TAST week 20 and a new blog

I have posted my Crossed Buttonhole samples to my new blog at Word Press, which you can find here
My URL is http://CrazyQstitcher.Wordpress.com/ should you wish to change your sidebar
My new page is messy as I am relearning the ropes of the blog but I hope to have it fixed shortly. Thank you for visiting me here. Maureen

TAST Week 20 Butterfly Chain

Here's a strange thing. I photographed my Straight stitch pic upside down and it looks like a mountain with water in the foreground..even a jellyfish. And the Lake the right way up. I used this week's Butterfly Chain sitch to make the border.






























Thick cream crochet cotton here and probably the best for seeing the stitch .









Simply a kite.








The blue flower was an experiment of how the stitches would look turned about. I kept the chain stitch to one end.

I've used 6 strands of cotton thread for the centre and chenille for the next row, stitching in the empty spaces of the centre row. I kept the chain stitch at the outer end of the stitch. Lastly I used two fine wool threads and alternated a long butterfly stitch above the first row and a short one above the chenille, keeping the chain in the middle this time and it has come out wavy.

I tried beads on a short seam line and they sat well. I had to make sure the spaces between uprights were wide so they would pull in properly.








As I've been using some TAST stitches on quilt blocks I should declare that I have a WISP started for our UFO Challenge
This is a seam with white rayon thread and chained with gold. It looks quite classy in real life.

I like it when doing the first part of a combination stitch I find that it also looks good before completion. Don't blame the stitches for not looking good, it's just my poor camera work. They look rich against the off-white material and light fawn lace.

The same seam completed. I cheated and Just caught the chain underneath to keep it stable.

TAST Week 19 Basque Stitch

It took a little while to get the stitch settled.. or was it me.. I don't think my first lay as they were meant but by the last lot they didn't look too bad.



I have used a crochet cotton thread for the first seam and a silk floss for the second one











I has some Twilley's Lystwist rayon thread that is over 20 years old and that's a story I'll tell at the end of today's pics.

The greenery is Anchor perle














Sharon was right and the stitch curves beautifully.
Uh-Oh I need more practise on the line shape on the harp.

I have used a Ginnie Thompson flower thread and black fine wool.














This started out as a waterlily but I could see it was fast heading to be a chrysanthemum, so I let it have it's head. Pardon the pun.

Here I used a heavy knitting cotton for the first layer and a mercerized, medium weight crochet thread for the top one and more of the Anchor perle.















The Lystwist thread was in a drawer with many other threads, on cardboard reels and when I picked it up I found it had come undone and tangled beneath most of the others. What a mess. I gathered it all up and sat untangling them when my lovely DH saw me and said "You need spools for that lot" and immediately went and made me not one, but 4. Here they are. They stand about 3" high and are 2" wide.

TAST - Whipped and Woven Wheel

I made two woven wheels, the small centre one on the left and the larger one below that.
The whipped ones are the top left and the big one.
With the biggest I first made a base and then whipped a bead and attached it on top of the base.

For the seam I buttonholed a fan frame and whipped the edge. Then I whipped the centre part, but with the middle I caught the fabric with a tiny bite below each spoke to hold it in place.





I whipped the centre of the rose, which made it look like stamens. Sorry they aren't seen clearly here. Then I wove the outer petals.









For once I am very pleased with my stitches, especially my beetle. A very easy bug to make.
I was inspired by Jane Nicholas Beetle Book

Orange and Cream block

I have been viewing the Blog Calidore. This is where my talented friend Catherine shares many of her tutorials and beautiful embroidery.
Why not pop over and see her latest Orange and Cream block, which was put together with pulled-apart gimp and other braids. You won't see either of these as they were, just lovely flowers and seams.

All of her so easy Tutorials are worth viewing too.