Samples 2016: Week 42, ZigZag/Lichen

Just fancied a bit of crochet this week, but I did make it difficult for myself by using the finest possible wool (mostly a DMC one meant for embroidery). Still enjoyed working a simple chevron pattern in lichen-y colours though.

I jazzed it up a little at the end with hand embroidery - orange French knots inspired by the bright (but tiny) fruiting bodies seen on some lichen, and some textured thread woven through for a bit more crunch. 

The sample is about 8cm x 6.5cm; I should give the sizes more often, sorry I forget, but they do all fit on A6/postcard. 

Samples 2016: Week 41, Geometric/Lollipop

Geometric design? A good excuse to play with dissolvable fabric, as if I needed one! Free machining it is then, on Solufleece. I made a simple network of triangles, with three different straight stitch fillings, then zigzagged over the outlines to make sure it held together nicely.

I guess lollipops could be any colour these days, but blue wouldn't seem right to me so I stuck with classic fruity colours.

An openwork sample like this just has to be pinned up for its photograph, I can't resist seeing its shadow pattern. Oooh...

Samples 2016: Week 40, Radiating/Aurora

Relaxing hand embroidery - through graph paper glued on the back of felt! As you do. I wanted the main aurora colour, green, to dominate but that didn't work as I imagined - should've put it in the middle and shaded it out in the opposite direction. This is what happens when I try to be more spontaneous, I should know better ;-)   

Samples 2016: Week 39, Curvy/Rust

Simple flowing curves, in rusty orange/brown shades on iron grey satin fabric. Quite pleased with the machine stitched bands - wide satin stitch in burnt orange, overstitched in a scribbly way with brown cotton (straight stitch). Hmm, might revisit that effect.

Fancy yarns and chenille were then chain stitched or couched down.