Pinkeeps - fact or fiction

Hello people!  My weekend is starting with bad coffee and lots of sunshine.  One out of two ain't bad.  Hope your odds are better.

Pinkeeps.  We all stitch them - do you use them?  Are you afraid to stick needles into your beautiful stitching for fear of splitting a linen thread?  I use my new one and my little box lid with Nan's design that I did a while back.

 

Both are 28 count and with the thicker threads being spaced further, I didn't think it would matter. 

 

Bingo!  Right on target.  If I made it as a pinkeep, I guess this is to be expected.  Do you ever stitch a design for this purpose, or do you display as such and not use it?  If you've used a 35 count tight weave, your chances of splitting would be greater, right?  Just curious.

My progress on Eliza is very slow because I've been very tired after scrubbing screens and windows, plus I'm still throwing things out.  Linen closet and clothes closet.  You have to know this is hard for a person who is indecisive, but instead of thinking about the item, I toss and don't look back.  It's the only way and it's working. 

 My next color was 351 and I removed the letters after seeing it in place.  The brights are growing on me, but this one was like a nerve conduction test.  So I decided to use the 351 that I dipped in a speck of gray dye.  Pretty isn't it?  Some floss took the gray with one quick dip and others, barely a change.  This was a quick dipper.

That's all I got!  Thank you for stopping by.  Welcome to new followers.  I appreciate all of you very much!  Without you, I don't think I would have starting stitching again.

Stay safe and have a wonderful weekend.

 

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Take it from the top

...or how to stitch a sampler after it's framed. Thank you for suggesting a curved needle.  Great idea!  I fixed Mary right after I posted, but will certainly remember that for next time.  Yes, I'm sure there will be a next time.

 

 

 I started with the loop knot method and picked up the threads from the bottom of the cross in the prior stitch.

Pulled through the loop, slipped the needle under the fabric, and came up at the correct spot.  The loop disappeared and I can't even tell where it was.  Keeping the needle flat, I used a piece of paper to cover the linen starting directly where the needle came out.

This made it really easy to stitch without snagging onto any other threads.  Ended with the needle beneath the fabric to catch the back threads and it worked.

Done.

Good thing I didn't have glass installed!  I keep forgetting to ask my husband about our little air compressor for inflating tires.  Instead of buying canned air, I wonder if there is a way to depress the valve and use that contraption to clean the samplers.  Or blow them off the wall.  Nah.  This isn't the type you attach tools to so it can't be that powerful.  I'll let you know.

I know there will always be the debate about glass/no glass and it really is personal preference.  Do you remember the post showing the inside of the sampler's glass?  I removed the piece to take a photo without glare, and saw why they always looked dull even though the outside of the glass was clean.

I think that's what did it for me.  And yes, they may get dusty without protection and eventually change somewhat, but that's the look we try to achieve for reproductions, and being pressed against this film can't be good either.  Being completely sealed, this must be an off-gas from the threads. Or the mounting board?  Acid free yes, but there are glues and binders in mat board and who knows what in foam.  Spacers would prevent the build up where the floss touches but would it still release something?  So do they need to breathe?  Is it because of something in my house?  Another thing I noticed - the old pieces that didn't have the paper dust cover were not as filmy. ??? Pros and cons for both methods and I like the elegant beauties behind glass, and the primitive repro's bare naked.  As I'm typing this, I'm looking at large Hannah on the wall.  The sun angles here briefly only at sunset in spring before the trees leaf, and I can see it needs to be unassembled and cleaned also.  Take a look at how dull and hazy this is. 

This is another 20+ year old piece.  After cleaning the others, big difference!  I didn't intend to open a can of worms again but the debate will continue as long as there are stitchers.

I'll shut up now.

Have a great day!  Thanks for visiting.

 

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Mary's home

Hi.  Putz here.  Always in a rush menobrain that used to have an attention span and keen perception.  After mounting Mary three different times (because of the stretched linen), sampling her inside of many mouldings to make sure it is juuuuuust the right wood tone, giving the OK to the framer before she sealed the back, I bring her home and .....

Notice anything? 

Take a good look.

 

Here's a closer shot.

 

See it now?

How could I have missed this?  I stared at her for an hour while choosing the frame!  I checked all the lines with my square for perfect mounting!  AUGH!!!!

No glass so I am trying this from the top.  If it doesn't work I'll leave it as is.  Odd though, how this is the first thing I noticed when I hung her on the wall, but never saw it before.

Putz I tell 'ya!

 

Eliza's start - again

Greetings.  The start of another week and this one is going to be warm - finally.  I'm hoping your week is off to a good start and gets better each day. 

