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

The Island, A Study in White Work, part 1

I visited Blenheim Park several times to photograph potential subjects for my piece for the Celebrating Capability Brown exhibition. I had considered focusing on a tree or group of trees but my attention was constantly drawn to the Island and its reflection in the lake. I walked all around the lake taking photographs from every aspect but, of course, none of mine could match up to the professional photograph that Blenheim Palace had provided us for inspiration.

© Blenheim Palace
The Finest View in England

I printed out an enlarged and cropped version of the image then outlined the individual trees, the shape of the island and the reflections with a black marker.

© Carol-Anne Conway

Before I traced the design onto my fabric, I washed the linen to remove the dressing and pressed it while still damp to eliminate any wrinkles.

© Carol-Anne Conway

I planned to do some pulled thread embroidery on this piece so wanted the linen to be framed up with the grain as straight as possible. I decided to use a new frame that I had picked up at a sale. The packaging described it as a slate frame but the fabric is held in place with a dowel rather than stitching it to a twill tape. My first attempt was unsuccessful as a) the grain was not as straight as I wanted and b) the line slipped out of the dowels when I adjusted the stretcher bars.

© Carol-Anne Conway

To overcome this problem I decided to stitch a channel into each end of the fabric through which I could thread the dowels. I had read that it was not necessary to lace the sides of the fabric to frame with this system but later I was to regret skipping this vital step in framing up.

© Carol-Anne Conway

Happy Stitching

The Finest View in England

Woodstock House is an early 18th century manor house set in its own 3.5 acre walled garden, just outside Blenheim Park. With a a grand hall, four reception rooms, eight bedroom suites, a kitchen, and cellars it is the largest private residence on the Blenheim Estate. Although currently unoccupied and badly in need of refurbishment, Woodstock House retains many of its original features including 12-pane sash windows, a galleried staircase hall, original interior panelling and panelled doors, flagstone flooring and a Regency Doric style entrance porch.

Woodstock House

The three story house boasts impressive views over Blenhiem Palace and its grounds, particularly of Vanburgh's bridge and Capability Brown's lake. Churchill's mother, Jennie Jerome, declared the view to be "the finest in England".

© Blenheim Palace
The Finest View in England

In the 1920's, a young woman called Gladys May Cross worked 'in service' at Woodstock House and would have been very familiar with this view. During her years there a young man came a courting and they would 'walk out' in Blenheim Park. Rumour has it that Gladys would sneak her beau into the house through a window. Very risqué, even in the roaring twenties. The winter of 1928/29 was exceptionally cold and the lake at Blenheim Palace froze over. Gladys and her young man, Cecil Oakley, took the rare opportunity to walk across the lake to the island. In 1930 the young couple married and Gladys left service and Woodstock House to become mistress of her own home.

Gladys and Cecil looking very happy on their wedding day

Gladys May Cross and Cecil Gerald Oakley still looking happy c1950.

I had already decided to stitch the a view of the island for the Celebrating Capability Brown exhibition before one of my aunties told me about the day my grandfather, Cecil, walked my grandmother, Gladys, across the lake to the island.

Celebrating Capability Brown

Lancelot 'Capability' Brown changed the face of 18th Century England, designing country estates and mansions, moving hills and making flowing lakes and serpentine rivers, a magical world of green.

One of the splendid specimen trees.

2016 is the 300th anniversary of 'Capability' Brown's birth and to commemorate the occassion the Embroiderers' Guild will be joining a nationwide celebration.

The Grand Bridge, designed by Sir John Vanbrugh but dramatically altered by the lake created by Capability Brown.

Blenheim Palace is one of the finest examples of Brown's work. As part of a range of activies to clebrate the life and works of 'Capability' Brown the Palace is hosting an exhibition in partnership with the Embroiderers' Guild and a local art group.

I condsidered representing Blenheim's might oaks with acorns done in raised embroidery (stumpwork).

Members of Newbury, Oxford, Windsor and Maidonhead, and Wokingham branches together with the Young Embroiderers of Oxford Branch have contributed nearly 100 unique and specially created art works for this exhibition.

The gnarled trunks of the aged oaks offer lots of inspiration for textural embroidery.

After several trips to the Park and taking hundreds of photographs of the views and its beautiful trees, I decided to do a view of the island and its reflection in white work (more on that in future posts).

These two old oaks look as if they have fallen out but I suspect that they are venerable friends.

The exhibition is in The Gallery from 13 February to 2 May 2016.

A sneak preview of the exhibition.

Happy Stitching

Long time, no post

Recently, my group leader at work asked if I have given up blogging. I said, “no, but I’ve not had much to blog about, because I’ve not done much stitching lately”. It is true that since April my mojo has been mostly absent but I have been doing some stitching and I do have some things I could write about, including a couple of classes.

