A Little Bird

My friend gave me a kit for making a bird ornament, I think it came with something free and did not appeal to her.  I am as previously noted the happy recipient of such largess.

I have not used the kit bits, rather I traced out the pieces and cut them from a piece of material I have.  The material is intended for a bigger project that requires the use of pastel dye. So I thought I would do a test piece.  I did not want to do nothing with the bit of material I would be testing so decided to make the bird using material coloured in with the pastel dye sticks.

A birds Eye view

The original pattern called for a ribbon to be attached to the bird so it would hang up.  I had already modified the design by quilting the breast feathers (which on stuffing the bird has not shown too well ) and the wings. 

Quilted wings

Just before I started sewing him up I decided he should have legs instead of a ribbon.

Bird on a wire (legs that is)

I made them from the wire from a used pad of A4 paper.  Three strands twisted together, with the feet at each end of a U shape to form the feet.  I am quite pleased with the way they sewed into the original body shape without me needing to add a gusset.

He looks rather friendly perched on my hand but not stable enough to stand on a display table at the local show, so I went for a walk and came home with some bits of wood left from the damage to local trees from the high winds. 

Nice and dry after all this sun.  Slapped on a coat of varnish (just the one so that the difference between the inner wood and the bark would show) and Little Bird has a permanent perch.

So he will be entered in the "animal any medium" class at the show.  They are not biologically picky with the definition of animal so a bird will be fine.

Small Sunday finish

and here it is done.

Small Sunday Stitching

All that is left to do is the section requiring stash thread (yes because I did not read the instructions) and the backstitching, which is going to make all of the difference in seeing what this is.

Today the talks at Church were about relationships and focusing on what is important and not letting ourselves become distracted.  If we can focus then the pattern turns out right and we progress, if we get distracted, and loose focus we can go off on a tangent and end up in a bit of a mess.

Certainly applies to the cross-stitching too, although frogging is an option with cross stitch that is not available for life.

On a personal note, here is a close up of the medal from yesterdays charity walk.

If you want to know more please either visit Just giving or  Stoke Association UK

Thank you.

When to do the white

now there is a question that applies to the cross stitching.

So do you do it last, so that there is less chance of it getting grubby while you work on the project.

Or do you do it first so that the white thread does not draw those tiny little bits of any darker colours into it?

Hmm, it is a puzzle isn't it.

I guess this occurred to me as a topic as another stitcher on Facebook was posting her start on the same project I was starting.  Her comment that she was starting in the middle and would be leaving the white till last as she had been taught.

I was starting in the top left and was intending to stitch each colour as I reached it regardless...now I contemplated the value of the white till last approach.  I stitch in hand and careful as I am the chance of  grubby happening.  

On the other hand the other colours in this particular pattern are dark and bold and the chance of fiber transference is therefore increased. 

What to do, it was in its own way decided for me by lethargy.  The white thread on my bobbin was just about out and to replenish it I would have to find the cone of white I bought and re-wind it. As I wanted to start I kept putting off the white and leaving it.  When I did get round to it there was indeed some colour pull through but nothing a touch of sellotape could not address.  

Well I guess either option is valid and may well depend on the project.

Now at this point I can't share a picture of the finished project as it is intended for a gift and the time of giving is not yet at hand.

Here however is a picture of me working on it as I don't  think that gives too much away.  However there is a hint of the colours.

Now rolling the fabric rather than bunching it up is a new thing for me but occurred  because I was working on this pattern in a rather linear way. Although that gives no clues to the pattern.

Update, just in case you are seeing this post after the fact, as the gift has now been given here is how it turned out  https://apatchworkofcrafts.blogspot.com/2016/12/rainbow-cat-renamed.html

Small sunday stitching an update

Managed all of the purple cross stitches with the thread in the kit, even though using double by mistake, I will need the stash for the dark gold.

Started on the green which I will do in one strand (as the pattern had stipulated in the first place) and will keep going with that before returning to the stitching I will need to raid the stash for.

