finishing sampler as bellpull

I have just finished my Heirloom Christmas Sampler and I think I want to
finish it as a bell pull. Has anyone done this? How would you reccommend
finishing it? (It is the long version of the red and green
http://www.victoriasampler.com/Catal...mChristmas.asp)
I know I will need to line it, but what else??? TIA

Addie

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From: "Addie"

I have just finished my Heirloom Christmas Sampler and I think I want to
finish it as a bell pull. Has anyone done this? .......
http://www.victoriasampler.com/Catal...mChristmas.asp
.......

I have done tons of bellpulls and each one is different :-). I took a look
at the link and have a few ideas that you might want to consider. Also, I am
sure that someone here will have a link to a site that give good sewing
directions and diagrams.
You will need to line the piece and, with all that hardanger and pulled
thread work, it will need a backing to show through the open areas. When you
work with a backing, it's easiest (IMNSHO) to securely baste the backing and
the needlework fabrics together so that you can handle them as one piece of
fabric.
Next you need to determine what you will hang the bellpull from. If it's an
ordinary type of metal or wood hanger then you will need to make some sort of
casing for the hanger to fit through. A regular casing can be done in two ways
-- folding back the top of the lined needlework and stitching it down to form a
casing -- OR -- adding a narrow piece of fabric to the back at the top to act
as a sleeve.
If you want to hang the piece from something more exotic like MLI's Celtic
Banner which is hung from a tree branch, then you will need to add either
hanging tabs (of an appropriate length) or ribbons-cording to tie around the
hanger. Actually, you can do all of the above for regular bellpull hardware if
you have something with a pretty hanging bar.
You can finish the bottom in several ways. There is the straight ___
bottom, V shaped bottom, U shaped bottom or, what I think would look nice, a
UUU or VVV bottom. Also, do you want to have cording , lace,trim of some sort
around the edges or hang tassels from the bottom? If you were to go with the
VVV bottom, I would steer clear of any cording! It's a BEAR to get around all
those points unless you have had a lot of experience dealing with that type of
sewing.
That ought to be enough overload of info to get you totally confused :-)))!
I am sure you will get tons of other really good suggestions. Good luck & keep
us posted on your progress OK?? CiaoMeow ^;;^
..


PAX, Tia Mary ^;;^ Queen of Kitties
Angels can't show their wings on earth but nothing was ever said about their
WHISKERS!!
Nothing is complete without a few cat hairs!

That's perfectly clear. I'm reasonably accomplished at sewing, but I've
never done a bell pull. I probably wouldn't have thought of sewing a
backing to the linen and then lining it.

I hadn't thought yet about piping or cording - thought I'd get everyone's
opinions first

Addie

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"Tia Mary-remove nekoluvr to reply " wrote in
message ...
From: "Addie"

I have just finished my Heirloom Christmas Sampler and I think I want to
finish it as a bell pull. Has anyone done this? .......
http://www.victoriasampler.com/Catal...mChristmas.asp
......

I have done tons of bellpulls and each one is different :-). I took a
look
at the link and have a few ideas that you might want to consider. Also,
I am
sure that someone here will have a link to a site that give good sewing
directions and diagrams.
You will need to line the piece and, with all that hardanger and
pulled
thread work, it will need a backing to show through the open areas. When
you
work with a backing, it's easiest (IMNSHO) to securely baste the backing
and
the needlework fabrics together so that you can handle them as one piece
of
fabric.
Next you need to determine what you will hang the bellpull from. If
it's an
ordinary type of metal or wood hanger then you will need to make some sort
of
casing for the hanger to fit through. A regular casing can be done in two
ways
-- folding back the top of the lined needlework and stitching it down to
form a
casing -- OR -- adding a narrow piece of fabric to the back at the top to
act
as a sleeve.
If you want to hang the piece from something more exotic like MLI's
Celtic
Banner which is hung from a tree branch, then you will need to add either
hanging tabs (of an appropriate length) or ribbons-cording to tie around
the
hanger. Actually, you can do all of the above for regular bellpull
hardware if
you have something with a pretty hanging bar.
You can finish the bottom in several ways. There is the straight ___
bottom, V shaped bottom, U shaped bottom or, what I think would look nice,
a
UUU or VVV bottom. Also, do you want to have cording , lace,trim of some
sort
around the edges or hang tassels from the bottom? If you were to go with
the
VVV bottom, I would steer clear of any cording! It's a BEAR to get around
all
those points unless you have had a lot of experience dealing with that
type of
sewing.
That ought to be enough overload of info to get you totally confused
:-)))!
I am sure you will get tons of other really good suggestions. Good luck &
keep
us posted on your progress OK?? CiaoMeow ^;;^
.


