Lightning Strikes!

Once upon a time, when I started out designing my first needlepoint quilts, I stitched up a small one that I thought of as my "Lightning Bolt" design. It was a very basic layout, using only one variegated thread and one background thread. I never developed it further than a sample model, and over the years, it got buried in my piles of projects.


Recently, while rummaging thru my stuff, I came across this little sample again. I always wanted to do a lighning bolt pattern, so I decided now was the time to do it. After all, this year has been rather crazy in the weather department, hasn't it? So what better way to acknowledge the fact than by stitching up a new design!

Here's what I came up with for my "new and improved" LIGHTNING BOLT:


In the original model, all the lightning blocks are going in the same direction. In the new version, I decided to change stitch direction on every block down the row. It creates a crazy zig zag line AND it makes the light changes more dramatic when you tilt the piece in the light (which doesn't show up in the photos - alas.)

I also jazzed up the outer borders by turning the single zig zag border into a triple zig zag border. AND I added two metallic ribbons - one purple and one silver - so there's plenty of sparkle thruout the whole piece. Here's a close-up of the new pattern:


Truthfully, one of the reasons I never developed the original design was it seemed too plain. And I couldn't figure out what color to use. Both of those problems were solved by waiting a bit before proceeding. Now that there are sooooo many more variegated colors on the market and sooooo many more metallics available, I had many more options to consider.

Ultimately, I chose Watercolours' 259, "Garden Path", because it had purples, yellows and greens, all the colors of a dark stormy sky. And I decided to use a bruised purple background (DMC #5 3042) to mimic all those threatening thundery skies we've seen. In the corners are a row of squares, that I like think of as a string of raindrops - or hail, if you prefer!

And you know what? After I had the model stitched and photographed, it suddenly struck me how Art Deco this piece looks - something I hadn't really noticed while stitching it up.

Anyway, this is my latest design for this month: LIGHTNING BOLT. If you're interested in adding it to your stash, please visit my website for ordering details.