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Floriography

Floral Garden Bunting Project: a Wrap-Up on the 2023 Stitch-Along

     Anne      Leave a Comment

 

Last year, I shared monthly floral embroidery motifs with my email subscribers, with the aim of turning the 12 embroideries into a string of bunting at the end of the year. I’ve just finished mine and shared the final instructions via the newsletter. Since there’s been renewed interest in the project, I thought I’d share the patterns here as well to make it easier for everyone to download and keep track of. I’m so glad people are enjoying this sweet little project!! πŸ™‚

Find the quick download links below, and read on for more insight into the design process and some more useful links (really just self-indulgent flower talk & pretty photos!).

 

Floral Garden Patterns & Final Instructions PDFs

 

January-Silky-Anemone
February-Sprouting-Snowdrop
March-Sunny-Primrose
April-Budding-Crocus-1
Mays-Lily-of-the-Valley
June-Lovely-Lavender
July – Pale Hydrangea
August-Pretty-Dahlia
September-Feathery-Asters-1
October-Happy-Sunflower
November-Cheery-Chrysanthemum
December-Festive-Mistletoe
2023-Floral-Bunting-Instructions

 

January: Blue Anemone

 

Language of Flowers: Forsaken

 

(Maybe not the best way to start, but I didn’t choose the flowers according to their meaning in floriography, haha!)

 

When I started planning this stitch-along, I wanted to draw inspiration from the flowers that surround me throughout the seasons as much as possible. Since everything is covered in snow here for many months, I had to bend the rules a little some months and just go with flowers I liked and that completed each other well. I wanted something soft and blue for January, so I went with the blue anemone. I don’t think I’ve ever seen one in real life, but it sure does look pretty as an embroidery!

Helpful post: I published a long & short stitch tutorial specifically for this flower, which you can also refer to for the other patterns that use l & s.

 

February: Snowdrop

 

Language of Flowers: Hope

 

 

A very apt meaning for this welcome sight, wouldn’t you say? After the bleakness of winter, the emerging snowdrops announce that there is hope for spring! Another one I have yet to see in real life, but I’m always so inspired by all the creative renditions of them, especially as embroidery motifs. They are always so popular, and with good reason. With only 3 thread colours, this little pattern is straightforward to stitch, yet still holds a small challenge in keeping a good stitch direction for the leaves and petals.

 

March: Primrose

 

Language of Flowers: Early youth

 

 

I had intended at first to keep all flowers designs in blue/white/purple shades for this project. However, after seeing Catherine from Bumpkin Hill‘s sweet little primroses from her Spring Sampler pattern, I was so inspired that I couldn’t help making up my own. I can never resist buttery yellow petals! Turns out the shades fit perfectly well with the previous two designs, and the ones to come.

If you also happen to love yellow flowers, I have a pattern in my shop for a lesser-known but gorgeous wildflower: The Sulfur Cinquefoil. Beginner-friendly if you’d like to give the long & short stitch a try!

 

April: Crocus

 

Language of Flowers: Abuse not

 

(Of what?)

 

I think the crocus has to be one of my favourite flowers, purely because it’s usually one of the first ones I see once the snow finally melts. It’s the surest sign of spring and warm weather, and forever associated with beautiful things like Easter, bird’s nests, and pastel eggs. Last year, the poor crocuses lasted only about four days. An ice storm over Easter preceded unusually hot weather (like, summer-hot weather!), and the poor darlings didn’t stand a chance. (Maybe the floriography is hinting at the weather to behave, ha!) One more reason why immortalizing blooms in embroidery is so wonderful.

 

May: Lily-of-the-Valley

 

Language of Flowers: Return of happiness

 

 

Is there anything on this Earth more delicately sweet and so perfectly detailed as the lily-of-the-valley? I pondered how best to embroider the delicate scalloped edge of the flower bells, and decided that simplicity was probably key: a soft line of split stitch. I had done something similar for the bluebells in this wreath design and it worked really well. Someday, I’ll have to stitch a bigger version of this beautiful flower!

 

June: Lavender

 

Language of Flowers: Distrust

 

 

I’ll tell you what I distrust about lavender – the actual process of growing it! We were lucky to get a few buds on our potted plant last year. But in places where it grows freely and effortlessly, what is there to distrust about it? It’s rather reliable, always smells delightful, and has so many beneficial uses. I love it, and also love seeing the various ways and colours people choose when embroidering it. Mom says mine doesn’t quite look like lavender…maybe the leaves are a little too fat? Next time, I think I’ll go for bullion knots for the flower buds.

If you’re thinking of doing that too but the bullion knot stitch intimidates you, check out the hack I came up with in this post!

 

July: Hydrangea

 

Language of Flowers: A boaster. Heartlessness.

 

(I seem to have a knack for picking flowers with the most *joyful* meanings, haven’t I!)

 

 

I’ll admit, the white (cream?) hydrangeas are not my favourites. I much prefer the blue ones, or even the soft pink ones. But since the creamy white ones grow in such abundance around the house, I decided to show them some appreciation – for they are indeed lovely anyways – by including them in this project. The petals are formed with lazy-daisy stitches sewn in clusters of four, much like I did for the lilac in this wreath pattern.

