Twelve Days of Christmas Bonus Post: Tips & Tools

 

Let me start by saying if you're thinking of making this ornament set in paper, it can be as simple or as elaborate as you like, but if you want to make them elaborate, it will take some time. They cannot be whipped out in an hour. Each of these ornaments took hours. If you're a stitcher, you may be thinking, "No problem! It takes hours to stitch a Christmas ornament." It does, but stitching is pretty relaxing and rhythmic and you can do it anywhere. Making these and being fancy pants about it is pretty exacting work and you need a workspace. I wouldn't call it relaxing, but the finished product is rewarding. The patterns become increasingly detailed as you work your way from the partridge to the people, and most of these took me at least a couple of days, and in the case of the people, longer. Part of that was because once I got everything cut out, including all the tiny details, I placed them, and then I walked away from it for a day or so to make sure I liked it before I started gluing everything in place. I have no idea how many hours this set took me. 

I say all that, not to discourage you, but to help you decide how you want to make your set and how much time to budget. If you like paper crafting, you will love making these. It's challenging and absorbing and the results are so lovely and unique. Mr. Wonderful has claimed this ornament set to decorate his library (shown above on his bookcases). The point is, when I had this idea, I really didn't have a clue how long these would take me. It's definitely not something you can throw together at the last minute. I think it would be a great year-long project, making one per month. You could start in January! The whole set is available in a bundle (I think it goes on sale every November; that's when I got mine but that was years ago) but it is also available in smaller bundles of three ornaments each and you can even purchase individual ornaments if you'd just like to dip your toe in and make one and see how it goes.

Twelve Days of Christmas by mmmcrafts

With all that out of the way, let's talk about tips & tools. Everything I used is pretty basic, with the only special purchases being the paper punches. If you're a crafter, you probably already have most of these supplies.

PAPER

Your paper choice is really the most important decision you make for how you want your set to look. You can do details or no details, glitter or no glitter (gasp!), but it's your paper choice that makes the set. Obviously, using plain paper (card stock) gives you a much different look than using patterned paper, and I did make my first partridge using plain paper, but it just lacked the visual interest I wanted. If you prefer a quieter look, definitely go with plain paper. If you want to use patterned paper, my advice is to choose a pad of curated papers that you like. Why? Because all the color work is done for you. Everything already coordinates. All you have to do is choose some complimentary plain paper (and glitter!) and you're ready to go. This is especially helpful if you don't feel confident choosing colors. All of the plaids I used in my set were from one pad of Christmas plaids.  There are so many styles and patterns and colors to choose from. 

PAPER PUNCHES

Whether or not you decide to add a lot of details to your ornaments will determine whether or not you need to invest in some paper punches. I say "invest" because good paper punches aren't cheap but they're definitely worth the money. A less expensive punch that mangles card stock and doesn't even dint glitter paper is a waste of money. I actually didn't figure out the paper punch solution for detail work until I had already made my first couple of ornaments. I wasn't satisfied with the result and I needed a way to produce lots of tiny pieces for details without driving myself mad cutting them out. Paper punches, obviously! I already had some basic shapes but decided I wanted a leafy, nature-y look, so I went hunting for those and found Bira craft punches. I can recommend these. Lots and lots of choices and very good quality. They handled heavy glitter paper and produced nice, clean cuts. They do go on sale occasionally, so watch out for that. The big one in the second picture was my splurge, but it was worth it. I used it a lot. For the heads of my people, I used the 1" round punch in the middle. The hands are about a 10 mm circle.

Here's another thing to think about when choosing paper punches. There are "border" punches like the blue Fiskars punch in the second picture that produce a long design, but what you're interested in is the little bits of punched paper. I used that punch (which I've had for many years and is probably no longer available) for the long squiggle and the leaves, but also for mouths, eyebrows, and eyelashes (by trimming the leaves). When you look at border punches, don't look at the border as a whole, but at the little shapes. They can be used for all kinds of things.

