What Are You Stitching?

Creativity is at the very heart of needlework. Whether you are re-creating someone else’s design or creating your own, everything we do with needle and thread is a form of art.

For some, creating a completely new design is daunting. Today we have a line-up of stitchers who started out re-creating an existing design but after making it their own, finished up with pieces of art reflecting their own individual creativity.

Bobbi Senior

‘I fell in love with the pattern featured in the project Revival by Brenda Sortwell from Inspirations issue #111! I adapted the colours in the design to suit what I had on hand and there were changes in stitches. However, stitching Revival allowed me to learn new techniques, such as filling in with patterns and blending colours.’

‘As I was originally looking for a bigger piece, I enlarged the pattern to fit a 16 x 20 inch (40.6 x 50.8cm) frame. The only thing about enlarging a design is that it does take longer to finish.’

It’s so wonderful see how you have scaled up and modified the design to suit your own purposes, Bobbi. It looks wonderful in a frame and we’re sure you will get many years of joy from its display!

Joan Pate

‘I chose the Morning Glory Needlefold from A Fine Tradition and spent my free time over the year working on it. I started out intending to make the needlefold but decided to frame the piece instead.’

‘I didn’t do a trial before attempting the design. Most of the stitches were all new to me, and I wanted the piece to reflect my learning. It took me all year to complete, and I am very happy with the results.’

A wonderful choice, Joan! You’ve done a magnificent job of stitching Margaret Light’s design and it goes to show how her ingenious combinations of technique and glorious colour can look beautiful in an array of forms. Well done.

Ruth Thean

‘These are a couple of Hazel Blomkamp projects that I have completed. The beautiful elephant that I took her class for in 2018 at Beating Around the Bush and the other I have made into a footstool.’

‘I did this one in a bit of a panic as I had read that the elephant required a reasonable bit of knowledge and I hadn’t done an awful lot of crewel embroidery!’

Ruth, your crewel work is lovely, and we’re glad you took on the challenge that we are sure was very rewarding to accomplish. We hope to see more of your work soon!

Have you changed the size of a design to suit your needs? Do you prefer to frame your projects? Or do you prefer finishing your projects exactly as the designer has?

Whatever you are stitching, we’d love to see it! Email photos of what you’ve created with needle and thread along with a few details about your stitching journey to news@inspirationsstudios.com