The Dragon-Cat Jacket Embroidery, Part 2

Ah, hand embroidery! Who would have thought that it could be so much fun? I can't even call it work, not really. It's my favorite moment of the day. In the quiet evening, when all the anxieties and cares of the day are finally over, I sit in my favorite comfy chair in front of the TV and don't feel guilty about diving into the next mystery show because I'm not wasting time! It's my creative escape.

As I was finishing the back of my jacket with the Dragon Kitty happily floating in the middle of it, I had the idea to enhance the garment with some embroidery on the front as well. I thought it would be an interesting idea to have a dragon peeking out from the front pocket. I was also eager to try 3-dimensional embroidery and experiment with layering craft felt as the base for the stitching. And so, here are the results of my experiment.

I used the same pattern for the face and tail of the dragon and traced it onto a smaller piece of cloth. Then, I cut out the additional details for the forehead and nose to layer them on top. I glued the eyes to the lower layer to give them more depth. Next, I traced the pattern onto a piece of stabilizer and attached it to the felt. The biggest challenge was accurately putting all the pieces together and sewing them in place.

A helpful tip: avoid using glue to layer the pieces as it will cause the felt to thicken and make it difficult for the needle to pass through. Instead, hold the pieces in place with loose stitching. Trust me, I've tried both methods and this one works best.

Then, I started stitching adding the dark colors first. for this pattern, I went with two shades of brown and double floss for the base layer. It also helped to secure the stabilizer in place.                                                                                                                                         

A helpful tip: as you add your colors, remember about contrasting ones, such as blue and purple against yellows and oranges, this will create the illusion of depth 

Then,  I just kept adding colors,
going from dark to light. 
And here he is, the little guy!
The felt held the form very well under the stitching. 

In the last blog entry I talked about how to create an embroidery patch. You may check it out HERE

Even with the glue base, I would recommend stitching the patch in place, because the glue is not holding very well, especially after the wash.

The tail, paws, and ears are going through the same transformation.

And here he is, peeking from the pocket! with the tail hanging out too!

Mark is such a handsome model! 

 

Please, let me know if you have any questions or want to share your own experiences! Leave me comments below and follow for the updates on the blog. I would love the feedback.