I have lots of thoughts and ideas to share on this subject so today will be Part One of Creating with Color.
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*Opinion by Brother Expert Consultant

Are you inspired by the colors in creation? This big blue sky sprinkled with fall colored leaves is a color mix tailor made to mimic with machine embroidery threads! Inspired by this photo, I just finished a simple fall project that will debut for you on the blog.brothersews.com site early in October. I can only give you a hint for today. I must withhold the nitty gritty details until the projects are officially released.

Below you see another color combo with a mix of colors common in earthy, natural surroundings.

This is the Chic Suede Wrap from Wrapped in Embroidery. The color of the designs on the front borders and the back yoke all started with inspiration from the silky scarf. 

Selecting just three colors from the print; a deep apricot, pale olive, and deep olive, I then found an off white suede that would stand out on the olive wrap fabric. By the way, both of these fabrics are dress weight suede with a luxurious look and soft drape. Faux suede is truly one of my favorite fabrics to use as a base for embroidery.

This is an example of a method I employ often. Choose a base fabric color, and then find an accessory or coordinating wardrobe accent and build from there. In this case I knew I wanted olive but had no plans for other colors until the silky scarf came into play.

Lets talk more about creating with color.  In some ways I consider myself more or less "color challenged." Whether it's combining fabrics for a quilt or choosing a totally new color palette for an embroidery design, I have struggled with choosing color combinations outside of my wardrobe basics. As a long time a dedicated garment enthusiast I am used to matching to the point of extreme perfectionism. Thread, zippers, button, trims, etc., all have prominent attention on a garment so unless you are attempting to create contrast they must match and match well. My make sure it matches habit sometimes stifles me. There is a time and place for tone on tone embroidery or subtle stitches (that's coming in part two), but many times embroidery is a stand out feature whether it is on a garment, quilt, craft time or object for home decor. Colors that pop out and have vibrancy are attention getters when it comes to embroidery but choosing "outside the box" color palettes is harder for me than matching.

This example is from a previous post on blog.brothersews.com. Click on the image below to view the original embroidered towel project.

The original colors of the design are quite different from the final outcome.

Again, I looked to the fabric for color cues. Fabric prints are designed by artists trained in the science of color or at least individuals who have a sense of color beauty far beyond my own. I found the towels first, and then hunted for complimentary printed fabrics. The resulting combination made for a matched set with lots of eye-catching style!

​Next time we'll talk more about tone-on-tone combinations and going with colors that speak to you, either subtly or by shouting :-) I promise you that all of this is very unscientific and non-artsy as I have no background in science or arts a profession, just many days of playing in my sewing spaced making the most of what the modern world of sewing and machine embroidery have to offer!

Are you inspired by the outdoors or possibly by browsing the aisles at your favorite fabric store? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comment section below.

 

Volume 106 of Designs in Machine Embroidery magazine is in print and also available online for current "hard copy" subscribers. 

In this issue my friend Reen Wilcoxson has an article (and a FREE embroiderygarden.com Design download) for her ever-popular In-The-Hoop cord wraps. Speaking of friends, Marie Zinno wrote detailed steps in her Hemline to Hipline article so you could embroider your own designer jeans. In her continuing T-Shirt saga ​Denise Holguin has done it again . . . taken a plain T-shirt and added a Bright Idea to turn a top into work of art!

​I'm happy to call three of these ladies friends. I know firsthand that they each love sharing their ideas and instructions so you can put them into practice and make pretty things with your own personal embroidery machine!
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Personally, I consider it an honor to write for this magazine! Each issue features innovative ideas and includes something for everyone who is interested in embellishing with machine embroidery. The September/October issue is so full of beautiful pieces and fun projects that I'm tempted to write a review of the entire magazine! However, time and space are short so today I'll just hit some highlights and give you a few tips to complement the dress article I contributed for V106.

I'll start by saying that I always have far more information I'd like to add to each article but I am of course only allowed so many words and pages. However, thanks to the never-ending pages here on letsgosew.com I can provide extra goodies and supply you with added tips and techniques that would be too lengthy to fit in the confines of a magazine article. Lets start with the pattern featured for my Connection Perfection dress. Pretty enough for a princess and flattering for ALL figure types, you simply can't go wrong with a princess seamed pattern! Multiple seams mean opportunities for taking in or letting out as necessary.

I used View D and raised the neckline about an inch for a little less scoop. Now for the good news/bad news - M9026 has apparently hit the "out of print" list. The good news is the fact that princess seam patterns, both in knits and woven styles, are always available from one of the major pattern companies.

Sure, you could embellish the front area of a full front dress by blocking off a center section but by picking a princess seam pattern you can work with a smaller section of fabric.


​This makes the whole hooping process easier as you are not struggling with a large expanse of fabric.

Here you can see the markings for the neckline area. I started with an oversized piece of knit jersey stabilized with fusible tricot interfacing. Then I outlined the entire center section. In the article you'll see how I used a high tech built-in feature on the Brother Dream Machine. 

To match the embroidery I cut strips of bright pink thin knit and inserted them into the adjoining seams, sandwiching the strip between the layers of the seam like you would if you were adding piping. Voila! The color scheme ties together nicely and the dress gets an upgrade with trim that matches perfectly. Ahhh yes, embroidering by machine and then sewing from scratch provides endless opportunities for customizing and creating a unique finished garment! I hope you'll be inspired to create something special yourself.

​Feel free to leave comments and questions. I'd love to know if you have embroidered continuous connected designs with your embroidery machine! Was your placement perfect or do you still need help with this technique?