What Are You Stitching?

Embroidered blankets are an Inspirations specialty. We’ve been publishing patterns for embroidered blankets right from our inception and they have always been popular among our loyal readers. It is always gratifying to see how much our community love creating blankets, both from our publications and from elsewhere, so here are a few fantastic finishes to get you inspired.

Marlene Thornton

‘Here is a baby blanket I recently completed for a friend’s daughter’s baby girl, Nola. She requested the theme of ‘Spot the Dog’, so I embroidered the book covers of nine of the Spot books.’

‘I didn’t include ‘Spot Visits his Grandparents’ as my dear friend lost her life to ovarian cancer 2 years ago. Thus, Nola doesn’t have a grandmother hence my reason for making a special treasure for her.’

What a beautiful gift, Marlene. You’ve made a wonderful blanket which I am sure little Nola will treasure for years to come.

Louise Waddington

‘I started the project ‘Arabian Nights’ by Jenny McWhinney in 2004 without realising what a massive undertaking it would be. Having had only a couple of years of embroidery experience at the time, it was probably a bit challenging for me, so I put it away for a few years.’

‘With the recent lockdowns, I thought it would be the perfect time to finish a few projects so out came the camels again. My skills have improved over the years, so I was much more confident with my stitching. Although slow, it came together really nicely.’

‘The only part that gave me a bit of grief was the corner tassels. I decided to make pom-poms with all the leftover wool and I have to say, I’m really happy with the result.’

‘Jenny McWhinney’s ability to create wonderful facial expressions on animals is unique and I think the snooty look she gave each individual camel is priceless. A wonderful project and a beautiful keepsake.’

This is certainly a project to be proud of, Louise. You’ve done a magnificent job in getting it finished and we love your ‘snooty’ camels as much as you do.

Saskia Schott

‘My housebound aunt, Wietske Altmann, is 96 years old and an avid embroiderer. I gave her the Susan O’Connor book ‘Flowers for Elizabeth’ last year and, after gathering all of the materials from various parts of the world, she got started.’

‘Now, a year later, here is the finished blanket. I am now it’s lucky owner!’

Lucky indeed, Saskia! This is a spectacular project and the finish just goes to show what a fantastic embroiderer your aunt is.

Do you love making embroidered blankets? Have you got patterns lined up in the hope you’ll have at least 50 grandchildren to make them for? Or have you preferred to employ your embroidery skills in other items?

Whatever type of project you love to work on, we’d love to see it!

Send us pictures of your work, along with a bit of information about your stitching journey and the project itself to news@inspirationsstudios.com