stitch development

a new project - working with paula on sharing our approaches to stitch and cloth - we both admire each other's works and thought a bit of sharing could lead to individual development and some collaborative work

we are starting by exploring the stitches we each use - paula's usual approach is neat and precise compared to my own loose unplanned style, so i am trying to practise neat, repeat linear stitches, then letting myself play with them a bit, but discipline is not my strong point - also my eyesight isn't up to sustained really small stitching like paula's  

started with blanket/buttonhole stitch types - surprising how hard it is to stitch evenly when i try - i usually find i have to make an effort to stitch unevenly .....it just seems that concentration makes everything harder!

that's a thought ... i enjoy the repetitive rhythm of stitch, but this is disrupted when i focus on what i am doing, seems counterintuitive!


it was a bit of a struggle, but mainly because of stitching on a hoop

the exercise left me feeling rather tepid so i changed my approach a bit for the next round

set up some fabric which will help me keep the size even  and decided to allow myself to experiment more

 variations on a couple of stitches paula demonstrated

here i improvised for 3 more rows

the original
and a twist







Paula had started experimenting on this one, developing the opening between the crossed uprights





i've enjoyed this batch more but not sure where it's taking me - never mind, that's how i usually start!