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2021 Year In Review

     Anne      Leave a Comment

I love this time of year. After nearly a week of festivities with the family including board games, whipped cream desserts, and general lazing around, I really enjoy sitting down with my journal and next year’s planner to reflect, wonder, hope, and best of all, resolve. As a to-do list lover and stationery junkie, there’s nothing I love more than writing down my New Year’s Resolutions, making plans and setting goals for the year, and writing about my highlights of the past year.

I flip through the pages of my journal and remember with fondness all the memories that were created, and find some comfort knowing that I overcame the more difficult parts. This precious time of introspection never fails to bring me renewed peace and energy. I am thankful for all I’ve accomplished, and buoyed to try new things and start new projects this year!

 

My Top 9

I thought I’d share with you my top 9 crafty accomplishments of the year! Although I believe it’s important not to value our self-worth entirely on how much we accomplish, I think it beneficial to reflect on how we accomplish different things. Seeking to grow and learn and work with a thankful heart are more important than mindlessly creating content. So, here are the 9 projects/accomplishments I’m most proud of this year!

 

1. Starting This Blog

welcome, read my first post here

This might be what I’m most proud of in 2021! Despite beating myself up for not launching sooner, I’m so, so happy to have finally started this blog! It had been on my to-do list for a while, and I was definitely not prepared for how much I didn’t know anything about blogging, but I’m really proud of how far I’ve come! I’ve been blogging steadily for 8 months now, and feel like I’ve gotten into a pretty good routine. I’m still learning so much everyday, which keeps things both exciting and frustrating, haha! I love learning new things, but am often unprepared for how long certain tasks take. Nevertheless, here we are, and I can’t wait to see what 2022 has in store for my little corner of the Internet. Thank you all so much for being here, reading my posts and supporting my work! I appreciate it more than you know.

 

2. Discovering English Paper Piecing

finished hexie flowers and basted hexagons, as well as a pile of square fabric scraps, snips, and pins

Ahhhh EPP, what a joy this has been! I had absolutely no idea what EPP was until it started popping on my Instagram often. I finally gave it a try, following this video by the amazing Mollie of Wild Olive, and loved it instantly! Then I decided to turn her monthly Kawaii Crossing house patterns into hexie flowers using the EPP method, and it’s been so much fun! I share them over on my Instagram, and I also wrote a full post on how I make them.

 

3. The Garden Bouquet Project

flat lay view of the finished garden bouquet embroidery framed and surrounded by fresh flowers

When I think back to the month of August, this project is all I remember! I made it for my grandparents and didn’t have that much time to work on it, so I crammed as much embroidering in a day as physically possible and managed to finish it in time for my visit! It turned out just as I’d envisioned and I couldn’t be more pleased. It was the perfect project to practice new skills and refine old ones. I tried a new stumpwork technique for the currant berries, worked on my long & short stitch for the wild roses, and reverted back to my beloved ribbons to make the lily. I wrote several blog posts on the making of this project, so you can have a look and follow along if you’d like!

 

4. Beaded Blackberry Branch Project

flat lay close-up on beaded blackberries project and plate of blackberries with embroidery notions and dried flowers

Another rather intense, but immensely satisfying project was this beaded branch of blackberries I made last September. Inspired by one of my favourite books, Venetia by Georgette Heyer, I designed a branch of blackberries that I could stitch partly with beadwork. I ended up using a mix of silk shading, ribbonwork, and beadwork, and absolutely love it!

 

5. Practicing Drawing & Making my Own Patterns

embroidered wisteria branch finished view from top

This year, I really tried to focus more on designing my own embroideries, rather than always using someone else’s pattern. This was a pretty big challenge since drawing doesn’t come naturally to me and it takes me hours to draw a very simple shape. But after several months of pushing myself to pick up my sketchbook and practice, practice, practice, I can definitely see an improvement! Drawing outlines for embroideries doesn’t seem so unattainable anymore, and I’ve even been able to offer a couple of my own patterns for free here on the blog!

I’m super excited to keep drawing and making my own patterns in 2022!

 

6. Scissor Case with Victorian Embroidery

flat lay view of embroidered scissor case with dried plants, lace, embroidery hoop and red bow

As much as it’s been fun to come up with my own designs, I’ve always loved using vintage and antique patterns for sewing and embroidery. Earlier this month, I made this scissor case using a Victorian pattern from a Briggs & Co. pattern book, and it was wonderful. I adapted the pattern to fit my project and stitched it on felt really easily. The scissor case ended up being a Christmas present, but I’ll definitely need to stitch one for myself. A delight to make from start to finish!

 

7. Woodland Scene Embroidery

flat lay showing a woodland scene embroidered in a vine wreath

I tried something completely new and different this month as well, and mixed watercolour and embroidery in this wintery scene. This was one of my most challenging design of which I’m really proud of, and the addition of the watercolour turned out so well! As much as I love the long & short stitch, it wouldn’t look the same if the whole thing was embroidered. I really loved adding a little paint and will definitely try it again soon! This one was also a Christmas present, and it was so hard to part with!

 

8. Free-Handing Botanicals

dandelion embroidery hoop art against backdrop of real dandelions

If I challenged myself to draw and design more this year, I also challenged myself to try embroidering something without a pattern. I couldn’t believe that these little dandelions turned out decent! Normally, I can’t function without a pattern, without directions, recipes, instructions, etc… I actually like being told what to do in most instances, lol! But anyways, I decided to just free-hand this one and used a bit of crewel wool, and behold, the sunniest dandelions! I haven’t really done anything with this piece yet, but I’m thinking it would look really cute in a journal or herbarium.

