Karen Ruane

the next page

The next page for my little book of embroidery, my cloth book. Originally my intention was to sell this one, it was meant for the shop, not any more...I definitely can't part with it. I am completely and utterly in love with it. I made a little video for you of all the pages I have so far, that also helps me take stock, see where I'm up to.

(video at the bottom of this post)

I've also been working on all my classes this week, obsessively working for all of them to get ahead before I go away next week. This morning I made four new videos for 'stitching stories' which started yesterday. Our first post was a gentle introduction.....we have moved on a lot this morning girls, all will be revealed on Monday. Meanwhile, a glimpse for the rest of you of what we are up to. (and it's not too late to register, just go here)

 

hand made artist book with embroidered wrapping cloth

There are lots of images today and in truth there could have been a lot more.

This one has been a long time in the making and now it's finished I am missing the opportunity to work on it a little more, missing the excitement of picking it up to stitch on it. On the plus side I do have it to fondle.

There is a brief show and tell video at the end of this post along with information about my new class which strats on Monday....

 

Stitching Stories

Begins June 17 for 8 weeks.

Online format.... Private password protected blog.

No deadlines. No set tasks. Lifetime access to all resources.

No prerequisites.

Suitable for all skill levels.

**this online learning programme is not a repeat of my ''stitching a story'' programme.**

A return to playfulness, to stories, fairytales and imaginary tales. Join me as I enhance a story book with stitch, cloth, jewels and a sprinkling of imagination.

Work in a printed storybook or create your own magical daydream using blank pages and doodles.

Using playful imagery we will doodle pattern, enhancing our simple pencil lines with stitch and pretty additions in the form of cords, beads, sequins.....using simple pattern and image sources as our starting point we will be inspired to let our imagination run away with us, adding our own interpretation to an unfolding story.

Any 'doodling' will be basic. Please do not be afraid of this aspect of the course. I doodle in the simplest form.

Doodling on a blank page is not compulsory. You can choose to work exclusively in a printed story book.

Exploration and stitch work can take place in a childrens fairytale book, a blank sketchbook or both.

I will be enhancing a printed storybook with stitch, I will also be creating my own story in a blank sketchbook using pencil to doodle pattern.

On registration you will receive access to a short video where book choices are discussed.

Register here.

embroidery catch up

There's a video catch up today, an overview of what's happening here creatively. I'm still hemming the lining of my wrapping cloth, my cloth pages continue to be embellished as do the pages for my paper based artist book......and I bought myself some rather lovely Swarovski buttons. Lucky me!

If you are registered for my new class 'Stitching Stories' you should have received an email from me this morning. If you didn't can you please let me know.

 

sequins, Suffolk puffs, ribbons and a new short class.

There's a short video for you about this one, the next needlecase. I'm choosing ribbon and as you can tell from the images I went with the green velvet. The Suffolk puffs which I actually only made about ten minutes ago will be added once the lining is attached as a final embellishment along the front. I love a pretty needlecase.

Keep scrolling for the video because before that I want to tell you about this.

 

Stitching Stories.

Begins June 17 for 8 weeks.

Online format.... Private password protected blog.

No deadlines. No set tasks. Lifetime access to all resources.

No prerequisites.

Suitable for all skill levels.

**this online learning programme is not a repeat of my ''stitching a story'' programme.**

A return to playfulness, to stories, fairytales and imaginary tales. Join me as I enhance a story book with stitch, cloth, jewels and a sprinkling of imagination.

Work in a printed storybook or create your own magical daydream using blank pages and doodles.

Using playful imagery we will doodle pattern, enhancing our simple pencil lines with stitch and pretty additions in the form of cords, beads, sequins.....using simple pattern and image sources as our starting point we will be inspired to let our imagination run away with us, adding our own interpretation to an unfolding story.

Any 'doodling' will be basic. Please do not be afraid of this aspect of the course. I doodle in the simplest form.

Doodling on a blank page is not compulsory. You can choose to work exclusively in a printed story book.

Exploration and stitch work can take place in a childrens fairytale book, a blank sketchbook or both.

I will be enhancing a printed storybook with stitch, I will also be creating my own story in a blank sketchbook using pencil to doodle pattern.

On registration you will receive access to a short video where book choices are discussed.

Register here.

 

 

edges

This is the wrap I am making for my large artist book, the one with embroidered samples mounted onto paper pages. I'm almost there, just the edges to finish which is happening quite slowly due to me getting distracted every five minutes........you know how it is, you most likely get distracted every five minutes too. I'm in no rush though, part of me doesn't want to ever finish this as it's so lovely to work on, to pick up and put down.

a little page in a sketchbook

Three minutes 55 seconds.....that's all. The video....very short. A celebration of a doodle! Or a celebration of me picking up a pencil maybe.

Anyway, a little bit of page titivation in a very small sketchbook inspired by embroidery in progress. It was an itch I had to scratch.

embroidering a small wrap

The little wrap for an artist book has moved on considerably since you saw it here. The surface embroidery is complete and this now needs to be lined before I attach it to a little book I have in progress. The blue and orange sequins which came from a deconstructed necklace finish those seams off perfectly, they were just what I needed.

 

 

 

 

 

 

View this post on Instagram

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sequins on a seam. #embroidery #wrappingcloth #sequins #embroideryteacher

A post shared by Karen Ruane (@karenruane) on Apr 2, 2019 at 4:36am PDT

a smaller wrap

The piece I was working on in the video yesterday inspired me to create a smaller piece, a smaller wrap. This little wrap will protect a very small artist book which will have 4 x 4 inch pages. I had a dilemma however, adding embellishments to a seam which don't work for me today. They're going, they are gone.....

(to answer a couple of emails I have received this week....both my current classes are running for 12 months. You can sign up at any time and not miss anything which has happened up to now as you will have full access to the private class blog. There is no cut off point, you keep access forever so can work completely at your leisure, take your time. You can read about my embroidery class here and my embroidery ledger class here. Please don't hesitate to get in touch if you have any questions)

beading a tiny edge

A quite short video today (and an excuse to hide in my little shed/studio.) I'm gradually making progress with the wrap for my artist book. I seem to have shared a lot of this process on here, it's almost 'your' project. There are so many videos on here about this piece, videos about piecing, videos about embroidery, embellishment, edges, pinning...so many. If you haven't seen them you can click on the 'video' link in the category list on the right hand side of this page. That will take you there (this post will be first, just scroll past it)

 

This weekend I will be working hard on pieces for embroidery school, two classes, both exciting, both needing lots of stitch and lots of attention.

 

a little bit of stab stitch

The wrap for my hand made artist book is getting a little more attention today. Stab stitch is being used to secure a strip of ribbon on one panel. There are two panels on here which still need a lot of embellishment before I can move on to lining this cloth and then wrapping it around my artist book. Actually, the artist book also needs more work, I may take that out this afternoon and do some thinking, make an assessment of exactly what is still needed for that.

Meanwhile a little chat, a short video.