My garden stitching is coming along nicely, I think before I had a bit of white page syndrome, worrying about how it was going to come out so actually stitching not much at all. Now I’ve got started and it’s coming out how I envisaged, it’s coming on nicely. Three weeks ago I was just really starting the borders, still somewhat hesitant…

Having started with the irises and the clemetis up the canes, I started on pink geraniums which billowed through the gate last year, alchemilla mollis, astrantia, camassia. I added a couple more applique shrubs to be a box and a spirea…

I added a pink rosebush, brunnera Jack Frost, roses over the arch, clematis over the arbour, plants in pots…I really feel it’s coming together and giving the effect I wanted of the cottage garden look.

I think stitching the flower sampler over the last couple of weeks has helped my to branch out a bit with different stitches for different flowers, it’s very easy to stick to the same few comfortable stitches, such as French knots, chain stitch and straight stitch, so the blue veronica in the middle of the top border is bullion knots, the camassia is pistil stitch. I’ve used French knots for the pink and yellow roses but I’ve used 4 strands of thread to make a nice chunky French knot, much more effective than the smaller pink ones over the arbour which I did at the beginning of the project. None of it is horticulturally correct, but it doesn’t matter with this kind of piece, so the spring flowering magnolia stellata is not only in flower with it’s leaves, but at the same time as the roses 🙂

Hopefully now I’ve got going with this it won’t take too long to finish, then I’ve just got the amber and amethyst garden (AKA the beer garden) to do and the top lawn with the summerhouse and the pond to stitch…

If you would like to stitch a garden, this is inspired by an excellent on-line course by Nicki Franklyn from The Stitchery

This SAL is organised by Avis from Stitching by the Sea, we post our progress on our chosen piece every three weeks, it does help to keep me motivated! Please follow the links to see what every one else is stitching.

Avis, Claire, Gun, Constanze, Christina, Kathy, Margaret, Heidi, Jackie, Sunny, 

Megan, Deborah, Sharon, Daisy, AJ, Cathie, Linda, Helen, Connie, Cindy, MaryMargaret