Green for the Daye~

1820-29 Boy's Jacket 

If in the spirit of St. Patrick's Day I thought I would share this cunning young boy's jacket with you~

It has been fully hand stitched and is made up of a rich green wool blend that is trimmed in a contrasting orange narrow wool braid. The dark green enamel buttons are merely decorative.

The above fashion plate from 1827 is remarkably close to our boy's jacket, though it depicts adult male ideals.

 

I love the simplicity of just the tiny narrow orange braid for decoration. The buttons are very classy and elegant. The turn back collar is black velvet.....and if you look closely you can see the lining peeking though the front opening.

It's a party on the inside! I love this cotton print lining~ which only lines the skirts and back collar flap.

How to Wax Paper

 Easy Peasy!

I have been asked as of late how I wax my marbled papers for finishing 17th c caskets. Theres nothing to it. All you need is a hard beeswax cake and some paper. I use an old hanky or muslin cloth to buff after applying the beeswax to get off any little crumbly bits that may have fallen off the cake. I do prefer a hard wax cake of 100% unprocessed beeswax as then you dont have to burninsh afterwards for the nice shine. Soft wax and some thread waxers may have conditioners added or scents ect...you dont want that, just 100% beeswax.

 Happy February!

   I hope you all are well! It's has certainly been a while since my last blog post, and I apologize for that.  2020 was quite a year ...I wont be lying when I say I am glad its over! So much stress and heartache, I found myself in need of a distraction so I picked up an old quilt I had started some while ago...over a year ago actually, and have been working on it while watching the evening shows with the family. This is a technique called Broiderie Perse, which is basically chintz applique. It's the center of Di Ford Hall's Giggleswick Mill Sampler quilt. I had started it and then put everything in a bag and forgot about it. When a friend told me Di had passed away this past year, I was shocked that I didnt know, and so dug it back out.  

My online 17th c Beadwork class Beneath Thy Poft Oak students are motoring right along. Shown above is Patti T's progress thus far~ just look at those pretty legs! Patti has never EVER beaded anything before. Im super proud of all my students and how quick they catch on. We have a live chat every month where they can ask questions and talk together as a group which I have really enjoyed. I'm excited to be working on my next set of 17th c beadwork classes~ not telling what they are just yet, just that I am once again sparkling with anticipation to see them finished. Last year was a hard year for me and I was starting to wonder when my sparkle would come back, if it all.  I will be running this class again in the late fall, if you would like to be put on the wait list just drop me a line at rlkinnison@yahoo.com.

I am busy designing this years special Ornament Kit as well~ Bolivia V. sent me these pictures of her finishes for last years Fanciful Story and the Ort King from 2019. She did a super job and changed up some things to make them her own. I LOVE how she stitched the Ort King's hair to resemble a Barrister's wig. It makes my heart smile to see my kits finished & enjoyed by their makers.

I have restocked the ETSY shop with more #16 Bead needles and the ever popular black mourning straight pins. I have also decided this year I would offer a bit of my favorite threads and stitchy things~ like the above size 4 silk wrapped purls in my favorite pansy colours

Just look at these colours~ SOOOOO yummy! The gold on the bottom is new to the line, 0544, and it is THE most fantabulous gold for 17th and 18th c periods. Its clear and bright, just spot on. I have already swapped out all my 2533 with this colour. It just makes things POP~ can you tell how much I love it?

And feast your eyes on this gorgeous precious TINY braided cotton cording. Everyone loved the natural colour so well I got it in in black~ makes wonderful shoelaces and drawstrings for my dolly focused folks. Its minuscule, not even 1/16th inch wide....really great stuff!

Two of my 4 children have got their covid shots already....my parents just got theirs this past week and I am anxiously awaiting to get my own~ perhaps their may indeed be a light at the end of this never ending tunnel I seem to be trapped in....

Size 16 bead needles back in stock

 In My ETSY Store

I just restocked the ETSY store with more of the tiny bead needles and also more of the black straight pins or mourning pins~ those two usually sell out as soon as I restock, so if you have been waiting go check them out! The link to the store is in the right hand sidebar 

I have bendable pins~ oh my golly they are AWESOME. If you havent seen them go check it out there is a little video on the listing~ they are made from special wire and when bent, actually spring right back to straight~ AWESOME pins!

