Reproduction from Photograph
I was presented with a snapshot of the original banner and simply given a size which the reproduction piece had to attain. In order to create a clean image, I drew the coat of arms in a vector format before digitizing it for machine embroidery. Being that the source image was of such low quality, all decisions relating to placement of stitches, textural elements, and the like were made at my discretion.
The finished piece is approximately 15 inches in height ad contains just under 88,000 stitches. The original plan was to render the design at 22 inches, but without the appropriate equipment at hand, I scaled it down to the top dimension I could manage with out multiple hoopings, both to retain control over the execution by keeping the design in-house and to save the customer the expense of the excess stitching.
The finished piece is approximately 15 inches in height ad contains just under 88,000 stitches. The original plan was to render the design at 22 inches, but without the appropriate equipment at hand, I scaled it down to the top dimension I could manage with out multiple hoopings, both to retain control over the execution by keeping the design in-house and to save the customer the expense of the excess stitching.
From left to right: the original snapshot, the finished embroidery, and the vector drawing - thread colors were altered by the customer in the finished piece.
This image shows the play of light over the 'carved' satin-stitch elements of the shield border. Embroidery must be seen from various angles to be truly appreciated.
Update:
Since the original project, I've been contracted to produce 3 new banners based on the original, but in the same format as said original piece. The new canonized John Paul, Benedict, and Francis banners are shown in the images below.
