Sunday, September 25, 2011

Some Unfinished Rustic Ornaments!


This magazine may look familiar, and that's because it's part of my first Christmas Giveaway (now open Worldwide!). Including it in the contest loot brought to mind the very reason that I had bought this magazine in the first place, way back in December 2000. And that's the two rustic "package trims" at the bottom left!

These were the first "primitive" type of designs that I had seen, and I thought they were funky and fun. And I absolutely loved that they used buttons! Buttons are a tradition in my family; it's a subject worthy of later exploration, in fact, because it is such a Thing. The point is that we all have our button bins, or cans, or baskets, or such and I had a lot of fancy, sparkly buttons in mind when I chose to stitch these.

And yet, once I actually had them stitched, those pretty fanciful buttons looked completely wrong! With the rustic style, and the rustic looking Oatmeal Aida I chose to stitch them on (which I don't regret at all), they looked out of place and silly. So I went for simpler buttons. Which turned out well in one instance, and not the best in the other. But let me show you what I mean:

Here is the magazine model for the first project, Tis The Season:


And here is my interpretation:


I'm actually really happy with this one. Both pieces were designed by Alice Okon, and featured French knots, my Stitchy Foe, on the lettering. Naturally, I omitted them; I considered beads, but again they didn't really go with the rustic feel.

All three buttons are pearlescent, and the large coral button on the bottom was a serendipitous find. When I intended to stitch these, I had all my fancy buttons pulled out, the ones with the rhinestones and gold filigree. When I put them on the finished work and saw how terrible that combination actually was, I had to scramble to find replacements. So it was happy coincidence that this button happened to match the two tones of coral in the heart perfectly. I also like my alternate button placement; all three were supposed to be tacked to the green checkerboard, but I thought it a shame to cover up all that solid stitching!

And here is the model for the second project, Joy:


And here is my interpretation:


For obvious reasons, I'm not so thrilled with this one. I have a ton of green buttons in my stash, and not a single one of them matched the green of the tree, which is how that horrid mint-green button ended up in the middle of the star. I'm sure I had a good reason at the time, but I can't imagine what that might've been now, LOL :)

The black-and-silver button was worn enough to look rustic, and I meant it to pick up the black of the lettering. And the little white one I chose for the shape, if I can remember correctly. The reason that these wound up in My Stitchy Can Of UFOs (Unfinished Objects) is because I was never happy with this second one. But since I've made a few additions to my Button Can in recent years, I may go back and try to find something that works a little bit better. The fact that all three have different finishes, and are made with different materials, was supposed to make it look exotic - like using mismatched china - but just looks chaotic instead.

Anyway, these are a quick, simple stitch, easily finished in an afternoon or two, especially when you leave off the French knots like I did. If you fancy them, then be sure to enter my Giveaway, and you could be stitching them for yourself this holiday season! (Click on the graphic at the top of my sidebar at right to enter, or here)

I'm not keen on how the model projects were finished (and there are instructions for that method with the patterns), so I'm going to have to put on my little-used Funky Finishing Fedora and figure out what I'd like to do with these!

As usual, any suggestions are gratefully welcomed :)

13 comments:

Rainy Day Crafter said...

I really like the first one - I love that heart with the little stitches around it! I do like the second one as well, but I see what you mean about the buttons. I do like the little white one with the red thread though. I hope you find some better buttons for it anyway and your funky finishing fedora helps, hehe :)

Jo who can't think of a clever nickname said...

Hi, returning the following. I have a button tin too but haven't used any of them on my stitching yet!

Mouse said...

mmmmm can see why you don't like the second one ... they clash too much ... i have lots of buttons if all else fails will see what i have got ..lol love mouse xxxx

Jo who can't think of a clever nickname said...

ps - bonus point to you for using the word "serendipitous"!!

Karen said...

Cute ornaments! I do agree about the mint green button though.... You should show a pic of your tin of buttons. Porbably a funny thing to ask, but I'd love to see it lol. ;)

I hope you had a great weekend!

Aurelia Eglantine said...

Thanks so much for all your comments :)

RD: I'm so glad you like Tis The Season! It's my favourite too :) Re: my Funky Finishing Fedora, um, it's been sadly neglected for many a year, and so I'll have to blow *quite* a bit of dust off of it, LOL ;) *Achoo!*

Jo: Welcome! One of my grand ambitions in life is to combine my love of Buttons with my passion for All Things Stitchy :) Thank you very much for the bonus points, LOL! Serendipity is a most wonderful thing!!!

Mouse: AHA! So you see it too :) It's nice to know that you're not just being overly fussy sometimes, LOL! Thank you very much for your kind offer - you're a sweetheart :) I'll have to dive headfirst into my stash the next few days and see what I can come up with first!

Karen: Ha! You gave me a laugh tonight :) I don't think it's strange at all, though I do have a temptation to say "I'll show you mine if you'll show me yours" LOL! I've actually been meaning to post up about the buttons for awhile, so you might indeed see some button can pictures soon. But I should warn you not to expect too much; they're only pretty to me because of the sentimental value, and are rather lacking in the gold filigree and inset gems one usually expects a treasure chest to be be-decked in :)

Meari said...

Both of the ornaments are adorable!!

Just an FYI - I *did* put your giveaway on my blog. :)

Aurelia Eglantine said...

Thanks so much Meari :) For both your kind comments and for including me in your latest MM. I really appreciate your help! *Darts right over to have a look*

sara said...

I love the model projects but I also love your interpretation too, I must say that christmas stitching, and any form of christmas make is what I enjoy the most.

Lovely blog, lily.

Alberta said...

BEAUTIFUL!!!! Love the homespun feeling of your ornaments! Just wonderful looking through your stitching; you're very talented

CrazyStitcher said...

The designs are lovely, and it's been interesting to see your own interpretation of them. I'm sure that if you can find a more 'suitable' button to replace the mint green one, it will create the result you were originally hoping for. x

Freddysmama (Kirstin) said...

French Knots... my nemesis.

I can do them but I always seem to get one good one, a couple of o.k.-ish ones and then it's all down hill from there. I've discovered I love beads. LOL.

I like your interpretations of the ornaments :)

Aurelia Eglantine said...

Thanks so very much for all the lovely new comments :) Sorry that this reply is late.

Lily: Welcome!, and thanks for your kind words. Honestly, I don't do a lot of seasonal work - I've never stitched for Hallowe'en, or Easter - because I save all my energy and joy for Christmas! It's nice to know you feel the same :)

Alberta: Welcome! to you too, and thank you so much for your lovely and kind compliments :) *blushes*

CS: Aw, I'm glad you like them :) I think I've finally found the right buttons - stay tuned for an update!

Kirstin: Welcome!, and that you for your nice comment :) RE: French knots - I know exactly what you mean. The French knot has long been my most fearsome Stitchy Foe!

I recently won a Battle with my Bluebirds of Happiness, which has FK for the flower centers, but I am a long, loooong way from winning the War! *rolls eyes*

I'm all about the beads too. Plus, they sparkle, and anything that sparkles and glitters is good with me, LOL ;)