in this text are the directions for several ways to create a background for the flowers. There are books already published on other ways to create scenes from nature and I refer you to them. Add that information together with how to stitch individual flowers and then be creative in your own way. Instead, I have focused more on how to achieve backgrounds easily and fairly quickly. The background is the backdrop for the flowers rather than being the purpose of the composition. The reason for publishing this now is that I am no longer on the young edge of old age and I think it wiser to complete and publish what I have already created rather than wait for further inspiration to strike. Or not strike, which is a strong possibility.
The most basic and simplest of stitches and techniques are used so that everyone, no matter their skills or experience, can achieve their goals. More experienced stitchers can use this information to create and develop results far beyond what is covered in this book. The materials used are basic and readily available. That is: quilting cotton (medium thread count white cotton) and DMC Floss threads. If you have embroidery fabrics such as linen available then use them and enjoy stitching on fabric that is more suited to embroidery. I used Cashel and Belfast linen but it would be preferable to use a linen with a higher thread count. Do not be tempted to use cotton sheeting as the thread count is too high making it difficult to pierce with a needle.
The plants and flowers have to be recognizable in that the growth pattern, the shapes of the leaves and flowers have to be congruent with nature. Although it is impossible to stitch a total likeness to a 'real flower' using needle and thread, your rendition should be faithful to the intentions of mother nature and be recognizable.
The colours of the stalks, leaves and flowers must be accurate. Without this accuracy, the eye will not recognize the plants and identify them.
We are all very different people and stitch - be creative - in many different ways. Copying is alright but following your own creative urge is better. This book is a structure on which to grow your own garden. The more different it is from this, the better. Be as creative as you wish. This may sound like a contradiction to the thread colour recipes and the gardens featured in this book. Take this foundation and express it in your own way.
But first it is necessary to prepare background fabric properly. Without this you are wasting your time and talents especially if you are creating an item that might be destined for posterity. Even if you do not envisage your creation being hung in a museum 300 years hence, preparing your fabric properly will save you much stitching frustration and give you a far better completed product. You will be glad that you took the time to do this well.
This form of embroidery is called Creative Surface Stitchery.
Wishing you Happy Stitching and a result to be proud of.
Ann Bernard
A Summary On Hand Stitching Recognizable Summer Flowers Using Creative Surface Stitchery
The focus of the first section is the background for the flowers. Both the front fabric and the backing fabric are discussed. In Spring Flowers we used batik cotton but for Summer Flowers we have been more enterprising and there are several ways of creating interesting backgrounds.
As photo-printing on cotton, linen and silk is one of the methods used, the exact details on how to do this yourself are included. The commercial products proved more suitable for memory quilts. Other techniques are painting with acrylic paints, using silk or wool rovings, machine embossing with silk rovings and piece quilting.
Back-basting the front fabric to a backing fabric plus how to mount it in a frame are the crucial next stage. Stitching on fabric that is taut in the frame is vitally important and one of the absolute necessities to achieving the best stitching results of which you are capable. Small gardens, i.e .4” x 6” can be stitched in a hoop or ring frame provided that the fabric either remains taut or is retightened as necessary. There are other frames which are easy to use and you will hear more about the ones I am aware of at this time. This is called 'Dressing Your Frame'.
Threads, in the form of DMC Floss or, their equivalent in Clarks or Finca are universally available and are used for all the gardens except one where I used my inherited stash of silk threads. There is an app called XFloss which is an efficient and easy to use tool for converting DMC numbers to other makes.
The stitches used are Straight, Split, Seeding, Stem, Detached Chain, Fly, Feather, French Knots, Cretan, Herringbone and Woven Spider Wheels. Three extras, Bullion Knots, Raised Chain Band, and Distorted Straight stitch are used in only one flower each. Some, of the stitches, have been adapted to achieve a specific effect. None of this is difficult and it is fun to use stitches in different ways. A section on Stitch Directions is included.
Then come the Summer Flowers in all their variety and glory. Every flower has a real life photo, the instructions on how to hand stitch it, the colour numbers of the threads, stitching diagrams and a photos of the stitched flower. Many delightful stitched gardens are included in this section and I am indebted to the many stitchers who contributed their time and expertise.
The Cover Story - Come Stitch with Me follows with the planning and the stitching of the garden used for the front cover of this book. You will see how I plan a layout, stitch bits here and there, make marks with a thread and not a pencil, change my mind and gradually arrive at a conclusion.
And now for something completely different for us all. Silk Flower Conversion is a technique that allows one to create large petalled flowers without doing Long and Short stitch. We had some fun working with this one. Although this is not traditional embroidery, it might just squeeze into the description of Creative Surface Stitchery. This led to Funtasy Flowers which are another new concept. It does include some stitching and I think that it will be of interest to textile artists.
The final section will show you how to mount your embroidery on foam core board, mitre the corners and either frame it yourself or prepare it for professional framing. But no one will give it the care and attention that you will so if you are able to do this yourself, then do it. Cutting glass is a job for a professional.
You will find a lot of ideas in this book plus the directions on how to achieve them yourself. As always, I take the simplest and easiest approach to achieve 'recognizable summer flowers.'
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