Joyful Abode

Shisha (the Hindi word for “little glass”) embroidery is also known as mirror-work or abla embroidery. Originally, pieces of mica were used as the mirrors, but later, thin blown-glass pieces were broken and used. Today, small mirrors are commercially available for shisha embroidery. If you use these, make sure to file the edges first so the mirrors aren’t sharp.

I like using paillettes, those large sequins with a tiny hole in the side. They’re extremely lightweight, not sharp at all, and readily available in many colors. They worked perfectly in my “Local pride” apron. I also think it would be really neat to use coins from around the world in shisha embroidery.

I’ve recently gotten really into playing with embroidery, and I decided to at the very least do this one tutorial to share my love of the art form with you all. All you handcrafting/DIY-type folks, get ready!

1. Gather your materials. You’ll need fabric, an embroidery hoop, a sharp needle, a shisha mirror (or paillette or coin), and embroidery floss.
   
2. Secure your fabric in the hoop tightly. Thread your needle and knot the end of your floss.
   
3. Place your shisha on the fabric, and secure it with a crossing of foundation stitches.
   
4. Now, duplicate the foundation stitches, but turned 45 degrees… like this.
   
   Until you get this.
   
5. Now, you could leave it at that, and decorate around it. It’s pretty secure and it looks pretty, right? But if you’re more interested in creating a solid frame for your shisha, continue. Poke your needle up through the fabric beside your mirror.
   Then, slide your needle under the foundation stitches, from the center toward the edge.
   
6. Pull your needle through and tighten the stitch, then work one backstitch right next to your mirror.
   
7. Now, your next stitches will be like blanket stitches. Again, thread the needle under your foundation stitches from the center to the edge, but make sure your thread is looped UNDER your needle as you pull the stitch tight.
   
8. From now on, when you work the backstitch after your blanket stitch,make sure to initially poke your needle through the previous backstitch. This will create an attractive chain around your shisha.
   
9. Once I get mine shishsa started, I like to take it out of the embroidery hoop. You can if you want to, but you don’t have to. Keep working steps 7 and 8 around the mirror.
   
   This is why I like to take it out of the hoop. It allows me to sort of bend the fabric backward to have more control over my backstitches.
   
10. Keep going until you’re finished!
    
11. Are you proud of yourself? You should be! You could stop there, or you can decorate it some more (back in the embroidery hoop for this). I started with a border of turquoise chain stitches, to match my paillette.
    
12. And then… oh look! The shisha is shining with happiness!
    
13. I finished mine up with some delightful little french knots.
    
14. Enjoy! And join the flickr group to show off your own shisha embroidery.

You know, I realized that I never updated about my quilt that I made in October!!! I teased you with cutesie illustrations but never showed you photos. So here they are!

The binding turned out a little weird… but I think that’s largely because of the batting I used… which was pretty puffy, so it made the edges really thick and tough to deal with. Overall, I’m really happy with it, and I love the embroidered hearts on it.

I was at work the other day when I thought of a hedgehog on a tire swing. I don’t think the children remind me of hedgehogs or anything like that… but children are cute and so are hedgehogs. And children like swinging on tire swings, and so do…um… hedgehogs? So maybe that’s part of it.

Anyway, I sketched it out and squeed with the adorable factor of it all.

So I refined my drawing, and then traced the “final” version in pen. Then, I decided, why not try another medium? I love embroidery. It’s like doodling with thread. It’s so organic and flexible, like crochet is.

I still need to stitch in the rope and the tree’s branch, but I couldn’t wait to share this little project.

A couple of months ago, when I was at the fabric store, I got sucked in by the flannel. I mean, I couldn’t get out of that aisle! There’s so much cute stuff in there. I ended up buying a ton of it to make baby blankets with.

I wanted my blankets to be really soft, warm, good quality items. So I knew I wanted the nicest batting I could find. I ended up getting “warm n natural” which is 100% unbleached cotton fiber, and very cozy-feeling. It was a lot more expensive than the poly battings, but much nicer. Also, I keep imagining polyester melting onto people’s skin… freaks me out. That’s why my student-aviator-husband has mostly cotton socks (I think 97% was the most cotton he could find in a boot sock). Anyway, the point is, cotton is good.

I also wanted my blankets to be unique, with an extra touch of character. I wanted them to be like something you’d find in a children’s boutique where everything is a hand-picked treasure. So, in came the hand-appliquéd accents in the corner.

Perfect.

Here’s the description of them on etsy:

My Winter Warmth baby blankets are handcrafted out of 100% cotton flannel and an inner layer of warm 100% cotton batting.
Each blanket has a hand-appliquéd accent in one corner, letting everyone know that your baby is special enough to snuggle under a lovingly handmade creation.

