Canadian Creative Stitches

Class Project

Hooter the Owl, 2015

Wool strips on linen, 12" x 14"

This piece is a project from the class Canadian Creative Stitches taught by Benita Raleigh (highly recommended). The stitches are borrowed from crewel embroidery.  They are hooked by counting stitches and rows (which I was a little lax about after the initial beginning of the pattern).  My patterns were hooked with a #5 cut.  The cut ends are to be left on the back of the piece, but because I want to use this piece as a pillow that will get daily use, I pulled many to the front as I would in traditional hooking.  Some of the stitches are chain stitch, weaving stitch, reverse brick, chess stitch, chevron, cobblestone, and beaded stitch.  Benita states that the stitches are more obvious when you use contrasting colors or at least different values of the same color family.  She recommends that when using these stitches in your work there has to be a balance between using the creative stitches and regular rug hooking stitches.   When I started the piece I was not concerned with what I'd put in the background.  A plainer background may have accentuated the stitching more, but I opted for clouds and the moon.   This was a fun class.