Curl Center Rose

Way back in 2014 there was a post shared about a couple of stemmed roses that I had stitched in Silk Ribbon and perle cotton. Here is the Link.

Well I've been playing with that rose idea again, and thought you might like a little tutorial as I progressed through the stitching. This little variety is only about 2-inches tall from ground to tip; a perfect little motif size for any block. But, to enlarge just use 13mm ribbon and longer straight stitches and/or add more "rounds" of petals.

Kathy's Curl Center Rose

First off, I should explain the background as it is a bit "fuzzy". If you saw the prior post than you already understand; but if not...this fabric is a shrunk sweater that I'm using to create pin cushions. This little rose is the first to be stitched.

To begin this rose thread some 7mm ribbon on your chenille needle. Take a tiny bite of your background without anchoring the ribbon to the back (per the usual). I've enlarged these photos and cropped them close...so this bite might look large. But, notice the width of the ribbon which is 7mm...and you can surmise that the bite is actually about 1/16th (or about half of the 7mm size). Pull the ribbon through until you have about 1 to 2-inches remaining.

This little ribbon tail (right side) is going to become the center of the rose. To hold it in place, we'll need some standard needle/thread so go ahead and get that prepared.

Take a couple of anchoring stitches in the center area, it's not important if you pierce the ribbon or not as you're only just anchoring the thread so it doesn't pull out of the background fabric.

Use a small round tool (stilleto, toothpick, or painters brush as shown here) and roll the ribbon from tip to fabric around this tool. If you catch the sewing thread, no problem. Now ease the tool out and hold these curls down with fingers from the hand you don't sew with.

The hand you use is important because you need to tack these curls in place with needle thread, go through all layers. (Confession: I didn't do a good job and my curls came partially loose during this rose creation...and I had to work to re-curl them and poke them into the center outside curl again. So, learn from my error and tack through so that you catch all layers of this curl. The left side of the curl is the ribbon that has been sitting there patiently in the needle waiting for the next step. Clip your sewing thread after you have secured it on the back side of your fabric. You are finished with the needle/thread...so back to the silk ribbon.

The needle position is presently at 9-o'clock if this rose were a clock face. Needle down at 12-o'clock (12-OC) making a straight stitch. Keep it a bit loose rather than letting it flatten against the fabric.

This is a good time to point out a critical "technique" element in silk ribbon embroidery. ALWAYS manipulate the ribbon rather than just pulling through like you might with thread embroidery. I like to needle down and then stop...as I pull the ribbon with my left hand (non dominant hand) I use my right hand and the needle to apply tension against the ribbon. Just insert the needle under the loop that you are pulling through and keep the needle in place so that the ribbon remains flat close to the fabric...as it feeds through the fabric the last wee bit will be flat then rather than twisting and turning. These straight stitches don't include twists/turns...but some SRE work does; so just remember to add the appropriate number of these as you guide the ribbon into the fabric WHEN they are called fore. Not in this rose however...

Note that the photo above is the stitching of the SECOND petal. We had needled down at 12-OC. So, this petal requires us to needle up at 11-OC, slightly behind the first petal (as shown above). Needle down at 1-OC and guide the ribbon through the fabric keeping it straight. Remember to keep if a bit "poofy" and not let it lay flat against the fabric.

Make a THIRD petal in the same manner; needle up at 12-OC and down at 3-OC (this little petal is at the upper right in the photo below.

Now, we need to make a supporting stitch to help hold the center CURL in place. This stitch will be hidden but it is important to get a pretty rose. Needle up at 9-OC and down at 3-OC (this petal is at the bottom of this photo). BTW, don't stitch into the "same hole" on these...so if you have more than one instance of 3-OC for example...make sure that these are a couple of threads apart rather than going back into a hole already used at that clock face position (words of wisdom).

Now we'll work on some bottom petals. Needle back up at 9-OC and needle down at 6-OC. Keep the petal straight and puffy.

Needle up at 7-OC and down at 5-OC. Then needle up at 6-OC (as shown in the photo above)...

...and down at 3-OC. This completes the head of this little rose. IF you want a larger rose you can add another round of petals in the same manner. Using wider ribbon will also increase the size a bit because the curled center will be taller...and therefore the clock face is a bit larger. But, the difference is not as much as when you add a second grouping of petals. This little rose head has some possibilities for sure. Change the center, change the color of center/petals, and just play around with the petal placement to get a variety of roses using this general idea.

