As I don't actually like the cutwork I was on with for the May/June Move It On Project, I've had to make myself sit down to it - not easy when there are a lot of other things going on at the moment. But I recently managed to push on to the last hole and ran out of the thread I'd been using for the needleweaving just before I got to it...
I managed to find something not too dissimilar to complete it and then stood back to view the whole thing. I still didn't like it. The whole point of the original concept was to have the leaves left as negative space, but they just couldn't compete with the busyness of the cutwork. What if I helped them out? What if I outlined them? I found a thinner thread in the same sort of variegated green as the blanket stitch edging and added a simple chain stitch outline.
I don't know about anyone else, but even having only done two, it's turned the whole thing around for me. The leaf shaped holes are making sense now and it feels much more balanced. So much so that I'm actually looking forward to getting the other outlines stitched.
Something else which might loosely be turning around is this little piece I worked last month with Carolann Allan at SEATA. She created a slow stitching activity for us which included using some of her wonderful textile oddments. I chose an old piece of soft dark grey linen and decided to try out a technique I'd seen on Instagram, using stacked running stitch to create a circle. I started with five tiny stitched running stitches in a circle and as I spiralled round added stitches parallel to the ones underneath. As the circle gets bigger, so do the stitches and when they feel too big, you split them into two smaller stitches and so on. As usual I forgot to take an early photo, but here it is when I was stitching alfresco on the first day of our holiday. The thread has a wonderful shimmer but it was too overcast to be able to capture it in the photograph.
I worked right round to the edge of the 4 inch hoop and then stopped. No idea what I'm going to do with it but it was a very relaxing mindful stitch.
It also looks equally interesting on the back.
Carolan suggested I work another one from the back, so the back is the front (thinks...does that make sense?!) which is a great idea but for another time.
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