This piece was a private commission which I completed just before Christmas. My brief was to create an embroidery depicting the seafront at Aldeburgh in Suffolk, a place which the new owners of the piece are very familiar with since they holiday there almost every year. The familiarity of the seafront buildings, the steep shingle banks and the pretty fishing boats were all aspects I was asked to include. Of course I just had to add in one of my signature skies but I was under strict instructions to keep it blue and summery.
The great challenge of this piece was the seafront buildings. It felt as though I was only progressing by about half an inch per day at one point. However the detail of this element was crucial to the recipients being able to recognise their much loved holiday destination so I ploughed on. Once the buildings were in place the shingle banks developed much more speedily. I enjoyed the movement and shaping of this feature particularly.
Absolutely fabulous –