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Karen Ruane Blog


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thoughts on embroidery and tradition, cloth, stitch, hand worked embellishment using new and vintage cloth for embroidery. Online tuition available.
2017-04-25 08:46
You last saw this piece here, it was untouched by hand stitch, naked....not any more. I haven't added a lot to the surface yet but it has definitely been brought to life with the addition… Read More
2017-04-24 11:45
Yesterday I said I would show you embroidery on this lace piece today.....sorry, I got too excited about my third swatch which is now finished and wanted to share that with you instead… Read More
2017-04-23 11:48
Saturday, lace day....just this week, I'm not saying this is how I spend all my Saturdays. There are two very different pieces here. I prefer the one in the first hoop image but that coul… Read More
2017-04-22 11:57
This in number three swatch of five, I decided I want five swatches in my next bound, cloth swatch book. I found a very, very old blouse which was gifted to me some time ago. It's made… Read More
2017-04-21 11:56
Stitch swatch number two and three have now been joined to become a new number two. I chopped a bit off I wasn't happy with, joining the two pieces with a white and pink French knot sea… Read More
2017-04-18 11:48
As you can see I am still in swatch mode. The latest one, last nights endeavours, cutwork with ruched cloth, beads, chain stitch, bullion loops. When I laid it next to the one I showed… Read More
2017-04-17 11:55
Swatches are my new obsession.....I blame embroidery school. I adore, love...love!! the swatch collection I created in that class, so much so I have started another one. This morning I ma… Read More
2017-04-15 11:07
Embroidery school was about much more than samples, surface embroidery, practising stitch and technique........there was a considered focus on edges too. I laid them out this morning, jus… Read More
2017-04-13 11:56
Although I am still very much wrapped up in finishing work from ''embroidery school'' I am also getting my head in paper, artist book, scrap, composition mode for the new class. With that… Read More
2017-04-12 11:50
More ''finishing off'' from embroidery school, an edge of oversized Suffolk puffs. These Suffolk puffs are very soft, created using a lovely soft cotton with padded applique decoration… Read More
2017-04-11 11:53
  This collection was laid on my table this morning, my samples, my work, my design sheets from ''sampling for stitch''. With the new class beginning next week I was looking for li… Read More
2017-04-09 11:55
I am otherwise engaged today. Yes, I am most likely eating cake. Yes, I am most likely sitting around not doing much at all.  I've got a cold, a sore throat and there's a party of… Read More
2017-04-08 11:49
This is the first swatch of my second ''sample embroidery swatch book''.....the first swatch book is coming together in ''embroidery school'' and is almost finished. This one, the secon… Read More
2017-04-07 12:05
You may remember these little things from here. They have been added to the edge of this sample which is now finished and ready to be placed into my sample, swatch, book thingy. I am hop… Read More
2017-04-06 11:45
You might remember that I had a few days away from here last week, partly due to family stuff but also because I taught a workshop in London last Saturday. I thought i'd let you see wh… Read More
2017-04-05 11:38
These little pieces of embroidered and folded cloth measure no more than 3 inches in height, one of them is a mere inch and a half. They are adornments, titivation's for an edge. They w… Read More
2017-04-04 11:50
There are three embroidered pockets available for sale. I haven't put them in the shop because I thought I would give you first dibs. If you're interested drop me a mail. (contemporar… Read More
2017-04-03 11:50
My schoolwork, embroidery school....I don't think you have seen the piece with the zip fastening for a while and if and when you did see it last it definitely didn't look like this. I… Read More
2017-03-27 11:50
  The next page of the A3 sketchbook, ledger, journal is taking shape. This one has an edge of bullion knots with royal blue sequins. All I can say is it's a good thing I like '… Read More
2017-03-26 11:58
I'm still working with all things book related, samples, little stitched bits although these ''bits'' are a lot bigger than the pieces in my ''artist book'' which you saw yesterday. T… Read More
2017-03-25 13:00
