Seams French

Light at the end of the Boutis Although the actual boutis piece is only the small 5" x 5" square in the center of the rose window, it was the springboard for a larger "cathedral tower" wall hanging and was central to it's development. The piece combines 2 of my favourite stitching techniques; needlework by hand and free motion quilting with machine. Tip to base, the finished hanging measures 31" x 16". Held up against the light, the boutis is illuminated from the back and becomes the focal point of the piece. The wall hanging consists of 3 sections. The rose window, (on the white batiste), takes center stage with the boutis it's main focus and the FMQ providing the frame. Front of the work, highlighting the boutis square. Back of the work The complete rose window has been hand appliqued into a light grey fabric, representative of the carved stone often surrounding a cathedral window. Details of the roof line as well as t...

Design and Assembly When working with  a smaller project, like the rose window boutis below, there is the ever present question of how to finish it. Regardless of whether I am quilting, embroidering or stitching boutis, I like the piece to serve a purpose; be useful in some way. Averyclaire , quilter and embroiderer extraordinaire, is a Whizzz at creative, beautifully constructed finishes and never seems to run out of ideas. In fact, she runs a little finishing business, where she will finish other people's embroidered work, all with meticulous care and craftsmanship.  But for me, it's always a bit of a quandary. So, how to finish this little 5" x 5" boutis square. Since the inspiration for the initial boutis design was a rose window,  I thought, why not make it into a wall hanging of a larger rose window, with machine quilting framing the boutis. One of the things that I love most about Europe is it's multitude of historical buildings, of which most a...

Projects in Progress Even though the summer was filled with many activities and other types of sewing and quilting, boutis was never far from my mind, and it even found it's way into my hands from time to time. (Which sadly, was not a regular occurrence.) However, I did manage to work on each of the 4 different projects below. Little by little. 1. Le Mireille (design by Francine Born) "Le Mireille" which is from a kit designed by Francine Born, is my long term study of traditional boutis design and technique . The goal that I have set for myself for this project is to experiment with different threads as well as with a variety of the "boutis sanctioned" stitches. As I work my way through the quilt top, I also hope to do a little research on the symbols and motifs used in the design. Other then a few spaces intentionally left unstitched for now, the centre motif is complete. Below is a close up of the stitching so far, showing an outline stitch and...

Honestly, I have not fallen off the face of the earth, but sometimes, days and weeks just disappear! Vanish! Into thin air! How does that keep happening? Aside from enjoying the first summer in Canada for more then 8 years, I have been busy working on a number of new projects. High up on my priority list has been designing and stitching up a number of new boutis patterns that are simple to stitch and quite manageable in size. Easy to pick up anytime and take along just about anywhere. Below are two of the new boutis projects. This first one, stitched on an amber coloured batiste, will be a needle envelope. Although I have used a variety of stitches around the cicada motif to add interest and give it a bit of emphasis, it can all easily be worked with the basic running stitch. The first photo shows the needlefold being blocked after the stitching had been completed. I had to wet it and block it for a second time. The first time, I had not used nearly enough thumbtacks to keep it...

Although the re-org. process is still on and strong in my life, my stitching hands have not been completely idle. Since my hummingbird boutis has been completed, (see my post of Nov. 23, 2013), I have been working on drafting some smaller boutis pieces. Below are 3 of the designs ready to be stitched. Rose windows from some of the many churches and cathedrals that I have photographed over the years, were the inspiration for two of these designs. This first piece, which will be a cell phone case, is my first attempt at stitching boutis with dupioni silk. Although Swiss cotton batiste (in white), is the most traditional material used for boutis, a number of the more contemporary boutiseusses are experimenting with silk. Silk is less forgiving then cotton, so consistency in tension, and accuracy in stitch length and placement become more crucial because of their greater visibility.  In this little mobile phone case, I have used the two most basic stitches of boutis: " point ...