Lmst

Oh dear. I've not finished the #LaidAndCouchedWork for the #AethelflaedEmbroidery, and I've run out of silk.

So there will be a pause while I order some more!

#OpusAnglicanum #SilkThread #HandEmbroidery

Photo of my spool holder (made out of a plastic milk bottle), with three spools on it. The top on is ok, the second is down to the last couple of layers of thread, and the second is down the last few loops.
Text in violet below the last spool reads "Oh. Oh dear."

Today's progress on the border for the #AethelflaedEmbroidery. I think it's about an hour's work, but I am now too stiff to continue!

#Callanetics here I come...

#OpusAnglicanum #SilkThread #MedievalMoversAndShakers #HandEmbroidery

Close up of today's starting point on the border for the #AethelflaedEmbroidery

After this morning's work, I have finished up to the height of the wall.

I'm working on the border for the #AethelflaedEmbroidery, and since it uses three colours of silk at once, I had to work out how to control the spools...

MacGyvered it with an old milk bottle (clean and dry, of course!).

#SilkThread #HandEmbroidery #OpusAnglicanum #MedievalMoversAndShakers

Spool holder improvised with a plastic milk bottle and some pencils, lying on the Aethelflaed embroidery.

What with my attention being taken by getting "Dreams of Amarna" onto the starting blocks, I've not done as much stitching as I would normally want to do. Aethelflaed is had a rather stop-start experience, which I think would not have gone down well with the lady herself.

However, it occurred to me that if I was uncomfortable starting with the darks, maybe I should start with the lights. I went back to my source photo, stared at it for a while and tried again.

Better, I think. Beginning to look more like #OpusAnglicanum.

#HandEmbroidery #SilkThread #SplitStitch #AethelflaedEmbroidery #MedievalMoversAndShakers

Text reads "I've been really struggling with Aethelflaed's dress"
Picture is a close up of the dress, with a rather chaotic, meaningless set of dark lines on it. It doesn't look much like fabric.

Another picture of Aethelflaed's dress. The sleeves are in, and I've taken out the odd darks and started with lights instead. Somehow it looks better.
Text reads "At last I think it's coming together...!"

The last time you saw Aethelflaed, I said I thought I might have to redo her dress. So while there's a post on the blog (link in bio) about naming her horse, here's a look at the colours I need to choose among.

#AethelflaedEmbroidery #OpusAnglicanum #SilkThread #SplitStitch #HandEmbroidery #MedievalMoversAndShakers #LadyOfTheMercians

The Aethelflaed embroidery with spools of red silk around it.

Aethelflaed's horse now has mane and tail.

Oh, and a quiff!

The stitching isn't entirely right - the tail has a kink in it - but as I have a lowering feeling I'm about to unpick the back panel of Aethelflaed's dress, I have bigger problems than a kinky tail!

#Aethelflaed #AethelflaedEmbroidery #OpusAnglicanum #SilkThread #SplitStitch #HandEmbroidery #MedievalMoversAndShakers #LadyOfTheMercians

Aethelflaed's horse, now with blue mane and tail, filling the frame.

Close up on the horse's head, showing the quiff.

Aethelflaed's horse now has four legs!

#AethelflaedEmbroidery #OpusAnglicanum #SilkThread #SplitStitch #HandEmbroidery #MedievalMoversAndShakers #LadyOfTheMercians

Front legs of the horse, embroidered in blues and greys against the green grass.

Back legs of the horse, embroidered in blues and greys against the green grass.

I've been working on Aethelflaed's horse again this morning...

#AethelflaedEmbroidery #OpusAnglicanum #SilkThread #SplitStitch #HandEmbroidery #MedievalMoversAndShakers #LadyOfTheMercians

Close up of progress on the horse's face and neck.

Aethelflaed's horse is now properly shod...

#AethelflaedEmbroidery #LadyOfTheMercians #OpusAnglicanum #SplitStitch #SilkThread #HandEmbroidery

Close up of the lower right corner of the Aethelflaed embroidery. All the grass is done, and the back leg, and the hoof, complete with highlight.

I only attempted one rendering of #faience - beads from a broad collar described early on in #NefertitiLivedHere, in a report inexpertly typed by the director then on site, the year before #MaryChubb joined the expedition to Egypt. As I've said, embroidery has such strong textural and visual personality that something like a direct rendition of a broad collar as you see in the watercolour would be terribly congested, visually confusing, and probably rather dull. The spiral of embroidered beads is lighter, more playful - more fun!