PAX, Tia Mary ^;;^ Queen of Kitties
Angels can't show their wings on earth but nothing was ever said about
their
WHISKERS!!
Nothing is complete without a few cat hairs!

From: "Addie"

......... I hadn't thought yet about piping or cording - thought I'd get
everyone's
opinions first

Flanged cording is one of those this that looks great on the finished
project but is a total P.I.T.A. to sew to a bellpull. Not that it's any more
difficult than sewing it to a pillow or some such, it's just that a bell pull
is narrow and usually has a funky shaped bottom so you end up with a lot of odd
angles to get that cording around :-)! Pre-gathered lace is much easier but
there just aren't that many bell pulls out that tell me they need lace! It's
always that *$&%^% flanged cording -- LOLOL! CiaoMeow ^;;^
..
PAX, Tia Mary ^;;^ Queen of Kitties
Angels can't show their wings on earth but nothing was ever said about their
WHISKERS!!
Nothing is complete without a few cat hairs!

Nothing to add to your prolific and wonderful answers to the bell pull
dilemma g just . . . if you use twisted cord - whether you make it
yourself or purchase it (there's so many pretty ones now available), you
can hand sew it at the edge and avoid the sewing machine angle problem.

Dianne

Tia Mary-remove nekoluvr to reply wrote:
From: "Addie"


......... I hadn't thought yet about piping or cording - thought I'd get

everyone's

opinions first


Flanged cording is one of those this that looks great on the finished
project but is a total P.I.T.A. to sew to a bellpull. Not that it's any more
difficult than sewing it to a pillow or some such, it's just that a bell pull
is narrow and usually has a funky shaped bottom so you end up with a lot of odd
angles to get that cording around :-)! Pre-gathered lace is much easier but
there just aren't that many bell pulls out that tell me they need lace! It's
always that *$&%^% flanged cording -- LOLOL! CiaoMeow ^;;^
.
PAX, Tia Mary ^;;^ Queen of Kitties
Angels can't show their wings on earth but nothing was ever said about their
WHISKERS!!
Nothing is complete without a few cat hairs!

Addie wrote:
I have just finished my Heirloom Christmas Sampler and I think I want to
finish it as a bell pull. Has anyone done this? How would you reccommend
finishing it? (It is the long version of the red and green
http://www.victoriasampler.com/Catal...mChristmas.asp)
I know I will need to line it, but what else??? TIA

Addie

Hi, Addie -

I think this piece would make an exquisite bellpull. It's so delicate, I
wouldn't add anything on the sides. Just get a *gorgeous* top piece for
hanging - maybe something with a bit of filigree? Something with some
fancywork rather than plain, if you know what I mean.

Now, on the bottom, I see it with a scallop-type bottom. How adept are
you at finishing? I think I'd try to "echo" the shape of the Hardanger
about 1" further down (i.e., leave one inch of fabric below Hardanger
band) and have 1/2 scallop/triangle/scallop/triangle/scallop, etc.
across the bottom.

And line it with a contrasting color to show off the Hardanger! Maybe
you could pick up one of the floss colors - the red, if I were doing it
- to accent the cutwork. I'd get a perfect piece of really, really good
burgundy satin -- and use it with the "good side" IN, showing through,
rather than wasting it facing the wall.

(Hmmm...now you've got my brain watering - as opposed to mouth watering,
LOL! This piece is in my stash...Drat! Why aren't there 26 hoiurs in a day?)

Sue

Great ideas here! Keep 'em coming. I'm starting to get the vision I need
in my head so that when the weather changes (yeah, right!) I can go out
looking for supplies.

