loosethreadstitchery

[loosethreadstitchery]

Hello! I just wanted to say that your work is gorgeous and so inspirational! I haven't done any blackwork yet, I've mostly done embroidery. I found cross stitch too repetitive for me, so I'm hoping blackwork will be a nice in between. I'm not sure when I'll do it, but I absolutely hope to be able to do something like your colorwheels someday! Thank you for posting your work. Happy stitching!

Thank you so much, and I hope you enjoy blackwork when you give it a go!

[loosethreadstitchery]

This came off the frame last night. Cross stitch and blackwork embroidery on 14-count Aida cloth.

Pattern here (my site) or here (Etsy).

[loosethreadstitchery]

Hi! I love your work and your patterns are absolutely gorgeous!

I wanted to ask if you have any tips for someone just getting into blackwork embroidery? I've done cross stitch and some embroidery work and i've tried a couple basic blackwork patterns. I'm hoping to eventually use your phantom of the opera pattern for a gift

If you don't have any answers or don't feel like teaching beginners that is completely understandable and i want to thank you for all the free patterns on your website either way!

I hope you have a great day!

Hi Anon,

First, thank you so much!

If you've done a bit of blackwork before, I assume you know the basic stitches, and they don't really get any more difficult. I talked a bit here about keeping track of where you are in a repetitive pattern and about working on black Aida - both things that might help you with the Phantom pattern.

In general, take a minute before you begin and plan the route you want to take through the pattern. Back and forth across rows of motifs? Working around the edges and then filling in the middle? In what order will you do the stitches within each motif? You can always change your mind as you go, but having a rough idea makes tackling a big pattern feel a little less overwhelming. The more blackwork you do, the more you get a sense of what works best for you.

I think those are my biggest tips, but if you run into trouble or there's anything you'd like to know, feel free to ask. Happy stitching!

[loosethreadstitchery]

Finished earlier today. I was going for a bit of a stained glass effect, and it more or less worked. Cross-stitched outline with coloured blackwork fills.

Pattern here (my site) or here (Etsy).

[loosethreadstitchery]

Continuing to have fun with optical illusions. This one works best when it's in motion (I put the frame on a lazy susan on my kitchen counter).

Blackwork embroidery on black 14-count Aida cloth.

Pattern here (my site) or here (Etsy)

[loosethreadstitchery]

That moment when a proud, disagreeable man of ten thousand a year comes over to the pianoforte. Cross-stitched quote in a blackwork frame on 18-count Aida cloth.

I've posted this piece before, but pulled it out of my FO pile to re-photograph now that I have (slightly) better lighting. Taking a good photo of a single strand of yellow floss on white cloth is still not easy.

Pattern here (my site) or here (Etsy)

[loosethreadstitchery]

I've started playing around with optical illusions lately. This is the first piece I've finished.

Pattern here (my site) or here (Etsy).

[loosethreadstitchery]

One more little set of ornaments for this year. Blackwork on 18-count Aida cloth.

Patterns here (my site) or here (Etsy)

[loosethreadstitchery]

An older one, because I'm not a hot-weather person and am very much looking forward to autumn.

Pattern here My Etsy shop

[loosethreadstitchery]

I really do have designs in the pipeline that aren't colour wheels, but rainbows and blackwork gradients make me happy. Blackwork embroidery on 14-count black Aida cloth.

This one is a companion piece to the Penrose Wheel. Same seven thread colours (six for the fills, plus white for outlines), same size (120 x 120 stitches).

Pattern here (my site) or here (Etsy). Patterns for the set here or here.

[loosethreadstitchery]

Oh, that's coming along beautifully!

Just finished. I'm so happy with how this one turned out! At just over 17" (43cm) in diameter this is my largest design to date. Each section uses only 2 thread colours (white + 1 other). Blackwork embroidery on 14-count Aida cloth.

Pattern here.

[loosethreadstitchery]

He's there...

Phantom of the Opera mask and rose. Blackwork embroidery on 14-count Aida cloth.

This was done mostly as an experiment using the conveniently monochrome mask. I've done blackwork shading before by varying the stitch density, but I wanted to play around with varying the number of strands used. It half worked; the contrast between 1 and 2 strands turned out, but the contrast between 2 and 3 strands doesn't show as well. I was tempted to try 4 strands, but 3 was already pretty tight on 14-count. I also found that while I like the effect of varying strands of white thread, it looked untidy when done in colours, so the rose and leaves are all single-stranded.

Free pattern is here, for anyone who'd like it.

[loosethreadstitchery]

I don't tend to use a lot of orange or yellow unless they're part of a colour wheel, but wanted something fire-inspired for this. It's another big one, about 43cm (17") across. Blackwork embroidery on 14-count Aida cloth.

Pattern here (my site) or here (Etsy).

[loosethreadstitchery]

Happy anniversary to what is still my favourite piece I've made.

Just finished. I'm so happy with how this one turned out! At just over 17" (43cm) in diameter this is my largest design to date. Each section uses only 2 thread colours (white + 1 other). Blackwork embroidery on 14-count Aida cloth.

Pattern here (my site) or here (Etsy).

[loosethreadstitchery]

It's beautiful! Wonderful work!

Penrose Wheel Blackwork done 😎

Pattern by @loosethreadstitchery (link)

March 2024-August 2024

7 colors on 16-count black aida

[loosethreadstitchery]

Geometric colour wheel in blackwork. This is one of the rare projects that ended up looking better stitched than it did when I sketched it out.

Pattern here (my site) or here (Etsy)

[loosethreadstitchery]

I've mostly been working on larger projects lately, so it was nice to take a break with some quick and easy ornaments. Blackwork on 18-count Aida cloth.

Patterns here and here.