Tag: online university
Tudor and Stuart Goldwork Masterclass – Bonus Instructions
Golden Accessories Kit
There was a set of Bonus Instructions in the instructions for Month Fifteen, from a teaching project that Tricia had retired from use. She was asked whether she’d produce kits of the materials for those of us who don’t have easy (or even difficult!) access to a really good needlework shop. Yet again, apparently, demand outstripped her expectations (a good problem to have!), and here is my kit.
It includes finishing materials for the various accessories, as well as the fabric and the silk thread, but not the metal thread, since all of us already have large spools of that from doing the main Spot Sampler.
My intention is to finish these to add to that planned “winter decoration corner” I’ve mentioned a couple of times. I’ve found some masks which I’m going to decorate in silver and gold, and I will use some metallic gauze or something similar for the background. Already the two Needlework Nibbles, the Floral Glove Needlecase and the Tudor Pincushion look like they will create some wonderful reflective textures for a dark corner…
Tudor and Stuart Masterclass – Beginning the Petite Pincushion
Starting The Petite Pincushion
There were two additional projects included in the Tudor and Stuart Goldwork Masterclass, to provide further opportunities to use some of the stitches we are learning. The Tudor Pincushion was one, and this “Petite Pincushion” is the second. The materials include a piece of silk brocade for the backing, some gold cord to provide an ornamental edge, and more spools of assorted metal threads for the goldwork stitches.
Whereas the silk stitchery for the Tudor Pincushion was in primarily in Tent Stitch, most of the silk work on the Petite Pincushion is in Queen Stitches. I’ve not done any since I finished the silkwork on the sampler, and I am finding that I am having to remind myself to pull them tight to create the openwork effect. I will have to remember to line the embroidered side of the pincushion or the stuffing will poke out through the gaps!
I stitched centre lines on the fabric, but as you can see, once I had the first stitch placed I snipped out the middle stitches and pulled them back out of the way.
I’ve already finished with two of the silk colours, which appear only in the central starburst. Now I just have to do rows of strapwork in the other two colours, as well as the four blocks of tent stitches that provide a basis for a rather intriguing-looking interwoven stitch which will probably be nearly the last element I add.
Tudor Pincushion Finished
Tudor Pincushion Final Stitch In Place
The final stitch in the Tudor Pincushion was the central boss in Four Sided Interlacing Stitch, which slotted nicely into place after I received the instructions for Month 16.
I decided – after staring at it intermittently while I’ve waited for the stitch to turn up – that I was happy enough with the border and did not need to unpick it. So the next phase was to attach the silk backing and stuff the pincushion.
Finished Tudor Pincushion
I’ve tried not to over-stuff it, since I intend to use it as a decoration and not as a pincushion, but I still found myself pushing more stuffing in than I expected. Unlike the Tulip Slip Pincushion, where the velvet was so tough that I used a sewing machine, this one is finished entirely by hand, and stuffed enough to look plump and fat, but not so much that the fabric is strained.
Close Up Of Pincushion
I’m finding with Tricia’s various pieces that photographing them from an angle sometimes produces a much clearer view of the stitching. There is certainly less likelihood of “glare” from the metal threads. Besides, after all that effort, I’m more than happy to show off a little…!
Tudor and Stuart Goldwork Masterclass – Spot Sampler Progress
Heavy Chain Stitch
I’m only adding a few stitches at a time to the Spot Sampler, partly because I want to take my time, and partly because I’m rather keen on the Christus Natus Est panel at the moment and seem to spend most of my daylight stitching time on that.
I was a little disappointed with this Heavy Chain Stitch when I worked it, because it seemed rather thin and attenuated. I tried using my laying tool to keep the loops open and reduce the abrasion of the yarn, but since the laying tool is a sharply-pointed piece of metal, it presented its own hazards. I might work the other leaf of this pair in the other thread to see whether it creates a different effect.
More On The Sampler
The two stitches shown here are the Up and Down Buttonhole Stitch variations. In the alternating variation, I realise now I look at the close up, I forgot to include the “return” or straight stitch across at each level. Yet another stitch to re-do in the margins!
