Reader Feedback Giveaway!

Hi guys! Every January, you don't see much of me, and that is intentional. Each year I tend to take that month off of posting to step back and think about the direction for the blog the next year, what I would like to try, what is missing, etc. Feeling Stitchy is an all volunteer blog - we are not paid for our work, and aside from featuring products we like we do not do advertising -we love blogging and embroidery, so we do this all for the joy of doing it.

This year, I thought YOU would be the best people, of course to chime in and help us out.

What would YOU like to see more of on Feeling Stitchy?

Book reviews? Tutorials? Stitchalongs? Blog crawls? Etsy spotlights? Features of interesting embroidery on Instagram, Twitter, or somewhere else entirely?

What is YOUR embroidery blog wish - if you could have anything in an embroidery blog, what would your wish be? Granted we may not be able to grant every wish, but what is it that you're looking for here? Inspiration? Joy? Something new?

Tell us all about it in the comments please, and for helping us, we'll give one random winner the embroidery/craft related book of their choice from Amazon - anything, $25 and under! This applies to ALL our readers, don't worry, I will foot the bill for the shipping if it has to go to Timbuktu. :) Don't forget to also mention the book you'd like to receive - if you're not sure what to pick, just say Surprise Me. :)

We'll leave the comments open through Feb 11, 9 PM US CST, when I will close the comments and draw one random winner. Good luck all!

Stitchy Snippets - Raw Denim

Ian Berry is an extraordinary textile artist, who is known for working exclusively with denim cloth. Berry uses discarded denim to create detailed art including portraits, urban landscapes and installations. Initially, whilst observing the contrasting blue tones in heap of old jeans, Berry was inspired to use these household items to create stunning pieces of art.

This universally, commonly worn item provides a perfect medium for Berry's diverse city scenes and portraits of cult icons. Painstakingly cut, layered and fixed by hand, these art works have so much detail and depth that from afar they look like paintings.

'To see them up close, you become aware of the depth and texture and see how each small piece of denim has been considered and crafted out of jeans with washes, and fades, which help create that painterly tone.'

Check out a selection of these awesome pieces of textile art.

Sampled Lives: Exhibit at The Fitzwilliam Museum

Just one of many breathtaking samplers in the Sampled Lives Exhibit, found via a post by the RSN yesterday. I have always had a deep love and appreciation for samplers, cross-stitched or otherwise, just not necessarily the patience needed to complete one.

The online portion of the exhibition contains numerous beautiful photos of samplers and an extensive backhistory of the craft and its role in contemporary women's lives and educations, I highly recommend a visit - visit here.

This Church Times article on the exhibition is also very fascinating, as it draws in aspects of faith and stitching, something which means a lot to me personally, and which I've seen more and more of in the craft world lately:
https://www.churchtimes.co.uk/articles/2017/6-october/features/features/sewing-stories-unpicking-the-faith-of-girls-past

This 1815 sampler is even more gorgeous and impressive when you have a look at the enviably neat backside:

Stitchy Snippets - Matizes Dumont

The artistic collective called Matizes Dumont is formed by a group of artists of the same family from Minas Gerais in southeastern Brazil. The initial group was formed by 'Mother Dumont' - Antônia Zulma Diniz Dumont and her five children: Ângela, Marilu, Martha, Sávia and Demosthenes. The embroidery circle has since expanded with the participation of the third generation: Luana, Tainah, Maria Helena, Paula and Luíza.

In the words of Matizes Dumont, their 'Free and spontaneous embroidery breaks with the patterns of the original technique; using a mixtures of hues, fabrics, textures and strokes that mirrors visual art... Inspired by nature and diversity of Brazilian culture, they create art of deep delicacy.'

The children started embroidering from an early age and were taught by their mother. The family went on to exhibit and sell their embroidery art and Matizes Dumont was conceived.

In addition to their artistic group they have also formed The Institute for Cultural Promotion Antônia Diniz Dumont - ICAD. The main purpose of the institute is to share ideas and actions focused on culture, education, health and the environment. It is a place where the community of Pirapora, Buritizeiro and neighbouring municipalities in Minas Gerais can express themselves, create and coexist with creativity.

