Checking In

In the beginning.......

I am still stitching on the Pear Blossom Designs Studio project. I stopped working on the Ladybug Lake project to try to get this other done. I'm thinking I can use the Studio project as not only a sign for my studio door, but also as a banner for a possible Etsy store or web site. Things were going swimmingly until I realized I had to reorder the peachy/gold beads surrounding the flower. The new order of beads arrived and they were not near as lustrous as the older beads. I have ordered more from the original source and hopefully those will match but I can't let myself be too optimistic yet. They should arrive today so I am keeping my fingers crossed. Otherwise, I will have to find a way to finish the other half. Perhaps this is a happy accident and I will find a better more innovative way to finish around the blossom. I've never had this problem matching beads before and it has taught me a valuable lesson.

So far so good but so much work!

Besides this hurdle, this project has really been a test of my patience. The holes in the white beads were a nice size to accommodate my needle and floss to secure them. The goldish bead holes are another matter as the holes seemed to be smaller and so harder to work with, actually eliminating some that were way too small. So in addition to a shinier finish I am hoping the new beads have larger holes too. When I have to use the smaller holes it has a lot of wear and tear on the eye of my needle and weakens the floss making it break more often. UGH! It's a hassle but I love it!

When I get done with the flower....whenever that happens, I have more lettering and then backstitching all the letters. I'm thinking about adding a border too but that is still in the "thinking" stage. I'm trying not to get too anxious about getting back to the Ladybug Lake design, but since that is a piece I want to sell, it is hard not to want to get back to it. Right after that I have the Ladybug Leaves design I want to finish and get to stitching. I have sketched the design on grid paper but have to get a finalized design to begin it. I am going to use a newer variegated cotton floss for that one which I am excited about since I have never sewn with variegateds before. I just never had a need to use them. Maybe I was waiting for these newer colors to come out plus the beads I have to complement them. You just never know.

Waiting to finish the left side with the

goldish beads and hoping to get replicas

of the originals!

Ladybug Lake. I have used silk, linen,

floche, blending filament, and rayon fibers, plus

fabric marker on this so far. Picture

doesn't do it justice! Can't wait to get

back at it!