Friday, July 30, 2010

Cha's Wings and K's Flowers


Cha's wings are done!  I hope you like how they turned out.  The two wings are quite different. The right one is more realistic but the left one is smoother and probably will look more like the tail feathers once I get them stitched.  I have lots of background still to do.  Once I finished the wings last night I spent an hour and a half working background and only got five rows done.  I won't be finished by the end of July but I won't go far into August, either, before it is time for another quilt block on my Stars piece.

Kaffe Fassett's Fire Flowers
In other needlepoint news, my email box got a notice from Ehrman that their 2011 catalog was available online.  Here's the link. This year these traditional designs (often on 10-12 count and almost always kitted with wools) are particularly strong in floral patterns.  Above is Kaffe Fassett's Fire Flowers (chosen because I love his mastery of color and pattern but also because the colors are similar to those in Cha-Cha), but there are a great many others you will want to see, particularly if you are a fan of Beth Russell's William Morris-inspired designs.
http://www.ehrmantapestry.com/newprod.cfm?Currency=1


Written by Jane/Chilly Hollow Blogging at http://chillyhollownp.blogspot.com Archived Yahoo 360 postings at http://profiles.yahoo.com/chillyhollow

9 comments:

Melinda said...

Beautiful, Jane! I love the painted effect you get with the ribbons - especially in the upper part of the right wing. Great stitching!

Kathleen K said...

Hi Jane--
Your use of ribbon inspires me to try it! Now to find the perfect canvas for it.
However, I am confused about something. I've been taught to use basketweave instead of tent. In fact, I was taught to stitch diagonal mosaic as a background by first doing all the over 1 stitches as if I were doing basketweave, and then repeat doing all the over 2 in the same fashion.

Why did you choose tent?
Thanks!

The Chilly Hollow Needlepoint Adventure said...

Thanks for the nice compliment, Melinda.

Kathleen, my background thread is an overdyed silk/wool blend from JL Walsh. If I used basketweave, I would have diagonal streaks where the color changed. There isn't a lot of color change, but there is some. Using tent stitches means that the color changes are less disturbing to the eye. Take a good look at any background you see and you should see the color changes from pale pink to pale rose and back again.

Not everyone will like this slightly streaky background but I think it looks like old, faded fabric. But I can't have diagonal lines of various colors in it.

MeganH said...

LOVE the wings, especially the right one!

The Chilly Hollow Needlepoint Adventure said...

Thanks, e-Rose! It is amazing how the orientation of the wings changes the look.

NCPat said...

I think it looks great! I also think the wings should be different as you are getting a different perspective as he is flying so you are seeing the top of one and the underside of the other.

Pierrette =^..^= said...

Jane,

I absolutely love how this bird is coming along and the wings are magnificent.

You are doing a terrific job with this project.

Can't wait to see it in all its splendour :-)

Pierrette =^..^=

Anonymous said...

The wings are beautiful. It is such an amazing piece!!

The Chilly Hollow Needlepoint Adventure said...

Thanks for the great compliment, Barbara!