Now, does anyone know of any bell pulls that are exquisite enough to go with
this piece?? I have been looking and found these that I like well enough.
At Salt and Pepper there are a few, but I am particularly taken with #742.
http://www.liards.com/.sc/ms/dd/1075...ULL%20HARDWARE
http://www.liards.com/.sc/ms/dd/1075...ULL%20HARDWARE
http://www.salt-and-pepper.com/bellpull.htm

Which do you think would work best??? I will need to order online as
there's nothing anywhere near me, and I won't drive 2 hours just for that in
this weather!! Has anyone here order from either of these places? What's
the service like?

Thanks!

Addie
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"Addie" wrote in message
news:CRXRb.29578$A7.25585@edtnps84...
I have just finished my Heirloom Christmas Sampler and I think I want to
finish it as a bell pull. Has anyone done this? How would you reccommend
finishing it? (It is the long version of the red and green
http://www.victoriasampler.com/Catal...mChristmas.asp)
I know I will need to line it, but what else??? TIA

Addie

--

remove "nospam" to reply

From: "Addie"

.... Now, does anyone know of any bell pulls that are exquisite enough to go
with
this piece?? I have been looking and found these that I like well enough.
........

Addie, DEAR -- you haven't looked at http://www.liards.com yet have you??
I can guarantee you will find something there that will suit!! They have
all sorts of Victorian stuff like bellpull hardware, candle holders, picture
frames, etc.
When you get to the site, do a category search (on the left of the screen)
and choose bellpulls. Absolutely STUNNING stuff in the $20 to $30 range. If
you don't find something suitable there, well, I don't know where to send you.
I could probably *think* of where to send you but .... never mind -- LOLOL --
I'll shut up now :-))! CiaoMeow ^;;^
..


PAX, Tia Mary ^;;^ Queen of Kitties
Angels can't show their wings on earth but nothing was ever said about their
WHISKERS!!
Nothing is complete without a few cat hairs!

I was just there...there are a couple of links in the post that you replied
to. Which one do YOU think would be best? I am torn, but definitely
leaning towards this one:
http://www.liards.com/.sc/ms/dd/1075...ULL%20HARDWARE
You have obviously dealt with Liards before...good service???

Addie

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"Tia Mary-remove nekoluvr to reply " wrote in
message ...
From: "Addie"

.... Now, does anyone know of any bell pulls that are exquisite enough to
go
with
this piece?? I have been looking and found these that I like well
enough.
.......

Addie, DEAR -- you haven't looked at http://www.liards.com yet have
you??
I can guarantee you will find something there that will suit!! They
have
all sorts of Victorian stuff like bellpull hardware, candle holders,
picture
frames, etc.
When you get to the site, do a category search (on the left of the
screen)
and choose bellpulls. Absolutely STUNNING stuff in the $20 to $30 range.
If
you don't find something suitable there, well, I don't know where to send
you.
I could probably *think* of where to send you but .... never mind --
LOLOL --
I'll shut up now :-))! CiaoMeow ^;;^
.


PAX, Tia Mary ^;;^ Queen of Kitties
Angels can't show their wings on earth but nothing was ever said about
their
WHISKERS!!
Nothing is complete without a few cat hairs!

On 1/29/04 1:24 PM,"Tia Mary-remove nekoluvr to reply"
posted:

From: "Addie"

.... Now, does anyone know of any bell pulls that are exquisite enough to go
with
this piece?? I have been looking and found these that I like well enough.
.......

Addie, DEAR -- you haven't looked at http://www.liards.com yet have you??
I can guarantee you will find something there that will suit!! They have
all sorts of Victorian stuff like bellpull hardware, candle holders, picture
frames, etc.
When you get to the site, do a category search (on the left of the screen)
and choose bellpulls. Absolutely STUNNING stuff in the $20 to $30 range. If

Great reference, Tia! I've been racking my brain on what to hang the little
sampler on, and I found a set - only about $34 for 4 sets! Most of the sets
seem to be in 2 or 4 complete sets. I'd been thinking of ways to finish a
twig at this point.

Now, if I can dust off the machine, so I can actually "finish" the
bell-pull. Got to go buy some backing fabric and lining to show thru.

Ellice