 

9. Mixing Embroidery & Pressed Botanicals

finished embroidery work with black raspberries

For Christmas 2020, I received a gorgeous flower press made by my Dad, and let me tell you it got a lot of use this year! I’ve been pressing flowers since I was young and like to use them for cardmaking and journaling, but since I love mixing medias with my embroidery, it was only natural that I should try combining pressed leaves and embroidered berries! Not only does it save you some stitching time, but the effect is so beautiful and lifelike! The only thing is that it is very fragile and I’m not quite sure how to frame or preserve them…but it’s wonderful to work, and I’ll definitely be making more!

 

Bookish Highlights:

Since my one true love is Reading Books and so much of my work is influenced by literature, I thought I’d share a few of my favourite books this year! I didn’t read as much as I normally do, but I’m officially obsessed with audiobooks now. I find that they’re the perfect source of motivation to work on a repetitive task (like stitching!) and become so absorbed that time just flies.

 

Agatha Christie

I finally, finally, read an Agatha Christie mystery this year, and oh my goodness am I hooked!! She’s mainly the reason for my audiobook obsession, because who knew how pleasantly exciting it is to listen to a murder? Apparently a lot. I started with And Then There Were None, which sent chills down my spine, and then quickly plunged into the Hercule Poirot world. I’ve lost count of how many I’ve listened to. They’re so good, and you can find many of them for free on Youtube! I’m excited to try a Miss Marple book next.

 

The Enchanted April by Elizabeth von Arnim

finished wisteria hoop art against book cover of The Enchanted April on iPad

This was probably my top favourite book of 2021. What an utter delight! I wrote a review of it on Goodreads, and I also have a full post on the embroidery project it inspired. Witty, charming and idyllic, Enchanted April is a flower enthusiast’s dream. The beautiful descriptions, the rich landscapes, the psychological portraits, the sweet, sweet ending…everything is perfect! The 90’s movie adaptation is also perfect, and I highly recommend it! I watched it on repeat while working on my Garden Bouquet and I couldn’t have asked for anything better.

 

The Complete World of Beatrix Potter

Can you believe that I’ve only now read the tales of Beatrix Potter? I know, me neither. But there it is, I didn’t grow up with them. However, better late than never, and I can safely say that I absolutely love the darling stories! Who could resist the cutest bunnies, mischievous cats, silly geese, and other such charming creatures? Not to mention the beautiful and inspiring illustrations! I can definitely understand why she’s still so admired as an author an artist, and now proudly join the ranks of her fans. The movie Miss Potter starring Renée Zellweger is also heartbreakingly sweet, and I can’t get enough of it. Both film and tales have been a huge source of inspiration for me this year, and I’m so thankful!

***

And that’s it my friends, those were my top 9 achievements of the year, as well as my favourite literary discoveries! I hope you enjoyed reading my post, and I’d absolutely love to hear from you in the comments. What are you most proud of this year? What inspired you the most? Have you also read some really good books?

I can’t wait to continue sharing my little adventures with you in 2022.

 

Happy New Year, everyone!

 

Fondly,

A Cozy Christmas Chat

     Anne

Dear friend,

Can you believe that Christmas is just around the corner once again? How I love these busy, inspiring days full of preparations. The period from now until early January just might be my favourite time of the year!

flat lay displaying woodland scene Christmas card with matching box, a candle, a small wreath decoration, and branches of cedar

There is always so much to do, but it’s so pleasant. The wreath going up on the front door, the tree to decorate, the Nativity to display…and of course, a lot of baking! I don’t typically eat sweets during Advent, but I like having a few goodies ready for Christmas day, of course. I’ve been really in the mood for gingerbread this year, and the other day I saw the cutest cookie decoration tutorial on Pinterest that I’m determined to try out! You make a simple wreath out of what looks like royal icing, and dare I say, it looks fairly doable for someone with zero cookie decoration skills? I’ll let you know 😉.

In truth, these sweet days of homemade preparations for Christmas are nearly as exciting as the day itself! There’s something so magical in getting ready to celebrate the birth of our Saviour, in a spirit of simplicity that yet delights in taking time to prepare special things. The family recipes, the handmade ornaments, the cheerful hymns…there’s so much to take part in and be thankful for.  

The best part, naturally, is the holiday stitching. I’ve been spending too much time browsing everyone’s lovely embroideries on Instagram lately, and my Christmas-stitching-to-do-list is long enough to last twenty Christmasses and more!

 

On My Worktable

flat lay showing a woodland scene on fabric partially painted in watercolour, a stash of DMC emboidery floss, Christmas lights, pinecones, and embroidery scissors

I tried something new this week…watercolour on fabric…and I think I love it. I have Nicki Franklin of The Stitchery to thank for this. I’ve been admiring her work so much lately, and finally decided to try this idea! She often mixes a little watercolour with her embroideries and it’s so pretty.

I’m definitely no watercolour artist and painting fabric is different than painting paper, but I’m incredibly happy with how this turned out! The colours bled a little in some places, but since most of those spots will be covered with stitches later, I’m not worried about it. I had a lot of fun trying this out and am really glad I didn’t mess it up! Have you ever tried something like this? I do love mixing things up with embroidery a bit.

close-up of watercolour woodland scene on fabric, with paintbrushes and tubes of paint

 

Latest Inspirations

I’ve spent the last four or so Christmases in the country, but I don’t think I’d ever been as inspired by my surroundings as I am this year! Little animals keep making their way into my sketchbook, and I dream of snowy forests and snug log cabins, midnight skies and twinkling stars. I’ve even had a few lovely encounters with the dear woodland creatures. A hooting owl woke me up softly one morning, a cotton-tail rabbit has been spotted several times bouncing around the garden, and the most beautiful, majestic fox went for a leisurely stroll around the house a few days ago.

