Vizcaya

I recently had the opportunity to visit Vizcaya Museum and Gardens in Miami, Florida.  It is absolutely gorgeous!  If you enjoy nature, like me, it is a definite must see if you are ever in Miami.

Believe it or not, there is a cross stitching story about this visit and I will share that with you after I share some of the photos I took of the grounds.  But first, I will give you a little background about the Museum.  Vizcaya was the home to James Deering, who was a wealthy industrialist who vacationed there from 1916 until his death in 1925.   Thankfully, this treasure was conveyed to Dade County back in 1952, so that others could enjoy its beauty.  You can find out more about the Museum on their website.


Here is a glimpse of the grounds:

This is the orchidarium

with a close up of some of the orchids:

Now to explain the tie to cross stitch.  This is the canopy in Mr. Deering's bathroom.  It was embroidered with various designs of vases, baskets, flowers, and butterflies.  This particular canopy is actually a recreation of the original which had hung in the room for almost 75 years.    The original canopy had become too fragile and faded, so in 1989 the Biscayne Chapter of The Embroiderers' Guild of America was asked to recreate it.  This photo is from the Museum website:

The museum asks that you do not take your own photos or video; however the staff granted me permission to take a close up photo of the canopy in order to share with you a little more detail of the canopy embroidery

It is absolutely stunning!  You can see the extensive embroidery on the canopy, so it must have been quite a labor of love for the stitchers to undertake.  But I am so glad that they did! What a masterpiece!

I was SO excited to see that some of the butterflies have been adapted into cross stitch kits and were available for sale in the gift shop at the Museum.  What a great souvenir for a stitcher!!  Of course, I could not leave without one, so I chose the blue butterfly (#1) kit. 

It came with the chart, floss, needle, and cloth.  There were half stitches and back stitches in the chart, and the cloth was 28 count, so it is more suited for an experienced stitcher and not a beginner.  The instructions recommended doubling one strand of floss, but I love the results that 3 strands produces, so that's what I used since there was enough floss to allow for it.  I think it turned out lovely and I am very happy to have this beautiful design as my souvenir!  Thank you to Andrea Ellis for designing the collection!!

So that is how Vizcaya Museum and Gardens ties into cross stitching!  As I said before, if you are ever in Miami, I highly recommend visiting the Vizcaya.  It is such a remarkable place you will not want to leave!

If you would like to find out more about the canopy project or the butterfly kits, you can visit the Guild's website for more information.