Last night I discovered I was running low on the black perle I'm using for the Pirate Cat himself, so I concentrated on his little shirt after I finished his little baby paw and put in a few pink stitches for his nose and mouth. (I think of the Pirate Cat as a kitten, you see. Having personality in mind helps one come up with stitches and threads since you would naturally use silks on a geisha figure while a clown would call for bright colors such as in a cotton overdye.)
The shirt and the cuff are pretty small areas, which can be difficult to find stitches for besides tent stitches. You will remember I used brown Vineyard Silk in tent stitches for the tiny bit of the signpost that shows. The cuff and shirt are larger, irregular areas, which means they are perfect for a small stitch that is a favorite of mine--Dotted Swiss. What you see in the photo above is Step One--do cross stitches on every other stitch intersection. For the next row, offset the stitches so that each cross stitch is under an empty space on the row above. Before you know it, you have little bumps in a regular pattern everywhere.
Step Two is to stitch the unstitched areas with tent stitches. Very easy stitch and I like the texture.
I could stop after Step One and let the gray paint interact with the Vineyard Silk to make the shirt pattern but I have something else in mind. You'll have to wait until tomorrow to see what it is....
Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com Archived Yahoo 360 postings at http://profiles.yahoo.com/chillyhollow
4 comments:
Jane, I love the dotted Swiss stitch you are using. I have never seen it the way you are doing it. Did you get that out of a book? If so, which one? It's easier for me to keep track if stitches I want to try if I can make a note of which book. Thanks, Nancy
Nancy, sorry, I don't know where I first saw Dotted Swiss stitch. I know it is done various ways (or there are several stitches called Dotted Swiss) but I like this. I first used it on a snowman's purple vest and used gold for the cross stitches. It was lovely and ever since, I've played with various threads and colors in it.
The cross stitches can be done on the diagonal but it seems easier to me to do them in horizontal rows. But diagonal rows work, too. Whatever floats your boat!
Thank you for posting where to buy this cute canvas. I have a 9 week old black kitten and to celebrate him, purchased this to stitch on. I'm getting all kinds of inspiration from your stitches...looking forward to starting mine (after I finsih up 2 more gifts).
Hello, Carol. I am thrilled you have a cute kitten (hopefully not out trick or treating just yet) that you are celebrating by stitching this design. Hurry and get those gifts done so we can play!
And don't forget to send a photo of yours. It is inspiring to see all the various ways one can stitch the same canvas.
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