Project from Sharing Stitches: Amazing Artist’s Apron + Giveaway

   3 October, 2011

In two previous posts—one for the Market Bag and the other for the iPad Sleeve—I shared with you some techniques I love to use for painting layers on canvas and then using the canvas to sew projects with. Well this time, I wanted to kick it up one notch by adding some hand stitching to my painted fabric. I chose the Amazing Artist’s Apron from the book, Sharing Stitches by Chrissie Grace. Liz Lamoreux—one of 15 contributing artists in Chrissie’s book—designed this project.

 

I was already of fan of Liz’s aprons, so I was excited that she shared how to make one in this book! The yummy palette I was inspired to draw from for my apron—How To—comes from lover Phoenixfire. So, with my palette in mind, I headed to Michael’s for paint and embroidery floss and found it easy to find all of the colors in both instances. Having the ColorSchemer app on my phone made this super handy, as I could just pull up the palette and have it in my hand as I visually scanned the products.

How_To

I started by painting plain pieces of light-weight cotton (I only used a small amount of duck canvas this time) with the five basic colors, then had fun layering them with spatters, drips and, of course, lots of stencils. After my fabrics were dry, I cut all the pieces I would need, according to the directions in the book. The focal point of this apron is the pocket, which is a mini quilt of sorts, made up of strips and squares of the various painted fabrics. The pocket is lined and divided into four sections—making it like four different pockets—but before I sewed the patchwork pocket to its lining, I went to town having fun with hand-stitched doodles (or embroidery if you prefer).

One of my favorite books for embroidery inspiration is Doodle-Stitching by Aimee Ray. So before I started stitching, I flipped through the book to get my wheels turning. Everything I did was pretty basic and freeform. I used stem stitch, cross stitch, straight stitch, chain stitch, French knots and, a new one for me, threaded running stitch. I really never went at this by thinking too hard about it. I just looked at the lines and patterns made by the paint and “doodled” on top as it struck me—much like you’d do doodling while on the phone. The lines and shapes on the fabric you paint can therefore act as a type of accidental pattern. Fun, right?

Apron Giveaway Extended!

The Apron Giveaway is extended through Saturday, October 15th, 2011 – will close at midnight (12am) PDT. See instructions to enter, below…

If you love this palette as much as I do and you’d like to try and win this apron so you can see it in person and look cute wearing it out and about town, leave a comment here by the end of the day on October 12, expressing something you found inspiring over at CreateMixedMedia.com and you’ll be counted in for the random drawing.

Author: Tonia Davenport
Tonia is the Acquisitions Editor for North Light Craft Books (a part of CreateMixedMedia.com). She is also a mixed-media artist and a jewelry designer. Since acquiring her first book nearly eight years ago, Tonia has helped to make North Light Books the leader in mixed-media inspiration. Her favorite thing about her job is the inspiration she receives from working with so many talented artists. “Each time I get to work with an artist/author on a book, it’s like having my own private workshop, and I love learning new art-making techniques that I then can later use in my own creative work.” In addition to finding talented people to author new books, Tonia has authored two North Light titles or her own: Frame It! and Plexi Class and she is an active voice on CreateMixedMedia.com. When she’s not making art, cooking, reading or doodling, you can always find her on Facebook.