This panel started life as a technical exercise. I was watching some of our local crows flocking around the winter trees and wondered if it would be possible to digitise a big flock of birds with no jump stitches at all between the individual birds. As it turned out it wasn’t all that difficult – all I had to do was to be sure that each crow touched another one somewhere, even with as little as a single stitch. Then of course it was easy (well, relatively easy!) to make the stitching flow smoothly from one bird to the next one with no gaps. But once I’d finished the flock, I needed somewhere for them to fly. And of course when you look at a flock of crows in a wood you tend to look up at them, so all I needed to do was to make a crown of bare tree branches encircling the crows. It’s a very wintry scene, which is appropriate for the late winter snow that we’re getting just now
Crows in a winter wood
I won’t be able to post next week, as we’re off (again) for a week in London. There are some interesting exhibitions and shows which I‘m really looking forward to seeing, and as we’re staying in a little flat in the Covent Garden neighbourhood we should be right in the middle of the action. So I’ll be back in March, and maybe with luck we might have a bit of spring weather by then
Hi Mia, Super neat design1 I can just imagine looking up through a group of bare trees and seeing a flock of crows against a blue sky. Have a great week and will look forward to hearting about your trip when you get back.
Amazing, love how there is a “glow”! Have a great trip! Can’t wait to see how you are inspired next…
Love these but crows are not my favorite as they wake me up around 5am in the summer! As far a jump stitches. As I don’t digitize, I don’t understand why the stitches can’t be “ended” then jump to the new spot and start again. I don’t understand why jump stitches are used at all. Plus, that gives the opportunity to change colors (even if just a subtle change from deepest black to charcoal). But again I have not digitizing experience. Love, love, love your work. Enjoy your holiday!
I hope this design will be available for purchase sometime. I have friends who collect crow themed art and this would be perfect for them. Have fun in London!
Love the crows. They are great. Enjoy your stay in London. Hope to hear all about the different exhibits.
My favorite bird. Love the way they fall and are quite the guard birds. Family oriented and are real clean up scavengers. Envy your trip to London. Know you will have a wonderful time.
Fail should have been talk
Very interesting technical exercise! I wish all my experiments turned out so great. The sense of movement makes the piece.
Thank you for sharing it with us and have a great holiday in London.
Mia, love it! And how cleaver to have one design without jump stitches, all monochrome. Hoop and thread the machine and just let it do its own thing. So every efficient with your time. Have a great time in London.