For my dolly makers I have listed some of my ultra favorite tiny cotton laces~ yes, ALL cotton laces less than a quarter inch wide. Also a minute braided cotton cording thats just to die for~

I restocked the heirloom sewing kits which have 3 indispensable spools of silk and linen threads, 2 each needles of three different sizes and a cake of pure beeswax

If you have been mulling over the 2020 limited edition ornament kit, I have just five left. The link to purchase those is here

Happy Stitching XOXOXOX

Special Original 17th c Blackwork Nativity Spool Tray Available

 Humbly Born in a Stable Rude

It's been a very challenging year for me this year, as I am sure it has for many of ya'll as well. Sometimes the stress and just absolute heartbreak just gets to be too much for me so I try and trick myself into not thinking about it by really concentrating on other things. I had been wanting to make something special to offer for Christmas for quite a while, but just wasnt feeling it, if you know what I mean.  Earlier this year a really awesome 17th c redwork panel of Moses in the Rushes was sold at auction, and one day when I was numbly going thru my saved pictures to keep my mind occupied. I landed on that picture. At that moment, I knew what I wanted to make and spent the rest of the day drawing out a 17th c Nativity scene.

I took inspiration from  three 17th c embroideries~ there arent that many with Nativity subject matter. I know of one tent stitch piece at the V&A that is so bright and colourful, it doesnt even look like a Nativity scene until you start really investigating it. A woman is sitting by a stream above a grotto surrounded by shaded green hollocks....and then you notice there is a baby aside her...then you see the sheep and shepherds in the background and realize the man on the other side of her is Joseph, there is a stable with a donkey and cow...there is an angel...its all very subtle.  I didnt want my nativity to be subtle!

The angle is above looking down on Mary who is kneeling aside baby Jesus in his manger. Joseph is standing aside the stable with two shepherds kneeling with their sheep to the other side of Mary.  I tried to fit a donkey into the stable but he just didnt fit without making it look over detailed. Joseph's dove flies overhead and of coarse no 17th c scene would be complete without a huge mulberry tree ;)

  

I love painting blackwork and after sharing this with a friend, got immediate feedback to make it into a black or redwork project to stitch.....so ...perhaps a special for next year 

For now though, this is my one special offering for Christmas 2020. I made it from a beautiful piece of hard maple, and fit it with 21 pegs. Yes~ 21 pegs! My largest spool tray to date. As you can see above both the small and large spools fit on it nicely. It measures 8 & 1/4" x 7 & 3/8". 

Signed and dated on the bottom of coarse

This special tray is available at a cost of 650.00 including shipping~ a direct reflection of how expensive wood has become, and how many hours I have into it. If you love it and would like to purchase it you can email me at rlkinnison@yahoo.com

2020 Limited Edition Ornament Kits

 Just 11 Left!

More gilt spangles arrived yesterday and am counting counting them today~ I feel like Rumpelstiltskin!

I have just 11 kits left, once they are gone I will not be reordering supplies to make up more kits, its too late in the year. If you are interested in making up your own gold encrusted 17th c inspired covered book, you can order one here

Fun with Scraps

Lil Cuties

  What have ya'll been up to?  I am super lucky that my oldest daughter only lives 8 miles from me.  One day she called me and mentioned how much she missed getting to watch me make dollys. (When the children were little, I had a bed in the studio beside my work table so they could nap and play right there were I could keep an eye on them)....  So I told her to come on over and we'll make something.  We picked thru the scrap bins and a few days later, I had 3 lil mini punkin cuties. Shes not done with hers yet, but they came out just as cute as mine!

I dont know what the heck I was thinking when I sculpted this lil punkin....she is so blasted tiny~ I had a heck of a time trying to hold onto her arms while trying to stitch on her sleeves. Shes a little cone puppet

She likes to hide in her cone and then pop out and try to scare her friends.....but shes not scary. 

 This is Full Moon Party~ she is named after one of my favorite teas. What is super fun about making small things, is that tiny scraps are all you need. This size of doll doesnt take much of anything to make, just some time, imagination, and lots of laughs with your daughter ;)