Click here for Regal Autumn Part F Instructions
I have to make a confession – what I stitched for this part was not what I had designed. The diagram looks the same, but I stitched it differently. In the diagrams I’ll show you what it should have been, and what I actually did.
I intended for this to be a woven cross stitch, all stitched with the same thread. But as I was looking at the dark blues that I had in my bag, I was afraid it would be too much, so I altered what I stitched. And I’m really glad that I did, because that allowed me to use two threads instead of one, and get some sparkle in this block.
I stitched the bottom crosses with a Kreinik metallic braid. Stitching the whole block would have been too glitzy (is there such a thing?) to go with the rest of the piece. And, allowing some open space in the block reduced the dark blob of blue, to give it some definition.
Any time you want to use a really dark color, but are afraid it will be too dark, is a good time to incorporate a more open stitch – it reduces the overall impact of the dark color, but allows you to use the darker color you’re wanting to use.
I’m pretty pleased with the overall look of this block. I hope you like it too!
And now for the diagrams:
For the first part, stitch a large cross stitch over 6 canvas threads with the fine metallic braid; I used Kreinik #8 060 Midnight.
Next I used two strands of cotton floss (Presencia 3324) to stitch the woven cross stitch over the base. The last stitch slides under the first stitch before ending, taking care not to catch the large cross stitch.
This is the woven cross stitch alternate. It will look about the same as stitching it in two layers, but you would stitch with all one thread.
Just a hint – I finished the piece last week, and I’m pretty pleased with the way it turned out. I’ll post the next step next Monday.