You'll also need some regular hole punches in different sizes. The one on the right is a tiny 4 mm punch and it feels like I glued about a thousand of those. It's a useful size, just about right for eyes. 

CUTTING TOOLS

Good scissors are a must. You might also need an exacto knife. I have a bunch of different Fiskars paper edgers, but I think this is the only one I used, to do the Lady's hair. If you have some, they would be neat to use, but they're not necessary.

COLORED PENCILS, SHARPIES, GEL PENS

Adding some shading around the edges of plain paper shapes really gives them a nice dimension and a more finished look. It may not show up well in the pictures, but I think it's an important step. You might also need a black Sharpie, and I use a white gel pen to add a little bright spot to the birds' eyes. 

EYES

Speaking of birds' eyes, I used these little adhesive black facets. You can find them in the scrapbook supplies with the stickers. 

GLUE

Nothing fancy, just good, old fashioned Elmer's glue sticks. I like the purple ones because you can easily see where the glue is going. It dries clear.

TWEEZERS. TWEEZERS. TWEEZERS.

If you decide to make this set fancy schmancy with lots of embellishments, you will develop a deep relationship with your tweezers. Oh my stars. Make sure they are worthy of your love. I wouldn't recommend the ones with the slanted tips, but that's probably a personal preference. But do make sure they close properly. Every single teeny tiny piece of paper will have to be placed, and you don't want to constantly have to pick up dropped pieces over and over. You'll go crazy.

HOW TO MAKE THE THREE-DIMENSIONAL HATS

For the most part, the patterns for these three-dimensional felt ornaments translate easily into paper. The only thing I had to figure out was the hats, because obviously, the patterns are meant to fit a round wooden bead. The solution was pretty simple, once I put my brain cell to it. I pencil traced around the shape of the hat in the picture on the pattern (top picture). I then used my little light box (a bright window will do) to trace that shape onto a plain piece of paper, which I took a picture of (second picture). Then I "embiggened" that picture until it fit the 1" round head I had punched out, and traced that enlarged shape right from my phone screen. My enlarged hat pattern is in the top picture. I did this with the piper's hat, too. I skipped the milk maid's hat but it would be the same process. 

I think that covers it. If you plunge into this project, allow yourself to make mistakes, and change your mind. I made the pear--the simplest pattern in the whole set--three times. Your first try may not give you the result you want, but you'll get there. Even though you're using a pattern, it's very much a creative process. My paper ornament set is very different from the felt set, but I think it still has the same spirit. I think anyone who is familiar with the felt set would immediately recognize my paper interpretation, and I like that.

If you have questions, leave a comment and I'll do my best to help.

Counting Pin Storage

 

When I was a very young stitcher almost 40 years ago, I loved to buy lots and lots of charts. Over the years, my tastes have become more selective and for a long time now I've been buying far fewer charts but more fabric and goodies. One of my favorite goodies is counting pins. As you can see, I have a little collection, some purchased, some homemade. Some were on the cards they came on when I bought them, some were in a small tin. I decided to make a counting pin book.

I already had everything I needed in my sewing room, including the floss bags and binder cover. I get those from Hobby Lobby (I'm sure they're available elsewhere) and keep them on hand because that's what I use to store my hand dyed threads. It just hadn't occurred to me to use them for my counting pins. The only other things I used were cardstock and felt.

I just cut small pieces of cardstock and stapled strips of felt to them. 

Slip them in the floss baggies and put the baggies in the binder and done! All together and organized. 

Caterpillar & Clothes Pin Display Stands

Years ago, I posted a tutorial for homemade display stands that has been one of my most viewed posts. They're easy to make and you can really fancy them up in any way you want. But for my Christmas village I wanted display stands that didn't show and were quick and easy to make. I came up with what I'm calling Caterpillar & Clothes Pin display stands. Let's make some.

All you need is some clothes pins, some pipe cleaners, and a hot glue gun.

Take the clothes pins apart. 

Glue the pieces back together as shown. It just so happens that this creates the perfect angle for the stand.

