On the doiley

Take an old lace doily, a piece of 10 inch square calico, a skein of hand dyed silk thread and add cotton batting and a backing.  Pin these together, thread your needle, begin to stitch and see where it takes you.

This is what I did at the start of the National Arts Festival. (see Post # 20. On inspiration.) I stitched during in-between times to catch my breath between shows and visits to the exhibitions and craft market. It calmed and refreshed me for the next bout of festival fun. Here is a close-up of the doily. I quilted it down and added a bit of purple stitching in the centre and around the edge.

It was by chance that I found a pair of these lovely lace doilies at one of the craft stalls and, while admiring it, saw the centre of a flower in the pattern. Two years ago I started stitching a series that I called From a Secret Garden, which were inspired by the delightful drawings of flowers in Secret Garden: An Inky Treasure Hunt and Colouring Book by Johanna Bassford.

From a Secret Garden #4

To repeat myself – I think that even the best machines can’t beat hand stitching and hand quilting. (See Post #3. On hand quilting) It has just struck me that embroiderers and quilters use repetition of stitch and pattern for effect. Ha!