i recently found myself in need of an owl cross stitch pattern. i looked around on etsy, but couldn’t find one that suited my purposes (small, cute, simple), so i decided to design my own.

it was very quick to whip up so i thought i’d make it a free pattern to share here on the blog.

as you may be able to see, i used some variegated thread on the owls wings and tummies. as these are not as accessible as dmc threads, i’ve substituted dmc alternates into the pattern.
where the pattern uses dmc 3858, i used cottage garden threads‘ “blackwood”, and where the pattern uses dmc 422, i used cottage garden threads‘ “wheat”.
you should, of course, use whatever colours tickle your fancy.

click on the pattern grid to be taken to a larger version

i always love to see the results when people stitch up my patterns, so if you sew your own little pair of owls, do consider adding a photo to the ‘penelope waits designs’ flickr group.

happy stitching!
essie xoxox

p.s. feel free to share the link to this post far and wide, but please don’t repost the pattern elsewhere.

sometimes, while reading other people’s beautiful blogs, and seeing glimpses of their lovely homes, i start to feel that my housekeeping abilities are abnormally appalling. i am simply not one of those people who can keep my house consistently clean and tidy. i go through bursts of industrious organisation, and determined washing-of-all-the-things, but it’s never been something i’ve been able to maintain for any length of time, and my house always seems to descend into a state of cheerful chaos before long.

i’m sure i can’t be alone in this, so i have designed a simple little pattern for the domestically challenged among us…

the pattern is free, and you can find the chart here. you can sit on the couch and stitch it up, instead of doing the vacuuming!

hope you like it!
essie xoxox

are you a member of a craft circle? i’ve wanted to be for a long time, and i recently joined a new chapter of the brown owls that’s started in my area.

yesterday i had the pleasure of teaching my fellow brown owls how to cross stitch. being super clever crafty peeps, they all picked it up quickly, and were stitching away confidently at cute deer and sweet messages in no time.

before our meeting i was thinking about what useful tips are worth imparting to new cross-stitchers, and i made a bit of a list. i thought it might be useful to share it here as well.

useful tips for beginner cross stitchers:

keep your hands clean. because you handle embroidery so much more than other sewing projects as you do it, it can start to look pretty grubby after a while if you don’t keep your hands super clean.

it’s often best to start from the middle of the pattern and aida, and work outwards. it makes the pattern a lot easier to follow, and it keeps your work (relatively) well centred. some cross stitchers even mark the stitches they’ve already done on the pattern, in order to keep track. if you want to do this, i’d suggest either making a copy of the pattern and marking on that, or using a soft, erasable pencil.

people have different ideas about the best needles to use, and at the end of the day, i think it’s a matter of taste. personally, i like a size 8 embroidery needle.

don’t secure a new thread with a knot. knots will create bumps in your fabric, and are also difficult to stitch around. instead, when beginning a new thread, leave a tail that is around 2 – 3 cm long, and stitch over this as you make your first cross stitches on the front of your aida:

secure your ends in the same way, by tucking them back under the stitches on the wrong side of your aida. always keep your stitches in the same direction. it doesn’t matter which direction you choose:

or …but being consistent will mean you have a much neater finished piece. don’t use long pieces of cotton. not only does it tangle more easily, but aida is quite course, and it actually strips the thread as you pull it through the holes. long pieces can end up looking quite sad and spindly by the time you get to the end of them, and that can make your work look inconsistent and somewhat bedraggled. thirty centimetres is the length you should be aiming for.

if you make a mistake, unthread your needle and use the blunt/eye end ti carefully unpick the stitches you’ve done. using your sharp end can sometimes split and fray the thread, which means that you then have to undo all of the stitches that you’ve done with that piece, rather than just a few.

finally, it’s always useful to have a cross stitch alphabet - you can do heaps of cool little patterns with it. so, here’s one i’ve put together for you:

have fun!
essie xoxox

here it is! my first quilt pattern!

i’ve been quietly working away on this little project for a few months now (though it’s not a project that should take that long - it’s just that i always have about five projects on the go at once, and spread my time between them!). i have been SO looking forward to sharing it with you!