This is the caterpillar part. Wrap a pipe cleaner around a ruler 1 1/2 times so that you have a double section on one side and a single section on the other. Snip off the remainder.

Line up the bottom of a clothes pin stand with the bottom of the finished piece and make a small mark on either side of the top notch on the stand. Put some hot glue on the double section of the caterpillar and glue it onto the marked spot.

Slide the stand into the caterpillar. You'll feel the notch catch and secure the finished piece to the stand.

And that's it! When you're ready to put away your finished stitching, just slide the stand out of the caterpillar.

Framing: Centering Made Easy

Finally had a chance to get in my sewing room and get some work done! This beautiful Blue Jay from Pigeon Coop Designs was the last project I completed for this year's Summer Birds and I've framed him at last! The frame is from The Rusty Roof. They have a nice selection of custom sizes and a good range of color choices. 

Framing your own needlework isn't hard and it saves a ton of money (my basic framing tutorial). The trickiest part is probably getting your piece centered properly, so I thought I'd share how I do it. As with a lot of other stuff I share here, this is probably not "the way you're supposed to do it" but it's the way I do it and it's easy and it works, so there's that. 

After cutting the foam core to the proper size, I use a ruler to draw two lines between the corners to find the center of the foam core.

I also measure and mark the center of each side.

Then I stick a pin through the center of the foam core.

Referring to the marked center of the design chart, I lay the finished piece on the padded foam core, with the pin sticking up through the center of the design. I now have the exact center of the design matched to the exact center of the foam core.

I then put one pin in the marked center of each side. If it looks good, I start pinning in the corners, working between opposite sides (ie. top right corner, then bottom left; top left corner, then bottom right), gently stretching and straightening as needed, pinning all the way around the piece, with pins about 1/4" apart. I start in the corners because it's easier to stretch the fabric in two directions (lengthwise and widthwise) simultaneously, and it's also easier to see if the horizontal and vertical fibers are exactly perpendicular, which they will be if the stretch is nice and even. If it's uneven, you can easily see the wiggle in the fibers at the corner.

So that's it! It takes some practice but it really isn't difficult at all and it saves so much money. 

Making Wee Skeins of Floss

 

For those unexpected occasions when you suddenly need a very tiny skein of floss, here is a quick show & tell for making them. This is super easy.

Loosely tie the floss around a dinner fork to hold it in place.

Wrap the floss around the fork four times, then tie the middle with black floss.

Trim the floss and slide it off the fork. You have an adorably tiny skein of floss you can use to embellish stitched pieces or in finishing.

If you like, you can tie it twice so it looks a bit more like a big skein.

That's it! Easy, easy method for making the tiniest skeins of floss.

Happy Stitching!

How I Stitch

 

Over the years, I have received comments and answered questions about my stitching (the stitching itself, not just the projects) and I've written in a lot of posts about how I stitch and my preferences, but I've never put all of that in one post that's easy to reference. I recently received another question about how I stitch, and it put me in mind to finally just describe it all in one post.

Now, then. You may notice I've entitled this post, "How I Stitch" and not "How To Stitch." If you've been in the stitching community for any length of time, you may have noticed some stitchers are oddly defensive of the way they stitch, with references to "the Stitching Police" thrown around any time someone offers tips or suggestions for how to stitch or improving stitches. I don't know why this is the case. Perhaps it has to do with being taught to stitch by beloved mothers and grandmothers, and any suggestion of a different method is interpreted as criticism and taken very personally.

Let me say up front, I don't care how you stitch. I've mentioned before, I once watched a video of someone stitching in hand using the sewing method, and I almost passed out from anxiety, but I would never dream of telling that person they're doing it wrong. That's me, that's my issue. If they enjoy it and are happy with the results, that's what matters. Unless I'm asked, I keep my thoughts (and anxieties!) to myself.

But since I've been asked a number of times, here goes! Make yourself a cup of tea and settle in because this is gonna be long. If you're not as happy as you want to be with how your stitches look, maybe you'll find something helpful. If you're happy with your stitches, sit back and behold the struggles of a perfectionist. When I was asked what "my secret" was, I responded "I'm compulsive!" I kinda wasn't joking. 

