| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| The Farmers Daughter |
Posted - Jul 16 2005 : 08:28:48 AM
Are any of you on this forum cross stitchers? I'm the most un-talented person you have ever met and counted cross stitch is one of the few things I'm good at. I love to do reproduction antique samplers on fine linen and then "antique" them in a tea bath to give them that old look. If any of you have other ideas for giving linen an old look, please share. Thanks!
Sher, The Farmer's Daughter |
| 25 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| Jana |
Posted - Mar 16 2006 : 09:19:16 AM
Sherry,
Finally I'm back on the board. Yes, I have done cross stitch but it has been a lot of years. I recently went a little berzerk and bouth 4 patterns designed by 'Little House Needleworks' and am starting one now.
I learned how to do cross stitch in the late 70s at one of those 'Creative Circle' parties that my roomate at the time had. I then taught my sil, who now, after all these years has LOTs of cross stitch done and hanging in her home. I don't really have much, so I'm starting again. I'm really into country/cottage/primitive stuff. I think if it has a sheep or a willow tree on it, I want to stitch it!
Jana |
| ikaylor |
Posted - Mar 12 2006 : 3:02:44 PM
I cross stitched years ago and got out of it as my kids entered school and i went back to work.Unfortunately i also got rid of all my materials floss,patterns and everything.Now I am trying to get it all back and boy is it expensive.....Would anyone care to share some amish living patterns?
happy stitching |
| julia hayes |
Posted - Jan 11 2006 : 6:25:56 PM
UH-OH!! no I have not seen piecework!! another thing for me to check out!! can't wait...I know, some of these stitchers are just amazing.. thanks for the info! Julia hayes
being simple to simply be |
| jpbluesky |
Posted - Jan 10 2006 : 8:10:39 PM
I bought a hand towel (made with a linen) for .50 once at a garage sale. It was crosstitched with a victorian lady in a bonnet. The reason I bought it was because the back was almost as beautiful as the front. It was a perfect piece of stitching.....for .50! There should be a law against that! :) Hours of work and skill went into it, and now I love it and cherish owning it. I even gave 1.00 for it....bigger spender, huh?
I too, love the publication of Antique Sampler. Years ago, they did a set of hardback books with the same name. I will always keep them and I use them too. I also like the publication Piecework. Have you seen that one?
"Sell cleverness and buy wonder" |
| julia hayes |
Posted - Jan 10 2006 : 6:58:28 PM
This is wonderful! I love to cross stitch, free-hand stitch and so forth..virtually anything in the sewing realm is right up my alley.. Have any of you heard of the magazine "Antique Sampler?" its published 4x/year and I just gobble up every single page. One of the things that is has inspired me to consider is make my stitching the same front and back..hiding knots and making everthing seamless.. some of the antique samplers that they feature from 1700's etc, stitched by 8 year olds are just breathtaking!! good to know stitchers are so passionate! Julia Hayes
being simple to simply be |
| jpbluesky |
Posted - Jan 10 2006 : 2:40:51 PM
Colette-you can stretch Aida too lacing it the way we explained.
I am so glad you are stitching and enjoying it! Cross-stitchers are rare and endangered now....:)
"Sell cleverness and buy wonder" |
| mustbeteatime |
Posted - Jan 10 2006 : 2:32:06 PM
Thanks so much for the information. One of these days I really will get those pieces framed, if only to preserve the first things I ever did. They are both kits and stitched on Aida - I didn't know about linen when I bought the kits - and I intend to replace the Aida with linen for the other couple of kits I haven't done yet. I have a small piece on linen in progress now and like it so much better. Your advice has really given me a much better sense of what I need to do next.
I intend to eventually stitch up lids to correspond with some of the things I store in mason jars in my pantry just to make me smile when I see them and others as gifts - jars filled with homemade chocolates. So I hope to eventually create some of my own designs for those.
I'd love to hear more about samplers and "useable" stitched items from all of you.
-Colette
Enjoy the good things in life! |
| jpbluesky |
Posted - Jan 10 2006 : 06:03:54 AM
Colette - When mounting needlework for preservation, and we all want our work to look nice through the years, here is the safest method. It will also allow you to "undo" it if you should ever want to re-frame it or save it out of the frame.
First of all, always stitch on a piece of fabric at least 3 inches larger than your stitched work all around. This will leave you plenty of extra space to work with when framing.
The following is the method I use most often. I stretch my finished work around a piece of non-acid light-colored matte board (not the sticky kind). I do not use foam core, because it is too thick and hard to fit into a frame later. I stretch the fabric snugly around the board by inserting straight pins in the matte board along the edges, sticking out. This secures the piece to the board, so you can now turn it over and work on the back without holding it in place. Turn it over onto a clean surface after pinning it, and lace your fabric by using a threaded needle and lacing the two sides together like you were lacing shoe strings. The sides of the fabric do not have to meet. Snugly lace the sides, and then do the top to the bottom. Fold the corners neatly like a bedsheet when you get to them. Remove your pins. Now you have your needlework nicely stretched around the matte board. This board should be cut larger than the opening of the decorative matte that will frame your work, or cut to the same size as the frame you will use. For instance, samplers many times have no decorative matte frame. They are most historically correct just being fitted into a frame.
