Completed Cross Stitch – Lanarte’s “Art Nouveau” by Mucha-primrose

 

Alfonse Mucha is probably one of the most recognized Art Nouveau artists out there and has yet to be surpassed. Originally from the Czech Republic he lived from 1860-1939 and left behind a legacy of organically-styled paintings made for commercial advertising. 

His neoclassical look takes on a slightly ethereal style using long-haired females with shapely figures, flowing hair, billowing fabric and sensual flowers. Mucha’s feminine elements make his work ever so softly enchanting and also seems to draw in the viewer’s eyes into a fantastical world that only appears to exist for only for the briefest moment you are looking at the picture. 

 His work is currently showcased in Prague at the Baroque Kaunický Palace. I have not been there and since I love Mucha’s work so much I hope to visit there one day soon. Are you an art gallery type of gal or guy? How many different places have you been to or are you overdue for a little culture and diversity?

As far as fine art, I’ve been to the AGO in Toronto, ON; MOMA in NYC, NY; the High Museum of Art in Atlanta, GA; the Salvador Dali Museum in St. Petersburg; FL, and have seen M.C. Esher’s work in Acton, OH during a tour. I’m sure I’m missing a few from this list.

As much as I love art and art galleries, and it would be awesome to visit them all I'd like to also make a personal pilgrimage to every planetarium out there. Planetariums seem to give more of an overall visual and audio experience than just a viewing experience (I mean, c’mon hey, there is only so much staring at paintings and sculptures one can do in a day right?) Visiting the Strasenburgh Planetarium was one of my best childhood memories growing up and I was very sad that Toronto closed the McLaughlin Planetarium many, many years ago. But I digress…..

Here is a little trivia for you: if you have watched or still watch the sitcom "Three’s Company" from the 80s, there are a total of 3 Mucha paintings in the apartment (but only 2 are visible in the majority of the episodes and the third is...well, guess you'll have to keep an eye out won't you?). Do you know the name of the British sitcom that "Three's Company" is based on? And....can you spot the Muchas? :o)

About the cross stitch: The fabric is 28-count white evenweave and the finished size is 9.45” x 23.62” and is part of Lanarte’s Classic Collection kit including all threads and one needle.

Completed Cross Stitch - Luli's "Stella"

 

***
First, I just wanted to take the time to thank you.  You, yes you, sitting there right now reading this--you are awesome!  Thank you for all of your kind words, support, encouragement and whether we have exchanged any words or not, I appreciate your precious time that you take to look at the completed cross stitch pictures and WIPs on this blog.
Thank you for being here.
***

We all need something to look up to don't we?

For some it is hope, for some it is a special person or even someone looking up to their own reflection in the mirror and being either his or her own best inspiration.

I could not tell you the last time I just literally looked up and kept my head up to look up and around.  Maybe my last vacation sightseeing??  But day-to-day?  Not sure about if you do the same as me but I think I'm either looking straight ahead or down....a lot.  A few examples would be like when I'm reading, watching TV, cross stitching, and I was going to say driving but I guess you have to look up at the signals but I was thinking more along the lines of looking up towards the sky.

Some people who come to mind that look up a lot are astronomers (hopefully not at the sun), rock climbers, bird watchers or hey even UFO enthusiasts right?  There really isn't too much that I can think of that makes most people look up very much really (I could insert a Godzilla or Superman joke here but I won't..haha).

But getting back to hope I guess for every positive there is a negative right?  The song by the band The Trews called "Hope and Ruin" comes to mind reminding listeners of this (pretty good song but I'm not a fan of the music video despite part of it being filmed here in Toronto though).

Is hope a disease that keeps us perpetually ill with want or desire that may or may not come to fruition? or is hope that inner drive which gives each day new meaning that feeds a perpetual and renewable interest in life?

One thing that I believe may be true (from my communication studies):  // if you hold your head up your mind and spirit will perk and follow the same trajectory \\  Please try it sometime soon? :-)

This completed stitched piece was made just after spending almost a week at the hospital with one of my dogs (he is doing great now and is back home) and it gave me pause to reflect on just how precious the things that we love in each of our lives just really are.  It inspired the choice of this cross stitch subject.

Details regarding this piece are as follows:  finished size = 5" x 7", stitched over 2 threads on a 32 count linen with DMC B5200 and DMC 816.