Fabric Tension

I stitch with my fabric as tight as possible. My preferred tools are q-snaps, and I have a large collection that allows me to stitch any size design, from very small to very large (like this and this). Scroll rods and hoops are other tools for keeping fabric taut, but I find they don't work as well for me as q-snaps. I like the even tension on all sides they provide. That even tension pulls the holes of the fabric open, which is important for pretty stitches. This is one reason why I don't stitch in hand. (The other is keeping the fabric clean, but we'll get to that.) 

A couple of things about q-snaps:

I never, ever put the snaps over my stitches. That's why I have so many sets, which allows me to make frames of any size and shape to accommodate the entire design inside the frame, without having to reposition it or put the snaps over stitching. And yes, I have left designs on them for years, and it makes no difference because the snaps are always over the excess fabric around the sides.

The snaps will get loose over time, a problem which is easily solved by putting strips of white felt under them. 

Fabric, Thread, & Needle Size

I stitch on 28 or 32 count linen or even weave, using two strands of thread, with a Bohin 28 needle. (Bohin 28s will go through a standard size 11 seed bead, so I can stitch and bead at the same time without switching needles. I only use a beading needle if I'm using petite beads.)

I don't use thread conditioner; I've never seen the need for it.

I like my stitches to look like mosaic tiles, not little x's with a lot of fabric showing through, and I find that two strands on either 28 or 32 count gets the job done, as long as I'm...

Railroading

In my opinion, the single most important thing you can do to make stitches prettier is to railroad. I did a post about railroading years ago, and as I mentioned there, was surprised how many stitchers had never heard of it. Though it may slow you down a bit at first, it's quite easy and makes a huge difference in how stitches look.

Stitch Construction & Direction

This is where I really let my perfectionist flag fly, y'all. And this is also where, I think, there is the most variance in how we stitch: top right to bottom left? top left to bottom right? bottom left to top right? cross each stitch as you go? one leg, right to left, crossing on the way back? There are so many different ways to construct a stitch.

The point here is not to critique each method for constructing a stitch (or row of stitches), but to point out that the different methods produce different results. If you use different methods in the same project, it will be noticeable, and the overall look will not be as uniform as you might want. There is a common saying in the stitching community that as long as the top leg of the stitches all go in the same direction, nothing else matters. That's very true, if that's what matters most to you. If, however, you're interested in your stitches looking as uniform as possible, the construction and direction of your stitches matters. A row where the bottom leg is stitched and then crossed on the way back will look slightly different from a row where each stitch is completed before the next.

I make the bottom leg of my stitch from the top right to the bottom left, stitch a row of these bottom legs from right to left, then come back and make the top leg of the stitches from top left to bottom right. From what I've observed over the years, both from "official" instructions and my fellow stitchers, this is sort of an unconventional method, as most seem to construct their stitches bottom to top, instead of top to bottom. However, top to bottom is how I was taught as a five-year-old, and the motion of drawing the thread toward me in a downward motion has always seemed more natural than drawing it away from me in an upward motion. It's also how I write an X: the right stroke first, top to bottom, then the left stroke, top to bottom. So it's an intuitive motion for me. Yours is probably different, and that's fine. Just choose a method and stick with it for the most uniform results.

Since I mentioned that I stitch the bottom leg of a row of stitches first, and then come back and cross them, you may be wondering how I follow the "cross each stitch as you go" rule for hand-dyed and variegated threads.

Answer: I don't.

In fact, it's my favorite rule to break. Years ago, I did an entire post about how to stitch with variegated threads and described the different methods, with photos of the results of each method. I won't repeat all that here, but the short answer is, I generally dislike the stripey look produced by crossing each stitch as I go, so I just stitch with variegated threads as I would any other. And I often mismatch the strands if I'm stitching something with lots of texture (trees, grass, hair, fur, etc.).

