By: Joanna
Uncategorized, , ,

Rosella Rests

Can we call three birds a flock? I think we’re well on the way to creating a flock to dance across your wall… ‘Rosella Rests’ is the third in my series of reproductions of Victorian-era bird needlepoints. I just love these pieces – and this one in particular. I adore the movement in the leaves and the sweet face of the little bird resting for a moment.

I’m pretty sure this bird is meant to be a Crimson Rosella – a bird very familiar to my neighbourhood – but through the eyes of an English stitcher, who had probably never seen one! This explains the somewhat subdued colour palette compared to the ones who flit through the trees nearby.

The stitched Rosella was adapted from an antique that I found, and worked on to match well with ‘Among the Roses’ and ‘Mary Barton’s Work’ – I think they make a beautiful trio. I’ve called this one an adaptation rather than a strict reproduction, as I’ve made some significant changes.

As you can see, the antique is stitched fully on large-scale canvas, using 2 different colours for the background. I’ve seen this often in old needlepoints – I think the stitcher starts off with one colour and either runs out, or changes their mind!

I found the chocolate brown background a little heavy, so I stitched mine on 32-count ‘Flax’ by Zweigart. Of course, you can stitch yours on anything that you like, including what you used for Mary Barton or our bird on the roses.

I also simplified the colour palette compared to the original. From memory, the original had 44 colours (eek!!) – I’ve cut this down to 28, which adds harmony to the design, and makes it more achievable to stitch. I’ve also softened the colours in some places, while still keeping that soul-cheering flash of bright blue.

As with the previous birds, I stitched ‘Rosella Rests’ 2 over 2 on 32-count using a mix of Gentle Arts, Weeks Dye Works and Classic Colorworks overdyed cottons. The chart contains a full DMC conversion – and I fully support you using overdyes that you already have, and DMC for the rest. These needlepoints use a lot of colours, but some more heavily than others. Many of the colours are only used in small amounts, and using DMC for these would be perfect. If you did want to use a mix, I’d get the overdyed greens and browns for the leaves – these add such lovely movement and vareigation. For an even softer look, stitch using 1 strand on a higher count fabric – I’ve seen lots of your stitches like this with the previous birds and they’re just stunning!

I do hope you enjoy adding this little bird to your growing flock – and it won’t be the last – I’m just trying to decide which one’s next!

The chart is available from your LNS or ONS now and the hard-copy and PDF will be available from my Etsy store in a couple of weeks. For those keen to getting kitted up, here’s the threadlist…

Rosella Rests threadlist


  • Gentle Arts (GA) Carriage Black/DMC 310
  • Weeks Dye Works (WDW) Tin Roof/DMC 648
  • WDW Seagull/DMC 646
  • Classic Colorworks Peanut Brittle/DMC 437
  • WDW Navy/DMC 3750
  • GA Blue Jay/DMC 334
  • GA Chamomile/DMC 3045
  • WDW Light Khaki/DMC 543
  • WDW Caper/DMC 3021
  • WDW Pecan/DMC 434
  • CC Ruby Slipper/DMC 3777
  • CC Sweetest Heart/DMC 3687
  • CC Jakey Brown/DMC 223
  • CC Garden Trellis/DMC 928
  • CC Dublin Bay/DMC 926
  • GA Cornflower/DMC 3752
  • CC Brown Hen/DMC 07
  • CC Chocolate Mousse/DMC 3860
  • GA Deep Forest/DMC 3051
  • CC Avocado/DMC 370
  • CC Colonial Rose/DMC 3064
  • GA Faded Rose/DMC 3778
  • CC Country Lane/DMC 950
  • WDW Cornsilk/DMC 3047
  • GA Endive/DMC 3011
  • GA Mustard Seed/DMC 733
  • GA Old Red Paint/DMC 3721
  • CC Blue Corn/DMC 924