Stitch Sample #2

Detached Buttonhole Stitch

My new favourite stitch.  Your first row is worked as normal for buttonhole.  Subsequent rows are worked into the 'bars' of previous rows so that the stitches don't connect with the fabric at all - hence detached.  Tension can be a little difficult at first but a rhythm soon develops and the stitches settle down.  My initial row is rather more widely spaced than I would normally like, but on a sample piece bigger stitches can sometimes be called for.

Same stitch worked around a calico core to give a three dimensional piece with added picots.  This is tiny (less than 4cm tall) because I made it to fit into a very small display bottle. 

Wednesday's Workbench

One or two of the blogs I regularly visit post photos of 'what's on their workbench' every Wednesday.  The work always looks so tidy and organized!  Mine, by contrast, is usually in a bit of a muddle, with samples and half-finished projects competing for space.  This is just part of my workspace, but it is the area I use most often.  To the left are small display shelves for recently finished work, to the right storage areas for stuff I might use in my next embroideries. Further down the room, on the opposite wall, under a window and next to the garden door, is a second workbench set aside for heat tools, paints etc.
Now that the rain has returned and my garden is too soggy to work on I may get round to sorting things out, but I seriously doubt I'll ever achieve anything close to tidy and organized!