Seductive

© Sybille Sterk
Do not copy or publish this in any way, shape or form without my written permission.

Another image in my Seduction series. This time I went for an elegant pinup look.

All images/textures/brushes my own or bought. Edited with Photoshop.

All my images are available on Redbubble, Artflakes, Society6 and Bluecanvas as prints, cards, posters, skins for laptops, Blackberry, iPhones and other phones (for the skins go to Bluecanvas). You can now also get most of my images on cushion covers (go to Society6 for these).

 

Magnolia

 

... another of my favourite Spring blossoms. You can't beat magnolia for sheer gorgeousness...

Made with my own textures and photo. :-) I've added depth and colour with brushes in Photoshop.

Sorry, there is no greeting card available - the proportions of the image don't work with the greeting card dimensions. If you'd like it as a greeting card, send me a mail and I'll upload a version specially for greeting cards to Redbubble. :-)

What Heart Are You? - No 2: Patchwork Heart

The second in the series.

Is your heart made up of little patches - memories, stories, pains, and joys? Do you remember THAT Summer, THAT particular place in the woods, the time when...? Then this heart is for you.

Tip: The present is a pleasant place to be, don't miss it.


Check out my the first post to download a copy of the heart sketch to create your very own heart.

Patterns used in the making of this heart are all mine. The stitching was created using Redhead-Stock's Photoshop brushes.
I've used various of my own photographs for the background and textures plus some of Sirius-SDZ's textures (sorry, I just like them and they are sooo versatile).

Renaissance - Final Painting in the L'Oiseau series

This definitely is the final in my L'Oiseau series. LOL I know I've said this before, but this definitely is it.

It refers to the following lines:

'Between the conception    
And the creation    
Between the emotion
And the response    
Falls the Shadow.'

of T.S. Eliot's poem 'The Hollow Men' and was inspired by it.

There are four more images in the series:

The first in the series is Panier-Avec-L'Oiseau

 

The second in the series is Tête-à-Tête

 

The third in the series is Métamorphose

The fourth in the series is Fin 

 

A brief explanation might be in order:

- the nest is inspired by an egret's nest.
- the flowers are brambles/blackberries,
- at the back you can faintly see a spiral and pearl pattern I created for my Goth Scrap(k)it.
- the sky/clouds is a photograph which I've used as a texture
- the leaves framing all the pictures are photographs that I've edited and arranged to frame the image.

The series is about recognising yourself for who you are and growing because of it, change and rebirth as the new person.

Daisy, Daisy - Wrist Warmers and Hat Set

Daisy, Daisy.... well, if this set doesn't cheer up the bleak Winter months I don't know what will!

:-)


A lovely beanie style hat with a cute flower on the side and a pair of long wrist warmers that definitely will keep out all the nasty drafts. The set has been knitted (and crocheted) with Louisa Harding Willow Tweed in pale blue and Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino in cream. Both are high quality yarns and wear fantastically well. The Louisa Harding is a mix of alpacca, merino and silk, the Debbie Bliss yarn is a mix of cashmere, merino, and microfibre.

The pattern for both the hat and the wrist warmers is all my own design. I am going to try and offer it as a download sometimes soon. :-)

Below you can see some of the details (from left to right) - flower on the hat, crown of the hat, cable on the inside wrist of the wrist warmers (to keep them nice and tight around your wrist) and flower and cable/bobble pattern on the front of the wrist warmers.

Here's the wrist warmer on:


The inside where you can see the nice snug fit around the wrist:


The inside of the wrist warmer laid out:


Once the set has been washed and blocked it will be available in my Etsy shop... unless you snap it up by sending me an e-mail.

Quick update - Featured in the Treasury and Presents

It's been a busy few days - working on the allotment all weekend to get the soil ready and planted, knitting like mad to finish a birthday present and so on, and on....

However, I did have a nice surprise as my Dragon Lace wrist warmers are currently featured in a list for the Treasury West on Etsy. I am very pleased about that. :-)



Here are - as promised - the pictures of the wrist warmers and shrug I made for my sister. I hope they've arrived now.


Vanilla Wrist Warmers

My sister wanted a pair of white wrist wamers. I thought really, really white would be totally impractical so made them in Sirdar's Just Soya in a vanilla cream colour.