Have a look at my lazy-daisy stitch tutorial if you need a refresher!

 

August: Dahlia

 

Language of Flowers: Instability

 

I think, if I may be able to settle on a favourite from this project, it would be this one. I just love how it came out, and it’s not a difficult stitch (yet it looks quite sophisticated!). The petals are a joy to fill in. Dahlias, as I’m sure you know, come in so many different colours and even different shapes. This particular one is inspired by a lone pale pink dahlia which blossomed in a pot on our front steps. The silky petals surrounding the bead-like center made it such a welcome sight every day.

Helpful post: Satin Stitch tutorial, for those sweet petals!

 

September: White Asters

 

Language of Flowers: Variety. Afterthought.

 

 

Afterthought indeed! It seems the white asters are often overlooked in favour of the more popular purple ones. But there’s something I dearly love about the wispy, feathery petals and the way the flowers grow in clumps. Nothing says “September” quite like a field full of asters lit by the golden sunlight under a blue sky. A mix of lazy-daisy stitches and straight stitches worked to achieve those thin, wispy petals, but you could stitch them with only straight stitches.

 

October: Sunflower

 

Language of Flowers: For a dwarf sunflower, adoration. For a tall sunflower, haughtiness.

 

 

What is fall without sunflowers? Absolutely one of my favourite flowers, for their cheerfulness and deep, rich colours. They may be haughty but they are so beautifully welcoming, growing tall around people’s homes and enlivening their gardens. I don’t have any myself, but there is wild Jerusalem artichoke growing in the backyard and the flowers look very similar to sunflowers!

 

November: Chrysanthemum

 

Language of Flowers: Condolences

 

 

By November, the majority of blooms are gone, the leaves have fallen, and there is often at least a snowstorm or two during the month. Having nothing in the garden to look at for inspiration anymore, I opted for a popular flower, chrysanthemum being the birth flower for November. I rummaged around in my floss box and found the perfect shades of peachy orange for the petals. I wasn’t sure how to stitch them at all, but after watching this lovely video on YouTube by Linh N. W. and remembering how Nicki Franklin of The Stitchery did her dahlias, I decided to try something similar. By layering rows of lazy-daisy stitches I was able to achieve the look I was looking for, and I was overall quite pleased with the final result!

 

December: Mistletoe

 

Language of Flowers: I surmount difficulties.

 

 

And to conclude this little series, I decided to end with a sprig of mistletoe. Usually depicted upside down, tied with a bow, I decided to stitch mine upright so it wouldn’t look funny beside the other ones. A hint of festivity for December, yet sober enough to blend in beautifully with the other designs. The creamy white berries are similar to the snowberries from my popular Winter Wreath in my shop.

 

And there we are! Another stitch-along completed, now that all these lovelies have been sewn up into bunting. There are so many things you can do with your finished embroideries (they would look lovely as stuffed hearts too!), but the bunting is a rather easy and fun way to display them all at once!

 

 

I really hope you enjoyed this project as much as I did, and thank you so much for your interest and participation. If you read this entire post I thank you sincerely (and you deserve a medal!). And now I must know…which embroidery here is your favourite? Which flowers do you personally associate/love particularly for each month? Comment below!

 

Fondly

The “Five-Petal Florals” Collection: From Nature to Embroidery Pattern

     Anne      Leave a Comment

As is the case with many embroidery artists, one of my biggest sources of inspiration for embroidery is nature, especially flowers. I’m sure I don’t need to tell you that if you’ve been around for a while, haha! Today I thought I’d share with you how my latest pattern collection was inspired by the beautiful β€œfive-petal flowers” I’ve been seeing around this summer, and a bit about the design process.

 

You’ll find these patterns in my Etsy shop, either as a bundle or available individually!

 

BROWSE THE SHOP

 

The Sulfur Cinquefoil

Ah, that such a lovely flower should be afflicted by such a name! Really, it doesn’t hint one bit of its charm. Considered and invasive species, the potentilla recta is nonetheless a really beautiful flower. With its creamy yellow petals and delicate jagged leaves, the tall plants border the path down to the river on my favourite walk. There are so many pretty yellow wildflowers, but this one really stands out with its soft shade of buttery yellow. I felt particularly inspired to capture it with my needle and thread, and knew it would make a lovely embroidery.

 

You can shop The Sulfur Cinquefoil pattern right here.

 

After taking a dozen photos (none of which were able to do it justice) and plucking a few specimens for the flower press, I got my sketchbook out to draw an initial pattern. Each embroidery pattern always begins with a hand-drawn sketch.

I’ve never been very good at sketching or drawing, but over the last few months I’ve definitely noticed an improvement since I’ve been sketching more often to create patterns.

 

The Wild Rose

A timeless and personal favourite, I knew I had to include the wild rose in this mini-collection. I simply love this flower, and had really enjoyed embroidering some last year for my Garden Bouquet project.

