Time Management

Finishing an Embroidery

I look back at my April Blog “Fondamenta Del Rio Marin, Venice” and laugh out loud at the last paragraph where I write ,

“I’ll post the finished image on Facebook; Hungry Hector Textiles.”

The reason for this hilarity is because it is now July and I’ve only just finished this piece.

So, what is my myriad of excuses for this delay. The major one is that I have started a new full time job which has dramatically reduced the amount of time I can spend on making. Another, is that my beautiful Bernina 801 began to make some nasty grinding sounds which horrified me as I love this machine. There are others but I think the changes have totally disrupted any work routine and time management I had.

A List of Things to Do

My top priority was to get my machine repaired and serviced. There is a wonderful man called Steve in Braunstone Town, Leicestershire. (Search for Supreme Sewing and Knitting Machines Ltd.) He agreed to receive my machine early on a Saturday morning as I am now unable to deliver it in the week. It’s important to keep up with contact information as I realised I only had his landline number which he no longer uses. I was overjoyed when I returned the following Saturday to find a beautifully working machine again.

Fortunately for me, I’d already made a list of work that needed to be done to the above piece of work so it was a case of setting aside time, no matter how short, to tick off each one.

Freestyle Machine Embroidery - Adding Scroll Work

By adding the scroll work on the balcony, this detail starts to make the piece less flat. It also adds a visual break from all the horizontal and vertical lines.

Adding the Bridge

There are a set of posts on the farthest side of the bridge but I didn’t want to spend too much time on these. I only wanted to give an impression of these and the handrail. To push the buildings into the background I focused on the nearest posts on the bridge and it’s iron work fencing.

Putting in the Foreground Fencing

In my original sketch, (October 2023 Blog), there is a section of fencing that angles outwards towards the viewer. I decided not to include this as it seemed too distracting from the rest of the composition. The fence running along the river edge seemed enough.

Working in the Foreground

To give more depth to this piece a slight shadow is added to the posts in the foreground. This isn’t very dramatic as the light is coming from overhead at about midday so the shadow length isn’t very long. I’ve highlighted the posts with metallic gold to give a sparkle and I’ve also added in metallic silver thread to add a shine to the river. The path is then added so that the foreground posts aren’t floating but sitting on the ground.

Behind the Scene

I do like to look at the back of embroideries so I thought I’d include this one. I must admit I like the reduced palette and the flipped over view.

My time management reminders to myself are:

make a short list of tasks to do; most important/or the one I’m avoiding first,

if I only have 15 minutes to half an hour, it’s better than nothing at all,

focus on the task, make a note if something else comes to mind and then carry on.

Last thing to do with this embroidery is frame it and add it to my body of work for a September exhibition in Rugby. I’m very fortunate to have been given a lovely commission by a friend so I shall be busy with that next. I don’t publish my commission work as I feel they are personal images and usually gifts for special occasions.

Thanks for reading my blog.