Next...the stem. Your choice of stem could include a standard Chain Stitch, a Wrapped Chain Stitch, a Stem Stitch, or some other stitch of your choice. For this tutorial I'm going to work a combination of Chain Stitches and Single Feather Stitches...with a twist.

I'm going to begin with a Detached Chain Stitch. Granted, it's hard to actually see this here in this photo...but that's because the "loop" is tight so looks more like two Straight Stitches from this angle. But, trust me...it is a Detached Chain Stitch. I began about 1/8th inch (2mm) below the rose head and the loop tucks under the head and is tacked down with a wee little straight tacking stitch. Then, I needled up about 1/8 inch from the base and on the left side (you can do the right side first if you prefer, that really doesn't matter).

It might be best if I remind you exactly what a Single Feather Stitch looks like:

This drawing has the stitches slightly offset from each other...but you can follow a drawn line (this would align #3 and #5 vertically...placing the #5 needle position directly under the #3 position rather than slightly to the right. That's what we'll be doing to keep the stem straight. We'll also be adding a "twist" to the stitch. So, this can't be accomplished with the SCOOP method of stitching...rather, we'll STAB up and down and manipulate our thread using both hands as we create the line of stitching.

We began by our needle up slightly to the left of the Single Detached Chain. So, now we needle down at the base of the Single Detached Chain to continue our Twisted Single Feather Stitch. Needle up about 1/4th inch (4mm) vertically below the Single Detached Chain...to keep a straight stem. Ordinarily we'd just loop the perle under the needle to do the Single Feather Stitch.

Instead we are going to pass the thread on TOP of the needle before going under it. This causes the thread to cross-over (or twist) as we make the stitch. Pull Through...

This is what the stitch looks like...kinda neat! We will continue to create the same stitch but begin each at opposite sides. So, needle down slightly to the right of center...and come up vertically along the center line (imaginary, but you can draw one to keep you on track) about 1/4 inch down from the where the perle is right now. Do as many of these stitches as you want the rose length where "leaves" might be. So, stop before you get all the way to the bottom.

You can see that I've done five of the Twisted Single Feather Stitches (3 on the left and 2 on the right). Next we'll add some length to the stem with some standard Detach Chain Stitches. Go into the "loop" of the last Twisted Single Feather Stitch and needle up about 1/4 inch away vertically in line still with the center of the stem.

Do as many of these Detached Chain Stitches as needed to make the rose as tall as you want it to be. I've included TWO of the stitches as you can see at the bottom area of this photo. End the last Chain Stitch by anchoring the loop with a little tacking stitch.

I wanted my stem to be a bit more "solid" so I'm wrapping all of these prior stitches. Needle up at the base of the stem (right or left side) and pass your needle under the loop portion of each stitch (use the EYE so you don't stab the work). Do this for every stitch and the result will WRAP the perle around the stem from bottom to top.

The end result looks pretty solid with little "stems" on each side. These could be interpreted as thorns if you wanted to add large leaves in silk ribbon. But, I'm going to consider them as little leaf stems...and add silk ribbon leaves in 2mm ribbon. These will be tiny because I want to create at least 3 for each stem. Roses often have 3, 5, or even 7 leaves...but never an even number on their little stems.

Create the leaves with simple Straight Stitches in ribbon. The length of each leaf in the set (trio) is about the width of the ribbon. Stitch the two leaves at the base first, from tip to base...then stitch the top center leaf as shown in the photo above. Viola, the rose is finished!

Pin Cushion Design (PCD) - Three

  Hope you are not getting bored with these yet...cause, here's another one!

  There are two additional symbols in this chart...for different size pearl beads. This is the easiest one yet to stitch...only Stab Stitch ribbon leaves...Wrapped Stitch ribbon roses. And some free-handed featherstitch (or you could do fly stitches) for accents...done in a thin metallic thread (I used #4 Krenik braid).

  As usual, here is the reverse pattern marked for punching out the little red dots...to show the placement of the leaves and flowers.