If you are using glass in your framing, you can get "spacers" that run along the very sides of your frame, behind the glass but on top of your needlework. This lifts the needlework off of the glass, so it is not mashed.
I have also used the method of sewing my stitched linen on all four sides to another piece of linen, and then stretching that second piece of fabric around matte board. I use one large piece of linen underneath the stitched one, not cut strips on each side. This really helps preserve the work, as it is totally untouched by matte board at all, and it looks very antique when finished.
Hope this helps. Oh, and I use quilting thread to lace. It is strong and will not break as you pull it snug.
I did a cross-stitch design book of jar lids once called the Jar Lacy Collection. It was really fun, and we filled our jars with candy, shells, jellies, baby cottonballs, pot pourri, everything we could think of and had great fun with the project.
"Sell cleverness and buy wonder" |
| Bridge |
Posted - Jan 09 2006 : 08:57:31 AM
From what I have read it is best to not use the "sticky" boards because thay can yellow & weaken your piece over time.
If you go to a framing shop you can get a piece of mounting board that is acid free and then stretch and mount your piece on to that board. You basically wrap the piece around the board and then lace it with a good thread like you would a shoe. Tighten and tie/stitch it off. |
| RachelLeigh |
Posted - Jan 08 2006 : 6:12:48 PM
My mother and I both mount our cross-stitch work on the mounting boards with the sticky stuff on them (I don't know the technical term.) It's very easy to just lift the fabric off and re-center. It holds secure and work I did in 1992 still looks fabulous today!
My blog: mycountryhome.blogspot.com |
| mustbeteatime |
Posted - Jan 08 2006 : 5:14:08 PM
Questions for anyone with the know-how:
I have a couple pieces of cross-stitch for framing, but I don't know what to mount them on. I would think that foam-core wouldn't be archival. When the directions refer to mounting board, is that like mat board used in framing?
Also, jpbluesky, you mentioned stitching your linen to another piece for mounting - would that be a larger piece across the whole back or is that strips attached to the edges?
As you can tell, I am really new to stitching, but really enjoy the time I spend doing it. I am not the neatest stitcher, but I sent my mom-in-law a fingertip towel for her birthday with a hummingbird on it and she loves it. I've also done a few jar lids and plan on doing more of those very soon as my Mom's birthday is coming up and I want to give her some of those.
I'd love to see some Danish designs as mentioned here - I have a booklet on stitching on linen by Ginnie Thompson and she is quite pro-Dane! I do not think I will ever be as neat as she describes how the back should look!
I have more stitching projects than experience (hardanger, embroidery - esp. monograms, many more cross-stitch pieces, and now my mom has turned me on to something called needle-darning and I have a pamphlet on it although I haven't tried it yet). This is a great thread! (pun intended!)
Colette
Enjoy the good things in life! |
| a native |
Posted - Jan 07 2006 : 9:32:33 PM
Hi my name is a native, Iam new to the group i was wondering if you know if the amish have pin pals I just moved to ky, state from id, also do any you know anythink about soap makeing.well ithank you .Erma leonard |
| jpbluesky |
Posted - Aug 23 2005 : 7:54:28 PM
I am with you on needing a break from reading the charts. I think I like samplers because once I get started on a border, or an alphabet, it is a little easier to anticipate what is coming and that relieves the chart reading fatigue!
To our friend in Canada who is looking for soimmple and inexpensive country patterns - Ebay has lots of cross-stitch books for sale, and sometimes you can get a whole group of them for very cheap. Here in the states, cross-stitch pattern books are a common garage sale find, but do not know if that holds true in Canada.
Also, look online for Hoffman Distributors. If I get the website URL, I will edit this later and link it.
jpbluesky
heartland girl |
| Bridge |
Posted - Aug 23 2005 : 3:08:58 PM
I also love to stitch, I have tons of patterns. I think I collect patterns more than I stitch!!
I will never be able to stitch them all!!
I love Paula Vaughns patterns.
I also like to do the printed x-stitch, such as runners and pillow cases.
I do those when I need a break from reading the charts!! |
| The Farmers Daughter |
Posted - Aug 23 2005 : 06:03:19 AM
Hi Jana! I have done both and both made the samplers look super old! Right now I'm working on a Notforgotten Farm pattern. When it's done I'll put it in a distressed black frame and hang it by two little nails and wire. Hopefully that will give it another old look! IF I can get my nerve up, I'll even try clipping some of the threads to make it look worn...Not sure I can bring myself to do that after this much work! HA Are you a stitcher too Jana? Sounds like we have some very talented gals on this board! Hugs,
Sher, The Farmer's Daughter |
| Jana |
Posted - Aug 22 2005 : 9:55:36 PM
Sher,
I was reading through an old cross stitch pattern leaflet that had repro schoolgirl samplers in it and they had the tea dying in it, but also taking the wet tea bag and dabbing it on the fabric randomly. Also using instant coffee crystals dropped randomly to leave darker specks. Sounds interesting!
