Crathorne Bug - finished!

There you have it - finished at long last!  I will mount it, and show it one final time . . .

I look forward to seeing your results too.

Best wishes . . . Tracy

Crathorne Bug - embellishments

to give more definition for the body, work a stitch in DMC Col.3031 over each cross over on the trellis

trellis pattern complete

using DMC Col.3031, work two small stitches to the side of each antenna for the eyes

over the two small stitches, work smaller stitches again to complete the eyes in satin stitch in the same colour

eyes complete

body definition - worked in DMC Col.3031 in tiny running stitch
work a slightly longer stitch on the front, and a smaller stitch behind

Complete!

Crathorne Bug - antenna and head

antenna worked in DMC Col.3031 stem stitch,
and split stitch around the head using DMC Col.3782

I worked the left antenna holding the loop of thread to the left, and the right antenna holding the loop of thread to the right, so that the twist of the stem stitch mirrors from left to right.  I also extended the last top stitch out, so that the antenna thins out.

satin stitch the head using DMC Col.3782, starting from the middle and working outwards on both sides

so far!

Crathorne Bug - body, satin stitch, and trellis work split

split stitch using one strand of DMC Col. 644

satin stitch starting from the middle, and working over the split stitch

completed satin stitch

laid work, worked in DMC Col.3782, set the first central cross

then, work parallel lines of stitch, either side of the central cross

at every crossover of the laid work, work a small stitch to hold in place, again with DMC Col.3782

laid work, and body complete

Crathorne Bug - outlined

stem stitch - stage 1

stem stitch - stage 2

outlined

One strand of DMC 680 was used to outline the wings in stem stitch, after a lot of trial and error with other colour combinations which looked either too strong, or not defined enough.

The stem stitch gives definition, and finish to the overall result, and I worked the stitch quite long as it always looks more smooth and slick.

Crathorne Bug - needlelace wings complete

Third band, using DMC 3828 for the bar,
and DMC 3828 for the needlelace

Fourth band, using DMC 3828 for the band,
and DMC 422 for the needlelace

Final band, using DMC 422 for the band,
and DMC 422 for the needlelace

complete with gradual shading

To confirm, there are five bands of colour in total, using only three colours - 

• DMC 680 for bar and needlelace
• DMC 680 for bar, and DMC 3828 for needlelace
• DMC 3828 for bar, and DMC 3828 for needlelace
• DMC 3828 for bar, and DMC 422 for needlelace
• DMC 422 for bar, and DMC 422 for needlelace

Each bar forms the cord for corded Brussels stitch, and each band is approximately six rows of each colour combination, to give a guide, which could be more of less, depending on tension.

Crathorne Bug - needlelace wings continued

Next 6 rows of Corded Brussels stitch work in one strand of 
DMC Col. 680 and one strand of DMC Col. 3828

Close up showing the colour of the needlelace working gradually into a lighter shade

Again, work both wings in unison to keep balanced and equal.

Crathorne Bug - working both wings in unison

both wings worked in unison

After a few trials and tribulations of working these needlelace wings, this is the final result!

I worked both wings side by side in two strands of DMC Col.680, to keep them equal and balanced.  I worked 7 rows on each side starting with 3-4 stitches, and gradually increasing to 8-9 stitches.  It all depends on your tension, but my tip is, do not make your needlelace too tight.

Crathorne Bug - needle lace wings

Using DMC Col.680 with two strands in the needle, work a stitch from left to right, at the top end of the wing, then bring the needle up next to the block shading, on the the right hand side, ready to start the blanket stitch

Take the needle around the bar, bringing it up in a loop of thread

Work a blanket stitch bar, working right to left

Work approximately 4-5 blanket stitches on the first row, working towards the left, then take the needle back into the fabric

Again, throw a bar from left to right

Work another blanket stitch bar, catching both the loop of the last row of each stitch, and the bar of thread

Continue to work each row in this way, throwing the bar left to right, but working the blanket stitch right to left catching both the loop of the stitch on the last row, and the bar of thread thrown across.  As the width of the wing widens, gradually increase the number of stitches to accommodate the shape, and reduce as it narrows.

Tip - At the end of each row, work a tiny stitch in the fabric, which will stop the bar or the last stitch pulling upwards, and will help keep the tension of your work.

The next post will explain how many rows of this colour to use, and how to complete the wings.

Crathorne Bug - stem stitch legs

Stem stitch legs - single thread DMC Col.3031

Stage oneTake the needle into the fabric, along the design line,  approximately an ⅛" of an inch or 3mm from the end of the last stitch

Stage twoThen, bring the needle up at the end of the last stitch, along the design line, holding the surface thread to the side

Stage threeThen, pull the thread all the way through ready to start the next stitch

Crathorne Bug - seeding complete

At last, seeding complete with one strand of DMC Col.644.

Next the legs in stem stitch . . . coming soon!

Crathorne Bug - seeding

Rules on seeding - in my opinion are - 
 - the stitches are all equal in length
 - the stitches are worked in random directions
 - the spacing between the seeding stitches should also be equal to achieve an overall seeded effect

I worked this seeding stitch fairly big and not too small, using one strand of DMC Col. 644

Crathorne Bug - so far

Long & short edging, block shading, trailing, satin stitch dots . . .

Crathorne Bug - dots

Split stitch around the dot

Traditionally the needle is brought up through the previous stitch as it creates less bulk on the back of the work, but this scale is so small, it is possible to bring the needle up in front of the previous stitch and then take down through the stitch - up to you!

Keep the split stitch small as it is such a small area

Begin the satin stitch from the middle bringing the needle up outside of the split stitch, and down over the other side of the split stitch.  The direction of the satin stitch is parallel to that of the oversewing of the trailing on all four sides. 

Satin stitch is worked out from the middle on both sides 

Difficult shape to satin stitch as it is so small - so keep stitches compact and very close together.  
Keep the tension firm

All worked with DMC Col.3782 stranded cotton