Guest Post

So I'm guest posting today over at "Skip to my Lou's" Craft Camp.  This is my third year and I'm very excited to be a part of it again.

If you are looking for ideas to craft with your kids this summer this is the place you want to go!

My project is these embroidered paintings that my kids make every summer.  It's become a bit of a tradition.   Please check it out as well as all the great craftiness over at Skip to my Lou's!

Painted and Embroidered Mini's

I wanted to use that paint embroidery combo again but this time on framed canvas.

These are my Autumn leaves.....

 I painted the canvas first and then embroidered on the detail.

The kids wanted to get in on the act so yesterday we spent a great afternoon creating our little masterpieces.

I bought little framed canvases at the dollar store...I think it was $2 for a pack of 3.  They measure 6 x 6 inches square.

We lightly sketched out our design in pencil...as you can see my son uses a heavy hand like most kids with the pencil, the paint covers most of it.

We then began painting our background in.

Make sure to paint the sides as well as we won't be framing these guys.

We used acrylic paints for good coverage.

When you are finished let dry.

Then we started to embroider....you can go over outlines, add texture stitching, or even add extra embellishment.

  The frames made it very easy for the kids to embroider as it is much like having a hoop.  I was surprised that the canvas was quite durable and we had no rips due to pulling too hard.

I think the boys did a great job.....my daughter is still embroidering her starfish..she's adding lots of detail.

and I'm quite pleased with the leaves.

We also had a family birthday over the weekend and I thought I show you how we wrap presents.  I place the item to be wrapped in a leftover plastic shopping bag and the wrap it in plain kraft paper.     I then paint it.  I try to involve the kids but this time they were too busy embroidering.

That's it.....we'll see you next time.

Paint and Embroidery Pillow

I've spent my Labor Day Weekend prepping my daughter's room for its remodel, cleaning up my studio(no easy task), and finishing up this guy.

I had taken a piece of canvas and painted my bird, a Bluethroat, with acrylic paint following the directions I have already outlined in this post.

Once dry you can embroidery at your leisure.  I do mine sans hoop as the canvas is heavy and doesn't move around a lot.

After contemplating it a bit I decided to make a pillow but needed to make it larger so I added some strips of fabric with the machine.

I then mitered my corners....haven't done this for ages so they're not perfect and my canvas wasn't square to begin with but they're passable.

and that's it......... a new addition to the living room.

I have also been enjoying these which I scored at the Paris news stands.

I have been a long admirer of the blog but wasn't ready to take the plunge of a very expensive subscription until I examined them hands on......I signed up the day I got back!

Lots of projects on the go so hope to see you again soon.
Take care.

Paint and Embroidery Combo

Sorry I've been quiet the last week but I was packing and travelling to the cabin in BC.

As always I'm always trying to come up with new ideas for art projects.

I was thinking about embroidery and how I could jazz it up a bit for the kids when I started thinking of combining a painting with embroidery detailing.  This is the result of my experiment.  The kids are eagar to try this out next.

I took some canvas fabric and pencilled in a desgin.  I was thinking of faces so my daughter suggested a sun and moon combo.  I plan on sewing this up into a little purse when I get home.

I then took acrylic paint and painted in my design.  I could see the pencil faintly thru the paint which made it easier to embroider.

Add a little water to your acrylic paint to help it spread easier on fabric.

Set aside to dry overnight.

Taking full embroidery thread I embroidered in the details adding highlights to the eyes and texture where I wanted.  Play around with light on dark and vice versa to really showcase the stitching.  The canvas was heavy enough that I did not need a hoop.

That's it.  I plan on folding it in half stitching up the side and bottom on the machine as well as adding a zipper at the top.  I'll then braid a nice strap and viola! a new purse for my upcoming trip to Paris.

Please feel free to click on the pictures to see larger for the stitching detail.

Now the kids are set to do there projects, Allie is doing a new larger pencil case for school and the boys are making bags to hold Lego and DS games.  I plan on posting their results so stayed tuned.

Coffee Cozy for Father's Day

Wow, 3 posts in 3 days...in the midst of the Father's Day rush!

Here is the Father's Day project Grade 4 completed.  An embroidered coffee cozy.

Pretty straight forward.  I went to a local coffee shop and grabbed a cardboard cozy for my pattern.   I made a pattern out of posterboard.  I then traced out the pattern onto wool felt in a selection of colors...(I was going for masculine colors).       For tracing I used either a pencil on light colored felt or a white pencil crayon.

I gave each student a tapestry needle....tapestry needles have a blunt edge and although it's a bit harder to push thru the felt we did not have any needle sticks.                                                           I asked each student to trace out the word DAD in the center of their felt...the top of the pattern is the arc type curve.  Then using embroidery thread straight from the pkg. we pulled our thread thru the needle and knotted both ends together giving us a double strand of full thread.  This prevented the kids having to worry about pulling their end out of the eye.  We used a back stitch to embroider DAD and then they could add other designs.

One class decided to blanket stich their long sides while the other class focused on decorations.  Because it's wool felt you can finish it either way and it won't fray over time.  I then just stitched the ends together on the machine in minutes.                                    For presentation we slid each cosy over a recycled cup with a packet of gourmet instant coffee inside as well as a Father's Day poem.

That's it.  It was a quick and easy Father's Day project. 

How to do Embroidery with Kids

It's been cool and rainy the last two days here at the cabin. The kids watched Olympics yesterday but today they were BORED!!!

Time to try embroidery. I have seen books showing you how to turn your kid's artwork into embroidery but I got to thinking why can't they just do it. I thought ahead this time and brought a few basic supplies with us to the cabin.

I asked them to think about what they liked best about the summer so far. I'm thinking we can turn this into a sort of vacation sampler where everyone contributes a portion. I'll post the end result when finished.

I thought this would be a good project for my 10 yr old and that maybe my 8 yr old would try it. They far exceeded my expectations.



Most surprising though was the 5 yr old. I didn't even bring him a hoop. We found one at the general store and thank goodness, for he didn't want to be left out.

















I think he is a natural. This is what he did in one afternoon.

Let's make this simple.

Materials Needed:

- embroidery hoop (just the plastic kind from the dollar store)
- embroidery thread ( Walmart and Micheals sell a larger sampler pack for about $9.00 that has all the colors your kids could want
- Tapestry Needles ( why tapestry you ask, because they are fairly large and have blunted tips, no sharp points for the kids)
- fabric ( we are using basic cotton muslin but you could go heavier even burlap)
- scissors
- pencil


Cut your fabric to size. I didn't want the kids to struggle with a lot of extra fabric so I cut a 16x16 square. Before placing in hoop draw on design with pencil, yes pencil we don't need any fancy marking or vanishing ink pens.

I started the kids with their names and the year to get them going. Once they got the hang of it the began to come up with ideas for the rest of the piece. You can add as you go.

Thread your needle in desired color. I wanted this to be easy for them so we used thread right out of the package. We didn't separate into 3 or 5 strands. I also threaded it in a double length and knotted it. This way the kids can pull on their needles without worrying about unthreading the needle. (It saves on frustration for Mom too)











The stitch we used was a basic outline stitch. You
pull the needle thru underneath a stitch space ahead and then go back the hole you created in the stitch right before it.










This keeps the kids on track and they tend not to leave spaces between the stitches making a good line.




















Final tip: If they are having troble with the excess fabric on the sides of the hoop, my 5 yr old kept catching it up in a stitch, you can roll up the edges and pin with a safety pin close to the hoop.

Anyhow give it a try they may just surprise you.
Sorry no paintings to post today. I'll try for some daily practice tomorrow.
see you later
gail