Fresh snow had fallen, still adorning roofs and tree branches, and out came a flash of orange amid the winter whiteness. The fox moved about unhurriedly, as though completely at home. He left straight through the garden path towards the field, his bushy tail swishing gently, leaving dainty footprints behind. It was such a picturesque sight, I wish I’d been outside to take better photos!

a fox in a snow covered garden

It’s no surprise then, that these sweet little creatures should make their way onto my embroideries…although I have to say, I’ve really been challenging myself with the actual drawing of them! I feel fairly confident in my botanical sketching abilities, but animals are another matter entirely. I’m pretty proud of how the fawn in my latest project turned out though, and am excited to stitch him. It’s turning out to be a very relaxing and calming project, the very thing to work on during these bustling days leading up to Christmas.

I look forward to sharing the finished piece with you! Since this will be my last post before Christmas, I wish you a very merry Christmas, filled with serenity and hope. This season is always a wonderful time to remind ourselves of what’s really important, and to slow down a bit and delight in the true mystery of Christmas.

 

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

John 3:16

 

Merry Christmas!

 

Fondly,

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Making a Scissor Case With Victorian Embroidery

     Anne      2 Comments

Back in the spring, I found myself very inspired by strawberries. There were, naturally, too many projects to fit in that season and too little time. One of these hopeful projects had been a scissor case featuring a beautiful Victorian strawberry design. Strawberries may be out of season now, but I’m bringing them back in this unintentionally festive-looking project!

 

scissor case project with historical embroidery

 

I came across a beautiful strawberry pattern while browsing through a Briggs & Co. collection of patterns to transfer from the 1880’s. I immediately thought that it would be perfect to embroider on a scissor case. If you didn’t know, Internet Archive is FULL of historical books about needlework, embroidery, floriography, and so much more! There are some absolute gems to be found there. The Briggs & Co. embroidery designs for transfer are definitely among them.

 

flat lay featuring dried brown sprigs, lace, a pincushion, a mug of foamy drink, a teacup full of embroidery floss, a red bow, an embroidery hoop, and embroidered scissor case in the center

 

The Briggs & Co. Embroidery Patterns

“Universally known” by the 1880’s, these embroidery patterns were all the rage because they were ready to be transferred with an iron “on any fabric” (clearly they did not have polyester felt back in the 1880’s, haha!). This obviously sped up the process and lowered the costs for ladies’ embroidery projects. The particular book I’m referring has a large selection of floral and ecclesiastical patterns, as well as village scenes illustrated by Kate Greenaway. We are big fans of Greenaway here on this blog and I reference her Language of Flowers dictionary often. 😉

I absolutely love working with historical designs and knowing that somebody else also embroidered it a long time ago. (I like to imagine a fancy lady sitting at her embroidery frame, flowy skirt billowing about her, and intricate fire-screen shielding her from the fire, while I’m here in my pjs stitching in bed…lol)

The strawberry pattern can be found on p. 37. I’ve adapted it to fit on my case by only transferring part of it, and moving a few elements slightly.

For some reason, I was really set on making the scissor case out of felt, so I had to find a good way to transfer the pattern… Since you know, as fabulous as these patented designs for transfer are, I sadly don’t have access to a physical copy. I love embroidering on felt (although I don’t do it very often) because the needle glides through so easily. It’s not so easy to transfer a pattern on it, however. I decided to give the tissue paper method a try, and it worked SO well! Definitely recommended it if you want to transfer something on felt.

 

Transferring the Pattern…the “old-fashioned way”!

I just used a piece of white tissue paper (the kind for gift-wrapping), and transferred my design on it with a pencil. Then I pinned the paper in place over the felt and started stitching my design right through both felt and paper. It tears a little as you go, but that’s ok! I was able to follow the pattern pretty easily. I only stitched the necessary outlines, leaves, and sepals before pulling the rest of the paper away.

 

tissue paper with transferred embroidery pattern pinned aver hooped piece of felt
close-up view of embroidered strawberry pattern over tissue paper and felt

Lovers of fancy work cannot but remember with a sigh how much money and trouble they have been obliged to expend over their designs in past days. If they wanted a braiding pattern they either had to tack on strips of tissue paper, and after stitching the braid on to pick the paper out laboriously with their fingers […]

Ladies’ Pictorial, May 6th 1882, in Briggs & Co. Patent Transferring Papers.

 

Well, excuse me, Ladies’ Pictorial, but removing the tissue paper was an immensely satisfying step! I used a pin and a pair of tweezers to grab the little pieces of paper stuck under certain parts of the stitching. Now there’s no trace of tissue paper anywhere! Plus, it leaves no visible pencil or water-soluble/heat-erasable pen marks, which is really nice. (I only traced the outline for the scissor case piece in water-soluble ink, and that washed away very easily.)

 

close-up view of strawberry embroidery outline once the tissue paper is removed

And now I feel as though I’ve completely defeated the purpose of using a pattern from genius groundbreaking 19th century innovative embroidery technology, by reverting to the method which these patented transfers were intended to supplant. Oh, dear.

