Something different for the week end !

Hi all, hope your loving your week end............I've been away for a few days and did a bit of exploring ! Had a wonderful break with Hubby and Max........
Didn't get much stitching done though, so today I am showing you a little bit of artwork that I do from time to time..............................

This is a watercolour that has been overlayed with Faber castel polychromos pencils and ink pens for the line work.............................................................

I do plan to use elements of this artwork for embroidery as I think it lends itself perfectly to Fibre art !!

I also dabble in a bit of 'doodling' now and again........namely ZENTANGLES !!

There is an amazing array of artwork out there on the WWW...........................

Just enter the 'Z' word into a search engine and you will discover a whole new world of art........................................................

like this piece that I am in the process of completing ! Can you imagine this as an embroidery 

Well thats all that I have today to show you all...............Thank you all so much for popping by...............keep safe, be happy and have a wonderfully creative week end.....................xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

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A WATERCOLOUR TUTORIAL........My gift to YOU !

Hello dear friends......Well the time has come to give away my secret !
I think that I have kept you waiting long enough !

WHAT YOU WILL NEED...............
1. A piece of calico fabric
2. Watercolour paints....3 or 4 colours
3. A large and a small paint brush
4. A painters pallett or two dinner plates....lol
5. Kitchen roll for mopping up
6. Pencil
7. punched paper flowers......or see my tracing tute !
8. Small Water spray bottle
9. Hairdryer

Fill water spray with warm water and spray calico fabric with paper flowers in place..... till quite damp, leaving the outer edge dry ! You may need to hold punched designs in place ! Keeping the paper flowers in place and using a large paintbrush, drop splodges of different colours onto the fabric and let the colours
merge into one another slightly !

Use the water spray to help the colour merge..................

By this stage the fabric will be very wet, so lay a piece of kitchen towel on top
to mop up the surplus moisture !

Lift the kitchen towel off and also the paper templates........................       

and your design should be showing through the watercolours like this ..........

Next step is to pencil in the design like so.........................................

When this stage is complete, you can then dry the fabric with a hair dryer !

And your design should look something like this..........................

Now all you have to do is place in a hoop or frame and embroider !

If you decide to do my tracing tutorial on the fabric first then you can go back over the drawn design with more watercolour and water spray to enhance the depth of colour in drawn areas of the design !

I do hope that this tutorial will help a lot of people to enhance their embroidery and if anyone has any questions then please leave a comment and I will reply on MY blog.....so please come back to my blog for your answers !

Thank you for popping by.....YOU make it all worthwhile !!!

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Design Transfer tutorial......My way ! And my 'POPPY' watercolour !!

Hello dear friends, I hope life is treating you well......Spring has truly sprung here in the UK ! Well as I promised....a tutorial on design transfer to fabric.....
WHAT YOU WILL NEED........
1. A normal HB PENCIL
2. A piece of suitable  FABRIC....ie, calico or close woven linen
3.Masking tape
4. A design of your choice !
5. A craft embossing tool (small end ) or an empty ball point pen
6. Tracing paper
This is your step by step guide for transferring your pattern..............

1. Place design on a flat surface and place tracing paper on top...hold down with masking tape.
2. Trace your design onto the tracing paper.........now turn your tracing paper over and pencil over the design Again ( This is important, to retrace on the back
as well, so that your design is the right way round when you transfer it !
3. Turn your tracing paper over AGAIN to the first side that you traced ! Now
place your fabric down and secure to the surface with masking tape
4. Now place your tracing paper design on top of your fabric and secure again with masking tape !

5. Now using your embossing tool and pressing firmly, go over the whole design,
If you are using an old ballpoint pen, please be very careful as the point is sharp and could easily rip the paper design .
6. when you are happy that you have 'EMBOSSED' every line of the design, very carefully lift one corner and see if the lines have transferred.....if they are very faint ,it means that you have not pressed firmly enough and may need to go over the design again ( Also if the pencil lead is too hard, then it will not transfer, so use a softer pencil ) When the design has transferred, it may be faint in places so I go over the design again with a very fine ballpoint pen and I ensure that I embroider over the design lines completely !!

This method of tranferring for embroidery has served me well over the years and it saves me money, as I dont need to buy embroidery transfers( the iron on type) !
In fact it opened up a whole new design source for me.........clip art, colouring books, in fact anything that I see on the internet that inspires me, I can just print off and then trace......I do hope that this works for you and you certainly dont need a light box for this method !
If anyone has any questions, they can leave a comment and I will comment back with advice.........OMG I'm giving all my secrets away....... !!!
          My latest embroidery  is here to show you...........................

