Historical Sampler – Borage and Laid Leaf

I’ve unpicked the outline from the borage.

The only troublesome part was the spike. There are a few fluffy bits of couching thread that I just can’t get out, even with the Berlin needle nose tweezers – but you can really only see them if you are looking for them

I’ve also finished the leaf.

I found that if I laid a couching stitch only every second GST thread, I couldn’t see the couching thread (and hence the effect) so I couched every GST thread.

I then laid a vein in thick Jap, and outlined it in a double line of Jap No. 1 to give the leaf definition.

 

Here’s the borage, back to his old self :

I’m now working on a bug

because a friend said she wanted to see it’s google eyes.

I’ve done the wings in detached buttonhole in the silver coloured silk thread I have for couching.

I’m going to outline the wings in the thinnest black that I can, and do a red and blue striped body.

He’s inspired a bit by this bug from a cushion cover, V&A Museum number T.120-1932

I wish I had more body space to work with!