I was hoping that today would be sunny so that I could show you the very special feature in this newest of Stitchscapes. Unfortunately we appear to have run out of sunshine for the time being, having used it all up during the week, and today is grey, overcast and windy. The photos and Studio Saturday must continue however, so I would like to introduce you to the most recent member of the 'scape family, Gold Rush!
I did mention in a previous post that this would be part of a secret project and that it was meant to be simple with fewer layers.... well the fewer layers part was right but it ended up being anything other than simple, and so has only helped my secret project in telling me what not to do (ie, get carried away with gold thread!). Not to worry, I shall just have to think again.
It was the gold and green print fabric that did it. I saw the gold in there as a 'golden' opportunity for some sparkle and bought some stranded DMC embroidery thread in metallic gold. Initially I was only going to use it on the special Japanese fabric, but then it looked kind of mean so the gold spilled out into the flower stems, making the ground sparkle and gleam in the light.
I have tried several different stitches in this piece, including blanket stitch, star stitch and coral stitch. The usual suspects; straight, satin, running (kantha), detached chain (lazy daisy), fly, whip, back, seed and cross stitches, couching, french knots and bullion knots are all in there too, mingling together in an embroidered explosion!
Originally, I wasn't going to have anything in the sky, it was just going to be two layers of blue. However, as the bottom half got more complex, layered and sparkly, something had to be done about the top half which seemed plain and empty. With the beautiful weather we have been having, I was reminded of the idea of the gold representing sunlight gilding everything in it's sight. It's a theme that often appears in my stitchscapes as I play around with how light and shadow might appear in the real landscape. These inspirations then took the form of sun rays bursting out of the top of the hoop- like when the day is overcast but tendrils of sunshine manage to force their way through that cloudy barrier to reach the ground.
More gold here, a touch of gold there, and this Stitchscape's claim to fame is the fact it sparkles in the light! I really love the effect, it makes it seem so special and reminds me of how beautiful everything appears in the summer time. Flowers glow as if lit from within, the sky turns every shade of blue on a daily basis, and every shade of orange and purple in the evening, the sea and rivers sparkle and wink like the ripples are speaking in morse code, and the colours everywhere are rich and vibrant. That is what this stitchscape reminds me of. Does it remind you of anything?
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