 

Stitching the Design

I kept the stitching very simple for the most part; the stems are done with stem stitch, the leaves and sepals with satin stitch, and the flowers with satin stitch and French knots. I outlined the strawberries with backstitch before filling them with trellis stitch. Needle-painting was quite popular in the 1880s, so it’s very possible that the design was intended to be stitched that way, but I went for a quicker route.

 

view of finished strawberry embroidery on scissor case pocket piece
close-up view of embroidered leaves with satin stitch
close-up view of embroidered strawberry flower

 

For the strawberries, I was partly inspired by a series of posts I saw on Mary Corbet’s Needle n’ Thread. She used some lattice work over satin stitch for one of the strawberries in her sampler. The effect was so lovely and such a good idea for filling a berry! I skipped the satin stitch and just did the lattice work (trellis stitch). I used one strand of gold DMC metallic thread for the little “x”s anchoring the lattice. It adds such a nice touch and I love it!

close-up of embroidered strawberry with trellis stitch

 

Making the Scissor Case

I designed the case myself, and it’s 2 very simple pieces designed to hold a pair of small embroidery scissors. I used my 4 1/2″ long stork scissors for reference.

two pieces of scissor case side by side with snips and embroidery floss bobbin
close-up of lace bordering the top of scissor case piece

 

After adding a bit of decorative lace to the top of the pocket piece, I simply laid this piece atop the bigger one. Then I sewed them together with a whipstitch. I used 2 strands of floss instead of sewing thread to create a nice border, and it worked really well! The best thing about felt is that the raw edges don’t fray, so there’s no need to worry about seam allowances and how to finish edges.

finished scissor case over lace background

 

Because I used rather thin felt and the scissors are very pointy even when closed, I reinforced the bottom with a bit of interfacing. (Applied to each case piece before I sewed it together.) And to prevent the scissors from slipping around, I also added a little ribbon to hold them in place with a bow. All I did was poke two holes with a tailor’s awl on the back piece just above the pocket, and thread the ribbon through. When the scissors are in, you can easily tie the ribbon in a bow to hold them in place 😊.

flat lay view of finished scissor case surrounded by dried plants, lace, a red bow, and small copper kettle
flat lay view of embroidered scissor case with dried plants, lace, embroidery hoop and red bow

 

And that’s all there is to it!

It was a pretty quick project, perfect for a day of quiet stitching with warm coffee, watching the snowflakes flurrying outside. The red, green, and gold were a nice festive bonus! On its own the case doesn’t look strictly “Christmas” and works year-round, but it was fun to work with holiday colours at this time of year.

I hope you enjoyed this little project and I’d love to hear your thoughts. Do you also have a scissor case? What do you think of the trellis stitch? I can’t wait to stitch another Briggs & Co. embroidery pattern, they’re so beautiful. (And read what other snarky comments such periodicals have to offer!) Again, you can find the book where I found the strawberry pattern here.

 

Fondly,

victorian embroidery scissor case project

Jam Jar Bonnets: Tutorial & Free Pattern

     Anne      Leave a Comment

Happy Canadian Thanksgiving!! The turkey is roasting in the oven, the colourful leaves are slowly falling, and the geese are (loudly) flying overhead. The air smells of cinnamon and apples and fun afternoon craft projects! I hope you’ve been enjoying some autumn fun and good weather lately (or summer fun, if you’re in the southern hemisphere!). It’s been delightfully warm this week for this time of year, and I’ve had a lot of fun putting together a little something to share with you: jam jar bonnets!!

 

jar bonnets project tutorial

 

Jam Jar Bonnets

I’ve been seeing the cutest ones all over Instagram, and since we’ve been making loads of jelly this season, I thought I really needed to make a few to decorate our jars! Of course, what better opportunity for a little embroidery? In today’s post, I’m going to share how I made my jar bonnets, featuring some cute apples and grapes 😊. Keep in mind there are probably hundreds of different ways you can make jar bonnets, so feel free to use different materials and experiment a bit!

 

jam jars decorated with embroidered bonnets
decorated jam jars with embroidered bonnets
front view of jam jars with decorative embroidered bonnets

 

Free Embroidery Pattern

And, as a thank-you in honour of Thanksgiving, I’m throwing in a bonus freebie: the Apple Jelly embroidery pattern! I turned it into a downloadable PDF file, ready to print if you wish, with step-by-step instructions and photos of how to stitch it. I hope you like it! It was absolutely delightful to create and stitch up, and fits perfectly atop a jar of apple jelly. So if you’re looking to decorate your jar bonnets, I’ve got just the pattern for you!

APPLE JELLY PDF EMBROIDERY PATTERNDownload

 

finished apple jelly embroidery jar bonnet tied around jar

If you want to turn it into a jar bonnet like I made, what I suggest is that you first stitch up the Apple Jelly pattern, and then come back to this tutorial! I’ll even save you a piece of pumpkin pie and you can have some leftover turkey. 😉

 

Jar Bonnet Tutorial With Embroidered Appliqué

 

I will be using a similar method for the appliqué part to what I did in my Winnie the Pooh Pillow project. I’m using a standard mason jar with ring lid, measuring 2 3/4″ in diameter (outer ring).

