Smocking

I was introduced to Clover's smocking stickers by "Purse Patterns..." You buy a set of two stickers for 8 dollars, and they are not reusable. You use it and throw it and create a lot of garbage. There's backing paper, film, packing material and the stickers, which you throw away as you smock... Because of this I'm not too fond of Clover right now...

I started watching the video they have on their site... The video starts with soft woman's voice telling us that:
"Smocking is a type of embroidery that creates a delicate and fancy finish. It has been a popular embroidery technique among many people since the early days."
Can you be any more vague?

This technique is the people's technique, used mostly in working clothes and folk costumes. Hence the name - smock is a "loose, lightweight overgarment worn to protect the clothing while working". There has been some "high fashion" use to the technique, but it is not "delicate and fancy". Crewel embroidery is not "delicate and fancy", quilts are not "delicate and fancy", folk fibre techniques are not "delicate and fancy" by definition.
Of course, you CAN create delicate and fancy things with this technique (WHICH IS NOT DELICATE AND FANCY!!!) but because of the format of Clover's product, the result will not be delicate even if you tried. (No, you can't create the smocking in the pink picture with this product!)

The more I watch the more I start getting annoyed at the woman's soft voice... I get also annoyed by the fact that she doesn't have polished nails, but nail polish. If you show your fingertips in a tutorial video of this caliber, you get the ridges of your nails polished down.

With this product you can only produce smocking for a limited area, about 10 inches by 10 inches, so if you want to make bigger things, you have to buy more sticker sets... and remember - every set costs $8. 8 dollars you can surely use for something better.

The thing is that smocking isn't difficult. You don't even need to mark anything if you use polka dotted or checkered fabric. You can also choose English smocking and use your sewing machine to smock the fabric, and then embroider over the ridges. THIS IS A WORKING PEOPLE'S TECHNIQUE for crying out loud!

Go here and get inspired to give the REAL smocking a try. You can't do ANY of these with the new Clover tool...

http://www.geocities.com/allegrasay/
http://www.creativekeepsake.com/guide.html
http://www.creativekeepsake.com/fpa.html
http://www.fashion-era.com/smocking_illustrations.htm
http://www.eliznik.org.uk/RomaniaPortul/decoration-smocking.htm

Here's "Symphony for Roses" - a free smocking pattern you can try. Perfect for Valentine's I may add ;-)
Learn to smock - free project - smocked bag

About pleatwork embroidery (more for SCA purposes...) and handouts ;-)

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I found a new blog; Moonstitches. Love, love, LOVE her owls! She even has a tutowlrial :-D
Want to make owls to spell all kind of things with... "Happy Birthday!"... yule owls spelling "Joyous Yule"... owls spelling... uh, you know. They are lovely :-)
Or perhaps I could make cats... I'm not much into owls.

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Now to what I have done:

I decided to finish my blasted peacock socks. They are almost done, and I would hate to quit...

I have started knitting the Norwegian felted slippers from Craft magazine.
(Here's some more pictures, and here, and here's what made me do it

Boris and Doris have arrived home :-)