This is a watercolour background that has turned out so well.........HOW MANY OF YOU WOULD LIKE A TUTORIAL ??? Well if I get a whole lot of requests for a one, then I might just TREAT you all !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Maybe just a little more 'EYE CANDY' then....................................

Well I do hope you have enjoyed my post today.......Now I'm exhausted and must put my mind to a huge mouthwatering  roast chicken dinner with all the trimmings and a strawberry and apple crumble (diabetic style ) of course with lashings of double cream...........Yummmmmmmmmm..................Thanks so much for dropping by and leaving a comment, it means so much......xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Sunflowers and a pretty maiden !

Hello everyone, well I'm still waiting for Spring.....are you ? Here in the UK it is still cold and overcast....Yuck !!!!
I would like to show you a couple of ongoing projects that  I so enjoy doing.........
But that are so very different in style........Take a look..............

This is a watercolour background that I used on a silk napkin and transferred the design with a normal pencil and an embossing tool....now you're asking, whats that all about, well an explanation will be revealed soon !

I love the 'softness' of this piece and the light and airy colour pallette...........

I will do a tutorial on transferring designs onto fabric if I get enough interest !!!!

My second piece is a lovely Maiden, mostly in Needlelace.............

Isnt she lovely...........................................

A couple of close ups to show the technique.......................................

Well have a good week folks and thank you for popping by..........look out for the tutorial coming soon.........................................xxxxxxxxx

P.S. This is my sons band, on the cruise ship 'VENTURA' !!!!!!!!!!

BYEeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee

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KWAN TUNG..........Elegance !

Hello Everyone, the sun is shining here today in the UK !
   I would like to show you an ongoing project that is magnificent when completed.......I wish there were more kits like this one.......The colours are totally amazing........Take a look........

This piece is stitched with six strands of floss altogether in the needle !

Now I know that you all like your 'EYE CANDY', so I try to post as many different
angle shots as possible !

Lately I have had a creative block......For days now, I have struggled to get anything done.......Maybe after a long winter I just need a holiday !!!
My Diabetes has been playing up and now I have to inject Insulin......But hey its not the end of the world, so I must keep smiling and be thankful for what I have got

So to finish....just a little cross stitch picture that I made many years ago..........

Right, I'm off to have my Easter chuckie egg.........A boiled one.............
Have a great Easter and thank you for popping by and dont forget your waistline girls, with all that chocolate......have fun ..............xxxxxxxxxxxxxx

EYE CANDY, WIPS, (works in progress ) and so much to learn !

Hello people.....so cold here in the Uk today ! Have been sorting through my
stash and I have come to realise that I have so many projects to get on with........

    This first one is a ' Trish Burr design..............It is so pretty !!!
It comes from this book.............

If you really love 'Crewel' embroidery, then you need this book !!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I love ' close up' shots like this, so you can see the intricate detail of every stitch !

Next up is an experimental piece that I have been working on occasionally........as
the mood takes me ! Ooooooh I so love this hobby....It has kept me sane for years !

I think that I have used every conceivable stitch in my knowledge, on this little beauty from under the sea...........I hope that I have provided enough 'eye' candy for you this week..........OMG WHAT AM i GOING TO SHOW YOU NEXT !!!!
Have a fabulously fun week and thank you so very much for dropping by.........
BTW....thanks Mike for your great posts http://michaelgoodes.blogspot.co.uk/.......xxxxxxxxxxx

Whitework texture..............

Hello all, hope you had a great week.....A bit dull here in the UK today !
But spring is around the corner and my son is coming home in three weeks !!!
He's been cruising around the Caribbean' for five months......working on the Cruiseship 'VENTURA'.........with his band, a nice life you'd say but he is really missing home.......bless him !!!

Anyway, this is a piece of  'whitework' that I did for texture ! I feel that textural
pieces, really catch the eye and obviously which thread you use to accomplish it !
In this piece I have used perle threads, simply because they give a wonderfully tactile effect and cast shadows as they are more 'raised' than stranded flosses.......

            Love the added pearls...........I've used bullion stitch, french knots,               needleweaving,buttonhole stitch and spiders web plus many more !!!
            Have the best week ever.........do something creative and be happy !
Thanks for stopping by.........Last but not least.......This embroidery was framed and given as an 80th birthday present to my Mother-in-law !!
This is her with my Grandson 'Toby'...........

                                                   
                                              bless them........................
By the way I am now on Facebook :) If anyone would like to be my friend........http://www.facebook.com/chris.richards.1272