Lydia Framed & BITD Progresses

Lydia is framed in the same framing I used for Coromandel, I think the dark gold along with the slightly oriental motif fits it well.

And Back in the Day, BITD, is progressing. This one is going to take some time, it is going to be big enough to make a statement, LOL I'm happy with the colors I've chosen, I think they are achieving the feel of older lithographs that I was seeking.

I'm also enjoying the Assissi technique in the third band, it is easy and fun to see the image appear from the voided areas. So far, so good :)

New Design - 'Back In The Day'

I love vintage lithograph advertisements, especially those found on old biscuit tins, fruit crates, seed packages or cigar boxes.

I don't truly 'collect' things, don't you know how much dust they can hold? lol However, I love to look at these wonderful bits of history.

Here is a great comment about them from the Huntington Library Color Explosion-

"In the 19th century, color lithography created a communication revolution and brought art, literature, and music to the masses. The process had a dramatic impact on consumer culture, too, as colorful and appealing product labels began to influence advertising, branding, and customer choices. Everything from cigar boxes to children’s games suddenly exploded with color."

I wanted to create a design reminiscent of those brightly colored and ornately decorated patterns and so here is my tribute to those wonderful late Victorian and Edwardian era chroma lithographs - 'Back in the Day'. Which is a term that always makes me laugh when I hear it today and I thought it worked well for my taste which lies firmly 'back in the day'.

This one will take some time to stitch, it's stitch count is 227 x 299. I'm stitching it on an 18 count ivory aida cloth and the design will measure about 12 1/2" x 16 1/2". The dmc colors and the HDF I'm using in the model are -

DMC 782, Topaz,dk - HDF silk floss Bird Feathers #4107
DMC 996, Electric Blue - HDF Fugue Blue #2239
DMC 702, Kelly Green - HDF Isle Green #3211
DMC 740, Tangerine - HDF Gold Rush #4231

This is also the first of my designs that contains elements of Assissi-style work, also known as voided work since it involves stitching a background to reveal an image. I haven't used this technique before and I'm happy to say I find it is pleasant to stitch. I hope you will as well.

Lydia Completed

Lydia's model is stitched and the pattern will be introduced by Creative Poppy in a few weeks. It can also be purchased now here on the blog, just go to the Patterns for Sale tab.

This was a fast and enjoyable stitch, as I hope all my designs will be. I think it succeeded in conveying the time and place in which Lydia lived along with the brightness and boldness of such an interesting individual. At least I hope it did :)

I'm working on the next pattern so keep an eye out for it here in the next few days. It is going to be large and rather complex, I keep trying to finish it but it keeps telling me I need one more band, LOL