Just A Quick Post Today

Another cloudy, dreary day here.  Perfect for curling up on the sofa and stitching.  Before I do that, I thought I give you an update on my current project:

I worked all of the seam embroidery with Kreinik threads.

I also thought I would share a couple of new Hanging Pillows that mom made:

I guess that's all I have for today ladies!

CQ Seam Embellishments

I added some more Kreinik threads to my CQ Christmas purse.  The poinsettia flowers in the vintage hankie needed to pop a little bit:

 Please excuse Wrigley's ear in this photo.  Like most cats, he likes to be in the middle of everything!

And here are some close up photos of the seam embellishments:

I still have some stitching to do on this.  I've been asked several times, how does one know when one is done.  It's not so much a "knowing" as it is a "feeling".  You just get the feeling that it's well balanced and one more bead or do-dad would be too much.  It's like anything else in life, practice makes perfect.

Finally for today, I have a new Hanging Heart that mom made:

Kreinik Metallic Facets

My current project is this Crazy Quilt Christmas purse:

The top of the purse is part of a vintage Christmas hankie.  I kept looking at the edge of the hankie and felt that it needed some sort of definition. I didn't feel that beading around it was the right thing.  I just wanted it to have a little definition.  Then I remembered my beautiful Kreinik metallic threads. 

Kreinik offers a thread called, Facets.  It's available in a variety of sizes but for this project, I decided on the Petite Facets in gold:

The Facets are very glittery and actually look like little beads.  They're not intended to use for actual stitching but rather are meant to be couched on using another thread.  I used a Kreinik metallic cord for that which is very fine.

Here are some close up photos so you can see how it looks:

You learn more about the Kreinik Facets here on their website.

And before I turn the computer off for today, I thought I'd share yet another picture of my very cute baby kitty:

Cotton ball loves to play on the bed when I'm trying to make it every morning!  I was trying to put clean sheets on the bed yesterday when he decided it would be fun to lay in the middle of everything. 

Kreinik Threads

I didn't have a lot of stitching time yesterday but some.  Here's an update on my Irish Lady Crazy Quilt Pillow:

And here's a closeup of the beading on my fill in work that I did with Kreinik metallic thread #4 Braid:

Linda B asked me if Kreinik threads are difficult to stitch with.  The answer is no, not really.  Kreinik #4 and #8 Braids are no more difficult to stitch with than embroidery floss or Perle cottons.

Blending Filaments, which I use to create my spider webs can be a bit challenging since it's so fine.  You can read an article I wrote last October on working with Kreinik threads here.

Irish Lady Pillow continued

A quick update on my Irish Lady Pillow:

And this is something that I'm going to be experimenting with more on upcoming projects:

"Fill in" patterns using my waste canvas technique.  Basically, Blackwork but in this case, I used a single strand of Kreinik metallic #4 braid.  Just a sneak peek of things to come.

Embroidered Spider Webs with Kreinik Metallics

Awhile back, I wrote a tutorial on how to create Embroidered Spider Webs on Crazy Quilts.  I also wrote a tutorial on how to make a Beaded Spider.  I love stitching spider webs on my crazy quilts so I thought for today, I would talk about making them with one of my favorite threads, Kreinik metallics.

Kreinik Mfg. Co. Inc. produces a variety of beautiful embroidery silk and metallic threads.  As you know,  all that glitters is gold to me so I naturally gravitate to anything that sparkles and Kreinik threads are at the top of my sparkly thread favorites!

Kreinik offers metallic threads in a variety of sizes including #4 and #8 Braids which are excellent for Crazy Quilt Seam Treatments however, for spider webs, my thread of choice is Blending Filament.

Blending Filaments are intended for blending with other threads such as 6 strand embroidery floss.  1 or 2 strands of Blending Filament added to a couple of strands of embroidery floss will certainly add glitter and sparkle to any cross stitch project!

A single strand of Blending Filament, used alone for a spider web on a crazy quilt will most definitely give the look of realism since the thread is so fine.

There are a few challenges to stitching with a single strand of Blending Filament.  Here are few tips:

• These are very delicate, thin threads so gentleness and patience is a must.

• Use a needle with a large enough eye.  Getting a strand of this thread through the eye of a tiny needle is impossible.

•  Use a length of only 12  - 15 inches and keep a long tail.  Without a long tail, it will keep sliding out of the needle.  You can also try a slip knot and tie it to the eye of the needle however, I don't care for this option.  Once that knot is on the needle, it's difficult to remove.  

• Be gentle with it.  Blending Filament breaks very easily so don't tug on it too much.

With a little patience, beautiful, natural looking spider webs can be created using these gorgeous glittery threads.  Take your time and you'll be thrilled with the results.

Kreinik Blending Filaments are very affordable and come in huge variety of colors.  Be sure to visit Kreinik's website to see what they offer!