It is starting to look like something now, I can almost see it...

Needle cases

I had to get a needle to sew a button or 4 on a coat (not even my coat however, sometimes stitching of a more prosaic nature is required) and there were my needle cases and I thought take a picture, so I did.

Felt needle cases

They are made of felt and decorated with (to the right and left) sequins and felt flowers, pearl beads and lace. The contents are colour coded, well sort of.  Blue is for blunt, so my cross stitch needles are in this one. Red is for blood, so the sharp needles that can draw that particular fluid if not handled with care are in there (and the occasional pin). The green, now what does it stand for ? Possibly great big eyes, as the needles in this case are pointy but with a larger eye for thicker thread or multiple strands.

Open needle cases

My mother made the one in the middle for me and I made the other two, I have shared a picture of this style of needle case before as I made one for the fist birthday of out church quilting group you can see it  here inside the groups sewing box, each have our club motto (which by a strange coincidence matches my crafting philosophy) on them.

They make a nice quick but personal gift for a stitcher and are easy for all ages to make. 

Small Sunday stitching

not a lot of progress today, as you can see.

However, I do have a good reason, I was making a copy of a marriage certificate.

Now don't think I have been cross stitching the marriage certificate, not the case, I am actually authorised  to make out an official copy of a marriage certificate for weddings that have taken place at our chapel.  This is the first time I have done it, given how nerve wracking I found doing that, the thought of doing an actual wedding is somewhat daunting. (Yes I can do that too, just not had to yet as I am the reserve Appointed Person).

Sunday stitching and a confession to make

Occasionally I see posts by stitchers on Facebook about running out of thread from a kit.  That there has not been enough included of one shade or another.

Now that has happily never happened to me, indeed I often look at what I have over and wonder if there is enough there to do the whole pattern again (I hasten to add, that I have never actually tried it, well not yet anyway).  As an example here is a picture of the thread left after the Aveling and Porter kit was finished.

Now I move on to the current project, and as I progressed with the light yellow I began to suspect there would not be enough of that shade to finish the area required of it.  Given my above comments you will understand my being somewhat surprised at that.  Last fragment of thread used and I find I am indeed out of thread before I am out of the stitches that colour takes in the pattern. 

So I double check in the magazine which make of thread was included in the kit (as the key kindly for future use of the pattern gives the shades for DMC, Anchor and Madeira. In the process, I see the following:

Yes, there it is in black and white, use one strand for both the cross stitch and the backstitch.  You know what I have done, don't you?  Indeed, not read the instructions (bad girl) and used two strands not one.  No wonder I have run out, when I should have had plenty left. Suitably humbled, I shall dip into my thread stash to make up the shortfall (a disappointed frog will not be utilized) and I will keep going with the two strands for the central bit at least, I may go back to the recommended usage for the peripheral bits.

So, here is this weeks update, still not looking like much but it is progress.

Oh, and the purple makes me think of the Big Purple T shirt and the Stroke Walk. Stroke walk just giving link .

Another passing thought, there appear to be several EU countries that the flag counter is not recognising, so apologies if your flag has not as yet appeared.

A small start to a small Sunday Stitchings

I have gone with the ease of a cover kit..from Cross stitcher...this is what I have done so far.

And as a teaser of what it is, a little snap shot of the magazine it came with

I bought this at a local quilt groups exhibition and charity day.

Sunday stitching...the END

yup it is finished, first the last of the backstitching on the main design itself

....and then the final touch, the title of the piece (by The Craft Collection Ltd)

And it is done!

So I have a week to chose the next Sunday Stitching project, I am thinking about cover kits, but perhaps I will be inspired by something else. 

Thank you for joining me on this particular project.  If you would like to see it again from the beginning (without having to trawl back over the posts) there will be a page (soon) just for the pictures of Aveling and Porter 1922, look at the tabs at the top of my home page.