Tuesday, January 23, 2007

I have become a woman obsessed.

So I have a new hobby. I've just started, and I'm not all that great at it yet, but I really enjoy it and can't wait for all the other patterns & books I ordered to arrive. Plus, there are all these rad vintage patterns you can find on eBay? And you know I'm going to figure out how to trace every other design that strikes my fancy onto fabric so I can stitch it.

For my first project, I used the sushi pattern my dear friend Amanda gave me for Christmas, and some old cloth napkins--I wasn't sure how they'd turn out, you know? Next up: tea towels, baby theengs for all the new baby mommas in my life, pillow cases, and pretty much anything else I think up or get my hands on. And I'm going to HAVE to learn how to sew now, if only so I can make my own bags and stuffed animals and blankets to stitch on.

I have become a woman obsessed.

Anyway, here's the start! I can do a split stitch (aka chain stitch?), a bad satin stitch, and what I believe is called a French knot (I just called 'em "knots.") Let me know what you think.
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The complete set of 8 Sushi Napkins.

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My very first attempt. I'm not thrilled with the stitching on the heart, but wasn't sure what else to do.

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The easiest one by far.

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This simple design used four different stitches.

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The darling patterns help my fledgling stitches look good.

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Okay, now I'm just hungry.

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These were SO HARD. The chopsticks took forever, and trying to stitch the hands so the back didn't look like a ridiculous mess was near impossible.

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I love how these turned out, especially the bits where I combined the orange and white floss.

3 comments:

Alison said...

Oooooo! A waving kitty pattern! I'm going to have to give that one a try! Every time I go back to NY and stop in Pearl River Market, I can't leave without picking up yet another waving kitty in some form -- two actually wave, one is a bank, and the other is a miniature that I keep by my bed. Oh, and I have the Glark t-shirt, too. In other words, I'm a bit obsessed with the waving kitty. (I know there's a proper name, but I can never remember and waving kitty is more fun!)

Anonymous said...

Fabulous! You did such a great job! Like Alison, I'm also pretty partial to the waving kitty. I would love to attempt something like this...I sometimes pretend I really do have an inner craftess, but alas, she has not decided to come out of the closet yet. I did, however, spend tons of time on that website. Maybe I'll give it a whirl!

Anonymous said...

This is how I started with needlework. My dear, you are but a short step away from haunting the aisles of Michael's, JoAnn's, A.C.Moore and WalMart's craft section, searching for the next hit of new patterns, 18 count aida, and waste canvas. It's a crewel, crewel world.