My last few blogs were mostly about boxes so let’s continue on that theme. Last year I stitched the Silky Glow Sampler as a group project with some members of the Embroiderers’ Guild, Oxford Branch. When my friend Michiko saw it, she asked what I intended to do with it. I had no plans so Michiko suggested that it would make a nice box lid. Michiko makes beautiful boxes so I ceased the opportunity to request a box making lesson with her.

© Carol-Anne Conway

Michiko is so obliging that she not only agreed to help me make a box, she sourced all of the materials and pre-cut everything so that during the lessons all I had to do was construct the box*. My lessons were conducted as “evening classes” during our week long residential Japanese Embroidery course in March.

© Carol-Anne Conway

The box is made of a very stiff board. The inside is lined with paper and the outside is covered in fabric (linen). All of the components are glued. Because we had limited time each evening and because we needed to do things before the glue dried, we had to work quickly. I did not take a single photograph during the lessons (and, stupidly, I did not take any notes either) so I only have pictures of the finished box.

© Carol-Anne Conway

Actually, this is not the box that I made, there was a small problem with it so Michiko took it home to adjust, which turned out to be more of a reconstruction than a simple adjustment. Michiko made a whole new inside and returned the box to me at our next Japanese Embroidery course in April. This box was designed by Michiko to hold reels of silk and I use it to hold the silks for my current JE project.

© Carol-Anne Conway

But Michiko did not want to waste the inside tray that I had made during our classes so she removed it very carefully … and put it into another box for me.

© Carol-Anne Conway

I am using this one to hold supplies for my "evening" project so now whenever I am stitching I am reminded of my wonderfully talented and generous friend, Michiko. Thank you, so much, Michiko for all the work you put into preparing for the lesson and during the lesson, and thank you for my two beautiful boxes.

Happy Stitching

*to say "all I had to do …" seriously understates the amount of work involved in constructing the box!

20/21 Sampler

Following the great success of The Big Stitch in 2012, the Ashmolean Museum and the Embroiderer’s Guild decided to host a second day in conjunction with the Eye of the Needle exhibition. As part of that event, SEW Region held a members’ competition to create a "Modern Sampler".

© Carol-Anne Conway

There were two sections to the competition, one for individuals, and one for group entries. I took part in a group entry from the Oxford Branch. Under the rules we could enter either individual 'tiles' combined to form a finished piece maximum size A3, or a book (either concertina style or spine bound) of 5 individual 'pages' including the covers. Each page maximum size A5 and we could use both sides of each page if we wished.

© Carol-Anne Conway

We decided on the concertina book option and 10 people signed up to each complete a page. The name of the competition was 20/21 sampler so we decided to do 5 pages based on the number 20 and five based on the number 21.

© Carol-Anne Conway

Rule #1 of the competition stated that "The 20/21 in the title refers to 20th and 21st century so any images, motifs, alphabets, individual letters or numbers used must be from that time period". We chose traditional typefaces or those that reflected early 20th century for the 20 pages and these were embroidered using traditional hand embroidery techniques that were relevant to that period. We used contemporary typefaces and embroidery/textile art techniques for the 21 pages. Each participant decided how to embroider their page but we conferred to ensure that no two pages used the same technique.

© Carol-Anne Conway

I decided to do my '20' page in canvas work. I took my inspiration from a couple of pieces shown the "Canvaswork – RSN Essential Stitch Guild" and all of the stitches I used came from that book. Rule #2 stated that "Any combination of techniques or stitches can be used but the piece must show a variety of at least 6. You can use more if you wish". We had already covered the "at least 6" criterion but having 10 different techniques but I wanted my page to include at least 6 different stitches. All the stitches I used were chosen to work on the diagonal line.

© Carol-Anne Conway

Rule #3 said "Any colour(s) can be used." I decided to work in monotone so the focus would be on texture rather than colour.

© Carol-Anne Conway

As usual, I seriously under estimated that amount of time it would take and came perilously close to missing the deadline for submission. As I had suggested that Oxford Branch submit a group entry and coordinated the project, I would have been very shame face to have let the others down so had to work furiously every spare minute to make sure I completed on time!

© Carol-Anne Conway

The other participants submitted beautiful pages and I think we covered a good range of traditional and contemporary embroidery/textile art. Their pages can be seen on the Oxford Embroiderer's Guild blog. I'm delighted to say that our entry won the group category and I am absolutely certain that had nothing to do with the fact that it was the only entry!

© Carol-Anne Conway

Happy Stitching

Sleeve Bag

I had such a good time demonstrating at the original Big Stitch Day in 2012 that I didn’t hesitate to sign up for this year’s Big Stitch at the Ashmolean Museum.

I’m told that in terms of numbers through the door it was even more successful this time around and I certainly enjoyed it every bit as much as last time. I gave two demonstrations this year, one in the morning and one in the afternoon, which gave me time to attend one of the study groups and grab a quick bite to eat. Because The Eye of the Needle exhibition was still running, I thought the Feller Swete Bag would be a good piece to take to demonstrate. When I said that it was a reproduction of a piece in the exhibition most people were interested to know more about it and I had several long conversations about the difference between basket weave needlepoint, tent stitch and half cross stitch.