#DreamsOfAmarna #HandEmbroidery #FaienceNecklace #SilkThread #watercolour

I think I managed forty minutes today. That will do. Most of the darkest colour done, I think. I will make adjustments at the end.

#OpusAnglicanum #Aethelflaed #AethelflaedEmbroidery #MedievalMoversAndShakers #SilkThread #SplitStitch

Close up of the embroidery of Aethelflaed on her horse. The darkest parts are now done in dark blue.

Making a start on Aethelflaed's horse. It's going to be a grey, so the shadows will be blue.

Of course they will!

It's probably been a month since I worked on her, so I need to build stamina again. Twenty minutes and I'm beginning to feel clumsy and make mistakes. Time to stop.

#Aethelflaed #OpusAnglicanum #SilkThread #MedievalMoversAndShakers

Starting to put in the darkest colour on the horse's two front legs.

Second corner done, and I have shot my bolt for the day. There are decisions on the horizon and right now I don't want to make them.
Lunch and an afternoon off seems indicated!

#OpusAnglicanum #SilkThread #Aethelflaed #MedievalMoversAndShakers #HandEmbroidery #ArtistLife
#TimeOffIsImportant

Lower left corner now filled in. You can see the horse's back foot, still unstitched.
What am I going to call that horse?

First corner stitched! The light has been poor and I haven't got to my frame in the morning for a couple of weeks. Finally back with Aethelflaed!

#OpusAnglicanum #SilkThread #SplitStitch #MedievalMoversAndShakers #Aethelflaed

Close up of the lower left hand corner of a panel of opus anglicanum showing the first right angle filled in.

Tussocky grass around the pile of stone... It's good to make progress on this one - split stitch isn't quick!

#OpusAnglicanum #Aethelflaed #SilkThread

Close up of the grass, three shades of green, working around the pile of building stone in pinky orangey shades.

A pile of stone in place, ready to start mending the Walls of Chester. It may be that I need to add some dark details, but for now, I'm content that I've captured the confusion, and I had a concept of where the light is coming from, so all should be well.

#Aetheflaed #OpusAnglicanum #SilkThread #SplitStitch #HandEmbroidery

Close up of the lilac, apricot and pink stitching of the blocks of stone. There is a band of tussocky grass and the start of the wall behind. And an unstitched front leg of a horse in the bottom right.

Starting on the tussocky grass... I think the idea is working, but maybe need to introduce the lighter colour quite soon.

#Aethelflaed #OpusAnglicanum #MedievalMoversAndShakers #SilkThread #SplitStitch

Close up of the stitching showing the foot of the wall and the start of the grass, which has little up-reaching spurs of split stitch to suggest tussocks

Tied my first fly in a couple of months. That's a Gamakatsu S10-B in size 8. I really like this hook, but I struggle with the size 8 for some reason. Think I did it justice here, though. It's has got a natural "black" yarn body with a gold colored rib. The wing is deer hair. Tied it in hand (without a vise) using YLI 100 weight silk thread.

I caught one crappie on this fly and then promptly lost it in a tree. C'est la vie.

#flyfishing #flytying #fishing #deerhair #silkthread #wool #yarn #tenkara #crappie #hook

A fly fishing lure on a black backgroundn. The fly has a body of dark yarn with cold colored wire in sparse wraps. The wing of the fly is made from deer hair.

It suddenly occurred to me as I was working in Aethelflaed this morning that I should maybe consider the height of the wall. In terms of my imagination of the scene on the ground, as it were, the high wall on the left is not blocking her way.

But, visually, do I want it to look as though it might block her view?

Hmmm.

So the next time I sit down at my frame I will be tackling the ground, while that question bubbles away in the back of my mind.

#Aethelflaed #OpusAnglicanum #SilkThread #DecisionsDecisions
#MedievalMoversAndShakers

Progress on the Aethelflaed embroidery. All but the top three levels of the wall are now in place.

Making more progress on Aethelflaed's Walls of Chester. I have to do this in the morning before the sun comes around and starts dazzling and casting shadows.

Er - on those days when the sun shines at all!

#MedievalMoversAndShakers #Aethelflaed #OpusAnglicanum #SilkThread #SplitStitch

#silkThread

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