Kaleidoscoping Values | ||||||||||
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The purpose of the course was to not only learn the canvas stitches (tent, mosaic, jacquard, Byzantine, etc.), but also to learn to stitch with values within chosen color families to great effect. We also learned about the importance of focal points, had the chance to design two of the sixteen squares, and got a short history of canvas embroidery. I'm still very much a beginner at stitching on canvas. This course was quite a good challenge for me. One of the great parts about working with a group on the same project is to see how each of us interpreted the design individually. We were given a list of various color families to choose from. Some of the choices were very vivid and wild! I chose the muted blues and grays because this piece was stitched for my husband who prefers subdued tones. To get a better look at the stitches, take a look at this stitch detail (651K). Judith is an excellent teacher and writer. Her text was wonderfully detailed and generally easy to follow. She took us step-by-step through the set-up and basic stitches in the first fourteen squares. For the last two squares (upper right and lower left) and the focal point, we were given great latitude to stitch whatever design we wanted. The trick was to make those last details fit with the rest of the design, to utilize the colors well, and give the piece a professional, completed look. I took this challenge!
We were the very last group to take this GCC. It is no longer offered through EGA.
Judith D. Gulick
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For the center focal point, I actually got some help with the stitch from another gal in our group. Once I saw her focal point, I knew I wanted mine to be similar. I didn't have a chart, but just looked carefully at the colors and stitches she had chosen, then modified her design to fit my piece. I'm very please with the way mine turned out!
Now, Square 4 (upper right) was much more of a challenge for me! I ended up stitching it twice. I wanted a plaid-like design. The first one I tried was OK, but not great. I think I just had the scale all wrong in comparison to the rest of the project. So I put my piece up against a wall and looked at it for a few days. As you can see, from the image at left, the scale of my plaid was too large for the rest of the piece. I finally decided that it really could be better, and it would be worthwhile to take out those 3 or 4 hours of stitching and restitch that square, rather than being sad every time I looked at it for the rest of my life.
I re-stitched Square 4 with the crossed corners cushion stitch. It's a padded stitch in which the stitch is formed in two layers and two directions. This allows the light to play on the fibers, creating visual interest. I used both two values of gray and one value blue in this square. The stitches are small enought that they work with the rest of the piece much better than the longer stitches of my first plaid. I'm very pleased with the way this turned out!
Finally, I stitched Square 13, the signature block. I used the same crossed corners cushion for most this square so that it would balance Square 4. Then I used a continental stitch for my name and date.