They are very simply knitted with a ribbed pattern and one single cable to hold their shape nicely around the wrist.



A few buttons in my sister's favourite colours jazz them up a bit.


The Just Soya yarn (really, it is made from soya) is one of the nicest yarns I've knitted so far. It's soft and holds its shape nicely and it looks great knitted up. I can only recommend it.


Emerald Shrug

It took forever and a day to find the right colour in cotton for this shrug. I ordered a few green yarns from the net before I managed to find this on www.yarnstick.com.

The shrug is knitted starting with the cuff, then all the way up to the shoulder with half the back. Then I did the same for the other side and grafted them together with Kitchener stitch.

The cuffs have button holes for the satin ribbon laced through it, which looks pretty but also means the cuffs can be adjusted for various wrist sizes.

The back also has button holes and satin ribbon laced through. Shrugs of this design often slightly balloon out at the back and this allows a nice snug fit that can be adjusted as required.

The collar was knitted separately by picking up the stitches all around the opening (and took forever as there were so many stitches, especially as the stitches increased every so often), but again, it looks nice and makes it easier to wear.

The yarn is the most gorgeous (true) emerald green and was held double. It was lovely to knit with and drapes nicely.

I am currently working simultaneously on a present for a friend and a top for myself.

Nest Brooch

I definitely had fun with this! I have been admiring the 'nest jewellery' I'd seen on Etsy, but something never felt quite right. Nests are supposed to be messy, there needs to be camouflage, something to soften the twigs, and something to keep the eggs warm and cosy. But all the nests I saw were bare and cold. :-(

So here's my take on a 'nest'.


I wanted it to be as natural as possible and to fit right in with it's surroundings, hence the pictures of the brooch on some bay leaves (above) and some rosemary (below).

And here it is again on my garden table:


I've used lots of different materials. The nest itself was made from antiqued copper wire, which I have combined with green Habu steel yarn (100% wool over steel yarn), Habu paper moire in a mossy green/brown colour and teeny tiny guinea fowl feathers.

The eggs are freshwater peals which have been threaded into the nest, so they won't fall out. The nest has been placed on a brass filigree (which you can't see unless you're looking at the back of the brooch). There are more guinea fowl feathers on one side and a black marabou feather on the other side.

The nest and feathers sit securely on a brooch pin, which is just under 4cm (1.5"). The brooch itself is 12.5cm (approx. 5") wide and the little nest is 2.5cm (1") in diameter.

Despite the amount of wire I've used the brooch is still quite light. I wouldn't use it on your best silk shirt, but it's fine on something a little more substantial.

Nest and Spring in Paris will be available in my Etsy shop later this week. I am determined to upload some more items to my Etsy shop this weekend. However, if you can't wait, the brooch is £15 + P&P.

Spring in Paris

Spring is here - three days (at least) of sunshine and here's my offering to the goddess of Spring, Persephone:

Spring in Paris

This is another long necklace, but this time I included a clasp so it can be worn wrapped around your neck twice.

And doesn't it look just like Spring in Paris? It's elegant, romantic and a little whimsical with a shabby chic edge to it. Lipstick and sugar pinks, pale fresh Spring green, soft cream with a floral theme set off against stark black and with the vintage touch of the verdigrised filigrees.

I've added another organza/tulle flower, with layers in mint green, dark brown, burgundy, pale pink and cream and lovely gorgeous watery green Miyuki beads.


The flower is set onto a filigree with three more watery green Miyuki beads as a counterweight and so it looks pretty just in case it does turn the wrong way round. The filigree has been hand painted with a verdigris finish in acrylic paints and covered with two layers of special varnish.



Below you can see the details:

Little filigree hearts - painted verdigris - set between beautiful floral fabric beads that have gorgeous leafy bead caps in matte black. The fabric beads have come all the way from France again from the little beadhive shop on Etsy.

The pale green beads are amazonite rounds and the black ones are gunmetal beads.

The sugary pink beads are reconstituted pink turqoise and the bright lipstick pink ones are trade beads from Africa.


I've used two types of chain: one is a gorgeous matte black chain (new) that has little crescents strung together with (soldered) jump rings. The other chain is a vintage chain with a very dark patina and teeny tiny links.

The chain has a dangle that overhangs the small clasp with more watery green Miyuki beads.

