Embroidered Nesting Doll Pillow

A few weeks ago I posted about OlioBoard, and in that post I shared some images I collected from around the internet as inspiration for a project I’d been planning. I haven’t done much embroidery, and I’ve never made an embroidery pattern, but I decided to give it a try. Up until this weekend my sewing machine was still packed up in the garage, and this whole home-buying thing is draining my bank account, so embroidery has presented itself as a very logical craft–it doesn’t take up much space, I can design patterns myself, and rather than spending money on fabric I can use old clothes and linens (of which there are plenty around here), and I already have a ton of embroidery floss.

dimensions are roughly 13" x 13"

After I finished the embroidery portion of the project, I sewed the fabric (an old thrift store table cloth) into a simple envelope pillowcase and then made a pillow out of more scrap fabric and some really plush stuffing my mom gave me.  For this pillow, I just placed the fabric on top of my original hand-drawn embroidery pattern and traced with a pencil.  I’ve scanned the hand drawn nesting doll and I’m working on turning it into a legit embroidery pattern in various sizes that I can post here for download.

mostly chain stitch with some satin stitch and a couple of french knots

Now I’m thinking about other color and pattern combinations.  I’m working right now on a creme, green, and brown floral with green embroidery floss.  I’m also considering applique possibilities.

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OlioBoard

click the photo to visit my olioboard for more information on the products pictured above

Earlier this week I read about OlioBoard over at Decor8.  I was drawn to the idea behind it because I frequently gather images for inspiration when I’m working on DIY or home design projects, but I’ve never had a very convenient way of organizing them. All these images were hanging out on my desktop as reference points for an embroidery project I’m currently working on, so I decided to open up an OlioBoard account and upload them.  So far I’ve found the website fairly easy to use, and I think I’m really going to appreciate having a simple, organized way of keeping track of some of my loftier project ideas.  My sole complaint so far is that (other than taking a screenshot and cropping all the other junk out) I can’t figure out a way to share pictures of the moodboards I create with people outside the OlioBoard community, though there’s probably a way to do this that I’ve yet to figure out.  Sharing olioboards within the website, however, seems pretty straightforward.

If you’re already an OlioBoard member or you plan on joining, add me as a friend!  I’m DisforDelicate.

As for the above moodboard and related project, you’ll have to hold your horses on that one.  I’ve gathered most of the supplies I need to make it happen, but I’m still working out the logistics of the whole thing.  I will say I’m pretty excited about it though!

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