Monday, June 27, 2022

Stitching....

 


 And Charting...

It may not Surprise you, Dear Readers, to find out that I had to make changes to the headdress of the Maiden I was stitching from the Janet Granger Kit. Above, you can see my progress, so far a faithful rendition of the kit design! But you may also remember that I had altered the headdresses of the first kit I had stitched a year or so ago. The kit designs just don't quite capture for me the extreme "Medieval" nature of women's head-wear in that era. 

Here you can see the first "Tapestry" I stitched,
 and the lady on the left has a much elaborated
 veil from the one in the original design.


In order to practice the art of charting a stitching design,
 I made a rendition of the changes I wanted to make
 on this lady's headdress.
 I started by drawing the parts of the kit I would use,
 so the scale would be correct, and then drew the changes.
This way I could see how my version would look
 before I began stitching!


Here the stitching is begun....


Here the veil has been begun....


And here it is completed.
I wanted to keep the colors mostly as the kit placed them,
 with the veil being blue rather than the whites
 I had added into the first tapestry.
And because I was planning to add another
 entire figure to the Tapestry, 
I needed to get a sense of the colors and balance of this addition.


My inspiration is the lady in this RL Tapestry, 
one of the Devonshire Hunting Tapestries.
The era and the colors were perfect.


The scale of my print-out is too small, 
but you can get an idea of what I am aiming for!


Here you can see I have begun the charting of the Lady,
 with a few adjustments to colors in her headdress.
I am trying to add a minimum of new thread colors to the kit design!
The subtleties of the Devonshire Tapestry just can't be rendered 
in this small scale without a higher count fabric.
 So I am working with what we have!


And at a certain point, I just had to start!
I carefully counted stitches to get the 
face and headdress placed correctly...
And because I am still sort of "designing as I go"
I was stitching with three or four threads.... 
leaving the ends dangling while I made sure
 the positioning worked well....


Working out the "blurry parts" in my chart 
as I got to each poorly defined "square" in my drawing!


And skipping past the parts I was unsure about....
(Which is most of the veil details....)


And adding the parts I am sure about first...
The sleeves....


And then just jumping in to the veil
 and trying to make it look a little bit "transparent"...
 but gold at the same time....
The effect will hopefully be more apparent
 when the background has been added.


And adding the little dog....!


And with the other Tapestry Ladies beside it....
to show the "Procession" they seem to make!
But I know you will not be surprised, Dear Readers,
 that I have yet to begin to chart the gown!
It is a complicated pattern
 and I might have to convert it to solid colors
 instead of the glorious brocade
 of the Devonshire Lady's gown.
I have a long way to go,
 but I am having a great deal of fun
Charting and Stitching this design!


6 comments:

  1. Hi Betsy! I have to confess that other than completing a few cross stitch projects back in the late 80's/early 90's, I have no concept of charting your own design in petit point but it sounds wonderfully challenging! And while I don't understand the process of getting there, I can truly appreciate the end result - the tapestry you completed last year is gorgeous! The dark background with cascading flowers really make the maidens pop to life! You are coming along so quickly on the new tapestry, and that tells me that you are really enjoying it! These ladies are really coming alive, too, and I am excited to see each of these lovely girls and all the details you have in store for them!

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  2. Dear Betsy,
    I do understand the need for a chart when making changes. It's necessary for avoiding proportion mistakes as well as for seeing how the complete scene is going to be.
    I love the change of the headdress. Great work!
    Hugs, Drora

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  3. Beautiful work Betsy! It’s great to hear you are enjoying this new challenge, and the ladies are looking fine!

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  4. I've enjoyed seeing your own designed lady appear and grow to the fullest! Btw I have no doubt that her name is Lady Elizabeth... in honor of her most talented creator. ;O)

    You've found a wonderful inspiration from that picture and drawing a chart makes so much sense as you need to keep up with the proportions of the other three ladies. And although you need to make compromises as the small size of the project doesn't allow patterns in the gown it's amazing how impressive these stitched ladies are. Have fun and happy stitching!

    Hugs
    Birgit

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  5. Me has dejado impresionada!!! Queda más bonito que el original. Eres toda una artista del bordado.

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  6. I AM SO IMPRESSED! your stitching is MAGNIFICENT Betsy and your bravery in sewing "outside the box" is something I can't help but Admire! Your tapestry is not only going to be BEAUTIFUL on your castle wall, but will add the precise flavor and atmosphere in the medieval palace and a vibrant burst of colour against its grey stone walls- Quite Wonderful!!!

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