A Winter Wreath in Silk-Ribbon Embroidery

Seasonal shades of luxurious reds and deep forest greens, and textured stitches including French and colonial knots, bring depth to the wreath. The stems and branches are embroidered in stem stitch using one or two strands of silk floss, and the blue buds are colonial knots stitched from one strand of a 20/2 spun silk thread. The Japanese ribbon stitch gives the petals (and some of the leaves) a realistic point, and a bit of a curl at the tip.

Materials

• 1 piece of white linen fabric at least 8" x 8" (20 x 20 cm)

• Treenway Silks silk ribbon 3.5 mm (100% silk), 5 yd (4.6 m)/skein: 1 skein each of

  • Montano Cedar
  • Montano Rhododendron
  • #42 Opera Velvet
  • #43 Harlequin

• Treenway Silks Zen Shin 20/2 spun thread (100% silk), 10 yd (9.2 m)/skein: 1 skein each of

  • #211 Triumph Green
  • #206 Danish Blue

• Treenway Silks Harmony six strand silk floss (100% silk), 5 yd (4.6 m)/skein: 1 skein

  • #39 Tasmanian Myrtle

• Needles: Chenille needle size 16 for ribbon embroidery, embroidery needle size 7 for one or two strands of floss, and embroidery needle size 5 for spun thread.

• Washable marker, pen, or pencil, to transfer design

• Small sharp scissors

• Embroidery Hoop measuring 4" (10 cm) in diameter for working and finishing