Angel progress 1

The first step in working this angel was to determine the outline for the stand-up.  The proximity of the angel's left wing to the outside border dictated that the top be more of an arc than an arch. After working out the curve on the computer and printing it out, I slipped the paper under the canvas and traced it using a Fabricmate permanent marker.

Now to stitch the face!  Whenever possible, I like to stitch faces first so I'll have someone pretty peeking out at me while I'm working on the rest of the canvas.  I wanted to tone down the angel's "makeup" a little--I've never used eyeliner in my life.  I used DMC cotton floss #950 for the skin tone and DMC floss #3733 for the shadowing, substituting the latter for the black around the eyes to make it look more like the edge of her eyelids.

 DMC floss #224 and #223 were used for her cheeks and mouth and #898 for her eyes.  I'll add her eyebrows later when I decide which shade of brown to use for her hair.

Next up:  the wings, and there's a lot of stitching to be done.  I opted to simplify these areas by dividing them into layers separated by tent stitches using Kreinik #12 tapestry braid #002.  I then started filling in the layers with Kreinik #12 tapestry braid #032 in a Nobuko stitch, a thread just light enough that the gray painted shading still shows through.   As you can see, I'll be winging it for awhile!