The Island - finished

I did not want to worry about individual plants for the smaller shrubs, grasses and wild flowers on the islands shoreline. Instead I used a variety of stitches to represent the different appearance and textures of the plants. I also used heavier threads than those used for the trees to make this area more prominent.

© Carol-Anne Conway

© Carol-Anne Conway

My original plan for the reflection in the lake was to use an embroidered net insert. I abandoned this idea for two reasons; 1. I was concerned about meeting the deadline for completing this piece and 2. I had made an earlier error that made this idea less doable. I had realised early on that I had transferred the design onto the fabric the wrong way around. Unfortunately, I realised it too late to rectify the mistake or to start over.

In place of the lace insert I decided to stitch the reflection in a stitch that resembled ripples on water. I used differing weight threads, starting with a heavier one closest to the island where the reflection is strongest, and graduating to the finest thread further away from the island where the reflection is more faded.

© Carol-Anne Conway

Ultimately I was really disappointed with the finished piece and that is why I have not felt motivated to write about it. The biggest problem is the trees which are too indistinct. I think the reflections work reasonably well but I think the embroidered net would have been better. I think there are three main reasons it has not worked out as I originally envisaged.

1. Although I am an experienced and confident stitcher, I am not a designer and did not do any design work for this piece other that look at lots of photographs and picture it in my mind. I think I should have taken some time to sample various stitches to help with my choices (especially when taking point 2 into consideration).

2. This is my first attempt at white work so I had no previous knowledge of what works well and what pit falls to watch for (such as how much puckering can occur with pulled thread work).

3. I did not allow myself enough time so when I encountered problems I had to push on regardless. With more time I might have experimented with different stitches, laced the sides when I first noticed puckering, or started again when I realised I had transferred the design the wrong orientation. I certainly would have tried the net embroider and might have put trailing around some of the trees which may have been enough to elevate this piece from rubbish to alright.

© Carol-Anne Conway

That said, I did enjoy stitching the piece and have learnt a lot from it. As they say, you learn more from your mistakes than you do from your successes.

Happy Stitching

The Island - trees

For Maggie

Although I completed this piece several months ago, I have not been able to find the motivation to write about it. I will explain why in the final post in this series.

I studied many pieces of white work before designing and stitching The Island. A technique often employed to define the separate elements of the design is a technique called trailing whereby a padding thread is stitched down with closely placed couching stitches. The core can be as fine or thick as desired and can even tapper from one thickness to another. The trees on my island, although individual shapes, are not that distinctly separate from each other so I did not want a definitive edge to them. Rather than outlining each tree I planned to use different filling patterns to distinguish between them, using the same pattern for trees of the same type.

© Carol-Anne Conway

© Carol-Anne Conway

For the tall poplar trees at the back I choose a pattern that I thought would emphasise their vertical silhouette but one that was subtle enough to let them recede into the background. I began with the longest section of each tree and worked to the left and right of this guide line to keep the pattern consistent.

© Carol-Anne Conway

© Carol-Anne Conway

I have a couple of books on White work; the RSN Essential Stitch Guide: Whitework by Lizzy Lansberry and Pulled Thread Embroidery by Moyra McNeill. I used these to select patterns to reflect the shape of the other trees and shrubs. I tried to use more intricate or textured patterns in the foreground.

© Carol-Anne Conway

I like the way the trees can be identified as individual shapes yet still merge into one another as they do in the original photograph but I think I should have chosen techniques that where more obviously different to give them more definition. What I really don’t like is that the pencil line is clearly visible. Also, I do not like the way the linen is puckering as a result of not lacing the sides!

Happy Stitching