Worked
in simple stitches borrowed from plain sewing
techniques, there's nothing plain about this
wonderfully textured landscape
by
photos
by Alan Bennington
The simple stitches used to make this work are borrowed from plain sewing and mending techniques. The way these stitches are used to create the image incorporates methods found in weaving and darning, and composite stitches such as raised chain band.
Inspired by illustrations found in early 19th-century children's books, this is a fantasy landscape. Your own design could be based on an actual landscape or a fantasy - it's up to you.
When creating your own personal landscape:
- Decide on a colour scheme to fit with your real or imagined image
- Choose a backing fabric in a pleasing colour (soft shades work best) as small amounts of it can be allowed to show.
- Select a variety of threads in small quantities: matt and shiny, textured and smooth, fine and thick. Include torn fabric strips or ribbon if you wish.
The technique can be slow, particularly if you use very fine threads, so start with a small piece to begin with.
Miniature
Landscape. Finished size
6.5 cm square.
view close-up
Use
curved lines to suggest a landscape.
What you need
- 22 cm square of lightweight calico (muslin)
- 22 cm square of silk fabric
- An assortment of small quantities of thread including cotton perle, coton à broder, silk twist, stranded thread and textured threads
- 8 cm square backing fabric
- 15 cm ring frame
- Crewel needle
- Tapestry needle
- Firm card 6.5 cm square
- Small brass ring
Preparation
- With a well-sharpened pencil, draw a 6.5 cm square in the centre of the silk fabric.
- Within this marked square, draw curved lines to build up the image of your landscape.
- Place the silk fabric on top of the calico and mount together into the ring frame (see Back to Basics). Pull taut so that there are no wrinkles, and tighten.
What you do
- Thread the crewel needle with a smooth thread and work straight stitches to fill in the shapes you have drawn (including the sky). Cover the pencil lines with the stitches and leave a small gap of fabric showing between the shapes. The stitches can change direction, be irregularly spaced and be of different length, and the weight of the threads and the colour can change within each shape. Think of these stitches as the 'warp'.
- When all the shapes are filled in, thread the tapestry needle and begin to weave into the straight-stitch warp. From the wrong side of the fabric, bring the needle up through the fabric at the edge of a shape. Weave by passing the needle under and over the stitches to the edge of the shape. Turn and repeat the action, passing the needle under and over the stitches so that they alternate with the previous row. Don't pull the thread too tightly or the shape will distort. To finish a length of yarn, take it through to the back and secure it by working a couple of stitches in the calico backing. Threads of different textures, weights and colours can be used to weave across the warp stitches.
Straight
stitches filling in shapes of a landscape
view
close-up
Weaving
through a 'warp' of straight stitches
view
close-up
To finish
- Stretch and lace your embroidery onto the firm card (see Back to Basics).
- Turn the edges of the backing fabric under so that it is the same size as the firm card. Iron the edges of the backing fabric to the wrong side and cover the back of the stretched piece of work. Slip stitch in place around the outer edges.
- Sew the brass ring onto the back of the piece.
Suggestions
- Refer to colour theory to help you create a sense of distance in your work.
- To create perspective, use heavier or more textured threads for the foreground, graduating to finer smoother threads as you work up the piece.
Gallery
These embroideries were created using the darning technique.
Coffeepot Rock
The technique has been used to recreate
a real landscape. Finished size: 13.5
cm square.
View close-up
Indian
Cow
view close-up
The Men of the Horse and the Bow-slide
View close-up
Book
of Hours
view close-up
