Leaf Necklace

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Leaf Necklace

For tribal style accessories this season we have this stunning eco inspired necklace created using machine embroidery, beads and wire.

This necklace uses a simple piece of machine stitching which can be used in many different ways: either thread your leaves onto a necklace as shown, or glue them to a plain lamp shade to add a touch of spring to your room.

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	materials required

	Anchor Alcazar machine embroidery thread: a selection of spools in greens and browns Anchor Alcazar Metallic: 1 spool of 9310 Copper 1 pack of Aquasol Romeo water soluble fabric Prym extra-fine water-soluble marker pen (Trick marker) (ref: 611 808) Length of copper wire (6mm) and fine green wire (No. 38) for necklace (optional) Selection of green beads Round-nosed pliers

	instructions

	The Brown Leaf Trace the Brown Leaf Diagram onto a piece of Aquasol Romeo using a water-soluble marker pen or print it directly onto the Romeo following instructions on “Using Aquasol water-soluble fabrics". Cut off lengths of Alcazar Metallic and randomly sandwich them between 2 layers of Aquasol. Set the machine for free-machine stitching. If your machine has a quilting foot, or Trapunto foot, you will find it easier to stitch using this. Wind brown thread onto the bottom bobbin and also use it as the top bobbin thread. Stitch all the way round the outline of the leaf. Keeping the frame held between both hands, start by following the circles, gently manoeuvring the frame. Work over each circle 3 or 4 times, ensuring that the stitching lines intersect as you go along to create a mesh effect. Do not worry if you go off the line as this will not show in your final design. If the fabric tears, simply add a “patch” of more Romeo and continue sewing. Transfer the relevant design as before onto the top layer of Romeo. Insert some lengths of metallic threads in between the 2 layers and insert into hoop. Stitch all the way round the outline of the leaf as before then work some random stitching inside the outline, then work the veins of the leaves, Work around the outline again to secure the mesh. The Green Leaf Transfer the relevant design as before onto the top layer of Romeo. Insert some lengths of green threads in between the 2 layers and insert into hoop. Work the same way as the small leaves, ensuring that all the stitches intersect to form a mesh. Work 10 green leaves and 8 brown leaves. Only cut out the leaves once all of them have been stitched.

	cutting out the leaves

	To cut out the leaves, trim the Romeo to within 2-3 mm of each outline. Place the leaf in a bowl of warm water and leave for a couple of minutes to start dissolving the fabric. Do not rinse out all of the fabric, but allow some to be left to create stiffness. Leave to dry on a flat surface such as a baking tray. To add curl to the larger leaves, mould them to a glass bottle and leave to dry. Once dry, sew a few beads onto the green leaf to add sparkle. Bend the copper wire as shown so that there is a V-shape at the centre front. Thread the leaves onto the wire. Now create a series of loops just above the leaves as shown in photograph. To form the small loops, bend the wire around a skewer or knitting needle. Thread the smaller leaves onto each side, alternating colours. Trim the wire to desired length and bend the ends back using round-nosed pliers to form the fastening. Cut a length of green wire (approx. 40 cm long). Thread on a bead, fold the end over 2 cm at bead and twist a few times to secure in place. Trim off excess wire at short end. Thread on more beads. Start winding the green wire around the copper wire and leaves, spacing leaves uniformly. Fasten off wire by twisting around bead again. Trim off excess wire. Using Aquasol water-soluble fabrics In the Aquatics range of water-soluble fabrics, there are 4 basic types, all of which can be printed on with an ink-jet printer: Aquasol This looks like lightweight interfacing and can be used in multiple layers for trapping fabric snippets and for embroidering on voiles, chiffons, etc. Romeo This is like heavy duty clear polythene and is great for sculpting with. Paper This looks and feels like parchment – ideal for patchwork and templates. Bond This is sticky-back – ideal for stabilising difficult fabrics and small pieces. When stitching on water-soluble fabrics, do not worry about creating folds, puckering or creases as these will wash out. When using Aquatics fabrics for free machining, make sure that you create your foundation stitches first, then go over these to create a mesh. Work the basic outline shape of the mesh by simply moving the embroidery hoop backwards and forwards, or left to right. If you want to print off your design straight from the site, simply stick the Aquatics fabric onto a piece of thin card and print as normal, setting the print quality to “draft” to avoid wasting ink.

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