Your work is beautiful! I love that you have used beads and other items to embellish your work.

This is the original fern, with larger swatches of fabric inserted which create the fern, as in the library bag. I am going to try making a needlebook instead of a bag with this one. That is why it is placed on the fabric as it is. Also I have cut batting. Many times I will embroider through cotton batting, which might get a call from the quilting police. But I will pull whatever tiny bits of fuzz come through in order to have a more sturdy piece, especially since I will apply beadwork. At this point I will carefully place this in a frame and start hand embroidery. Sometimes I will straight stitch very carefully around my applique, especially if I think it is going to get some rough handling. I did not do it on the library bag. It has been washed 4 or 5 times in a regular cycle. I turn the beadwork to the inside before washing it. It shows no signs of coming apart, even though I did not topstitch the applique before hand embroidering it. But fusible web is only a temporary fixative. It may be the small stitches on the fern leaves that help keep it secure.

Here are the leaf patterns for the dandelions. I made them by folding strips of freezer paper in half lengthwise and then cutting the jagged shape of a dandelion leaf along the cut edge. You can make your own easily. I have included these here if you would like to use them. You can see the fold running down the center of each leaf. Many times I make my own patterns.

Detail of seed head:

I used tulle on a spool that is 6 inches wide. I cut 36 inches of tulle, then folded it down the length and cut it in half. This gave me a length of tulle that was 36" long and 3" wide. You can purchase tulle by the yard and cut it with the rotary cutter. I happened to have this in my stash so I used it. Some tulle by the yard has a fancier sparkly finish which may add to the appearance of the piece. This piece is intended to be the front of a pillow, of course for show only.

Fold the cut piece of tulle 36"x3" again down its length making it 1 1/2 " wide. Gather it with a running stitch along the cut edges. When you have it stitched along the length, gather it together and knot it so it won't come undone. This I flattened with my hand to make it easier to stitch to the fabric.

I worked french knots randomly onto the seed head to hold it flat against the fabric. Later I added the beads. You can see when you look at the whole piece that I don't have beads on all of the seed heads yet. This is a work in progress. I will try to get it done soon and post it here.

These are the beads that I used on the seed head. I think they are called bugle beads, but don't quote me. Memory fails again! I plan on stitching some directly onto the green background fabric to look like little seeds floating in the air.

Detail of snail & butterfly:

Wow!

And just for fun, I included a couple of pics of my bead collection that I use for embellishing! I always try to read every post about sewing rooms so I can see everybody's stash and all their crafting stuff they have accumulated through the years. It is great fun for me!

O
M
G.....lolol

KastleKitty.. it's honestly HARD to respond to the tutorials AND your beading booty. I'm speechless. You've done a fantastic job of building these tutorials and a simple thanks seems sorta watered down! So.. I guess I can assume the snail/butterfly embroidery is all free hand too? I've spent years loathing dandelions...and now.. I feel the need to perfect stitching THEM...LOL You've just mastered so many aspects of this entire process it's a lot to take in!

Thank you thank you thank you! Do you have a personal blog? I bet you'd have a boat load of followers if you did! Then you could just pop things in as you got them done.

It's all just mind boggling.. I love it to PIECES! .
.

Wow! Thanks for the tutorial. I love the seed heads and just cannot believe how smooth and consistant your embroidery is. It's going to take a few lifetimes before I can come even close to that--I wish I had started learning this stuff sooner.

Grambi, The first time I tried embroidery I did a lousy job. Don't start with a satin stitch, I found that one hard, keeping an edge even. Start with making lines. Both insects are nothing but lines next to each other. I will look up the stitch I did on the snail & butterfly and send you instructions. Give me a bit of time to find it. It is not very difficult. And I had never done it before I did it on these bugs! The bugs started with me drawing the outline with one of those aqua water erase markers. All I did was fill it in starting with darkest brown curl in the shell so I could see the colors come together to make it fun. I had no instruction, just graduated the colors all in a row. Pick your assortment of colors first. I will also look for the two bug outlines I used. I filed them away too, and not with the piece in my pizza box! So give me some time to locate it all. When I was doing it I had no idea I would ever post it! LOL

On French knots make sure you have the knot at the base of the needle where it enters the fabric. Pull it taut before you start pulling the thread down through the knot and fabric. For some reason people think they are difficult, but they are my favorite stitch. I love candlewicking for that reason.

This is the chain stitch I used on the insects. I only discovered it just before I did it. You will not find it that difficult:

http://www.embroidery.rocksea.org/st.../chain-stitch/

I really like this site. She has lots of easy pictures to follow!

These are rough pictures of the insects. I could not find the originals. I think you will have to manipulate the size if you print them.

Very Nice!

Very pretty!!!!!!

WOW!!!! You are very talented and looks beautiful!

wow!!!!!!! holy cow!!!!!!!! those are absolutely amazing! do you sell or are these all for keeps or gifts?

