Sakura

Cherry blossom (sakura), which falls at the height of its beauty without withering, is one of the symbols of the samurai warrior, who had to be ready to give his life instantly. I do believe my Dad would have given his life for ours if he could, so he is my Samurai.

Also, Dad is passionate about all things horticultural, and has always filled the house and garden with flowering plants. It must be from him that I get my love of gardening and flowers. Sakura is a very appropriate emblem for my Dad.

© Jennifer Ashley Taylor/Carol-Anne Conway

Cherry blossoms are so delicate, I wanted to keep these light and delicate, so used a single strand of flat silk. I have used some white silk that I had left over from Suehiro, it is finer than the white that I ordered for this project and is not as bright. The middle blossom is not white but very pale pink, there is barely any difference between this pink and the white but I like that they are subtly different, as are real flowers.

Behind the three small flowers I have outlined one larger blossom by couching a single strand of twisted real gold #1. Gold is often couched with a red thread, it is thought to enhance the gold. Here I have used a gold couching thread because I wanted the couching stitches to be insignificant.

© Jennifer Ashley Taylor/Carol-Anne Conway

Happy Stitching