FLOWERS FOR JAN

Little treasures from my garden............stitched for Jan 2016

some time since I posted progress on the flowers I have been stitching for Jan, last time was August,  Jan's request has been to have the little flowers I stitch that remind her so much of her Grandmother my mother,

Here is the bottom pocket, the stitching of it was full of happy memories for me each of the different flowers had their own story, some because of remembering in my childhood the waiting for a flower bud like the snowdrop to appear each year, there were only a couple of bulbs but they were very precious., others because like dianthus Mary in the centre was my own design charted from my drawing and first stitched with a flower of the arm of my chair for inspiration. 

This is the front of the needle book and here below are the pieces layer out ready for putting together. In total I managed to include 15 different flowers, there were a few more I thought of but did not use as I did not find the right spot to put them in.

Inside the needle book is the quote.....

The stitcher with needle 'n thread,  She plies the art of making beauty for the heart.

Blue is Jan's favourite colour, the blue silk that is the inside of the hussif came from Annette in America and is just perfect. Because the outer fabric is very blue I have changed the blue tones of the harebells which are on most of the accessories tucked in the pockets. I have also used several tiny bees and lady birds charms these and the lovely butterfly charm by the floss ring are Susan Clarke charms from America I love them and. know of two shops here in NZ who stock them.

 

The outer fabric could be forget-me-nots  certainly makes me think of Chatham Island Forget-me-nots that my mother grew years ago in our garden way down south. Jan's birthday was a special mile stone,  her 50th and the hussif has now been delivered  to her. I'm still stitching harebells as I want to share them with a friend.

 Thank you to all who left a comment about my latest Scissor fob. the challenge now to find the next idea possibly mount it differently and have it ready in a months time

I HAVE ADDED DAISIES

Daisies, Ye flowers of lowly birth embroiderers of the carpet earth.

John Clare

Yes I am very late with this posting. The weather has been very cold and fireside has been the best place unfortunately the computer is in the other room, now after a couple efforts am managing to do the post on my I pad.  I have added daisies to the Hussif piece along with some extra ones to be used on smaller parts. This daisy design origins are unknown looking through photos and also some stitched pieces I first stitched daisies from the Danish books, and about 1994 this version of an English daisy appears in my stitch pieces, like the violets I am able to vary the placement of the flower and buds, the stem is whipped back stitch, which I like because it is not as thick as doing it in cross stitch. I am now stitching the next Flower and hopefully will be back before the end of the week to share with you all.

The Book mark shown above is from a very early posting and with it is part of John Clare's poem that refers to the flowers Cowslips, violets and daisies.
I have often used this quote by John Clare, (English Poet 1793-1864) with my embroideries when  it it is part of a long poem, "Songs of Praise Imitations of the 148 Psalm"  the verse on the daisies was preceded by two others mentioning flowers, first cowslips then violets and below is one of my earlier designs for a pin cushion using daisies  with the same quote.

SMALL TREASURES AND A- GIVE- AWAY

Small treasures that bring great pleasures

Do you know the winter iris - Iris stylosa ? This year my two clumps have produced a mass of blooms and I have been able to beat the snails for they delight in nibbling them. From these rather untidy plants I have been picking the buds and enjoying watching the petals unfold and for more than a month now have been able to have a vase of them in my Kitchen.

The other small treasures are ones I have been stitching, quite some time ago I started stitching a Husif for Jan, next march will be her 50th birthday and I wanted something very special for the occasion, so I feel the Husif she requested , stitched with the little flowers I have used on so many pieces, including my work box.(see it  in this post ) would be the perfect thing to stitch for her. This piece like other pieces when the eyes became a problem the stitching was put aside, now having started again on it I have decided each Monday to do an update of my progress, my aim is to add one flower type per week, hopefully by planning to keep adding a small amount of stitching I will manage to achieve this each week and to make sure I  do I am committed to showing the progress on my blog. This is what I had stitched before-

and now this week I have added a few violets,there is no chart for my design I am just adding the flowers stitching some by memory and others are a piece taken from another design.
The winter aconite is from February design in the cross stitch book, A Country Diary Collection 2 Over the years I have enjoy again and again looking at the Edith Holden's book The Country Diary of an Edwardian Lady and the cross stitch book is some of her paintings charted for cross stitch.
The Crocus is a Danish Cross Stitch design and I have mislaid the book so cannot tell you which one.
Violets these I have stitched so often that I now stitch them from memory and there will be more violets added to the design as I go on.

And for my 6th Anniversary Give away Draw.

I wish I could have sent something to everyone but sadly time would only allow me to have one

 name drawn  and here it is

CONGRATULATIONS to Smily in Hungary. 

I went over to her blog and would you believe her latest posting was about the colour for June being RED, well little red robins will certainly fit the red theme. I am stitching the last piece now so hopefully the parcel will be away in the post at the end of the week , so please Smily send me your postal address, and  although I have sent  embroideries to many countries this is a first time I have sent some of my work to Hungary so I am excited.