This all started when I saw a flock of whooping swans in a field just outside of Inverurie, and did a quick sketch of them. But when it came time to digitise them, a couple of problems cropped up. The biggest problem was that the swans were of course pure white, and just having plain white birds with no detailing would have been boring – they would have looked like white holes in a green background. However I didn’t want to sketch in the feather contours in (for example) a pale grey. The birds were so startlingly white that I didn’t want to blemish them by adding another colour. So I was stuck with using white detailing on white applique fabric, but white on white would have been scarcely visible. Also I needed some way to stitch down the applique fabric to the background. So after some thought I decided to use white stitching to do two things at once – to stitch down the applique fabric, and to add the detailing of the feathers. I hoped that the light reflecting off the stitching would give the birds some shape
Stippled swans
Yes, it sort of works, but really the swans just look stippled – you can’t pick out any detailing of the feathers and wings. So I increased the length of the stitching on the body. In the original version I just used the default stitch length, which in my system is 2 mm, and which makes the stitches quite close together. I increased the length to 4 mm, which means that there is a longer length of thread between stitches. And it does seem to work better – you can see the “feathering” on the back a little more clearly.
More feathery?
Well, the result isn’t perfect, but it’s an interesting technique which I’ll try and improve in the future
Hi Mia, What a great idea to lengthen the stitch to give dimension and detail to the feathers on the swans. I love the result that you achieved.
Gail
I really like your technique for the swans and am going to try something similar. I really like your applique overstitching as it creates a very unique design not obtainable with embroidery alone.
You are always giving me new ideas to try. You are so inventive!!
I like the way your mind works. The scientific and artistic marry so well. The texture of your birds stands out..will be interested to see how you progress with this idea.
Love the texturing in the feathers, this technique gives your swan depth. Thanks.
NICE!!
Your swans are lovely! Thanks for showing your work!