I spent a lot of August watching YouTube videos. (Did I mention that COVID totally sucks?) While collecting stitch ideas for my Advent calendar project, I discovered Sarah Homfray’s brilliant hand-embroidery channel.
A trained embroiderer, Sarah Homfray has over 400 videos on her channel. I’ve done all sorts of needlework in the last four decades, and I still learned valuable things from Sarah’s “10 tips, tricks, and hacks to make your hand embroidery easier” video, like how to handle those floppy skeins of embroidery floss so they don’t wind up a snarled mess. (And the answer isn’t thread bobbins!)
Sarah also got me thinking about using finished pieces that were lying in a drawer. When her video “Finish it Friday! Let’s look at why it’s hard to finish projects + some practical solutions to help” dropped, it felt like she was reading my mind.
I had sorted through my embroidery supplies and found multiple projects in various states of completion. One of them dates back to 1990! I donated the projects I knew I would never use, no matter what stage they were in. But I kept the things I really loved, wondering what I would do with them. (You can’t hang everything on the wall.)
Sarah has lots of videos full of good ideas. Her “20 things in 20 minutes! 20 easy to make slow stitching project ideas for your embroidered pieces!” video inspired me to make myself an eyeglass case with my improvisational cross-stitched piece from 2021.
Following my “use what you’ve got” policy, I lined it with a practice piece of free-motion quilting. Since it’s on the inside, no one will ever see it, and it pads my case to protect my glasses.
I assembled it by hand using Perle cotton and blanket stitch. The end result makes me smile every time I look in my purse.
“Finish it Friday” is now a series and I’m looking forward to more clever ideas from Sarah because — you guessed it — I have several embroidery projects I need to finish.
What do you do with your finished needlework? Is everything made with a specific end in mind, or do you stitch without a plan?
If only there were more hours in the day that were dedicated solely for creative projects!
I hear you! Every time I get sick, I wind up with an even longer “stuff I want to make” list.
Quick and easy floss holder. Take a piece of cardboard like the piece that is packaged with a calendar. Any stiff cardstock, box works too. Cut slits on one edge and insert floss by color. Even easier is butterfly the floss by winding same around your fingers in a figure eight. Tuck loose end in so it doesn’t unravel.
August and to much of September lost to respiratory version of Covid. Just didn’t want to let go. I hear you.
Greetings from Ithaca.
Sorry you’ve been sick, too. I couldn’t believe how long it took me to recover.