Ribbon embroidery

Examples of Embroidery pattern

very nice models

Embroidery kit

Ribbon Embroidery weaves

Ribbon Embroidery

Beautiful ribbon embroidery

Examples of ribbon embroidery

and beautiful multi-colored ribbon embroidery pillow

embroidery

Stylish embroidery models from each other

embroidery samples

very nice processing samples

Embroidery Samples

White Color Embroidery Patterns

Chullo and Pillow

I quickly ordered the Knit Picks Chullo Kit because their web site says it is the last chance to do so. I think I can actually get three hats out of the amount of yarn; more probably because I won't be able to resist adding at least one bright color into the mix.

Here is my completed Pomegranate Pillow. The embroidery kit came with the backing and the cording and I like the way the cording looks. All in all I only completed 3 pillows for my summer of pillows but I was surprised to be swamped with so much work.

Next up I'm doing a colorwork hat for Knit Picks IDP and a pair of gloves using 4 colors of Sunday Knits yarn.

Three WIPs

Here are my current WIPs. I don't usually get much done in August but we haven't had air conditioning in our vehicle for the past two weeks after it was broken into while seeing The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. It is too hot here to jump in a car without air conditioning so I sat home and worked on projects instead.

The first project is a pair of socks in progress. These were the yellow socks for the Ravelry Solid Socks August challenge. The weirdest thing happened with these socks. I started them, put them aside for a while, and totally spaced on what project I was knitting. I spent hours looking through all my books, then looked on Ravelry, and I am still not sure what pattern this is. I think they are an Evelyn Clark design from a library book but I can't be sure until I scrounge up the book again. These won't be finished in August as I have a writing deadline but I will finish them as I enjoyed knitting them.

Here's the embroidered Pomegranate Pillow. I am aiming to finish this by the end of August. I am greatly enjoying this project and my only complaint is that the cover photo uses better shades of green than what I got in the kit. I am purposely putting off the big pomegranate in the center until last; it is the focus of the design and that way it won't get stretched out by the embroidery hoop.

Here's another pillow project - the Blue Kaleidoscope Pillow by Candamar Designs. I don't normally do much needlepoint but I really loved this design. I need to get a stretcher frame to make it look its best - I was hoping to get to see some frames in person before buying one but I guess instead I'm just going to have to buy one online.

I am extending the pillow project through fall as I have many more pillows to make. I bought some silk blend yarn to make a cabled pillow and I really want to do a colorful Kristin Nicholas pillow with Cascade 220.

Fiber But No Knitting

I've been spinning some of the wool roving I purchased at Looking Glass Yarns on a drop spindle. I am not very talented at plying with a drop spindle so my resulting yarn isn't even enough for colorwork but I am in love with the seafoam color. I think it will end up as mittens or socks. The roving is Mauch Chunky by Kraemer Yarns.

I've also been working on some crewel embroidery. I was hoping I'd be finished with this pillow top last month but I'm only about 1/3 done at this point. It is greatly enjoyable even if I'm still not 100% happy with my long and short stitch. If you look at the yellow part of the flower on the bottom left (where I started) you'll see that I didn't even understand what the long and short stitch was. Initially I was thinking of ripping it out and re-doing that flower but decided against it. Because really what are the odds someone will be visiting me, pick up the pillow, and exclaim in horror that I did one of the flowers wrong???

I hope to have some colorwork socks (Robyn Gallimore's Winter Dreams Socks) to show you soon.

My Summer of Pillows

The comedian Jim Gaffigan once talked about his wife's excessive love of pillows and wondered if she was stockpiling ammo for the global pillow fight. I can relate and will soon be ready for the Great Pillow War as I plan to spend this summer making knit and embroidered pillows.

Here's the first one with the embroidery finished - it is a simple snowflake candlewicking project from Janalynn. I'll get a better photo after blocking and assembly - I think I'm going to add either tassels or an I-cord edging if I can find a yarn color that looks good with the design.

I have also been purchasing pillows - I just ordered this fun ribbon embroidered pillow cover at Pottery Barn Teen on sale for $9.99.

I am not even that fond of needlepoint but I loved this medallion design so I have to make it as well.

Besides the Starmore Celtic Keynot pillow in progress, I have chosen a few colorful knit pillow designs I hope to make:

Here are three choices from the Interweave store. I like that the Fair Isle Pillows use buttons to close one end. The Origata Pillow download includes instructions to make a bolster pillow. And finally they have the lovely colorwork Paisley Pillow designs.

I love Kristin Nicholas' Sunflower Pillow design with the addition of embroidery. Her Turkish Motifs Pillow design includes embroidery and duplicate stitch for a complex colorwork design.

I like this October Fair Isle Pillow pattern for use with a multi-colored yarn (It specifies Noro Kureyon.)

The Snowy Sheep Pillow is really cute - it has sheep grazing in the woods on a snowy day.

I did find one free pillow knitting pattern I really like - the Classic Elite La Gran Fair Isle Pillow uses a zillion colors and would be a perfect way to use up stash yarns. I will re-work it to use my Cascade 220 stash and to yield a smaller pillow. If I feel like doing some intarsia, the La Gran Posies Pillow is also free and really pretty.

Starting Up Again

I've recently come back to several projects and hobbies. I decided to work on some embroidery projects for summer. (I usually struggle to get a lot of knitting done in the warm weather.) I just started this crewel Pomegranate Pillow and am about 1/4 done. I'm glad I picked a less expensive project to begin with because I was doing the Long and Short Stitch (the main stitch used) wrong initially. sigh Once I get back up to speed I'm going to choose one of these gorgeous projects. (Check out the Kaffe Fassett needlepoint projects at that site as well.)

On the knitting front, I'm back working on this Virtual Yarns Celtic Keyknot pillow. I bought the kit probably close to 10 years ago (it was less expensive then) and I started it a long time ago. The reason I stopped was that it was turning out way too wide while simultaneously requiring an uncomfortably tight knitting to get gauge. When I came back to it I'd lost one of the colors so I am subbing the bright turquoise Shetland yarn which gives it a completely different feel. I also went up a needle size and chopped 100 sts off the original st count so it is already much different than the original design. It should fit a 14" pillow form with my modifications. I plan to add some big chunky tassels on each corner.

Also, I've decided to finish the step-by-step photo glove knitting booklet. I'm only going to show how to knit gloves on dpns though; that will allow me to keep the size (and price in print) down. I have several other knitting design projects to do before that but it will be done by fall.

Lastly, I've re-started my veg. cooking blog, Cooking in Color. I noticed I simply cannot stop talking about food on Facebook. Originally I was looking at the blog as more of a professional obligation and I wanted to post twice a week with 4 new recipes a month but that was too much. Now I'm just going to do it for myself and post less frequently.

Embroidered Jacket

Kristin Nicholas the knitwear designer has a terrific blog and a few days ago she had some photos of denim jackets embellished with lots of chain stitched embroidery. I have this denim jacket I bought on sale that I never really loved so this was a perfect time to get some embroidery floss and go to town.



The jacket already had some machine embroidery on the hem and the sleeve cuffs and it was really easy to just add more. I spent about 5 dollars total on the embroidery floss.



It really is pretty minimal from far away but I had such fun doing it I'm going to embroider the button band, pockets, and collar next.