  Here is the layout for stitching. All of the PCD designs use the instructions and placement guides shown on the first tutorial for these pin cushions. And the How-To construction directions are in part 2...of that first tutorial...so page back to that as well.

Pin Cushion Design (PCD) - Two

I can't seem to stop working on these pin cushions...and my muse is so happy about that!  Here is the second design for you to stitch up. 

 It has simple Fly-Stitch roses...with French Knot centers. Here, the French Knot and two fly-stitches just below that...are stitched in 7mm silk ribbon...in the same color (purple). End with a third fly stitch in green for the stem....done in 4mm silk ribbon.

   Some ribbon Stab Stitch leaves with 7mm silk ribbon are used to fill in some of the space around the flowers. A second flower is the embroidered Bullion Flower with French Knot centers. Create this with 8-wrap bullions, using 2 strands of floss. Stitch 4 bullions to create a cross type design...then fill in between these with two additional bullion in each of the four open spaces. The finished flower will have 12 bullions...and a little space left in the center for those French knots (1-3). This design has dragonfly charms (show as [] in the design), and purple montees. The montees could be substituted by other beads if you don't have them on hand.  

   As with the first design...here is a reverse chart...with red dots added to mark the top/bottom of the leaves and the center of the flowers to help in placement. For the pin cushion tutorial...print these so that the outside circle is about 4 inches. Of course, you can use larger ribbon and print the pattern larger...for pillow tops, framing, etc.

Pin Cushion Design (PCD) - One

This design uses silk ribbon for all of the flowers and leaves. The wrapped roses are 7mm black edged rayon ribbon and the French Knot gathered roses are 13mm wine silk ribbon. The stab stitch leaves are 13mm green silk ribbon and the detached chain (lazy daisy) leaves are done in 7mm bias cut varigated green/brown color silk ribbon. Then 3mm dark blue crystal bicone beads and green crystal montees have been scattered around the flowers to add some sparkle. As with all flower designs, you could also change these roses out to a different style and/or type of flower head that you might enjoy stitching; add some feather stitching or some springs of French Knot babies breath; change it up and make it truly your own design.  

  Here is the design and the reverse for marking dots on your foundation fabric (optional). If you right click the image above and save it...it should print the correct size at 100% and fit on a standard 8.5 x 11 sheet of paper. The outer "dashed" ring should measure 4 inches across. Also, I strongly recommend that you always use a hoop when stitching these Pin Cushion Designs to keep your work flat and help keep it neat. A hoop that has the bottom ring wrapped in some scrap strips of cotton or seam binding will help you get a nice secure piece...and greatly reduce slipping of your background fabric while working. Here's some extra information for you, that might be helpful.   Spider-web or Woven or Wrapped Roses: See instructions in the SRE Basic Stitch Guide for working these.   French Knot Gathered Rose: Anchor your ribbon to the back of your work and needle up in the center of your rose location. Hold the ribbon in your left hand and your chenille needle in your right hand (reverse if you are left handed). Wrap the ribbon around the needle a couple of times (clockwise) to start a French Knot...then, point your needle downwards aligning it with the center of the ribbon as you hold the ribbon straight. Pierce the ribbon about a half inch below the twists...and continue to pierce the ribbon ever half inch or so...in an up and down motion until you have gathered the ribbon on the needle.   

Now, pierce the fabric about where you first came out with the ribbon.

   Pull the ribbon through...and the french knot will be formed on top of the stacked folds of the ribbon created by your gathering. Pinch this little flower and "spin it" with your finger tips...and a nice little ribbon rose will appear.   

Anchor your ribbon to the back of your work. Anchoring Ribbon. Take a tiny stitch to the back of your foundation fabric...but, not through the top fabric.   

Now, before pulling the ribbon completely out...pierce the last one inch of ribbon and pull. This creates a little stitch on the back of your work...without a knot or excess bulk. Ending Ribbon. Simply lace the ribbon under some prior embroidery stitches, ribbon stitches, or between the foundation and top fabrics and cut.  

