Here come the girls

At the point when I decided to take a sabbatical from blogging I had been working on these three lovely ladies.  Those of you who follow my instagram or facebook accounts may have seen them before but I thought it was about time I share them with you once more. Stitched on antique white 28 count evenweave, they were two years in the making but now hang in pride of place in my home.

Like the Greek deity, Gaia, this bountiful goddess in her arboreal setting scatters a palette of seasonal colours, plus a sprinkling of metallic threads. Planet Earth in all its glory is the domain of the Earth Goddess, scattering her bounty over field, wood and flower. The idea that the Earth is female, nurturing, mankind and all life on the planet can be linked to many cultures and rituals throughout history. Mother Earth is also closely associated with the Tree of Life, a symbolic connection between earth and heaven. Worked in shades of verdant green and warm earth tones, this Earth Goddess emerges from the lush tree canopy that surrounds her, wearing a spring-green dress garlanded with flowers. 

Morgana The Dark Sorceress is dominant and dangerous. All dark magic and flame, this powerful sorceress is caught in mid-spell as she conjures her dark magic. In a striking pose, she is draped in a magnificent cloak decorated with celestial motifs, her red hair streaming over her shoulders. She is surrounded by a border of flames that reflects the shadowy forces she is controlling. Magical powers, witchcraft  is her spell a curse or an enchantment.?

This impressive design creates a huge impact by contrasting smoldering indigoes and purples with fiery yellows and golds. Glittering metallic threads highlights the celestial imagery, the cosmic forces the sorceress is calling upon. 

Just as the earthly world has its rulers, so does the magical realm. The Fairy Queen is a powerful figure throughout mythology and has many names: in the Celtic tradition she was Queen Mab or Maeve, a warrior queen. Maeve means mead, a rich red wine that she offered to kings and rulers to signal her approval of them. She has appeared in fiction throughout the centuries, often as a less dark and dangerous character.

Represented as a sensual fairy set against a night sky filled with the light of a full moon and twinkling stars, perhaps to bring dreams to us sleeping mortals. 

Silver metallic threads and beads add texture and glitter to this stunning image of the beautiful fairy queen, 

Designed by Claire Crompton, all the charts are available individually through Claire Crompton's Etsy shop here but the charts also form part of a collaborative work in the book known as Magical Cross stitch, containing 10 charts designed by six artists details of which you can find here. 

The girls as they are affectionately known at home now hang as a triptych and I like to think that they use their magical powers to keep us safe.

Mx