Nature’s Delight by Colleen Goy

It’s always a joy to welcome a new contributor to the Inspirations family and this week it’s both a joy and an honour to welcome Colleen Goy.

While Nature’s Delight, which appears in Inspirations #119, is Colleen’s first project to feature in the magazine, many of you will recognise her name and realise her debut has been a long time coming.

Colleen is the talented designer behind Roseworks Embroidery Designs based in South Africa that publishes a huge range of stunning designs that have been enjoyed by stitchers the world over for many years.

In fact, you may even remember her name appearing numerous times in our What Are You Stitching? segment as people sent in their versions of her incredibly popular Jade Dragon among other projects Colleen has also designed.

Now that we’ve finally had the opportunity to include a Colleen Goy original in Inspirations magazine, pull up a seat in your comfy chair with a fresh cup of your favourite brew and let us tell you all about it…

Nature’s Delight is a floral symphony. It is a collection of the prettiest flowers and the most charming insects you have even seen, arranged in symbiotic harmony and stitched to perfection.

Everywhere your eye lands it is taken on this safari of wonder as you follow the trailing vines from one beautiful element to another and then another.

Then you begin to appreciate the scale. This is not a small embroidery. The finished piece measures 35cm x 36.5cm wide (13 ¾” x 14 ½”), which once completed, almost feels like a panel of embroidered Liberty wallpaper, it’s that lush and vast.

In fact, the scale is such that our editorial team have divided the design into four sections to make it easier to follow the instructions.

While all the techniques used are from the surface embroidery family, there is an incredible depth and textural richness in the finish.

This has been achieved through the use of big chunky knots, strategically placed beads and by combining numerous different coloured threads at times into a single needle.

Now if some of you did a double take there and are not familiar with using multiple colours of threads in your needle at once, here’s a quick rundown on how that works:

The instructions guide you as to what needle to use when, for example no. 10 crewel for one strand, no. 9 for two, no. 7 for three and no. 22 chenille for four threads. You then thread up, let’s say four colours into your needle, and stitch as you normally would as if using a single strand. As you work, each stitch creates a magnificent, variegated result in beautiful shadings as you follow Colleen’s perfectly chosen colour pairings.

Nature’s Delight is an explosion of colour with over sixty threads masterfully placed and skilfully stitched to arrive at a destination that takes your breath away.

There is good reason why Colleen’s designs are so popular and it’s our great privilege to publish this gorgeous piece for your stitching pleasure. Enjoy!

Make Your Own Nature’s Delight

Step 1 – Purchase Project Instructions

Nature’s Delight by Colleen Goy is a glorious collection of flowers and insects with gleaming beads, a rainbow of stranded cotton and metallic threads.

Step 2 – Purchase Ready-To-Stitch Kit

The Inspirations Ready-To-Stitch kit for Nature’s Delight includes everything* you need to re-create this symphony of colour: Fabric with pre-printed design, embroidery threads, beads and needles.

*Please Note: To cater for flexibility of purchase, instructions are not included with our kits. For step-by-step directions on how to create this project, please refer to the magazine/digital pattern.