Volunteering with Enthusiasm

Have you ever been proud of a skill that you have mastered?  

Never could I sail, run marathons, quilt, ace chemistry exams or debate with confidence, but often I could do projects with my hands. And stitching embroidery was one of those feminine and housewifery activities that I learned at my mother's knee.

I was always proud of my samplers, praised for my dexterity in pulling embroidery floss up and through fabric to make a pretty chain stitch, then moving forward to work with silk ribbons in the 90's to create more intricate patterns on lingerie or sachet pouches. I still feel accomplished in creating pretty hand work with thread ends skillfully knotted and tightly tucked under on the back side of fabric, surely worthy of a prize if entered in the "Needlework" category in any county fair.

Yesterday, I picked up our local Senior Beacon, its target audience honed to those over fifty years of age.  I was waiting for my eyes to dilate in the dimmed room provided by the ophthalmologist when I read various volunteer opportunities made available through the Beacon.  Lo and behold, there in front of my now blurred vision was a blurb that embroiderers were needed at our local quilting shop for November 14, next Saturday.  Embroiderers were requested to work on ribbons for Breast Cancer Survivors, among a few other causes.  Proceeds from the sale of the ribbons would go back to their respective charities.

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Thinking that perhaps I could meet a few other women who had the same burning desire to share their talents for a cause, I decided to take the plunge and offer my assistance at the fabric store, if only for a few hours next weekend.  It would be fun to have coffee with a new group of people.  While there, I would peruse quilting designs.  My mind and I decided to seize this opportunity.

Carefully, I tore out that magazine notice with the published contact telephone number. Still waiting in the dimmed room, eyes becoming more blurred from the atropine drops used to dilate pupils, I could barely see the listed phone number.  But why should I wait until later to call?  When later came, I might decide to pass off the moment to share my handwork talent.  They probably really needed me.  With fierce bravado, I dialed on my mobile phone, was connected, then put on hold, then reconnected to the appropriate person designated to coordinate collective expertise of volunteers.

"Hello, my name is Nancy and I would like to volunteer a few hours next Saturday for the ribbon adornment embroidery work you are coordinating."  This felt so satisfying.  I was thinking of the finished ribbons and that maybe they might even sell for $5 each!

"We are so happy you called," the woman on the other end of the line responded, "and what hours can I put down for you?" she added.

"The afternoon would be best, maybe after 1:30," I said, reviewing in my mind that Julie and I could still have lunch together and that I could go from Mesa Manor and then home after putting in an hour or two on the ribbons.  "And should I bring my materials with me?  Will you provide patterns ?"  I was mentally taking stock of what I would take: embroidery scissors, flossing threads, needles, my magnifying glass that hung on a cord, resting on the top of my bosom, intensifying the sight area where the needle embellishment was to be worked.  I really needed both the magnifier and my bifocals to see well.  Hmm, still thinking...

Coordinating Woman responded: "Oh, yes, please bring your threads.  And what type machine do you have?  What embroidery disks do you have?  Do you have a letter font disk?"

What?  What machine did I have?  What disks?  A font?  "Oh." Ding, on went the light bulb.  "I don't have a machine.  I was talking about hand embroidery."  Cringing inwardly, I realized she was talking about machine embroidery whereas I was referring to 18th century embroidery, the skill of which I was so proud.

Coordinating Woman: "Thanks anyway, dear," pause ..."that was nice of you to offer.  Here we work with machine embroidery only."

It was then I realized that she must have thought my little crafting skill was anachronistic, certainly not of value in 2015.  After all, their business sold expensive embroidery machines, along with every costly doohickey available. They were in business to make a profit, and they make good money keeping up with technology in embroidery.

Chagrined, I inwardly shrank, felt  stupid and senior-ly old, out-of date, obsolete in not only my thinking, but also in my skill set. What a truly humbling, ego deflating experience.

Next Saturday, I will stick to cleaning  the garden area around Mesa Manor and will not be offering my old fashioned expertise to embellish ribbons with floss.

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“You will do foolish things, but do them with enthusiasm.”  ― Colette

Vintage Embroidery Uses

Vintage embroidery work fascinates the observant appreciator of the needle arts. Some gorgeous and intricately worked old pieces can be found at estate sales, rummage or garage sales, etc.

