Hostess Gift: Embroidered Flour Sack Towels

I am lucky for so many reasons. I have a wonderful extended family and great friends in Michigan who support our big move out West. But today I wanted to tell you about the generosity of a new friend, someone I met here in Washington.

I met Judie through my husband. When he was consulting in Seattle, I flew out for the month of April, June and September so that we could be together. I lived in his hotel (Remember when I made dinners in my "Easy Bake oven" and canned pickles?) and explored Seattle during the day.

One evening we met up with his co-worker Judie for dinner and I brought my latest project to the table to show off. I had been frequenting a Maker Space (a space that provides creative inspiration and the tools required for an hourly fee) for sewing to work on a souvenir quilt. I bought many 1/2 yards of companion print fabric when we drove to Portland, OR. The resulting quilt would be a souvenir from our trip.

Anyhoo, I was explaining the maker space (I wanted to sew!) and this quilt project as my big distraction during the day while I was in Seattle. Judie told me all about her 4-H projects as a girl and how she used to teach home economics! We had a lot in common and she seemed to like that I had incorporated sewing into our adventure out West.

The next day when Dan came into work, there was a sewing machine on his desk! "Take this to Anne" was his instruction. Judie thought it was silly for me to hike out to a maker space all the time and wanted to loan me her sewing machine for the duration of our trip (2 1/2 weeks!). What a woman. 

Fast forward 3 years and we have a real house with a real craft room. Judie came for dinner and brought us a set of 3 beautiful machine embroidered towels. She knows me well! I just love them and I'm using them too. As any maker knows, we gift you these things we've made because we want you to enjoy them. Get them out of the drawer and let's go!

Thank you, Judie, for being my first kindred spirit in Seattle! You are the best.

Embroidery with Whimsy: Have Your Cake

A work in progress from this summer: Have Your Cake and Eat It Too embroidered dishtowel. A great project for a hazy day by the lake. Stay tuned. I'm in Seattle now and I forgot the finished product in Michigan! It'll be back with me next month and I'll show it (and how I did it) to you then.

Honoring the Past: When Embroidery Captures a Moment in Time

I found a treasure! Someone spent hours embroidering this darling kitchen scene.  Just look at the details...there is food and wine on the table, a kettle on the stove and pots hung on the wall. She even stitched a small china windmill, a popular souvenir, sitting on the kitchen shelf.  My mom thinks that this dishtowel was stitched before the depression when there was time for needlework and pretty linens - late 1920's? I've always loved collecting vintage Pyrex as a way to honor the American kitchen. This dishtowel fits right in with my aesthetic. 

I plan on starching it and framing it on the wall somehow. Wouldn't it be darling in a blue and white kitchen? Stay tuned.

Planning Projects: Let it Percolate

I wrote about having a Master Plan back in 2009. When I referred to it again this week in my post about decorating cookies with edible wafer paper, I occurred to me that I left out part of the explanation.  

Having a Master Plan can mean that you have a stockpile of ideas that you want to try, much like a Pinterest Board, and that satisfaction comes when you follow your plan to completion, like when I finally put that French ribbon around my bouquet of mustard-colored roses. 

What I neglected to say is that a master plan can also include ideas you've had for years. I write this because of the images above and below. Every year I try and get a few good pictures of the landscape - cherry orchards, rolling hills, vineyards, barns, trees.  Why?

I want to embroider or needlepoint the landscape of northern Michigan. Rolling hills with trees in every shade of green, a cherry orchard (french knots?), Lake Michigan in the distance. 

I know that I can buy a software program called "PC Stitch" that converts photos into cross stitch patterns, but I'm not ready. The software costs $50 and once you load it onto your computer you can convert images forever. So my dream its within reach, but I'm not done thinking about it yet. Does that make sense?  It is part of my master plan. 

My suggestion is to make note of things you'd like to try. When you think about it again and it comes even more into focus, jot those ideas down too. There's no hurry. Let it percolate. 

Thread Letters: A Charming Farmers Market Display

I love when people let their passions intersect. Clearly the person behind this little booth loves to gardening and embroidery and design. She elevated tiny sunflower and radish sprouts into a still life by echoing soft colors and country charm in her display.

