TAST Newcomers, ask questions here!

[Tahlia]

So I'm thinking that we could benefit from a smaller discussion thread where newcomers to the TAST or StitchinFingers experience can ask for help and veterans can give guidance and advice. This is designed to keep random chatter to a minimum so that questions and answers are easy to find!

[Tahlia]

Hmm...

The way I see it, there could be three ways to put stitches into a cloth book

1: make the book first, and sew directly onto the pages

2: make the book first, sew onto separate pages and apply the separate pages to the book pages

3: sew onto cloth that will become the book pages, then make the book when you're done.

Each approach will have pros and cons. 

If you want to make the book first, then the fabric you choose for your book pages would determine how easy the pages would be to sew through. ... if you do choose to create the book first and then sew on the pages directly, then you would also see the back sides of your work (which, if you're like me, might not be so pretty!..but might be useful for referencing later). But a drawback to creating the book form first and then sewing onto it might be that the book shape might limit your ability to use a stabilizing hoop, and the spine might get in the way of some of your stitching, limiting how far across the page you could stitch and what stitches you could do near the spine. Also, the act of stitching might shrink the pages a little, so your book might end up less neatly measured than when you first started.

If you sew on fabric that will later become pages in your book, then you need to be sure to plan your page layout so that you leave sufficient seam allowances. You also need to consider carefully when using additions like beads or even bulky threads or knotted stitches so that the bulky spots don't interfere with your ability to sew the fabric into pages when you're ready to do so.

My own preference would be number 2: I'd sew the fabric book pages, but then I'd embroider on another fabric and attach that fabric to the fabric book-- like scrapbooking or creating a photograph album. Then the fabric book pages would act as a visual frame, which I think would be rather nice. The primary drawback I foresee with this approach is the worry of making the pages too bulky and having the book bulge in funny ways at the end.

Still -- it would be pretty cool. :)

I'm still gonna do ATCs, fabric postcards, and stitches on a Crazy Quilt, though.

On the other hand, if you want to 

[Barbara/Hopscotch]

I know this may be obvious to most stitchers, but I haven't really practised cross stitch at all or worked on evenweave linen before(having a devil of a job finding it in the UK and it seems so expensive, too). 

I have got some aida fabric in different counts but what is Lynda? Can someone tell me, please?

Also I have tracked down some heavy grade pure linen scrim???Can I use this to stitch on?  Will this be evenweave?

Many thanks

Barbara

[Tahlia]

Well, I think I have found the answer to at least one of your questions:

"Linda 27 is a 100% cotton cloth with 27 threads per inch. This cloth is easy to work with and may be used for sewing the clothes, tablecloth, serviette. 2×2 cells of Linda correspond to Aida 14. However, unlike Aida where the cell in unbreakable, Linda allows making two narrow crosses in vertical or horizontal direction instead of one large cross. This technique is often used in Heritage kits. Linda cloth is also used in Lanarte embroidery kits."

(from http://www.geld-werbung.com/introduction-counted-cross-stitching )

regarding scrim:

"The term scrim has two separate meanings in terms of fabric. In each case, it refers to woven material, one a finely woven lightweight fabric widely used in theatre, the other a heavy, coarse woven material used for reinforcement in both building and canvasmaking."

(from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scrim_(material) )

It is unlikely that your scrim will be evenweave. "Evenweave" is a term that means that there are *exactly* as many threads running one way per inch (or centimeter, or whatever measuring device you wish to use) as there are running the other direction in the same measurement. Most fabrics are not that careful about how many threads run one way vs the other. You might get something that looks pretty even, but runs 26 threads to the inch in one direction, and 27 threads to the inch the other. On a large project worked over counted threads, that difference would add up and instead of getting a square composition, it would become a bit rectangular.

I believe "even-weave" also means that the thread itself is the same running in each direction. Many fabrics have stronger threads running in the warp direction (the direction that is put under tension on the loom) and fluffier, weaker threads running in the weft direction (the thread that gets woven back and forth between the warp threads), and that difference in thread type allows for reduced price in the cloth, but can add significantly to one's frustration when sewing some types of handwork, like pulled thread techniques. 