Kris

Your tutorials are fantastic and Sarah's Hand Embroidery Site is very helpful. Thanks.

KastleKitty, thanks for the links, and insect outlines, but especially, thanks for the words of encouragement. It's nice to hear that it is possible to make something so beautiful without years of practice. Once I learned to do a French Knot I also fell in love with it. Will have to check out candlewicking (or add it to my endless list of things I want to learn).

I absolutely love that site! There are so many embroidery stitches out there, and I knew so few. She covers a lot of variety. I am wanting to work on some crazy quilting and use some of the stitches I saw there.

Many years back I was asked to contribute to a going away gift in the form of one quilt block. At the time I was not a quilter. I was intimidated by the whole thing! At a loss to know what to do or even how to start, I came across a candlewicking pattern. I had done slightly more embroidery than quilting, (what is slightly more than zero? LOL) but still had no confidence. All of my sewing background was in clothing construction! But because candlewicking is mostly knots, I thought I would give it a try. I absolutely loved it. Now, years later I read that most people avoid the French knot in embroidery because it is so hard! I see this written over and over again, and it makes me laugh because out of ignorance I picked it thinking it would be easy. And it really is, as you say yourself. And I love it too!

This board is great! It has helped to increase my productivity a lot because I get to interact with people who share my passion. I have new incentive to finish UFO's. Grambi, here is another UFO that probably dates back 25 years or more! I think I have to put it on my current to-do list! It is a piece of candlewicking.

well, thank you Mary's server, for rejecting these. We all got to see them instead! These are EXQUISITE!!!

What an inspiration!!!!!! I can see applique like this being added to wearables such as several plain dress jackets that have been in my closet for years. Would update them to fit in with today's "bling" in wearables. Just this week-end on our PBS station "Sewing with Nancy" featured a guest (can't remember her name) who creates leaves that are evidently meant to be used for decorative items because they were "free standing" (for lack of a better word). They were three dimentional and to achieve the "curles" and "waves" she had used that fabric stiffner stuff. You have done a wonderful, creative job taking "quilting" to "infinity and beyond". Thanks for sharing.

Nana, I am a leaf nut! I collect all things leaf related I can find! I wish I would have been able to watch this particular segment, because I watch "Sewing with Nancy" when I can! I will have to see if it is replayed. Thanks for telling me. (....And I've got some of that stiffener on my shelf! :D :D )

Here is the link to the Pincushion Sewing Kit:

http://www.quiltingboard.com/t-159705-8.htm

Kitty,
These are all museum quality, IMHO! Your work transcends needlework to art and your color choices and placement produce a beautiful overall effect! Stunning!

Thank you! Glad you liked them. I read your info. It says you live in a swamp area! Got any good swamp stories? I am fascinated by different locales. KastleKitty :D :D

They are so wonderful as not to be believed. What fun you have had and what fun it was to see them

They are a lot of fun. I was wondering if your avatar was a quilt you made? It looks like stained glass. I want to try one of them.

(If you made it can you post a larger picture? Or maybe you have one posted already and can send the link?) Kitty

ditto-stunning work

It's just below the bottom edge of the Great Dismal Swamp. We haven't been here long and we are on high ground on the Albemarle Sound. Lots of timberland interspersed with swampy sloughs. Lots of rivers as well. Good land for building is far apart. There are about 30 houses here. Lots of retirees and some vacation homes. Lots of wildlife including swans, geese, ducks all kinds of birds. Turtles, deer, turkeys, even black bear are supposed to share the turf with us. Lots of room for both two legs and four legs! With your gifts, you would be inspired to death!

I only joined the board 2 months ago but above all the wonderment of the quilting is learning about where people are from. What you describe is very attractive to me. I love animals and nature, everybody seems to say that. But all the experiences you will get to participate in are different than living in a city. I am from a very small village (no town status) along the Ohio River. Coal mines and steel mills. I don't dislike the town, but I want to get out into nature badly! Sometimes I even think about going to the desert and trying to make a go of it living with the coyotes. I think if I were where you are, I would be out with the wildlife. I don't know if I would get much quilting done.

Thank you for your compliments. I joined to try to get a bedquilt made. I do small things and the big ones intimidate me. One after another posts their huge quilts! They are so beautiful.

This was part of the ABC's of sewing that Sewing with Nancy has. I do hope you can find some info about it because the lady's leaves were really nice. I don't know how she uses them after making them, but I would be incorporating them into a grouping that would be in a vase or doing one of those arrangements that are hung on the walls.

Awesome handwork and embellishment!!!

I'm speechless!!! Now you went and got my head swimming with ideas!!!

Absolutely stunning - each one is a beautiful work of art!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Beautiful work. Very well done.

Cookie

Holy Mackerel!!!!!! Those are just gorgeous!

Beautiful work

Your beading is incredible!!!