I’ve been working on another garden-themed piece for what seems a very long time. And it’s going to be a lot longer largely because hand embroidery takes so much time. I haven’t been posting photos because even on days when I work for up to six hours, the piece looks like I’ve made little progress. Sigh. But on the upside I love the look and process of handwork, so I accept the length of time it takes. You can see where I am thus far through the step photos below.
In the first photo I’ve placed the primary flowers, which are poppies. Some will be more realistic, while others are abstracted. My goal is to have a sense of realism without being photographically realistic.
I’ve begun adding stems of False Indigo, which is the periwinkle in the title, as a contrast in size and color.
I want to fill in the top with small poppies to give the effect of background in the distance. So I auditioned them, but did not fuse or stitch them down. I realized I first needed to place and embroider the stems of False Indigo I had planned for additional background.
Here’s where I’m at as of last night. You can see two of the embroidered stems of False Indigo with a third to go on the right hand side. I’m embroidering rather than appliquéing them so they recede into the background.
After this I have a great deal of embroidery to go. Each poppy will be embroidered, some with more detail than others. And each leaf will contain embroidery. Finally, I will couch down my own hand-twisted cords for stems. At this point, I’m planning on a triptych. I have the right panel completed. Here are two detail photos of the larger poppies. The large poppies in this panel will be similarly embroidered.
I’ve signed on for another World Challenge with France, Japan, and the United States. This time it’s poets, and mine is The Belle of Amherst–Emily Dickenson. So I’m going to have to put aside this project, which means yes, it will take a bit longer, but I hope not too long. Wish me luck!