Speaking of rules, there's also a rule that you should always "come up in a clean hole and go down in a dirty hole", meaning you should always bring your needle up in a hole with no other threads, and down in a hole that already holds threads. I don't pay much mind to this rule either, as I find that if the fabric is stretched taut on q-snaps or something else, the holes are pulled open enough that it doesn't matter. If, however, you don't stitch on tight fabric, you might find this rule useful. 

Washing and Ironing

If you've been around the stitching community any length of time, you'll probably have noticed the subject of washing needlework is as touchy as religion and politics. Here again, my position is "you do you, and I'll do me." I don't wash my projects, but if you do, that's just fine.

I was brought up in a family of needleworkers, and though I'm generally a breaker of stitching "rules", the one I absolutely will not violate is to never pick up my stitching without having washed my hands. I learned this as a little one stitching huge x's on a piece of gingham fabric (one x per each colored square; a great way to teach children to stitch, by the way), and I've followed it religiously. I do not touch fabric without having washed my hands, not even to look through it or cut it.

I iron my fabric before I put it on the q-snaps. If necessary, I give it a very light mist of water before ironing. I've never had hand-dyed fabric bleed, even if it's not colorfast. I place the ironed fabric on the q-snap and it stays there, nicely stretched, until the project is completed. When it's done, I remove it and stretch it for finishing or framing. So in that process, I'm working with a clean, pressed, and stretched piece of fabric from start to finish.

I can hear the objections: the oils from your skin, you've been handling the threads if not the fabric, there will be marks you can't see, etc.

All I can say is, for me, it's not a problem. We have needlework in our family that's 50+ years old, hanging on the wall, and it looks fine. It was stitched with clean hands, using a scroll frame or hoop, and all is well. My LNS of many years didn't recommend washing a finished piece unless it was visibly dirty or had been stitched in hand. But I'm sure there are others that do recommend it. The point is, do what you're comfortable with. If you want to wash, take precautions for bleeding and wash away. If you don't want to wash, take precautions for cleanliness and skip it. 

*****

So those are the basics of how I stitch. Hopefully it's helpful, if you needed help. If you didn't, carry on! We each have to pursue this craft in a way that makes us happy, otherwise, what's the point? 

One last thing: tabs are your friend! The tabs at the top of the page have loads of information from years and years of posts, the "how to" and "finishing" tabs particularly. 

Happy Stitching!

Tip for Marking Color Charts

My preferred combination for stitching is a black & white chart and a colored pencil. I never use marker or highlighter as I would be paranoid about somehow accidentally dropping it on, or brushing against, my fabric. I have heard horror stories, and I'm sure you have as well. For me, a quick sweep of the colored pencil on the section I've just stitched is sufficient to keep my place. 

I avoid color charts, if possible. A color chart won't prevent me from stitching something I really like, but if I have the option, I always choose black & white. For most color charts I've stitched, I find that a silver metallic pencil will do the job. The metallic reflection provides just enough contrast to the color symbols to see where I've marked. I use the silver metallic pencils found in the sewing notion section of craft stores. 

However. I occasionally run across color charts where the chosen colors, together with the color saturation, just absorb the silver pencil (which are not heavily pigmented in the first place) and it's difficult to see the marked sections. Solution?

Solution:

The white ink stands out starkly against dark colors. The multi-pack above contains three sizes, which I've shown below (left to right): fine, medium, bold. I got this pack at Hobby Lobby, but I think these are widely available at craft stores and on Amazon, and you can sometimes find them as open stock or in single packages.

As you can see, just a small mark shows up very well, and also allows you to still see the color and symbol, just in case you need to re-stitch a mistake, or if you decide to stitch the whole design again. 

I also don't worry about an accident with these. The ink is a gel and not "wet" like marker or highlighter ink, where just brushing them against something leaves a mark. You sort of have to "apply" this ink where you want it. 

Hopefully this little tip is helpful for anyone struggling with a color chart. Click on the "How To" label at the bottom of this post or the tab at the top of the page for more tips.