Staining Recipe: Parisian Essence

Staining Fabric
Often when embroidering, either machine or by hand, to stain your base fabric will give your piece of work another dimension.

Here is a recipe for staining fabric besides utilizing tea or coffee. I have found using Parisian Essence gives a very deep staining. This type of staining is best utilized for work that will not be laundered as there is a chance it may fade considerably. Some textile people advocate it can be set by washing the piece, following staining, in white vinegar or ironing it. This something that needs to be experiamented with.

Parisian Essence is used in cooking to add extra colour to gravies, soups and cakes ect. It can be found generally in the cooking section of your supermarket.

Staining Recipe: Pre wash your fabric in warm water to remove the sizing and then wring out well. In a stainless steel bucket/ trough make up a solution of 75mls of Parisian Essence mixed with 8 litres of hot tap water. Place the fabric in this solution and leave for 10minutes, thou every couple of minutes stir the solution in order that the Parisian Solution dyes all the fabric. After 10minutes remove the fabric and wring out well, leave to dry before use.

Christmas Wreath: Suffolk Puff

Another way of using Suffolk Puffs, lightly fill each one with some fibre fill before securing off. Once secured off thread the Suffolk Puffs onto a thin cord with a needle, in this pic approx 18 Suffolk Puffs were utilized, tie off to form a circle. Attach a hanging ribbon, bow and bells.

Patchwork Christmas Cards

With these two cards l applied vliesofix to the back of pieces of fabric, cut the fabric into small squares.
Iron the squares, overlaping each of them, onto a backing such as an applique sheet or greasedproof baking paper. Peel the newly created fabric square off the backing sheet. Place in a hoop and embroider a design. in these cards l have embroidered a motif from the pfaff designs of patchwork squares. Now cut your design to fit the front of a card. Place the fabric square onto the front of your card, cover with the applique sheet or baking paper and iron with a warm iron til the square has adhered to the card. Add extra sticker embellishments if desired.

Gorgeous Strawberries In 2 Different Sizes.

How gorgeous are these !!!!!

Machine Embelished Quilt Squares

 

                                                                                                                             

To further embelish these scrap squares l added some decorative stitches from my sewing machine in a matching thread. The third photo is some already embellished squares pieced together, quilt as you go blocks.
Cheers
Suzanne Francis

Christmas Coasters / Christmas Tree Decorations

 How cute are these, they can be used a                                                                               as drink coasters or christmas tree decorations To construct take two circles of fabric, place wrong sides together and sew around the edge, about 1/4 inch in. To turn to right side cut a tiny slit in the centre of one of the circles and pull thru, iron the circle. Place a square of fabric in the centre of the circle and fold down the top semi circles from the larger circle and stitch down in place. You may wish to embellish the sqare of fabric as seen in the top photo.
Cheers
Suzanne Francis