Many bloggers write only of embroidery. Here are a few blogs that showcase lovely snippets of such work:

Sue's Tree House
Lucykate Crafts
Karina's bird-embroidery
Cates Linens

This is a work shirt which I repurposed, using nine different pieces of vintage embroidery found on antique table runners and linen napkins to cover the front panels, back yoke and sleeve cuffs. Some of the embroidery was so old it was frayed, so using the Wonder Under product helped insure fabric stability.

Incorporating vintage hankies on pillows top: can be found at this post a year ago:

And here is a picture of a new pattern I am working on for application to the front of a plain white blouse, followed by embroidery work in various stitches, finishing off with crayon coloring on the shirt:

The fairie was sketched by Michelle at Michelle's Blog. She will dress up that shirt front, for sure.

After it is embroidered, I will color it with crayons using this technique from the TintedLinenTutorial:

...Trace your pattern onto your fabric very lightly with a pencil or a water soluble marker... Tape the fabric down on the corners to a flat smooth surface.Take out your crayons and color! You may need to color a little harder in the fabric because the ironing will soften the crayon. Experiment with shading to add depth or only color a few things to really make a bold statement. Try to color in the same direction because the strokes will show (unless this is the effect you are trying to achieve).

When you are satisfied with yourself, sandwich the fabric between 2 pieces of plain paper. Set your iron to the "cotton" setting. Press the fabric sandwich slowly and smoothly. This will 'set' the crayon. You may need to press a few times to get the results you want. I did mine a few times to soften and melt the crayon for a smoother effect. From this point you can either back the design with another piece of fabric or place in an embroidery hoop. Embroider your heart away! Use different stitches,beads, sequins, etc.

Thanks again to Tracy at GiggleFace Studios for her tutorial on using crayons on fabric.

I have several items of vintage embroidery that I would love to give to others. Drop me a comment or email me with your address if you would like some!

Embroidery with Vintage Apron Pockets, Watercolor Pencils and Crayons

A friend had given me an old apron with nice embroidery work on the edges and pockets. The linen was well worn, and the threads were thin, so they would not hold up well to further stitching. But I wanted to preserve the vintage handwork, embellish it a bit further and incorporate that pocket piece into something which I am currently sewing. More information was given about vintage cloth here in a previous post.

So I cut out those pockets from the old apron to save them, adding an iron-on stiffening product called Wonder Under to the back of the pockets.

Fast forward a couple of days. In order to also preserve some of the old handwork already on those two pockets, I decided to find a retro looking picture which would incorporate that prior flower stitching into my new project (see upper left side of woman's scarf in the photo below for the vintage handwork). The white embroidery originally there on the pocket is difficult to see in the photo.

The dilemma was that the apron pockets were white, and the new fabric onto which they would be sewn had no coordinating white in the fabric.

How about making a yellow background for the pocket? That's the ticket! So I tinted the white fabric pocket with a mixture of yellow and orange crayon overlays (just coloring the background like you would color on a piece of paper).

Giggleface is the most thorough source I found in searching out ways to tint fabrics with crayons. An excellent tutorial is given there and is also the website where I learned how to color the pink for breast cancer ribbons on old handerchiefs in a previous post.

That same site also had a cute Roaring 20's face of a woman which would work perfectly for the pocket application. The face of the woman came from a pattern from Vintage-Tinted-Linens.

I also colored the flapper's scarf with watercolor pencils and crayons, and rouged her cheeks with the same products. (Full credit for the application of the colors of threads and techniques goes to Giggleface.)

Then I made two faces of the woman on two separate pockets, similarly embroidered, for my future project. Stay tuned into this blogspot and the project will be shown when completed.

Look to needlenthread for a video library of hand embroidery instructions in case you need a refresher course in all the hundreds of stitches that can be employed in embroidery.

Curiously Old Patterns is an extensive site for embroidery patterns over 120 years old, and is in the public domain. These images can be used without fear of copyright infringement.

This may give you an idea to get out those needles and embroidery floss long packed away, and have fun embroidering on a new project! It is definitely a handcraft which is coming back into favor.

