Cover your chairs the easy way...

If you happened to drop by my blog this summer for Tablescape Thursday on a warm day in September, you more than likely saw this post.  I had used embellished tea towels to drape over the backs of the chairs, tying them on with ribbons.

 

I purchased the exquisite tea towels from the Martha Pullen Company. Oh love all the delicacies that can be had from there.

Today I found the detailed instructions for this project on-line at Designs in Embroidery magazine. Be sure to check it out HERE.

You have plenty of time to finish this by the holidays, after all, the linens are already made. Just a bit of embroidery, a few buttonholes and some ribbon, and you are done!

Antique Roses

I  L O V E linens, old new and anything in between. I look for blank canvases on which I can embroider. I look for old tablecloths, new tablecloths, I have a closet for just for linens. My name is and I'm addicted...  I saw this blank canvas at Martha Pullen's School of Art Fashion in Huntsville several years ago. I had to have it. I mean HAD to have it. The drawn thread work on the piece was amazing. They've just had another event, so the webstore is a bit low.. but check it out periodically. You won't be sorry. Click HERE to be transported to her heirloom emporium.

Regrettably, I have no clue from whom this design is. Is it a Jenny Haskins design? Is it a Zundt? We've been in this house now 18 months and the embroidery designs are still in a box. I think I'll have to remedy that PDQ!!!

I used a heavy weight iron away stabilizer. The kind that is milky white and almost clear. I like to use this because there is no residue on the back. Wherever the iron touches, the stabilizer is removed. Where the iron doesn't touch it (ie. within the design itself) the stabilizer stays.

I always test the embroidery on the same fabric or one that is similar with the stabilizer and threads I intend to use. This gives a realistic piece on which to assess the finished piece. Is it too stiff - then lower the stitch density of your design (software or a machine with design editing capabilities required). Is the coverage adequate - once again adjust the stitch density. Are the fibers on the blank pulled - re-evaluate your stabilizer, it's probably not heavy enough to hold the weight of the stitches. Can you see needle holes, don't use the largest needle on the market. I prefer Organ needles because they have a needle eye one size larger than the size indicated thus providing less strain on your thread. I prefer rayon embroidery threads for delicate items because it is a natural fiber and the shine is amazing. I tend to gravitate towards Madeira threads.

I always print out or use the supplied design template for placement. I mark the north on the template and then trim the template directly outside the motif. I then place the motif on the fabric and mark the center and horizontal and vertical centers so that I can properly hoop both the stabilizer and the fabric.

Always iron your finished product wrong side up with the embroidered motif on a towel. This will leave the stitches raised. When you press on the right side, do not iron over the motif. Come up to it and then maneuver around the design.

I also do not put my linens away starched and ironed. It keeps the bugs away and with no starch in the fibers, the bends are kinder on the fabric. Ironing tip: place the damp piece in a plastic bag in the refrigerator overnight. This ensures that you will be ironing on icy cold fabric the next day. Use a hot iron and you probably won't need any starch!

Thanks for dropping by. Your visits delight me, your comments are my blessings.

Tea towel chair back covers

Embroidery Arts Candlewick Font

This is a super easy way to spruce up your chairs for an upcoming event. I suggest you plan to carry this out a few days ahead of time, not the night before. I think there is a direct correlation between your stress level and your embroidery machine. The machine is all knowing!!!

Supplies:

Embroidery software
Embroidery machine
60 wt. cotton thread (or thread of your choice)
Melt-Away stabilizer
Fonts design package or true-type fonts from your word processing program
~~~~~designs used on towels are listed beneath each towel picture with links
Martha Pullen Co. tea towels
Silk satin ribbon to tie to chairs


*I prefer to use the heavy weight Melt-Away stabilizer for this type of embroidery. It supports the stitches well and with the use of an iron, there is no residual residue left in the project. The melt-away stabilizer also remains under the stitches because it's not in direct contact with the iron therefore leaving necessary stabilization in the project for the satin stitched letters.

Instructions:

1. Open your embroidery software, bring in the design or font you want to use and resize to your heart's desire or your machine's limitation. *Pick an overall size that you want your combination of designs to be so that each embroidery has size in common. You wouldn't want a 2" monogram on one tea towel and a 4" monogram on the next.
2. Send the design/designs to your machine for embroidery.
3. Hoop both the Melt-Away stabilizer and the tea towel.
4. Embroider with 60 wt. cotton thread in needle and bobbin. *I prefer to use the cotton thread because it mimics the hand done work of years past so well. Do not use regular sewing thread because it won't cover as well as the cotton thread.
5. When the embroidery is complete, cut away the excess stabilizer from the back of the towel. Turn your iron to the recommended setting for your Melt-away stabilizer. Iron until the stabilizer remains are all gone.
6. Stitch 2 buttonholes on each side of each towel (4 per towel) aligning them so that when the towel is folded in half (as in over a chair), the buttonholes on each side align so that you can run a ribbon through to tie them on the chair.

French Script - Bernina Tassels and Trims 2 (tips - click here)

Harrington Font - OESD corner design

Edwardian Script - Zundt rose embroidery design

French Script - Amazing Designs lace motif

Click here for an additional project using the Tassels and Trims embroidery design collection from Bernina.