White Threads

order of contents

I have a question for you today. I have been thinking about my Portuguese Whitework book and how I would like to order the contents. Normally I have introductory stuff including a bit of history, then how to do it all (step-by-step stitch instructions and technique instructions), then projects that can be made.

I’ve been working on the step-by-step pages over the past few weeks, and while they’re full of valuable information that you’re really going to need to use the book, they look a bit repetitive in terms of the content they are presenting. Its all really important, but unless you need that particular stitch or technique right then and there, its not going to be a particularly thrilling section to thumb through.

So I have been wondering about putting the projects section *before* the step-by-steps. After all, the projects in this book are what’s going to get people in, because (she says modestly) they’re gorgeous!

Imagine you’ve picked up the book in your hands in a bookshop. You’ve heard nothing of it before. As you flick through, you see page after page of beautiful needlework that inspires you and make you think “I have to buy this book, because I want to make that, that, that and that.” And then you come to the step-by-step pages with all the stitches and techniques that you’ll need to make them. You can see that section is very thorough, and full of really good information, but you’ve already decided to buy the book on the strength of the projects.

Does this sound like a likely scenario to you? Would you prefer to see projects first, or step-by-steps first? Thanks in anticipation of your feedback and suggestions!

my favourite needles

There is one type of needles that I use more than any other. This is very much because I do more counted thread embroidery than surface embroidery. My favourite needles are therefore tapestry needles, and more precisely No 24 tapestry needles.

Tapestry needles are useful for counted thread work because they have a blunt tip, which means that instead of splitting fabric threads as they go through the fabric, they are more likely to pass between them, which is exactly what you want when you are doing counted thread work.

In my years of teaching I have discovered one very interesting thing about tapestry needles: not all tapestry needles are created equal. You’re probably expecting me to sing the praises of gold plated needles here, or something like that. But no, I’ve never used a gold plated needle.

My point is that the eye size of tapestry needle changes markedly in size from one brand of tapestry needle to another. This means that if I specify a No 24 tapestry needle (which is larger than a 26, and smaller than a 22 – so the smaller the number, the larger the needle) sometimes it will work for the stitcher, and sometimes it may not. Some 24s are very much hard to thread than others because their eye is narrower.

Tapestry needles are the same as chenille needles in all respects but their points. A tapestry needle has a blunt or rounded tip, while a chenille needle has a sharp tip. So if you compare chenilles and tapestries of the same size and brand, you’ll find their length, shaft thickness, and eye size are all very similar or as much the same as you could hope for. However, the tapestry needle has a rounded point, and the chenille is sharp.

Tapestry needles are also useful for some surface work. Sometimes you will need to pass a needle under a stitch without catching any of the stitch on the needle. A sharp pointed needle can mean that the tip catches on the stitch thread, perhaps accidentally piercing it. In this instance, a tapestry needle would be much more likely to pass by without catching or splitting the stitch thread. (The back of a sharp pointed needle – the eye end – can also work, but you have to be careful not to accidentally stab yourself with the sharp end of the needle!)

So there you have it, a precis of my favourite type of needle. Long live the tapestry needle!

permutations

Nothing much to say today. I’ve been slogging away at the techniques pages. To give you an idea of why its taking so long, there are three different methods of overcasting used. For some of the intersections, there are up to eight different variations. And there’s about 4 or more different types of intersections. With so many different permutations, you can see why I’m slogging away.

But I keep reminding myself that every new diagram I do, I’m closer to the finished product. 🙂

Found my scissors!

When we came back from our sojourn at the Gold Coast, I went looking for my sewing (dressmaking) scissors and could not find them anywhere. I looked all over my computer desk but they weren’t there. I looked all over my other desk but they weren’t there either. They weren’t in the lounge room or dining room. (In the back of my mind I have the words of a “Where is Spot?”-type children’s book. “Is he under the bed?… Try the basket!”)

Then yesterday it became apparent that Rainbow Girl desperately needed a new leotard. With the recent upswing in temperature from about 16ish to 23ish (degrees Celcius) she’d used last season’s sleeveless leotard for gym and found that it was cutting her in two! Someone’s grown a bit in the intervening cold period.

I got her to choose a fabric from my stash of leotard fabrics (which I found is embarrassingly large) and set about getting everything ready. I suddenly realised that I’d need my sewing scissors to cut it out. I had another look and still they could not be located.

The only thing I could do (apart from going round to my sister’s to borrow hers) was to try using the paper scissors. It was slow going! There was only a small section of the blades right near the point that were sharp enough to cut fabric. But I eventually did managed to cut out the whole leotard – which is admittedly only three pieces.

Then I had to get the sewing machine out of the cupboard. There was a box in front of it, with some embroidery stacked on top (yes, my office is a mess). And lo and behold, there under the embroidery, were/was (which one is correct?) my scissors!

