with a stiletto. The leaves should be made with a single railway stitch. Fig. 21 shows the manner of working this stitch in connection
Fig. 21.
with herring-bone. The centre of the flower is worked in French knots.
A SHOE BAG.
Cut two pieces of ticking, one seventeen and a hall inches long by fifteen wide, the other eleven inches long by twenty wide. On the longest piece, which is the back of the bag, the braid need only be put on for seven or eight inches, as the longer part is hidden by the front piece. Having stitched on red braid on the alternate white stripes, work the uncovered white stripes with fancy stitches, arranging the colors as follows:— First, yellow; second, brown; third, green; fourth, brown; fifth-yellow; sixth, blue. Now begin again with yellow, and repeat the colors in the same order.
Work the stripes in herring-bone, feather, and other fancy stitches. Bind the top of the short piece with braid, and stitch a piece of braid across the bottom of the work on the longer piece to conceal the raw edges of the work. Divide each piece into three equal parts, and baste the front to the back at these divisions, stitching them firmly down. Then lay the fulness thus formed into three box-plaits, forming three pockets, and baste the bottom edges together. Bind the whole bag round with braid, and make three loops by which to hang it up.
Handsome chair and table-covers, bracket and mantel draperies, can be made of ticking by using narrow velvet and embroidery silk instead of braid and worsted. For a table cover, work a square piece for the centre. The border should be worked in long strips, each as long as the side of the centre piece, and twice the width of the strip over. Sew the long strips to the centre piece, letting it project an equal distance at either end. Baste the corners together with a slanting seam, which will make the border fit perfectly smooth. Cut away the superfluous cloth and stitch the seams firmly; cover the joining of the border to the centre with velvet, and finish the edge with a chenille fringe, or with a row of velvet.
Catch-all bags made of four pieces, square at the upper end, and cut to a point at the bottom, are very useful hung near a sewing machine. They should be finished with a tassel from the point at the bottom, and kept open by a piece of rattan or wire run into a sheathing at the top.
Fig. 22 gives a good idea of the plainer kind of ticking work. Where the stripes to be worked are wide enough
Fig. 22.
flowers worked in railway stitch may be used. Some of the French tickings come in stripes of varying width. A few stitches useful in this work are here described.
Tête de Bœuf—is so named from its fancied resemblance to a cow's head with the horns attached. To work it mark very lightly a line down the centre of the stripe, or run a basting thread to mark it. Make two slanting stitches meeting at the bottom on the central line. Bring out your needle (after putting it through to the back in making the second slanting stitch), near the bottom of the left hand stitch and on the upper side. Holding your thread as if making a chain stitch, put your needle in at the same position on the right hand side, and bring it to the front again on the central line about one quarter of an inch below the slanting stitches. Put your needle to the back of the work just below the chain stitch, thus holding it in position. Repeat this stitch at regular intervals.
Wheat Ear,—This is worked on a straight central line. Work a chain stitch (rather long), and take an upward slanting on either side. In making the slanting stitches, bring the needle out inside the chain stitch.
Ship Ladder. — Make a" straight stitch a quarter of an inch in length; bring out your needle on the right hand side a little above where it went in, and one quarter of an inch off. Put it in on the left hand of the straight stitch, a little below and about a quarter of an inch away. Bring the needle out at the end of the straight stitch and repeat.
Lattice Stitch. — This is useful for filling rather wide spaces. Work five slanting stitches across the stripe, about a quarter of an inch apart, and cross them by five stitches worked in the opposite direction, interlacing the threads as you work. Miss a quarter of an inch and repeat.
Persian Cross-Stitch. — This is a long slanting stitch crossed by one one half as long.
WORK BASKET IN TICKING WORK. (Fig. 23.)
Cut four pieces of ticking, shaped as in the illustration; in the model these pieces are eight inches long measuring from the point, and the cardboard foundation is ten inches square, but with the corners rounded off. Having worked your ticking, sew it on, together with a silk inner bag, to which the ticking work must be caught by carefully hidden stitches. Work a handle and fasten on. The fancy edge is crocheted from silk as follows:— Crochet a foundation row of the necessary length; then work—
1st. Row: 9 chain, pass over four loops, one double in the next. Repeat.
Fig. 23.
2d Row: Three double in the three centre stitches of the nine-chain, three picots (of five-chain, one single in the first.) Repeat.
PAINTING IN OILS.
Color, however brilliant or charming, can never disguise bad drawing, nor will time, which may tone down and mellow too glaring or vivid coloring, lend any disguise to faults of drawing. An old Italian proverb may be freely translated: — "If time corrects painting, it does nothing for drawing. " But if you wish to begin painting, you need not necessarily wait till you are a proficient with your pencil. Good drawing may be learnt as well with the brush as in any other way; and in fact, the artist must learn to draw with his brush, that is, to produce the right effects of light and shade, true perspective, etc. Good lessons are, of course, of inestimable value, but many have done much for themselves by study and assiduous practice.
As for the outfit required, it need not necessarily be a very expensive one. If you can manage to have a room to yourself, however small, so much the better. Darken all the windows but the one at which you have your easel. A northern exposure is to be preferred, as the light is more even. If painting from nature, the lower part of the window should be darkened, in order to give the proper effects of light and shade. Your palette should be light and fit your hand comfortably. Nos. 2, 4, 6, and 9, flat red sable brushes, one flat bristle brush, and one badger blender No. 4, will be a good assortment to begin with, which can be added to as you wish. It is well, however, to have two or three No. 6 brushes, as that size is constantly needed. Get the best brushes, as it is very unsatisfactory to work with poor tools. For the same reason, get Windsor & Newton's paints, which are more reliable than the American. A good selection of colors would be the following: —
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*Silver White.
Yellow Ochre.
Light Cadmium.
Medium Cadmium.
Orange Cadmium.
*Light Red.
*Vermillion.
Madder Lake.
Rose Madder.
*Indian Red.
Cobalt.
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