Happy Easter!

Hope everyone has a wonderful day tomorrow with family and friends!  I've made my favorite thing for Easter dinner--reservations!

The photo is of the "In The Pink" ornament from the Eggs for All Seasons series, designed several years ago for an online discussion group Easter egg exchange.  It was stitched with DMC cotton floss and Kreinik braid using tent, mosaic and diagonal mosaic stitches and Smyrna crosses.

Right now I've got out my turbo needles to finish a canvas for an upcoming Needlepoint Now column, but I hope to be back soon with a finale for the Peaceable Kingdom angel stand-up.

More on the Acoma Pot

Our monthly needlework group get-together was cancelled yesterday due to snow--boo, hiss!--so the Acoma Pot canvas and I went nowhere.  But I have done some work on it over the last few weeks, since it's my go-to project when I'm practicing creative avoidance.  While some folks may do their best thinking in the shower, I do mine while mindlessly basketweaving away!

I did succeed in making my way around the bottom right corner with the Vineyard Silk Classic "Natural" and "Bark," and have added some "Cactus" to the leaf areas.  I estimate it's at least two-thirds complete--it's just a matter of keeping at it!

Angel Progress: The Mane Event

Q:  Does it really take four weeks to stitch the mane on a lion?

A:  No.  It takes 2-1/2 weeks to practice creative avoidance and 1-1/2 weeks to stitch it.

Yes, folks, Leo the lion, as he is now dubbed, and I have been hanging out together for four weeks.  I've called him other names during that time, but we won't go there.  It's hard to make that first stitch when you're out of your comfort zone.  While I had practiced random stitching on his tail and was pretty satisfied with the outcome, that mane loomed mighty large!

I started with two strands of the lightest shade of Burmilana, working from the crown down to his ears, then turning the canvas 90 degrees to stitch the long sides.  When the base was finished, I added more random long stitches on top of it with one strand of two darker shades of Burmilana.

All that remains is to stitch tall grass on top of the brown area around Leo.  I promise it won't take another four weeks to wrap up this project!