Winter Warmth blankets are approximately 30″ x 40″, making them the perfect size for car-seat cuddles, stroller snuggles, cozy cribs, and even naps at preschool. In fact, you may find that you’d like to keep one at school, one at home, and one in the car, for ultimate convenience.

I’ll be uploading more to the shop soon. Want to take a look?

Lately, I’ve been super-busy at Joyful Abode. I have been trying to determine a plan for 2008  (which almost satisfies my never-ending love for making lists). The plan includes new products, new apron styles, more publicity (or “putting myself out there”), and hopefully more…people…noticing me. Of course, this will happen bit by bit, so don’t expect world-shaking changes all at once!

One thing you may have noticed is that I’ve switched out the ugly and boring google adsense ads in the right sidebar for sponsorships. I’d much rather give other independent crafters and artisans a place to promote their businesses! So, if you have your own business, blog, or even a favorite charity you’d like to support, please consider sponsoring Joyful Abode.

One thing you probably have NOT noticed is that Joyful Abode has been more heavily traveled of late. When someone comments on an entry, I get an email about it no matter what. BUT if it’s a new person who has never commented before, I must approve the comment before it’s posted. Well, I’ve been getting lots of new commenters lately. Welcome, all you new people! Also, the number of subscribers, unique visitors, and pageviews have been inching up quite a bit. It’s pretty exciting!

I am also part of a new team on etsy called Homefront. I’m heading up the development of a blog for the team, and if you take a peek, you’ll see there isn’t much there yet. I’m pretty excited though, because a lot of etsy teams are location-specific, and that doesn’t work out too well for military families who move often.

Besides all of that newsy stuff, I’ve been sewing baby blankets and hand-appliquéing little pictures in the corners. Pictures will come soon, I assure you. They’re VERY cute, and definitely worth all of the time that goes into them. They’re made out of 100% cotton flannel, and the batting is something like 97% cotton (the website says 100%, but the store says 97%). They’re warm and snuggly without being suffocating. Keep an eye out!

I finished up another batch of these zipper pouches. I love the way they look all together.

My bobbin box is one of my very favorite things…

And I always feel a sense of accomplishment when I finish off another spool of thread.

Does the little pile of threads and scraps that always piles up near the machine make anyone else strangely happy? I love it! If I were the type to spin yarn, I’d save it up to make a big sewing-scrap yarn.

If you’re in the Pensacola, Florida area, you should definitely come out to Belmont’s Bizzare this Saturday, from 10am ’till 4pm. See you there!

PS Sorry for my absence the last couple of days! I guess NaBloPoMo, combined with getting ready for Belmont, kind of wore me out! I’ll be back in full force soon, I’m sure.

A couple of craft shows I’m applying for require pictures (they’re juried), and one of the pictures has to be of the booth set-up. Since I haven’t done any shows yet, I set it up this morning in the driveway. My fantastic husband made the lattice thingies, which are great. They have horizontal poles on them, to act as racks for the hanging aprons. (Note the rainbow order arrangement… I’m insane.)

I think I’ll arrange things differently when I’m at Belmont’s Bizzare, to entice people to actually come “in” and look at things… but does anyone have specific suggestions? I’d like to get more height to the things on the table, but I’m not sure how to go about doing that without buying more stuff.

Cross your fingers for nice weather, too… I don’t have a tent!

Weird thing, too… I swear I had more aprons than this. I think I’m missing some, but maybe it’s my imagination.

I finished 4 more aprons today, plus 2 for a custom order from a coworker. Aaaand… Say goodbye to Rosaria. She’s going to a new (confidential, due to the holiday season) home! I’m sure she’ll be well-loved and very happy.

Check out Joyful Abode @ Etsy for more fantastic gift ideas (don’t forget yourself, too!).

Technorati Tags: craft shows, booth set-up, aprons, custom order, holiday season, gift ideas

So far, in the last month or so, I’ve broken two sewing machine needles and bent one (today). This is getting ridiculous! I know I’ve been sewing like a crazy woman lately, and when I worked at Hancock Fabrics there were people who came in and bought needles all the time… but this seems excessive.

Sewers, is this normal? Or do you think maybe I need to get my sewing machine checked?

I guess I’ll be picking up some needles this weekend… and JoAnn Fabrics has a 50% off coupon valid this Friday and Saturday, which I am definitely going to take advantage of (not for the needles though; for something more pricey).

