It can be used in so many creative ways - from greeting cards to decorative
boarders, to using it as the theme for an embroidery piece of work.

I love motifs - be they cross stitch or freestyle, stumpwork or needlepoint,
I love them all; My favorites are roses (ok - I have this obsession with
roses; They're my favorite flower), and I can always find a place to put
an embroidered rose.

There are plenty of books of motifs out there for you to stitch, but you can
also create your own simply by taking a favorite element from an existing piece
or chart;

That's the great thing about embroidery, everything is an inspiration for you
to take it further.

What is a Motif?

A motif is a small stand-alone picture; Usually they are no more than
5cm x 5cm, but can be stitched in any technique you like.

As an example, here's a motif I created (and that you can take FOR FREE!).
To save the chart to your own computer, simply right-click on it, and select
"save picture as".

All it is is a simple heart - and with it I've added some
tendrils, as well as reproduced the hearts in a smaller size to make a boarder.

This can be stretched to make a full frame boarder or just a
boarder to decorate a shelf. You can remove the hearts and use the
tendrils as the piece.

This would look great stitched on a pillow case or sheets - what
a great gift for a bride!

How about using waste canvas and scattering the hearts all over
a casual shirt - or use the big one on the pocket of a shirt, or on a
handkerchief?

There are a million uses for motifs - why not find some
yourself. I love to see what you stitch and how you use my free patterns.
Why not post to the Forum and show us all.

Is there anything you would like to see? Got a
question? Then why not e-mail me?

Happy Stitching to you all.

© 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004 Megan McConnell