Stitching 101 Crop Class ----> In Here <---- - Page 4

Beth-W · Sat May 02, 2009 9:44 pm

Cab910 wrote:Working my first stitched page and loving it thanks to your class.

Yay!! You can share your creations in the gallery using this Stitching Class Gallery.

Beth-W · Sat May 02, 2009 9:45 pm

Ribbon Flowers

Now, I will show you how to make these ribbon flowers I used on my layout.

I used a piece of ribbon that was around 17" in length. Both of these ribbons were 5/8" in width but I have used wider ribbon in the past. I think I used 1" wide ribbon on this card:

Beth-W · Sat May 02, 2009 9:46 pm

I threaded my floss through my needle and tied a knot in the end. I brought my needle from the underside of the ribbon up. Look at my photo for a visual help.

Beth-W · Sat May 02, 2009 9:47 pm

I then loosely stitched the edges of the ribbon:

I never pulled my thread tight. I continued to go up and down to the end of the ribbon.

Here is a close up shot of the ribbon so you can see the edges and stitching:

Then pull the ribbon tight. The result will be the ribbon bunching together. Knot the floss close to the flower. They take only a couple of minutes to make and they are a great way to use ribbon on your pages. I attached mine with glue dots.

Beth-W · Sat May 02, 2009 9:47 pm

Think about all of the ways you can now use hand stitching on your layouts. I wanted to share another layout that I used a ton of handstitching to jazz up my flowers and make a trail for my butterfly.

For the butterfly trail, I used a pencil and lightly hand drew the swirl. Using my paper piercer, I poked the holes for the trail. Before backstitching the trail, I erased the pencil marks.

scrapsakes · Sat May 02, 2009 9:48 pm

Beth-W wrote:
sheresas wrote:Do you think it would work with the SU small pad?

What is SU? I am not sure what you are referring to.

she might be referring to Stampin' Up? my guess

Beth-W · Sat May 02, 2009 9:48 pm

Machine Stitching

Every machine is different as far as the settings go. I will show you the settings I use on my machine. The best advice I can give you when it somes to machine settings is to refer to your owner's manual.

Tips
Here are some tips for machine stitching:
1-Change your needle often. Paper dulls your needles much faster than fabric.
2-Adhere the paper to the layout before stitching being very CAREFUL to not put adhesive where you will stitch. This causes your needle to gunked up.
3-Take your time and practice on scrap paper first!!
4-I never change my bobbin color. Mine is always white. If your tensiion is set correctly, you should never be able to see the thread from the bobbin.

deerewife · Sat May 02, 2009 9:49 pm

This is great info! I've sewn buttons, but always cheat and put the thread thru them, knot and then glue dot down

Beth-W · Sat May 02, 2009 9:49 pm

scrapsakes wrote:
Beth-W wrote:
sheresas wrote:Do you think it would work with the SU small pad?

What is SU? I am not sure what you are referring to.
she might be referring to Stampin' Up? my guess

I haven't seen that pad. If it is soft and cushiony, it will probably work.

Beth-W · Sat May 02, 2009 9:50 pm

deerewife wrote:This is great info! I've sewn buttons, but always cheat and put the thread thru them, knot and then glue dot down

I have done that, too. If I have a couple of them, I do it the way you described. If I have a lot, I think in the long run it is faster to just stitch them down.

TFS your tip. I didn't think to include it and there might be people who haven't tried that.

Beth-W · Sat May 02, 2009 9:51 pm

Adjusting the Tension

Adjusting the tension on your machine is the hardest thing to initially figure out. It is adjusted depending on the different fabrics you use by adding more or less tension on the thread. The 2 threads in your machine (the one coming from the spool and the one coming from the bobbin) meet and the objective is for them to lock in the middle. If the tension is off, one of the threads will be too tight.
Sewing on paper is a little trickier. You need to experiment with your settings to get the correct result. I will show you what you want it to look like on a layout and in the following photo.
This is what the stitch should look like on the front:

and it looks the exact same on the back:

You want the stitching to look the same on both the front and back.

hellmgle · Sat May 02, 2009 9:52 pm

Great examples Beth....I usually forget about using stitching on pges...

scrapsakes · Sat May 02, 2009 9:53 pm

lotsa cool tips

thanks for sharing beth and
honestly, i just love looking at your cute LOs!

sdcowgirl · Sat May 02, 2009 9:53 pm

I cross stitch alot and I just never for some unfounded reason thought of stitching on paper or adding it to my layouts or that it would be so similar. Can't wait to try it.

Beth-W · Sat May 02, 2009 9:53 pm

hellmgle wrote:Great examples Beth....I usually forget about using stitching on pges...

Hi, Glenda!!! Thanks!

Beth-W · Sat May 02, 2009 9:54 pm

scrapsakes wrote:lotsa cool tips thanks for sharing beth and
honestly, i just love looking at your cute LOs!

You're so sweet, Grace. :inlove:I feel the same way about your work!!!

jmo95 · Sat May 02, 2009 9:55 pm

those flowers are awesome!

Beth-W · Sat May 02, 2009 9:55 pm

sdcowgirl wrote:I cross stitch alot and I just never for some unfounded reason thought of stitching on paper or adding it to my layouts or that it would be so similar. Can't wait to try it.

I did cross stitch, too. You can add little Xs to your pages.

Beth-W · Sat May 02, 2009 9:55 pm

Adjusting the Stitch Length
This determines the length of each stitch. My machine is numbered from 1-4. Here is a sample of what each looks look

You can set the number according to personal preference. I generally use 1 and 2.

Beth-W · Sat May 02, 2009 9:56 pm

Selecting the type of Stitch

Depending on the cost of your machine, you will be able to perform many different kind of stitches. I have noticed that the higher price of the machine, the more stitch types. I usually use the straight stitch and the zigzap stitches on my machine. My machine is pretty easy to select the stitch with a picture of each when you turn the knob.