polyester satin using previous transfer painted base and then blocked and stencilled in red and green acrylic paint. Quite Christmassy!

I experimented with another transfer painted base and my block along with others on another transfer painted page as an overlay. This is pretty and I had thought that this would be the basis for my final sample but I then used another base transfer painted base and the same overlay which I thought created a better foundation for stitch. 



Page 21 - Experiment with base and blocked overlay

So, my final design. I hadn't really liked the result of the transfer painted image but when I looked at the design again, I realised that it would work with the blocked overlay page and stitch rather better. 


Page 22. Transfer painted paper


Page 22. Blocked overlay using rotational home made block, straight alternate lines of large flower blocks and half-drop star shaped flower with more randomised rounded petal flowers amongst them. I then added the little yellow blocks rotationally through the design and transferred the base and overlay to the base (above)


The final sample, using the two previous papers with transfer painted base and pattern, supported on felt and stitched in the style of Cefyn Burgess using cow parsley as a floral inspiration, black thread top and bottom and free embroidery. I probably should have supported this with a hoop as it has puckered a bit, but still looks lovely, I think......


Page 23. Stitched patterned polyester satin sample

I think that lined with bright green or yellow satin, this design would make a great evening jacket! I really enjoyed this chapter.




Monday 10 February 2014

Stitched voids

How very odd that the stitched voids were not on my previous blog! Here it is now.


Stitched void using granite stitch

Saturday 8 February 2014

C&G Level 2, Module 2, Chapter 1completed

'How does your garden grow?'

Collecting images. 

Images were collected from my own photo collection from around the world and some magazines. They were then sorted into different types. 

First crinkly and spiky then rounded forms and some that didn't fit any of those categories but I liked them and a couple I though may be useful for tassels so added to keep them.






I sketched a few beside their pictures (pages 1-5 in my book)

I found a flower that I like a lot and have many in the garden. Hellebores are so varied and beautiful. I first sketched the flower and using black thread on backed calico, I made a stitched sample




The hellebore and drawing along with the stitched sample (Sample 1 page 6) 


The stitched hellebore

I enjoyed stitching this, dogs down and free embroidered on calico back with pelmet Vilene. It's difficult in black thread to reproduce the delicacy of the hellebore but as this was about form and stitch I simply defines the difference in colour between the petal and the edges. To create the stamens and centre meade the density of stitch more that the hellebore presents, but the exercise was interesting. I would take the stamens from the edge of the centre rather than the centre itself in future.  I did a little hatching in areas to depict shadows, but not too heavily.

Drawing with the needle.

I cut a stem of pieris from the garden and photographed it to create a flat image from which to stitch my sample. Using Cefyn Burgess's work as an example of how I might present this piece, I put calico in a hoop and stitched in black thread.

I like the simplicity of Burgess's work and the contrast between the black and calico. I drew the references from my photo to the calico although on reflection I should have drawn the plant onto paper and then to stitch. 


The Pieris, Cefyn Burgess example and my stitched sample. (page 7) 

I enjoyed making this sample and like the result. When I have more time, I would like to use this technique using cow parsley which is a great favourite of mine and stitch in different colours to create a fabric.

Then looking at Grinling Gibbons - what an amazing wood-carver. I love how he creates such realistic delicate objects so beautifully. I chose one of his carvings and took some of the elements to make a small sketch. 

I then made a collection of flower, leaf and seed pods from the garden and dried specimens that I had saved since last year and made a drawing. 


Flowers, leaves and seedpods (page 8)

Again using hellebores and a lovely fern which just seems to never die (it gets nibbled around the edges) and some honesty seed heads, I made a little still life study and a drawing. In order to transfer this successfully and maintaining dimensions to calico, I transferred the outline of a cut copy using air dispersible pen to calico backed with white felt. I then supported this in a hoop and stitched in black thread. 

Hatching was suggested as a possible for this image but I decided not to as I wanted to create the clean simple image as for the Burgess sample. I like this and the last piece very much.


Sample 3 (page 9)

Creating voids

This next exercise was to collect some differently shaped vases, jugs etc and make a drawing of them overlapping each other to create negative spaces. I did consider going to the charity shops to find some more appropriate items, but decided to use what i have.


My small still life collection (page 10)

I think that what this image lacks is height but decided that I could still do the exercise successfully with these. 

So, I made the drawing - the dimensions are not absolutely accurate but as the guidance states, this was not a drawing exercise! 


A simple sketch of the still life (page 10)

Then tracings were to be made of the drawing with elements of the image removed to create additional voids. I made several tracings trying to determine which would make the best example. 





My first tracings determining which I like best (pages 10 and 11)

Then using one of the tracings I coloured in blocks to decide on the voids. I did this on two tracings but even having decided which I thought would work best, I still changed it as I did the sample. 




Two blocked out tracings to determine voids (Page 11)

The image with voids was then transferred in reverse to Stitch'n'Tear and using white thread top and bottom the Stitch'n'Tear on the back of the felt. the image was stitched on the lines. 


Front of felt once stitched through from the reverse (p12)

The voids were blocked on another piece of stitch and tear as a pattern for stitching and using white ordinary thread top and bottom, dogs down, the image was transferred in grant stitch - love it! 

I had to do a little bit of modification as I went along. Probably because I needed different artefacts to begin with, (but it was 0600) there were insufficient voids to create the divisions but this was overcome by creating little elements of stitch to separate areas. 

I enjoyed this chapter very much and look forward to Chapter 2.