Palestine and Cross-Stitch Embroidery

My husband and I were fortunate enough to pilgrimage to Greece, Jordan, Palestine and Israel in 1995 with a group of people from our local Lutheran church. It was a pilgrimage because the trip met the criteria in it was a conscious choice of a place to be; cultural differences were encountered which caused disorientation; we had shared reflection; there were common rituals and spiritual disciplines; and the group came to have a sense of community and leadership.

Among many things, I learned that the Palestinians have a lifestyle that I would not want to trade for living in America. Money is scarce, and women have unique challenges in this society.

Women in Gaza have been bearing an increasing burden of supporting their families. Although it is labor-intensive and time-consuming work, thousands of women are willing to embroider as many stitches as they can while juggling household responsibilities, in exchange for a wage that would afford basic subsistence for their families’ survival.

Sunbala is a Jerusalem-based nonprofit Fair Trade organization that supports 14 different craft producers. Sunbula helps Palestinian artisans to be economically empowered, and supports the preservation of the cultural heritage. The Sulafa Embroidery Project aims to provide income for the Strip’s refugee women and to ensure that the traditional art form of embroidery is kept alive. Women, by receiving the embroidery work, earn an average of $40 per month, a significant amount in the area where a majority of people live below the poverty line ($2/day per household).

The UNRWA Sulafa Embroidery Project is located in Gaza City and provides income generating opportunities for hundreds of refugee women through a network of 9 community centers across the Strip. Sulafa is a nonprofit project established by UNRWA (United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees) in 1950 as a part of the Social Service Programme. Sulafa’s shawls, with their elegant style and striking geometric patterns, have been the top-sales item at Sunbula for many years. Gazan women’s artisanship and resilient spirits against all odds are reflected in the beauty of their products.

Once a traditional craft practiced by village women, Palestinian cross-stitch embroidery has become an important symbol of Palestinian culture. Embroidered pieces can be found in the homes of most Palestinian families in the West Bank, Gaza Strip, Israel and the Diaspora beyond, adorning the walls of houses in Jerusalem, villas in the Gulf, suburban homes in the United States, and cement block houses in refugee camps. In addition, cross-stitch embroidery is given as gifts and worn by Palestinians worldwide on festive occasions.The handicraft also symbolizes the traditional rural lifestyle of Palestine, much of which was lost after the 1948 creation of the state of Israel.

All proceeds from purchases directly benefit Palestinian craft producers, and help to carry out their mission to support women, refugees and people with disabilities.

While in Bethlehem, I purchased an embroidered eyeglass holder shown on the right. After 13 years, it still looks as fresh and bright as it did when we were in the Holy Land.

It was definitely a good investment for a small price, and proceeds from sales helped defray the Palestinian women’s expenses in producing hand made products.

Using Crayons & Watercolor Pencils to Tint Fabric

Thinking I would try crayons or watercolor pencils to tint fabric in preparation for embroidery, I researched some options. I knew that crayons could be used to color fabric, but was unsure of applying the waxy color directly to the fabric, thinking the color would run. However, TintedLinenTutorial gave these easy instructions:

Trace your pattern onto your fabric very lightly with a pencil or a water soluble marker... Tape the fabric down on the corners to a flat smooth surface.Take out your crayons and color! You may need to color a little harder in the fabric because the ironing will soften the crayon. Experiment with shading to add depth or only color a few things to really make a bold statement. Try to color in the same direction because the strokes will show (unless this is the effect you are trying to achieve).

When you are satisfied with yourself, sandwich the fabric between 2 pieces of plain paper. Set your iron to the "cotton" setting. Press the fabric sandwich slowly and smoothly. This will 'set' the crayon. You may need to press a few times to get the results you want. I did mine a few times to soften and melt the crayon for a smoother effect. From this point you can either back the design with another piece of fabric or place in an embroidery hoop. Embroider your heart away! Use different stitches, beads, sequins, etc.

The possibilities are endless with this technique. Experiment, be brave, try new things!

But wouldn't it be easier to just embroider a design, and then color it in with crayon? Apparently, this option of "coloring within the lines" is a no-no, because in another thread discussion, Contadine said:

You could stitch first, but that causes a few problems - You can't get right up tight to the stitching without getting some wax on the threads. Once you iron, that wax melts a little and makes your stitching look funny. If you scrub the piece heavily between ironing, you'll rough the threads up too much, and they'll look very fuzzy.When you iron, place a piece of copier paper on your ironing board, and then the colored fabric face down on it, and iron from the backside, or you'll get melted wax everywhere!