Guessing from your description, I am thinking that your scrim is a heavy tight-weave cloth, somewhat like painters' canvas.  Either way, your linen scrim will behave very differently than the even-weave needlework linen that SharonB recommends. She recommends it for a reason, as most people who fall in love with hand stitching find that they particularly enjoy  working on even-count linen and they find that it is worth the price. There are a lot of things to consider when choosing a cloth to stitch on: things like how close is the weave, what type of weave structure is it, how tightly spun are the threads of the cloth, how many strands are plied together to make one thread, how long a staple was the fiber that went into spinning the strands of thread, and more. When you buy even-weave linen needlework cloth, part of the high cost you are paying is for the reliability that someone made those considerations for you and made the choices well to bring you an optimum  sewing experience for a wide range of sewing explorations.

So if you always work on specialty needlework fabrics, you can rest comfortably knowing that someone somewhere has made those decisions for you and has made those decisions well. If you choose other types of cloth, like painters' canvas, or a handspun and handwoven shawl, or silk dupioni, or 

Now, I am a Crazy Quilter (by which I intend to mean that I like the aesthetic of Victorian and contemporary type "crazy quilting", not that I am a quilter who is loopy... though some days it might also apply, like when I consider joining BJP in addition to CQJP and TAST this year....). I am *ALL FOR* stitching on absolutely anything I can get my needle through, so I'm not going to tell you that your Lynda or your scrim is inappropriate-- it's worth a try. Heck, stitching through orange peels is worth a try! .. but the material that you choose will have advantages and disadvantages. In the case of orange peels, one of the potential disadvantages is mold (which can be avoided if you carefully attend the drying process), and one of the unavoidable disadvantages is shrinkage as the water content evaporates from the peel. (Thank you, Art School, I really needed to experience that learning curve first-hand. :P ) 

There are three ways to find fabrics that you enjoy working on and that are entirely suitable to your artistic endeavor:

1- trust someone else to make the decisions for you. Needlework shops carry expensive but reliable cloth choices, suited to specific needlework goals. The friendly staff at your local high-end needlework shop can answer a lot of your questions and help guide you to make an excellent choice. The cost of their cloth will reflect their expertise and the expense and expertise of the materials, processes, and choices of the suppliers and manufacturers along the way.

2- educate yourself about all the different factors that effect the interaction of needle, thread, and cloth, so that you can quickly get a feel from just looking at or handling a piece of cloth what the advantages and disadvantages will be.

3- try it. Just find a piece of cloth and stitch on it, and notice how it feels and how it looks and whether you like it or not. Keep in mind as you work that a particular fabric might be wonderful for one type of stitching or one type of thread, and miserable for another. e.g. A tight-weave thin silk is probably going to be a nightmare for bulky yarn and a crewel needle, but a dream to work on with thin silk thread and a small, sharp needle. Through direct experience and intentional examination of the process you can become your own expert. You might not be able to articulate the "why" of your preferences, but you will very quickly recognize them and learn to trust them.

So stitch on anything that takes your fancy, and figure out whether you like it or not! You might find that you like it for some types of stitches but not others, or you might find that you like it for some types of threads but not others. Heavy weight canvas might be difficult to put into an embroidery hoop. Lightweight gauze might be difficult to get the right tension on your stitches without pulling the threads of the gauze out of alignment. The more different types of fabric you are willing to experiment on, the more you will learn from the experience.

Oh, but if you decide to stitch on Grandma's lovely handwoven heirloom tablecloth, make sure you have her permission first and use thread that is colorfast! ... or don't get caught. ;)

[Lorelei Halley]

I would think that if making a book, you would want the back side of the sampler page to be visible, because that helps you understand how the stitches were made.  There are times when you want a particular kind of thread pattern on the back, for instance outline stitches in pulled thread work.  You want an outline stitch which has a neat place to hide thread ends, so what the stitch does on the back is important.

