It's One and Now It's Done!

Last year, I had the crazy desire to hand embroider. I think it started with noticing these two books at the bookstore: Colorful Stitchery by Kristin Nicholas and The New Crewel by Katherine Shaughnessy. I really couldn't rest until I finally bought the books and had them for my very own. I also found the Sublime Stitching site and was interested in some of those kitschy ideas. I ordered the chihuahua set to make something for a friend. The designs come in very good quality iron-ons that you can use several times. I did finish embroidering the chihuahuas last January or February, too, and need to finish that into a pillow.

I created the embroidery pictured here based on the Colorful Stitchery design ideas back in January 2007. I think the striped fabric background is perfect for the arts & crafts/art deco (?) look of the flowers. I have always been a good hand embroiderer. My mom taught me as a child, but I had only done outline embroidery, lazy daisies, and French knots. Having the books above made me want to plunge in and fill in. If you click on the photo below, you can see the stitches pretty clear. It took a while to get the hang of it, but with all the stem work to do, I had lots of practice.



All year, this little pretty has been hanging from a hanger waiting for completion, and then right before Christmas, I found the black and cream motif home dec fabric at JoAnn Fabrics. I was in the mood to make something for myself the other night, and it came together. My only regret, as also noted by my friend who checked out the photo, is that I should have cut closer to the embroidery and made a larger border of the fabric - and I should have put piping on, too. Oh, well! You know, it is too scary to cut too close and ruin the whole thing, so this is what I have. I'll forget about that after a while, though, and will just love it down the road.