The Lady In The Garden – Progress

Up And Down Blanket Stitch
Up And Down Blanket Stitch

In a slight variation of what Grandmama did, I used Up and Down Blanket Stitch, which is one of my favourites, to work the purple section of the edging. It’s not as comfortable to work as an edging stitch as it is as a surface stitch, but I enjoyed it (as usual), and I’m pleased with how it looks.

Green Herringbone
Green Herringbone

The second layer of the edging was in herringbone stitch, just as Grandmama worked it, but using a pale apple green instead of the pink. It will work much better in Mam’s room that way.

I’ve used two strands of cotton, which is what Grandmama did. I suspect that’s why the edging has collapsed in spite of not being used for decades!

Darn In Place
Darn In Place

I’m not as satisfied with the darn, but I think it should stop the hole getting worse, and I’ve had a variety of suggestions for tracking down a suitable material to patch it with. At the best of times, that would be a tricky task, and in the current situation, it may well be years before I find something!

Progress continues in other areas, too – Episode Nineteen of SlowTV Stitchery is now up. It concerns, among other things, flyaway thread and the importance of writing things down…

8 Comments

  1. Jen Mullen says:

    🙂 I love green with purple, apple or lime green makes that purple stand out.

  2. That is an interesting combination of stitches. I have seen Up and Down Buttonhole worked over a ribbon (cord), but never another stitch worked on top of the UaD B S.
    Darning wollen socks is much easier than a hole in a cotton weave. I think you have done well.

  3. Mam says:

    Pressed an in context, the darn practically disappears, or at any rate, looks charming.

  4. Sue Jones says:

    The edging is very effective with those contrasting colours.
    I’m still itching to get my hands (and needles) on that darn. But if the recipient is happy, that’s what matters.

  5. Meredithe says:

    That’s a great stitch combo!

  6. Carolyn Foley says:

    I think darning is one of the hardest things. I have some samples that my grandmother did as a child, fantastic. Mine, terrible. I think this is something you have to practice and keep doing it on a regular basis. But, who wants to do this?

  7. Love the stitching combination and the colours