Main Bead Embroidery Kit Crane's bill

“Crane's bill” is a generous still life of geraniums in a clay pot and a woven basket. The blooms gather into rounded heads, and there are so many of them that they almost hide the leaves. The mood is domestic and a little old-fashioned, like a windowsill in a grandmother's house.

What the picture shows

The colours are saturated and warm: crimson, coral, pink and dark red in the flowers, deep green in the scalloped leaves, terracotta in the pot and ochre in the basket. A white rose lies at the bottom and a white bloom sits to the right, easing the mass of red. The background is grey with a faint damask pattern, and it is this that stays as print on the artist canvas. Beads cover every flower head, the leaves, the pot and the basket weave, where separate stitches read convincingly as plaited straw. A few flower heads spill over the rim of the basket, and that detail keeps the composition from turning too symmetrical.

What is in the kit

• Artist canvas with the full-colour pattern printed on it — no chart to follow on a screen
• Czech Preciosa beads, 21 colours
• Beading needles
• Instructions and finishing guide

Specifications

• Finished size: 320×400 mm (12.59×15.7 in)
• Beads: approx. 16,709
• Bead colours: 21
• Difficulty: average
• Base: artist canvas

The piece is vertical and fairly large, so it becomes an accent of its own on a living room, bedroom or kitchen wall. The grey background lets it hold up even next to patterned wallpaper. Gallery finishing is possible — no frame or mount, the canvas stretches over a bar and hangs as it is.