Little By Little...

Floral Embroidery Detail

The way I deal with a sleety snowstorm at the farmhouse is to dance. Inside. Needle dance. I did morning feeding of all our pets, tossed in a load of laundry, and enjoyed a cup of coffee before settling in at my needlework frame in the studio.

My Needlework Space

I'm situated right in front of the southern window in my studio. In addition to lovely natural light, I also have my daylight lamp and magnifier close at hand. Tag settles in on his little bed to keep me company, and Handsome is downstairs reading, with the ladies engaged in their morning naps. All is right in my world.

I work slowly, adding petals here, leaves there. I sit up straight and survey what I've stitched. While most stitches stay in place, I'm not averse to frogging an element when I don't think it belongs, the color isn't quite right, or my stitching isn't up to par.

My basic color palette is laid out on my work table, but I have backup colors in DMC and Anchor threads in case I choose to add a new color. I'm quite happy with the way this bouquet is growing, but I don't think I'm much more than half way yet.

This embroidery is being done on a vintage, crocheted-edge doily. It's secured in a 6" hoop, so you have an idea of the size of the bouquet. I'm planning to increase it by at least another inch in diameter, but I'll see. I may be further along than I'm thinking as I add more to the lower section seen in the photograph.

By the end of the day the ice and snow had formed a slippery, hard layer of white on our driveway and yard. The mailman never showed. The forecast for today is a high of 21ºF, and partly sunny. I think it will be another great day for more needlework. I think I'd better get my morning tasks done so I can get right to another day of dancing. Color this girl happy.