'In between' stitches

This past week has been a very busy week of sorting, packing, organising quotes and signing important papers!  In between all this activity, I have snatched a few moments here and there to work on my Gail Pan project 'Sampler in Blue'. (You'll remember that my version is actually being worked in a bluey-teal variegated silk thread)

Gail Pan is another Australian designer whose work I greatly admire.  I have several of her books and patterns which I love.  I especially like her little 'signature' details such as:

cute little birds, 

pretty baskets

and picturesque cottages.  'Sampler in Blue' has all of these details as well as a couple of embroidered patchwork-style blocks and lots of flowers.

I'm pleased with how my sampler looks now that all the stitching is complete but, I did make a bit of a mistake when I transferred over my initials and the year to the background fabric.  I didn't centre them in the space available very well so, I had more space on one side than the other. To try and hide this, I have added a stem and some leaves to the flower on the side with more space.  I'm hoping no-one will notice!!

It was also the first time I had embroidered an alphabet and numerals all in one place and and I was a little anxious how these would turn out as they are quite small and detailed to stitch. However, I found that as long as I kept my stitches small they worked out quite nicely and I am pleased with how they look!!

You may also have noticed that there is a slight change of thread colour in the running stitches on the left hand side (as you look at it) of the sampler. Much to my frustration, I ran out of thread just as I was finishing off the last line of stitches. I had to substitute with another colour so, I hope it is not too noticeable!

Gail Pan has a new book being published by Martingale shortly.  It is called 'Patchwork Loves Embroidery'.  I can't wait to add it to my book collection! Thanks for visiting!!