EMBROIDERY WITH CELESTE

For those of us who were fortunate enough to attend the August 14th Zoom workshop on how to embroider on paper, it was a terrific experience. Celeste Chalasani provided us with a set of great worksheets that we could print out and use to practice various stitches. She also gave us a lot of useful tips including which end of the DMC folded thread package to pull out the end of the thread (the side with the color number printed on the label). The best part is that we now have these great little sample sheets that can be put together into a book for handy reference. Here are a few examples of completed books.

Margaret tied her individual sheets together with kite thread.

Dianne pasted her examples into an accordion book.

Bonnie also used an accordion structure and added a cover
 with additional decorative stitching.

Here are a few screenshots of Celeste's embroidery.

These examples show embroidery onto photographs
to add a three-dimensional quality.

Can you find the embroidered bees and caterpillar in these photos?

The photo on the left has embroidered ladybugs.

Many thanks to Celeste for a wonderful workshop. Hopefully we'll soon see more examples of embroidery on paper in upcoming exchange books.

EMBROIDERY ON PAPER

Our August workshop will feature Celeste Chalasani showing us the basics of how to embroider on paper. Celeste has been teaching Stumpwork, an embroidery technique that produces three dimensional work, for ten years. She has recently begun exploring embroidery on paper and will take us along on her journey.

These photographs are examples of Celeste's embroidery.

French knots enhance the waves along the shore.

Celeste will begin with a slideshow presentation showing us different forms of embroidery on paper. Next she'll demonstrate some basic embroidery stitches that we will be able to use to embellish book covers and pages. The actual project that we're going to be working on are 4" x 5" pages with stitch diagrams. Celeste's idea is to work the stitches on the cardstock to create a small stitch reference. She made hers into an accordion book to refer to later when working on future projects.

Celeste's accordion style reference book

Materials needed:

• Two size 8 embroidery (crewel) needles
• A wine or beer bottle cork to use to make a very fine pricking/piercing tool
• A thick acrylic pad, mouse pad or paper to protect your table surface
• Cardstock (8 1/2" x 11"), white or ivory
• Stranded cotton embroidery thread such as DMC or Anchor, any color
• Single sided Scotch or masking tape

*Before the workshop, you will need to create a pricking/piercing tool using one of the size 8 embroidery needles and the cork following the directions provided once you RSVP. Celeste will also provide a pdf for you to print on cardstock so that you can practice embroidery stitches as she demos them. Please RSVP to Dolores (contact information is in the newsletter) by August 9 to receive the instructions for this workshop. To learn more about Celeste and her classes visit her website at www.celestechalasani.com.

What:   Embroidery on Paper workshop

When:  Saturday, August 14 at 10 a.m. Pacific time

Where: On your computer, tablet or smartphone via Zoom

RSVP:   YES to Dolores Guffey by August 9 to receive password and Celeste's pdf

Workshop questions: Celeste Chalasani

Zoom questions: Bobbie Hayes

Contact information is always in the newsletter

HINTS, TIPS, & TOOLS MEETING

Once again we dipped our toes in the testing waters by having a Zoom meeting for our members. Dolores presented a plethora of hints, tips, & tools (although the difference between hints & tips wasn't fully explained). In any case, we had 42 members join in the meeting, 17 locals and 25 from outside of Humboldt County. Being able to Zoom has allowed us to connect with members both close by and far away during these trying times. We will continue the monthly Zoom meeting/workshops as long as we have members volunteering to teach from their computer to ours. Thank you Celeste, for getting us started and showing us how. And now it is time for NORBAG to set up our own Zoom account.

 

Here are some of the items we looked at…

Piercing Tools

Different types of needles

Threads
Background - DMC #5 Perle cotton (skein & box)
Other threads shown: bookbinder's linen thread; waxed linen thread;
buttonhole thread; sample card from Royalwood, supplier of waxed linen threads

Weights
 covered brick, sad irons, marble base from a trophy, soft leather drafting weight, small box filled with lead weights

 

Measuring rule set
 brass set of metal bars ranging in size from 1" to 1/8"
(available at hardware stores, look for K&S Metal Stock)

Centering Ruler 

 www.creativeimpressions.com (centering ruler #80003)

Glue Brush

Crayola So Big, on chopstick rest

When you don't wash out your glue brush and the next day (week or month) you find it hard and stiff...don't throw it out. Just soak it overnight in rubbing alcohol and the next day it is good as new. Just pick out a few glue strands and rinse well. If you leave the cap off of your glue stick and it is all hard...just use a craft knife to slice off the hard area and you're good to go (and try to remember to replace the cap next time).

At the end of the presentation we showed the July and August exchange books, and our members were able to discuss their book while it was on the screen. It was a wonderful way to share our creativity.

Special thanks to Dolores, Bobbie & Celeste and everyone else who contributed.

ZOOM WORKSHOP TUTORIAL

What happens when technology and NORBAG meet? We have a tutorial about using Zoom for our meetings. On July 24, Celeste Chalasani led a Zoom tutorial on how to use Zoom for workshops. She talked about the technology we would need and it was a surprise to learn that we already have most of the technology needed...such as a smart phone, tablet, or desktop computer. If you plan to lead a workshop for NORBAG you probably only need to purchase something to hold a smart phone or tablet. It could be as simple as a goose neck cell phone holder that clamps to your desk (prices range from around $12 to $30-40). 

There are also document cameras made specifically for this kind of workshop that may plug into video systems or other computers. The prices can range as low as $100 and some are over $800. Some of our members are already giving classes over the internet and are using the more specific technologies. Either high or low tech, our NORBAG members can easily set up for workshops.

We talked a bit about staging of the actual workshop (Margaret did this very nicely at our June workshop) and how helpful it is to have a co-host who can direct questions to the speaker so things run smoothly. Celeste also spoke about how we can spotlight the instructor while eliminating other voices and noise that cause the camera to move away from the instructor. 

Are you interested in giving a workshop but missed the Zoom tutorial or want to refresh your memory of the information? Send an email to Dolores (email in the newsletter) and she will send you the necessary link to see the tape of the workshop. No excuses now...if you have an idea for a workshop we’re happy to help you through the first time.

Member Projects

This is a wet-cyan on a coffee filter.

Have you ever wanted to try making Cyanotype prints? Our member from Pennsylvania, Mary Elizabeth Nelson, has been doing just that with beautiful results. Here is what she shared. 

"Cyanotype and wet-cyan have taken over my life and the joy of waking up to a sunny day is the best ever. I think I must have done well over a 100 prints on paper and fabric. Thinking about book structures as I apply the chemicals for the cyanotype process, I have 5" x 14" papers and fabric for French folded pages to incorporate onto accordion fold spines and lots of other sizes to use however I wish. Many different weights and grades of paper, a sea of blue and white all around me."

Traditional cyanotype on Stonehenge paper

French folded pages adhered to mountains of an
accordion. Cyanotype and wet-cyan methods of
printing on Stonehenge paper. 3" x 5" size.

A Queen Anne’s Lace, a wayside flower belonging to

the carrot family. This cyanotype is on a cotton fabric

with French knots added. The fabric is 5 x 14, shown

here folded in half to be included in a fabric book.

Many thanks to Mary Elizabeth for sharing these photos and information of her latest project. We hope she'll give us a workshop on the process in the future.