OK, so now I was ready to try my hand at this. I pulled out some old fabric cocktail napkins from the 1940's which were still usable, and had nice hand-work on the edges.

Now for a design choice for embroidery...a pink ribbon since Relay for Life is a timely June topic, and I recently knew of a friend with a breast cancer recurrence who might need a "pick-me-up".
Here is a picture of five napkins with pink ribbons crayoned on them. The blue outline is a water soluble pen that I used for sketching the ribbons on the napkins. Then the napkins were ironed between white copy paper to take off some of the waxy color.

And here is the finished product on the right. The pinks came out pretty well, and I was surprised that so much color stayed on the fabric. A heavy embroidery floss in dark pink was threaded and used for the outline whipped stem stitch.

More examples of using crayons to tint fabric can be found at TheFlossBox. Another great source for embroidery patterns can be found at Needlecrafter. And I found some cute pictures drawn by Beatrix Potter through a Google search, and some transfer-worthy images of Peter Rabbit here.

Jemima Puddle-duck of Beatrix Potter fame will be my next quilt square for a baby blanket, and I plan to tint Jemima with watercolor pencils in blues for her hat and pinks and roses for her shawl.

Check out the Beatrix Potter website for delightful illustrations, and more about her life here at the BeatrixPotterSociety. If you are a fan of hers (like I am), you might be interested in seeing the movie Miss Potter. Renee Zellweger was the star, and it was a delightful film IMHO.

At VintagePatterns, an entire free catalog from 1886 of embroidery patterns is available on-line and in the public domain. This site is fascinating. Tutorials are also given of how to turn the patterns into usable designs.

And to think that our foremothers probably used some of these patterns on their lingerie!

Embroidery and Silk Ribbon Embroidery

Back in the day, embroidery was used as a past time by ladies with leisure.  It was a beautiful way to gussy up clothing or even, shall we say, a tea towel?

c. 1900 source

 

Embroidery today is definitely not your grandmother's.  Such great pieces I found on Pinterest.

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Silk Ribbon Embroidery and Silk Ribbon: 

 

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by Natalie

Machine Embroidery:

 

 by Dottie

And linking with Inspiration Avenue's Weekly Challenge Day of the Dead 

 

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from Lou Anne at Inspiration Avenue's Weekly Challenge Day of the Dead:

In Mexico, this holiday takes place on the first and second of November.   People take two days out of the year in order to pay their respect to their dead family members and friends.  During this celebration, skulls and altars are made, food is placed on graves, and families and friends celebrate the lives of departed children and adults. I really hope that you'll create something this week as a response to El Dia de los Muertos.  Whether it's the holiday itself, the Halloween-like feel of the skeletons, or the bright colors that inspire you, I'm looking forward to seeing your creations.   



  Linking with Fiber Art Friday

Vintage Embroidery for Baby Pillowcase

Anticipating the birth of her first child, Marie at Knitted Gems is busy making darling things for soon-to-be born Elizabeth.  Knowing that Marie is a beautiful knitter, it would be like taking coals to Newcastle to give her a hand knit baby item.

Looking through my vintage pieces of needlework that good friend Dorothay sent me a while back from her mother's and sister's stashes dating from the early 1900's, here is what I found: a baby pillow case cover that was about 3/4 completed in embroidery.

The bunnies and flowers were so cute.  And the flowers gave it a whimsical feel.  But the back of the pillowcase was a grey cotton linen and definitely needed an update.

Here are the project finds that would help complete the "new" pillow after a bit of tweaking with embroidery floss, crayons, and a new piece of fabric backing:  Tracey at Giggleface Studios has an excellent tutorial on using crayons on fabric that can be accessed here. Using those techniques, more color was added to the picture.

Just a  fat quarter of fabric was required for the new backing for the pillowcase.  $1 would purchase a bit of batik color fabric that coordinated with the existing floss colors.