YOU WILL NEED:
a rotary cutter
a cutting mat
a quilting ruler
a needle for hand quilting
quilting pins
a water soluble fabric marker (test this on fabric scraps to ensure it really will wash off!)
1.5m of quilting fabric in a plain white, cream or ecru
a charm pack of bright printed quilting fabrics.
2m of a complimentary print for backing.
.25m of another complimentary print for binding.
approx 2m of batting (this quantity will vary depending of the width of your chosen batting).
2 balls of dmc perle 8 thread, in a colour that matches your plain fabric

CUTTING:
cut  246 squares of your bright printed fabric, each measuring 2.5” x 2.5”.
cut 162 squares out of your plain fabric, each measuring 2.5” x 2.5”.
cut 2 strips out of your plain fabric, each measuring 36.5” x 2.5”.
cut 2 strips out of your plain fabric, each measuring 40.5” x 2.5”.
cut 2 strips out of your plain fabric, each measuring 44.5 x 2.5”.
cut 2 strips out of your plain fabric, each measuring 48.5” x 2.5”.

PIECING
set 84 of your coloured squares aside, ensuring you have a good variety of your chosen fabrics represented in your selection.

take 5 coloured squares, and 4 plain squares, and, pressing as you go, piece them into a nine patch square like so:

repeat until you have 18 blocks in this configuration.then take 4 coloured squares and 5 plain squares, and, pressing as you go, piece them into a nine patch square like so:

repeat until you have 18 blocks in this configuration.divide these blocks in to four lots of nine, and, pressing as you go, piece them until you have two large blocks with plain fabric in the corners like this:
and two large blocks with coloured fabric in the corners like this:
sew these four large blocks together until you have one large pieced centre for your quilt like so:

(n.b. i have created these piecing images in photoshop, and they don’t represent the variety of prints that appear in the final quilt – it was just easier to cut and paste from a smaller number of prints!)take your two strips of plain fabric measuring 36.5” x 2.5”, and sew them to opposite edges of this center panel.
now take your two strips of plain fabric measuring 40.5” x 2.5” and sew them to the top and bottom of your center panel. you should now have created a plain border around your pieced center.

from the 84 you set aside earlier, take 20 coloured squares and sew them into a long strip. press. repeat so that you have two strips of 20 squares.
sew these to opposite sides of your growing quilt top.

using the remaining 44 squares, create 2 strips of 22 squares, and press. sew these to the top and bottom of your quilt top. press. you should now have a border of squares all around the quilt.

take your two strips of plain fabric measuring 44.5 x 2.5” and sew them to opposite edges of your quilt top. press.
now take your two strips of plain fabric measuring 48.5” x 2.5” and sew them to the top and bottom of your center panel. press. you should now have created another plain border, and your quilt top is complete!

at this point you can have your quilt professionally machine quilted, or machine quilt it yourself if you have a long-armed machine. i chose to hand quilt mine, because I thought a simple, slightly rustic look would suit this particular design. the following instructions are for hand quilting.

HAND QUILTING
take your backing fabric, and piece it together so that it is as large as your quit top with a few inches excess in each direction.
piece your batting in a similar way if necessary.

press your quilt top and backing carefully.

lay your backing fabric, right-side down, on a large, clean, flat surface. smooth it out so that it is completely flat. you can use making tape to secure it if you wish.
carefully lay your batting on top, smoothing it out as you did with your backing.
lay your quilt top, right-side-up, on top of this, smoothing again.
working from the middle, use your quilting pins to ensure that these three layers are secured together. you can’t really use too many pins. as a rough guide, i would aim for on pin to every 4 square inches.

though you might be tempted to, don’t trim yet!

take your quilting ruler and your water soluble fabric pen and mark the lines you would like to quilt along. i used long diagonal lines, creating an X over each plain square, and continuing over the borders.

thread your needle with your perle 8 thread, and settle in for some hand quilting! this one took me about two full days to quilt.

when you have finished the quilting, trim the backing and batting so that they are even with the edges of your quilt top, and remove the pins.