I've also made a commission, but since it's for Mother's Day I won't show it on here till next Monday... just in case.

More Scarves - Blame the Weather

As promised, here are pictures of my recent crop of scarves.

This is a picture of the teal wild flower scarf as it will look when being worn. Lighting conditions weren't brilliant today and it was a little windy, but I think you'll get the idea. :-)





French Navy Blue Chenille Cowl/Neck Warmer

This is a real Winter warmer. The cowl can be worn double or single or use the extra length to wear it like a hood. It'll definitely keep you snug and looking pretty.


The cowl has been made from gorgeous thick French navy blue chenille with four cables going up the sides and front and back and 3 crocheted roses adding extra glamour.

Here's a picture of the cowl worn double.


Here's a picture of the cowl worn single with the extra length creating a snug collar.


Here's the best picture of the roses I managed to take. For some reason the velvety shimmer of the chenille is very difficult to capture on camera.



Rose Blossom Scarf

This is just the prettiest fluffiest lightest scarf ever!

The main part of the scarf was crocheted in Debbie Bliss Soho (thick slubby yarn) in shades of pink, moss green, creamy white and duck egg blue. Very subtle colour and very soft 100% wool.


Above is the scarf wrapped around several times, below wrapped around once. It's quite long and can be worn almost like a lariat and because it's so light you can wear it inside to jazz up a simple jumper or outside to keep you warm and looking glamorous.



The flowers were knitted in Rowan Kidsilk (Haze, Starlight and Aura) in silvery grey, soft mauve pink, and white with silver accents.

The leaves were all hand knitted as well.

There are 15 flowers and 6 leaves on the scarf.

All three scarves will be available soon in my Etsy shop.

Fairy Queen Dew Drop Tiara

Sorry for the long name, but it just needed it. :-) Because it's what I think it looks like. LOL
See for yourself:




This is my latest venture - wedding 'decorations' for the bride or ladies who go to balls and proms. I've used the most delightful, delicious Japanese yarn from a secret place on the internet. Na, only joking, Caroline told me about it. If you fancy some yourself, check this out: K1Yarns.

The first yarn I used was Habu, Silk and Stainless Steel, in silver. It's difficult to work with, very tangly - with crochet and beads at least, I think it may be easier if you knit it - but the effect is beautiful. It's shimmery, it's soft and if tightly knitted or crocheted it's sculptural as well. The second yarn I used was Habu, Paper Moire, in moccha. This is lovely to work with. I love the natural feel of it - almost like a vine.



I started off with a tiara base in silver plate. I then added the first layer: a filigree web of the silk and stainless steel yarn with beads (Japanase Toho beads in creamy, shimmery pearl, little Miyuki drops in pearl, teeny tiny Japanese seed beads in creamy buttermilk, and more Miyuki drops in crystal bronze lined).


The next 'layer' was a frame work made from silver plated wire. This consequently was then covered with the paper moire yarn, one, to hide the frame work, but also because it gives it a softer more tactile feel.


The final layer was done with the silk and stainless steel yarn and more beads, this time Swarovski and Czech faceted beads to add a bit of glimmer and glamour.



The colours of the tiara are perfect for any hair colour. The shape of the tiara works either with a simple or short hair styles as it can be worn like an alice band, or it can be draped around a 'piled-up on top' hair style.

The tiara (even if I say so myself) is subtly elegant and romantic and works for the young bride as well as the mature bride. Or just wear it because it's so pretty! :-)

Available soon in my Etsy shop!

Today's Efforts - Green Hemp Bracelet

With one thing and another - like making flapjacks and sorting out the cupboard under the sink in the bathroom - this has only just been finished.

I thought after all the hemp necklaces I made it was time to make a bracelet. However, I wanted to make something that is different, soft to wear and pretty. I can't quite get away from the seaside theme though, and with all the new sea shells I've been buying, this is the result:

I have used lovely soft green hemp, a selection of small sea shells (the real thing, not plastic), and a few pink beads. I love this kind of leafy green in combination with pink. One of my all time favourite combinations - like turquoise/teal and deep red. The bracelet fits snugly around the wrist and due to the shells makes a pretty soft jingling noise. Comfortable to wear but a real show stopper because it's so unusual. I don't think I've seen anything like it, and I do look at a lot of jewellery.