Needle Painting

Renette Kumm of Knysna, South Africa does exquisite needle painting of birds. Her beautiful Lilac Breasted Roller appears on the cover of the latest Inspirations Magazine.

Congratulations Renette!

Rockets and haircuts

I recently spent a lovely few weeks with my daughter and her family in Brisbane.  It had been three years since we'd last been together and I couldn't wait to see them all again and spend time with my grandchildren. Skype is wonderful but it's just not the same as actually being there. I have some very sweet new memories of our visit. Being there for the soccer match when Jake (6) scored his very first goal for his team was priceless.

What is it about a new colouring in book and fresh box of crayons that is so exciting?

Knowing that Jake had loved a visit to the planetarium, I told him about a Kindle book I'd enjoyed that chronicled the Apollo 11 space mission. And, we were off reading together. Although it is an adult book, he was fascinated, often reading along with me. The two of us had long conversations about rockets, space, the race to the moon and the meaning of words he didn't understand. It was amusing to have him picking me out too when I skipped bits that I thought he'd find boring! - bits about the background and politics of the time. We eventually got as far as the successful launch of the spaceship. The rest of the story is waiting for next time.

While Jake and I read, Lila (4) would listen, playing contentedly alongside of us with her mermaid doll but clearly not as deeply interested in the men going to the moon. Our chats were more about her craft work that she had carefully collected in a file, or the knots I combed out of the back of her hair. Knots she told me that the pillow made while she slept.

Like many young children, Lila is not at all keen on having her hair cut, but when I asked her for about the third time if I could cut her fringe, she agreed. I whipped out a comb and my tiny sharp embroidery scissors and before she could change her mind it was done. Anyone who knows me will be very surprised that I used my scissors for anything other than embroidery! I think the long fringe in her eyes was bothering me far more than it was Lila and I felt very privileged to be allowed to cut it.

Did I do any stitching while I was away? No, but if it counts at all, the intention was there.

The holiday flew by too quickly and it was soon time to leave for Cape Town. The day we were due to depart, things didn't go quite as smoothly as we expected and I'll post more about that next time.

Till then, happy stitching!

Lavender bookmark progress

All the cross stitch on my lavender bookmark is complete. The flowers are not exactly the same shape as those on the original pattern but I think they are close enough. I still have to add dark straight stitches to give the lavender blooms more depth and decide what to put in the empty oval at the bottom.

The last stage will be adding a ribbon backing and finally a tassel. I like that the ribbon and tassel came with the kit. It saves hunting around for the materials to give a nice finish to the bookmark.

Lavender bookmark

This UFO (unfinished object) has been in my cupboard for quite a while. Somehow the pattern became separated from the embroidery, and cross stitch is not my favourite, but I do want to finish it.

I've started working on it again doing 10 minutes here and there when I can. The extra few stitches soon add up. It's involved a bit of guesswork using the photograph provided on the kit cover as a guide. Stitching on the dark green fabric I need very good light and magnifiers too.

I will post my progress as I go.

'Till next time, happy stitching!

Giraffe and Elephant

My grandson Liam (6) has an artistic eye. Read proud granny there! When I mentioned that I wanted to photograph the little giraffe I had knitted as a Christmas present, he was quick to make suggestions. He decided the grass would make a good background and then took some pics for me.

Giraffe in the sun - Liam Dobrowski (6)

 I love the giraffe spots, the little horns and the swishy tail.

Giraffe in the shade - Liam Dobrowski (6)

When Aidan (3) opened his present on Christmas morning, he had to twist his tongue around that difficult word, but he knew instantly that it was a 'girrwaffe'.

I knitted an elephant as well. I thought the little knitted toys would be good stocking fillers. The boys were also about to go game viewing and see the real animals at home wandering in the African bush.

Well, the giraffe and the elephant took a safari to the Pilanesberg National Park before I had taken photos. It seems the elephant decided he felt more at home there and he stayed behind.

The only photos I have of the elephant were taken with Aidan on my knee and Liam sitting next to me stitching the ears onto the head while I held them in place. It was a 'bad hair day' for all of us having just been for a swim and those photos, although precious to me, are not going to make it onto the internet.

