Sunday 20 July 2014

K.I.S.S.

"Keep It Simple S............?"

I hate acronym speak as much as the next person, but this one has been on my mind as I look into the world of patchwork and quilting outside of the half square triangle.  

There are a number of designers who do outstanding work and make it look so simple a 5 year old could do it, huh!  My investigations though have turned up some interesting things, so, whether you're a Keep it Simple Sweetie or a Keep it Simple Stupid person, you might find the following interesting.

Just because it is a very easy design, don't think you can pick up a piece of cotton fabric and start stitching,  you'll end up with a hot mess, ask me how I know?  how do you think!?  Embroidery floss, and I'm talking the 6 stranded floss that is hung up near the Cotton reels and Wool in most shops you'd visit, might be good for a lot of things, but not for all, and if you're a beginner like me, the first hurdle you're going to cross is using the right thread for the job.  The second, is that preparation is a big part of producing a beautiful piece.


You fabric MUST be reinforced, even for hand embroidery, you will get a hugely improved end result if you take the time to apply either stabiliser or interfacing to the cloth.  It becomes clearer why, when you look at the way some of the stitches are worked, you can't keep sticking a needle into the same place on the fabric, and pull thread through it every time without getting holes,  especially if you're using fine fabric, you can get away with it on Aida (Cross stitch fabric) but not on Kona.  Ask me how I know?  I'm too ashamed to show the results of the earlier trials, suffice to say, at least they show me how much I improved,.

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