As promised, the third ''artist book'', a show and tell, a video. I won't say too much here, the video is quite descriptive, gives a good overview of this piece. You can also see shor… Read More
2017-03-23 12:47
I don't have any end product in mind with this, I just wanted to create something using all things pretty with a little bit of shiny thrown in. Sequins, (on  the bullion knots over p… Read More
2017-03-22 12:58
There's paper everywhere at the moment. Stitched paper, torn paper, collaged paper. Yesterday I stitched the pages into my latest Artist book. They aren't finished but stitching them in… Read More
2017-03-21 12:55
Playing with toggles, cutting strips of cloth before joining them and rolling them. I have stitched three of these, one only partially, the one with the ''dogs dinner'' seam. I'm not goin… Read More
2017-03-20 12:53
I succumbed.....the piece from yesterday.....I cut it, or ripped it to be more precise. It wasn't as painful as I had expected. I think it works, I think it depends on what you put nex… Read More
2017-03-19 13:01
This piece is quite small, you can see it here in a 7 inch hoop. My intention was to create a cloth and paper collage which I could then stitch into, tear up and add to my latest Artist B… Read More
2017-03-18 12:50
Embroidery school and a collection of samples. I have three here, there are two more in progress. It's the headers on these three which have been getting a little attention this week. O… Read More
2017-03-16 12:55
Nine by six and a half inches.....several seams, lots of sequins, lots of bullion knots, quite a few Suffolk puffs and a little bit of gimp. There, that's your recipe for a pocket if you… Read More
2017-03-15 12:50
In this video I showed you the first little samples I had created for my next ''artist book''. Some of those have now found their way onto freshly cut pages along with others, new p… Read More
2017-03-14 12:47
Sequins and seams, the focus for me over the past three or four evenings. This is the first time I have ever used sequins in my embroidery and I am addicted, completely and utterly smit… Read More
2017-03-13 12:36
I made you a video today....an explanation of what's going on with all the stuff you can see in the images. It's easier to say it than write it Read More
2017-03-11 12:55
An incomplete seam on a new piece put together yesterday, a diversion, a new challenge. This one has sequins. I don't think I have ever used sequins before. It also has extra fat loops… Read More
2017-03-09 12:55
New fabric, new cloth, gifts of beads and paper and purl along with stitched paper, lace cloth, embroidery, titivating. It's been a busy and exciting few days. I'm not here today, I… Read More
2017-03-08 12:57
I can't decide, can't choose, can't pick a favourite. Five pockets, varied sizes with one that is teeny tiny. I just decided to get them all out and look for a while. Fronts, backs, in… Read More
2017-03-07 12:55
Collage sheets are fast becoming an addiction, as if I need another one. This one you saw the other day has now been torn up and stitches have been added here and there along with beads… Read More
2017-03-06 12:38
  This has now become this you see today. There is an embroidered lining along with a beaded seam. The lower and upper edges are hand finished with running stitch. I feel I can sa… Read More
2017-03-05 13:09
More creativity is happening here to further the ''artist book'' schedule. Paper, fabric and stitch have been combined to create a large collaged sheet which has since been torn, separa… Read More
2017-03-03 12:51
The second ''artist book'' of the current series is progressing although as you will see in this short video there is still quite some way to go. For that reason, later today I will be… Read More
2017-03-02 12:46
Something new, a fourteen inch strip of pieced cloth with three seams running down the centre. Two seams are secured and embellished with bullion knots, the third with beaded bullion kn… Read More
2017-03-01 12:53
Yesterday it was paper from embroidery school, today it's cloth, embroidery, samples. You've pretty much got a broad overview now of what's happening in my latest class. What you don'… Read More
2017-02-28 13:17
Mounted samples, A3 sketchbooks, safe places for my stitched cloth and my embroidered paper......a library of information, a record of my creativity and a  source of inspiration i… Read More
2017-02-27 12:59
I have a ''gathering'' coming up in London soon for which I am supplying little workshop packs. With that in mind I set about creating lace cloth on Saturday.....then got distracted by o… Read More
2017-02-26 12:51
