a rose is a rose is a rose

This STITCH CLUB week went by

working on a piece for the workshop of 

Sue Stone

The strip-weaving was well known to me

because that was in one of Jude Hill's classes

and gladly I used that more then once

so no problems there.

You could definitely say that Sue

is a portrait specialist,

so on her strip-woven piece she made a portrait.

I thought about that

collected coloured strips 

(which are there in abundance)

.....

but didn't come up with a good idea

WHO

I would want for a portrait

(or too many idea's perhaps)

So I collected a second bit of (different) coloured fabrics

and wove my background.

The idea of the rose was of course there before I chose the pinks,

the rose itself I sketched from a rose on the "web"

Thin paper to stitch through

and three dark enough pearl cottons

that would stand out against the sweet pinks.

Those cottons, thát was one of my mistakes :

my hand (arthritis) ached soon

because of the three layers of my weave !

Here everything looked still all right

(removing the tissue paper gave me the déja vu

of a shredded paper hanky from the washing machine !!!) 

 And I thought the result was a disaster :

the rose simply disappeared !

(I posted it in the group anyway,

if only to show that most of the time you have to try

many times before something good emerges !)

I left it alone for a day or so

and thought about unpicking, stitch or even paint ...

Then

 back to the stitching

(with stranded cotton floss !!!)

and the rose came back to me !

100.000 trees

A few months ago

I discovered the art project of

Sara Vrugt

100.000 trees and a threaded forest

She planned to stitch a forest of thread and fabric :

100 m2 embroidered forest

which will hang in a spiral shape on 6 x 6 m

and with a height of 4 m.

One will be able to walk into it

and admire nature.

In addition there was to be a crowdfunding

to raise money for 100.000 real trees

that will be planted in due time :

1000 in The Netherlands

and 99.000 in the tropics

(by "TreeSisters")

During this year of making there would be four different places

where people could join in with the embroidering

BUT

.....

then the covid-19 crisis hit our country too

and all of it came to a halt ......

As an alternative for the delay to embroider the forest

hundreds embroidery kits (with leaves) were shipped.

Unfortunately I just missed going to the first embroidery "studio"

in the library in The Hague ánd I missed the embroidery kits ...

until I saw in the FB group of the project

that someone needed someone else to finish her kit !

The instructions, cheesecloth, pattern, hoop, needle and floss.

I continued on the first beginnings right away

A whole DMC thread on black cheesecloth, front and back

All ten leaves finished, front and back 

The leaves cut out with 0.5 cm around 

(though I didn't have the happiest of colours
I was glad to participate !)

Today they went into the mail to Sara !!!

keeping an eye ...

Sue Stone is an English textile artist

who makes stitched portraits.

Her sons made a special Textile Art site

where they give a stage to their mum

and other textile artists from all over the world.

In these strange times they initiated on FB

a "stitch challenge"

with every week another artist

to teach a tiny online workshop

about their own way with textiles,

starting with Sue Stone of course.

Next was Cas Holmes

and on April 6 Emily Tull

who explained how tho stitch an eye.

I was still busy stitching the piece for my friend

so I saw that video later in the week

....

and it very much appealed to me ! 

One piece finished ... ready to start something new !

For one I start with the end result

But it all started with

1. a photo

(hmmmmm ... hate making selfies : they look bad

and strangely askew most of the time)

2. a sketch (with pencil)

3. tracing the drawing in pen

and 4. the drawing (again in pen) on cloth
(an piece of linen from old trousers)

Hmmmm four "me's"

So not one eye
but both eyes ánd glasses

A collection of blues and grays and skin colours

Five slightly different  reds for my glasses

Starting the second eye.
I had some times five needles in my work
each with a different strand (or two)
embroidery floss



While working on this there were two more challenges :
by Richard McVetis and Emily Jo Gibbs

(so more to stitch !)

embroidery exhibition

Today I went to nearby Gorinchem

to the "Gorcums Museum"

with a exhibition about embroidery :

the local sampler embroidery association exists 30 years.

So modern samplers (and some very old ones!)

and a choice of other embroidery works.

For me it was a combination with a short workshop

by my friend Sary Maas

Sary is an expert

in various traditional embroidery techniques

and she loves to teach them to keep the knowledge

about them alive !

The traditional costume of Marken

is one of her favorites

a corset for a Marken-bride made to scale

with all the original elements

(all made by Sary !)

(the back with seven roses)

I had hoped to learn the rose,

but in the two (!) hours we could only start

on the small bag with another flower motif

(lovely too !)

Sary used the rose-motif in her own way

on a scarf

I will try this one too some day !!!

After we had lunch

I came back for the exhibition

(and Sari gave another workshop

for a new group of embroiderers)

There was traditional work from different countries

Dutch fashion

Frank Govers   en  Jan Taminiau

My all time favorite :

Tilleke Schwarz

Karola Pezarro

Barbara Broekman

Malou Busser

A big work of some square meters

and look at the detail : all chain stitch by hand !

(sorry ... don't remember her name ...)

And some of the "Merkwaardig" association work

And some very old sampler in "queen stitch"
(rococosteek)

inspired Sary to make a "Elizabethan Sweet Bag":
a little purse to carry some sweet scent in
to mask the (probably) horrible odour
of unwashed bodies and clothes
in old times ...

Sary's work
(with needle lace eggs and little biscornu)

If you live in Holland

it's a nice visit.

december .....

Ahhhhhh

first day of the last month of this year

.....

a bit of winter

As I could have predicted in advance :

November was a quiet month

after the frantic activities of October.

I made some more textile jewels

(just because it was fun)

but couldn't get myself

into starting something new.

But, I had to make my last two (!) pieces

for the felting exchange.

I made the one for October first :

a (big) fish

of which I totally forgot to take pictures

before I sent him off.

Then, in the last days of November

I fi-nal-ly had the idea

for the Zodiac sign Virgo
(the September piece !)

shrunk to the right size !

It was quickly dry on the radiator
and then came the fun :
embroidery

Finished,

... and it arrived safely, I heard !

I also received one of my
last "jewels" (corsages) I asked for

Ha, it's almost like Medusa's head ...
but I like it !
Thanks Paulien !

There was more interest in it  :

Ha, ha, ha !

*
And in a few days
we have the children's feast
"St Nicolaas"

(dress rehearsal)