 

Materials You Will Need:

materials you need to make the jar bonnets: fabric, thread, mason jar, sewing scissors, pinking shears, fray check glue, tailor's awl, sewing thread and embroidered apple jelly pattern

 

  • Your Apple Jelly embroidery
  • Scrap fabric with which to make the bonnet. I used cotton scraps from an old curtain. Cotton or linen will work very well for this. You can even use the same fabric as your embroidery and skip the appliqué if you want! Just make sure that you cut out a piece big enough before you start stitching.
  • A piece of twine cord approx. 21 1/2″ long, or any ribbon, lace, etc. which you would like to wrap around your bonnet.
  • Pinking shears for finishing the edges. (You can also use a serger or an overcast stitch on your sewing machine if you have those).
  • Sewing shears for cutting out fabric.
  • Jar with a lid
  • A bit of Fray Check glue or other fabric glue for the ends of the twine cord.
  • A small tailor’s awl for piercing the fabric. (I also used a knitting bodkin to make my holes slightly larger.)
  • A ruler and marking tool will also be very useful (I used a water-soluble pen).
  • Pins for holding the appliqué in place.
  • Matching sewing thread for sewing the appliqué
  • Black embroidery floss
  • Sewing needle and embroidery needle

If you want to make the gathered ruffle variation (detailed at the end of this post), you will also need: a sewing machine, and thread to match the ruffle fabric.

 

Instructions:

  1. To begin, un-hoop the embroidery and give it a gentle press with the iron. Always press good-side down, and try to avoid going over the stitches. Ideally you just want to remove the hoop marks.

 

2. Once that’s done, take the ring that goes around your jam jar (or whatever lid it has), and trace the inner circle around your embroidery, on the wrong side of the fabric. We will be appliquéing it onto another piece of fabric. I didn’t add seam allowance because I know I want my appliqué slightly smaller than the ring’s inner circle size (so I’ve already included it). If you want your appliqué to be bigger or smaller (or prefer to work with a larger seam allowance), adjust your markings accordingly and add seam allowance if desired.

trace the inner jar ring around your embroidery

 

3. Clip into the seam allowance a few times with your embroidery scissors, no more than 2 or 3 mm deep (about an 1/8 inch). This helps to fold the SA down smoothly. Fold down about ¼” all around to the wrong side, and press in place. Don’t worry if it doesn’t look too even and a bit jagged. I find it easier to fix as I’m sewing it down than fiddling with the iron.

You can also choose to leave the edge raw and sew in place with a blanket-stitch.

seam allowance clipped in a few millimeters to fold it smoothly
seam allowance folded all around embroidery work
view of the good side of embroidery work once seam allowance has been folded down

4. With your pinking shears, cut out a circle of your decorative fabric the size you would like your finished jar bonnet to be. Mine was 5 1/4” in diameter.

circle of decorative fabric cut with pinking shears

 

5. Cut a length of twine cord, long enough to wrap once around your jar and tie in a little bow, about 21 1/2″ long. Apply Fray Check to the ends to prevent them from fraying and make them easier to thread later.

twine cord ends dipped in Fray Check glue

 

6. Center the prepared embroidery work over the fabric and pin in place.

embroidered appliqué piece centered and pinned onto main fabric

 

7. Sew the appliqué with an invisible stitch. I used a small whipstitch, coming up through the main fabric, then through the fold of the appliqué, and back down into the main fabric.

appliqué being sewed down with whipstich
side view of the finished appliqué

7. If you want to add a border around the appliqué, pop the jar bonnet back into the embroidery hoop and embroider the outline stitch of your choice.  I used the stem stitch, but it looks like one continuous line!

Note: There are many different ways to appliqué, so feel free to use another method. You could do needle-turn, or even just leave the edge raw and stitch it down with blanket stitch.

stem stitch with black embroidery floss around the appliqué
finished hem stitch border around embroidered appliqué

8. Flip the bonnet to the wrong side and place the ring or lid over it to measure where you’d like the twine to be woven into the fabric to tie it. To do this, I traced the outer ring circle onto the fabric, then measured 2cm (3/4″) down. I used a water-soluble pen to mark dots along this measurement, 1 cm apart around the bonnet. Leave a 4cm ((1 1/2″) gap at the front of the bonnet to be able to tie the string in a bow.

mark 2cm up from the jar bonnet's edge all around, making your marks 1 cm apart
4 cm gap between marks at the front of the bonnet

9. Using a tailor’s awl, poke holes in the spots where you made your markings. My awl made the holes too small, so I used a plastic knitting bodkin to make them slightly bigger.

knitting bodkin to make holes bigger around the jar bonnet

 

10. Once the glue has dried on the ends of the twine cord, weave it through the holes you just created. Start at the front on one end, going down from the good side and back up through the next hole. Thread it all around, and your jar bonnet is all done and ready to be tied onto your jar!

twine cord threaded around jar bonnet
bonnet tied in a bow around jam jar

 

Note that this isn’t a very tight or secure bonnet, it’s really just a decoration. The bonnet just rests atop the lid, and the twine bow prevents it from sliding.

 

Gathered Ruffle Variation

As I mentioned earlier, there are so many different ways to make jar bonnets, and it’s an excellent project for just using what you already have in your stash and display pretty fabric scraps. I made a second embroidery piece for an apple & grape jelly jar, and tried another way to make the bonnet.

 

To make a gathered ruffle with twine cord, here’s what you can do:

  1. First, cut a length of the fabric of your choice about 2 ¼” x 16”. You can make it longer if you want more gathers, and wider if you want it to drape lower over your jar. I will be attaching this gathered ruffle to a second piece of decorative embroidery, so I cut my fabric length a few inches longer than the circumference of that piece, to be able to gather the fabric around it. Pink the edges of the two short ends with your pinking shears.
length of fabric 16 inches long to make the gathered ruffle

 

2. On the wrong side of the fabric, turn one of the long edges ¼” in, and press down. Turn it ¼” again to hide the raw edge, and press in place.

 

3. Sew along this fold with your sewing machine to create the hem, sewing close to the fold.

ruffle hem being sewn down at the sewing machine

 

4. Fold the shorter, pinked ends ¼” to the wrong side of the fabric, and stitch in place.

 

5. Now we will make a channel for the twine cord, which is what will create the gathering effect. On the wrong side of the fabric, fold the remaining raw edge down ¼” (press if you need), and down again about 3/8”. You want it to be large enough to create an opening to thread your cord through.

 

Note: You can easily substitute the twine cord for ribbon or lace!

fold the remaining raw edge down 1/4" on the wrong side of the fabric
fold the edge down again 3/8" to create a channel

6. At your sewing machine, sew down the fold, as close to the edge as you can. This is what you should have so far:

prepared ruffle, ready to be threaded with cord

 

7. Using a safety pin or elastic threader, thread the twine through the channel. Pull on the cord to gather the ruffle to fit around your piece of embroidery (or other piece of decorative fabric or whatever you choose to attach it to).

twine cord pulled through channel and gathered into a ruffle

 

8. Sew the ruffle by hand around the embroidery or other piece of fabric with an invisible stitch (a slipstitch would work really well). I used a scant ¼” seam allowance for the embroidery piece, and pinked and clipped along the edge. You can also use another seam finish if you prefer.

close up view of sewn ruffle to embroidery piece
wrong side view of finished jar bonnet

And that’s it, your jar bonnet is finished!

finished jar bonnet viewed from the good side
finished jar bonnet sitting atop mason jar
top view of embroidered jar bonnet with pomme raisin embroidery
top view of both jars with finished embroidered jar bonnets

 

Ready to decorate all your jars?

I hope that you’ve enjoyed this tutorial and that it inspires you to decorate your jars with sweet little bonnets. It doesn’t take that long to make depending on how detailed your embroidery is, and the bonnets go together very easily. A really fun, easy project for a cozy autumn weekend! They’re perfect to give as gifts, or keep to yourself to add a little beauty to your jam shelf.

If you make this project and use my Apple Jelly pattern, I would absolutely love to see your creations! You can tag me on Instagram @northerbelle.atelier. Also if you have any questions or feedback about the pattern/tutorial, please don’t hesitate to let me know 😊

 

Happy Thanksgiving, and happy jar bonnet-making!

 

Fondly,

free embroidery pattern apple jelly
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Garden Bouquet Reveal: Celebratory Tea Party

     Anne      2 Comments

Dearest friend, it is with the utmost pleasure that I welcome you here today to conclude the Garden Bouquet series and reveal the final piece to you. Please do sit down and make yourself comfortable. We will begin in a few moments by adding the finishing touches to the piece, then frame it, and reveal it at last. I have been so eager to finally show it to you, and can’t wait to chat with you about all things flowers, ribbons, and garden inspiration. How do you like your tea? And please allow me to serve you a warm slice of apple pie, fresh out of the oven. Settle in, and we shall begin!

 

welcome to the garden bouquet reveal tea party

 

If you’ve been following along on this journey from the beginning, thank you so, so much! I hope you’ve been enjoying the project so far. If you haven’t seen all the posts or are new here, never fear! We will do a little recap.

 

The Garden Bouquet Project

 

In Part 1, I shared the inspiration behind the design as we toured my grandmother’s garden, carefully picking and choosing which blooms would be included in the final piece. I also shared a bit about my fabric choice, how to transfer the pattern onto the fabric, and how I would approach stitching the piece.

garden bouquet embroidery design traced onto tracing paper

 

In Part 2, I detailed how I embroidered the wild roses in needle-painting style. They were the most time-consuming element of the bouquet, but so well worth it! I shared all the threads I used, as well as my process.

finished embroidered wild rose

 

In Part 3, I tried something new and exciting: stump-work using bits of cotton ball! I embroidered currant berries by padding them with cotton ball, and absolutely loved the effect! I also briefly showed you how I embroidered a raspberry branch, which I explain in more details in another post.

embroidered currant berries with little "end" in brown floss

 

In Part 4, I crowned the Bouquet with a ribbon-work lily. Three-dimensional, shiny, and majestic, the lily is the centerpiece of the bouquet. This was my favourite part to work on, and it was lovely to get back into ribbon-work!

complete ribbon lily flower

 

In Part 5, I sprinkled a few yellow daisies to balance out the big pink flowers a little. They were the easiest to stitch, and I only used basic stitches. Something nice and sweet after the more complicated elements!

finished daisy flower with straight stitches around it to create the thin leaves

 

And that’s where we are! All the floral elements are embroidered, and the bouquet is just waiting for a bit of extra love and care, and a nice frame.

Let me refill your cup with this steaming Earl Grey, and I will have scones ready for you in a minute. While they finish goldening in the oven, we will embroider the Bouquet title.

 

“Bouquet du Jardin Turenne”

 

I used a simple backstitch to write the title, with very small stitches to be able to navigate turns and corners easily. The title was hand-written, hence the unevenness of the letters. I think it adds a bit of charm to it, although I could have made it a *bit* more even. I used two strands of black floss, but I think a dark brown could have worked very well too.

bouquet du jardin embroidery showing the embroidered title
part of the embroidered title in backstitch

 

What’s your favourite way to embroider letters? I like to use the splitstitch, too, and the satin stitch looks divine when the letters are big enough for it.