While wandering around a very peaceful and secluded public garden in my village, I came across a bush of the palest and most perfectly five-petaled wild roses. I do love the darker pink ones, but these pastel pinks were so soft and delicate I knew I had to stitch one!

I actually had many lovely photos of them, but unfortunately lost them recently during an SD card malfunction (note: let this serve as your reminder to back up your photos!!). Fortunately, they happily live in my memories and now on my embroidery table as well.

 

You can shop The Wild Rose pattern right here.

 

One of the things I love about sketching for embroidery is that you can keep the drawing very simple, because your needle and thread will take care of adding all the little magical details. In fact, the fewer markings you can get away with on your fabric, the better. And when it comes to florals, there are often a few elements that get stitched on top of other stitches, so they don’t always need to be included in the pattern outline. It makes for a clean, simple designing process that I’m starting to really enjoy!

Photo taken in June 2021, of a darker wild rose

 

The Common Mallow

Last but not least, the third addition to my β€œFive-Petal Florals” collection was the common mallow. I had never heard or seen this flower until this summer, and it’s quickly becoming a favourite. Its various shades of purple and well-defined veins are truly stunning. They’ve been growing all around the house for weeks now, with their purple heads enlivening the dreariest corners. The deep green leaves are so big, too, and have this lovely soft jagged edge that almost looks like a scallop.

 

You can shop The Common Mallow pattern right here.

 

In addition to photos (which I was able to save, since they are still growing abundantly), I actually sketched from the live plant. The flowers last an amazingly long time even after being plucked, so I was able to surround myself with them while I puttered about in my sketchbook.

Once the sketch is good enough for me to stitch, I make a copy on tracing paper. After going over it with a fine Sharpie, it’s ready to be transferred onto fabric. Lately I’ve been using a heat-erasable pen, and it’s definitely my favourite transfer method to date! I’ll definitely have to update my previous post on transferring methods!

 

SEE ALSO:

how to transfer an embroidery pattern
transferring on dark fabric: 3 methods

Creating the Embroidery Pattern

As I stitch, I often make little changes to the design, and I also take note of what didn’t work so well. I draw the final design on a plain sheet of white paper using the tracing paper copy I made earlier, and change or add to it depending on how the embroidery turned out. I go over the design with the fine Sharpie again, and then scan it and save it on my computer. Often, there will be little imperfections that I like to smooth out digitally, and I do that simply with Microsoft Paint and a tiny drawing pad. It’s not the best or most professional system, but it works fine for my current needs.

Once I’m satisfied with the pattern, I import it into Canva, which is the program I use to design all my PDF booklets. And finally, once the instructions are written and I’ve added all the photos, it’s time for the best part: listing on Etsy!

Northern Belle Atelier Shop

 

I’ve truly been enjoying designing and stitching these unique patterns for you, and I hope you find as much joy in embroidering them as I did! If you have any particular requests for something you’d like to see in the shop, I’d love to hear from you. I’m hoping to offer more than PDF patterns in the near future, so I’m always open to suggestions.

 

Fondly,

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Two Different Ways to Embroider Hydrangeas

     Anne      2 Comments

Hello friend, it’s already time for a new mini-embroidery pattern for the 2022 Tea Party Mini-Quilt Stitch-along! For August, we have a sweet little posy of hydrangeas in a vase, freshly picked from the garden and ready to adorn our tea table. I spent a very peaceful afternoon playing around with different stitches and colour combinations to embroider the hydrangeas, and thought I’d share a bit of my process with you here today.

 

 

An endlessly fascinating and beautiful subject, florals can be embroidered in about as many different ways as there are embroiderers. I absolutely love scrolling through Instagram or Pinterest to see how everyone likes to stitch flowers. There are so many lovely colours, and so many stitches to choose from! The best way to figure out what works best is to just try out different things and have fun.

 

August’s Hydrangea Posy

I absolutely love a good hydrangea bush, all puffy with big pastel pompoms. And when dried well, they look nearly just as good in a vase as they do crowding the front steps. They are also wonderful to look at during the colder months.

For this mini-embroidery pattern, I knew that the hydrangeas would be quite small so anything too detailed (like long & short stitch) would likely not work. French knots and lazy-daisy stitch are both so versatile and useful for depicting many kinds of flowers, especially for small subjects. So I had a go an embroidering hydrangeas with both stitches, and ran a little poll on Insta to see what people preferred.

The French knots won, but I admit I was more drawn to the lazy-daisy stitch version. I love the fullness that the French knots give, but I feel it could also be mistaken for other flowers (like chrysanthemums or zinnias) and looks a bit too abstract. The lazy-daisy stitches give it a bit more definition. You can place your stitches to form an β€œX” to imitate the petals, but since the flower was pretty small, they kinda crowded over each other and ended up looking a bit messy.

