I had an idea. I complicated idea. Embroider on canvas. Then fumage over all of my work. Then rip all the thread out. Sounded interesting to me so there it is. I must say, this was a very time consuming process.

I had this idea way back when I did my first fumage piece. I had a few designs playing in around in my head until finally settling on this Japanese motif for a trial project. The canvas is really very small, only 8" x 10".

I got the design from Traditional Japanese Stencil Designs. The book reads stencils, but they don't look like any stencils I've ever seen. Perfect for these little projects though.

Materials List

Now I highly doubt anyone will want to do this but I do encourage you if you are willing.

• 1 skein DMC floss any color
• 1 tapered candle with a long wick
• Matches or a lighter
• Size 7 crewel (that's embroidery) needle
• Thimble or paper tape for a makeshift thimble if using a regular thimble is cumbersome
• Embroidery scissors and a seam riper
• Spray lacquer

Method

First things first, I traced my design on tracing paper and then attached the paper to the canvas. I did my stitching through the paper and the canvas, removing the paper when I was finished

I used 2 strands of DMC floss for the scrolly guys. I used the stem stitch hoping that the stitch itself would be visible. It is, mildly so. I used the full 6 strands of floss for the dots on the wings and 2 strands for the dots that make up the eyes; both are French knots. I then used one strand of floss for the rest of the project. I used the open chain stitch for the main body of the butterfly moth things. I used backstitch for the rest of the project.

That was it for the stitching. It actually took quite a while. At this point I began to wonder if maybe I shouldn't burn all of the threads and then tear them out. I did work kinda hard on the embroidery. Alas, I had to press on.

I tore off all the tracing paper to expose the canvas underneath. The next part, the fumage bit, is the easiest I think. You just have to go into it without much of a plan because the flame will never behave the same way twice. Light your candle and pass the flame over the canvas. I tried to get it a little darker in some areas so that the stitches would show better.

After you've burnt all of your thread and really began to wonder if it was worth it, you have to lacquer the soot. You'll get fingerprints and smudges on the soot if you don't protect it. Make sure sure to follow the directions on the can.

Finally for the end of the project! Time to rip out all of the thread. This is also a painstaking process. It's made worse by the fact that you're not even sure if you're going to like what you've done.

Actually, I did another step on my canvas. I painted a layer of titanium white oil paint on the back to cover any of the needle prick holes. I think it made the work look much more solid.

And that's that for my first embroider nightmare project. I have a few more ideas to try on the next one to make the process a little more easy.

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I've finally finished my first embroidery/fumage project. It seems like it took forever, but I think it was maybe only a few weeks. I have several other ideas planned to test how embroidery and fumage can work together.

I only used a few different stitches for this project as I am new to embroidery. I used heavy chain, outline, fern, laid threads, and couching on the borders.

To make the fumage borders, I covered 1 inch diagonal bands with paper and then passed the flame over the open parts. I used a thick braided wick to get the effect that I was going for. In my experience, candle size really doesn't matter that much. Fumage really depends on the size and type of wick you are using.

I did the fumage bands first. I then used a few layers of spray lacquer to make sure that the soot would not rub off as I did the embroidery.

I drew the test design first on paper. Then to create the design on my canvas, I used a pouncing technique and then traced around the dots with a sharp pencil.

That pretty much sums everything up. I like the way that it turned out. I'm planning to create several pieces of this type of work. My next one is an embroider's nightmare. You'll know why when you see it!

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As the title indicates, this is my first project in embroidery. It was a cute little kit I picked up from AC Moore I believe. I don't really remember now.

This pillow was very quick to embroider. I think I did most of it during a weekend. I did have some trouble with the thread knotting itself over and over. Actually I had a big problem with that. Perhaps it was the thread it came with or I'm terrible with a needle. (I hope not :) )

Here's a picture of the backing fabric. I didn't make the pillow as per instructions included in the kit. Mainly, I didn't know what they were talking about and I wanted to do things my own way. I found this fabric at a going out of business sale in Massachusetts somewhere. It's heavy and actually quite nice. I really like the pastel coloring.

The stitches used in this kit were:

• Satin Stitch
• Stem Stitch
• Buttonhole Stitch
• Lazy Daisy
• French Knots
• Straight Stitch

As you can see in the picture, I have a lot to learn still. I've been working on my stem stitch recently. I've noticed that the "ropes" in the stitch go in different directions depending on where I've stitched. I've also noticed that I tend to turn my work this way and that while I am stitching. I think this is a big no no so I'm working to fix that as well. All in all I think my first project turned out well.

There's more to come!!!

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