Dear friends,
I should say sorry to all of you for taking a long break from blogging without informing you all and without completing the Blooming Bookmark tutorial. I feel bad for keeping you waiting. I visited my mom, dad, and siblings last month and stayed at our home for quite some time. I had a very nice time there, however, I didn't find enough time to update the blog. I returned home last week, and after a month-long hiatus I managed to write on my blog only today.
Let us continue with the next step of the tutorial.
Step 5: We are going to start the long and short shading on petal A. I have used three shades of pink for this petal. Before starting the first row of the soft shading, draw guidelines for direction using a pencil. Then outline the petal with split stitch with the lightest shade of pink. Using the same shade, work long and short stitches with one strand of thread by carefully following the guidelines drawn. It is always better to divide the petal into half vertically, and start from the center and work on the left side of the petal. Upon completing it, start again from the center and work on the right side. Work your long and short stitches as closely as possible. The long and short stitches need not be such that all your long stitches are of same length and all your short stitches are of same length. You can vary the length of your stitches to give a natural appeal to the flower. For example, think of painting with a brush. If your strokes are of same length and the direction is only from top to down (and not from the sides) then your painting won't look natural. The same thing applies here as well. The image here shows the completed first row with long and short stitches of alternating lengths.
Step 6: Select the next shade to make row 2. Using one strand of this shade, work the second row of stitches. First, split up through the end of the center stitch of the first row and down into the fabric. The length of the stitch should be similar to the length of the long stitch of the first row. Work only long stitches in the second row and vary their length slightly. As u did in row 1, divide the petal into half vertically, work the left side first and then the right side.