Jana |
| CityCat |
Posted - Aug 21 2005 : 4:44:17 PM
Can someone direct me to a good source for cross-stitch patterns? And resonably priced (or free?) My Mom stopped cross-stitching recently because she doesn't have any new patterns. She goes to craft shows and can't bring herself to pay a lot of money for patterns. And she doesn't consider herself creative enough to make up her own patterns. She really likes patterns with a country motif. No samplers though. Farm scenes, ones with girls in aprons, old town/country scenes. Ones that look like they were paintings, almost cartoonish, sorta like Lego characters? I'm hoping this description is enough...
Cat
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| jpbluesky |
Posted - Jul 28 2005 : 11:50:32 AM
CelticCoyote - The Amish designs mentioned above are mostly designs that depict the Amish lifestyle in a simple and appealing way. The designs I remember would show an Amish family, an Amish farm or buggy, a quilt on a clothesline....it was a form of country.
I know the Amish are skilled needleworkers, but most often embellished linens or made quilts, right? I doubt if they did much cross-stitch. But the Amish designs that were popular were very homey and cozy.
Our company did a paper-cutting design book on that subject. One of the cuttings was of a windmill, one a horse and buggy, one of a woman hanging clothes on a line. One was of two small children walking down a road. Perhaps I have over-explained, just wanted to clarify.
jpbluesky
Heartland girl |
| CelticCoyote |
Posted - Jul 28 2005 : 11:25:54 AM
I LOVE cross-stitch! Especially the antique samplers...I hope to do many antique samplers & eventually frame them all & hang them in a grouping on the wall. There's a really neat book at our library called Historic Samplers that has about a dozen or more samplers that were made more than 100 years ago (some as old as the 1600s) by children. They include information about each child, a photo of the sampler itself (all are in museums), and best of all, a chart to recreate the samplers yourself. There are a couple done by small boys, and some really exquisite work by surprisingly young girls. I HIGHLY recommend this book...the samplers are lovely, and the stories & history is so wonderful!
Oh, and I also wanted to mention that I'm part Amish. I'm not hugely familiar with Amish cross stitch, but I'd love to see some examples, if anyone has photos to share! |
| Alee |
Posted - Jul 20 2005 : 11:19:49 PM
I sometimes do cross stitching...It is one of my favorite "winter" activities as I love to read in the sun during my summer "downtime" but sitting by the fire and stitching is nice when it is cold or icky outside!
Cheers
Alee |
| The Farmers Daughter |
Posted - Jul 20 2005 : 5:01:15 PM
I LOVED reading all your replies! It's so heartwarming to know there are so many stitchers on here and you all sound soooo talented! I'm empressed!!!! Now I know where to go when I run into trouble with something! ;-) Right now I'm trying to stitch up a bunch of crow things to display in my shop, "Old Crow Farm". I love them when they look realistic and work up fast! Any neat ideas for something different??? Hugs, Sher
Sher, The Farmer's Daughter |
| Aunt Jenny |
Posted - Jul 19 2005 : 8:51:24 PM
I remember when the amish stuff was so popular too. I still have a little washboard that I stitched an insert for that has amish women and a clothesline on, with quilts hanging..I love it.
Jenny in Utah
The best things in life arn't things! |
| bramble |
Posted - Jul 19 2005 : 8:09:17 PM
I did some Amish cross stitch too! It had two people holding an egg basket and another with Amish washday with the quilts on the line. I still have them both, it's funny to think they are over 20 years old, but they are! I also did a Shaker Tree of Life and "Shaker Garden Seeds",both simple looking designs but very time consuming!
Anyone discovered Sheepish Designs? They have repro and original samplers that are done in all the soft old colors of the old samplers and I just love them, they look like antiques when you are done.
Every July my crazy friends have a girls only "Christmas in July" party and you are supposed to bring a Christmas present for whoever is your pollyanna person. We pick at New Years so you have a long time to come up with a good gift. They only stipulation is that it can't cost more than $20.00 and you have to have made some part of it. I cross stitched a Victorian Santa Jeannie designed and made a crazy quilt pillow to go around it. The pillow was very well received and someone has already borrowed the design book, Jeannie! Your work lives on here in central NJ!
We started this kooky party as our families began to grow and although we wanted to do alittle something for each other at Christmas it just became too overwhelming. This way we have a piece of each other with us during the holidays even when we can't be together. We always sign whatever it is with the year and to and from filled in. I usually do some kind of stitching and no one has complained yet!
with a happy heart |
| jpbluesky |
Posted - Jul 19 2005 : 6:57:45 PM
NO, I remember those designs, but cannot remember the designer right off hand. We never did a lot of kitting for direct sale, but did a lot for kit catalogues.
It is so good to talk to other cross-stitchers!
jpbluesky
Heartland girl |
| citygoatlady |
Posted - Jul 19 2005 : 5:28:41 PM
I wonder if you designed those ones i bought. One had a family in "the harvest". Another had a garden and kids in a row - I still have this kit, and I never sewed it.
Bloom where you are planted. |
