When I went to Lesage in April of 2010 I arranged to do the level II piece in the previous post. Unfortunately for Iceland but fortunately for me there was a volcanic eruption and I was stranded in Paris. My planned return flight was rescheduled and I was left with a week with nothing to do. It was a stressful situation especially with CNN continually spewing doom and gloom. Frantic e-mails to my husband got a response I didn't expect "take another class". As there were openings in the class room I was able to sign up for Level III.
The piece is called Les Coeurs and measures 13" by 16" framed. The heart shape is 5"high and 6" wide. The design is worked on silk organza.
All the beads and sequins are applied with a tambour hook.
The dark brown soutache around the outline, the raffia and the padded areas covered with pearl cotton is sewn on with a needle.
When all the work is done wonder under (or the French equivalent) is ironed onto the back of the organza and each shape is cut out leaving about 1/4 inch of organza/wonder under. The curves are snipped and the edge is turned under using a hot iron.
All the beads and sequins are applied with a tambour hook.
The dark brown soutache around the outline, the raffia and the padded areas covered with pearl cotton is sewn on with a needle.
When all the work is done wonder under (or the French equivalent) is ironed onto the back of the organza and each shape is cut out leaving about 1/4 inch of organza/wonder under. The curves are snipped and the edge is turned under using a hot iron.
The very thought of this really scared me, but surprisingly it was very easy.
Once cut out the pieces were meant to be sewn onto a pocket, lapel or perhaps a purse. I chose to sew them onto a piece of silk net and have it framed.
To see a demo of the tambour technique by Robert Havens go to
Once cut out the pieces were meant to be sewn onto a pocket, lapel or perhaps a purse. I chose to sew them onto a piece of silk net and have it framed.
The week before I left for Paris in April I learned about tambour classes being given in Lexington Kentucky. Susan Elliott http://plays-with-needles.blogspot.com has a post about it.
Or you can go to Robert Havens website
your work is incredible, I am a big fun of it. It "glows"!!!
ReplyDeletethank you for sharing it with us.
Mariel, in Funes, Argentina
Prettier and prettier every time I see it!
ReplyDeleteNow there's an understanding husband! Great work, too. You must have really enjoyed the course!
ReplyDeleteFantastic! 'Stranded in Paris? How awful!!!!! ;)
ReplyDeleteThis is so interesting to me! Thanks for sharing your photos and the extra links. As a bead embroiderer, this is a perfect technique to add to my skill list! What a treat it must have been to take these courses in Paris... :)
ReplyDeleteGorgeous!
ReplyDeleteThat looks so beautiful! I'm a beader and do some bead embroidery, including a few tries at tambour beading. Lately I've been interested in learning more about other types of embroidery (ribbonwork, goldwork etc), preferrably combining thread and beads, and seeing this was very inspirational. I feel like there's a whole unknown world of embroidery for me to discover!
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