 

French Knots vs. Lazy-Daisy Stitches

I think the size of the flower greatly influences the type of stitch that works best. For a very small flower, the French knots are perfect for giving it dimension and texture. The lovely combination of the sweet shades of blue #3811 and #827 leave it with no mistake that it is in fact a hydrangea. (Plus, when it’s your embroidery, you can absolutely claim that it’s whatever flower you say it is, even if it doesn’t exist!). If I were stitching a hydrangea bush or flowering pot, I would definitely use French knots, since they would be depicted from even further away.

But for a single flower, I really do love the lazy-daisy stitches.

I made this one bigger, and used the same two shades of blue. It’s not as dimensional, but it does have more definition and works better for this size. The bigger is it, the easier it is to add details. If I were to stitch a much larger, detailed version, I would probably use satin stitch or long & short, and perhaps bullion knots to add some texture, much like I did for the lilac branch project.

 

Which version?

This was a fun little exercise, but in the end I just couldn’t decide! Both versions ended up in the August pattern! Everything is stitched with 2 strands, but you can of course substitute the lazy-daisies for French knots or vice versa. Or use another stitch altogether, if you have another way to embroider hydrangeas! I’d love to know.

Also, if anyone has any great tips for drying hydrangeas to display, please let me know! The last bunch I tried failed miserably, and the ones I did manage from a few years ago have sadly lost most of their colour.

I hope you enjoyed these different ways to embroider hydrangeas, and that you enjoy stitching the August pattern. Don’t forget to tag me on Instagram (@northernbelle.atelier) and use the hashtag #northernbellesal. I always love to see your work!

 

Fondly,

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Beautiful Needle-Painted Lily for Easter

     Anne      2 Comments

Happy Easter, dear friend! I hope you had a lovely long weekend, full of Spring’s blessings and renewed gratitude for the mystery of the Resurrection. What a beautiful holiday Easter is! It’s always been one of my favourite times of year. April is very unpredictable here, all sunshine and birdsong one day, cold and snowy the next. Today, unfortunately, is the latter. The flowers have yet to appear, but despite the snow the grass is greener and the birds are nesting. While I seek to appreciate Spring’s slow appearance, the flowers of my dreams are in full bloom in my embroidery atelier. In today’s post I’ll be showing you my latest creation: a soft pink, needle-painted lily.

 

Buy this pattern in my Etsy shop: Lovely Pink Lily

needle-painted lily in faux wood frame

 

If you’ve been following me for a while, you might remember that I embroidered a pink lily last summer as part of my Garden Bouquet project. It was mostly done with ribbon which created a beautifully raised effect.

complete ribbon lily flower

 

I really loved that lily, and had been wanting to re-embroider it in a different technique for Easter. I know Easter lilies are usually white, but I kept visualizing it in pink and decided to keep it that way. I wanted a soft, pale pink lily embroidered in needle-painting.

I’m still learning so much about needle-painting techniques, but I’m very pleased with how it turned out! It seemed to go much quicker than when I was working on the wild roses in the bouquet. I tried to keep it simple and not use too many colours. The petals are done with 5 different shades of DMC cotton floss, and the stem and leaves with only 2 shades. Simple, but lovely.

 

Learn to Needle-Paint!

Needle-painting can be really intimidating at first, but if you break it down bit by bit, it becomes very manageable. If you already draw or paint, you will likely find it easier since it’s so dependent on direction. The main stitch used for needle-painting is the long & short stitch, which allows you to control the length and direction of every single stitch. The fewer strands you use, the more precise and fine your work will be.

For my lily, I used only 1 strand to work the long & short stitch. I found it helpful to divide each petal into smaller sections (lightly marked in pencil on the fabric) to help decide where to place each colour.

lily petal showing pencil guidelines

It worked really well, and also helped immensely to keep the stitches going in the right direction. A flower is an excellent subject for long & short stitch practice, and you can check out this tutorial I posted a few weeks ago if you’d like to give it a try!

 

the long & short stitch hand embroidery tutorial

 

The lily design is now available to download in my Etsy shop! It’s perfect for anyone wanting to give this technique a try, or simply refine their skills. I have included lots of diagrams to help with colour distribution and stitch direction. πŸ˜‰

Which other flowers would you like to see in this style? I’m thinking of working on the wild roses again, and giving them an embroidery piece of their own. Then perhaps I will try a flower that isn’t pink, haha! It’s so nice to work with pink shades, though.

 

Fabric Choice

I wanted to talk about fabric for a minute, to praise the absolutely lovely cotton I used for this needle-painted lily! Most often, I use fabric scraps from my stash for my projects (though I recently fell in love with antique linen), but there are only so many β€œscrappy” fabrics that are suitable for larger embroideries. I prefer to work with natural fibers, but good quality cotton or linen can be a bit hard to find for a good price sometimes. Which is why I was so happy to discover that IKEA sells some beautiful cottons at a very reasonable price!

I used the white Ditte cotton for this project and it worked amazingly well. It’s very lightweight so I doubled it, stitching through two layers instead of one. I hadn’t really tried that before, but I love it! It certainly adds stability and prevents threads at the back from showing through. I basted the two layers together along the hoop allowance so they wouldn’t shift, and it was perfect.

needle-painted lily

Highly recommend popping by IKEA for some fabric if you don’t know where to get good cotton. They were out of stock on a lot of them, but luckily they still had that dreamy white, and an icy grey-blue of the same name.

