Mabel's Hardanger - thread closed

[Mabel Figworthy]

Thanks all!

@Jo about Papillon: I don't think so -- even with the Lowery there would still be that enormous piece of fabric around, and it's just too big for me.

And there is another consideration: I've got so much to stitch that I would like to get onto the website, and relatively little stitching time, that a project that large would just take up too much of it. I realise I could simply change my "Planned" schedule to give me more time for non-Mabel stitching, but when I had a good think about it I realised I'd rather try and give my designs a "body" -- they're just paper until I stitch them! I may still do individual bits of the SAL, and I'm certainly downloading all the parts, if only for inspiration!

Apart from that most of my non-stitching leisure time is taken up with designing for the Song of the Weather SAL, and for the autumn Counted Wishes Festival; and they all need to be stitched as well !

[meerkat]

So pretty Mabel. Lovely choice of colours.

[Mrs Milkybar Kid]

Beautiful work Mabel - thank goodness for the Lowery!

[Mabel Figworthy]

Sneak preview -- something related to this will be on the site later this week or early next week, but I'm not telling yet

Anyway, here is a quick bookmark, on some yellow fabric I got in a sale and backed with dark red felt. I finished the bookmark with four-sided edging, then attached the felt (cut a little smaller than the bookmark) to the stitches using one strand of dark red stranded cotton; the stitching is almost invisible (which was a pleasant surprise -- it was the effect i was hoping for but I wasn't at all sure it would work )

[jocellogirl]

Very classy, Mabel

[millymolly]

Lovely bookmark

[geekishly]

oh wow, this is absolutely beautiful. I'm so nervous about trying my hand at hardanger, but your beautiful bookmarks is tempting me.

[Mabel Figworthy]

geekishly, I'll let you in on the secret -- there will be some beginner's kits on the site soon... not the bookmark, but they will have very detailed instructions and all the necessary materials

[wendywombat]

I love that Golden Bookmark! Superb!!!

I love all your work, but I REALLY like the same colour threads as fabric!

[Lessa54]

Love the bookmark and it's great that you're going to do beginner's kits. That will be such a help for people wanting to start hardanger as it is confusing to know where to begin.

[Mabel Figworthy]

I REALLY like the same colour threads as fabric!

Yes, it was nice to do something relatively traditional for a change . I had some difficulty deciding on the right thread, as the shop I bought the fabric from said that the "ton sur ton" colour for it was 676, which is a light golden yellow almost shading towards tan, but the fabric looked a bit brighter than that to me.
I put 676 and 744 on it, and oddly enough they both worked, and both "changed" the shade of the fabric
In the end I preferred the brighter version, so this uses 744.

[Fizzbw]

Love the bookmark! And like the idea of beginners kits as well, I've never dared do Hardanger and I would love to! let us know when they are available won't you?

Niki xxx

[Mabel Figworthy]

It'll be on FoF and I'll mention it here too, promise

[Rose]

Very nice bookmark!!!!!!!

[rcperryls]

Love the bookmark and really like the idea of the beginners kits. Don't forget to alert us when they are ready.

Carole

[Carole]

Beginner's kits, eh? Tempting, very tempting

[geekishly]

I will keep an eye out for that!

[tiffstitch]

Beginner's kits are a great idea for we that are afraid to cut. Beautiful bookmark!

[karen4bells]

absolutely love the bookmark!! So very cleverly designed and stitched!!

[Mabel Figworthy]

I started on Odessa this week, and while getting all the stuff together I was having second thoughts about the threads I'd intended to use.

I'd picked two very pale shades of House of Embroidery hand-dyed perles; they are quite close, but one leans more towards green and the other leans more toward yellow. But seeing them together on top of the fabric I feared they wouldn't be different enough, if you see what I mean. So then I thought perhaps i could use Caron Lemon & Lime together with Lime Ice. But when I'd put thattogether it looked far too variegated -- Odessa is based on Ukrainian whitework and I wanted a sort of white-on-white look with a hint of colour.

So after all that I decided to go with the H of E perles after all and fortunately they do show up different enough *phew*!