Free motion quilting or embroidery is such a valuable skill for an art quilter, texile or fiber artist to know!
I use it on all of my fiber art pieces, for a very simple reason.  Free motion quilting gives you so many options for embellishing your piece of artwork.  I can use it to create simple lines, make a densely-embroidered surface or to tie a composition together.
If you’d like to try your hand at free motion quilting, or if you’d just like to improve your technique, Quilting Arts Magazine has a cool gift for you.
They’re offering a free e-book, written by …read more

I’m finally finished teaching art camps for the summer and that means I can get back into my studio and start making things!
Here’s my palette for my next machine-embroidered piece of fiber art:

That’s so yummy I think I could eat it with a spoon   I’ve got sari silk ends, raw mohair, carded mohair (from a farm just down the road from me) silk caps and silk roving.
I love the different textures and hands that you get from using different types of fibers in one piece.  The silk acts differently from the mohair, which has a different shine than …read more

Sorry for the delay in getting this published   Here’s how I made sweethearts out of felt – not candy!
I asked you to get some candy-colored felt, along with a heart-shaped cookie cutter (or other heart-shaped template) in my last post.

Use the cookie cutter as a template and trace around it – using a water-soluble fabric marker.

Cut out more hearts (you don’t have to – but they look so charming as a grouping)

Using a water-soluble fabric marker (non permanent) write out different Valentine’s day sayings.  It’s going to be easier to embroider if you go with something short.

Place the …read more

I’ve just found a wonderful new website called Fiberella.  It’s a combination fiber art supply store (check out their wool roving!) gallery site & teaching program.
It’s definitely worth checking out

Okay, so it’s taken me a day longer to post part two of the mini embroidered Hallwe’en bag
After the paint has dried thoroughly, heat set it according to the manufacturer’s instructions.   I used three colors of thread to free-motion embroider around the outlines of the pumpkin, moon & leaf:

I used lime green & white polyester sewing machine thread and a glossy bright orange machine embroidery thread for the outlines.  Tomorrow we’ll sew it into a bag.
I did this in about 10 minutes – have fun & don’t get too fussy about this project!

Here’s the painted silk, after I let it dry overnight and then embroidered:

I did simple free-motion machine embroidery outlining the butterflies.  I used rayon embroidery thread, which I love using for projects like this because of the sheen.
If I had more time, I would get more detailed with embroidering the butterfly wings – but I don’t
I’ll show you what I’m using the embroidered fabric on tomorrow!

Did you know that Threads Magazine now has video clips on their website!  There are some techniques that are so much easier to understand if you can see it, rather than reading about it.
Check out this clip, featuring the designer Manuel, doing free-motion embroidery!

My goodness it’s been a busy week!  My beloved Nana passed away on Tuesday (and thank you all for your kind words) and then my brother got married on Saturday.
I think it’s time for a nap   I ended up running out of time and didn’t get anything new sewn for me or my fiance to wear.  And I only got half of the napkins done for the bridal shower…  But at least I got half of them done!
Here’s how I finished them off:

I used a variegated rayon machine embroidery thread and stitched over the pattern twice.  I wanted …read more

Oh my goodness, it’s a busy week at my house!  My brother & his fiance got legally married last Friday, and are having a big “white wedding” this Saturday.  My mother is hosting a tea and then the maid of honor is hosting a bachlorette party this week.
I’ve offered to make their guestbook… I would like to make myself a new outfit  and am trying to  make a set of linens as a bridal shower gift.
I think I need more coffee
This is what I’m doing for the napkins:

The napkins are already hemmed and I’ve placed the iron-on …read more

Before I post the fun stuff, I thought I’d share what my front yard looked like half an hour ago:

That snow wasn’t there yesterday.  I’m not impressed to say the least…  It’s supposed to be lovely & sunny tomorrow!
Now that I’ve whinged at you all, let’s get to the fun stuff!  I enjoy doing origami, and am even folding 1000 butterflies (with the help of my mothers ) for my upcoming wedding (I spend a lot of time folding paper in the evening!)
One technique that’s fun to do is machine embroidering origami paper.  I use varigated sewing machine …read more