Embroidery Color Wheel - Stitches

Are you making a color wheel!? I would love to know if you are :) leave me a comment or email me and I will make a list in my sidebar, so I can keep up with you!

A quick project recap -
- In this post I showed you my large color wheel done in embroidery.
- In this post I shared the DMC numbers with you.
- In this post I showed you how I like to get started.

Now to start stitching! I start with 18" of floss, work one color at a time, and plan to go back with a second length as needed later. Let's start with a quick back stitch to mark the circle (if you want to!) -With the back stitch you start in the center and move to the back of the drawn line, work under and then insert where you began. Keep moving along the line with each new color of thread.

Seed stitch is my go to for filling in the gaps - I don't have a picture of the stitch in progress, but it is simply up and down, and for this project the more random the better!

Chain stitch or daisy chains are fun and quick! Once you get the hang of it you will want to make rows and rows of them. For this project I didn't put to many together, if ever. Making it random makes the project exciting!
Bring your needle up, then reinstert your needle into the same spot, and bring it up about a 1/4" or less away, wrap the floss around your needle and draw the thread out. Then insert on the other side of the loop created in your floss.
This one is a variation of a scallop stitch. Sometimes I add a french knot to the center, sometimes it is a flower if you add a longer stem. As far I'm concerned there are no rules to worry about breaking! Start by drawing your needle up, move over a bit insert needle and bring it up, tuck the floss under the needle before drawing it through and secure the floss with a stitch.

French knots. Why do these evoke fear in people? It's all in how you wrap the floss around the needle. I've had a bit of frustration with these too, but they are so nice, and simple once you get the hang of it!

Draw the needle up, then wrap once (I am using 6 strands of floss) from top to bottom, reinsert the needle, keeping the thread taut pull the needle to the back, making a knot on top. Easy - right!?
Keep working the section as long as your thread will let you. Try being random, even if it doesn't come easy, it wasn't for me at first, but is so relaxing now.
Now move on to your next color, and watch your own color wheel come to life!

Please let me know if you have questions, and I linked to HEN's stitch-a-day instructions if you need more clarification. Please let me know if you are stitching with me :)

Happy Monday!
Amy
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Color Wheel Supplies --

Color wheel supplies:
Have you managed to collect yours? I thought a 6" hoop seemed more doable right now, use any size hoop that you have or want to use! I use the ruler to divide the space up.
I tried measuring and it didn't work! Just eyeball based on the number of colors you are using. I will be using 12, after dividing it into quarters, I eyeballed the thirds from there. If you are using a large hoop - you may need to put a few books under to draw your lines.
If you want a circle, look around the house for a few circles and audition the sizes.
Center as best as possible and trace. I used a cup base first, but it was too big. This is a 2 Tbsp measuring cup/spoon.
All of the floss colors are listed in this post. That is a great place to start if you missed it! I'll be back soon with a little news/explanation :)

Amy
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Embroidery Color Wheel Details

Well I'm so flattered that you all love my color wheel! I've worked on it here and there over the course of a month - it could be done faster, but I was mulling over options and need time to make decisions. Enough of you asked about the dmc numbers so I thought I would share.

304
321
666*
606*
741*
972*
725
726*
704*
471
702
701*
699
958
991*
503
501
826
825*
3746*
553*
552*
326
335
3733

I put the star with the colors I felt were directly from the color wheel, and I'm thinking my next color wheel maybe with those 12. Oh, and there's 26 colors here, it would be easier to eliminate 2 and have a easy, even number to work into the circle. I found a dmc color chart, if you would like to see the colors. I know there's a few esty sellers letting you select colors of floss, be sure to change the search to "supplies" and they will pop right up for you.

My friend Cassie worked with some Cosmo threads recently, and loved them! They are over a dollar a skein, but Cassie seems to think it's worth the extra cost. She sent me a link for a shop selling them in the US - if you love stitching it may be worth trying. I had a few frustrating knots and nests in my thread while working the color wheel, Cassie loves how smooth the Cosmo threads are, and I'm going to give them a try at some point!

So who wants to stitch with me!? I have a 12" hoop and just enough white fabric to fill it :) We will keep it informal and fun - I don't have anything to giveaway, but maybe a button for your blog if you insist. I'll share my design thought process in the coming weeks.

Blessings ~
Amy
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Color Wheel Project

My color wheel inspiration post started me on an adventure! As I usually buy fabric per project, I don't have a stash to collect color samples from, so I went searching for fabric online. My quick realization was that I could not afford to purchase the fabric needed, even for a small quilt. So my next thought was floss! I found a group of embroidery hoops for cheap on ebay, with a 16" hoop in it, and snatched it up. I searched for color wheel groups of floss online, but that is really hard to do on the computer.So I happened to go to JoAnn's the weekend it was on sale, and spent around $12 for a full color spectrum in floss, and a color wheel! An actual color wheel has 12 colors typically, I added a few variations of the colors to stretch my idea. I'm pretty excited about this, the texture is amazing! I love having a project for tv time, especially this time of year, as the nights are longer, and the snuggle cozy time is here. I used the full set of 6 strands, and just did what ever stitch I wanted to! Joe had to talk me down from a less random version and I'm so glad he did! There's a few spots I would like to fill in a little more, and make a few of the transitions less noticeable. But overall I'm super happy with it. I'm still trying to decide if it will stay on the hoop to be hung, or if I should attempt to make it into something more. I'm open to suggestions if genius strikes you :)

Did I mention that it's 16 inches across? It is a big hoop! I have a couple of smaller hoops that I'm thinking about doing another version with too, maybe just 12 colors this time. . . I'll let you know when that happens!

I also thought I should mention -- Hand Embroidery Network has been posting a stitch a day if you are interested in learning to stitch. They have great pictures and instructions. I would also say that learning is best with a needle and thread in hand :)

So what do you think!? Is this something you might try? Maybe we could stitch together? I'd be happy to share DMC numbers if you are interested.

I gotta run, load the dishwasher and get ready for the evening with the family. I hope you and yours are blessed today~
Amy

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A Glimpse -

Remember this post?

I'm not ready to share the whole thing, but this is what I have been working on in my off-computer time the last couple of weeks. . . more soon. I promise!! I'm super excited, and couldn't wait to share - sorry for the tease. Really I am!

Blessings ~
Amy
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A Football Diversion

The weekend was full of football around here. Was it the same for you? My shoulder had been hurting (I think I slept weird) so I opted to not quilt and do some embroidery.
Emmalie checked in with me often for a status update: "How many more flowers, mommy?" It was fitting that her fingers be in the picture :) I found a vintage transfer on flickr - and quickly taped it up to the window. That's the most professional way right!? I had fun, while Joe watched football, and I even learned a few new stitches too!

Here's a question for you - When I first learned to do cross-stitch (as a girl, with grandma) I was taught to use two strands of floss. A book I have reccomends all 6 strands. I did a little of everything here - I think 3-4 worked nice on this piece. Any one have a rule of thumb?

I will do more embroidery, I like working with the hoop and floss :)

Hope you are having a great Monday ~ Amy