Well, I have been away a lot again, but when I have been at home I have worked hard to finish this piece.
As ever the finishing bits take ages and are hard on the fingers. Embellishing the shields was hard - there are lots of layers of leather, padding and silk. The manes are just roughly finished at the moment. I have used turkey stitch - again through leather etc - and will eventually trim the threads so that the manes are actually fre flowing. The horsemans' spears are made out of Bonsai wire - always useful stuff to have around. Oh yes, the door handles are smooth purl.
I am going to put this away for a few days, at present all I can see is the faults. Then it needs mounting before I hand it in for assessment.
Yes. I have been away for a long time, but I did at least collect some detailed pictures for my next assessed piece. That's my excuse for my absence anyway.
Really the work that is left is hard to do, fiddly and through many layers of fabric, but doesn't look like much.
It is all about sorting out spears, finishing shields, highlighting hooves, applying cording. The list is much longer than that!
At present I am stitching the manes. It's a kind of version of turkey stitch. I will cut and trim each mane to give the finished effect. I have already done the tails in matching thread. I am using a gorgeous 30 wt silk thread (thank you Barbara!) for the manes and tails. It has a wonderful sheen - which doesn't show in the picture unfortunately.
I have a target finish date of mid-July. That's my next visit to Tracy in Durham. I would like to be able to take the piece off the frame and mount it in July. That would give me a straight start for the next piece in September.
There have been some tricky bits and tricky times over the last few days. For example, I used some sticky tape to remove some fluff from the background and promptly tore the white horse's leg off - time to cut a fresh horse and ponder why I had needed to take fluff off in the first place. If I had cut the padding more accurately first time round ....................
Anyway, the white horse is firmly attached and so is his rider. There is a lot of detailing to do yet but the end is definitely coming in to sight.
The blingy shields are gone and a much quieter coloured leather substituted. Overall I think that the colours work well together.
There was a point when I thought that I was quietly mad for choosing such a fiddly subject, but now I think that it was a good choice.
Well no!! To me it looks pretty much the same, but again - it's about detailing.
I have finished the couching round the doorway and added a row of stem stitch; the canopy thing is now in place and I have almost finished the archway under the canopy; and I have started on the ground. Now that is interesting. In the original the ground is shown as sort of cobbled, so I have used some felt padding to give the impression of cobbles. There is more to do on this, and it may not work - but, they are not wrinkles you see - they are the cobbles of the future! I am also prepping the two horses and riders who will be in the foreground.
There is still masses to do, but it's fun. I never expected to enjoy working this piece, but I really am enjoying it. It appeals to the fussy bit of me!
Another week and loads more detail. The detailing doesn't notice particularly, but it makes things look just a little sharper and more finished.
I have changed the small colonnade. Originally this was tiny strips of silk, but silk so fine just disintegrated as I stitched, so I have couched some beautiful silk thread down instead. I'm really pleased with how it turned out - it has a lovely sheen.
The top canopy is just roughly pinned in place at present. I have quilted the design and prepped the piece to go on, but I haven't decided yet if it needs more padding underneath. In the image that I am working from perspective is pretty well non-existent (which has forced me to make some arbitrary decisions about what is on top of what) but I want to make that silk canopy look at least a little like a dome.
Anyway, it is almost time to turn my attention to the two horses and riders.
For the applique component of the Diploma we have to cover a minimum of four different types of edging. So far I have used turned (the tunic of one of the defendants), corded (around the arches and along the edge of the tower), embroidered (stem stitch around the men and the small colonnade) and now I am putting on a couched edge around the doorway. I am not sure if I will use any additional edgings - I will just see what is needed as I go along.
I added detail to the two shields using a coloured smooth purl, but it has got damaged. That was vaguely inevitable I suppose. Anyway, I have taken it out and will put some fresh on right at the last moment.
This all takes longer than you would think. Slowly deciding on the order of layers, choosing the right fabric, stabilising and cutting out those tiny pieces, using fine silk thread to stitch the pieces in place ....................... It's all enjoyable, but you won't see an enormous amount of progress between posts. I suspect that, like canvas work, it is one of these techniques that comes together suddenly at the end.
I am pleased with the middle tower. I like the contrast in the little colonnade.
I was back in Durham with Tracy yesterday, and so I getting back in gear to motor on with this piece. It may not look very different but ..................
The imposts are in place. I had to look that term up - they are the white bits of stone at the top of the pillars. The bricking is almost finished - I have left a gap in the middle because there is going to be a horse and rider there. The balustrade on the tower is in place and the cording almost in place. The cording cost a bit of effort, we broke the huge needle that we used and a piece of the eye stuck in the fabric. no-one thinks that embroiderers need pliers and wire cutters in their kit, but they do!
I'm pleased with it at the moment, it is looking quite lively.
I am slightly anxious about applique. I have used applique as part of quilting and never particularly enjoyed doing it, so to do an entire project is a bit daunting.
As ever, choosing the right image is a large part of the challenge. I have chosen an image that I found in Spain after walking the Camino de Santiago. It is complex but rustic. (I may need the emphasis on "rustic" as I go on!)
I am using silk fabrics throughout and predominantly silk threads also. Thank heavens for The Silk Route - a wonderful shop, so many colours, weights and textures of silk. I end up like a kid in a sweet shop! Working in silk adds it's own difficulties however - the tiny pieces tend to fray. The silk pieces are stitched on to, and completely cover, a background of calico. Then the layers are built up using a variety of paddings to give depth and texture. There is a fair amount of stitching to give detail and depth also. the shields are leather with coloured purl applied. The spears will, eventually, be cocktail sticks I think.
There is masses to do yet, not least of all figuring out how to do two horses and riders!