The bar at the top is Diagonal Half Guilloche Stitch, and it looks much tidier at the proper size, rather than in close-up!
Tudor and Stuart Goldwork Masterclass – Month Sixteen
Four Sided Interlacing Stitch
The stitches for Month Sixteen are stitches that create prominent large “spots” of intricate pattern. They are simple enough in concept – there is a foundation of straight stitches, and an interlaced pattern worked around the foundation. Naturally, the actual working of the stitch proves to be less than entirely straightforward. I try to vary the scale of the stitches I work on my practice cloth, but in the case of Four Sided Interlacing Stitch when I was trying to work it as a counted stitch, the only variations I could create successfully were “Huge” and “Tiny”. At the smaller scale shown there is really little point in using an interlacing stitch like this, and one might more sensibly choose something a little simpler to work. At the large size, the effect of the metal thread is diluted by the background fabric.
Diagonal Four Sided Interlacing Stitch
In the case of Diagonal Four Sided Interlacing Stitch my two different scales worked slightly better.
I know, by the way, that in the case of one of these stitches, I made a mistake in the foundation layer which lead to a further mistake in the interlacing. I can’t find it now, and I’m going to be intrigued to see how often I get these stitches right, when I start working them on the sampler itself!
Tudor and Stuart Goldwork Masterclass – more gold added
Detached Buttonhole with Return, and ZigZag on Ladder Stitch
I’ve been persevering with adding the goldwork stitches to the Spot Sampler. Tricia set up a Yahoo Group for the course so that we could help each other out, and I posted some of my headaches to that.
I received a good many helpful suggestions, and on top of that, Tricia posted a very long response on the Question and Answer blog, which included the reassuring detail that when she’s reverse-engineering the stitches, she uses the point at which the thread sheds to help her determine whether she is really doing the stitch that she’s trying to. Some shredding is to be expected, then…
Gold Queen Stitches Added
I think I’m doing better now, as I am finding there is rather less shredding (although there is still some). I suspect my tension is sometimes too tight, and Tricia has suggest that my Ladder Stitch in particular could do with being loosened up a little. Having the tension too tight will abrade the thread further as I make each stitch.
Gold Detached Buttonhole with Return
The detached buttonhole with return that forms the first embellishment on the large pattern at the bottom of the sampler was rather a surprise. It’s more raised than the photo of Tricia’s finished piece suggests, and I got into a tangle working it, although that is because the position of the stitches on the frame were not as comfortable to work from some angles as others. I find myself wondering how RSN needlewomen manage with those large slate frames!
More Goldwork On The Spot Sampler
Guilloche Stitch, Reverse Chain Stitch and Ceylon Stitch
I have been working more on the Spot Sampler of late, slowly catching up with the metal thread stitchery. If you are confused by my posts on this, you aren’t alone – I spend a few minutes every time I sit down trying to work out where I’d got up to!
Some of the stitches are familiar – Ceylon Stitch, for example, I have used before. In this case I have used the lighter and floppier of the metal threads supplied. It creates a more lacy effect than Tricia intended, but I thought the thread might “strip” less dramatically (I was right, too!). When I finish the main body of the sampler I may go back and work new versions of some of the stitches around the edge, so in this case, for instance, I would choose to use the heavier, thicker thread. This will make the sampler even more useful by giving me some sense of the variation of appearance available through different threads..
As you can see, I still haven’t entirely got to grips with Guilloche Stitch, although using the stiffer thread did make the whole thing slightly easier. I was becoming slightly anxious about finishing the panel without starting a new length for the last course of interlacing!
Reverse Chain With Buttonhole Edging
I’ve already used the Reverse Chain Stitch with Buttonhole Edging since I learnt it on this course, when I was working the Title of the Map for the Amarna Panels. Now I look at the photograph I see that my tension wasn’t entirely consistent across the whole width of this spot, and the thread stripped and clogged in a couple of places. But then, samplers are for practising on… I may choose to re-work this later, using the finer thread, since I think that if worked fine and delicately this stitch could find a host of new uses.
