Allium ‘Purple Sensation’ by Trish Burr

No-one knows the exact number, but there are estimated to be somewhere between 300,000 and 400,000 species of flowering plants on earth.

That would create quite the spectacular garden wouldn’t it, getting all those species together in one place? If that were even possible, imagine the sight! Perhaps try and imagine which species, out of all that colour and vibrancy would stand out the most?

We would like to put forward that one such contender may just be the Allium ‘Purple Sensation’. 

It’s such a stunner in fact, that renowned needlework designer Trish Burr chose this flower to create her gorgeous piece aptly named Allium ‘Purple Sensation’, which appears in our brand-new book A Passion for Needlework | The Whitehouse Daylesford.

Straight out the gate you know you’re dealing with something a little special when a flower adopts the word ‘sensation’ in its name. Indeed, how emboldened and confident must a flower be to proclaim itself a sensation?

Perhaps it has something to do with its ability to shoot skyward long, straight and sturdy green stems, upon which it fashions buds resembling the tip of a spear.

At the appointed time, the skin of the spear tip opens and peels back to reveal an explosion of inflorescence consisting of dozens of small star-shaped flowers all arcing themselves in such a way that a perfectly shaped sphere is formed. 

And then there is the magnificence of its colour. Rich and vivid violet-lilac petals immediately arrest your attention as you look across a sea of purple balls elevated in position that sway gently in a breeze.

Yes, this is indeed a sensational flower that has earned every right to be immortalised in stitch. 

To help ensure her project does justice to the task at hand, Trish Burr enlisted the help of Carolyn Jenkins, a rare mix of a professional gardener, designer and painter. 

Carolyn creates breathtaking botanical paintings, and it is her original design of the Purple Sensation that Trish has re-created with needle and thread.

Working from Carolyn’s painting, Trish has deployed a plethora of DMC and Anchor stranded cottons in conjunction with her trademark threadpainting technique to bring the composition to life.

There are so many details we love about Trish’s work, for this piece we were particularly taken by her decision to outline each element of the design with split stitch.

This outline serves to bring a wonderful definition and precision to the embroidery, which in turn assists the viewer to better appreciate the intricacies of the flower itself.

As each petal and each stem is shaded using carefully chosen blends of gorgeous colours, anyone stitching this piece will feel themselves transported into a peaceful garden setting admiring the striking beauty of this wonderful flower.

If you are not yet familiar with our Passion for Needlework books, these special publications seek to capture some of the world’s most beautiful needlework, in the most beautiful way possible.

Complete and detailed instructions for this design are included in A Passion for Needlework | The Whitehouse Daylesford and if you appreciate up close and personal photos of needlework, then these books are most definitely for you.

Our Ready-to-Stitch kit for this project even features the design pre-printed onto the fabric, so we’ve made this as easy as possible for you to stitch yourself.

Thank you, Trish for stitching such a lovely piece – we can’t wait to see the photos from needlework fans the world over, creating their own versions of Allium ‘Purple Sensation’.

Step 1 – Purchase Project Instructions

Allium ‘Purple Sensation’ by Trish Burr is a wonderful botanical illustration magically brought to life with needle and thread.

Step 2 – Purchase Ready-To-Stitch Kit

The Inspirations Ready-To-Stitch kit for Allium ‘Purple Sensation’ includes everything* you need to re-create this stunning botanical scene: Fabric with pre-printed design, embroidery threads and needle.

*Please Note: To cater for flexibility of purchase, instructions are not included with our kits. For step-by-step directions on how to create this project, please refer to the book.