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Sunday 29 April 2018

Ready to fly



Inspired by William Morris' iconic print, The Strawberry Thief, here is my version of the naughty song thrush.

Stitched onto vintage linen, red woven picots form basis of the design creating the spotty breast.  Following Morris' colour way, I've embroidered wings using satin, seed and buttonhole stitch in dark blue on a pale blue linen background. 

Now for the strawberries......

Monday 23 April 2018

Flights of fancy


In my quest to stay one step ahead of my stitch groups (and also to try to make multi-use pieces), I have started making a sculptured bird using raised embroidery. 

I've long been an admirer of Abigail Brown's beautiful birds with their subtle evocation of feathers made in scraps of fabric.  I've also been ruminating on this year's Embroiderers' Guild Regional competition title Inspired by William Morris.  In one of those light-bulb moments, the two ideas fused:  a 3D bird based on Morris' iconic print, The Strawberry Thief.

Using stranded cotton in brick red, I have worked small woven picots to give the illusion of feathers.  These are interspersed with French knots to create the wonderful speckled breast of the song thrush.

This is all work in progress, to which I had better return if I am to finish it by Thursday!

Sunday 15 April 2018

Almost done


I promised a big reveal and this is almost it! My new work for Textila 3 exhibition, Dissolving Margins, 4th - 8th July 2018, The Manor House, Ilkley.

As many of you will know, its actually very difficult to take good pictures of large pieces of work - far better to take close-ups.  So here they are.

The work was inspired by my Auntie Jean, her love of gardening and in particular, growing dahlias.  As dementia took hold of her brain she forgot the names for so many familiar objects and her lovely dahlias became 'those yellow flowers'.  The first piece is a richly three-dimensional work with raised embroidery and devore; the second reduces to one-dimension whilst the third just carries a shadowy image, obliterated by seed stitch.  Both the images and the fabrics on which they are printed are dissolving, representing the ravages of dementia.


Sunday 8 April 2018

Sewing the seeds of love


A deadline looms.....I am frantically stitching.....will I finish in time?

I am working on a triptych for a forthcoming Textila 3 exhibition (The Manor House, Ilkley 4-7th July 2018).  My work is coming together slowly but something was missing.  Luckily my friend Claire popped over for a play day and we had our own group crit.  With the benefit of distance, Claire instantly identified what was missing from my third piece:  a little bit of grey was needed to harmonise the work. 

With a flower theme, the only possible stitch to use was seed stitch and so I have spent many hours over the last week trying to create perfectly random stitches.  It has left me a little crazy, but I think it will be worth it!

The big reveal will be next week........