So this is what happens when Someone (ahem. okay, fine it was me) decides that even though she has never done a stitch of embroidery in her life, for her first project she's going to do away with patterns and just try to mimic the embroidery on her national costume. Without even trying to trace it out first.
Go ahead and laugh. I know it's totally mishapen and scrappy.
Lesson #1 - I am not good at drawing freehand, what on earth made me think I'd be good at embroidering freehand? (???)
Lesson #2 - picking the right number of threads to embroider with makes a big difference. I really wanted that stem to be the size that it is, but I used too few threads so it looks jagged. Clearly there's a certain amount of poor stitchery involved, but I think that if I had used more threads it would have helped cover some of the jags.
Lesson #3 - embroidery is about precision. Every. Single. Stitch. Placement makes a difference in how the darned thing will look. This makes it a very different kind of craft than knitting and spinning. (or, at least, my sloppy approach to knitting and spinning.) If I want to be happy with my finished embroidery, I need to take the time to give it my full, unrushed attention.
In this case? I rushed. I was too hopped up on the thought of embroidering everything in sight!
I'm obviously a beginner at this and I'm a-okay with that! Right now I'm sticking to tea towels that won't leave the house, so the learning curve can take whatever form it takes.
Just think of this as a hopeful future "remember when..." post reference.
5 comments:
Don't be so hard on yourself! For your first time it looks awesome! I promise it will get better the more you do.
i think it looks pretty good!
i will never take up embroidery b/c i can't pick up a needle and thread without poking myself. i swear i've bled on every item i've ever sewn a button on.
if you want to get into a hobby that's all about precision, try quilting. it's scary how every fraction of an inch counts. i like it but my laziness isn't going to win me any quilting ribbons anytime soon.
Actually, that looks pretty good! First time or not! You can get washable marking pencils at the fabric store to sketch with, and even use them to trace a design if you don't want to freehand it.
You are NOT a sloppy knitter! Sloppy about putting clothes away, yes (takes one to know one - you should see my laundry pile...) But knitting, no.
I've done embroidery for a long while (but its been years since I've done it regularly) and I think it looks fantastic!
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