What fabric do you like to embroider on? And if you’re in Canada, where else do you like to buy fabric?

 

I hope you enjoyed taking a peek at my new project, and I look forward to releasing the pattern soon! Hopefully before long, the lilies will be back in my garden in full bloom. Until then, let’s keep stitching!

 Happy Easter again dear kindred spirit, and until next time,

 

Fondly,

learn to needle-paint a pink lily
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Rhododendrons & Flower Symbolism in Rebecca

     Anne      8 Comments

Hello dear friend! This week on the blog, I have another needlework project to show you paired with a favourite classic novel: Rebecca. Written by Daphne du Maurier, Rebecca gets a lot of recognition as the perfect “spooky, gothic book for fall”. It’s definitely a book you don’t want to miss, and while I could praise its various strong points at length, I’m going to be focusing on flower symbolism in this post. Specifically, the importance of the rhododendrons, and the needlework project that captures the essence of Rebecca.

 

du maurier's rebecca: embroidered azaleas

 

I read Rebecca for the first time last fall, in anticipation of the Netflix film release. I absolutely loved it. Really, truly, absolutely loved every page of it. I can definitely understand why it’s recommended so often, and why so many rave about it. It’s that good.

 

The Book

Set in the 1930’s in England, it follows a newlywed couple as they settle down to their new life together in a country mansion named Manderley. You will hear the name Manderley a lot.  The main character, young Mrs. de Winter, remains oddly anonymous throughout the whole story. You never learn her first name. Her enigmatic husband, Mr. de Winter, is much older than her, and naturally hides many a dark secret. You won’t know what to really make of him. The housekeeper appears to be cold and uncanny, and constantly refers to Mr. de Winter’s first wife, comparing, belittling, driving the new Mrs. de Winter mad with insecurity and jealousy. Rebecca de Winter tragically died in a boating accident, forever upsetting life at Manderley. Things can never go back to how they were.

 

hardcover copy of du Maurier's Rebecca with pearl necklace and cameo brooch draped over the book

 

Throw in a murder mystery, and you have Jane Eyre meets Agatha Christie, and you’re in for a real treat. The writing style of this book is simply superb. Every single sentence is delectable. The attention to detail is astounding, from flower vases to embroidered handkerchiefs to paintings hanging on the wall.

Everything is important. Everything.

And it’s written in a way that simultaneously delights and gives you chills. It’s astounding, I tell you. The Netflix movie was cute, but failed to convey the intense, immersive atmosphere that the book delivers.

I am definitely adding my voice to the thousands who already tell you that this is a perfect October read, fulfilling all your spooky-gothic-vibes desires. And I don’t even like β€œspooky”. It’s just a wonderful book, period, and its dark and gloomy atmosphere is incredibly well-done.

I wrote a review of it on Goodreads as well, so feel free to check it out if you’d like more of my thoughts on it!

 

The Details

As I mentioned earlier, there is an attention to little details that is very particular in this book. It’s haunting, almost, the way seemingly mundane things are given importance. Among these, flowers often come up; it appears the late Mrs. de Winter had a real knack for decorating, and had fresh flowers put in vases every day.

 

hardcover copy of Rebecca with embroidered azalea project and pearl necklace

 

The beautiful flower descriptions abound in this book, but there’s one flower in particular that stands out: the rhododendron.

It’s pretty obvious that flowers (especially rhododendrons) are used symbolically in Rebecca. Many things are used symbolically in Rebecca, in fact. The rhododendrons, flaming red and intrusively imposing, are said to represent Rebecca herself. Indeed, there are many comparisons you can make between Rebecca and the scarlet clusters of rhododendrons.

But what does a rhododendron mean?

 

A Bit of Floriography

If you’ve been around for a bit, you know that I love analyzing flower meanings according to the Language of Flowers, which was extremely popular during the Victorian era. Rebecca was published and set in the 1930’s and I don’t know whether du Maurier would make direct references to it, but since flowers abound in this book and they’re clearly important, I thought it would be fun to see if we can draw any connections at all between the Language of Flowers and how certain flowers are used in Rebecca.

 

close up of embroidered azaleas over opened copy of Rebecca

 

Yes, there they were, blood-red and luscious, as I had seen them the evening before, great bushes of them, massed beneath the open window, encroaching on to the sweep of the drive itself.

Daphne du Maurier, Rebecca

 

Rhododendrons are everywhere around Manderley, crowding the driveway, encroaching over windows, growing uncontrollably big and red. They’re even found inside the house, decorating bowls and vases in the late Mrs. de Winter’s morning-room. Serving as an eternal reminder of Rebecca’s lingering presence, the flaming red flowers seem to suffocate the main character the same way they suffocate the house.

 

Rhododendron = Danger. Beware.

 

flaming red rhododendron bush
Photo by Sean Valentine from Pexels

This seems an incredibly apt significance for this book. One of the first things Mrs. de Winter (present) notices when she first arrives at Manderley are the crowding bushes of scarlet rhododendrons.

