Lotus by Margaret Lee
21st May 2021
With each new issue of Inspirations magazine, we jam in as much of the world’s most beautiful needlework from cover to cover as possible, while still keeping within our page count and weight allocation.
But what happens when there are still more fabulous projects to release every quarter that just won’t fit into our magazine or books? Enter the Handpicked range.
Handpicked projects are exactly as the name suggests – additional projects hand chosen by the Inspirations editorial team for publication. Whilst you won’t find these projects in the magazine, each exquisite Handpicked design is available for purchase individually as a printed booklet and as a digital pattern, with each one exclusive and unavailable in any other publication.
It is with this in mind that we reveal our latest Handpicked project from one of our very favourite designers, Margaret Lee. If you’ve already read your copy of Inspirations issue #110, you’ll notice that Lotus is the perfect complement to Margaret’s project, Yuki. However, this striking project stands just as perfectly on its own.
Lotus is a breathtaking flower design worked in Japanese goldwork and bead embroidery. The dramatic brown silk taffeta background highlights the shine of the gold and silver thread as well as the scattering of shimmering beads, ensuring that this project is one to be admired.
Although the lotus flower is stylised in this particular design, the colours and materials perfectly represent the significance of the flower in Japanese culture. The bloom is renowned for growing out of dirty, murky waters and arising absolutely pure and clean despite its surroundings.
In this, it represents the process of attaining enlightenment, where seekers rise from the lowest to the highest state of consciousness, transcending suffering as they seek nirvana. It is little wonder that the symbol is ubiquitous not just in Japan, but throughout many Eastern cultures.
Margaret Lee’s Lotus deviates from this tradition only in the fact that the background it arises from is almost as beautiful as the flower itself. The glass beads scattered across the fabric act like light-catchers, with flashes of rainbow colours sparkling as the light around them changes. The shimmering fabric is also beautiful in its silky smoothness, making the perfect ground for the gold and silver flower that floats on its surface.
There is a meditative quality to both the working of and contemplation of the central flower. Working from the centre of the flower to the outer petals, the repetition in the stitches and the evenness inherent in working in a circular shape all encourage you to think carefully and ensure that each stitch is perfectly matched to the ones before and after it.
The goal is that no matter which way you look at the flower, it is perfect in its shape and texture at all angles, just as the real lotus flower is.
And then comes the mounting. Lotus looks simply stunning framed and hung on the wall, which is the finish you can achieve when you purchase one of our Ready-to-Stitch kits. Although as you’ll see you can also opt to mount Lotus in the lid of a stunningly worked, custom made display box.
As mentioned earlier in this newsletter, these wooden display boxes are now available from our website, so if you plan on mounting your Lotus into a lid top, don’t forget to order a box at the same time as you purchase the instructions and the Ready-to-Stitch kit.
It is sometimes difficult to find the right words to describe Margaret Lee’s superb projects, but Lotus is undoubtedly up there with her finest designs. Don’t miss out on this unique and exclusive project that will exercise your skills and bring a wonderful sense of serenity and achievement all at once.
Make Your Own Lotus
Step 1 – Purchase Project Instructions
Lotus by Margaret Lee from our Handpicked Range is a stunning flower design in Japanese goldwork and bead embroidery.
Step 2 – Purchase Ready-To-Stitch Kit & Wooden Display Box
The Inspirations Ready-To-Stitch kit for Lotus includes everything* you need to re-create this superb box lid insert: Fabric (pre-printed), embroidery threads, beads and needles.
Lotus – HP Kit
*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 digital/printed pattern.
Kit does not include opaque adhesive film, mount card or wooden display box.