Here is a small collection of their beautiful embroidery.

Feeling Random Friday #8 with Lauren Tyger

On the second Feeling Random Friday for today I bring you Lauren! My friend Tasha tagged me in the above photo from Lauren's Instagram account, and I'm glad she did. The message, "Embrace the chaos" is one that I can definitely learn to embrace. I suffer from first child, type A perfectionism syndrome.

Lauren has a sassy feminist vibe and isn't afraid to put into stitches what we're all thinking. In addition to her embroidery, you can live vicariously through Lauren and her world travels and busy life via her Instagram feed. You can find Lauren on Instagram and Etsy. Here are some of my favorites.

A post shared by Lauren Tyger (@tyger_l1) on Dec 6, 2017 at 2:44pm PST

A post shared by Lauren Tyger (@tyger_l1) on Nov 22, 2017 at 5:15am PST

A post shared by Lauren Tyger (@tyger_l1) on Oct 15, 2017 at 11:19am PDT

Feeling Random Friday #7 with Thread Duncan

Today you're going to see TWO Feeling Random Friday posts - yay! This first is one I was supposed to post last week. I featured Thread Duncan on the Feeling Stitchy Instagram last Friday and then spaced out the blog post. In my defense, the flu bug that has overtaken me this week was probably starting to affect my brain last week...that's my story, and I'm sticking to it!

Thread Duncan is artist Brad from Oregon in the USA. Scrolling through his Instagram feed, you will see that he is a talented woodworker and embroiderer. His embroidery is colorful and abstract, and also reflects the natural world around him. I particularly love his unique method for mounting his finished embroidery pieces, as you can see in the photo above.

You can find Bard on Instagram and Etsy. Here are some of my favorites.

A post shared by Brad Duncan (@threadduncan) on Nov 2, 2017 at 3:01pm PDT

A post shared by Brad Duncan (@threadduncan) on Aug 28, 2017 at 9:34am PDT

A post shared by Brad Duncan (@threadduncan) on Jul 21, 2017 at 10:48am PDT

MooshieStitch Monday: "Mountain Road" Vintage Embroidery Kit

Happy New Year Everyone! I am here today to share with you some photos of an embroidery kit I just finished!

A couple months ago, I decided to go on Ebay for embroidery stuff. I randomly searched for "vintage embroidery kits" just to see the results - and what do I find but this Sunset Designs Jiffy Stitchery "Mountain Road" embroidery kit (un-opened) from 1975!

The kit included instructions, wool yarn, needle, and fabric with the design printed on it.

The wool yarn was a 3-ply stranded Persian yarn. Most of the kit was stitched using 1-ply, with the exception of the French Knots, those are 2-plies of yarn.

Only three stitches were recommended: satin stitch, French knots, and Pueblo stitch.

I had never heard of the Pueblo stitch before, but from the stitch drawing included in the instructions, it looked similiar to the back stitch and split stitch combined?? I could be very wrong - and I didn't do much research on it either - so I just worked the split stitch wherever they said to use Pueblo stitch! :)

Here is a better view of the drawing included in the instructions - numbered with what color to use.

Here it is with all the greenery finished. I switched to an oval hoop because it was easier to use.

Making progress on the mountain...

Half way done with all those French knots!!

The finished product!

The fabric really puckers once I remove it from the hoop. I don't have a hoop that is the size or shape to keep the finished work in, so I am not sure what to do with it. Should I try to find a hoop to put it in or should I frame it??

Just for fun I took a photo of the of the finished piece next to the photo on the kit's cover to compare.

Up close!

The surprising thing about this kit was how fast I actually finished stitching it! In 2017, I barely embroidered. So when I got this kit, I used it as motivation to get stitching again and my goal was to finish by the new year. 

I really did enjoy the ease of it - no thinking about what stitches to use, the fabric and yarn were included, and having the kit tell me exactly what colors to stitch and where. (Can you tell I am new to the whole embroidery kit game?? ha ha Maybe I just need to get more kits to stitch....)

What's your favorite embroidery kit? Share in the comments, I would love to hear!