 

[…] on either side of us was a wall of colour, blood-red, reaching far above our heads. We were amongst the rhododendrons. There was something bewildering, even shocking, about the suddenness of their discovery.

 

They warn her of the danger ahead, of the nightmare she’s about to go through. They bid her beware that all is not as it seems, that Manderley is full of dangerous secrets.

Danger, danger everywhere, written loud and clear in flaming red flower clusters!

It would seem the symbolism of the rhododendrons in Rebecca matches the Language of Flowers very closely. Let’s look at another passage. The book famously opens with the line:

Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again.

The main character recounts her dream, in which Manderley seems suffocated by a host of plants.

A lilac had mated with a copper beech, and to bind them yet more closely to one another the malevolent ivy, always an enemy to grace, had thrown her tendrils about the pair and made them prisoners.

 

The lilac has a few different meanings; β€œfirst emotions of love” if purple and β€œyouthful innocence” if white. The beech tree stands for “prosperity”, the ivy signifies “fidelity and marriage”, and its tendrils represent an “assiduousness to please”. All seemingly beautiful and positive things, yet interestingly this opening is clearly meant as a bad omen, a foreshadowing of all the terrible things to come.

We learn soon enough that the main character (who is the narrator) is very young, very naΓ―ve, and very much in love with her new husband. And it is precisely her naΓ―ve love and desire to please that blind her into paranoid fear and nearly wrecks her marriage. Malevolent ivy indeed! Her assiduousness to please, born of her young love and the prosperity she thought she would have as Mrs. de Winter, are all working against her. Suffocated by the rhododendrons.

The white lilac comes up again, as Manderley prepares for its fancy-dress ball. The gardeners β€œbring in the rest of the white lilac” as part of the lavish flower arrangements, and once again the main character’s β€œyouthful innocence” cause her quite a lot of trouble with her unfortunate choice of costume for the ball.

Isn’t it interesting?! It all seems to fit so well!

I could probably analyze every flower passage for days as they are so many that are mentioned and seem important, but I’ll just do one more.

 

Hydrangea = A boaster. Heartlessness.

 

blue hydrangea head
Photo by Rifqi Ramadhan from Pexels

 

Well, if you’ve read the book, you certainly know who that describes.

I noticed for the first time how the hydrangeas were coming into bloom, their blue heads thrusting themselves from the green foliage behind.

 

The hydrangeas appear in the last quarter of the book, replacing the rhododendrons as the months succeed each other. The flaming red clusters make way for the blue heads just as the characters are trying to puzzle out a murder. An important character is at last unmasked, revealed for what they really were: heartless. It would seem the hydrangeas were foreshadowing that too!

I don’t know if du Maurier intentionally referred to the Language of Flowers in her writings, but it certainly was very interesting to analyze the many flowers in Rebecca from that angle! Amazing how the symbolic meanings of floriography lent themselves so well to this book!

 

Needlepainting Project: Azalea Flowers

This needlework project wasn’t stitched with the story in mind since I finished it before reading the book. However, the rhododendrons struck me so much while I read Rebecca that it reminded me of this project. It was my first real needlepainting project, embroidered as part of my Honours project for university.

 

close-up of embroidered azaleas in needlepainting
close-up of embroidered azalea showing needlepainting details

 

I used a feather flower pattern from an 1874 copy of The Young Ladies’ Journal. The feather strokes created perfect guidelines for needlepainting and I really liked the azalea flowers. They’re not flaming red like the rhododendrons in the book, but the contrast of the black background put me in mind of the moody atmosphere in Rebecca.

 

Azalea flowers fall under the rhododendron family, and actually they are mentioned in Rebecca!

On either side of the narrow path stood azaleas and rhododendrons, not blood-coloured like the giants in the drive, but salmon, white, and gold, things of beauty and of grace, drooping their lovely, delicate heads in the soft summer rain.

 

I like to think that my embroidered azaleas are more “things of beauty and of grace” than some dangerous warning, and their colour fits nicely with this passage!

 

Azalea = Temperance

 

A touch of sobriety to a rather tempestuous story, the azaleas serve as a foil to the red rhododendrons, much the same way the two Mrs. de Winter were so different from each other.

 

hardcover copy of Rebecca and azalea embroidery project surrounded by a vintage china teacup and saucer and various jewelry

 

My project seemed to fit this book so well that I couldn’t resist pairing the two and telling you all about it. I’m planning on detailing my project more at length in a future post (this one is long enough already!) and show you more floriography findings (unrelated to this book). In the meantime, have a look at some other posts featuring floriography and classic novels:

 

lilacs of love inspiration from jane eyre
an introduction to floriography
wisteria embroidery inspired by The Enchanted April

Alright, I think that’s enough flower talk from me for one day, but before you go, do tell me -do you prefer rhododendrons or hydrangeas? What do you think of Rebecca? I would love to hear any thoughts on it!