I’m so happy! I’ve have learned some new things without them: hair *can* be cut with paper scissors and care, fabric *can* be cut with paper scissors and time. But its so much nicer to have the “good” scissors to do it with.

Have you ever lost an important piece of sewing or embroidery equipment? Did you get them back?

The Bookworm

I haven’t wanted you to think that I only have one daughter. There are two actually: Rainbow Girl is the “out there” one, while The Bookworm is a quiet achiever.

So today I have some photos of The Bookworm. Last Saturday we went with some friends to an indoor rock climbing gym, for a bit of fun. I spent most of my time belaying (operating the safety rope), though I did have one climb up a wall, thinking to myself “I have embroidery to do this week – I don’t want to pull all the muscles in my arms!”

Rainbow Girl took a little while to warm to the idea of rock climbing. On her first – very beginner – climb, she burst into tears and wanted to come down. The Bookworm, however, lapped it up and really enjoyed herself. She did lots of climbs, all the way up to the ceiling.
She also climbed up a very large “ladder” where the rungs were about the height of an adult apart from each other. They were also about that wide. So it really involved hoisting yourself up on one rope, hooking any part of your body over the next rung and pulling yourself up.

getting to the next rung

I was belaying when The Bookworm first attempted this climb. There was lots of flailing around, but eventually she’d make it up to the next level. It required a lot of effort and a lot of perseverance. She did really well!

The Bookworm is on the right

I’m still plugging away at the technique pages for the book. It still keeps expanding: I think I’ve added 4 more pages in the last few days, for techniques that I hadn’t previously realised would need to be included. It is a lovely feeling to know that the book is steadily getting done.

merezhka book

Yesterday I was talking with a lady who wanted to order a copy of Ukrainian Drawn Thread Embroidery for her friend. She said she already has her own copy and loves it. She’s taken the techniques and run with them, having recently completed a merezhka project that she adapted from filet crochet, featuring grapes.

I’ve asked her to send me a photo of the embroidery to share with you, which she said she will do.

Oh, how I love it when people take one of these techniques and really get into it! It is so wonderful to know that my books give people so much joy. Sometimes when I feel a bit down I can doubt that what I do has very much impact on the world. I’m not a doctor or a nurse, or a teacher, changing people’s lives in a very tangible way. However, if my books help people to learn to relax and gain enjoyment from a new skill, I think that’s pretty fantastic!

PS. Sorry there was no post yesterday. I didn’t really have anything to say, and I just got stuck into more of the techniques pages for the books, first thing in the morning.

Booking classes

Just a note to those who are likely to want me to come and teach for their shop, community or guild group next year. I am taking a lot of bookings – it seems people really want to learn Portuguese Whitework! – so if you’re interested, get in quick.

I do limit my quantity of teaching as I have a young family, and taking me away from them increases the load on my husband and extended family.

While classes on Portuguese Whitework seem to be the flavour of the month at the moment, I also teach Hardanger, Mountmellick, Merezhka Poltavska, left-handed embroidery, and stitch exploration classes.

If you’re interested, please email me with details of your requirements. I look forward to hearing from you!

portuguese page

Just wanted to show you that there’s a reason for having very little to say at the moment – I’ve just been too busy with technique pages for my Portuguese Whitework book. So here’s a page from the book that I did yesterday.

To give you an idea of how slow-going it can be, I did just two pages like this yesterday. At about 10am, I had nearly finished the first page, then about one diagram later, it was nearly 11:30am. Still, I remember when I was working on the Ukrainian book, one particular diagram took me about 6 hours. (Yep, just ONE!)

The page hasn’t been edited, checked or anything like that, so it could completely change before you ever see it in real life. Probably I’d like to fit a photo in there somewhere too…

technique pages

I spent yesterday working on more step-by-step technique pages for the book. I’ve been mulling over exactly what I need to explain and in how much detail. If you know my books I tend to have quite a lot of detail, and *lots* of steps. I figure that I need to assume you know nothing, because then everyone should be able to understand if I go through everything in detail.

An editor I used to work for used to get us to write for 12 year olds. She figured that if 12 year olds could understand it, then that would cover pretty much everyone that would want to access the information.

So I spent the day creating diagrams and writing instructions to go with them. There was a lot of deciding what to put in and what to leave out. I turned off the internet so as not to be distracted by that, and was much more productive.

The book keeps expanding. Originally I thought it wouldn’t be a very long book, but perhaps that’s not actually right. It keeps needing more and more pages! Ah, so much more to do yet!

exhibitions anyone?

I’ve told you a bit about some exhibitions in my corner of the world over the last little while. However I am acutely aware that I am in a corner(!) and that many of you are very far flung from me.

So I was wondering if any of you have any interesting exhibitions of an art or textile nature in your neck of the woods, and would you care to tell us about them?

What is the exhibition about? Did it inspire you? How did it inspire you? Did you move in a new creative direction because of it? Where is it, and when is it on? Can you provide an internet link for the exhibition?

I look forward to hearing about your local exhibitions!