The patterns are from previous issues of Stitches magazine and were designed by Dana Biddle. I have seen the patterns for sale somewhere on the internet but can't recall where.  You can probably track them down via Dana's Pinterest pages.

Pattern covers

I've been working on covers for some of my embroidery patterns. These are the two most popular patterns so this seemed like a good place to start.

Chris Green designed the covers and he also designed the logo that you may already have seen in my Etsy shop Lynlubell.

The logo was inspired by the flower in the pulled thread pattern pictured below.

Full kit for Flower Sprig pulled thread pincushion

When it became difficult to find needlepoint canvas in our local embroidery shops after DMC in South Africa closed down,  Beryl Saunders and I made up partial kits for the more popular canvas work patterns. Beryl is the designer of a number of these much admired canvas work pincushion patterns. 

The partial canvas work kits include full instructions with clear stitch diagrams, a piece of canvas and a tapestry needle, but no threads. It is more cost effective for you to buy the recommended DMC stranded threads yourself and they are generally fairly easy to find.  I now have a small number of these kits available. 

Flower and Cushion Stitch pincushion

Leafy Green pincushion

Blue Eyelet pincushion

These two patterns are available as full kits: 

Flower Sprig pulled thread pincushion

Australian Cross Stitch Pincushions

I also have a limited number of Dresden Lily patterns available. Due to copyright restrictions once the small stock I prepared for teaching earlier in the year runs out, these will no longer be available. The design was adapted with permission of the copyright holder Heather Toomer. The stitches I chose for the lily include some unusual and rarely used Dresden Lace stitches.

Dresden Lily

All the patterns, except the Dresden Lily, are available as digital downloads in my Etsy shop Lynlubell. Please email me with any questions at lynette[dot]warner[at]gmail[dot]com. 

For any graphic design work you'd like done, contact Chris Green directly at chris06orama@gmail.com while his new website is under construction.

Till next time, happy stitching!

________________

Post script: The pincushion kits are no longer available. Please visit my Etsy shop Lynlubell for the digital patterns, by clicking here.

Still Waiting

The postman arrived a few weeks ago with my first quilt fabrics from overseas. The fabric came in an ordinary envelope, not parcel post, and it took 27 days from Bangkok to Cape Town! Letters usually arrive within 14 days so I wondered if it had had to go via customs, but there was no sign of that on the envelope.

I've cut out a fabric square for each quilt and they are pinned onto my board waiting for the other fabric to arrive from Brisbane. (You can see some of the original fabric squares in my previous post here.)

These are the five new fabrics. I just love the zebras - a South African da Gama print that was available a few years ago.

In this family, no quilt is complete without a cat, if not a real one, then a calico cat.

The cute little elephants on the navy and red fabrics are distinctly Thai. Thai elephants are rounder in shape than African elephants. They are smaller too.

And this is the Very Hungry Caterpillar fabric. It's a real favourite with my grandchildren who love the book of the same title. It's great fun for little fingers to poke through the many holes the caterpillars have chewed through the pages in the book.

I have to pack up my sewing room soon to make way for my two grandsons who will be spending Christmas with us. I hope the postman is going to hurry up or I won't be able to finish the quilts in time for the little one to take his quilt home with him to Thailand. When the second quilt is finished it will wing it's way to Brisbane to my granddaughter.

Two More Quilts

My two youngest grandchildren are three and almost four and they want to know when they will have quilts like their older brothers. I've started cutting out squares. So far I have just over thirty for each quilt and I need forty eight.

The first two quilts I made were special because my daughters and I shopped together for some of the fabric. It's rare for us to be together because we live on three different continents.

The latest two quilts will be special not only because they will have some of those fabric that we all chose together, but because there is more fabric on the way. Some from my daughter's precious stash in Thailand including some of her boys' favourite fabrics - like The Hungry Caterpillar fabric which is based on the endpapers of Eric Carle's book.

