Beginning the background marathon

Since my last post, waiting for threads to arrive, I decided to stitch the horse's blanket.  But first, I needed to work a small part of the mane adjacent to it.  This was accomplished using two strands of good old DMC Medici wool in a long/short.split stitch.  It looked well enough, but appeared too white.  So on top of it, I added one strand of a golden brown Burmilana in random long stitches to warm up this area.

The blanket was worked in a woven stitch using Trio "Really Red."  This thread contrasts well in both color and texture with the saddle and horse's body surrounding it.

Finally on Tuesday, I picked up my background thread--Vineyard Silk Classic "Tea"--from my LNS.  I began about one-half inch from the top of the canvas (where the stretcher bar interferes) working a Nobuko stitch.  Here's how far I've come in five days of stitching!