Another rusted piece

I’ve stalled a bit with the clock piece so I got this one out for inspiration.

It’s the first piece of fabric I ever rusted. I picked up the lovely chunky washers in the car park at work, wrapped them in a piece of calico and left the whole lot in a pot of water by the sink with strict instructions that it was not to be thrown away!  

The metallic variegated Madeira, shading from copper to gold, was the perfect thread to pick up the tones of the rusty washers and the fabric.

I chose running stitch to emphasise the linear design and let the marks on the cloth still be glimpsed through the stitches.

Simple straight stitches secure the washers. Short stitches hold them down and the longer irregular stitches add interest. 

I wanted some colour for contrast and I think the combination of turquoise chips and the coppery tones of the rust works really well. I graduated the chips from small to large and back to small again in a sinuous curve which separates the lines of running stitch and the washers.

It’s done the job. I wanted some spirals on the clock piece. I’ve found part of an old clock spring which I want to add and I decided to use spirals to tie in with the spring and contrast with the very straight lines around the edge of the image. I tried it with the perle cotton I’m using for the running stitch but there wasn’t enough contrast and the spirals got lost.

So I’m using this idea (from my sketchbook)…

…of a spiral stitched over straight lines but I’m going to stitch them in the variegated metallic Madeira which worked so well in the washers piece.