I attached the braid and am pleased at my results. It was a learning experience. The only way to improve is by practice. I have said this before when I finished other items & will say it again – it certainly makes me appreciate paying for finishing when done by professionals. So, when something is more complicated, I will continue to use the skilled professionals & be happy to pay for quality work!
When we arrived, I added the seminar pin. Working off my husband’s tablet because my “smart” phone has decided to be dumb as it nears the 2-year upgrade. I don’t know how much I’ll be able to blog. Already met people from past years & new folks! When you see me say Hi!
I bpught the magnets, Stitch an ANG design & Chicago, but seminar gifts also included the other items (mints, eye glass wipe, & door tag). Yes, I went to the Boutique and got some shopping done with the nice ladies at North Shore Needleworks.
Thee Wendell’s cruises took us along the river & into the lake. Great view & first day in Chicago!
Marilyn designed a name tag that identifies all our various ANG Distance Learning programs/roles including Stitch of the Month for herself, Chapter Project Book for Sue, Cyberworkshop for Chris, Workshop by Mail for Cathie, Pilot Stitcher Coordinator for Vicki, Distance Learning Coordinator for Denise, and Correspondence Course for me.
I got the stitching done a few weeks ago but was a little hesitant to do the finishing although she also provided instructions. So, this morning (with my husband out golfing & the TV off) I spent time going over the directions, made a trip to Jo-Ann’s (for sewing thread to match the backing), and put it together this afternoon! Marilyn was kind enough to send us all the same color green Congress cloth, Skirtex, fleece, and 4 pony beads. Chris was also fantastic to send us all the same color green Ultrasuede for the backing.
I had never heard of or worked with Skirtex before which is a stiff interfacing but is still flexible. I love it – it is very light. And, I discovered that it served well as a place to begin the thread. That way it wasn’t anchored to and carried through any of the back of the stitching which could show through the front.
Then, I cinched lacing stitches into the Skirtex to make it taut and take some stress off the Congress cloth (shown loose in the picture so show how I stitched). I don’t think I’ve worked on Congress cloth until now. It was stiffer than I expected more like monocanvas just a larger count (24 threads per inch). 18 doesn’t sound that much different from 24 but my eyes think so! I’ll stick with 18-count canvas but I can say I have worked on Congress cloth & could if needed.
I mitered the corners differently. Marilyn’s were done as described in The Needlepoint Book” by Jo Ippolito Christensen but I don’t think it makes a difference in this case. It just folded my way so easily.
All the lacing stitches went into place easily enough. You just can’t pull too tight because Skirtex is flexible and it could bend. Marilyn reminded us to pack it carefully – she thinks of everything!
The Ultrasuede is fantastic to work with. When I made Marilyn’s Ort Box, I used something like suede that I picked up at Jo-Ann’s but the edging frayed. This was fantastic & had no fraying edges. And, I used the Fiskars Razor Edge scissors (that I learned about on the ANG Yahoo group email list) to trim the sides to fit. Those scissors are wonderful – no wonder they have been around more than 130 years. I used an overcast stitch about every 4 threads as Marilyn recommended. No need for a fancy stitch because the edge will be covered by a decorative braid.
Since I really don’t like anything around my neck and wanted it as light as possible, I didn’t use any fleece (for a softer look) although that is light as well. I did add the extra piece of Ultrasuede as pocket on the back for my room key. That still should be light.
Because I don’t have a machine that makes braid, I was glad to find a green braid at Jo-Ann’s that will work fine & I’ll attach it another day. I probably won’t post the front of the name tag until seminar. So, look for the ladies with the green tags & say Hi! It’s wonderful to put faces with names.
It is just a little over a month away before we’ll be in Chicago! And, I am so happy that I sat down & did this today because my pre-work arrived today! It is possible that by stitching the background ahead of time, we can finish Michele Roberts'”Faux-berge” Orange Tree Egg during class. I sure am looking forward to seminar!
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