FINISHED NEEDLEWORK: "Unicorn" pillow top, 2022 Rotation #5, Slot 1 (not counted thread) complete

 Vintage kit (early 1980s) by Candamar Designs Inc. 

Needlepoint and crewel on 12 point canvas with Paternaya wool and cotton floss, faux goldwork.   Started in 1981.    Size is approx 14 x 14 inches (35.5 x 35.5 cm)

Will be finished as a box pillow for Alexis for a future Christmas.

goldwork on the horn came out well, I think

Goldwork on the Unicorn Pillow

 First of all, I want to be clear that this is not real goldwork.   That is done with actual precious metal threads and beads.   But it's a close approximation with faux metallic threads and all of the same techniques as actual goldwork and for those of us with limited crafting budgets, it's good practice.  

I have already laid in all of the tent stitch base in eight strands of very fine metallic DMC thread (the old metallic on the spool - not sure it's even being made any more).  That many of the thread strands approximated the diameter of the stranded cotton that I used for the white backgound.  That covered up the painted canvas diagonals, so the first step is to lay those out again.   It's hard to see, but the green basting stitches are where the diagonal couching will go.

Then I started in on the point of the horn; I'm going to work it from point to base.   Each 'twist' of the horn will be one length of the heavy gold cord.   The first section will go all the way around the point of the horn.  From then on each length will go along the base right to left, up the diagonal and across the top again from right to left to the point where the next twist happens.    All of the loose ends will be plunged to the back at the end and overcast on the back to secure them.

Here's the first 'twist' with all the heavy threads taken to the back and the second twist outlined.  I'll continue to work my way down the horn.  Still photos just don't capture all of sparkle and shine of the metallic threads.   It's really quite 'bling-y' in real life!

Rotation Changeover - 2022 Rotation #3, Slot 2 (not counted thread) complete

Ten hours in on the Unicorn Pillow.   I finished up the cameo borders and put in the base layer of the goldwork on the horn.   

The kit materials for the horn is something very like Kreinik Cord, which is inappropriate for the tent stitch background layer as it is intended to be couched.  The outer metallic covering actually cracked going around the threads of the canvas.   So I pulled that out and found some sewing weight gold metallic thread.  I think it's the old DMC metallic on the spool, not the new 'Effects' type of DMC metallic.   I used it eight strands together in the needle (four looped so as not to have the nasty fraying cut ends to contend with).   The couching thread to outline the 'twists' in the horn will go over the top at the end.

And a close up of the base layer of goldwork.  I used a laying tool to get the eight strands of gold thread to lay nicely.

picture does not capture the sparkle at all

And where I started this round

Next up is Dutch Beauty, starting here.  Plan to work across the center of the nest with the green base before I move the q snaps

FINISHED NEEDLEWORK: Victoria Sampler "4 Elements: Fresh Air" converted to yellow

Designer: Victoria Sampler

Fabric:  28 count Cashel Linen

Threads: Caron Waterlillies Over dyed silk (daffodil)

DMC perle cotton 8 and 12 white

Kreinik Silk Mori (lightest lemon and dark butter)

Kreinik #4 braid (gold and lemon)

Kreinik Cord (gold)

Beads by Mill Hill and Fire Mountain Gems (?)

Needlework WiP: "VS 4 Elements: Air" Band 3

Quasi Goldwork in this band.   It's just Kreinik Cable Cord, but the technique for plunging and couching is the same as with true goldwork.   I keep telling myself that I will do the real thing one of these days.

FINISHED NEEDLEWORK: Victoria Sampler "Four Elements: Earth"

The third finished / fourth published mini band sampler in Victoria Sampler's "Four Elements" series.  This one is titled "The Green Earth", and is stitched with perle cottons (size 8 and 12), hand dyed threads from Needle Necessities and Caron Wildflowers, DMC cotton floss, Kreinik metallic threads, Beads from Mill Hill, SJ Designs and Fire Mountain. On 28 count white Cashel linen

Needlework WiP: "VS 4 Elements: Earth" Band 16 - finished

As I mentioned in the set-up post, this last band is a solid block of bargello.  I have to admit, this version, while less complex than the "Flame" pattern from the red sampler or the "Arch" pattern from the blue one, it still took a lot longer than I thought it would.   I think that's because being sure not to snag the gold work made half of the stitches rather more finicky than I thought they would be.

Worth it, though.  Having the gold peek out is a very cool effect.  But very difficult to photograph!

Here's the entire bottom band, and I think it's dense enough visually to balance the malachite beads.

