I've thought long and hard about my April contribution to the Postcard Project. K's kitten, peeping through the tulips in March was so clever. An enchanting expression, peeping through the tulips.
I decided on an Easter theme, with palm leaves and a cross, and a sunrise. But I do want this activity to stretch my stitching skills. Like Kirsten and her practising of satin stitch I decided to work on improving a stitch. And I chose Norwich Stitch. I only discovered this in February, and t seems important now I live in this fine county, that I should become proficient at it, and include it on the postcard.
I concluded that it was ok, but two strands were not substantial enough. I mixed 4 strands from different shades of brown, to get a 'woody' effect. Then I stitched 5 squares to make a cross shape. The waffle-nature of the stitch gives it an interesting texture.
What is your favourite embroidery stitch? [I like feather stitch and backstitch best.]
Which do you find hardest, and struggle to produce neat results? [for me, satin stitch and stem stitch I think]
*the price label says £2.50 - the cost has more than doubled now, I think.
Waste canvas! Wow, what an idea! I shall buy some at once. The Norwich stitch looks perfect for creating a cross shape.
ReplyDeleteYou do need a good pair of tweezers to extract the threads when you've finished stitching
DeleteThat stitch is gorgeous!! I am not very good at most stitches....need to learn blanket stitch. Can do running or cross but got in such a pickle trying to do a small bear cross stitch bear!
ReplyDeleteI've taught Rosie running, cross and backstitch. Blanket stitch is next. It is especially useful for sewing in patches and doing a neat edging.
DeleteI used wasted canvas more than 35 years ago here in the US. I still love to use it but began quilting, so don't cross stitch much anymore.
ReplyDeleteHugs!
Now I'm retired I hope to do some more quilting
DeleteNorwich stitch looks lovely...you did a great job! I almost exclusively use stem stitch, out of laziness, since I'm most familiar with it, but use lazy daisy, french knot, backstitch, and satin, too. I once practiced a whole bunch of different stitching on a crazy quilt pillow, but I've forgotten most of them. Loved the look of bullion stitch flowers, though. I have a hard time getting satin stitch to look nice, so it's my least favorite to work.
ReplyDeleteJen
This project has inspired me to develop my repertoire of Stitches. Maybe I should do some Crazy Quilting too
DeleteThe Norwich stitch must be very satisfying to accomplish. I love to see complex stitches. I learned embroidery as a child but haven't done any in recent years. I was given a petit point kit once, and when I tried, it coincided with my deteriorating eyesight at the time and in the end I had to give up or go crazy!
ReplyDeleteOnce I'd watched the video a couple of times, I understood the method and didn't need the complicated numeric instructions.
DeleteI really like that kitty cat peeping through the tulips! :) Your Norwich stitch seems quite intricate and you did a great job with the cross. I think the chain stitch is one of my favorite embroidery stitches. I seem to struggle a bit with the bullion stitch and my French knots never turn out the way I want them to, either!
ReplyDeleteChain stitch is fun. In primary school we were taught "magic chain" where you have 2 different colour threads in your needle and use them alternately. I'd completely forgotten about that trick. Now I want to use it in the project. "Whipped" chainstitch is another bi-coloured technique.
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