Mademoiselle Marionette 2018 Part 2

Mademoiselle Marionette 2018 Part 2

The thing about making something new without a pattern is you are never quite sure what problems are going to crop up. If you have plenty of time you can make lots of templates or rough practise pieces.

The one thing you can guarantee with me is that I never have enough time and consequently I often have to tackle problems as they occur. Therefore if you ever want to copy what I make read all the way through first.

Fold and Pin

I took both cut out Bodies and laid one on top of another. Then I folded and pinned along the Centre fold.

Body Detail Drawn

I roughly drew any sections I wished to remove.

Pinned Cut Out

I carefully cut out the shape. I have used extra pins to secure it.

Two Rough Body Shapes

I removed the pins and unfolded the material with one Body shape beneath the other.

Pin Bodies Flat

I pinned the two shapes together to avoid movement.

Beginning to Pin Hem

Warning - This is when I had a change of plan. I decided I didn’t like the Body shape and with the time restriction I needed to hem quickly.

First Body - Part Hemmed

I pinned and hemmed the Body Part only using straight lines instead of curved. I have also snipped both sides of the neck at the shoulder and where it meets the Head.

Matching Hems Pinned

I copied the shape I now had and folded down the 2^nd Body’s edges to match.

Bodies Part Hemmed

I have now finished hemming the Body sections. I continued by pinning and hemming the Heads.

Two Hemmed Bodies and Heads

I realise that the Bodies look massive in proportion to the Heads but it is not a mistake there is a reason for this which I will get to another time.

Mademoiselle Marionette 2018 Part 1

Mademoiselle Marionette 2018 Part 1

Ok I have had one of my bright ideas. This translates into oh that would make a nice present and I have absolutely no time in which to get it done. The clock is ticking.

Two Sticks 23 cm

You have probably guessed by the title that I intend to make a Marionette or to give the more common name a Stringed Puppet.

First step – find some sticks. I have found two Sticks lying around in my craft box that are approximately 23 cm. I think one of them may have been used for stirring paint. That is something I can deal with later.

Rough Pattern

Next step was a spot of research to double check that the way it is made up is how I thought. Marionettes have to be moveable so therefore the limbs need to be separate from the Body and attached later. I drew a rough pattern of what I wanted.

Rouleau de Toilette

I found some material that I thought would be enough to use for the Marionette. I used the toilet roll to give an idea of Body length.

Toilet Roll Wrapped

When deciding the amount of material needed I had to take into account that what I was making was not 2D but 3D. To account for body mass I wrapped the material over the toilet roll to make sure it was big enough to include padding.

Toilet Roll Body

Using the toilet roll as an indicator of length I proceeded to draw a rough semicircle around the roll. I had already folded the material in half lengthways so therefore when cut out it would be a circle of equal proportions.

Rough Marionette Outline

After drawing the Body half I added a Neck and Head as shown in the original rough sketch

Rough Outline Pinned

Prior to cutting out I pinned inside the outline so the two sections did not come apart.

Rough Marionette Cut Out

I then cut out the body and head shape. You may notice that I have given a generous margin when cutting out. I always err on the side of caution. I can always trim it down afterwards.

Rough Cut Out Template

Don’t ask me why this photograph is pink as I have no idea. It just came out that way. What I am doing is using the first cut out as a template for the second. I pinned the one I cut out on top of another folded piece of material.

Two Rough Pinned Cut Outs

I have now cut out both rough pieces.

Two Rough Cut Heads and Torsos

The pins have been removed and the material unfolded. There are now two rough Body and Head shaped pieces to work with.

What Blooming Flower Is It? 2018 Part 7

What Blooming Flower Is It? 2018 Part 7 

I have finally finished the embroidery part of the project – I hope. Therefore I have to sort out the embellishments.

Finding the Edging

I cannot count the amount of Edgings we (Laura and I) went through to try and find the best way to decorate the Bottom of the garment.

Since there were different coloured Flowers we had many colours and shades to choose from. In the end we decided that since the one thing all four Corners had in common were the Leaves we should edge it in Green.

This was easier said than done but we finally found a shade and type of edging that we both liked. As you can see in the photograph the Tassel Fringe has more than one colour in its make up.

Neckline Mistake

 

Finding the right colour for the Neckline was not quite as difficult as we now had an idea what colour we should be looking for.

The only slight snag is when it was done I found that I had cut the Neckline a little too snuggly. Although I could get it on it was a little tight getting over my head and I certainly couldn’t do it without knocking my glasses off.

Laura bless her little cotton socks was kind enough to cut and resew the Neckline for me.

Blue Blooming Flower

The lighting in my flat isn’t very good so I decided to take it outside and hang it on the line. This way you can see it as if it was being worn.

Purple Blooming Flower

Here is the view of Purple side. I have to say I am very pleased with the way it has turned out. We are still debating whether or not to add anything else to the Neckline. However if we do it will be next year as the weather has now taken a turn for the cooler.

Garment Care

One subject I haven’t really touched on is what to do after I have finished my Blooming Flower Poncho. Needless to say with all that time with parts on the floor and oil from fingers it needs washing.

I generally hand wash items I have made. This is because firstly I want to make sure any colour doesn’t run and secondly in case some of my stitching is a bit loose in places. The last thing I want is it unravelling in the washing machine.

Therefore I use medium hot water with detergent to wash and rinse. I then squeeze out as much water as I can then give it a good flap around to help eliminate some of the creases.

I generally iron when items are wet. In the case of Linen I think this is a must as it can be very difficult to get the creases out. Now usually with any kind of decoration e.g. transfers or sequins you iron on the Back. I however due to the stitching being hand sewn have ironed on the Front.

Doing it this way I avoid snagging on any of the threads. I can also gently stretch out the material as ironing it. Then when still damp I hang it up to air dry. It doesn’t have to be done this way but I prefer it.

Boxes Galore 2018 Part 6

Boxes Galore 2018 Part 6

This is the final part of Boxes Galore. Now I am working on the Circular Box

Gold Rush

Although this Box is a different shape the methodology that I am using is pretty much the same. I started with Gold Gems around the Inner Circle. I then repeated the process on the Outer Circle

Towards the Edge

The pattern of this Box reminded me a little of the Flower Box I had completed. Therefore I thought I would give a nod to that’s colouring.

I used the Gold Gems as a basis then I infilled the Central Circle with Bright Pink Gems. I then moved towards the Edge with Red Gems. In between the Red I added White which completed the second ring.

Up to the Edge

After the second ring I added the last colour which was Pale Pink. These combinations of colours took me up to the Edge. I decided to finish off the Edge with Gold Gems unfortunately that photograph did not come out.

A Trio of Boxes Galore

I now have A Trio of Boxes Galore. I hope you enjoyed this Blog.

A Different Type of Cross-Stitch 2018 Part 2

A Different Type of Cross-Stitch 2018 Part 2

I have now finished the Red part of the Motif and am now moving onto the next colour.

Purple Problem

Argh this is particularly annoying. I ran out just short of finishing the last Purple diamond. I therefore had to use a different colour. This new Purple will be used to Cross-Stitch the four small crosses on alternative diamonds.

Going for Gold

I am finally getting towards finishing the Border with the use of a nice Golden colour to infill the other diamonds.

Outer Finished

I have now completely finished the Border and it is ready for the next stage. For anybody that is interested the pattern depicted is a Persian Motif.