The Sewing Dilettante

I've been a major lurker for the past couple of months, marveling at all of your fabulous makes but not commenting because it doesn't seem possible on my iPad any more. I can't figure out exactly what's wrong, but I'm wondering if switching to a different blog reader (currently using Bloglovin') will do the trick? Any suggestions? Anyway, I actually have a finish to show you today! And yes, it's literally taken me since my last post at the end of February until now to accomplish this. More tortoise than hare over here, but I'm ok with that! My embroidery sampler!! Now a fabulously bright wall hanging to hang above my sewing machine (rather than over it for the purposes of this photo!). Despite my initial hesitation over the French knots and bullion roses, I managed to conquer both, more or less, and am looking forward to practicing them again in the near future. I'm also intrigued by the colonial knot Susan recently mentioned... must try s...

February has been a bit grim around here, hence the longer than usual radio silence in these parts. I've had very little time for crafty pursuits, but I have managed to work steadily away on my first embroidery sampler, using that gorgeous thread I bought ever so many months ago. I found this little sampler on Pinterest (through Sarah , I think), and have been really enjoying learning each of the different stitches, though I haven't yet had the confidence to attack the French knots or bullion roses. (Those are the blank spots below!) I've been using Aimee Ray's  Doodle Stitching (another recommendation from Sarah, the embroidery queen!) to guide me through each of the stitches, and the instructions have been unfailingly simple and accessible. I can't seem to wrap my head around those for the pesky French knots, though, more from my own lack of imagination than anything else, I think, and there's nothing on bullion roses, so I think a trawl on Youtube m...

I can't believe it's been such a long time since my last post! Actually, let me rephrase that. I can believe it's been such a long time since my last post. Taking care of Baby G really is a full-time job! Since my last post, in fact, I've attended several mums and tots groups, sung my whole repertoire of nursery rhymes at least three times a day, watched in wonder as my wee baby grew before my very eyes, and generally partook in the wonders of parenting a nearly ten week old baby! Crafty things did not enter the horizon. Or, rather, they did in the most fleeting of ways with the purchase of the necessary materials for my new craft of choice, should I ever actually have the chance to sit down and try it - embroidery. With a moment or two of searching on ebay, I discovered this lot of Anchor Pearl Cotton embroidery thread going at a seriously bargain rate. Since I haven't actually decided what designs I might eventually embroider, or, therefore, what colour thre...

Well, my sweet baby is having a little nap, so I've got a moment or two to check in here. Although little G is starting to settle into a bit more of a routine, I'm still working on finding the time and organizational capacity to get creative again. Pulling out my Pfaff and getting things sorted to sew seems a bit adventurous right now, especially when baby G might decide to wake at any moment! It occurred to me, therefore, that I need to cultivate new, less equipment-heavy crafts, like crochet, knitting, and embroidery. Having tried (rather unsuccessfully) the former two, I've decided to leave that to my uber-talented mom for the moment and concentrate on embroidery, something I haven't really attempted before but have been contemplating for a while. Inspired by Sarah's gorgeous Russian dolls , therefore, I took the first step by ordering these fantastic books... I'm thinking of adapting an idea I saw on Pinterest to create chic embroidery hoops decorated ...