And some fabric from Brisbane, after a trip to Russell's for the little ones to choose fabric, put it in an envelope with stamps and send it off to Granny in Cape Town.  The prep teacher has just been introducing the children to post and stamps so this is a very good excuse to put that lesson into practice.

I keep looking in the post box to see if the new fabric has arrived yet...

On another note, I had no internet access on my PC for a while last week. As a result this is my first post written on my phone and with a photo uploaded from my phone. It took a lot of googling to work out how to do it and I can see that it will take me a good while yet to get it down pat. Perhaps you can teach an old dog new tricks, it just takes patience.

Till next time, happy stitching!

Brenton Blue Butterfly

I worked on this little butterfly some while ago but couldn't show it to you at the time. It was an interesting change from counted thread embroidery for me. The stitches I chose were simple, beginning with a stem stitch outline, then backstitch, chain stitch, satin stitch, French knots, bullion knots - only 2 little ones! and couching for the trellis. I really am out of practice. Those French knots wobbled all over!

Brenton Blue butterfly - Lyn Warner

Our local embroidery guild was asked to contribute towards the goody bags for the Ighali Embroidery Convention in Knysna held in August. We could choose from a range of photographs associated with Knysna and, with the threads provided, work a small embroidery using a technique of our own choosing. The finished embroideries were made up into little notebook covers. I was enchanted by the blue butterfly.

Image courtesy of Discover Sedgefield

You may wonder why a blue butterfly was included in the range of photos we could choose from?

The Brenton Blue is a critically endangered butterfly found only in a very small Nature Reserve in Knysna, South Africa. Other known populations have disappeared due to the encroachment of housing and the consequent diminishing vegetation that the Brenton Blue depends on for it's survival.

The good news? Careful management of the Brenton Blue Nature Reserve has resulted in an increase in the butterfly population and plans are to re-introduce it eventually to other areas in the southern Cape where it was originally found. Details of the studies conducted into the life cycle of the Brenton Blue and the ecology of it's habitat are on the website here. I found it fascinating that ants play a protective role in the life cycle of the butterfly.

Till next time, happy stitching!

Making up Kits

Long time, no blog post! Winter's unwelcome bugs made themselves felt here and things rather ground to a halt for a while. I have done no stitching for weeks but I did do something embroidery related.

Dresden Lily by Lyn Warner

Unfortunately I had to cancel my Dresden Lily pulled thread class that I was scheduled to teach at Ighali*. Talk about disappointing! I was so looking forward to it. Apologies again to everyone who had booked and who at the last minute had to transfer to other classes. It seems I missed a most wonderful embroidery convention this year. You can see some photos here on the Cape Embroiderers' Guild Facebook page.

Even though I would not be going to Knysna to teach at Ighali, I was very pleasantly surprised when I was asked to send along my kits. I had done some preparation and thought it would be quick to finish assembling them, but somehow kits always take longer to prepare than I expect.

Not feeling my best, I did a little each day and I even had my very sweet cleaning lady to help measure out the thread on the day when she came in to work.

In the end the kits were completed. Linen cut and edged, printing done, envelopes ready, threads labelled and notes tweaked.

Carefully checking the contents for each kit, almost there...

I intended to try and avoid any plastic packaging but in the end I decided that it would keep the materials clean and safe. Better safe than sorry - echoes of my mom and my gran there. The ziplock bags can also be used to store the work in progress.

Happiness is ... finally slipping the printed instructions and the materials into their prepared and labelled envelopes. I was so pleased to have this step completed that I forgot to take a photo of the kits all packed and ready to go. 

The other photo that I missed taking was putting the envelopes into a large Corn Flakes box for the car trip to Knysna!!! Well, maybe not elegant, but everything did arrive safely. I had lots of help, and offers of help along the way, and I thank everyone for the part they played in getting the kits to their recipients! 

By next time, I hope to have tracked down the little project I worked on some time ago but couldn't reveal at the time.

Till then, happy stitching!

_________

*Ighali means 'threads' in one of the 11 official languages in South Africa and is the name of a national embroidery convention held every two years.

Acknowledgement: The Lily was adapted from a photo with permission of owner and author Heather Toomer.