May 1st is the perfect day to feature my favorite of all wildflowers: the cornflower.
Announcement!
But before I do that, I need to make a brief announcement! For those who were waiting for the Golden Forge scissors (I wrote about them here) to arrive, they are back in stock now.
Many of you inquired about them, and I didn’t want to leave you waiting longer, so I had to pop that announcement in here.
Back to the Cornflower!
Or is it the Bachelor Button?
I like to call it the cornflower.
Cornflowers are the absolute bluest of blue flowers. When they start popping up here and there (they grow pretty much like weeds in Kansas), they make me happy! I love it when they show up in the spring!
Have you ever met a flower with such a vibrant little face?
Mmmm, mmm, mmm. I love cornflowers. They are perhaps my favorite flower (except when I think of other flowers that are also perhaps my favorite flower).
First of all, there’s that vibrant head. Then, there’s the graceful, elegant stem-and-leaf combination in such a lovely soft green.
I really hope I’m not the only one here who likes cornflowers, because I’ve been working on a project that features them. That’s what I’m sneak-peeking to you right now.
I don’t want to tell too much before I’m ready to show you more than this – and unfortunately, I’m not ready.
At the moment, I’ve finalized the design. I’ve selected fabrics and thread colors. I’m halfway thinking of doing a silk option with this project, too, but I’m not quite sure.
The photo above is a little misleading – the project does not involve anything that’s hemstitched.
The first sample that I’m stitching, however, is embroidered on natural linen, so I included that pre-finished linen in the photo to give you an idea of the color selections.
The colors just look so good on the natural linen, so I’m betting I’ll stick with that. I might have to do a small sample on white, though, just to be sure.
The lining to the finished project is a glorious piece of blue / purple shot silk dupioni. “Shot silk” is silk that is woven with one color for the warp and another color for the weft, so that, when you view it from different angles, the color is changeable. The two colors work together to create a depth and richness in color that’s pretty glorious!
And of course, the finished embroidery will be constructed into a neat little accessory that is both beautiful and functional.
And did I mention that there are cornflowers in the design? Oh yes! There are abundant cornflowers!
I will tell you more about this project as I work my way into the samples I need to stitch. And I’ll tell you what it’s for (I bet you can guess, if you’ve been stitching along with me on other projects), and when you can expect to see it in full.
In the meantime, though, I just had to share the cornflowers and the colors.
I’m rather twitterpated with them – and I hope you are, too!
Thank you for the sneak peek at Cornflowers. Beautiful colors. I can hardly wait to see the
completed project! And I eagerly await a pattern with instructions, or a kit.
I also very much appreciate your “tips.” So much to learn within the wonderful world of
surface embroidery.
Mary, the cornflower is such a beautiful flower ! I personally love those choices of colors. It is a wonderful time of year to get outdoors with a camera and take pictures of the beautiful blossoms and flowers that are blooming to use as a reference, and to clip a few to bring indoors ! Plus, we get to see your artful vision with your designs.
Will be looking forward to seeing your progress with this embroidery project !
Dear Mary, oh yes, please do a silk version of your mysterious, upcoming cornflower project. I share your love of those flowers and I think silk will do their depth of colour justice.
Best
Jess
Mi ha commosso aver visto qui sopra i fiordalisi, che da come ne parli, Mary, credo proprio che li ami, questi bellissimi fiori. Li amo anch’io, molto, per due motivi: perché nelle nostre campagne i fiordalisi non ci sono più, sono quasi spariti. Sono tornati i papaveri, che per qualche anno non si vedevano, ma i fiordalisi no. Il secondo motivo del mio amore è che l’ultima opera di Giuliana Buonpadre, mia moglie, il vol. 10, è dedicato al Fiordaliso, quel bel ricamo in hardanger (ma non solo: ogni tanto occhieggia anche il reticello) che ha ricamato assieme a Yolande, carissima amica fiamminga, con le nuances del blu, uno dei colori che lei amava moltissimo.
Grazie di quelle belle foto, e buon ricamo a tutte le tue lettrici (e agli scarsi maschietti che si interessano, in qualche modo, di questa bellissima arte).