All the pieces of this puzzle fell into place last night. A tiny pocket emerged with an embroidered reverse and a decorative lining. If you look closely at the reverse there are tiny se… Read More
2017-02-23 12:58
In the spirit of ''artist books'' I have bought myself two A3 sketchbooks. These sketchbooks will become my own personal ''artist books''. They will be filled with ''keepers'', samples… Read More
2017-02-22 12:55
You saw these little samples last week I think. Since then they have been added to little pages for a new artist book, artist book number two. There is a little pile of other scrappy bits… Read More
2017-02-21 12:48
I'm back..did you miss me?  London was fab, London is always fab. Returning to a dead PC monitor not so fab. It's replaced...ordered at 17.55 pm last night and delivered at 19.05 pm… Read More
2017-02-15 12:51
I promised you a video show and tell of my latest artist book and here it is.....more a show than a tell as I say very little.    And....a few images I have been saving from my '… Read More
2017-02-14 12:46
The very beginning of the next artist book. Paper has been cut, an extra, extra wide spine and pages...there may be more of those. Small samples, small stitched scraps have been gathered… Read More
2017-02-13 12:57
The last of three pockets, you saw the first two here. Gimp fastenings, (purely decorative), embroidered lining, vintage white cloth, silk velvet, applique and more gimp than you can… Read More
2017-02-12 12:57
Black and white patterned wallpaper, two different scraps of lace, hand embroidery and a few beads....more little scraps, mini pieces of stitch for my artist books. (then there's the cen… Read More
2017-02-11 12:59
Two finished pockets with the third one almost complete.....the list has been ticked and that's very satisfying. Three will be my limit for embroidered pockets......for now. I am… Read More
2017-02-10 12:49
Lots of images today....and you're seeing this again but I can't apologise because I could look at it forever. A simple white pocket now keeps this safe when I'm not drooling over… Read More
2017-02-09 13:10
Two fronts, two backs....two pockets almost made. They need to be put together now and lined. My extra titivation's arrived for the piece with the white gimp fastenings. Pom poms, I was… Read More
2017-02-08 12:55
It's a marathon not a sprint.....this artist book, this artist book in a new format and with an initial plan to make four. My artist books usually have six pages and twelve sides, eig… Read More
2017-02-07 12:55
A completed front....now there's the reverse to attend to. Said reverse still needs to be pieced, the cloth needs to be found and pressed and pinned and basted but for now I am conten… Read More
2017-02-06 12:47
Yesterday afternoon, in an effort to achieve clarity I played a little. Stitched paper pieces, stitched paper and cloth pieces, laid out, moved around, all the time thinking and gleaning i… Read More
2017-02-05 12:52
Late night embroidery on a scrap of lace attached to an piece of stitched paper......with added pom poms. In the dimness of my midnight oil, my nocturnal embroidery hours these pom poms… Read More
2017-02-04 12:42
Rip paper, cut up embroidery, cut up lace and stitch them all together....this is the result. Some old sampling put to use for new surfaces on which to stitch along with tiny snippets… Read More
2017-02-03 12:43
This is the piece I hoped to show you yesterday but the light was too poor for photographs. The last image is how it looked before I worked on it some more last night. Silk velvet is be… Read More
2017-02-02 12:52
It's one of those days today. Those days when you can't ''get going'', you dither, you flounder and grasp around for something to hold onto. I'm sure it's the weather...it's oppressivel… Read More
2017-02-01 12:55
Surface embroidery on this piece is finished. I need to add the ''cabbages'' you saw the other day but I also want to add something else, similar to the cabbages but which need to be or… Read More
2017-01-30 12:46
Little fastenings, little adornments for the next pocket. They will sit on the silk velvet when the pocket surface is embellished completely, when the other things I have planned for it a… Read More
2017-01-29 12:41
So this is what's happening in embroidery school, as well as the paper piece you saw here. Cloth is our main focus and this piece is the first sample of what I hope will be many. They… Read More
2017-01-28 12:58
White silk Dupion, Ivory silk velvet, gimp wrapping and bullion knots....the start of another little pocket. I have laid two hankies at the side of this, they are auditioning to be part o… Read More
2017-01-26 12:43