I really hope you’ve enjoyed reading this post and if you find flowers and floriography as lovely and interesting as I do, I’d love to hear from you! Feel free to leave a comment or contact me directly. I wish you all a wonderful week!

 

Fondly,

embroidered flowers inspired by Rebeca
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Garden Bouquet Reveal: Celebratory Tea Party

     Anne      2 Comments

Dearest friend, it is with the utmost pleasure that I welcome you here today to conclude the Garden Bouquet series and reveal the final piece to you. Please do sit down and make yourself comfortable. We will begin in a few moments by adding the finishing touches to the piece, then frame it, and reveal it at last. I have been so eager to finally show it to you, and can’t wait to chat with you about all things flowers, ribbons, and garden inspiration. How do you like your tea? And please allow me to serve you a warm slice of apple pie, fresh out of the oven. Settle in, and we shall begin!

 

welcome to the garden bouquet reveal tea party

 

If you’ve been following along on this journey from the beginning, thank you so, so much! I hope you’ve been enjoying the project so far. If you haven’t seen all the posts or are new here, never fear! We will do a little recap.

 

The Garden Bouquet Project

 

In Part 1, I shared the inspiration behind the design as we toured my grandmother’s garden, carefully picking and choosing which blooms would be included in the final piece. I also shared a bit about my fabric choice, how to transfer the pattern onto the fabric, and how I would approach stitching the piece.

garden bouquet embroidery design traced onto tracing paper

 

In Part 2, I detailed how I embroidered the wild roses in needle-painting style. They were the most time-consuming element of the bouquet, but so well worth it! I shared all the threads I used, as well as my process.

finished embroidered wild rose

 

In Part 3, I tried something new and exciting: stump-work using bits of cotton ball! I embroidered currant berries by padding them with cotton ball, and absolutely loved the effect! I also briefly showed you how I embroidered a raspberry branch, which I explain in more details in another post.

embroidered currant berries with little "end" in brown floss

 

In Part 4, I crowned the Bouquet with a ribbon-work lily. Three-dimensional, shiny, and majestic, the lily is the centerpiece of the bouquet. This was my favourite part to work on, and it was lovely to get back into ribbon-work!

complete ribbon lily flower

 

In Part 5, I sprinkled a few yellow daisies to balance out the big pink flowers a little. They were the easiest to stitch, and I only used basic stitches. Something nice and sweet after the more complicated elements!

finished daisy flower with straight stitches around it to create the thin leaves

 

And that’s where we are! All the floral elements are embroidered, and the bouquet is just waiting for a bit of extra love and care, and a nice frame.

Let me refill your cup with this steaming Earl Grey, and I will have scones ready for you in a minute. While they finish goldening in the oven, we will embroider the Bouquet title.

 

β€œBouquet du Jardin Turenne”

 

I used a simple backstitch to write the title, with very small stitches to be able to navigate turns and corners easily. The title was hand-written, hence the unevenness of the letters. I think it adds a bit of charm to it, although I could have made it a *bit* more even. I used two strands of black floss, but I think a dark brown could have worked very well too.

bouquet du jardin embroidery showing the embroidered title
part of the embroidered title in backstitch

 

What’s your favourite way to embroider letters? I like to use the splitstitch, too, and the satin stitch looks divine when the letters are big enough for it.

Oh, we are so close to being done now! I just think my stems look a little…empty. (I love the one jutting out lol, how did it end up like that?!)

 

embroidered bouquet stems

 

They definitely need a bow. This is a bouquet, after all. And because I love ribbon and it’s faster to sew on than to embroider one, I used a small piece of cream-coloured ribbon to create the bow. It’s hand-sewn where all the stems intersect.

ribbon bow added around flower stems to tie the bouquet

 

My friends…we did it!! There’s the bouquet all done! No more thread, no more needle!! Actually, that’s not true, because I used a needle and thread to back it into the frame…but no more embroidery!

 

Framing the Bouquet

It’s ready to be un-hooped and prepped for framing! Ahhhh!! I hear the timer going off in the kitchen, meaning the scones must be ready. Excellent timing! There is blueberry, or apple and cinnamon. Would anyone like a bit of jam to go with it?

When I un-hooped the fabric, I noticed that the left side (where I hold it while I stitch) was a bit yellowed. This was undoubtedly caused by my hyperhidrosis problem (excessive sweating of the hands), and I was a bit disappointed, but decided to carefully wash it. Normally, I wouldn’t really wash a project like that, but in this case I thought it better to try. I used a bit of warm water and dish soap and a clean brush to scrub very gently at the affected area. It helped somewhat, and in the end it’s not really visible in the frame, since it ended up being more the seam allowance that was affected, thankfully (I’m glad I used a big hoop!).

I ironed the piece very gently, good side down, not going over the embroidery. Because there’s stump-work and ribbon-work and all kinds of things, I definitely didn’t want to squish it, but the sides needed some ironing to remove the hoop marks. It’s much easier to smooth those out if you dampen the fabric slightly. Again, I did not dampen the embroidery itself, only the fabric on the sides.

