Reverse applique

So here are the first few of the constellation of hexies, reverse appliqued using organdie from a wedding sari.

 They work like windows, and I'm feeling hopeful about the progress of this one.  Selecting the exact part and direction of the fabric that shows through is like moving matboard around to shape an artwork. And each hexie is a separate artwork, but carries on the movement of the last one.

When I pick up needle and thread to work on these, tricky bits, a great sense of peace and continuity comes down.

 I stitched  for a little while last evening on these. Accompanied by audiobook Venetia by Georgette Heyer. Quite a good combo.

A bit of whipstitching, and a pro tip

I started on the hexie cutouts, and I'm getting a bit more skilled at handling them as I go. Seen here, off the hoop, and resting on the background batik fabric.

These will be overstitched in a contrasting thread, I think, when I come to do the appliqueing to the background. Meanwhile I need to press and straighten them up.

And the pro tip for embroiderers: notice the inner ring of the hoop is wrapped? Bias tape (thank you, Judy), or any old strip of bias fabric, works.

It protects your work from being abraded by the hoop. Here I'm working with cottons, so it's enough to wrap just the inner ring.

 But when I've worked with silk, I've wrapped both parts of the hoop,s as not to deform the weave. Like this

Ideally you need to remove the hoop after every working period, so as not to put the imprint of the hoop on your work and the stretching pressure, too. I don't always live up to this ideal.  Fabric is very responsive, and needs care in handling.

I have to be a bit cautious about how long I stitch for, because of eyestrain, what with that and more screen time these days. Otherwise I'd stitch until I was frozen in place.

And you did know that a good way to save strain on your neck is to stitch leaning back on pillows, holding the work up comfortably, light shining over your shoulder? It looks really slothful, but in fact it's a Good Thing. Especially when you're a bit up in years.

A shower of hexies under way

This is where we are, after multiple ideas, discards, new ideas all day yesterday when I thought about it.

The concept is a fall of hexies irregularly across a couple of diagonals. I'll stitch back the edges to secure them, then reverse applique to the batik fabric. All the points you see sticking out will vanish under the edges.

First group hooped. Overstitching next. I hope the hoop maintains the outlines, because there's going to be quite a bit of handling. The drawing's done in heat- vanishing pen, hard to see in the picture but very clear to the stitcher.

Then once this constellation of hexies is ready, I'll decide whether to applique stars to the top layer first or after doing the reverse work.

Decision for another day. Now I can get stitching.