Hand Embroidery

S A M P L E S

Our brief this week was to produce twenty samples related to our data. At first I panicked a little because I didn't think I was quick enough at hand stitching to produce that amount of samples. However, when it came to it I managed the work load okay. Here I have selected my three favourite samples.

For the sample below, I used the waxed tea bags and hand stitched them on to a base fabric using running stitch. I then decorated the gaps with a thick embroidery thread and used chain stitch. 

This second sample actually has two layers. The top layer is a very lightweight and has a loose knit and so you can see through to the bottom heavier fabric. On the top layer I have disarranged a wool fabric to create texture and relate to my data as it reminds me of the way my tea bags began to break down and holes appeared. The bottom fabric is occupied with white french knots which you can see through the top fabric.  

The last sample was created by using the same woollen fabric and tearing it to create the same effect as above, but a new design. For this one I used bondina to hold the top fabric in place and then satin stitched along the edges and put a chain stitch through the middle. 

I made most of my hand samples relatively simple because at the time I was worried I would not be able to produce twenty. If I were to do them again, I would have liked to be more creative and produce more detailed samples. 

Hand embroidery

F I R S T  &  S E C O N D  T U T O R I A L S

In our first hand embroidery tutorial we learnt 6 different stitches. From left to right are french knots, running stitch, satin stitch, chain stitch, blanket stitch, herringbone and fagotting ( same technique but are used in different ways). 

In the following tutorial we then got to learn more techniques and these included couching and shisha. 

Couching

This sample below demonstrates couching. This is where you couch something down onto another fabric, here I have used a think yarn and couched over it using satin stitch. 

 Shisha

In order to shisha you have to use a base so here I have used a penny and a circle of card. First you secure the circle and loop around using the inside square. I really liked this technique although it took a lot longer than the other techniques we learnt. 

Looking at samples

P A S T  W O R K

Today we had our first real embroidery session and during the day we got to look at samples from people who had previously done embroidery. I chose to put these images on here as I found them particularly inspiring. 

In the sample below, small french knots and seeding have been used to create a larger image which I thought was really clever and creative. From a distance the knots created a picture on the fabric. 

I also liked the sample in the images below because the stitches were so small and I loved the colours used.