Oh, we are so close to being done now! I just think my stems look a little…empty. (I love the one jutting out lol, how did it end up like that?!)

 

embroidered bouquet stems

 

They definitely need a bow. This is a bouquet, after all. And because I love ribbon and it’s faster to sew on than to embroider one, I used a small piece of cream-coloured ribbon to create the bow. It’s hand-sewn where all the stems intersect.

ribbon bow added around flower stems to tie the bouquet

 

My friends…we did it!! There’s the bouquet all done! No more thread, no more needle!! Actually, that’s not true, because I used a needle and thread to back it into the frame…but no more embroidery!

 

Framing the Bouquet

It’s ready to be un-hooped and prepped for framing! Ahhhh!! I hear the timer going off in the kitchen, meaning the scones must be ready. Excellent timing! There is blueberry, or apple and cinnamon. Would anyone like a bit of jam to go with it?

When I un-hooped the fabric, I noticed that the left side (where I hold it while I stitch) was a bit yellowed. This was undoubtedly caused by my hyperhidrosis problem (excessive sweating of the hands), and I was a bit disappointed, but decided to carefully wash it. Normally, I wouldn’t really wash a project like that, but in this case I thought it better to try. I used a bit of warm water and dish soap and a clean brush to scrub very gently at the affected area. It helped somewhat, and in the end it’s not really visible in the frame, since it ended up being more the seam allowance that was affected, thankfully (I’m glad I used a big hoop!).

I ironed the piece very gently, good side down, not going over the embroidery. Because there’s stump-work and ribbon-work and all kinds of things, I definitely didn’t want to squish it, but the sides needed some ironing to remove the hoop marks. It’s much easier to smooth those out if you dampen the fabric slightly. Again, I did not dampen the embroidery itself, only the fabric on the sides.

And finally, the frame! Unfortunately, I did not have a pretty frame on hand, and no time to go buy one. I had to use what I could find in the house, but I think it works! It’s a very cheap plastic frame, but its thin black shape actually work very well with the embroidery! It matches the title, and doesn’t distract from the bouquet.

I used a needle and thread to secure my embroidery work around a piece of sturdy cardboard, leaving a good 2” seam allowance all around. I placed another piece of black cardboard in the frame first, to hide the back of the mounted embroidery. There is no glass or anything on the front, and a small cloth or lint roller can be used to occasionally clean the embroidery.

 

And…it’s done!! Are you ready to see it? The Garden Bouquet reveal at last!

 

flat lay view of the finished garden bouquet embroidery framed and surrounded by fresh flowers
finished garden bouquet, framed and surrounded by daisies and a lily
finished garden bouquet embroidery shown from the side, with fresh daisies surrounding it

 

And some close-up details:

close up of the finished garden bouquet embroidery showing wild roses and lily bud in particular
close up of finished embroidery showing more wild roses, currant branch, and lily
close up of garden bouquet details; wild rose and currant branch
close-up of wild rose bud on finished garden bouquet embroidery

 

This calls for another cup of tea, what do you think? And a cupcake with pink frosting and edible lilies. 😉

I can’t believe I finished it!! Thank you so very much dear friend, for accompanying me through this needlework journey. I would love to know your thoughts on it! Did you have a favourite part? What technique do you prefer, or are interested in the most?

And what is your favourite flower? I have always been very partial to roses and was excited to include them in this project.

 

A Bit of Floriography

I thought it would be fun to discover what secret meanings lie behind my floral choices for this piece…If you’ve been following me for a bit, you probably know that I have a strong interest in all things Victorian floriography, and that I whip out my trusted Kate Greenaway pocket flower dictionary any chance I get.

 

So let’s see…

 

Dog Rose = Pleasure and pain

Hahaha, I feel like this sums up my experience with stitching them! I loved it, but the stress of doing one-strand embroidery under such a time-crunch was painful indeed.

Raspberry = Remorse

Did I regret my life choices several times during the making of this project? Yes, perhaps.

Currant = Thy frown will kill me

Hahahahaha ohhhh the drama! I wonder what currants ever did to anyone?! However, this is not the only definition. The dictionary also has an entry for

Branch of Currants = You please all

Now that’s more like it! Much more along the lines of the kind of message I should be sending to my grand-parents with this bouquet, lol!

Day Lily = Coquetry

This is the closest lily entry I could find to represent the pink one I made, which is neither imperial (majesty), or of-the-valley (return of happiness). A bit of coquetry it is then!

Garden Daisy = I share your sentiments

There was no entry for a yellow daisy, which to me should have a different meaning than the common white and yellow ox-eye daisy (innocence). So we’ll go with the garden daisy, since they certainly were from the garden!

wild rose in the garden
day lily from the garden
yellow daisy from the garden

We now have: pleasure and pain, remorse, thy frown will kill me, you please all, coquetry, and I share your sentiments.

 

I wonder what this bouquet is trying to tell me. This sounds exactly like a Victorian melodrama where the wife overspends on opera gowns and expensive furs, and over-decorates her parlour with needlepoint cushions and dried floral arrangements.

“WE DON’T NEED ANY MORE TASSELS, CAROLINE!”

If that unappreciative husband of hers gives her that disapproving frowning look one more time, she might just kill herself (and him too). (Sometimes he wishes she would).

Thy frown will kill me! Enough, I beg of you!

