I had been on the wait list for notification of enrollment for Fleur Woods Joyful Embroidery for a while when suddenly in July she offered one of two kit patterns free so I chose her moss one. I love the way her patterns are merely suggestions, I think that is a great way to approach patterns, it feels more like you own work when you’re finished. The pattern sat in my mailbox for a while but I started working on it after I had finished my tree, which you can finally see on my making journal.

I took Fleur’s suggestion to try using some velvet as a background, never having stitched on that heavy a background before. It is a little tougher to pull some threads through but it does provide a luscious looking ground. So as I’m working through these first modules of the course I’m also working on this piece. I mentioned above that I like that her patterns are mere suggestions. For almost after the first few stitches my rebel stitcher is saying “ Well what if I did this instead, or sometimes… I think I’ll just do this and see what happens”. For I learned early in my sewing years that patterns, especially those for clothes, were often vague, and had to always be adapted for me. So…. Isn’t that the way of all Patterns?

Here’s what it looked like as I began. I’m sewing in an eight inch hoop.

I shared this photo with my other embroidery group and one of my friends said what are you going to make of it… , referring to my desire this year to do mostly 3D embroideries. I hadn’t thought about that but to be sure I was not thrilled with doing just flat work again… so that week I thought…hmmm… I think that instead of moss, I will think of this as “forest floor” so I wonder if I can make a cone? A couple of hours later I had a beautiful silk replica of a cone that will be placed just so, somewhere in the work. ‘ Til next time!