Easter Were-Rabbit

Sometimes you just have to wonder what people are thinking. I bought a vintage stamped table runner a while ago. It has an Easter theme and I've always wanted to make an embroidered Easter runner or small tablecloth.

However, when it arrived and I got a good look at the design I was rather dismayed by the appearance of the rabbits. This is one of the pseudo-rabbit-things:

Did the person who drew this ever see a rabbit in person? I don't know what this is, but it's definitely not a cute Easter bunny! It appears to have 'feathers' and cloven feet and it's seriously underfed. I think of it as a 'were-rabbit', poor thing. (There's a second rabbit design on the runner that is just as weird.) It required some remodelling.

Cut it Out

After completing a scissors keeper and a pin cushion I'm on a mission to finish more things!

The next project I wanted to complete was the Antique Society Silk Violets Centrepiece that I started way back in 2017. To recap, this is an antique stamped linen that I am stitching with antique silk thread. The embroidery was completed in 2018, but I have never gotten around to cutting it out along its buttonholed edge.

There are certain things in my embroidery world that I like to avoid. One of those things is cutting along buttonholed edges. However, I wanted to see this piece finished so, I couldn't procrastinate any longer!

Leaf Lesson

In the last installment of the Antique Society Silk Violets, I detailed the stitching plan for the flowers. This time, I want to share my approach to the leaves.

(Warning: This is going to get extremely geeky!)

The leaves are composed of three greens.

Embroidering with Light

The best thread painting results are not achieved with flat filament silks. I prefer a less blingy thread--cotton or spun silk--for most shaded work. The antique silk threads I'm using on the Society Silk violet project, which are essentially flat filament silks, are extremely reflective.

Fine Lines

One thing I've noticed on Society Silk embroideries is that there is an unending array of edge treatments. Except for some of the simpler edges, I don't think I've seen the same edge design twice!

Examples of Society Silk edges

Vegetables or Dessert?

The work on the antique violets is progressing along nicely. I've completed a second motif which is a copy of the first. I like the reverse S curve on the one stem with its little hint of Art Nouveau.

There are only three unique motifs on the doily. Each one is repeated once to create a total of six violet bunches. The duplicate motifs have very slight variations and I'm adding other differences such as not using the exact same colours on the stems. The flowers, of course, can't be duplicated as you can't exactly replicate thread painting--and I never want to!

Antique Violets: Handle with Care

I'm working on an unusual project and I realise that stitching with antique silk embroidery thread on an antique piece of stamped linen is probably just a little bit crazy.

OK, perhaps more than a little bit crazy, but it sure has been fun!

Before I could start stitching on the Society Silk violet centrepiece, I had to rummage through my cache of antique threads to find appropriate colours. I have threads in all sorts of varying levels of usability as you can see in the photo below.

 

These are pretty much the standard conditions that I encounter with antique threads. The top thread is a tangled mess and is the least desirable. The middle thread is in its original wrapper and this particular one is in pristine condition. Often, threads in these wrappers are worn on one end resulting in very short lengths with which to stitch. I generally avoid threads in the old paper wrappers.

The bottom thread is in the best condition when it comes to stitchability. When the silks come as a skein with a knot in the middle, they are generally in a good usable state.

Visiting the Embroidered Past

I am fascinated by Society Silk embroidery. Society Silk is the modern name for a style of embroidery that was popular at the end of the 19th century and lasted through the beginning of the 20th. It was known as Art Needlework in its day.

Society Silk designs typically consist of florals which can be incredibly realistic or very simplistic. There are other designs, but from what I've seen florals dominate. The finished pieces overall tend to be table linens.

Vintage Society Silk centrepieces

Starting with a Finish

Welcome to the first post of a new blog. Let's get things going with a finish!

I recently completed a table runner. It started out as a kit, but, as I'm in 'what if I did this...' mode, the finished piece looks just a little different from the original. 

The colour palette on the original is what caught my eye. I liked the summery pinks and yellows/oranges.