Chinese Flower, finished

Next on my list of things to finish was Chinese Flower.

When I began this piece in September, I never imagined it would still be on the frame in January. I have taken a lot of time and care over the stitching but even so I am amazed at how much stitching time this small piece took (unfortunately, I did not record my hours but as a rough guide one each leaf took 3-4 hours to stitch).

© Trish Burr/Carol-Anne Conway

I cannot sing the praises of this on-line course enough. I think the design is really pretty. The transfer on the fabric was excellent; the grey lines are dark enough to be seen clearly but cover nicely with the thread. The instructions are very good, with clear indications for colour placement, stitch direction and order of stitching. I also purchased Trish’s DVD, The Long and the Short of It, and found this indispensable. I initially watched it all the way through but then review the relevant sections for each lesson. Optional assessment was offered as part of the course for a limited time period (beyond the end of the course). I only completed Lesson one during that time frame. Trish’s response was timely, gracious and very helpful. Even though it was well past the finish date, I did send a picture of my finished design purely for her to see and Trish responded with some very lovely comments about my stitching.

© Trish Burr/Carol-Anne Conway

As for stitching the design, well I loved it! The printed design looks a little cartoonish and I could not image how I would transform that into anything closely resembling Trish’s stitched sample. I tried to everything I had ever heard or read about long and short stitch and follow Trish’s instructions as closely as possible. From the very first element, the rose bud, I was staggered to see what was emerging from my needle and as the project progressed I felt more and more confident about my stitching.

© Trish Burr/Carol-Anne Conway

I could not wait to start the kingfisher. I was aiming to make the colour transitions and appearance of the leaves and petals as smooth as possible so, at first, I found it difficult to achieve the more irregular look of the bird’s feathers. I eventually got the hang of it and, once I had, I really enjoyed the freeness of stitching with abandon!

© Trish Burr/Carol-Anne Conway

I am such a silkaholic that I did not think I would ever be satisfied with a piece stitched in cotton floss but I am quite impressed with how it came out. I’d be interested to see the same piece stitched in silk for comparison but I won’t be undertaking that any time soon.

If you have been thinking about taking this course (if/when Trish reruns it), I whole heartedly recommend it and I am delighted with my version of the Chinese Flower.

Happy Stitching