Marie Grace Designs

Stars and posies...

I've gotten several emails asking questions about the embroidered stars and posies on the Wool Noggins and on embroidery in general so I thought it was a good time for a little tutorial. This is a photo heavy post and the lighting here this morning sucks so please forgive me.

Embroidery is a fabulous toy... really... its amazing how creative one can be with even just a few basic stitches. There are virtual tons of embroidery resources both on the net and at the bookstore. Results can be anything from simple and whimsy, like these hats, to dainty and elegant like the tiny silk rose buds on heirloom pieces.

All you'll need for yarn embroidery is a tapestry needle with an eye big enough for the yarn to fit through. For some reason my little tin of needles has gone missing (I'm sure temporarily) so I'm using a Chibi needle which is fine for what we're doing.

Lets look at this very basic star first...

Really, this isn't even an embroidery "stitch". Its really just a few large stitches connected to make a star. Its exactly the same as the stars you learned to draw with a pencil when you were little. Stars are still my favorite... if I'm doodling on the edge of a paper while I chat on the phone its stars I'm doodling rather than hearts like so many girls do...

I always leave a long tail on the wrong side of my work rather than anchor it at the beginning. This way its easy to pick out the stitches if they don't turn out the way I'd like. Don't worry about crooked or out of line stitches, just like knitting they can be pulled out and done again. Also, don't pull the stitches tight, they should be flat and firm but not tight enough to pull on the base fabric.

Come up (from the back to the front) at one "corner" of the star... and return to the back at another "corner"...

Come back up through the front at another corner and this time return at a previous point, connecting 2 sides of the star...

Continue around, making complete "corners" and connecting the sides of the star. It really doesn't even matter what order you do the sides in as long as the are all connected when you are finished...

Viola.. a star. If you are satisfied with the appearance now is the time to go back and weave in the ends on the wrong side.

Now a posie done with Lazy Daisy stitches...

Lazy Daisy stitches are simple and somewhat versatile. Once you learn to do them you will find that there are several other stitches that are formed in much the same way but with small differences.

Each petal of these flowers is one Lazy Daisy stitch. We'll do 5 stitches total. I'll show you how the stitches work and then show you a short cut.

Leave a tail at the back and come through to the front of the work where you want the center of your flower to be and return to the back at the same point (essentially making a loop)...

return to the front up through the loop... the point at which you return to the front will be the outer tip of a petal so plan accordingly... return to the back on the outside of the petal loop... this will anchor the petal loop in place...

Continue working round the flower adding petals always coming up through the same center point...

Once you see how these little petals work, you can work them this way...

Come up through the center point as usual. Now, instead of going the entire way through to the back, just insert the tip of the needle into the center and poke it out again at the outer petal tip...

Now draw the needle through pulling outward firmly to bring the petal loop in...

Once the petal loop is in place...

just anchor it by returning to the back on the outside of the loop as before...

There ya go... a 5 petal posie. Easy, no?

The cookie saga continues...

So we took our cookies and hiked/slid/skied to the little park station in the woods. There were snacks for one and all along with hot tea and cocoa. The kids did a great job keeping up with the crowd... and there was a crowd thanks to 2 local chorus groups that were singing on the park stage. The trail was a little slick, but lovely still.

I did take a few pics outside but between trying not to fall on my arse and trying to keep Tater from falling on her arse they were quite blurry. The trail will be operational all week so I'm sure we'll trek down a time or two and I'll get better pics then. The covered bridge especially looked so... ya know... festive... all glowy in the dark and covered in ice.

On knitting...

I'm think'in we'll soon hve a discussion on:

A) the merits of knitting 2 sleeves or cardi halves at one time and

B) seaming!

I know... seaming ranks right up there with swatching for a lot of knitters but I think its just the perspective. Maybe I can shed a bit of light on the subject.

Ice and cookies...

Well, Thursday's planned day of shopping with my sister was canceled due to snow, ice, and freezing rain. No sooner had that storm moved out and somewhat thawed out when another one moved in. More snow, ice, and freezing rain for the weekend.

