I’m please to announce that Darning Sampler is included in Stitch Magazine Issue 146.
The article showcases the winning entries in the Embroiderers’ Guild Members’ Challenge 2023.
Darning Sampler – My first thought on the Members’ Challenge ‘Layers’ theme was of threads crossing and layering over each other and planned to create an artwork that combined two of my favourite things, intricate stitch work and red thread.
The inspiration came from a little antique darning sampler in my collection. I wanted to make a sampler of my own and chose a vintage brushed cotton child’s garment to embellish with the stitches.
Using the vintage sampler as a starting point with a few variations of my own, I created a bank of stitches drawn out onto graph paper.
An early challenge was the brushed cotton surface which needed to be completely de-fuzzed to expose the cloth’s weave.
I sampled a few threads on the reverse of the garment to see which weight of thread worked best and settled on a Madeira Cotona in red and then cut out small pieces of paper about 2-inch square and pinned them over the garment to get an idea of the composition.
Size 28 x 28 cm approximately. Hand stitched Madeira thread, vintage child’s cotton garment. Mother of Pearl button added to the neckline in a red thread.
Catherine Hill – Stitch Magazine issue 146
Copies can be purchased via the Royal School of Needlework shop.
