Couldn't Wait!

Hello all my wonderful creatives! I couldn't wait to let you know all about the gilding flakes I got to play with today, so this will be short and sweet.

So these are Cosmic Shimmer Gilding Flakes used with the Cosmic Shimmer Glue. These are soooo easy to use. I wanted an effect similar to aging to go along with one of my samples for this tryout. The supplies I had was a cup of water (because you don't want the glue to dry on your brush), a cheap stiff brush and paper towels. Be sure to do this on a piece of paper so any errant flakes can be collected and put back in the jar. All you have to do is put the glue on your project where you want the gilding to go. The glue becomes a bluish color when you first apply it so you can see where you put it. Wait until the glue dries. When it is dry it will be transparent and just tacky to the touch. Next, you sprinkle the gilding flakes on the fabric and press them on the fabric with your fingers or a the back of a plastic spoon if you don't want to get the glue on your fingers. After you remove the excess flakes, go over the fabric with a stiff brush. If you go over it lightly then you will have more of a gilding stay on, I wanted a more aged effect so I put more pressure to the brush.

Be warned that this is messy but still lots of fun. It works brilliantly and I couldn't have been happier with the results. Wherever the glue lands it will stick so be prepared to do cleanup as you go unless you want it to be gilded! And permanent! LOL! I got my supplies from Joggles.com but I'm sure there are other sources out there. She also has a video available showing you how to use it.

Here is my finished product:

I put a little more of the gilding on my sample than I should have but hey, it's a
sample so no harm, no foul.

So here is a bead and you can see how well the gilding sets it off.

I will have more this week so stay tuned!

Foil and Floche Count on Counted Work!

Hello all my lovely creatives! I know it has been a few weeks since I posted (I think?) but I want you all to know that I have been busy exploring and working on something secret that I will reveal to you when it gets posted. I can't wait!

So what have I been exploring? Well, how about working with foils and gilding flakes? Oh yes, I have been an admirer of foil for a long time and got to thinking about using it on one of my designs. Now I had a foil and the special glue for it, but when I tried to play with it, was dismayed that the glue was now a solid and not a liquid. I just got around this week to ordering some new stuff and got it in the post yesterday. Yeah! So now I am prepared to do battle with it! LOL!

 

 

 

All ready for gilding! Bring it on!

What is great about the foil and gilding flakes is that they can be used on fabric, and yes, paper too if you want to use that ground. You can use a little or a lot and they do come in a wonderful variety of colors to suit just about any project. I am looking for a somewhat subtle sprinkling of it on my fabric so it will be interesting to see if I can pull it off. Now something else that I ordered along with the necessary glues was a glue pen so if you want to write something on a project you can certainly do it with foil. In this case, "Foiled again!" is a good thing!

Fabulous Fibers - Floche -Not Just for Embroidery Anymore
When I first came across Floche I wasn't sure what it was really all about. It sounded like it was very similar to regular cotton floss so I was curious to see what the fuss was all about. I ordered a skein and that is all it took for me to fall head over heels for this fiber! Yes, it is more expensive, but if you want to bring true quality to your work, then the little extra is well worth the investment.

Look at how lovely Floche lays down and the
great coverage with two strands.



Here are the leaves on Ladybug Lake with that beautiful green
DMC Floche. Loved working with it!

My bag o' DMC Floche. This is definitely something to
use in counted stitch work. On my 14 count Aida it worked
like a champ. Such luscious colors too that coordinate with
the numbers of regular DMC Cotton Floss.

Floche is considered a luxury Egyptian stranded cotton floss that has five plies to a strand. It is pre-cut in lengths and ready to use. Now here is the thing about floche, when you look on a lot of sites they speak about using it for embroidery, not counted work, but I am here to tell you that you certainly can use it. It is a bit thicker than regular floss so your coverage is going to be better with fewer plies. I used floche on the leaves of Ladybug Lake and I loved working with it! It has all the attributes of silk (the sheen and softness) but without the extra cost. For me, it didn't twist up as much as regular floss either while stitching. Since this is a more delicate fiber, use shorter strands to keep it from fraying or getting fuzzy looking. Use a larger eyed tapestry needle too for less friction. Even though it doesn't come in as many colors as regular DMC floss, the array is good enough that you certainly can find a suitable color for what you are working on. I pretty much have every color and I intend to use them all! Don't be afraid to use this on your own counted thread project, I bet you will fall in love with it too.

Stitch Sampler Update
Since I have been working on this surprise secret, I haven't had time to work on the stitch sampler, although I am going to work on it this weekend. So next weekend I will have a new stitch for you.

Ladybug Lake
Likewise, since working on other things, this has not seen any recent action either. That will change next week too.

Stay tuned for more great stuff and remember to Keep Creating!

Thought Nugget:
"Colour is fun, colour is just plain gorgeous, a gourmet meal for the eye, the window of the soul.".
~Rachel Wolf

Tools, Fibers and Sketchbooks

Hello all my excellent creatives out there! We are in the middle of the Dog Days of Summer and the heat index is high enough to make me want to stay in and stich, especially since my eyes are now working in High Definition! LOL!

First of all let's discuss sketchbooks shall we? There is so much going on about them right now that I thought I would throw my two cents worth into the mix.

