For centuries women have used cloth as a tool of comfort and as an expression of beauty within their homes. Creating cloth for warmth, cloth for shelter, our female predecessors embellished these linens with hand stitch using laborious and time consuming techniques thereby enhancing the functional beauty of objects which enveloped and protected their families. Inspired by these women I hope my creations pay tribute to and recognise the devotion expressed in cloth by our female ancestors .







''the use of traditional often time consuming process alludes to the devotion of a mother''. c K. A. Ruane 2007







Thursday, December 22, 2011

loose ends....

I hope you're not busy...it could be a long one today. Embroidery, that's what you came for I presume.....well the silk is extended and still in progress. I have added a strip of the 'shisha' style buttons to the edge of the larger piece. Are you with me? You saw it pinned last time...I am now in the process of adding French Knots, more French Knots than you can shake a stick at actually. At the moment they extend to a mere third of the whole edge..a long way to go with this. It was damp stretched last night though in order to show it here looking its best. Unfortunately the photographs aren't the best...terrible cloud today. I have photoshopped them but this is the best I could do...sorry. 
I am also preparing for the start of Embroider Embellish Create in January. A LOT of interest, thank you all so much. The top picture shows some of my progress for that..getting ahead if I can.


as for the loose ends, well that was one of them, a reminder about the class...the others? First of all the give away, remember? It's here and I will be drawing that as soon as I come back after Christmas so if you want to be part of that then pop over and take a look.
The other loose end.....well in case you haven't noticed it is Christmas....so by way of spreading the good cheer I thought I would have a little sale in the shop...yes, the long neglected shop. So if you go over to Contemporary Stitches and put in the code   happydays   at checkout you will get 10% off. Need any floor cloths? scraps of paper for shopping lists or to put under the cats litter tray? sorted.
So I will say goodbye...farewell...I am signing off for a week to partake of mince pies, chocolate, turkey and Christmas cake.
Wishing all of you the most magical Christmas xxx

16 comments:

Elizabeth said...

A good thing that we, the readers of this insanely funny but most of all interesting and gorgeous blog, have a better opinion about your work than you have!!!!

Enjoy your week off with all the celebrations, enjoy yourself and I'll talk to you soon.

Jane said...

I love that edge, the french knots are wonderful.
Enjoy your week

Mosaic Magpie said...

Enjoy your Christmas Cakes!
Merry Christmas,
Deb

Sequana said...

Happy Holidays! See you at the workshop in January.

Suztats said...

I love your french knots! This is a gorgeous piece in the making. Wishing you a Christmas filled with Joy and Blessings. Make merry!

Magpie's Mumblings said...

A very happy Christmas to you and yours Karen! Eat lots of cake and above all have a great time.

Joanna said...

Have a great time with your daughter. All the best for Christmas and have a wonderful New Year

Heather Woollove said...

Enjoy your time off! I know that you will return rested, well-fed, and having been cosseted by your loving family...in short, ready to get back to work with a vengeance!! Merry Christmas, Karen! XXO-

Lois Evensen said...

You are so funny! Have a wonderful week and we'll see you here next week. :))

Anonymous said...

My word, there will be a lot of French knots on that piece!

Enjoy your holiday..

Jeannie said...

Karen, thank you. You are alway a delight to read and you inspire more than I think you realize. Wishing you a beautiful holiday season and much laughter, joy, fun filled days, and creative journeys in the new year. Have a fantastic holiday.

Zdolność-tworzenia said...

Przepiękne prace. Biel to mój ulubiony kolor.

jill said...

beautiful work as always. Enjoy Christmas

Anonymous said...

Wishing you the merriest of times (you'll smile when I say that initially I mistyped that as the messiest of times!) - see you next year. Have a great one :-)

fialka012 said...

*★ Veselé Vánoce★* 。 • ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ •
•。★ *** ★ 。* 。
° 。 ° ˚* _Π_____*。*˚
˚ ˛ •˛•*/______/~\。˚ ˚ ˛
˚ ˛ •˛• | 田田|門|a šťastný Nový Rok

Ingrid said...

Merry-x-mas Karen, thank you for all the inspiration this year, love stopping by for a "visit"!:-)