Knowing that Elizabeth has a great chance of inheriting her mother's beautiful strawberry blonde hair color, just a bit of mixed orange and pink embroidery floss was used on the fabric for the little girl's head to make it a personalized pillow for Baby Elly.  A new pillow, a bit of vintage tatting and lace, re-worked embroidery and a bit of sewing turned out this:

This was a fun project, and hopefully the pillow case will be something that Elizabeth will save for her own daughter in future years.

Silk Ribbon Embroidery

“Embroidery…the word conjures up so many visions and memories for me: crewel wool pomegranates flowing across an eighteenth century bedspread in Balmoral Castle;…” Judith Baker Montano (1995)

This book, Elegant Stitches, was my first reference book on the subject of embroidering with silk ribbon. Embroidering with ribbon was very popular about 10-12 years ago (who knows, maybe it is still in vogue).

I loved the idea of beautiful colors creating a landscape though various types of knotting ribbons, as well as threads. Ms. Montano explains and gives examples of over a hundred types of stitches in her book. The book is a real keepsake not only for the knowledge it imparts, but also for the gorgeous illustrations.

Silk ribbon embroidery can be used for decorating articles of clothing, sachet bags, purses, etc. It certainly gives a distinctive touch to any lingerie, outer wear, or craft item

My mother-in-law sewed pretty mauve ribbon roses on the sachet bag (left foreground) shown in this picture:

More about Silk Ribbon Embroidery in next post.

Sewing Decorative Vintage Pillow Cases (Fairies Part II)

A previous post on the drawing, coloring, and embroidering of a whimsical fairy dealt with that aspect of pillow decoration. The colored and embroidered fairy is at rest with a bumble bee on a lily pad leaf and has been made into its final application on a small pillow case.

These little pillows would make darling baby gifts, and would also look charming on a rocker as a back pillow, or as just another girly decoration on a bed or sofa; I plan to make a few more and display them on my Etsy store in the near future.

The following is a brief tutorial on how the pillow case was made with vintage fabrics that display hand embroidery, cut work and drawn-work. Pictures are shown to accompany the tutorial.

1) Decide on the picture you would like to transfer for embroidery purposes. Make sure the lines are as simple as your embroidery skills allow. (In this case, a fairy was used, but some child might like a brightly colored green frog on his pillow with contrasting bright colors.) Complete the tinting and embroidering of the chosen image.

2) Gather materials of small travel pillow (available at discount stores for under $4), vintage fabrics such as old table cloths, napkins, handkerchiefs, etc., threads and sewing equipment; lace seam binding or ribbons (optional), measuring tape and scissors;

3) The finished pillow (below) showcases two different fabrics laid on top of one another. In this case, a regular sized peach colored pillow case with a drawn-work interior was used for the under fabric; the outer edging of the existing case was turned inward and sewn down to further emphasize the previous vintage drawn-work. For the over fabric (white), a large tablecloth was cut into appropriate sizes to show off as much as possible of the lovely vintage needlework;

4) Cut both the under fabric and the over fabric the size to fit the purchased travel pillow, with a little less than one inch seam allowance added. Usual dimensions on these travel pillows are 15” x 20”, so cut the existing fabrics to allow for generous seam allowances, i.e., 31.5" x 41.5". (French seams create a more polished effect in its final appearance, so extra material for each seam was taken into account before cutting.) Hint: the under fabric should be of a contrasting color to enhance the cut-work shown on the vintage top fabric (in this case, a vintage peach pillow case was used for the under fabric);

5) You will likely need to piece together various parts of the vintage cloths in order to take the best advantage of the prior threadwork. I used lace seam binding to join two pieces of a tablecloth together to emphasize more of the cut work. Hint: ensure that the back of the pillow also incorporates as much as possible of the embroidery displayed on the vintage cloth.

6) Join the seams (french seaming, if possible) and complete the pillow case with simple straight stitching. An excellent tutorial on how to make french seams can be found here.

The finished pillow case with purchased travel pillow inside: (front view of the pillow case above, and back view at upper right)

More information about vintage fabrics can be garnered here. A reliable seller for vintage fabrics can be found here.

Silk Ribbon Embroidery - Covered Buttons

Thinking I would like to embellish a few vintage vests which I previously sewed, (referring to March Post), it seemed a natural fit to incorporate ribbon embroidery onto buttons.

