Sunbonnet Babies and Chickens – Free Redwork Pattern

In quilting, most people know about Sunbonnet Sue, a popular design that has been around for many years. Well, here’s a different take on that traditional design. These are Sunbonnet Babies done in Redwork hand embroidery.

Originating in the mid 1800s, redwork has been a popular embroidery technique for a long time. You can see the work on pillows, dish towels, quilts, and coverlets just to name a few.

Ideal for adding to a tea towel or even a quilt panel, this adorable pattern from Grandma’s Attic Sewing Emporium is sure to bring a smile to anyone’s face. It is a traditional design with two children feeding a flock of chicks.

The pattern suggest using the outline stitch (also known as the Kensington stitch) for the project. It looks to me like the polka dots on the one dress are made with french knots. You will need an embroidery hoop, floss, canvas and a needle to complete this project.

Embroidered onto a set of tea towels, this design would make a lovely gift for someone. Of course, if you prefer not to do the project in redwork, you could always do bluework or blackwork.

Click here to get this charming free pattern: Sunbonnet Babies

[photo from Grandma’s Attic Sewing Emporium]

Sunbonnet Sue is a classic embroidery pattern that has been around since the late 19th century. It features a young girl wearing a bonnet and dress, holding a basket or umbrella.

The pattern was first created by Ella J. Sperry, a popular embroidery artist of the time. The pattern quickly became popular and was used by many embroiderers to decorate quilts, clothing, and other items.

Today, Sunbonnet Sue is still popular among embroiderers and quilters, and there are many free patterns available online. Whether you are a beginner or an experienced embroiderer, Sunbonnet Sue is a great pattern to start with – it’s easy to learn and can be adapted to suit any skill level. So if you’re looking for a classic pattern to get started with, Sunbonnet Sue is it!

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Unique Stitch Crafts is a Turkish designer that has a couple of main interests in their cross stitch designs: travel and Christmas stockings.

By far the biggest category in their storefront is Christmas stockings, with more than 100 options to choose from. There are fully stitched fronts with designs classic and whimsical (like an alicorn and a pastel rainbow, or a bunny in Harlequin costume playing violin to a mushroom) and designs that just go across the cuff of the stocking. There are ornaments with a Nutcracker or Frozen theme, New York City stockings and stockings for your dinosaur.

As an example, here’s a stocking covered with mini holiday designs, which you could also use as ornaments if you wanted. The full design is 165 by 255 stitches, which comes out to 10.3 by 16 inches, or 26 by 40.6 cm on 16 count fabric. The pattern just makes the front of the stocking so you need to grab some fabric for the back of the stocking and sew it together yourself.

There’s also a large collection of travel cross stitch patterns, including national parks designs both large and mini, and travel poster style designs for many US states and cities. (There’s not an Arkansas, which is my standard test since I live there, but there is a pattern of the Mississippi River bridge in Memphis, which is technically half in Arkansas.)

If you’re more of a world traveler you’ll find more of the travel poster style designs for cities and countries, including Thailand and China, Berlin, Sydney and Marrakech.

In addition to all of that, you’ll find patterns called retro, which includes a wide range of designs, but many seem to be food and coffee related; folk art designs (lots of flowers and birds); and famous paintings translated to cross stitch. Smaller categories include Christmas, Halloween, animals, kids and castles.

Check out all the fun designs at Unique Stitch Crafts on Etsy.

[Photo: Unique Stitch Crafts]

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