http://www.bethrussellneedlepoint.com/needlepoint/pomrug.htm This would be a wonderful setting for someone who does or collects miniature needlepoint.

http://www.florin.ms/pomegranate.html This site features a reproduction fabric with pomegranates designed by William Morris. The main web site for this is a quilters supply which carries several small scale William Morris prints that can be ordered as fat quarters.
http://www.quiltadventures.com/rh117077_8.html

http://www.artmagick.com/paintings/painting1643.aspx is the site where you may find "Pomegranates", a painting by Albert Moore.

Karin Corbin
2/19/04

I ran a Google search of "coin net" embroidery fabric. The results indicated that coin net is more commonly called congress cloth (which I didn't look up).

Anyway, two sites that might start you out in your search are:

www.popularcrafts.com/features/feature1/
www.willowfabrics.com

Elizabeth
February 26, 2004

I have found that ironing silk onto an 8 1/2" X 11" piece of freezer paper prepares it for the printer. Some of the vintage silks have so much sizing that I must rinse them in very warm water and then dry and press before attaching them to the freezer paper but most China silk today works rather well. Try it on bleached muslin (Old pillow case) first if you want to see how the ink will look. Even if you have an Epson printer with the better ink it is advisable to spray the silk with a UV resistant spray to set the color before applying glue or handling with the natural oils in one's hands.

Barbara DeVilbiss
February 24, 2004

My Mother and Grandmother (who lived with us) quilted blankets from before I was born '43 up through the '60s. My parents were married in the 30's and money was tight, so my father made a quilting frame.

The quilting frame consisted of four boards (5/4" x 2 1/2") with 3/8" holes drilled every 6". Four chairs were set at the corners, and the frame was arranged on the backs of the chairs. The size was determined by shoving 3/8" dowels through both pieces at each corner. The backing and front (with the padding in between) was thumb-tacked to the frame and then it was rolled onto both ends. Work was started in the middle.

Ladies would sit at one or both ends and spend the entire afternoon (except for the obligatory coffee and cake breaks) sewing and chatting. It was unrolled from both ends as work progressed.
The dowels could be pulled out, and quilt rolled up and tucked away (usually behind the sofa) whenever necessary.

Tom THE tool man!
2/14/04
#205

Pleating your own-- easily done with a piece of ceiling tile covered with a square-lined paper topped by a piece of waxed paper. Pin your fabric (wet with hair spray or spray starch) to one side, put pins two squares over and draw them to the next line, repeat for the width of the drapery.

Let dry thoroughly. When dry, fasten to the back side of a cornice. This will result in softer pleats and that is often good. Too rigid draperies don't appeal to many people, but this will make nice ones and no hassle.

You can also stabilize a hunk of corrugated cardboard and use that as a pleater, too. I haven't tried it as I have all three sizes of pleaters, but if you will spray a few coats of polyurethane over the cardboard, that should stabilize it well enough to use. It won't last but for a few draperies as you will
probably put pin holes in it to hold the fabric in place, but would make an acceptable alternative to buying one.

My own preference would be to get the premade one. It will last forever. You can even put it in the dishwasher to clean off any dried-on lint or hairspray/starch. A good investment, just like your other tools.

Dottie in Tucson

2/16/04
# 210

Rocky Mount is an historic site near Johnson City, TN. It is a wonderful representation of frontier life in the late 1700's, with the staff re-enacting the family life of that period in Tennessee's history.

There is a quilting frame suspended from the ceiling in the main room of the family home, ready to be lowered so the women of the house can work around it. Above this room are sleeping quarters. The dining room is in a separate building, connected by a breezeway. The kitchen is in still another building, some distance away, as kitchens frequently caught fire! Rocky Mount is worth visiting, if you are in the area, and they have a very nice candlelight tour at Christmas time.

Linda Peterson in TN
2/14/04
#205

For Bobbie, and anyone else who is considering a roombox with a ceiling-suspended quilting frame, the following link: http://thelibrary.springfield.missouri.org/lochist/periodicals/bitters
weet/sp74j.htm talks about it in excellent detail and has a diagram (2nd image on the page) which links to a larger image detailing how the frame was constructed, it's dimensions for a double bed-sized quilt, along with the size of the lumber used. You'll surely want to print this out for reference.

Although this ceiling-suspended frame does not lower and raise on pullies, I imagine that would be easy to rig up that in miniature.

Bobbie also posted this query to the Petitpointers list, so please feel free to share this post in it's entirety with that list if wish.

Joy in Pointe Claire at http://MiniatureKnitting.com/

2/14/04
#205

Needlework Stretchers: I have bought every method of stretching needlework from L.A. to England. For very small work, one of my favorite clever suggestions I received was to make a thin wood (popsicle sticks?) frame, and secure the fabric *over* the frame with thumbtacks or running stitches.

Carolyn Cline in Los Angeles
02/02/04

Needlework Frames: Michaels has very small embroidery hoops (maybe 3" or so in diameter) that are quite inexpensive. I use these for small things like cross-stitch pillows or embroidered tablecloths and bedding.

They also have frames that are sold in separate parts: for example, you buy the spacers that have the wing nuts (the side pieces) separately from the dowels that you attach the canvas to and then roll up (the top and bottom pieces). If you buy the smallest of each of these components you can make a frame that is about 12" wide by 6" high (I'm really bad with remembering sizes, so I could be off some here -- don't be wed to my numbers) and is suitable for larger rugs and carpets in needlepoint. They may have smaller components, too, but I think I bought the smallest. I don't recall how much this cost me, but I'm certain it was under $20.

Susan Loeffler
Atlanta
01/31/04

Needlework Frames: Most of us who do miniature needlework mount the canvas or gauze in a frame. Usually, it's cardboard. Cut your gauze or canvas so that you have an inch of canvas/gauze border around what will be the finished size of the carpet. Bind the four edges with masking tape folded over them.

Find a piece of corrugated cardboard that will be big enough, and cut out a hole that will be about 1/2" bigger than the finished size of the carpet on all four sides, and then trim the cardboard so that it is 1-3" (this depends how big the carpet or work is, as well as what your own preference is) all around the hole. This leaves you with a "frame" for mounting the canvas or gauze. I use masking tape to mount the canvas or gauze to the cardboard, centered on the opening, but some people use staples (not too close to the workable stitching area).

With your piece mounted like this, it is always taut, and you can easily hold it with one hand while stitching with the other. Also, since you'll be handling only the frame, your work will stay cleaner.

Jonathan in Israel
01/31/04