365: Day 29 Stitchin up a Pirate

Post for Saturday, February 12, 2011

Green border added at beginning.

Parrot Pirate is really starting to come together nicely. Today I spent a couple of hours doing machine embroidery and adding the green marbled border. Normally the border is added after all the other work is done, but since I might "violate" the border by having the end of the skull cap stitched partially over the green border it's best to ad it now.

Button hole stitch on the spine bones and jaw.

As I work on the piece decisions are made about what will be done by hand and what parts will be embellished with the sewing machine. Last time I did machine embroidery it was on the Vibrant Dead Dog Pillow. I used a zig-zag stitch set to a narrow width. This time I tried the button hole stitch since the Parrot has more detailed and thinner areas to sew. The button hole stitch produced a satin stitch (stitches much closer together) and I varied the width depending on the area that was being embellished. I also used a variety of thread colors.

Pirate's treasure outlined in metallic thread

The Pirate's claw is holding a pearl or orb. I haven't decided which just yet.

Around the edge of the pearl I used a clear rainbow metallic thread (Sulky brand) which adds some nice sparkle. I might use embroidery floss for the rest of the pearl or fill in with more of the metallic threads. Maybe I can achieve a 3D look on the pearl.

Black metallic thread outlining the fabric pattern that is underneath the cheesecloth might be really interesting and add some mystery. It might even look like fireworks. Perhaps our pirate is in China stealing this pearl. Sounds like I need to go shopping for metallic thread and material for the backside of the quilt.