Saturday, February 22, 2014

Buttonhole Silk Twist now on our Etsy Site!

All our RibbonSmyth Buttonhole Silk Twist will now be on our Etsy site.  Our filament silk twist was dyed for us and comes on 23 meter paddles. It's a great thread to add to your stash.   3 packs in 3 different colors, are available on our RibbonSmyth etsy site at www.etsy.com 
 As the studio is revamped, the etsy site inventory will greatly increase.

Crazy Quilt Scissor Fob and Weekend Sale!

Our RibbonSmyth 20% off Weekend Sale ends midnight Monday, February 24th at www.ribbonsmyth.com Any order of $25 or more, receives an automatic 20% discount.
 
Featured is a small 2 3/4" crazy quilt scissor fob, made years ago using our double-sided adhesive cardboard disks. These disks are versatile pieces to use for brooches and for small projects.
I pieced several tiny scrap pieces and then using French knots, the Feather Stitch and Bullion Lazy Daisy stitch, embroidered around a 1950's Japanese hand-blown flower, using 4mm silk ribbon. The adhesive paper was removed off the disk and  the stitched fabric was pressed onto the disk. The back of the disk was covered with moire fabric and ecru cording was glued around the finished embroidery. A great little project for basic ribbon embroidery stitches.

Friday, February 7, 2014

Blue Jean crazy quilt block

Close-up of the blue jean patch and a few buttons.
 


Beginning Blue Jean Nine-Block Crazy Quilt

I had kept a pair of very old blue jeans, due to the velvet embroidery on both legs. I cut the motifs into 9 pieces and then pieced them onto a vintage piece of baby flannel. I've used silk doupioni and velvet pieces from our doupioni and velvet assortment packs. I will ultimately cut the blocks to 7"x9" pieces. The plan is only to stitch the Herringbone stitch on each seam, using lime green Scalamandre silk and then add seed beads to the Herringbone stitches. Will add groups of buttons where each piece of fabric intersects and that will complete each block. Not "embellishing" will be the exercise. The stitches are a bit "shaky". I worked on the stitches, sitting near a door in our sunroom, during the latest ice storm, while we had no power.
I have a heavy vintage crimson damask drapery panel that I would like to use for the border and the backing fabric. Time to cut up the panel and get it out of the trunk, where it has sat for two decades. I think it would be great to have one small wall-
hanging, where I could look at some of the buttons that have been collected for so many years. Time to use my collections of "everything" or move them on to the next "gatherers"!