Stumpwork Progress: Dragon Preparations

The preparation is finally, and properly, underway on the stumpwork dragon, which according to my mum is called Cedric. Not sure why, but we'll go with it. 

I'm quite glad that I have had quit a bit to sort out in terms of prep work i.e. padding both felt and stitched and other minor background details to work on as I've been pondering over the colour of the silk threads I want to use for the main details. It's taking me a while to make a decision, partly because I'm relying on computer screens to see colours, and types and it's a little frustrating when the photographs aren't clear and as silk threads can be on the expensive side I don't really want to go down the path of ordering a bunch only to find they aren't what I've been looking for. Its times like this when I REALLY, REALLY, wish there was a damn good haberdashers // craftstore in Farnham. Perhaps one day I'll be the one to run it but until then, I'll have to make do with the internet and attending the occasional fair.

Anyway, back to the thread selection, I'm just waiting on some samples to come through, and I have my toes and fingers cross they are a match. 

Back to the prep layer, thus far I have stitched the padding for the satin for the shield details, and applied the maypole fabric and vintage gold thread. 

I've done the maypole a little weirdly, in that there is a felt layer which has been wrapped round by the silk dupion, only one side of the pole can you see the stab stitches as the other side has been secured underneath the silk....probably the worst explanation ever!

Weird abstract art....otherwise known as padding.

The next bit is the blue felt padding which will make up the dragon, then I'll have to wait till I finally decide on the silk thread, bit annoying having to put it away again, but I do have the Frida pattern to get on with, and oh, and  I might have purchased a few items over the week, so I have them to play with too:

Four fat quarters of various weight printed cottons from Village Haberdashery, I didn't really need them but the excuse is one of them might be chosen to be the curtain for my bedroom. Otherwise, they were really, really pretty and I haven't purchased fabric in a while. Don't judge me. The other, perhaps slightly unnecessary purchase was some new art materials. I've been itching to get back to drawing, and it came about from doodling coats of arms, a bit of a small love affair of mine. I just love the way they are structured from the use of a limited colour range (tinctures) to the symbolism of the images used. I've stitched one or two coats of arms in the past, but I've gotten into the love of making my own up so I've been using watercolours, inks and promarkers. The latter I wanted a few more colours to add to my stash for use when I am designing embroidery patterns and so forth. So they were my naughty spends for the weekend. Which will and are being used.

This one eventually went really, really wrong owing to an accident with the ink but it was good to play around with paint and ink again. 

Do you have a secret passion or not so secret one that's perhaps not entirely associated with what you make create? Or have you purchased any materials lately that you didn't really need, but wanted anyway? Do share!

Around the World Blog Hop

Chrissie of Chrissie Crafts invited me to take part in this blog hop. The idea is to answer a few questions about your work and then you in turn invite others to do the same. See below whom I have passed the questions on to...or in my case who I follow.

What am I working on?
Like most folks who are creative I have multiple things on the go, nothing like breaking up projects with having several more projects to work on.

As of yesterday I started the preparation work for my next complex piece, a stumpwork dragon, based on the idea of Medieval illuminated manuscripts. 

I'm also stitching a project for myself, the Pretty Little San Francisco design by Satsuma Street. I work on it a little bit at a time in the evenings, so the progress is really, really slow but that's fine by me. I have a feeling though I'll be taking it on my holidays at the end of August to finish it!

I also have the quilt for my bedroom, which needs one more row of blocks for me to cut out and stitch together then it will be the sashing. I'll get all the fabric out again in the coming months to do it.

I know whilst I am working on the dragon I'll be wanting to work on some other new designs that have yet to be thought up. I'd quite like to do another typography piece, just not narrowed down the quote I want to work on next. 

How does my work differ from others of its genre?
I don't think I have a genre? I have a style I think? And I have a craft // technique that I use but don't think i have a genre. So I'll focus on the craft itself to answer this question. My embroidery is different from others because it's me doing the designing. Sure I was taught the same way as my peers that went to the RSN (before they dropped the Apprenticeship) but the way we stitch is different from each other. I'm quite certain if we were given the same design to stitch, and even limited the choice of materials and colours, we'd still work it differently. Put our own little stamp on it. Or even if there was no deviation from the design, materials, stitches and colours and we were forced to do it exactly the same way it would feel a little different. I'm not talking about experience of our stitch work, I am talking about the way we impart a little bit of ourselves into the work we do. Like to think of it like a stitching fingerprint. 

Why do I write/create what I do?
It keeps me sane.

No, really! It's my go to when I am not at work, though I think about stitching all the time. I always carry a notebook around with me so that I jot down an idea, or make a note about how I would do a part of a project. Being creative is a part of me. Take it away and I am not sure I'd be the same person. 

And you know, I have to doodle new designs all the time, otherwise I'd never have an excuse to buy more notebooks:

Just the tip of the iceberg folks, just the tip.

How does my writing/creating process work?
It starts with a doodle. If I can't stop adding to the design, or have already started to figure out how I would stitch it and what materials I'd use then then I'll progress it to tidying up the design and if by the end of that stage I really, really itching to stitching it....THEN I do. Sometimes I can get to this stage and either I am not thrilled with the design as much I thought I was, or I'll do it bit by bit over a longer time or leave it for another day.

Now this is where I should list the next folks to participate and this is where I have to hold my hands up, I've not had the head space to chase folks and by the time I did alas some of them have already done it or couldn't do it. And in some instances I felt a little embarrassed to ask them because I've never approached them before. Very silly I know! So, I don' t like to admit defeat instead I am just going to pick a few folks that I follow and encourage you to go and look at their work, and follow their blogs and you know offer them a cookie or something.

Spirit Cloth - I've been following her work for a couple of years now. I just love not only her style, her ethics and her craftmanship.

Materialistic - love her embroidery designs, and use of colour.

Jen Goodwin - super lady, who frankly works flipping hard. Always stitching, always designing new kits and always teaching. The latter she's really good at.

So there are a few for you to have a look at, and hopefully follow.  

Summer Bugs and New Product

I've retreated to the comfortable surrounds of my livingroom this weekend, as I've picked up a rotten summer cold. Not quite the way I wanted to spend my free time. Ah, well the slow down time isn't necessarily bad, though I could do without the sore nose, the fever but you know, my little camp I've set up in the livingroom is rather snug, I won't share as it's a little messy...

What I had planned on doing was starting my medieval illuminated text stumpwork idea, i.e. the Dragon. I've played a bit with what fabrics I want to use this afternoon but I can't focus too long on any one thing as my eyes are getting sore (hayfever too, yay!) but fingers crossed I really will get on with that next weekend. 

I did manage one thing yesterday which I was pleased with which was taking photographs of my new note cards. I mentioned a while ago that I was planning on starting to release some of my embroidery designs as cards and I finally got round to ordering a small selection and these were listed yesterday.

With six packs I've got on sale, each will receive an additional postcard of my selection from my prototypes. If you would like to grab a set head to my Etsy store, £3.50 (plus P&P). I hope next week that the new pocket mirror designs will be arriving next week for me to list.

Now it's time to go and rest up again on the sofa and watch a silly film and perhaps work a bit more of the cross stitch.