Paisley problems and new plan!

I'm glad I have the whole year to play with paisleys because it may take it long to get it right.... I have plenty of reference for paisleys but it is the materials I use that I want to experiment with until I'm happy...and I especially had wanted to use beads...

First problem is that they were both too big and I lost the pickle shape.  I did them on felt  and they were borderline in size but once I attached them and added the edging they were too large for the block..

I did this one first.   Even though I said in a previous blog post that I was going to use 15s, I used 11s on this because I liked the colors... Bad decision.  They are just too bulky to get the effect I want...  And I used too many colors on this one..

I did this one second. It is also too large as I did it the same time as the other one. But  I did use 15s on this one and I like it better but the colors are too strong.  This would be perfect though for Rengin's block.  I do need to use a heavier thread for the outline stitch and maybe a stronger foundation... You can see on the paisley below that the chain stitch in heavier thread kept the beads in line.

New Plan:  So now I will start on the next pair.... starting with smaller shape, using 15s for beads and softer colors.  I made a trip to the bead store and got some pink 15s.  If they aren't to my  liking then I will try the next pair combining beads and stitching like I have done before (see left)...

My paisley party plan

I plan to do them in pairs.  One more traditional and experiment with shapes and extensions.  I hope to use lots of my favorite beads  that haven't found a purpose.  You know the ones you love the minute you see them, buy them and then never find the perfect spot for them.  I have a LOT of those.

And the second to push the concept.   I do know   in some I want to incorporate free-form bead embroidery rather that just following the pickle shape... 
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And some creating bead/button flowers in the centers and filling in..  Need to gather up all my tiniest beads for this to work...Anxious to get started.






It's nice to know I have a whole year to play around with these.....  Let the paisley party begin...

Now the "Persian Pickles"

The second element I chose to explore for the CQJP2015 is the paisley...  I have done a few here and there but I want to do a lot this year trying different techniques and materials.  I will work them off-block like I do my birds.  This one is a combination of stitching, sequins and beads.

This one is mainly beads...but they were 11s and I think 15s would work better. I could get more colors and more rows.   Notice the trim on this piece with the paisley woven into it.  I like putting the little knobbly things on the outside of the shape.  The variations which are possible are endless which is why it will be fun to follow through the entire year trying different designs and techniques.  I am thinking I will do two each month...use one on the block and save the spare for later.

I really like using them as bird wings or bird bodies as here at the beginning of a peacock.

When I did this peacock on a RR block for Wendy I used paisley techniques for the entire bird.

It is generally agreed that the paisley symbol originated in Persia 200-650 AD The symbol began to appear on Persian fabrics in the early 16th century. From about 1775 travellers, explorers and military personnel brought back the shawls of Kashmir to Europe as presents. In Britain in the 19th century the paisley shawl was the ‘must-have’ accessory of its day, a status symbol worn for important occasions.   From roughly 1800 to 1850, the weavers of the town of Paisley, Scotland became the foremost producers of these shawls and "Paisley" became the generic term for the pattern. Unique additions to their hand-looms and Jacquard looms permitted them to work in five colors when most weavers were producing paisley using only two. The pattern was embraced in America and called "Persian pickles" by American traditionalists, especially quilt-makers, or "Welsh pears" in Welsh textiles as far back as 1888. 

Skills for the CQJP 2015

 

Addendum:  Here are a couple websites with tutorials... 
http://historicalsewing.com/pleated-trim-jazz-your-victorian-neckline
https://www.mayarts.com/make-a-victorian-style-ribbon-pleat/

I picked 2 skills to improve as a personal challenge  during the CQJP2015.... One   I had for 2012 but going further with it... ribbon trim folding..  I fell in love the first time I saw ribbon manipulated for trim and it was a display by Candace King and unfortunately it wasn't the class she was offering...

 She does have a schedule of where she teaches. I would love to take her ribbon folding class and Candace does get to Seattle several times a year but the class and my schedule have never worked.   I love these trims because they are so unique and can be done with inexpensive ribbon..  When you do them for CQ there is the bonus that you can do them with a small amount of ribbon...

I  determined that they are my #1 skill for my  CQJP2015 blocks.

 I did buy a book, "Ribbon Trims" by Nancy Nehring to try my hand at it in 2012 and I did do three folded ribbon trims in the Morris book...


I could handle the easy ones in the book but I have to admit I had trouble following her directions for the trims she had marked as "challenging"..  I'm taking the book with me when I see Susie again and see if between the two of us, we can get some more figured out...

The second skill is going to be paisleys of all types.  Paisleys (Persian Pickles) arrived in the US via Scotland in 1888 and were immediately embraced by crazy quilters.    I have done a few over the years but this year is going to be studying them in depth... I can see this developing into a major tutorial.

This is Betty Pillsbury's award winning quilt entitled "Paisley" and you can see two prominent ones on it...

My Passion for Paisley (Persian Pickles)

 I have a passion for paisleys.  I love them in fabric design and I love stitching them with threads, beads, embroidery and sequins. Paisleys have been a very traditional element in crazy quilts from the very beginning.  They rank right up there with fans and spider webs as popular motifs...  

When I decided to paint the commode chair I knew I wanted to have a paisley cushion and paisley elements in the painted decoration... I have to admit that my experience with buying fabric online has been abysmal, both in quality and color.. But my choices at our two local fabric stores were nil so I was forced to go to internet sites.  First I tried major fabric sites and then I resorted to Google images... The problem with Google images is even though you are offered a huge selection to look at, not all of them are for sale...And that is what happened with my very first and most favorite paisley fabric. I was looking for a paisley that had ALL the rainbow colors I have in my door kit... But this fabric was sold on Etsy last summer and not available anywhere I searched.  If you have this fabric in your stash...let me know as I just love it and I need very little.  I will keep searching for it...it is a Waverly fabric.

So I settled for this fabric...but I found  it on several fabric sites and the colors on the screen varied widely...from very bright and colorful to kinda dull...so we'll see when it arrives..  I do like the whimsical rustic look of the paisleys.

I also ordered this and then I would only use part of my paints which I guess is okay... It is a beautiful paisley though and if I don't use it on the chair I will use it for a bag, Just because the door is rainbow doesn't mean the chair has to be...

  Paisley or Paisley pattern is a term in English for a design using the boteh, a droplet-shaped vegetable motif of Persian or Indian  origin. Such designs became very popular in the West in the 18th and 19th centuries, following imports from British India and were then imitated locally. The pattern is sometimes called "Persian pickles" by American traditionalists, especially quilt-makers, or "Welsh pears" in Welsh textiles as far back as 1888. Its western name derives from the town of Paisley, in central Scotland, a center for textiles where paisley designs were produced