Symphony in Stem Stitch

My piece is ready for the Out of the Box Fibre Artists group's exhibition at the Stittsville Library in December. I have never placed a piece in this venue but when the organiser said that it should be art with a quote, I got an idea 😊  Why not make something with one of the embroidery pieces that I've been working on?

Finding the right words

Google was made for finding suitable quotes (among a few other things of course!) On the Goodreads site I found the perfect beautiful quote by John Keates:

"A thing of beauty is a joy forever"

Symphony in Stem Stitch

I've been working on this project for over a year. It's the second embroidery using free motion quilting (FMQ) motifs. It's been a lot of fun to create since it's very improvisational. I just started by doodling some FMQ motifs with a Frixion pen. I would embroider it using a stem stitch then add more doodling and keep at it. If I didn't like what I had drawn, I would simply iron it off.

This is the first picture of this project that was posted on this blog (see Related links below).

Embroidering colourful FMQ motifs

First stem stitch embroidery -
Étude in Stem Stitching

Adding FMQ motifs a little at a time

The image to the right is the first stem stitch embroidery piece that I started. I used much more muted colours. It's still a work-in-progress (WIP).

I started this to practice my stem stitch after taking a Craftsy course with Jessica Marquez.

This image has the binding attached and ready to be sewn to the back.

It just needs the binding to be sewn to the back

It's such a great feeling when a piece comes together the way I imaged it. It doesn't always happen, and sometimes it's really not a bad thing, or so I tell myself. 😊

What I learned

• When I had almost finished the FMQ, I squared off the piece, marked it and then quilted it along the line. I then cut it a ½" past the line. This gave me the chance to finish the FMQ along the edges without going over it much. I don't mind loosing a little bit of FMQ when squaring it up, but if I don't mark it before finishing it, I tend to go over the edge - a lot!
• I finally used my quilting ruler to FMQ the line around my piece. I used Angela Walter's "Shorty" ruler. I was pretty impressed since it's difficult to FMQ a straight line. I will definitely use it again.
• I had no idea what I would do with these embroideries but I love asking the question...."What if?" So in this case, the question is "What if I FMQ an embroidery? What would that look like?"
• I must say that I'm very pleased with the results. There is a lot of potential here for interesting effects for art quilts.
• Now to make the label and packaging for the piece before tomorrow!
• I was happy to see that my practice with stem stitching payed off. When I decided to finish this embroidery I could do the stem stitch without referring to my favourite embroidery book (see Related links) or the Craftsy class. Of course I haven't done any other stitches in a long while, except for a few French knots, so it may turn out that it's the only stitch I can now do without looking up! 😊

Related links

• Out of the Box Fibre Artists Group
• Stittsville libary location - in case you can make it to the exhibition!
• Goodreads Quotes
• Project related posts
• Q3 Goals for 2018, July 16, 2018 (which I didn't achieve)
• Inspiration and slow work, January 22, 2018
• Labels, image transfers and slow stitching, October 15, 2017
• Progress, June 30, 2017
• Countdown to Canada - Fêtons 150!, June 22, 2017
• Angela Walter's "Shorty" ruler
• "Design It, Stitch It: Hand Embroidery" with Jessica Marquez in Craftsy
• Beginner's Guide to Freestyle Embroidery by Christina Marsh, book listed in my Projects from Books, Mags and Patterns page.

Linking Parties
I will be linking this post to several fun link-ups. Lets see what's happening in the quilting world! Free Motion Mavericks, Slow Sunday Stitching, TGIF Friday!, Friday Foto Fun, Finished or Not Friday, Off the Wall Friday, Monday Making, Main Crush Monday, Design Wall Monday, Moving It Forward, What I Made Monday, To-Do Tuesday, Let's Bee Social, Midweek Makers, Needle & Thread Thursday,

Wonderful news! This post is featured on Muv's Free Motion Mavericks.

Project details

Symphony in Stem Stitch
18 ¼" x 17 ¾"
Materials: cotton, embroidery floss, Kimono silk thread,
Techniques: embroidery - stem stitch and free motion quilting (FMQ)