 

Needless to say, this Bouquet was NOT embroidered with the Language of Flowers in mind. But it was certainly a lot of fun to discover which secret meanings it held! I hope you enjoyed this little bit of floriography as much as I did. 😉 I really want to know where the significance of the currant came from!

Which flower would you like to know the meaning of? Let me know in the comments and I’ll tell you!

view of the finished garden bouquet embroidery, framed and surrounded by flowers

 

It feels oddly appropriate that my library hold of the movie Enchanted April arrived just as I was completely immersed in the embroidery of this garden bouquet. It was the absolute perfect thing to watch while stitching! I had already fallen in love with the story last spring when I read the book for the first time (and wrote a post on it, with an accompanying project!). As it turns out, the movie is just as wonderfully charming as the book. I loved it so much that I watched it pretty much every evening while I embroidered, happily lost in my little world of flowers and thread. The soundtrack is also very beautiful.

What do you like to watch/listen to when you stitch (or craft)? Have you seen the Enchanted April movie?

 

I hope you had a pleasant time here at my Garden Bouquet Reveal Tea Party! Thank you ever so much for coming. It was certainly very pleasant to be able to sit down for a bit and chat about so many wonderful things with you, with a ready cup of tea! Do help yourself to more baked goods before you go, and take some with you.

Thank you so much for coming to see the Garden Bouquet Reveal, and I wish you a wonderful week! As always, I’d be delighted for you to share any thoughts or comments you might have.

 

Fondly,

garden bouquet final reveal for pinterest
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Easy Daisies: Garden Bouquet Part 5

     Anne      2 Comments

Hello dear friend,

We are almost done with the Garden Bouquet Project!! Can you believe it? I simply cannot wait to show you the final piece in all its glory. That will come soon, but first we have one more floral element to add to the Bouquet: little yellow daisies. They’re the easiest part of the bouquet, and we’ll be done in no time!

 

yellow daisies garden bouquet part 5

 

But first, let me catch you up! If you’ve missed any previous parts of the Garden Bouquet, you can find them below. Each element works as a standalone, so you don’t need to read all the posts in order. However, it is helpful to do so if you want to see the evolution of the project as a whole. Each post is published in the order that I stitched each element.

 

garden bouquet project part 1
Garden Bouquet part 2: wild roses
beautiful berries garden bouquet part 3
ribbon work lily garden bouquet part 4

Because I wanted my daisies more discreet and a little “hidden” behind some of the other elements, I only made very light markings on the fabric for their placement. I could have stitched them first since most of them were more in the background, but I wanted to work them around the main elements and not the other way around. Hence why we stitch these last. It’s a final little burst of sunshine upon the bouquet, a few happy little flowers to balance out the bigger ones.

 

thread key for daisies: stems & leaves DMC 3345, Flowers DMC 726, 728, 729, 743

 

Tutorial – Yellow Daisies

embroidery tutorial pin for stitching the daisies

 

  1. First, I worked the petals, which are made with lazy-daisy stitches using 2 strands of DMC #743 and #726. Simply work your stitches around the center of the flower (which should be blank for now), beginning at the edge of the center and ending at the tip of the petal. Each stitch is one petal. You can alternate between the two shades of floss. I like to start with one and work a few petals, leaving space in between to fill with the other colour afterwards. Originally I intended to stitch fewer petals, but I have a tendency to over-stitch when I do lazy-daisy petals, so here we are! I do like this look, so all is not lost, but you can definitely do fewer stitches if you want fewer petals (it will change the shape/look of the flower).

 

lazy-daisy stitches being worked to create flower petals
lazy-daizy stitches of varying sizes stitched all around the daisy, creating the petals
This is from a different flower, because I’m terrible at step-by-step photos. Sorryyyyyy.

 

2. Then, using 2 strands of DMC #728 and #729, I stitched 6-8 French knots in the center. Again, you can alternate between the two shades, there is no specific order in which to stitch them.

 

French knots added to the center of the daisy

 

3. And finally, using 2 strands of DMC #3345, I stitched the stems and leaves. I made very long stitches to create a sort of stem stitch for the stem. Instead of coming back beside the middle of the previous stitch, I came back up closer to the end of the each stitch. This creates less overlap, less of a “ropy” look, and more of a continuous line. The stem was just a bit too long to use one long straight, but this “looser” stem stitch worked very well. Then I added a couple of straight stitches around the flowers to create the leaves. I also added some along the stem (you can do this while stitching the stem instead of coming back to it). Yellow daisy leaves are very long and thin, so this stitch was perfect for it.

 

view of the bouquet to show the daisies stems
finished daisy flower with straight stitches around it to create the thin leaves

 

That’s it! Easy-peasy, compared to the rest of the bouquet! 😊 I made 4 daisies in total, scattered around the bouquet.

 

close-up view of bouquet showing finished yellow daisies

 

Next time, we will finish the Bouquet for good, and I can finally show you the final piece! We’ll add some final touches, frame it, and at last…the big reveal!! I can’t wait to show you. It feels like a while ago that I was working on this, since I’ve split the project into many parts to share with you, but in reality I embroidered the whole thing in about two weeks (it was MAD). Next week, we conclude!

I think such an occasion calls for a fancy tea party amongst friends, doesn’t it? Look out for your gilt-edged invitation soon, and prepare your most charming frock and your favourite cozy cardigan (for the weather is turning chilly). We’ll be chatting flowers, gardens, and needlework wonders and woes! And nibbling on the daintiest sandwiches and softest cookies, of course.

 

See you there soon!

 

Fondly,

daisy embroidery using only easy stitches
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