Really I can't complain too much because we managed to not be affected nearly as bad as so many others. Thousands of people are still without electricity, traffic lights are out, trees are down, and schools are closed. There's a wind advisory and wind-chills are cold... to put it mildly.

Here's the view from the deck this morning...

I knew the weekend was going to be miserable weather-wise so I had already planned to stay in and make cookies for tonight's Christmas walk at the park. Every year a loop of path at the park is laden with lights so you can stuff the kids in their snow boots and heavy coats and go ohhh and ahhh at all the pretty lights. All the local 4H groups take turns manning the cocoa and cookie sales at the little "come in out of the cold" building. Tonight is our turn, though I'm a bit concerned about the weather. Snow is fun to trek through but I'm think'in there's more ice than anything right now.

So, here's how I handle the mass production of cookies...

First, put dinner (its a pot roast and whole veggies) in the Crockpot because

A) you will not feel like cooking a decent dinner after baking cookies all day and

B) after eating cookies and cookie dough all day (and you know you will) you'll need something with actual nutritional content to help offset the sugar consumption.

Next, try not to freak as the 3 smaller children (the Bonus kid was here this weekend) use up half a year's worth of art supplies making cardboard boats out of Amazon boxes because at least its keeping them busy and out of the kitchen.

Once the cookies are in the oven knit furiously for 10-12 minutes...

Mmmmm.... cookies...

I managed to get the chocolate chip, peanut butter, and oatmeal cookies done. There's sugar cookie dough in the fridge to be baked today as well as 2 pans of brownies. At least the house will smell yummy as we do our school work (and we'll have a nice snack this afternoon).
The kids finished up their projects. I guess all the reading about early explorers and sailing ships has really taken a hold...

And there's no better way to end a day than a relaxing bath...

'cause ya know she worked really hard today.

From Marshmallow Molecules to Pirate Paper...

From the last post...

Laurel left this comment:

The swatch, er, Swatch box is the most impressive set-up I've seen in a long time. Can you post a source for the little boxes and cards?

Sure. Really they are just card tray boxes that I bought at Staples. Nothing fancy but they do the job.

On knitting...

Clean, simple texture totally floats my boat at the moment. I’ve been knitting on this piece with tunnel vision and I’ve been completely loyal to it since the first stitch. Its a miracle.

Oh, and the Pirate Paper...

We’re studying early explorers and having lots of fun with a great unit study. Its complete with lessons, printable worksheets, and project ideas. You can find it here.

These are going to be the pages of our "Captain's Log Books" as we sail the high seas looking for adventure and uncharted territory. Hopefully we'll get to putting the covers on them this afternoon.

Other news...

My sister and I convinced our mom to keep all 8 (yup... my 4 + her 4 = 8) kids tomorrow so that we could go... just the 2 of us... and do some shopping. We plan to get our hair done and go somewhere fabulous for lunch... just the 2 of us... no kids... no husbands... just us girls, a salon, and a fabulous day.

I'm guessing that's why there is an ice storm headed right for us.

Figures.

What to do when it snows...

Ya know I’ve never been one to truly enjoy snow but apparently the move back to the country has done some weird thing to my inner Normal Rockwell.

Yesterday we got our first “real snow” of the season and though it really only amounted to about 2-3 inches here I managed to convince myself it was a full blown snow day. In my mind we were completely snowed in and had no choice but to cozy up and enjoy the indoor warmth while we watched the snow fall outside.

We generally don’t cancel homeschool on snow days but rather dive into something “meaty”. I don’t know why but I always have the urge to do some big art project or lengthy science demonstration when it snows. Hunkering down and spending several hours on something we really enjoy just seems to fit on days when its too wet and cold out to do anything else.

We’ve been working through a chemistry study so it was the perfect time to make marshmallow molecules. Not to mention it made a great snack.

My favorite thing to do while snowed in is Swatch! (Yes, I know I gave it a capital letter... it deserves one... and yes I’m going on a swatch speech again so non-swatchers may want to look away to avoid the non-swatching knitter guilt.)