The tablecloth is a faded print of pea shoots and vines - a perfect backdrop for the wisps of green. And did you notice that the red stitching of the words radish sprouts is in the same color as the basket behind it and the touches of red in the cloth? Subtle but powerful. You see how, though worn, the yellow thread used in the words sunflower sprouts coordinate with the real life sprouts on the left.

A wooden hoop, cotton fabric and thread letters caught my attention far more than pen and paper ever would.  When you utilize the skills you have, even when they don't seem to fit the job description, your originality will win every time.

And by the way, I've never seen an oval embroidery hoop for sale, have you?

I found this charming display at the Portland Farmer's Market on the Portland State University campus last June. If you're in the area on a Saturday this Spring, please stop by this teeny table and pass on my accolades.  

Seattle:Drygood Designs: Lunchtime Embroidery Class

This is exactly how I should be spending my time in Seattle. I signed up for a 2-session class to learn the basics of hand embroidery at a darling shop called Drygoods Design, in downtown Seattle.

The shop is gorgeous - a light filled dream sewing studio in a brand new location across from The London Plane, a cafe/specialty food store/floral workshop, that has been receiving a lot of press lately. The increased foot traffic for them can only bring new customers to Drygoods Design. Hip hip hooray!

Another plus? They brought in bread, cheese and spreads for our class to snack on during our Lunchtime Lesson. Isn't that so nice? We were grateful for the sustenance and it was nice to be spoiled with some fresh and healthy choices.

Margaret was the instructor for our 4-person beginning embroidery class as she was as kind and patient as can be. We learned enough for beginners and all felt good about our progress. Drygoods Designs offers far more than embroidery too. They have fabric and notions for sale, and classes on a myriad of sewing subjects. There selection of goods felt like a personal collection of treasures.

We practiced and experimented and were encourage all the while. It was a nice way to spend an hour and I highly recommend it. We were trying the Needle Arts.  Thread. Color. Pattern. Purely creative and very nice. We were discussing whether or not we thought we'd use a hoop and Margaret said her years of needlework were done without a form.  I chimed in that I loved to embroider when the fabric was stretched taut and my seatmate happily agreed. She said that stitching on hooped fabric was satisfying. I was with kindred spirits, there was no doubt about it. I told you that this was exactly what I should be doing on my stay in Seattle.

 

If you live in Seattle, you're lucky. You have a little piece of maker-heaven right on Occidental Street. Take a class. Make some friends. It's all here for the making.

Christmas Cottage

Someone is a genius!  Look at this sequin-bedecked design that uses a rectangular gem as the front door.  I just love it!

This Christmas Cottage was stitched by my sister-in-law's mother onto a Christmas stocking (from a pattern) at least thirty years ago and it is still as cute as the day it was made.  

I saw it and instantly wanted to create a house like this of my own on a small pillow.  Have I? Not by a long shot.  Writing and publishing this new book of mine has taken up every extra minute these last few months, but any day now I will be able to announce that it is for sale (in time for the holidays!) and then I can get down to some serious crafting and baking.

I will get out my felt, sequins and thread and embellish something with my own little Christmas Cottage.  Maybe I should stitch this design onto a guest towel.  Or an ornament?  What do you think?  Pillow, hand towel or ornament?

Monograms

It was a great day when I got my Husqvarna Viking sewing/embroidery machine.  I have used it continually for sewing, but as I look back over these last 8 years, I realized that I have mostly used the machine embroidery feature for baby gifts.  It's time for me to have some personalized things!

So this week I've gone on a monogramming bender and made myself 2 sets of AHR napkins, 2 "anne" dishtowels and I put a fancy "R" on an antique fingertip towel for the powder room.  What do you think?

I will have to rotate my new masterpieces so that you don't see an "R" in every room!  Have you ever noticed a magazine article like that, where the home owner loves monograms and you can spot one in each picture - overkill!

I hereby promise to display a reasonable number of initials.        

A Tisket a Tasket

I've decided to try my hand at embroidery again. I was about 8 when I first learned to cross stitch. I would mark a design in pencil on a flour sack square and then stitch over it with DMC floss. 

I vividly remember making a square for my brother with the outline of a sailboat on it. Lately, I've been seeing embroidered dishtowels in antique stores and I want to try some of those pretty stitches myself! 

Yesterday, I drew this basket of raspberries with a disappearing ink pen and stitched the berries by making lots of french knots. I am really happy with it. Dishtowels here I come!