A good start

I've made a good start on little Fritz, beginning with his face and hand in basketweave using DMC floss #948. His hair was worked in a satin stitch with two strands of brown Burmilana. His eyes and mouth were formed with a single cross stitch using two plies of floss.

I worked the brim of his party hat in a slanted gobelin stitch over two threads with Kreinik #12 tapestry braid #002, with the crown in a skip-tent stitch using the metallic and white DMC floss.

His Eton jacket was stitched with navy Petite Very Velvet with a shirt front of white floss peeking underneath. His tie was worked in mosaic and tent stitches with DMC floss #304.

Then I started in on the background--a slanted gobelin stitch over two threads using DMC floss #304, with alternating rows of tent stitches in the Kreinik #12 tapestry braid #002. The scale of the pattern in the background should be just right to add a little sparkle without dwarfing the central figure.

I'll work on more background before I continue to "dress" Fritz and construct his hobby horse!