Common Sense Sketchbooks
Sketchbooks are wonderful tools to give you a place to play with your ideas. You can draw to your hearts content and play with any color combinations you like in them, all without benefit of anyone critiquing it. It is like a creative diary if you will, only more of a playground than a confessional. I have looked at a lot of sketchbook articles from various artists over the years, because I was searching for ideas as to how to make mine work. They were all very lovely and unique but just didn't fit me or how I work. When I have an idea I have a book I put them down in. The ideas have to come to me, I cannot sit in front of a blank page and then wish for something to draw. I have to start with a color scheme or design of some kind. When I go to my sketchbook (it's more like an idea book really) I am there to flesh out something I already have in mind. Is it neat and tidy? Absolutely not! I use pencil, ink pen, marker, or anything else I can get my hands on. The entries are random and do not follow any specific theme or construct. These are my ideas only and when it is time for me to utilize one of them I get a real sketchbook out and begin to plan the colors and what the design should look like. Then I look for the different media I want to use in it. Of course the last effort is to put it down as a pattern on graph paper in 14 count.

The message I want to get across is that a sketchbook, idea book or whatever you want to call it, is for your personal use and there shouldn't be any hang-ups about the way it looks. It doesn't have to look like something Leonardo de Vinci put together unless that is your preference. If you are not particularly happy with making yours look that way, then don't! You don't have to! Just because it doesn't look like something you've seen somewhere else, doesn't mean a thing except that it is your personal work and looks like it. Do your own thing when it comes to your ideas and your pursuit of them because that is where your satisfaction lies.




My very first sketchbook. I found it at a local drugstore and it
is just a regular spiral  bound lined notebook. It is quite full
now, these are a few of the pages I have left.



Here are a couple of sketches I did when I was trying to flesh out
ideas for the Pear Blossom Studio plaque. I just used an ink pen.



When I see something in a magazine that catches my eye, I like
to save it for inspiration later. Sometimes it's a color combination,
other times it could be the flow of a design. I try to note what I
liked about it so I don't lose time scratching my head over it later.



Here is just some doodling on a page. Again I just grabbed an ink
pen and started drawing. It's these kinds of doodles that ideas spring
from so don't be afraid to be messy in your sketchbook. This is your
happy place so you can mix it up any way you like.

Scissor Time
A funny thing about scissors, there are so many of them! Wow, you name it and there is a scissor in that design and color! Whew! I have to admit, I got overwhelmed by the variety of them at one point, and of course I had to have THE pair of stork scissors and then one that looked like a rooster (yes, I too was a victim of mass merchandising hysteria!), but I soon learned that a few good pair was all I really used. Now there are many that are true collectors of scissors made in the past and present and this discussion does not include them. This is strictly about scissors that you will actually use. First of all, you do not have to use the same scissors as anyone else, you decide what it is you need, my discussion is strictly for information.

I think the best scissors for what I do is the small curved scissors. This is one that I always have at every project. They are sharp and because they are curved, you don't have to worry as much about accidentally clipping your cloth along with your floss. I have used these for so many years I couldn't even tell you where I got them but I do know this style is sold in a lot of places. Happily they are still nice and sharp even after a lot of use and abuse.

The second pair I have but don't use as much anymore, are travel scissors. These are scissors that are approved to go on airlines so you won't have to hassle with it if you ever fly and want to get some stitching done. These are also handy because they have blunt tips and will be safe in a car or any other mode of transportation.

The last pair is one that I just recently purchased for cutting out applique pieces of felt for my granddaughter's Christmas stocking. I just needed a good pair of sharp scissors that would cut these tiny pieces out easily and these small Fiskars certainly filled the bill.



My go to pairs. You can see the stork and rooster on the left side.
In the middle from top down are my curved scissors, next my travel
scissors and the next two I didn't mention because I don't use them
that often. The one on the bottom is serrated and I use it for cutting
metallic threads. The one right above it has one side with a notch cut
out so you can easily get the scissors under a stitch and clip it. This
pair got dull pretty quickly so I kind of retired it for now. The pair
on the right are the new applique scissor made by Fiskars.

I do have other scissors and I keep them around in case I lose any of my "go to" scissors. It doesn't hurt to have a back-up. I could always bust out the stork or rooster if needed. So I have narrowed down the craziness of scissors for myself by utilizing three pairs as a first resource. It's easier to keep track of them and they do the job I need them for with great ease. Now that I have them, I can invest my money in fibers, beads, paints, or something other than another pair of scissors.

My Favorite Wool Fiber
I have to tell you that I enjoy using all the wonderful wools I have discussed here. Yes, they truly are all Wonderful! But I do have one that I fell in love with when I first tried it and it is my favorite. When I win the lottery (Ha!Ha!) I am going to buy it in every color. It is Caron Impressions. This is not 100% wool, but instead is 50% wool and 50% silk. What a lovely combination, the best of both worlds! It stitches like it was made for 14 count Aida and is so easy to use. These come in a gorgeous array of solid and variegated colors that are all hand dyed (not overdyed) and being hand dyed means that if you plan on laundering them you need to test them for colorfastness. It also means you need to be sure to order from the same dye lot if you are going to use a lot of any particular color fiber. Now these are a little pricier than the others but if you enjoy working with them, the price is easier to bear. The website is loaded with information about not only this but the other fibers they create so check it out and maybe give it a try if it strikes your fancy!

I loved the coverage and the ease of use of this truly fabulous
fiber. Whenever I found some locally, I snatched them up!

Here are some I grabbed. I have to tell you my color selection wasn't great, but
I loved the fiber and just got what I could lay my hands on.

 

http://caron-net.com/welcome.html

Hope you all have a fabulous rest of the week and weekend and I'll see you back here next week!
Don't forget to Keep Creating!

Thought Nugget:
"Just don't give up trying to do what you really want to do. Where there is love and inspiration, I don't think you can go wrong."
~Ella Fitzgerald