We are working with paper in embroidery school, a slight diversion from our sampling with cloth and thread. There is thread, there are even little snippets of cloth but paper surfaces a… Read More
2017-01-25 12:55
A few images today taken over the last few days. It's good t record your time in photographs. You get to see how much or even how little you have achieved over a period of time. You… Read More
2017-01-24 12:52
The silk velvet strip, leave it plain or embellish? I went with embellish. I guess you knew I would. Seven toggles, all hand made using rolled cloth, a few slip stitches and little colo… Read More
2017-01-23 13:00
Some of these images are similar but I just couldn't decide which ones to leave out....it looks so pretty on camera. It looks pretty in real life too but somehow the photography allows… Read More
2017-01-22 13:08
It's a bit of this and that today. There's a tiny scrap which came away from a larger piece but has now been transformed into a page for a new artist book and there's a new piece in prog… Read More
2017-01-21 12:53
Last night I played a little. I took a scrap of stitched cloth and a scrap of stitched paper and wondered how they might live together. Here's the result. It's quite small, 6 x 5 inches… Read More
2017-01-20 12:51
Two little embroidered samples, the first pages for my new ledger, my new artist book idea. Hooks and eyes, beads, bullion knots, coton a broder, silk thread, silk velvet, metallic silk t… Read More
2017-01-19 12:50
I'm in the early stages of creating new ledgers, new artist books. This time I'm playing with a different construction, a more open format which will allow the pages to be filled without… Read More
2017-01-18 12:51
You would be forgiven for thinking  I had abandoned cloth, that because of the amount of paper based work I have shown on here recently I had given all my cloth away, was no longer… Read More
2017-01-17 12:43
  A look back at the past week or so....lots of things going on mostly with paper and Liberty fabric. The Liberty fabric is playing a part in ''embroidery school''. Tomorrow… Read More
2017-01-15 12:51
In my quest to continue with the type of work I showed you yesterday I have been titivating a scrap of stitched paper. Pieces like this need a stock of scraps to pull from...that is what… Read More
2017-01-13 12:55
The long narrow strip here is a continuation of play from yesterday. It's more focused though,  I'm clearer with regard to where I am going with all this. Ledgers are being revisit… Read More
2017-01-12 12:54
Stitch has been added to a paper sample and one of my pillow tops from here has been commandeered and added to a paper sample...all in the name of sampling, moving things forward, t… Read More
2017-01-10 12:59
Embroidery is happening on one of the pieces of cloth from yesterday. One of the pieces has been cut in two and a piece of silk Dupion has been tacked into the space created. I then added… Read More
2017-01-09 12:53
You might remember I have been wanting to play with octagons for quite some time. I ordered templates...they were too big, (you're right, I didn't read it properly!) So I allowed the urge… Read More
2017-01-07 13:07
I'm investigating, making enquiries....sampling to be honest, nothing more complicated than that. It's not the surfaces I'm sampling or the mix of pattern, paper and cloth it's more m… Read More
2017-01-06 12:55
I am completely consumed at the moment with putting my happy cloth together. It's all I am working on aside from one or two small things for the new class. The back is on, the edges ar… Read More
2017-01-05 13:05
Some of my stitched paper has been stitched to cloth. I wanted to test the idea, to sample, to try it out. Where you can see the pink and red papers here, they are merely laid alongsi… Read More
2017-01-04 12:40
One piece of silk dupion embroidered, appliqued, added gimp, added French knots, added bullion knots. One piece of silk velvet embroidered, appliqued, added gimp, added French knots, add… Read More
2017-01-03 12:34
Here it is, damp stretched, pristine, titivated to within an inch of its life. When my happy cloth is completely finished, edged, adorned, backed I will make you a quick video. … Read More
2017-01-02 12:39
There is a stitch marathon going on here, working on my happy cloth to get it finished before the new class starts. I mentioned yesterday that embroidery on the front was finished and… Read More
2017-01-01 12:49
It's the last one, it's November and December. These will be more familiar maybe as they are more recent. November and December were busy. I went to London, I went to Berlin, I ha… Read More

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