Cross Stitch Bookmarks

Cross stitch bookmarks make

a nice little gift slipped into a

card sent in the mail.  The

bird and urn, above, was a (free)

pattern from Prairie Schooler.

(Click on the image for a closer look.)

I often adapt the colors to what I

have on hand, rather than strictly 

adhering to the 'pattern requirements.'

The unusual color combination of the 

bird's plumage intrigued me however, so

I tried to make it similar to the pattern

 guidelines. I also whip stitch several

squares beyond the embroidery, then

ravel several rows for the fringed border.

This flower pattern was done

on a scrap of Aida that really

was not wide enough. You can see

that there were only a couple of 

squares outside the pattern after it was

worked. This is considered bad form when

stitching, but I simply couldn't throw out this

perfectly good scrap! So I blanket stitched

around the finished embroidery to keep it

from raveling, and put a felt backing on

which is also blanket stitched. Turned 

out rather well, I think, for a 'scrap.'

This bookmark is actually embroidered

on paper. The lettering may seem a bit

'uneven,' but that is common in the lettering

of traditional cross-stitch samplers. The

cord at the bottom was created by twisting

six strands of floss until it is so tightly twisted

that it doubles back on itself and creates a 'cord.'

Finally, a bookmark cross-stitched

from a sampler border pattern.

The flowers are in 3 shades of pink:

dark, medium and light pink. Sampler

borders are ideal for the long slender

shape of a bookmark, and usually

work up quickly because of the 

repeating pattern.

Quick little sewing projects make a
nice change when mixed media art
is not 'calling' to me... what other
crafts do you do?