Advent Calendar

Twelve easy to work angels have lined up for “Ring a Ring o’ Roses.”

The wreath design was stitched on gray linen with a 13.5/cm thread count.
The project was designed and embroidered by Hermine Schwehn.

Each apron got a different quick to work pattern.
Dresses and heads were outlined only with Coral Knot stitches.
The hairstyles were worked with different combinations of Blanket stitch eyelets and half-eyelet scallops.

Circles with needle lace fillings represent the wings.

The contact from one angel to the next was made with a curved double line of Coral Knot stitches with Satin stitches between.

Two little angels look at their stars.

The design measures about 8 cm X 9 cm. It was stitched on handwoven linen with a 17/cm thread count.

The stars were stitched with gold metallic thread.

The hairstyles are different worked with random straight stitches.

One dress consists of three Satin stitches alternating with one Cross stitch worked in staggered rows.

The Limet pattern Rose stitches (Basic Principles of Schwalm Whitework and Lesson #2) is worked in the other dress.

This pair of cute little angels is perfect for seasonal greeting cards.

But it is also nice and easy to mount these angels in an embroidery hoop for a casual holiday display.

I can also imagine some of these angels walking in a row as if in a lantern procession.

This cute, easy and quick to stitch, design is – with variations – also part of the just published collection Advent Calendar 2018.

Floating angels keep the key to heaven.

The design border is about 6 cm high. It was stitched on Weddigen linen with a 13.5/cm thread count.

Into the openwork grid, the angel motifs were embroidered with weaving stitches. Because this embroidery will be used to cover a storm lamp, it is important to make the weaving stitches especially dense.
At first I thought to let the angels remain as they are. Experimenting in a computer simulation, I added the design of the key to see how it would look.

I thought it looked good and so embroidered the key with Rose stitches. But I reworked these stitches because I did not like them. I finally worked the key design with weaving stitches; this was much better.

Two more pairs of angels were added.

The short ends of the cover were sewn together, and it was placed over the glass lamp. A yellow transparent paper was fitted between glass and cover.

Even though it looks nice in the daylight, the warm glow when it is lit in the dark is beautiful.

Tips for creating such a cover for a storm lamp – with an openwork grid – will be featured in a future blog article. Please look for it next year on my blog.

It was a little bit difficult to find a matching hairstyle for the angel without frills.

The design measures about 6.5 cm X 10 cm. It was stitched on Weddigen linen with a 13.5/cm thread count.

The simple shapes are quick and easy to fill.

The wings were filled with Diagonal Cross Filling stitch (Basic Principles of Schwalm Whitework and Lesson #2), worked in a grid cut 1, leave 3.

The dress was filled with Tulips – staggered (Limetrosen I), worked in a grid cut 1, leave 3 vertically and cut 1, leave 5 horizontally. This pattern emphasizes the clarity of the shape.

For the hair strands of coton à broder No. 16 were drawn to the front along the outline.

Such strands can be styled differently – out to the sides,

up to the top, styled with a knot or a ponytail.

I chose long “hair” falling down and a fringe (North America: bangs). I basted the fringe in place with short Back stitches near the outline. The face was embroidered after finishing the hairstyle.

My finished piece was stretched in an old embroidery hoop for hanging.

A typical candlelabra angel from the Ore Mountains was the inspiration for this design by Irmgard Mengel.

The design measures about 13.5 cm X 21 cm. It was stitched on linen with a 13.5/cm thread count.

The hair area was large enough to work a filling pattern into it – chosen was a variation of Net (Limetrosen I), worked in a grid cut 1, leave 4 horizontally and cut 1, leave 3 vertically.
The crown was too small for a filling pattern needing a grid. So in the top middle one Little Crown (Limetrosen I) was worked. The pattern was completed with French Knots (Early Schwalm Whitework), worked with thick thread and four wraps each.

The wings were filled with a variation of “Federkleid” (= Feathers Limetrosen II).

The sleeves were filled with Single Faggot (Openwork Pattern Samplers) in a grid cut 1, leave 2.
The candle was decorated with some Four-Sided stitches without thread withdrawal.
The candleholder consists of one half-eyelet scallop.

In the waistcoat threads were withdrawn differently – cut 1, leave 3 horizontally and cut 1, leave 3 vertically, but only at the center axis and once each to the left and to the right of it. The rows were worked always from right to left, starting with Wave stitches (Basic Principles of Schwalm Whitework and Lesson #1), then one part of Magic (Limetrosen I), and then Wave stitches again.

It was best to decorate the small sections of the skirt with Wave stitches. This stitch is modest in appearance and good for easily filling pointed shapes. To match the pattern of the waistcoat without using the exact same pattern, the skirt’s threads were withdrawn by cutting 1 and leaving 4.
In contrast to the inconspicuous skirt pattern, the apron was filled with a prominent pattern – “Schornstein” (= chimney Limetrosen II).

The skirt hem was decorated with half-eyelet scallops.

Two of these candelabra angels are a beautiful design for long, narrow table runner. In combination with a Peahole hem, the design gets an especially elegant appearance.

To match the seasonal design, I embroidered little stars into the corners. One can find this and many other possibilities for filling corners of Peahole hems in Openwork Pattern Samplers.

This gorgeous design is available pre-transferred twice on 16 threads/cm linen cut to measure 45 cm X 90 cm. The price is €22.50 (includes 19 % sales tax) plus shipping, or €18.91 plus shipping for customers outside the EU.

Please email me with your request.