Why do so many knitters avoid the Swatch? Why do so many knitters ignore, neglect, and even (gulp) hate the Swatch?

The Swatch is your friend! It is your small and painless way to try a new yarn or practice a stitch you aren’t too sure of before launching into an entire pattern. Not sure you can pull off those Austian twist stitch thingers? Swatch’em and see! Wanna try that big cable on page whatever of that book that’s been on your shelf for a million years? Swatch to see if it looks as good in wool as it does on paper.

How about (step back now) a steek? Make a swatch with some proper steek technique and hack that sucker right down the middle! You don’t even have to tell anyone.. just try it for yourself some snowy day.

And what do you do with all those Swatches? Well, I don’t know what you do but I love and covet them all my live long day:-) Oh... and I keep them in neat little boxes up on a neat little shelf. See...

These file boxes are sturdy and relatively inexpensive. They hold giant tabbed index cards and stack nicely. I found that keeping swatches in a book style binder made for flat, squished swatches (poor squished swatches). This way they aren’t under so much pressure and can be easily rearranged. Its also easy to flip through them and find what I’m looking for.

I put all the pertinent information on the card like what yarn I used, needle size, final stitch gauge and a chart if there is one. Write the name of the stitch on the top tab for easy locating later.

I love being able to shuffle through all my swatches. Sometimes I’m looking for something specific and sometimes I’m looking for inspiration. Either way, careful organization of the prized Swatches pays off.

Stray kitty update...

I mentioned before that we have been adopted by a homeless kitty. After she hung around for several days we gave in a made her a place on the porch with food and water. We have since upgraded her accommodations to an insulated dog house and her very own Sponge Bob Square Pants blanket. The kids have named her Zig Zag because she runs back and forth across their path every time they step outside.

Unfortunately bringing her into the house just isn’t an option. I just don’t think the other cats would stand for it... and I’m pretty sure poor Darwin would have a mental breakdown.

Definitely winter...

The weekend was less than gentle weather-wise and today is proving to be downright vicious. The wind is howling and the view from atop our hill is almost a tad creepy... talk about your “blanket of clouds”.

We did venture out on Saturday. Stopped in to the dry goods store and picked up some thermal shirts for the kids at less than the price of a Starbucks latte.

We spent a good part of the afternoon at the antiques/collectibles shop. I typically do more browsing than anything but this time I brought home a set of Oxford bowls that match a larger bowl I already have.

The first holiday gifts that I ordered arrived along with some selfish choices... some for knitting and some not. I’m not sure why I felt I really needed the new Harmony guides... like I needed yet another stitch directory.

The need for the Patchwork book is a direct result of the rummaging I’ve been doing in the yet-to-be-unpacked boxes of sewing supplies and fabric downstairs. Most of that stuff has been packed since about July so most of it is a pleasant surprise to me. I can’t remember what I had for dinner last night never-mind what I put in a box in July.

Unfortunately, there isn’t a lot of actual knitting progress to show today. I’m more in the spreadsheet phase of a few things. Trying to muddle through some short term and long term projects and goals.

Short term... it would be nice to get through the holidays without feeling exhausted and used up. I’m desperately trying to avoid the pressure to spend, spend, spend. I’d much rather take the time to give gifts that are thoughtful and useful. Of course, this train of thought may have long left the station since its already the first week of December. Mac Daddy will tell you that I do this every year... I get all sentimental and wishy-washy about 2 months too late and then have a meltdown a few days before Christmas when its blatantly obvious I will never get everything on the list finished in time. The road to hell Christmas is paved with good intentions.

My only solace right now is my own delight at what’s in all those boxes downstairs. My favorite fabrics and collected ribbons and trims. Eyelet and batiste and cotton flannel along with quilting books and smocking plates.

So once we’re done with math and history I’ll trek back downstairs and see what I can get into. Dust off the sewing machine, finish some stitch counts, and hopefully get lost in a few yards of fabric and a few hanks of wool...