Technorati Tags: sewing machine, sewing, Hancock Fabrics, JoAnn Fabrics

Less than 2 weeks left until Belmont’s Bizzare. These two weeks will be filled with tons of crafting after work. I have a bunch of aprons left to finish, as well as other little projects.

I just finished 1 “batch” of lined zipper pouches. These would be perfect to use as gift bags for the bias tape or recipe cards. And the recipient can use them later to stylishly carry makeup, feminine products, or just the essentials in place of a purse (cell phone, money, keys, driver’s license).

Sorry for the bad pictures! It’s night!

I have another batch of these all cut out and waiting to be sewn, too.

Belmont Arts Center in Pensacola, FL is hosting a funky arts and crafts show December 8th, 2007.

And guess who will be there as a vendor… yours truly! So if you’re in the area, you definitely need to come check it out.

I’ve been crafting up a storm…

Making lots more bias tape, in the hopes that sewers and quilters will be in the mix.

And working up a new project.

Of course I’m making lots of aprons too… no pictures of those yet! But come out to the bizzare and bring a friend or 20.

(Look at my etsy after the show for some shop updates, probably.)

I recently signed up for an swap through Craftster and was paired up with Tuesday as my partner. I was so excited! She basically told me that she loves turquoise and brown together, hates orange and red, and wanted a surprise apron!

So I set to work making a special apron just for her.

The apron’s pocket probably took the longest. I hand-embroidered it with her name and paisley to match the apron’s fabric.

The one she sent me is really gorgeous. She added all sorts of details, like folded-over pockets and decorative stitching on the waistband. And I love the fabric!

(Tuesday, I’m borrowing your pictures… I haven’t had a moment in the sunlight to take any of my own. Let me know if that’s not ok!… And I’ll upload them to my own flickr in a bit.)

She also added matching goodies… a matching pin (which will go on the lapel of my jacket) and hair pins!

Thanks so much, Tuesday! The apron you made for me is really gorgeous… the pockets are my favorite part. And I hope you love yours as much as I love mine.

Ten points to whoever can figure out what is wrong with this double fold binding. I made them all one night, and I must’ve been sleepy and not paying attention. Needless to say, I won’t be selling this…

Above the tags on the left, see that metal thing? That is my sewing machine needle, BROKEN. I felt a little proud when it snapped… I’ve never actually broken a machine needle before.

Can you tell I have been very busy? I am behind on writing Joyful Abode posts… I HAVE indeed been cooking, though writing everything up takes a while, and I don’t want to break my crafting streak. So for now I will keep teasing you with fun crafty photos.

I have a ton of photos to edit for Joyful Abode… but it may not happen for a little bit yet.

Little boxy pouch tutorial by threebears - So adorable and I LOVE the fabric she used in the tutorial photos. I have some zippers who have been waiting for their calling…

Heather’s favorite knot is now also my favorite knot. I wasn’t sure at first how it could beat my previous favorite knot, but the first time I tied Heather’s favorite knot, I knew it was love.

Some big embroidery site (not a blogger) has directions for how to do Shisha embroidery. If you don’t already know what it is, it’s that Indian mirror embroidery that’s so gorgeous. I recently used it in my Tie One On Local Pride apron… instead of mirrors though, I used paillettes (those giant sequins with one tiny hole near the edge). They also have examples of Shisha work and a tutorial for a project.

I always feel a special sort of connection with Sarah of The Small Object… based mostly on the fact that we’re from the same small town in South Carolina. Besides that though, she has an eye for the tiny and cute. If you haven’t seen her adorable little clothespin people, you’re missing out. Anyway, she recently posted this tutorial for fabric-covered floss bobbins. I may have to make a few, because right now my embroidery floss storage is decidedly un-cute.

Montessori By Hand posted a tutorial for her gorgeous “Recycled Bath Mat”. It’s so gorgeous, and it has cutesie little embroidered footprints on it. I think it would take a little convincing for me to actually step out of the shower onto it though, just because it looks so much like ART.

 Sew Mama, Sew! has been linking to tons of fantastic tutorials every day, and will continue throughout the month. Each day has a different theme, so definitely take a look.

What could I be making? And are you excited?

ERROR

The iron survived this incident.

Good thing, too, because I’m working on a lot of things right now.

Embroidery might be climbing the charts in my list of favorite crafts. I love the way it makes things look, and actually doing it is relaxing and methodical. So I recently decided to make some place mats for myself and my husband combining sewing, appliqué, and embroidery.

I learned a fantastic applique technique that I might write a tutorial for later, but for now, I’ll just let your eyes feast on my latest project-just-for-me. I love the way they turned out, and they grace our table now along with the place mats from Jennifreckles.