BINDING
there are several different methods for binding a quilt, and each has their merits. i’ve chosen this one because I think it complements the hand quilting.

cut your binding fabric into strips of 1.75”.
using your machine sew these strips end to end so that you have one long strip of fabric.

laying one end of your binding strip flat on your ironing board, right-side down, carefully fold each long edge approx .25” in towards the middle of the strip, pressing them firmly as you go. do this all along the length of the binding, being careful not to burn your fingers!

carefully pin the binding over the raw edges of your quilt and then, using the same perle 8 thread you did for your hand quilting, sew it in place using even, visible stitches. when you get all the way around, tuck the end of your binding over so there are no raw edges showing, secure with a few careful stitches and then tie off!

your quilt should now be complete!

i really hope you like this pattern! if you use it, please let me know. i’d love to see your versions!
also, please respect that it took lot of time and effort to make this quilt and write the tutorial, so don’t claim the pattern as your own, and remember to link back here if you’re going to blog about making it.

essie xoxoxo

it’s not only my embroidery geekiness that’s showing (two new designs in two days! what is this madness?), but my internet geekiness too:

for those who don’t know what i’m on about, the urban dictionary defines “teal deer” as “a bastardization of ‘tl;dr’, which is a bastardization of ‘too long; didn’t read’…”.

this could be a cheeky gift to a particularly loquacious friend (if you think it can be given and received in fun, and not taken personally!), or just a fun and nerdy decoration for your home. mine is hanging among my fabric hoops in our living room.

the chart is below for your stitching pleasure. i used DMC 991 for mine, because i think it’s a lovely rich, vibrant teal.

may your geekiness be with you - enjoy!
essie xoxoxo

when i was ten years old my mum went on a holiday to holland to visit relatives with my oma. my aunty judith and uncle martin looked after me while mum was away, and while i stayed with them aunty jude taught me to cross stitch. she bought me my fist few skeins of DMC floss, my first piece of aida, and my first embroidery needles. i have loved to stitch ever since.

it’s somewhat surprising to me that i have never designed a cross stitch pattern before. i guess it’s one of those things that i have always been meaning to do and never quite gotten around to til now.

this is a very simple pattern for a small cross stitch, which you could frame, or do as i have done and make a card:

you will need:
- a small piece of 14 count aida
- some embroidery floss (i used DMC 962, which i think is a particularly nice pink)
- embroidery needle
- embroidery hoop (desirable but not essential)
- a soft pencil (2b is good)
- an eraser
- a stanley knife and cutting board
- a ruler
- two pieces of card in a colour that coordinates with your selected floss. one piece should measure 140mm x 215mm, the other 100mm x 135mm
- a matching envelope

(N.B. this guide assumes you know the basics of cross stitch - of you are a beginner and do not know how to cross stitch, you can find a very good guide with pictures *HERE*)

1. fold your 140mm x 215mm piece of card in half.
2. on the front of this folded card, center and draw a rectangle that is 100mm x 55mm.
3. using your stanley knife and cutting board, carefully cut this rectangle out, making a window in the front of your card (make sure you open your card out flat before cutting - you only want to cut this hole in the front!).
4. erase any pencil lines, then set aside.
5. place your aida in your embroidery hoop and stitch the following design:

the little tail on the apostrophe is not drawn in on this pattern - it is simply a diagonal stitch from top left to bottom right of the square below the body of the apostrophe. you should be able to see how i have done this in the photo below.

6. trim your aida so that the design is centered, and the full piece of aida is approx 95mm x 130mm.
7. center your cross stitch over the window in your card, and using strong crafting tape or glue, secure it in place.
8. take your piece of card measuring 100mm x 135mm and stick it to the inside of the card so that the back of your cross stitch is both covered up and supported.
9. write a message inside to someone you think is sweet, stick it in the envelope, and seal it with a kiss!

i hope you like this pattern!
essie xoxoxo

i have just designed and written my first pattern! i am so excited to share it with you! it’s a little patchwork ribbon-tied pouch:

i designed it to fit a deck of tarot cards, but it’s a very versatile and practical size for all kinds of things. my friend ren, of hollyhock hollow did a test-sew for me and she’s using hers to store little packets of seeds in - it hangs from her pinboard by its wee ribbons!

this is one of those great projects that only takes an hour or two, and that you can whip up using a couple of fat quarters. if you wanted to make it really patchy-looking you could even cut out all the pieces from different fabrics in your scrap bag!

i’ve written up the pattern (with instructions that ren swears are easy to follow!), and i’ve drawn little pictures to elucidate any bits that might seem tricky. it’s free for you to download, and i hope you enjoy it very much.

do leave a comment if you’re downloading it - and if you’re so inclined, drop back with a photo of your finished pouch!

::CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD::enjoy!

til next time,
essie xoxox

p.s. there is now a link in the sidebar to patterns that i make, so that you can find what you’re looking for when you come back