Autumn Bouquet, 18″ x 18″, wool yarn on monk’s cloth, canvas for pillow backing. Designed, punched, and constructed by Arounna Khounnoraj, Toronto, Ontario, 2018.
For this pillow design I used the Amy Oxford Punch Needles. I wanted the details of the pattern to show more so I used the back side of the pillow and the loop side is on the inside of the pillow. I like the embroidered effect of the back side.
For this floral motif, I designed the flowers in a rotating motion to make the design more dynamic. I tried to fill in as much of the negative space as I could so that the background didn’t overpower the image.
I mostly used the yarn brand Alafoss Lopi. This yarn is normally used for knitting; I use it for my punch work because the yarn has a nice texture and a good range of colors. I punched the floral images with the #14 mini punch and the ochre background was done with the #10 regular punch. I chose yarn colors that had muted tones so that it looked more like they were colored with natural dyes. The ochre background makes the piece a lot more vibrant and it contrasts nicely with the muted colors I used for the flowers.
I usually start with the flora images first. I outline the motifs and then fill them in after the flowers are done. I finished by filling in the background.
I made the pillow a standard envelope style. But you could also use this design as wall art, or finish the edges to use s a small mat or rug. For this pillow, I reversed the finished pieces. with the back showing. The low pile of the back shows off the details. RHM