I just love this Twinchy. It showcases everything I like about Kachinas. It has feathers, lots of color, and antler horns. The stepped pyramid around the mouth represents the mesas of New Mexico and Arizona.
The charts or drawings for all the Twinchies along with notes for stitching appear after the pictures.
This Twinchy is based on a fragment of Pueblo pottery. While newer pottery is white, older pottery takes on a creamy color I just love. It isn’t symmetrical because I’m not as good an artist as they are.
The medicine bear fetish was my inspiration for this Twinchy. I wanted him to fill up as much of the space as possible, but I was drawing freehand and drew it wrong. So he looks too big to fit the size and is bursting out. The line drawing is the proper size.
This final Twinchy is based on some items I saw in Navajo Rugs. The center motif is called Eye Dazzler. The borders were a neat element I saw in another rug of crosses and diamonds. Navajo Rugs traditionally are made from wool spun from the fleece of the Navajo’s sheep. Often it is left undyed or dyed with natural dyes. Some rugs use commerical dyes and some modern rugs use more neutral and pastel palettes which fit modern interiors better.
The Kachina Twinchy has a backgound of a sky, stitched in an overdyed blue floss in Nobuko. The horns and most of the Twinchy are in Tent Stitch. One strand of Trio was used for the mesa, Grandeur for the black areas and Watercolours in Natural for the main part of the mask. The multi-colored bands at top and bottom use threads from my scrap bag.
The feathers are Lazy Daisy stitches and are added last.
Colors in Pueblo pottery and Kachina masks are made from clays and powdered rocks found in the area. This makes for a lovely palette which is surprisingly wide.
The pottery Twinchy is stitched entirely in Tent Stitch using Natural Watercolours, Grandeur, and Alyce Schroth Needlepoint Silk (no longer made).
Indian pots are not thrown on a potter’s wheel but are hand built using the coil method. Once built they are smoothed and painted with different clays mixed with water (called slips). After firing, they can also be polished using rocks.
I just love the variety of this pottery and it is well worth exploring. I can’t wait until I can get my collection out again.
The bear fetish is stitched in Jacquard using 3 Alarm Fire Bella Silk from Cresecent Colours. I love the bright color and variation in this hand-dyed thread. The motion of the stitch reminds me of the arrow on the Zuni Fetish. The eye is a French Knot in black Nordic Gold.
The Navajo Rug Twinchy is also stitched in all Tent Stitch using Lorikeet wool for the dark gray, Burmilana for the black, Trio for the burgundy, and a matte cotton from the scrap bag for the dark coral.
About Janet M Perry
Janet Perry is the Internet's leading authority on needlepoint. She designs, teaches and writes, getting raves from her fans for her innovative techniques, extensive knowledge and generous teaching style. A leading writer of stitch guides, she blogs here and lives on an island in the northeast corner of the SF Bay with her family
Janet,
I am not into Twinchies myself but those are real cute.
Pierrette =^..^=
I love the twinchies because I can use these on my xmas tree and then use them on my wall since i cannot find patterns for native american ornaments.