Stems and Flowers

Welcome to a brand new week. Today I continue the story of how to embroider my flower picture. Once I had finished the lily with its long and short stitch and bullion anthers, a picture was beginning to develop. So I decided to continue by adding some stems (using stem stitch) above the two flowers already completed.

What I did next demonstrates another use of Lazy Daisy stitch. I worked lazy daisy stitches alternating from side to side along the stems, rather than working in the normal circle. However, you could just as easily go up one side of the stem and down the other if you prefer. In this way I made leaves and flowers along the stems.

It is only the colours that I chose that determine whether what you see are flowers or leaves. Are the pale blue-grey stitches leaves or flowers? I had originally intended that they should be blue salvia, but I did not have the right shade of blue, so now they look more the the grey-green leaves that we see on some gum trees in Australia. I made the centre stem a sage green colour and added mauve flowers angling the lazy daisy stitches downwards to suggest heather.

Other flowers that could be suggested by the use of these stitches are bluebells, red salvia, or even snowdrops. I am sure you can think of many more. It all depends on what colour thread you choose to use.