{"id":13471,"date":"2024-11-12T21:49:52","date_gmt":"2024-11-12T20:49:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/elisabettasforzaembroidery.it\/?p=13471"},"modified":"2024-11-12T21:49:52","modified_gmt":"2024-11-12T20:49:52","slug":"christmas-2024","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/elisabettasforzaembroidery.it\/en\/2024\/11\/christmas-2024\/","title":{"rendered":"Christmas 2024"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Here is my Christmas 2024!<\/p>\n

As I embroidered, I reread (listened to) some Christmas stories, letting the idea of retracing the footsteps of (and the lights of) Ebenizeer Scrooge fascinate me. So I had been scribbling away, from day to day and stitch by stitch.<\/p>\n

When I sit at the PC, precisely because I am not a writer, I do not define a plot to be packaged with words: I just write, without forethought. It’s more the attitude of someone who keeps a diary. A kind of stream of consciousness, I guess. Here the trigger was that I would be visited by the three ghosts: and precisely because the forethought was not there, it was as if the ghosts really visited me. Memories, images and thoughts caught me off guard.<\/p>\n

Thanks to those who followed me!<\/p>\n

Now, however, I am coming back down to earth, stop chasing my mental contortions, and spend a few words (finally!) on what I think interests me most: stitches, colors, yarns.<\/p>\n

The design was born and grew rather quickly, because I have long since learned that stylizing elements as much as possible is functional for embroidery. Initially, however, the idea was to embroider and make the four decorative pendants, as I had done in Christmas 2023<\/u><\/a>. I had stood for an hour staring at the designs, wondering how on earth I could embroider them, using simple stitches suitable for everyone. The little voice in my head said “Stuoia” Stitch!<\/em>, but I ignored it. Then again “Stuoia” Stitch!<\/em>, and I No!<\/em> No!!!<\/em>. Then he would start yelling, humming, whispering, scanning Stuuuuuu-o-iiii-aaa stiiiii-tch!,<\/em> and I would start getting irritated. I was convinced when he played it like an opera singer.<\/p>\n

So it became almost all “stuoia” stitch embroidery: the little trees and the little houses embroidered it to us with vertical throws, the water and the snow with horizontal throws.<\/p>\n

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Here in Italy, “stuoia” stitch is the basic ingredient of Byzantine embroidery (Bizantina Ars) and Prenestino embroidery. I had written some posts on this blog, related to Byzantine embroidery here:https:\/\/elisabettasforzaembroidery.it\/categoria\/ricamo-bizantino\/<\/a> and Prenestine embroidery here: https:\/\/elisabettasforzaembroidery.it\/categoria\/ricamo-prenestino\/<\/a><\/p>\n

The first, originating in the areas around Ravenna, the other near Palestrina (Rome), both of which have in common the designs taken from bas-reliefs in local churches and the style, which uses mat stitch as the background, on which the images stand out, in negative.<\/p>\n

I used the Byzantine directions and worked with two strands of mulin\u00e9. On my social profiles you will also find a demonstration reel. You don’t embroider “stuoia” stitch very often, poor thing. It has Byzantine stitched on itself and it seems that it cannot be used otherwise. But I think it can give more.<\/p>\n

I, compared to the technique I was taught, have added small additional movements over time:<\/p>\n