Completed Cross Stitch - Charley Harper's "Cool Cardinal"

 

 

 

The American Modernist nature artist, Charley Harper, has a minimalist style that has definitely stood the test of time.  He has worked with the Audubon Society, various zoos and even the Ford Motor Company and his active years appear to be about the 1950s to 1970s.

 

One of the reasons I point out that his work is timeless is that just for one example "Cool Cardinal" was originally released in 1974; the hand-drawn cross stitch pattern from KD Artistry, Inc. (for Puckerbrush) is from 1985 and finally, here it is again in 2013 in thread and fabric form.

Here is my list of random information bits about this latest completed work:

 

1. Finished size:  15.25" x 4.25"
2. Linen 28 or 32 count, possibly Monster Mash from Picture This Plus
3. DMC white used not DMC B5200; DMC white is more yellow and B5200 is more blue (brighter white) - I only had white on-hand at the time (maybe B5200 might have been too overpowering)
4. Used 3 strands instead of 2
5. Would not recommend linen for geometrical work
6. Kreinik Metallics #032 blending filament used with white (really adds a delicateness to the snow and keeps the overall work from looking too flat or heavy because of the bold colours and lines)
7. Would not recommend this pattern for beginners - too hard to understand some of the instructions
8. Discovered a new technique from this pattern:  the use of interchanging double and single lines of backstitching for effect (that was really cool...no pun LOL)
9. Snowflakes got a little tedious to work on at times
10. And lastly, one time I looked up from this work and saw a cardinal sitting outside my windowsill...awwww

 

I have added a picture of the Kreinik blending filament to show the iridescence because unfortunately it does not seem to show up through the photographs (sorry, I tried several times with natural and artificial light).

Completed Cross Stitch - Barbara Baatz Hillman's "Hummingbird Banquet"

 

A-ha!  Searching has finally paid off in locating the proper name of this design and designer.  Never give up I say.  Nev---ahhh!

So after this yet another awesome "search and successful" pattern name find, I got to thinking about a couple of things about what makes us who we are. 

Do you ever wonder sometimes (in theory) if you had a previous life or who you might be related to based on your own likes, skills and dislikes? 

If not, then maybe do you ever wonder if you were adopted because you may be extremely different than your parents?  For example, the way my parents think vs. the way I think sometimes I wonder...was I switched at birth?

Well, for me, since giving it some thought today I wonder if I was Miss Marple's and Sherlock Holmes' theoretical 'love child' secretly adopted by Philip Marlowe.  Because since I love to investigate, analyze, search and search again, check for correctness, have drive and determination and above all, curiosity, here we are.  So, who's (I'm curious now!)...who's adopted 'love child' would you be?  :-)

So, just a few brief words about this pattern.  The colours are so bright and I love the little details.  What first attracted me to this picture was the water droplets, then hummingbird then flower.  At the time I found the pattern, I was in awe over the realism.  This design is at least 10 years old and still looks great. 

From memory, I believe this is a 28-count evenweave and if I were to do it all over again, I would have dabbled in a light-blue dyed background to emulate the sky.

Completed Cross Stitch - Dragon Dreams' "Dragon's Garden"

Frame view and close up for you

This pattern I think is kind of funny with the knight's armour as the scarecrow in the dragon's garden.

I picked the mats to resemble something "knightly" or have a medieval feel to it.

I changed the threads on the dragon to something sparkly in addition to the knight's armour that was already metal looking. I added the hummingbird and changed the recommended frog button. I dyed the fabric myself.

Completed Cross Stitch - Bent Creek's "Brown Dog"

What can I say? I'm a dog person (but I like cats too but just do not own any right now).  So, anyway I definitely have to have a completed work of a cute, wee, little dog. I love mushrooms and especially the red and white I think is very cute. I hand-dyed this small piece of Aida cloth too. I had already dyed it long before I had the pattern and they seemed to match up perfectly with each other. I had a lot of fun dying this piece because I was trying to create a "ground/grass and sky look".

Completed Cross Stitch - Pat Olson's "Merry Santa" - Fun Folk

I made this for a friend for Christmas.  *sigh*...I really wanted to be selfish and keep it for myself but Christmas is the time of giving, so it's gone but not forgotten...gotta love digital cameras!