Smocking Embroidery

I have been yearning to learn smocking for a long time. However it keeps seeping out of my mind for no particular reason.Finally in the last week of August, I started browing net to find self help tutorials in smocking. There are quite a few articles and tutorials on the smocking embroidery designs, but for pleating- people use pleating machines. I am not sure whether we get pleating machines in India, so I browse the internet more for manual pleating. Luckily I found couple of guides in Manual pleating.
When I started pleating at home during the weekend, I got confused whether I need to use an elastic thread or any normal thread. This confusion is because after the pleating, there was no elasticity in my fabric, however I have seen smocking gives elasticity in the fabric. Whenever we are lost..what do we do...Google dadu....he he. So, I login again and start my search..I wonder how we use to learn before google dadu's birth..Anyways finally I came across an article which says that we can used any normal thread for pleating, the elasticity of the fabric is due to the embroidery pattern on the pleats..after we make designs on the pleats, we need to cut the threads holding the pleats..damn easy..
I have done my first smocking and will uplaod the design asap..

Hand embroidery

I love hand embroidery, its a little time consuming but the end result is awesome. There are so many different types of stitches around the world. I want to learn as many hand stitches as I can in my lifetime. Till now, I have learned about 130 different hand stitches. Whenever I could steal sometime from family and professional time, I try to indulge in embroidery.

The ducks are done with french knots, it came out really well and I liked the outcome. I have used anchor thread, double strand. The stitches used are chain stitch, satin stitch, filling stitch, laisy daisy and fren knots. The concept is picked from a japanese embroidery book.

Before I start working, there were ample time for my creativity. Its not easy to juggle between family and profession. I sometimes wants to leave my job and stay at home, spending time with Pratham. But its not easy to be at home too. I had experience of sitting at home too, and the experience is not beautiful..:-) I had kind of become cribbing machine day in-day out. Pankaj literally says "thank god! u started working"...LOL...so life goes on

Another design from the Japanese embroidery book. The best thing I like about this embroidery piece is the yellow hair, its done in Bullion stitch. Looks really trendy...She looks like she is lovelorn and waiting for her love. The stitches used are blanket stitch, satin stitch, laisy daisy, chain stitch, back stitch, long and short stitch and bullion stitch.

These days life starts before 6 am and ends after 12 am. Human robots..uh! chalta rehta hai..chalta rehta hai..Thank God! I have a good hubby who helps me in my running around and also appreciate my creative side. Sometimes...he gets bugged by my way of doing what I want to do...means ..:-) I can start embroidery/ painting anytime of the day..even early in the morning or late at night..literally anytime..and Pankaj is a very discipline person, he has a right time for everything. We are like magnet's 2 opposites

Two ladies out for the walk at the countryside..

The stitches used are Satin stitch, laisy daisy stitch, stem stitch, long and short stitch and fren knot

The stitches used are Long and short stitch, satin stitch, stem stitch, frenknots and finally Bullion stitch for the roses. I love Bullion rose, among all the thread embroidery for roses, bullion is the best. Ribbon rose is another lovely option for making roses.