Silver Splendor | ||||||||||||||||||
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We met as a class outside our normal EGA meetings. Experienced stitchers helped those of us new to the technique of blackwork. The goal in blackwork is to make the front of your work and the back of your work look identical (except for the beading). This is achieved by utilizing the Holbein or double-running stitch in a specific pattern. I completed two different versions of Silver Splendor. The first, shown below, was done on white aida. I found it so much fun that I wanted to try a second piece. As shown at the top of this page, I stitched it on black aida with DMC rayon and DMC stranded gold metallic. I am very pleased with the way it turned out. After we finished our pieces, we were invited to send them in to our Correspondence course teacher for evaluation. I looked forward to this step because I've never had my work evaluated by an instructor. She took the piece and looked for specific items. Where a mistake was found, she noted it by stitching a black loop around the mistake, and then noting it on the evaluation form. Some classmates thought the instructor was too picky. I appreciated all the comments. That will help me improve on my stitching.
1. On the back of the piece, I ended a thread here. But it left a space that should have been a stitch for the piece to be truly reversible. 2. When I turned the corner, I had an extra diagonal stitch on the back that was not on the front. 3. Another instance of the back not matching the front. 4. I had a couple wiggly beads here. I need to anchor them more securely, while still keeping the stitches invisible on the back. 5. A case of hanging tails on the back of the piece where I didn't clip them close enough to the stitching. 6. Another case of ending a thread in the wrong direction, and missing a stitch on the back. As you can see, most of my mistakes only showed on the back side of the piece. So why all the fuss? Only because the purpose of this class was to learn a specific technique which involves the ability to stitch a reversible piece. My black version of Silver Splendor had none of these problems. I obviously learned as I went along! The booklet for this course is excellent. It is very detailed and has clear, precise instructions. It is a spiral-bound book that lies flat as you work. It comes with a clear photograph of the completed piece. If you want an overview of this technique, read my page in Needlework 101 called Blackwork Basics.
Embroiderers' Guild of America
For information on this pattern, contact Janet Salerno by e-mail
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I took a blackwork class with my EGA chapter. This was the first EGA Correspondence course I participated in. In fact, it's the first formal hand stitching class I've ever taken! I learned a lot, and thoroughly enjoyed myself.
To the right is my evaluated piece, complete with the black threads. Here is what she found: