Pat’s Stumpwork Box – Flowers, Funghi and Insects

An in depth look at another of Pat Bootland’s amazing octagonal box which has multiple themes. Pat says her inspiration was exploring the stumpwork and embroidery techniques in the Jane Nicholas book Stumpwork Embroidery: A Collection of Fruits, Flowers and Insects 1995

Box Lid

Here’s the box lid where the main picture is an evocative view of trees and sea:

Hexagonal Box with stitched Seascape & Stumpwork

Around the main embroidery there is a theme of flowers, fruit and insects – some embroidered, some beaded and some stumpwork. Here’s a closer look at them:

Blue Flower and Insect

Hexagonal Box with stitched Seascape & Stumpwork

The petals of the flower are done in needleweaving – each one has been stitched and then twisted into a shape. The wings of the insect are made from loops of buttonhole stitch.

Soldier Fly

This little fellow is mainly satin stitch and straight stitch with beads for the eyes. Pat tells me that each wing was made by vliesofixing two pieces of transparent ribbon together and then stitching around the edges and on the wings to create a pattern.

Foxgloves

Hexagonal Box with stitched Seascape & Stumpwork

These are created with satin stitch with a wired edge and seed beads.

Bee

Hexagonal Box with stitched Seascape & Stumpwork

The body of the bee is turkey stitch (also called Turkey rug knot or Ghiordes knot) while each wing is two layers of sheer ribbon vliesofixed together.

Fig

These luscious fruits are in padded satin stitch.

Snail

Hexagonal Box with stitched Seascape & Stumpwork

The shell is twisted and whipped fabric while the body is padded satin stitch.

Flower

Pat has again used buttonhole loops – this time to create the flower petals.

Ant & Clover

Hexagonal Box with stitched Seascape & Stumpwork
Hexagonal Box with stitched Seascape & Stumpwork

Pink Flower

Hexagonal Box with stitched Seascape & Stumpwork

I was curious about the stitch used for the petals and Pat explained that it is whipped spider web stitch used straight rather than in a wheel. She likes the ridges it creates to give form not only to flowers but also to fish fins, shells etc.

Dragonfly

Hexagonal Box with stitched Seascape & Stumpwork

Berries

Hexagonal Box with stitched Seascape & Stumpwork

It turns out that these berries are beads that have been stitched over to create a sense of full ripeness.

Teeny Weeny Spider

Hexagonal Box with stitched Seascape & Stumpwork
Hexagonal Box with stitched Seascape & Stumpwork

The web and spider are really minute – no bigger than a centimeter (just under half an inch) – it’s a great example of using simple materials to great effect. The spider is just 2 tiny seed beads with some wool thread.

Thistle

Hexagonal Box with stitched Seascape & Stumpwork

This is another example of how you can use Turkey stitch very effectively – here to create the thick fluffiness of the thistle flower.

Carmen.

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