Pin Cushion Design Tutorial - Part 2

If you have ever made a pincushion using a Compact Disk as the bottom...then you'll have no trouble with this tutorial. It is essentially the same kind of process...only I like to use canning jar lids instead. This tutorial is sized for the "wide mouth lids"; but could be reduced with very little effort to work with the regular size lids too. Canning jar lids are available in most standard grocery stores...you might have to ask "where". You don't need the "rings"...just the lids. Here where I am, they are about $3.50 for a dozen. If you can't find the lids...then any pair of sturdy circles measuring about 3.25 inches across the center will work. Cut them out of quarter inch wood, for example...but remember to sand the edges! Hugs.   Supplies Needed: Fabric for top of pin cushion (nothing too stretchy or too dense) Fabric for foundation of top (muslin, thin cotton) Fabric for inside lining (muslin, thin cotton) Cotton or Cotton/Polyester or stuffing Silk Ribbon, Embroidery Threads, Beads, Etc depending on the specific Pin Cushion Design chosen Two wide-mouth canning jar lids Strong thread/cording to gather and tack tightly Optional: E-6000 Glue

Step One: Trace the Circle on the Design sheet at Part 1 of this Tutorial on to your Foundation Fabric. This tracing is on the back of the fabric.

Step Two (Optional): Each design will include a reverse design that includes "dots" to mark the position of major elements in the design...such as the top/bottom of leaves, center of large flowers, spokes of the wrapped rose, etc. Transfer the dot markings from your chosen Pin Cushion Design to your Foundation Fabric Circles to mark placement of flowers, leaves, etc...as you wish. You can also freehand all of the design if you don't want to create it so literally.

To transfer the dots...first, punch a hole with a needle over every red dot in the design. (This photo has no dots, I just used the top/bottom of leaves and the center of flowers, etc and eyeballed where to punch. Then, I went back to the design sheets and added little red dots ...which will make it easier for you to see where the needle should put a hole.)

Here is how the design looks with just the holes on the back. 

Now, use these holes as placement for a sharp lead pencil...and transfer the "dots" to the muslin foundation fabric.

Step Three (Optional): Annotate your design so that you can clearly understand "what the dots mean". Here, for example, I have used different colored pins to go over the dots again for different design elements (red dots for the spokes and center of the Wrapped Roses, larger pink dots for the French Knot Gathered Roses, green dots for the leaves); have draw a line between the top/bottom dots for each leaf; and (later on) have added a squiggly line to remind me of which leaves were detached chain stitch ribbon leaves instead of the stab stitch ribbon leaves.

Step Four: Place the Top Fabric over the foundation fabric. Be sure to keep the annotations side of the foundation fabric down, so you can see it. Stitch these two pieces of fabric together by running a machine zig-zig along the outside drawn line. (Forgot to take a photo before the stitching was done...but, hopefully you get the idea from this "after" shot.)

 

Step Five: Complete the embroidery, silk ribbon, and beading as the design reflects. (Shown in Part 3 of this tutorial). Set this completed top section aside for now.

Step Six: Take the fabric for the lining and trace a circle using the outer-most circle on the Pattern in Part 1 of this tutorial. Using a strong thread/cord gather this circle until you have an opening about 2 inches across. Tie off the cord/thread. (I used a ball of perle thread to show you that there is an opening when this circle has been gathered up.)

Step Seven: Fill this "lining bag" with poly fill. Use small amounts...over and over...stuffing and packing until the lining resembles a tight little round pillow. Take a piece of cord and criss-cross over the opening to keep the stuffing in place and to draw up the sides to create a nice shape. Poke more stuffing inside if you need to to get this nice and firm. This will be the inside of the pin cushion.

Step Eight: Take strong cord/thread and gather the finished top of the pin cushion.Place the stuffed lining and then one of the large mouth jar lids into the top. Draw up the cord and gather the top around the lining ball of stuffing...and around the jar lid. Draw this up tightly (that's why you need really strong cording). Take a few stitches to anchor...and then criss-cross the excess thread until you have secured the gathering pleats as nicely as possible. You might need additional pieces of cording to get this neat.

Step Nine:

Using the canning jar lid as a guide, cut a circle of felt about one-inch larger than the lid on all sides. Gather this around the lid. Secure the gathering thread.

Step Ten: Use E-6000 glue or tiny stitches (or both) to secure the bottom felt piece to the top of the pincushion. You can also cover any space between the two with trim if you desire.

Tomorrow, we'll talk about the first of the Pin Cushion Designs (PCD) in this series.