The (Maybe Not So) Big Reveal...

 

I hope you had a wonderful, restful, beautiful weekend. The weather was perfect here, and Handsome and I had a nice weekend, too. It's hard to believe it's already Monday. How come the weekends go so fast? sigh

 

So, are you ready?

 

My koi pond is finished. My wee fish is finished. I put them together this weekend so I could share them with Clara's class. My teacher loved it! She shared it on her Instagram page, and made sure everyone saw my completed piece. In fact, at least one other student said she wants to do a koi pond for hers now, too! Handsome said I'm a "brown-nose" who's working on being teacher's pet. I just laughed. Isn't he cute?

 

Here it is in the sunlight, and if you follow me on Instagram - or belong to my Brynwood Needleworks Facebook group - you've seen a video I created to show how it sparkles. Click HERE and you can watch the video.

Once it was complete, I told Handsome that I (like some of you) thought it needed something. Perhaps someone to keep the fish company? I love the dragonfly idea, and may yet do that, but I started this yesterday...

and I'm hoping to finish it today. It's not very large, so I can tuck it into the plants on the other side of the bowl. Again, having taken I photo, I see where I have to make a few minor adjustments. 

I'll match up the purl curves on his back, and adjust the purl around the left eye so he doesn't have what Clara calls "googly eyes". I don't mind that the feet don't all match. I mean, they would likely be in different positions on a real frog, right? Once I've done that, I'll add the rest of the goldwork and then release him into the pond. I'll share pictures again once that's finished.

I'll probably do a dragonfly later, as I have a project or two I need to work on first. I'll finish froggy and then will be on to the next thing.

Every Koi Needs A Pond...

 

Don't you agree? I went to Hobby Lobby yesterday morning in search of a bud/fish bowl so I could create a miniature koi pond for my wee fish. I headed straight to the floral section and found not one, but three different sizes. I opted for the middle size, declaring it "just right".

I also found a jar of fine gravel (or coarse sand, if you prefer) to place in the bottom of my bowl, but was unable to find small plastic greens there. I ended up getting those in the fish section at PetSmart. Before I left HobLob, I grabbed the supplies to put resin into my fish pond rather than water. I paid for my purchases and scooted home.

 

The bowl looks cloudy because (apparently) the resin off-gasses as it cures. I was able to test rubbing it off, and it will, so once it's completely set, I'll clean the inside of my bowl before placing my koi on top of the "water".

I was thinking I should do one more layer of resin that would fill about half of what's left, but Handsome thinks this is enough. I probably should have turned the bowl so you can see that there's a clear area around the other side for me to lay my fish. This side is where most of the greenery sits. He thinks the fish will look good nestled in the water plants, as a live one might do. Is he right again? 

It will take at least forty eight hours before I'll even attempt to place the koi in the bowl. Before then it will be tacky, and I don't want it stuck permanently to the surface. I will want to be able to remove it from time to time. I'm not going to put a pin back on my koi, either. Instead, I'll just have a flat back on it so it can sit flat on the surface of the resin/water. 

I spent about an hour last night releasing my fish from the hoop and ground fabric. It's finished and just waiting to take it's place in its own pond. Once it's all done, I'll show it to you again so you can tell me what you think. Oh, and let me know if you think Handsome is right, or whether you think I should add about another inch of resin. If I'm going to, it will have to be done today.

My last class session for Clara's class is this afternoon. I can't wait to share my completed fish, as well as my finishing technique. I hope they like it! 

That Went Well...

 

I completed my Koi piece yesterday afternoon. It went faster than I expected, and I managed to take multiple "Tag" breaks, too! Every time I stood up to take a breather, I took Tag outside and we walked around for a while.  He sure liked the program, and I got a chance to stretch, too.

If you compare Clara's koi with mine, you can see where I chose to insert my own personality into it. I changed the fibers used on the top of the head, and I completely changed up the tail. I decided that the tail is actually a fin, too, so I gave it the same treatment as the side fins. 

I have to admit, I'm pretty chuffed over how it turned out, and now it's time to pick up the things I'll need for the way I want to finish it. Handsome and I are running out this morning just to look for supplies. 

Saturday is our finishing class, and as I said earlier, Clara asked for other finishing suggestions. I'm hoping that I'll be completely done by Saturday so I can show her how I finished mine. 

Handsome and I are going to take care of the dogs (and I'll take care of the cats), and we'll make our shopping plans over a cup of morning coffee. Then we'll be off on errands. If I get this done today, I'll share the results with you tomorrow.

Time Flies When You're Having Fun...

 

I just had to finish my koi's head yesterday. Then I added pearl purl to the fins and tail. I'll be filling in the fins and tail next, and then I'll be ready to add detail to the body. 

 

This is actually working out a bit faster than I expected, but I can say that I have approximately twelve hours into it so far. The eyes were especially fiddly. I'm only aware of how long I've been sitting once I try to get up. It takes me a few minutes to straighten up and wake up my legs. I think I need to set a little timer to remind me to get up, walk around, and air out Tag. We can both benefit from the break. Indeed, Time flies when you're having fun.

The Stitching Has Commenced...

 

It may look pretty bare so far, but believe me when I say I already have hour upon hour into my Koi at this point. I'm becoming more and more a perfectionist as I work on these pieces. The materials are not inexpensive, so there's that. More importantly, as this is a class in technique, I want to be able to show improvement from class assignment to class assignment.

All the padding was completed on Monday, and I did the body outline and details late day yesterday. Handsome and I had much needed hair appointments early afternoon, so that took a chunk out of the day, but there was still enough daylight for me to sit in front of the dining room windows to work on my little fish once we got back to the farmhouse. Besides, we both really needed those haircuts. 

 

It was humid enough yesterday - and I was baking a surprise batch of cookies for Handsome while he was at rehearsal - that my too-long locks curled up so much I looked like a high school gym teacher from the '70s. (You can laugh. Everyone does when I say that because we all had a gym teacher who had really curly hair, so everyone knows what I mean.) I'm back to a shorter style, although not as short as when we were in Florida. I feel like me again.

I'll be working on more of my fish today. My goal is to have all the needlework done by the next session on Saturday, so there's no time to dally. I best get back to it so I'm not rushing at the end. Slow and steady wins the race, right? I'll be back tomorrow to show you how far I got today.