I've begun stitching Eliza after a few color changes.  The color I objected to most was 816, and even the numerically similar were not considered.  There are many gold and orange tinged shades in this piece and the blue base reds stood out too much for me.  3777 was my choice for a substitute and goes beautifully with the other colors.  The other change was pink 309 which is now 3830.  She will be colorful, and I'm once again surprised that I like it!

 

I'm beginning to think that the linen color may be what turns me away from the brights.  Most that I've seen in little online thumbnails are chart photos that appear to show the piece stitched on a very light ground which may be the problem.  Too much contrast for me.  Choosing a slightly dark linen doesn't seem to have the same WOW effect.

I used my large screw lock ring which requires the bag's hole to be made a little larger but keeps the bags from jamming.  I think I made the right decision to stick with the true colors instead of using the aged floss I originally planned, but I'm sure I will question it along the way.  Too many colors involved in Eliza, plus her size, made me think twice.

  

  The fabric for this is a yard long so I rolled the bottom and secured with safety pins, but I'm seriously considering a stand.  I gave away most, but still have one left so maybe I'll pull it out and give it a try. 

The first large alphabet is rice stitch, with another following in eyelet.   Naturally I assumed they were both eyelet and I needed my perfect little tweezers to remove my error.  The frogs have been working overtime in recent projects and I hope this goes smoothly, otherwise, they may try to form a union. The borders on each line are a little more involved and will break the tedium of the two large alphabets.

When you're stitching, if your coffee is going right through and you need to make a dash, do you try very hard to complete that element or finish that thread first?  The older I get, that game is harder to win.  I'm drinking tons of water for renal function tests and am finding that the secure needle method we talked about is crucial in these situations.

 

Thanks for visiting - enjoy your day - stay safe!

 

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Pear IX and fabric printing

 

Hi all.  Sick again from trying another Rx so no stitching to show.  I'm posting the new one under the Pear tab and wanted to show how I print on fabric.  I've tried the method of ironing the muslin onto freezer paper and it works, but I've had problems with the paper curling and jamming on occasion.  This is just easier for me.  The trick is not having the fabric in the top two inches of the paper since this is where the rollers first grab to pull it into the printer, and also not along the side edges. 

 

 

 I trim all hanging threads, position the muslin down a bit, and use the wide shipping tape across the entire top.  The bottom edge can be taped at the corners.  This is on card stock and the fabric has lightweight fusible interfacing on the back, but that's not necessary.  If you want to age the fabric, do it before printing.  I move the print down and do a plain paper print to check position before the fabric. 

 

 

 There are times that I want the backing to display an occasion's date or memory that is to large to stitch on a small piece, so this is my solution.  Colored print that matches the front looks good and I should have done this in a blue - but my mind failed me once again!  When sewing, I just put the fronts together and hold it up to a window which allows me to see both outlines to center it, pin, and baste.

If you would like to read the entire poem it is here.

Originally I stitched (680 gold) Never Forget in the light stripes, and had one leaf of navy/white stars fabric and another of red/taupe.  Looked nice, but not me.  But as I'm typing this...... never mind ...... too late.  I'll post both so you can decide.

Thanks for visiting - hope you like number 9.  Three more to go!

Stay safe.

 

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Winner!

Hi everyone.  This time, I put the names on folded strips and drew one.  It said Kathy.  I clicked her name and found her blog called Mood Swings!  How appropriate is that???  She featured the Spectacles Pocket from Primitive Traditions that I've always wanted and never remembered to purchase, and that fabulous scissor case from Barbara Bernard.   Thank you all for participating once again. 

After all the words and sentiments and starred and striped leaves, I decided to remove it all and change May's pear to my liking - plain.  Simple. Dusty colors. May is Memorial Day to me all month long.  The WWII generation has always had a place in my heart, and after bawling for two days of reading poems, I decided on bits of one by Eula Gladys Lincoln, printed on muslin, and used for the back.

 

 

It's smaller than the prior pears, completely filled with stitches, and goes really nice with my pinkeeps of similar color.

I'll list the poem, how I did the back, and the simple chart this weekend.

Do you remember my red boot story?  

 Once again, the township workers were driving by while I was in the driveway with these.  I just came from the cemetery after removing the candle from mom's birthday.  The grounds are very uneven and sopping wet, especially after yesterday's rain.  Seems I always have these cracked and disgusting boots on whenever they see me, even in the summer.  They already think I'm disturbed but at least I'm going down with red boots on.

Hope you have a wonderful weekend.  Thank you again for participating in the offer, and I hope Kathy will be happy with the box.  And as always, thank you much for visiting!

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