Branch members who were demonstrating, or helping out in some other way, were asked to make a sleeve bag so that we could be identified as 'helpers'. I looked in charity shops for an old denim jacket from which to make my sleeve bag but every one I found I felt was in too good a condition to cut up. In the end I used the second sleeve from a dress shirt that someone had already cut up to make their bag. They had used all of the pin tucks and the button band to jazz up their bag so all remained was a plain white, double cuff sleeve.

Back in 2011 I had made a crochet rope handle for my Poppy Pouch. I put the handle away somewhere safe until I was ready to make up the bag … and promptly forgot where that safe place was. Eventually I made a second handle for the Poppy Pouch so I could finish the bag and the original remained in its ‘safe place’ until I stumbled upon it a few weeks ago. I decided to use that original crochet rope as the handle for my sleeve bag and to use the left over beads, stored in the same ‘safe place’, to embellish it.

© Carol-Anne Conway

First, I embroidered a few simple flowers on the placket.

© Carol-Anne Conway

I then beaded a double zig-zag border onto the tuck on the cuff and made a fringe to hang down from the folded back cuff.

© Carol-Anne Conway

It only took a few evenings to make and embellish the bag but stitching through the cuff with a beading needle was though and I repeated pierced the middle finger on my right hand, making it rather sore!

© Carol-Anne Conway

There was a wonderful variety of sleeve bags on display at the Big Stitch and I think some of the visitors had started a new craze of 'sleeve bag spotting' because I was asked a few times "may I see your bag, please". As before, I really enjoyed the Big Stitch day and look forward to the next one.

Happy Stitching.

Silky Glow Sampler

It seems to have been the year of the sampler!

Following the great success of The Big Stitch in 2012, the Ashmolean Museum and the Embroiderer’s Guild decided to host a second day in conjunction with the Eye of the Needle exhibition. As part of that event, SEW Region held a members’ competition to create a “Modern Sampler”. More about that later.

© Judy Dixon/Carol-Anne Conway

By pure coincidence, the Royal School of Needlework staged an in-house exhibition of Samplers and a 21st century sampler competition. The brief was to submit a design, not the stitched sampler, for judging. The two winners would then be invited to work with the RSN to stitch the sampler. Unfortunately, I did not manage to see the exhibition and nor did my entry win but I quite like my design and, if I get around to stitching it, I will share that later.

And equally by coincidence, and before either of these competitions were announced, Jo, one of our committee members, proposed that we (members of Oxford Branch) do a stitch-along of a sampler published in edition 59 (June/July 2009) of Stitch magazine.

© Judy Dixon/Carol-Anne Conway

A small group of us meet up approximately once a month to stitch together and then aimed to complete that section as ‘home work’ before the next meeting. One or two of the group chose their own colour scheme and it was interesting to see how different colour ways affected the overall look of the completed samplers. Ever the safe player when it comes to colour, I chose to use the original colour scheme.

© Judy Dixon/Carol-Anne Conway

The sampler, designed by Judy Dixon, is a combination of traditional hardanger stitches, some familiar stitches such as eyelet or cushion stitch, and some less well known variations on stitches. Part of what appealed to me about this project was the cut work – something I have not tried before. I did one small piece of hardanger many years ago but never completed it. Hardanger is one of those techniques that I find relatively simple to do and, therefore, quite relaxing. There were quite a few large cloister blocks in the border, which was the most time consuming part of the project. The sampled stitches were fun and, as they were mostly small sections, each one completed relatively quickly.

© Judy Dixon/Carol-Anne Conway

I love the soft colours combined with the smoky dove greys and the different textures of the threads were fun to try out but I thought that one or two thread choices where not the best for the stitches (unless I was using the wrong number of strands).

© Judy Dixon/Carol-Anne Conway

Overall, I really enjoyed stitching this piece and working it as a stitch along. I had been tempted to do mine in shades of grey on black canvas and wish that I had been brave enough to give that a go.

© Judy Dixon/Carol-Anne Conway

Happy Stitching

Lest We Forget - Part 4

By the time I had stitched all fifty petals on the flowers around the heart I was getting the hang of oyster stitch and starting to enjoy it.

© Carol-Anne Conway

So much so, in fact that I decided to use oyster stitch for the leaves as well. I tried to make the leaves longer and thinner than the petals. Because I had chosen a sheer fabric to show up the shadow work, the trailing threads also show through but I rather like the 'sketchy' effect that creats.

© Carol-Anne Conway

There are only twenty leaves around so it did not take me very long to complete those and the stem stitched stem, which I think helps to define the shape of the heart.

© Carol-Anne Conway

This was a fun project, made more so for learning two new techniques, and I am quite pleased with the finished piece.

© Carol-Anne Conway

Happy Stitching