A Pouch

For ages, I haven't shown you anything related to our lovely craft activities, and I know that these were the reason why you follow my blog. So I will pick up things I did some time ago like this pouch. The carnation motif was inspired by old German linen embroidery, but also by Turkish embroidery which often shows flowers in lines, then changing direction in the next row. Many years ago, I saw an exhibition of Turkish embroidery in the Altona Museum, Hamburg. Such things can hardly be found today, maybe because people think it is not "modern". The only craft I saw being done in Turkey 20 years ago was bead crocheting for head scarves. But there are cute things being done -- still done or again? Google "türk elişi".
In the case of my pouch, I took elements from Turkish, but also from Estonian style -- Google "eesti käsitöö". I used sock wool, split in 2 plies. I found the color changes very helpful to create irregularities and coincidence patterns. This design followed a necessity: I did not find embroidery wool at that time; and it is an easy calculation to find out that small skeins of new crewel wool are way too expensive. So I thought if I buy a 50g ball of 4-ply wool, I have a real lot for little money. And variegated yarn, if the cuts are not too short, means to have a wide range of colors from just one ball. The only thing that adds more work is to unwind the snippets and to split them into 2 plies.
 In the end, I added a few sequins, one on top of each flower, as the Estonians used to like it.

I added some advice against the cold.

A spell to the snake

Pictures of snakes, turtles, and lizards. I draw them on a strip of vintage cloth. And there is an Estonian spell from the collection "Songs of the Estonians", 1848. It speaks to the snake: "What is your color, little Lena?" And carries on, describing the colors of the snake: "Hazel colored, lizard eye's color". It is meant to ban the snake from biting, but also adresses its power to make a swelling wane. I wrote the spell with a textile pen, added drawings and colored these pieces with cloth paint. These will be part of the next frame of the reptile quilt.

A closer look

You are right, the embroidery is not so visible in my latest posting, and maybe it is a little embarrassing to show it too closely... It is a little primitive. But some of the examples in the books show that not everyone who did embroidery had a hand for refined design. The red wool blinded my camera, it is just too radiant.


Arrived today after almost one month shipping: My latest Spoonflower goodies. Had to pay 9$ customs. But wasn't it worth it? There is the tablecloth for my m-i-l. The material is linnen-cotton canvas, a rather sturdy material. And as always, the printing is very good quality and 100% true to the handpainted design in shape and color.
My cloud pattern is not on the first page of the shop any more. They remove a design after 6 weeks in the charts. Boo. Couldn't it just go down slowly when people lose interest? But maybe they wouldn't? It is still selling, but now, less people will find it.

First bits of my new project

I started this project in order to have something for our journey. It will be a large project, I guess. I made a sketch to plan it a bit, but in most cases, the finished piece turns out quite differently. But that's part of the fun.
This one has a slightly primitive appeal, as I wanted it to. The red wool looks so neon! More than in daylight. When it is used up, there will be no more of this kind. It is not produced any more.
Funny feeling. Will I have to go back to untwisted sock wool?



We'll be starting in a few days. So this is not my last posting before lifting off, I guess.

Ironing ahead / Pin Cushions finished

Last week when we went to see J's parents, I asked my m-i-l if she has leftovers from her sewing. She used to do a lot of doll clothes, also custom-made, and clothes to wear. Yes, there were things she wanted to get rid off, and we looked through her stash. Things she wanted to keep were exactly those I was not keen on, and vice versa. So she kept all the pastel flowers, and I got the powerful colours. Happy!


But first, I will cut these cuties apart and sew 3 biscornus for my friend who ordered them.

They will be a giveaway for her colleagues in the museums she works for.

Now the flat squares shall be turned into 3D objects. I start sewing a corner of square A to a midpoint of square B. This means that the next corner of square B will end up at the next midpoint of A. In this way they will alternate until the object will be almost closed. Then I stuff it -- wool is better than batting, because batting blocks the needles when pushed in. Then I pull a thread from the middle of the front side right through the filling to the back and fix it with beads; also small buttons are fine for the purpose. There is no copyright on the patterns, I constructed them after Estonian folk motives, so please feel free to copy them if you like.