After ironing on interfacing to the yellow-dotted fabric, I appliquéd an autumn leaf onto each place mat. Then, I added a backstitched line for the leaf’s falling path.

After that, I layered two pieces of muslin on the back and bound the whole thing with handmade bias tape.

I decided to do the embroidery in two colors, for his-and-hers. I like that they match but aren’t exactly the same.

I also put one of my new tags on the back of each one, just because they make me smile.

This 1″ double fold bias tape is made from 100% cotton and is the perfect way to finish table linens and quilts, embellish existing clothing, create aprons, and more! Each package includes 3 yards of bias tape, but if you have a bigger project, I have multiple packages of a few of the prints. Just check out my bias tape listings on Joyful Abode @ Etsy for details.

And isn’t my packaging the cutest?

(Stick with me for this post… I’m not feeling very clever with words today.)

The last theme for the Tie one On apron challenge was “Local Pride.”

I was born and raised in Charleston, SC, but spent my teen years in Columbia, SC. When this apron assignment was issued, I was preparing to get married and move to Florida. I thought I wouldn’t have time to complete an apron for Tie One On. But then after we had moved to Pensacola, FL, Amy extended the challenge!

And then, we were packing up to move again, this time to Milton. So…

Finally, in my second house in Florida, I hunkered down and finished my Local Pride apron. I decided to use the deliciously beautiful Emerald Coast of Pensacola as inspiration. The water at the beach here is a lovely clear green, not blue. So with a green theme, and using embroidery, applique, and shisha embroidery, I came up with my this, representing my brand new local pride:

We were pretty hot pirates if I may say so myself. I made our shorts and hair accessories (my headband, his do-rag).

Simple Jack-0-Lantern this year. And thanks again to Marci for the cute scarecrow wreath.

We got tons of trick-or-treaters tonight. The best costume ever was a hamburger. The girl said her friend’s mom made it for her. I LOVED it.

It’s just waiting for its turn in the sewing machine!

I wrote about my first quilt. Since then, I have finished the top and machine-quilted the whole quilt top-batting-backing sandwich (I should’ve used a walking foot on my machine to make it a bit easier, but it turned out fine). I bound the edges in my handmade bias tape, which was a good choice.

Now for the finishing touches… some embroidery I decided on at the last minute. Four embroidered hearts.

I’ve been reading a bit about chicken scratch embroidery since finding a couple of aprons that are embellished with it. Chickenscratch is also called Snowflake Embroidery, Amish Embroidery, Depression Lace, or Gingham Lace and refers to a cross-stitch-like embroidered pattern done over gingham fabric. It can be very simple (the stitches will look like asterisks or stars) or more complex.

This apron, called Talia, is now at Joyful Abode @ Etsy, listed under Vintage Aprons of course (Vintage Half Aprons). I think the work done on this one is just gorgeous.

Bottom hem:

Waistband:

Pocket:

All of Lovely Talia:

A long time ago, I made a log cabin quilted wall hanging under the guidance of my mother. Really though, I made the top, and then lost interest. My mother finished by quilting and binding it, and that was the end of my quilting.

Recently though, I’ve been inspired by numerous blogs full of gorgeous quilt. I decided to attempt a simple checkerboard pattern quilt. It’s very small, because I didn’t want to experiment on a large scale.

I think it’s coming along nicely so far.

Here’s another apron sneak peek. This is the one with the pocket I thought would be perfect for clothespins!

And these are the “Carolynn” aprons… I made one grown-up half-apron, and two kiddie full aprons. The grown-up version has three pockets in the front that would be perfect for scissors, paint brushes, or other craft materials. The kiddie aprons each have one front pocket.

My mannequins are in the mail! The guy I ordered them from is in California, but he sent them by FedEx so hopefully they’ll get here soon. In the meantime, I’m still making aprons.

Tonight, I made one that has a deep pleated pocket that would be perfect for clothespins. I don’t line-dry my clothes, but when my students were painting outside, we did hang up their pictures to dry on a line. And when I took them down after they had dried, I wished I had a big deep pocket in the apron I was wearing.

I have a question for you… I ordered a lady mannequin and a child one. They are basically just the front part of the torso, not full mannequin. What do you think I should name them? I want something cute, not too common. And the child’s name needs to be asexual. Any ideas?

Just a sneak peek of some of the aprons I’ve been making. Hopefully next week, they will be in my etsy shop. (Nothing is there yet.) I am waiting for my mannequin lady to come in the mail. Well, really she’s more of a quarter of a lady. But she will wear aprons!