And finally, the frame! Unfortunately, I did not have a pretty frame on hand, and no time to go buy one. I had to use what I could find in the house, but I think it works! It’s a very cheap plastic frame, but its thin black shape actually work very well with the embroidery! It matches the title, and doesn’t distract from the bouquet.

I used a needle and thread to secure my embroidery work around a piece of sturdy cardboard, leaving a good 2” seam allowance all around. I placed another piece of black cardboard in the frame first, to hide the back of the mounted embroidery. There is no glass or anything on the front, and a small cloth or lint roller can be used to occasionally clean the embroidery.

 

And…it’s done!! Are you ready to see it? The Garden Bouquet reveal at last!

 

flat lay view of the finished garden bouquet embroidery framed and surrounded by fresh flowers
finished garden bouquet, framed and surrounded by daisies and a lily
finished garden bouquet embroidery shown from the side, with fresh daisies surrounding it

 

And some close-up details:

close up of the finished garden bouquet embroidery showing wild roses and lily bud in particular
close up of finished embroidery showing more wild roses, currant branch, and lily
close up of garden bouquet details; wild rose and currant branch
close-up of wild rose bud on finished garden bouquet embroidery

 

This calls for another cup of tea, what do you think? And a cupcake with pink frosting and edible lilies. πŸ˜‰

I can’t believe I finished it!! Thank you so very much dear friend, for accompanying me through this needlework journey. I would love to know your thoughts on it! Did you have a favourite part? What technique do you prefer, or are interested in the most?

And what is your favourite flower? I have always been very partial to roses and was excited to include them in this project.

 

A Bit of Floriography

I thought it would be fun to discover what secret meanings lie behind my floral choices for this piece…If you’ve been following me for a bit, you probably know that I have a strong interest in all things Victorian floriography, and that I whip out my trusted Kate Greenaway pocket flower dictionary any chance I get.

 

So let’s see…

 

Dog Rose = Pleasure and pain

Hahaha, I feel like this sums up my experience with stitching them! I loved it, but the stress of doing one-strand embroidery under such a time-crunch was painful indeed.

Raspberry = Remorse

Did I regret my life choices several times during the making of this project? Yes, perhaps.

Currant = Thy frown will kill me

Hahahahaha ohhhh the drama! I wonder what currants ever did to anyone?! However, this is not the only definition. The dictionary also has an entry for

Branch of Currants = You please all

Now that’s more like it! Much more along the lines of the kind of message I should be sending to my grand-parents with this bouquet, lol!

Day Lily = Coquetry

This is the closest lily entry I could find to represent the pink one I made, which is neither imperial (majesty), or of-the-valley (return of happiness). A bit of coquetry it is then!

Garden Daisy = I share your sentiments

There was no entry for a yellow daisy, which to me should have a different meaning than the common white and yellow ox-eye daisy (innocence). So we’ll go with the garden daisy, since they certainly were from the garden!

wild rose in the garden
day lily from the garden
yellow daisy from the garden

We now have: pleasure and pain, remorse, thy frown will kill me, you please all, coquetry, and I share your sentiments.

 

I wonder what this bouquet is trying to tell me. This sounds exactly like a Victorian melodrama where the wife overspends on opera gowns and expensive furs, and over-decorates her parlour with needlepoint cushions and dried floral arrangements.

β€œWE DON’T NEED ANY MORE TASSELS, CAROLINE!”

If that unappreciative husband of hers gives her that disapproving frowning look one more time, she might just kill herself (and him too). (Sometimes he wishes she would).

Thy frown will kill me! Enough, I beg of you!

 

Needless to say, this Bouquet was NOT embroidered with the Language of Flowers in mind. But it was certainly a lot of fun to discover which secret meanings it held! I hope you enjoyed this little bit of floriography as much as I did. πŸ˜‰ I really want to know where the significance of the currant came from!

Which flower would you like to know the meaning of? Let me know in the comments and I’ll tell you!

view of the finished garden bouquet embroidery, framed and surrounded by flowers

 

It feels oddly appropriate that my library hold of the movie Enchanted April arrived just as I was completely immersed in the embroidery of this garden bouquet. It was the absolute perfect thing to watch while stitching! I had already fallen in love with the story last spring when I read the book for the first time (and wrote a post on it, with an accompanying project!). As it turns out, the movie is just as wonderfully charming as the book. I loved it so much that I watched it pretty much every evening while I embroidered, happily lost in my little world of flowers and thread. The soundtrack is also very beautiful.

What do you like to watch/listen to when you stitch (or craft)? Have you seen the Enchanted April movie?

 

I hope you had a pleasant time here at my Garden Bouquet Reveal Tea Party! Thank you ever so much for coming. It was certainly very pleasant to be able to sit down for a bit and chat about so many wonderful things with you, with a ready cup of tea! Do help yourself to more baked goods before you go, and take some with you.

Thank you so much for coming to see the Garden Bouquet Reveal, and I wish you a wonderful week! As always, I’d be delighted for you to share any thoughts or comments you might have.

 

Fondly,

garden bouquet final reveal for pinterest
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