Plaited Braid Stitch on the Spot Sampler
I felt when I finished my practising for Month Fourteen that the real test of my grasp of Plaited Braid Stitch would come when I came back to the stitch after a week or so. As you can see, I’ve worked it as a counted stitch here, in the larger size and using the heavier thread, and it seems as though I got it right. I kept the instructions to hand all the time, of course, but I’m very pleased with this. It is a real testimony to the clarity of the instructions, and the way they gave me some grip on the structure of the stitch, that I didn’t feel at all anxious when I was working this.
Can you hear me purring?
The Floral Glove Needlecase is Finished!
Floral Glove Needlecase Finished
At long last, after much trial and tribulation, and after completely shredding my fingers because no matter how hard I try I simply cannot use a thimble, I have finally completed the finishing on the Floral Glove Needlecase.
I’m very pleased with it, and not just because it is finished. It is my first attempt at “historical embroidery”, the first time I have used many of the techniques, and the assembly of the final piece involved my bête noire, glue.
Textures In Floral Glove
The finishing has been full of little details, the spangles decorating the fabric, the gold lace edging the two cuff pieces, the gold-and-spangle edging we added to the silk ruffle. Then the gold twist suggesting the fingers on the hand of the glove, and two rows of gold cord covering the join between the upper and lower pieces.
I love the variety of textures in this piece, the silk thread, the purls, pearl purls, lizardines and spangles. Then there’s the ultrasuede (another material new to me!) and the silk ruffle, and the brocade inside.
Closeup Of Finishing
And I’m only about six months late in finishing it, after all!
I keep looking across at it, and thinking “Did I do that? Really?”
Tudor and Stuart Goldwork Masterclass – More Gold!
More Goldwork On The Sampler
I’ve been doing more work on the metal thread embroidery on the Spot Sampler. The photograph shows (top to bottom) Braid Stitch, Cable Chain Stitch, and Heavy Chain Stitch.
I’ve used the real metal thread and the Japanese needle for all of them, which may have been a mistake. At the very least, the Japanese needle is a tool that I’ve not got to grips with, and which has had unanticipated side-effects on my technique!
As you can see, Heavy Chain Stitch worked beautifully. There are only a couple of places where the thread has broken and shows the core, and it has created a beautifully smooth and glimmering line.
With the Cable Chain Stitch, I think I need more practice in keeping the tension correct when using a “stab-stitch” technique, which is necessary because Japanese needles are short. This stitch is one of my favourites, but it was actually quite a struggle here, precisely because I couldn’t take up a piece of fabric on the needle as I usually do.
This was even more the case with the Braid Stitch. In fact it is worse than that. It wasn’t clear when I was stitching it, but now I see this section enlarged in the photo, it’s pretty clear that I’ve actually got myself into a dreadful tangle with a couple of my braid stitches. I need to pick up my practice cloth, fish out all my books, and try again. And yet I know I can work this stitch beautifully – I worked it on the logo for the Teddy Bear Cot Blanket, and for the Prince’s Bow on the Persian Fantasy!
Tudor and Stuart Goldwork Masterclass – Beginning the Gold on the Spot Sampler
Interlaced Ladder Stitch In gold Thread on the Spot Sampler
I finished the silkwork on the Spot Sampler some time ago, but then ran into a problem, largely one of priorities. There have been so many other things I fancied trying, and so I’ve been working on the Amarna Map, the Christus Natus Est Panel, and a whole host of others. I’ve also been feeling just a bit jumpy about the real metal threads, and wanted to wait until I was feeling settled enough to read the instructions and make sense of them.
I have at last made a start, though. I even managed to thread my Japanese needle with thread from the Real Metal Thread Pack that arrived in the post a few weeks ago. Perhaps the practice thread I was using was quite simply fractionally too thick for the eye of the needle.
I started with Interlaced Ladder Stitch – which wasn’t necessarily the best or easiest starting point, but it is area number one on the chart! I’m a little disheartened that the gold thread has broken up quite as much as it has, here, but I’m leaving it there for now to act as a basis for comparison as I do other stitches. I’m going to try using even shorter lengths, and maybe even use a stiletto or similar tool to keep loops open while I pull the thread through.