I'm going to join the tast this time because there are stitches I haven't tried and I want the stimulus to experiment with stitches I already know.  And I've been thinking about a fabric book, too.  But I think I'll do mine so the back side of every page is visible.  I think it will be a more useful reference that way.

[Tahlia]

That's an excellent point, Lorelei! and well stated.

[Barbara/Hopscotch]

Thank you, Tahlia, for such  informative answers to all my questions!  I thiink I will use Aida and linen or cotton for my TAST and experiment in 'my own time ' on the more unusual fabrics.  I am not particularly drawn to counted stitches and charts as I love to stitch free-style; so it will be an interesting experience.

 I am really looking forward to viewing all the wonderful examples of other members and learning into the bargain.

Many thanks

Barbara

[Nancy Gardner]

I could not find how to post pictures at Pin Tangle. I also looked for a flicker group for 2012 and didn't find that. I did post my pictures in the TAST group on My Page group for TAST. Help, where do I post my weekly work?

[Tahlia]

I found two TAST groups on Flickr

http://www.flickr.com/groups/tast/

http://www.flickr.com/groups/56846286@N00/

Neither one is specific to 2012 ( but Sharon did set up a Facebook page for TAST 2012, so maybe that's what you're thinking of?)

http://www.facebook.com/groups/128698983911229/

You can post pictures on any or all of: your own blog, the flickr website (your own page and/or the TAST group),  the Facebook page, here on Stitchin Fingers in one of the albums and/or in your group comments, or anywhere else that seems appropriate! Wherever you decide to post it, just remember to link back to PinTangle!

http://www.pintangle.com/journal/2012/1/3/take-a-stitch-tuesday-wee...

well, I'm off like a herd of turtles-- need to stitch up my CQ block for this month before the month passes me by!

[Tahlia]

Oh, I forgot to say, once you get your picture posted somewhere, you can also go to Sharon's stitch of the week page and put a link into the comment area! :)

Nancy Gardner said:

I could not find how to post pictures at Pin Tangle. I also looked for a flicker group for 2012 and didn't find that. I did post my pictures in the TAST group on My Page group for TAST. Help, where do I post my weekly work?

[Marilyn Perkins]

Hi, I'm a bit lost.  I have posted my work in Facebook and into My Pictures on this site.  Where else must it go and where do I post to direct people to my site as Sharon suggests?  Which page is Sharon's stitch of the week page?  Everywhere is beginning to look the same.   Thank you ~ MarilynP

[Tahlia]

An excellent question, Marilyn! I understand how everything starts to look the same.

From Pintangle:

"Every week the challenge is announced here. This blog is the main hub so do remember to swing back here to leave a comment. 

You can also share your explorations with other members on the social network site of your choice. There is a Facebook TAST 2012 page,   stitchin fingers group and the flickr TAST site. All these sub groups are set up at request of members. "

plus the option of your own blog, of course.

In a nutshell, wherever you choose to put your photo up is fine (one place or all places is your choice), and then go to the Pintangle page for the stitch and add a comment that includes a link to a place your photo can be viewed.

From pintangle:

"Where is the comments link?

Look under the title you will see comments. Click there to be taken to a comment box."

...took me forever to find it, but yep-- there it is. Do you ever have one of those "doh" moments where it seems completely obvious in retrospect?

Here's a screen capture of the post title and the comments link that she's talking about. I've underlined the comments link in yellow:

For week 2, that link is:

http://www.pintangle.com/journal/2012/1/10/take-a-stitch-tuesday-we...

Click on that link (each new stitch will have its own introduction page, and that's where you find the comment link that you want for that stitch), and post your comment with a link to the/a place where your photo can be viewed!

The link on Pintangle will help everyone find your photo, and will help you find lots of other peoples' photos! It's true eye-candy, and looking at them all can suck up a lot of your time if you let it, but OH the inspiration!!

I hope this answered your questions! If anything is still unclear, let me know!

[Uma Srinivasan]

Iam uma srinivasan,already 9 weeks gone ,shall I join now In TAST 2012