Weekly Check in - August 18, 2019

Last weekend passed in a blur of overtime, but all of the audit items were submitted by the 5 pm deadline on Monday.  Go my team at work!!!

This week has been much better.  I took a full day off on Tuesday and half day on Friday.   It was glorious.  (Went to a lecture at Union Station on Friday in conjunction with the "Stonehenge" exhibit.) 

So there's been quite a bit of crafting this week.  First up - finished Block 26 for Aunt Lottie's Garden.  Just four more blocks to applique for the center of this quilt.  This is one of the vintage blocks and was actually from the scraps from one of my grandmother's house dresses.  My aunt and grandmother made most of their casual clothes, aprons, house dresses and such, but used a professional seamstress/dressmaker for their more formal clothing worn to church and out in public.  I loved Miz W (I don't remember if she was a widow or unmarried).   She used to make the most wonderful doll clothes from the scraps of her ladies' fancy dresses.  

You know, I remember less than half of these fabrics, so either the dresses had already worn out by the time I was old enough to pay attention, or possibly some friends and/or extended family gave Lottie their scraps.


The Four Elements Band Sampler "Green Earth" is on the bottom band.

And the zombie project that I picked up while waiting for the malachite beads has the second motif's borders laid in.

 Goals for today are to get a few more passes on the bargello, the rest of the double running on the towel  and get block 27 prepped and basted to work on in the upcoming week.


ETA: IT at work updated my operating system to Windows 10 week before last (yes, right in the middle of the audit - just one more stressor LOL) and now all of a sudden I can do the Slow Sunday Stitching link party again!   Hope it continues!   Here's the link up for this week.
 

Needlework WiP: "VS 4 Elements: Earth" Band 16 - set up

Last band in this sampler.   As with all the pieces in the "Four Elements" series, the bottom of the piece is comprised of a deep band of bargello.   The band for "Earth" is simpler than the ones for "Fire" and "Water".  Each of the color rows stacks over the one below it, and all the rows are four threads high.   The other two samplers were much less regular.

Once you have the first row set up (carefully), it's just a matter of repetition.  One very cool thing the designer did, though, was to have the stitcher lay down a set of plunged goldwork threads first.  As the bargello stitches move across the area, the laid work is hidden where the bargello goes over the laid gold or revealed where the bargello stitches start and stop.

I'll try to get a closer picture when there's more than two bargello rows so you can see the goldwork effect.  But this picture shows the laid threads and the start of the bargello.  Because this last band is so dense it's going to take several hours, but it's very effective.

Weekly Check in - August 4, 2019

Well, only a bit of needlework this week.  Work has been crazy busy and will be still next week. 

But I did manage to carve out about 15 min each day to work on the Victoria Sampler piece.   Well past the halfway point and ready to start work on the second band of drawn thread work.  

Needlework WiP: "VS 4 Elements: Earth" Band 12

Very simple band this time.   Upright stitches in the variegated "Pine" Wildflowers, then gold metallic slanted stitches.   Sometimes a simple band gives a 'resting' place for the eyes.

FINISHED NEEDLEWORK: Victoria Sampler "Four Elements: Fire"

Needlework WiP: "VS 4 Elements: Fire" - Bands 2 and 3

Working on the Victoria Sampler "Fire" Band Sampler.  

The second band is irregular bargello.   I love working regular bargello, where every stitch is the same length and just travels 'up and down'.  Regular bargello is easy to count and works up fast.  This band both travels up and down (the regular base is due to fill in stitches) and has stitches of different heights across the row.   It's also not symmetrical in places.  So lots of counting.   And the #8 braid tends to catch on things, while the two colors of floss all have to be laid with a laying tool to keep the strands parallel.   Add in a counting error at the very start of the first pass and this band took WAY longer than it should have!

Band 3 is a bit of a treat.   I've been lusting over goldwork ever since I stumbled across Mary Corbet's blog Needle 'n Thread (link to her home page).   And here I get a taste.  Granted, the passing thread is just #8 Kreinik braid, not real goldwork threads, but it's 2 strands and couched, plunged and secured.  So all the techniques happen.   I LOVE it.  One of these days, I'll manage to get my hands on the materials and do the real thing.




Still have to plunge the right hand side passing threads

Note: if you get the 'accessories pack' with the beads and special threads, the heavier of the two golds is the #8 that is used for the passing thread, the lightest weight is the #4 used for the couching thread.   Unlike the perle cottons, where the higher the number, the lighter the thread weight.

Slightly better lighting. Overview of project to date