If you follow InStitches on either Instagram or Facebook you will have seen a recent post about my 10 year old niece Isla. Along with many of the world's children, Isla and her two sisters are in lockdown. So, no school, no meeting up and playing with friends, no visiting their beloved grandparents, Auntie (me!!) or cousins.
I often forward her the Terry's paper blogs and she in turn WhatsApp's her creations back. Here's what she said about this week's one on spirals:
I did one of the exercises on your website, but I did it with my eyes closed and listening to music! Thank you so much, it really relaxed and calmed me! I picked random colours, and it actually turned out alright!
Children are resilient and adaptable but looking after their mental health is just as important as looking after ours. We hope over the last 6 weeks we have managed to bring a spark of creative joy and that you have been able to take a moment to stop, slow down and make time to appreciate the smaller pleasures in life.
So, settle down, pull out your stitching basket, pick up your needle and thread and come fly away with me...
I did one of the exercises on your website, but I did it with my eyes closed and listening to music! Thank you so much, it really relaxed and calmed me! I picked random colours, and it actually turned out alright!
Children are resilient and adaptable but looking after their mental health is just as important as looking after ours. We hope over the last 6 weeks we have managed to bring a spark of creative joy and that you have been able to take a moment to stop, slow down and make time to appreciate the smaller pleasures in life.
So, settle down, pull out your stitching basket, pick up your needle and thread and come fly away with me...
Fly stitch is another easy versatile stitch that's quick to stitch. It can be sewn horizontally or vertically and either formed as a V or as Y stitch. It can also be detached or worked in an attached row.
To make a fly stitch:
- First bring your thread to the surface, holding the thread downwards with your opposite thumb to create a loop and work a loose horizontal stitch, level where the thread started.
- Angle the needle downwards between these two points (can you see how it created a visual triangle?) and bring it up through the waiting loop of thread. Pull gently to create a V.
- To anchor the V make a small tack stitch.
If you are working a block of fly stitch take the needle back under the V shaped stitch you have just sewn and bring it out to one side and repeat as above.
To create a Y stitch just take a longer tack stitch when holding the loop in place.
I especially like the way Terry used a distorted Y stitch to give a three-dimensional feel to this sample completed in a workshop with Richard McVetis.
Alternatively, fly stitch can be worked in a random fashion across the surface, as I have done in the photographs above. The effect of the stitch, as always, can be altered by thread choices and density of pattern.
Don't swallow the fish bone!:
Fishbone or attached fly is worked in a similar manner as fly stich except the tack stitch is longer and when you come to make the next stitch the needle comes out at the end of the previous tack stitch, as shown above.
Fishbone or attached fly is worked in a similar manner as fly stich except the tack stitch is longer and when you come to make the next stitch the needle comes out at the end of the previous tack stitch, as shown above.
Work fish bone in rows,
creative a leaf motif,
meander where you will or
take yourself off in a circle.
Or why not have a go at translating one of Tuesday's shadow sketches into stitch? I really enjoyed playing with different weights of thread and stitch proportions.
Don't despair - how to tame your threads...
If this image was hanging in a gallery it would be titled 'Threads of doom' .
If this is a familiar sight in your thread box then don't despair, we have a solution!
If this is a familiar sight in your thread box then don't despair, we have a solution!
- Take your new skein and remove any wrapper or tag BUT do not cut the tiny encircling tie-off thread.
- Carefully untwist the skein and open out, hold at the tie-off point and stretch out into a loop.
- Still holding the tie-off point carefully snip through all the threads at the bottom of the skein.
- When you want to remove a thread carefully pull from the tie-off point whilst holding both cut ends. You will find one strand comes out smoothly and tangle-free.
- Re-twist the skein to prevent tangling.
We hope over the last 6 weeks that you have enjoyed being creative with us; after all we set up InStitches because we wanted to share our passion and to inspire as many people as possible to get stitching and creating. However, from next week we will be moving to one mid-week blog; we will still be providing that creative spark, but we need to make time to develop some new ideas in the studio.
At the moment it's a tough time for small creative businesses such as ours. As most of you know, all the textile shows, arts trails and exhibitions for 2020 have been cancelled which means InStitches won't be out on the road meeting you all and offering all our hand dyed fabrics and threads for sale; plus we have had to close the studio for courses and workshops for the foreseeable future.
At the moment it's a tough time for small creative businesses such as ours. As most of you know, all the textile shows, arts trails and exhibitions for 2020 have been cancelled which means InStitches won't be out on the road meeting you all and offering all our hand dyed fabrics and threads for sale; plus we have had to close the studio for courses and workshops for the foreseeable future.
So, as you can't come to the InStitches shop then we are going to bring it to you! Those of you who have been in the studio know we already have a mini pop-up shop in the corner of the studio and our plan is to take it online.
It does mean we have some work to do (all the while socially distancing, of course!) dyeing threads, winding sari silk skeins, packing and labelling. Not to mention working out how to set up and run an online shop!
But when we're ready you'll be one of the first we shall tell!
But when we're ready you'll be one of the first we shall tell!
and there was cake....
Did you notice the Chelsea buns which popped up in the Tuesday blog this week? I was making them when Terry phoned up to ask something and on hearing I was making them she said 'send a photo, they're spirals too!' They're adapted from a Paul Hollwood recipe using whatever dried fruits I had inthe baking cupbard. If you want to have a go this weekend then click on the photograph to see how to make them. Enjoy!
Don't forget:
Thank you so much to everyone who is joining in with the blog and taking the time to post and share their creative endeavours - we really appreciate it. The creative community is a great one to be part of at any time, but especially now.
We’d love to hear how you got on … take a quick snap and post it over on Instagram and use the hash tags: #institchescreative2020 and #institches2013. Don't forget to follow both us and the hashtags to see what everyone else is creating too!
On Facebook reply to the relevant week's post with your comments and images. And don't forget to actually follow InStitches on Facebook to see what everyone else is up to.
Until next time - keep the creativity flowing...
Hazel & Terry
Thank you so much to everyone who is joining in with the blog and taking the time to post and share their creative endeavours - we really appreciate it. The creative community is a great one to be part of at any time, but especially now.
We’d love to hear how you got on … take a quick snap and post it over on Instagram and use the hash tags: #institchescreative2020 and #institches2013. Don't forget to follow both us and the hashtags to see what everyone else is creating too!
On Facebook reply to the relevant week's post with your comments and images. And don't forget to actually follow InStitches on Facebook to see what everyone else is up to.
Until next time - keep the creativity flowing...
Hazel & Terry
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