Hi stitching fans,
I have expanded into embroidery...or rediscovered it, or something. I also went back to my quilting roots with a bit of piecing and applique, which was super!
I made these cushions over Christmas so they are all hand sewn due to the lack of a sewing machine. The bottom one was first and is based on a photograph I have of a small boy under a massive golfing umbrella. The boy and umbrella are hand appliqued, using foundation piecing to put the umbrella together. The clouds and rain drops are embroidered - clouds are back stitched and the rain drop trails are chain stitched. The drops themselves are filled with satin stitch.
I loved the way this turned out - I think it's really effective, but once it was finished I thought it really needed a friend, so I decided to make a set, using the umbrella as the connecting theme.
The second one I am rather pleased with. I did a bit of obligatory pinterest research and decided that a very simple outline would look really effective. I drew the little boy based on another photograph I had of a boy on a bouncy castle in mid bounce and he turned out beautifully! I don't count myself as much of a draftswoman so I was very chuffed. Here is the blow up of the drawing that I used for the outline:
I transferred this to the fabric of the cushion cover itself using pencil (it just washes out later) and then stitched over it using a basic back stitch in a rich green. I think the secret is getting just enough detail into the sketch to illustrate some movement and give the image some life - but not overdoing it. And here he is! Sorry about the slightly rubbish photo...
I think he's lovely. Yay!
I used the same technique to make a third cushion using inspiration from a drawing I found with a few tweaks...
I loved making these - embroidery is very satisfying and doing it this way it's also pretty quick...expect more in the future!
That's it for now!
Love and kisses
Helen