What Are You Stitching?

With needle and thread we hold the potential to convey passion, happiness, thoughts, comfort, ideas… the list goes on. This week’s What Are You Stitching? features designs from members of the Inspirations Community who have harnessed the power of their needle and thread to create some truly remarkable pieces.

‘I have just completed this project called ‘Bluebird with Happiness’. I recently unearthed it from a basketful of other forgotten projects with the partially finished apple embroidery from the book Joyful Stitching. The apple looked so inviting that I decided it needed new life including a bluebird to cheer it up.’

‘The design is improvised using felted wool and my hand-dyed pearl cotton threads. And I enjoyed every stitch!’

Your bird is certainly cheerful and what wonderful colours the hand-dyed threads add to the piece. We’re so glad you enjoyed stitching it, Laura, and we look forward to hearing what other projects you uncover in your basket.

‘Greetings from Massachusetts, USA! Life in the stitch studio became easier when I discovered I could use a hair dryer, set to the high setting, to remove the lines from Frixion pens. Sometimes, you don’t want to use an iron.’ 

‘I’m currently using the pen to draw the guidelines for hand-quilting a Baltimore album quilt. I’m using Soie Gobelins for the quilting, and early tests showed that when I tried to erase pencil lines, the graphite transferred to the silk -Yikes! Frixion pens have been a lifesaver.’

‘It will be about a 48″ square when finished. I designed the centre medallion, which includes an image of our house, my favourite bird the barn swallow, and the aspirational first line of a Shaker hymn that my husband David and I hold dear.’

‘Aside from providing an excellent opportunity to learn needleturn appliqué, this quilt provided the gateway to embroidery for me, as I found myself learning more and more about how to embellish the appliqué. I’m now a devoted Inspirations subscriber and an enthusiastic participant in the Southern Maine (SOME) Chapter of the EGA.’

June, this is a fabulous project and what a great tip! We’re sure many of us would prefer not to have to get the iron out to remove design lines. We love the creativity and thoughtfulness put into each element of your quilt and it has been pieced together beautifully. Also, we are delighted to hear you are leaning into the world of embroidery and look forward to sharing the passion for all things needle and thread with you for many years to come.

‘I thought you might be interested to see my miniature version of the Lady and the Unicorn series of tapestries that I made many years ago, when my eyesight was much better! I made it for my Tudor doll house as a tapestry to hang on the wall.’

‘I worked it in one strand of tapestry wool on a very fine canvas. I can’t believe I did it now that I look at it! I certainly was a fearless embroiderer then and probably now, but the eyesight is preventing anything like what I did before. Still embroidering but on a bit larger scale.’

It is extraordinary, Sandra! You’ve stitched an incredible amount of detail into such a small space and your Tudor doll house must be an opulent and magical place for this piece to call home!

Have any tips or hacks to share when stitching? Or have you recreated famous or historical works with your needle and thread? If yes, we’d love to hear from you!

Email us with any stories, projects and photos of what you’re stitching to news@inspirationsstudios.com