Daisychain Sampler "O"
March 15, 2012 Oh my gosh you guys! I had no idea so many of you even remembered my poor Sampler, let alone missed it! I'm totally sorry 'bout that. Thanks for letting me know. Now I'll be more motivated to finish it. :)
So here I go again coloring outside the lines not following the pattern.
And yes it's all because of my deep & abiding dislike for the satin stitch. I especially didn't want to do it for this letter because the stitches would be reeeeeeally tight together along the inner circle and then a little farther apart along the outer circle.
I don't know why exactly, but doing that makes me crabby.
As my daughter used to object when she was little(r), "Me no like!"
So. I've chosen one of my all time favorite stitches instead - the feather stitch.
Now, I didn't exactly plan that well and used a bright blue pen to trace.
But do you think I was worried?
(Oh, and by the way, to join a feathered circle simply thread your last stitch thru the first one. Neat, eh?)
Sometimes I actually ENJOY solving problems like this ...
See? Colonial Knot to the rescue.
"There are no mistakes, only opportunities for embellishing."
Words to live by ... if you're like me and you love to make things, but don't always get it "right" on the first try.
Oh and in case you can't tell from the photo, I used two shades of yellow here. Just 'cause.
And in case you needed reminding of the nerd that is me, here's what I think about my beautiful golden filagree letter ...
Is now a good time to admit that back in high school a friend of mine & I used to write notes to each other using Rune letters we decoded from "The Hobbit"?
This is me rolling my eyes and shaking my head at my 15 year old self. Geez! No WONDER my parents didn't worry about me getting into trouble!
And no wonder I never had a date either! LOL! I guess I shoulda hung out a little more in the physics lab ...
How DID I end up snagging one of the hottest/most eligible jocks in school? Damn lucky I guess. :)
Daisychain Sampler, Embroidery 
Reader Comments (37)
That "O" is a work of art! Absolutely love the way you did it~
I love your "O"! I couldn't wait on you and finished my sampler already, but I wish I'd had your idea to change the O from a satin stitch to the feather stitch. It's so pretty and completely different from all the other letters. Great job! You do such pretty work and you inspire me so much. Thank you!
Did you know that LOTR is my all time fave?? I don't think you're nerdy at all....in fact, I think this ups your cool factor in my books =)
Never let Gollum or one of the fellowship see your sampler it might end in the fire;-) And if I'll ever have the time to make my sampler I'm feeling free to steal your idea!
Hildy
Love your version of the "O" - I think it's prettier than the one done in satin stitch.
I love that stitch choice and I agree satin stitch for the O is not easy nor a great look. Love the embellishment...I was a complete nerd in school and wound up with a jock, too. Opposites attract?
I love the feather stitch and i bet Alicia will love it too! Gorgeous.
I have never been a LOTR fan, but my second daughter has been obsessed since Junior High School (she is now 29). I knew she was over the top when she got a tattoo of some saying in whatever language they speak on her ankle. If you knew my daughter you would be shocked as she is extremely conservative but she loves this saying so much she was ready to have it permanently put on her ankle! When she gets home from work I will show her your blog entry and I know she will love you even more than she already does!
Really, really love your "O". Much more special that what it might have been as satin stitch. Coloring outside the lines is a good thing.
O how I love it, love it, love it. Here's yet another stitch I have to learn!
I like your version better, it's like a pretty floral wreath. Nice work!
I don't like the satin stitch either. What you did is SO much prettier!
Firstly, gotta say, I like your O better than the original :) Secondly, my friends and I used to write secret letter this way too! LOL
Lovely letter O. Love how you twist it to what you want and make it better. Yay for embellishment moments. :D
How many letters left?
Love your feather stitch..it is one of my favorites as well..do not have the patience for the satin stitch...
Yours is much prettier.
Love your version of 'O' - much nicer than stinky satin stitch!!! The different shades of yellow and the 'colonial knots to the rescue' are inspired!!
Oh my.... your feather stitch is prettier than the original! Love it! And as I was reading, I thought to myself, I bet she uses that colonial knot to cover those dots because I know she won't just leave them exposed - couldn't wait to keep reading to see what you did... PERFECT! Love it!
Your stitching is so nice love your feather O is lovely.
Love your creativity.......Your "O" is far superior. Keep going...I enjoy seeing your work.
K I'm in Wheat country (Washington State) and it looks like a beautiful wheat wreath to me! I love it!
That is really pretty
Your handwork is gorgeous!!! Such dainty, perfect stitches :)
Love that "O." Breaking out and doing your own thing can turn out even better than the original! And your problem solving is brilliant. Seems like you do know what you're doing! And you're actually making embroidery look like fun -- and doing it well, because you're making it look easy.
That is the much improved "O"!! Wow! Love the colors and the feather stitch and the colonial knots too!!! I feel so imspired!!! I am not the best at embroidery,but what I lack in talent,I make up for with enthusiasm!! Goshj,I wish you lived next door!!! My sister loves embroidery,so I email her when you show your sampler again. Spread the love!! I wish I could pick just the right colors like you do!!
Your O is adorable!! Love it! I think it needed the colonial knots. It didn't have enough presence with just the feathery stitches... Way to turn an "oops" into an opportunity! :)
Loving the O glad I haven't done mine yet, that is much prettier than just doing satin stitch. Hugs
A very pretty solution! I used a previous tip of yours when I was doing a little bit of satin stitching the other evening - I outlined it in backstitch first, which gave me a well-defined line to satin stitch over ...... much neater than my usual efforts!
You are truly inspirational!!!! Love your version of the "O" it looks really pretty. Love reading your blog you are always so inspiring only wish I could do as good as you!!!
Oh, YES! You've done it again! I LOVE this! I'm so glad I waited to stitch along with you. I would be killing myself if I had struggled with that satin stitch- only to see the gorgeous solution you came up with. Hooray for you- and THANKS. :)
Gorgeous!! Your handiwork is beyond beautiful -- your idea for the "O" was perfect.
lol, at least your parents had one less kid to worry about! ;p nice ad-lib with the colonial knots.
You do such beautiful work! Where do you usually get your Cosmo floss? Is it your favorite? (you may have posted about this but I'm becoming forgetful in my old age) lol
Betsy in the soaked Seattle suburbs
I, too, have been just fascinated with your progress on this project, and am so happy to see it again.
And every time I see it, I want to make one just like it!
So far, I'm not brave enough with my stitching abilities.
Oh, and I forgot to say--I love the way you did the 'O'! That was a very beautiful way to solve the problem. You aren't alone with that, either. Satin stitch is not a favorite of mine, either!
Such a lovely O, and so much better than my I-hate-satin-stitch-so-I'll-use-blanket-stitch O.
or as they used to say for garment design/sewing boo-boos at college "do it twice and look like you meant it"
I love the save on that O, I wouldn't fancy doing all that satin stitch either and the knots look totes amazeballs.