Lotus Flower & Bud – Beginner Crewel Design

The wonderful thing about Jacobean crewelwork is that there’s so much flexibility. Traditionally the embroiderer would have a design and then interpret that design in however which way they choose. I try to encourage this traditional approach to crewel embroidery in my workshops. I do provide kits but they are far from prescriptive. I teach a variety of stitches, such as outline stitches, filling stitches and accent stitches, then demonstrate different ways that they can be used.

Jacobean embroideries are usually packed with foliage, flowers and insects. I have rather a lot of butterflies in my designs. However, not everyone is partial to insects so this design I created especially for those folks who just want to concentrate on flowers and foliage.

As with the other beginner designs, the Lotus Flower & Bud has 3 elements, 2 motifs, the flower and the bud, and then the foliage. The whole design has is circular in movement making its forever purpose extremely flexible. If you were to choose this design in one of my workshops you would be given the choice to stitch it in one of 4 colour ways. Each colour way reflects one of the seasons. Crewelwork is meant to be used. When choosing a colour way I ask my students to think about the colours in their home. What will this embroidery become? A cushions or a small bag perhaps. It’s interesting how often the colours folks choose reflect the clothing they are wearing.

As with all my beginner designs the Lotus Flower & Bud has been designed with the 5 essential stitches in mind. These include stem stitch, chain stitch, back stitch, split stitch and french knots. I also teach long and short soft shading in 2 shades. If a student is willing I will teach an element with 3 shades such as the centre area in the leaf above. Long and short soft shading can be tricky to begin with but don’t let that put you off. With a little practice you’ll be a pro.

For a video of how I teach long and shirt soft shading …

I am consciousness as a teacher that I want my students to have an opportunity to explore specific stitches found in many traditional, historic crewelwork designs. In a beginner workshop situation as well as a design needing to be pleasing aesthetically it also needs to inspire place for these traditionally popular stitches. Therefore, stitches such as stem stitch, chain stitch, french knots, back stitch and split stitch are what I view as, the 5 essential stitches for crewelwork. As students skill base becomes more practiced and their confidence grows I encourage and teach a variety of more contemporary stitches for different purposes, such as outline stitches, filling stitches and accent stitches. I then demonstrate different ways that they can be used on the same design.

Jacqueline runs mixed ability small group embroidery workshops, in various venues, at scheduled times throughout the year.