TAST Week 2 "Knotted Loop Stitch"

I'm using this year's TAST as a means to get some new stitches along the seams of my Vintage CQ. Otherwise I would simply default to my old favorites: Herringbone, Cretan, Feather, etc. when covering the seams of these blocks.

This week's "Knotted Loop Stitch" took me awhile to figure out, but once I did, it was fun. I like the way it gives a slightly raised look to the simple seam treatments.

The knotted loop stitch is along the brocade orange fabric, lower right. Using heavy round thread helped me see what I was doing with the stitch.

In the second example I definitely had the rhythm going but did get my knots reversed here and there.

I am becoming more and more interested in the graphic impact of seam treatments, as opposed to the intricacies of their embroidery...I leave that to more capable stitchers!
For visual impact, this stitch has great potential, and I am glad I finally "got it"!

TAST Week 1 "Diamond Stitch"

...This really should be titled, "Flunking the Diamond Stitch".

I've decided that my TAST stitching (that's the "Take a Stitch Tuesday" challenge that Sharon Boggon is running) is all going to go onto my Vintage CQ project. It's the only way I'll get to spend the time, if I double task these things.
The Diamond Stitch did not seem like a great fit for this application, though--too many knots that wouldn't show up that well. Plus it was just not easy for me to "get it"!

I went for the look of it, kind of...

The light blue Aurofil wool/acrylic thread there is my version of the Diamond Stitch. Rather pathetic!

But I am excited about Week 2's stitch, the Knotted Loop Stitch. I know that one will go better for me because it is not as complicated and much more graphic...

Take A Stitch Tuesday...Knotted Cretan

This should catch me up on the TASTs I have missed. I've used the knotted cretan stitch as yet another base for a seam treatment on my Fan Quilt.

I like these knotted stitches; they are so satisfying somehow.....

Take A Stitch Tuesday...Up and Down Buttonhole

Another quick TAST exercise, this time trying out the up and down buttonhole stitch. Again, I used the featured stitch of the week as the base of two seam treatments on my Fan Quilt.

The up and down buttonhole has two interior fly stitches, using cotton floss, silk buttonhole twist, and unspun silk.

Same thing here...this time I used bamboo floss, silk buttonhole twist, and rayon thread, hoping for just a hint of contrast visually. I hate rushing through TAST...but it's even worse to be behind!

Take A Stitch Tuesday...Barred Chain

I am having to multi-task here, combining my TAST with ongoing work on my Fan Quilt. I have created a seam treatment with the barred chain as its base.
This is not "pushing the envelope" with what this stitch can do, which is the goal of TAST. But it is getting the barred chain moving through my fingers at least.

Those infinitely cool little buttons came to me in the mail from my generous friend, Freda Butler. They are vintage, from Czechoslovakia. Thank you so much, Freda!

I am finding that on this quilt I am wanting to repeat seam treatments around the center section. I think it is a unifying element....so here is another version of the barred chain, sequins, beads, and awesome buttons. They are so odd!

TAST Algerian Eye Stitch

My goal for my own practice of TAST is to apply each stitch to some aspect of landscape embroidery. At the risk of sounding demoralizingly precious....for my Algerian Eye Stitch TAST I created a starscape. What an obvious use for that stitch.
It was fun using different sequins with the stitch, and different weights of threads. I also really enjoyed embroidering on black fabric.
This is just a sampler and nowhere near a finished piece...but the idea could be developed with more time, for sure.

TAST Cretan Stitch

After a few weeks in cyber-limbo and some false starts with other software, I decided that Blogger would suit me just fine....
I am a little behind with my TAST, as I have been gone on my annual quilt retreat to Point Bonita, California for a week. (I'll be posting more about that soon.) This is the last work I have done, and it was using the Cretan stitch over a printed photograph of some white pines that I took on the shore of Lake Michigan. I think this idea of embellishing photos has a lot of potential.

It will no doubt take me a little while to learn the Ways of Blogger, but in the meantime this is a start! I'm so glad to be back.....