This site: Purl Bee ...shows in great detail how to make a covered button. It is a very complete and easy-to-read tutorial which I highly recommed taking a look at. A picture of completed buttons is shown at right, taken from the Purl Bee citation.

Ribbon embroidery can be used for decorating articles of clothing, sachet bags, purses, etc. It certainly gives a distinctive touch to any lingerie, outer wear, or craft item.


On the left is a picture of a few silk ribbon birds which I made for a size 36 (7/8”) button cover. I thought they would be in proportion to the button, but after I put these onto the button covers, they were WAY too large.




Then I decided that what was needed was to make much smaller silk ribbon birds in order for them to fit onto individual button covers.

The smaller birds shown in the image (right side) can more deftly be wrapped around the button cover.

Using examples from the book An Encyclopedia of Ribbon Ebroidery by the American School of Needlework (1996), these replicas of American Goldfinches worked much better.

I will show a picture of the completed button once I get several more embroidered. But for now, the vest needs to be completed so these buttons can be added to it!

My Life is But a Weaving (by Grant Colfax Tullar); A Crown as a Visual Aid

Through an exciting exchange of emails beginning in October with Lynda Jones, a lovely young Christian mother living in Ireland, I was introduced to Pam Rosewell Moore, a Christian author of five books, artist, and public speaker. Lynda found me through a prior blog posting and asked that I create a new visual aid for Pam Moore's Christian ministry.

Please visit Moore's website at PamRosewellMoore to read more about her background in the UK and caring for Corrie ten Boom during the last years of her life when she lived in the Netherlands. Moore's current ministry, book excerpts and a calendar of her speaking tours are also found at Pam Rosewell Moore's website.

Mrs. Moore, in a recent email, asked me to create a similar work of an embroidered crown as a visual aid to be used when she provides a testimonial and speaks about her experiences as companion to Corrie ten Boom. (Mrs. Moore as a companion and care giver to Corrie ten Boom during the last seven years of ten Boom's life.)

In part, Moore's email said:

Tante Corrie used the visual aid (of an embroidered crown to great effect ... it is not a tapestry, but a soft pliable, able-to-be-folded embroidery.

I am sending to you ... small pictures which depict the crown embroidery which Corrie used at the end of her speaking days. She had travelled all over the world for more than three decades and this was not the only crown used. She wore the embroideries out, I am sure!

The back of the crown, as you will see on the picture, is a muddle of threads, made even more muddled by Corrie who when she received the crown from whoever had undertaken to embroider one for her, would add extra threads to make the visual picture as confusing as possible … so that the upper side was given the more clarity. Corrie turned the embroidery several times from upper to underside as she quoted the poem “My life is but a weaving…”

Here is the original wording of the poem, supplied by Moore:
The Weaver

My Life is but a weaving
Between my Lord and me;
I cannot choose the colors
He worketh steadily.
Oft times He weaveth sorrow
And I, in foolish pride,
Forget He sees the upper,
And I the underside.

Not 'til the loom is silent
And the shuttles cease to fly,
Shall God unroll the canvas
And explain the reason why.
The dark threads are as needful
In the Weaver's skillful hand,
As the threads of gold and silver
In the pattern He has planned.

He knows, He loves, He cares,
Nothing this truth can dim.
He gives His very best to those
Who choose to walk with Him. (Grant Colfax Tullar)

These are pictures of the process I undertook to make a replica of a crown embroidered piece which Pam Rosewell Moore can use in her current speaking ministry:

1) The project starting with an antique, hand made, crocheted, heirloom doily with cream color tatting. I only wish I could give credit to the creator of this fine piece of handwork, but it came to me through a friend who did not know its origin;

2) And then adding a few supplies of yarns, threads, buttons, beads, threads and other embellishments and needlework, the work began;

3) I completed an embroidered crown, complete with beading and shiny glass embellishments on the top side of the visual aid, along with a tangled web of gold and silver threads on the underside, symbolic of the poem and God's unrevealed plan for those who choose to walk with Him.

This finished visual aid shown below will be sent to Pam Rosewell Moore.

The project was a bit daunting at first, but quickly completed once the ideas jelled. It will hopefully be what Mrs. Moore requested.