Rose Garden Purse

Good Morning!  Today I would like to share photos of the Rose Garden Purse that I made over the summer. . . I actually made two, but the other one was gifted to my eldest daughter.  I loved it so much, that I had to make myself one as well.  I used DMC pearl cotton in sizes 12 and 8, as well as Valdani Pearl Cotton in sizes 12 and 8.  The pearls are of course. Swarvoski Crystal, and the body of the purse is Duchesse Satin, while the lining is China Silk.  I purchased the kiss top frame from a seller on Etsy. 

The motifs for the purse are all available for purchase from the shop at Irish Crochet Lab.  This purse was in fact, inspired by Larisa Chilton who is the teacher/owner of Irish Crochet Lab.  She really is a wonderful instructor, and so very generous with her time and knowledge.  I encourage you to check out her website, and if you have always wanted to know how to make heirloom quality Irish Crochet Lace, her lessons will no doubt get you there. 

To be perfectly honest, this was only the third time that I had made a purse using a Kiss Top Frame.  I was a bit intimidated for a long time to try it.  I looked up tutorials online, and there is a lot of information on how to use these frames, as well as a plethora of You Tube videos.  This particular frame is a sew in frame.  The main tutorial that I used was by Stitching Notes.  This tutorial even teaches you how to make your own template, which is very useful considering there are so many different styles of frames available.  I researched other sites, to familiarize myself with the process, but this one was the best for a total novice, in my opinion.

Here is a sneek peak at my current Embroidery Project.  I am using Sotema 20L linen, and DMC Coton a Broder in various sizes.

I hope you join me again this week as I still have so much to share!  There is another purse, Miniature Painted Crochet, as well as the finished Punto Antico piece.  Have a great day and. . .

Happy Stitches!

Missing

Hello Readers, it has been a loooooong while.  Not long after my last post, I was diagnosed with Breast Cancer.  Unfortunately, I was not one of the "lucky" ones where it was caught early  By the time I was diagnosed, the cancer had already spread to my lymph nodes.  It has been a long road to recovery. I have had 6 surgeries, for treatment and reconstruction since March 2016.  My last surgery was this past September, and I am ecstatic to say, that should be my last one. . . for a very long time.  I am also glad to say that I am now healthy and doing everything I can to stay that way.  So, even though I wasn't one of the "lucky" ones who caught it early, I am still very, very lucky to be healthy and recovered, and this is something that I will never, ever take for granted again.

I still continued with my needle work and lace making during that time, and have made many things that I would like to share with you starting this week.  I have dabbled in Italian Needlework, Irish Crochet Purses, Miniature Crochet and hand painting crochet items as per Lunar Heavenly.  So many things to share!

Yesterday, I just completed a table cloth in the style of Punto Antico.  It is currently soaking and cleaning, but as soon as it is dry and ironed, I will take photos to share.  I have a few of the work in progress:

I will give more details on the pattern and materials used when I snap the photos of the completed item.

Yesterday, about an hour after completing the above piece, I, of course, started another one.  lol  This one is also Italian Needlework, but is more of the Reticello  style.  The linen that I cut for it is 60 x 60 cm, though I know the finished work will not be nearly that large.  I think I will add some drawn thread work, or perhaps some Aemila Ars elements to the piece. 

Well, I hear my new project calling me to stitch.  I hope you tune in this week to see some pictures of the many pieces that I have to share.

Happy Stitches!