(Click on any image below to enlarge it)

While I do not think a tapestry, like the one that inspired this book, could be done by an inexperienced needlewoman it is not as difficult as it looks. If you have already begun to discover needlework by using the widely available embroidery kits I would encourage you to branch out and try creating a piece of work from your own design. There is great satisfaction to be had from seeing your own ideas and, indeed, life experiences take shape in embroidered form whether it be the size of a table top like mine or much smaller. As I say in The Girl On the Wall, the idea of interlocking ‘circles of life’ struck me early on as a satisfying way to connect all the ideas I wanted to include in my tapestry, so I suggest it as a useful framework on which to base your own design.

If you have any doubts try doing one circle and see how you get on (see diagram 1:)

In this instance one small square of the graph paper represents one cross stitch worked over two threads of the fabric using two strands of pale grey embroidery thread (see diagram 5:)

All of the embroidery thread used in this work is stranded. Should you feel satisfied with this first circle you would find it easy to add four more circles, one at each corner of  the first (see diagram 2:)

This framework of interlocking circles is best worked on a piece of even weave fabric which has been mounted on a suitable frame. I suggest using even weave fabric simply because this is the easiest to use when doing counted cross stitch and it is also easy to work over one or two threads. I used a 30 count even weave. This  means that there are 30 threads  to the inch. You can buy varying numbers of threads to the inch and all this means is that the size of your finished work depends on how many threads to the inch you are using. 32 count would make it slightly smaller than mine and 28 count would make it slightly larger. When shopping for this fabric you would simply ask for whatever count you want.

The stitches in the ovals around the edges of the circles are also worked using  two strands of thread over two threads of the fabric but this time in a medium shade of green (see diagram 3:)

The squares again use two strands of thread over two threads of fabric but this time in a slightly darker shade of green and a rich red (see diagram 4:)

All of the writing and stick people are worked in dark grey thread using a single strand.

When it comes to the items which you will put in the main body of the circle I have no idea what you would like these to be so I can only give basic hints to help you. This work is done using a single strand of thread and I used up oddments of colours which I already had and using suitable stitches for the image I was working on. For example if you look at Circle 18 on Communication (click here to see the tapestry in full) you will see that the computer screen is done in tent stitch (see diagram 5, above) over one thread of fabric. The computer itself is worked in back stitch (again diagram 5) over two threads, as is the hammer and most of the other items. The TV is worked in the same way as the computer. The mobile phone is worked in a very small cross stitch over one thread as is the bunch of grapes. The postage stamps are made from a cross stitch over two threads and bordered with back stitch to give a definite shape. These three simple stitches are used throughout the tapestry. Circle 23, which came out very well, is done almost entirely in back stitch over one thread. Never look at the work as a whole; it might be too daunting. Look at each individual circle as the piece of work in hand.

Diagram 6 gives some examples from my tapestry of how to draw up your plans as you go along:

For these sketches I used graph paper with 13 squares to the inch. Each small square on the paper represents one thread of the fabric. This means that my designs came up smaller on the fabric than they appeared on the paper I was using. Compare the tea pot in Circle 54 and the helicopter in Circle 69 with my drawings in diagram 6and you will see what I mean. Most things are very easy to draw up using a pencil and a rubber. Really tiny things generally came out very well in my tapestry, even the ambulance train in Circle 38.

Always go with the flow, working on one circle at a time. It helps to keep a pencil and note book to hand in order to jot down ideas as you think of them. If you really get under way with your own tapestry you will probably find that this happens a great deal because your brain will be in overdrive as one small success follows another. That is a proper description for a work of this kind: a series of small successes, one after another. It is amazing what emerges.

Some of the images I used were a challenge but generally once I had them committed to paper the needlework followed easily enough. It is useful if you can find pictures which give some indication of line and style. Apollo 11, featured in Circle 49, was drawn up from a picture I found in a small encyclopaedia. Next to it is my representation of the Iron Curtain which is simply a metal coloured heavy line.

You may find, as I did, that the desire at the beginning to transfer all of my memories to needlework gave me cause for concern at a later stage, when circles are in danger of becoming too crowded. When I reached this stage, I decided that some memories were too complicated to portray and would have filled a circle on their own. Something drastic had to be done- and what to leave out became a more important decision than what to put in. Once or twice I believed I had bitten off more than I could chew with some of the items I had chosen but I persevered and completing  each of these was very rewarding. For example: as I started it I thought that the crushing of Shackleton’s boat, the Endurance, in the ice (Circle 32) would probably end up having to be unpicked, but it wasn’t. This turned out to be one of my biggest achievements.

This last example is probably the best piece of advice I can give you. Never forget you can always unpick your mistakes and move on.

Thank you for taking an interest in my work and good luck.

Jean Baggott