Waltzing flowers

Christmas Day is over. The dishwasher is still churning, the crumpled gift wrap has been hauled away, and the refrigerator is bulging with leftovers. But the spirit of the holiday continues as the strains of Tchaikovsky's The Nutcracker can still be heard at our house!

The next ornament in the series based on the ballet that I'll be working on is the Waltz of the Flowers. I've danced this divertissement from Act II twice, many years ago. Each time the costume I wore was basically the same: a green "stem" bodice over a pink "petal" skirt. So this is how I've garbed my three little dancers, adding wreaths of flowers for their hair.

I'll need to choose a background color that contrasts sufficiently with the skin tones of the dancers, and I'm having second thoughts about the pink filigree pattern. So stay tuned to see how this one actually turns out!

Sliding into Christmas

Just in time for Christmas, the Nutcracker himself is finished and ready to take on the Rodent Monarch!

His helmet and sash were stitched in basketweave with red Petite Very Velvet. His mustache and beard were worked in French knots with two strands of Burmilana.

I used black Petite Very Velvet for his belt and boots, and all the gold trim on his helmet, uniform and boots were worked with Kreinik #12 tapestry braid #002. As a final touch, I gave his helmet a plume by working Petite Peluche in tent stitches which I then "roughed up" with the tip of my needle.

Now I've got some holiday baking to do, so I'll be back after Christmas with the next installment of my series based on The Nutcracker ballet. In the meantime, I wish you and yours a very merry Christmas!

Decorating the tree

I began stitching the Nutcracker canvas with the little fellow's white uniform. His jacket was worked in mosaic stitch and his pants in a slanted gobelin stitch over two canvas threads, both using white Trio.

His face and hands were stitched in basketweave with DMC cotton floss, and his "chops" were worked in tent stitch, again with DMC floss.

On to the tree background! I was looking for a stitch that would resemble the needles on a tree without creating too high a profile. I turned to a stitch I've used quite a lot for stitching trees in the background of lighthouse canvases--diagonal upright oblong cross--using four plies of DMC floss #991. I'm using Kreinik #12 tapestry braid #002 to fill in the "garland" as I go along.

This little fellow is working up quickly and should be finished long before he makes a grand appearance on Christmas Eve!

The title character

Years and years ago, DH and I attended a performance of The Nutcracker by the New York City Ballet at Lincoln Center, which was probably the most elaborately staged production I've ever seen. Two scenes from Act I still stand out in my mind.

The first takes place after the holiday party guests have departed and the family retires for the evening. Before the wondering eyes of the audience, the Christmas tree begins magically to grow larger than life.

My second recollection is the moment after Clara has dispatched the Mouse King with a well-placed toss of her shoe and the Nutcracker is transformed into a handsome prince. The "break-away" costume for that production was designed by Kermit Love, one of the original collaborators with Jim Henson in creating The Muppets.

So in designing the title character for my Nutcracker series, I was inspired by these memories. I didn't want a garish creature who didn't have a prayer of eventually turning into a handsome prince, and I wanted to pose him in front of that awe-inspiring tree. But no self-respecting tree would appear in public without a little garland! So the first thing I'll be doing before I start to stitch this canvas will be to add a little gold to the background so that dense green looks more like a stylized Christmas tree.

Enter His Royal Mouseness

The Mouse King is fully clothed and ready for his performance!

His crown was stitched with Kreinik #12 tapestry braid #002L, the holographic gold, using a slanted gobelin stitch over two canvas threads for the base and adding "jewels" of Smyrna crosses with Kreinik #12 tapestry braid #003. The rest of the crown was tent-stitched, adding French knots at the very top.

Using the same gold Kreinik braid, I tent-stitched the chain of his cape and edged the front of his jacket with braided knitting. The cape was stitched in basketweave with Petite Very Velvet V631.

With one arm directed downward and the other raised, his jacket called for a non-directional stitch. So I worked this area in a Nobuko stitch using Vineyard Silk Classic "Deep Wisteria." His ruffled shirt front peeking out of the jacket was stitched in French knots with white DMC cotton floss.

Using the gold Kreinik braid, I worked the top of his sword in a Smyrna cross and the hilt in slanted long stitches. The blade was worked in a diagonal mosaic stitch using Kreinik #12 tapestry braid #001.

Last, but not least, I added long stitches on top of his face to create whiskers, using two plies of DMC floss #310. The Mouse King is now ready to do battle with the Nutcracker, the subject of the next canvas in the series that I'll be stitching!

Moving right along

With the background completed on the Mouse King canvas, I started working again on his body. As you may recall, I'm using two strands of gray/brown Burmilana in basketweave.

The inside of his ears were worked in a satin stitch with pink DMC floss. His eyes were formed with Smyrna crosses using Kreinik #12 tapestry braid #005. I generally dislike using metallic thread stitching human eyes, but in the case of the rodent monarch it seemed appropriate.

His nose/snout was stitched in basketweave with black Petite Very Velvet to raise it above the rest of his face. For his pearly white teeth, I used white DMC Satin floss in slanted gobelin stitches over two canvas threads.

He'll eventually get whiskers, too, but I'm waiting to add them on top of previously worked stitches when I've finished giving the King some new clothes!

Subtle glitz

I was looking for a fairly subtle background for the Mouse King, one befitting his regal stature without taking away from his larger-than-life persona. I decided on a striped background again, this time alternating slanted gobelin stitches over three canvas threads in DMC floss #762 with tent stitches of Kreinik #12 tapestry braid #001.

Another important selection was that of the thread for the mouse himself--not quite gray, not quite brown, and with a bit of a furry look. In my stash, I found some thread "imported" from Texas--Burmilana #3504H--which has a heathery look that fits the bill perfectly. I've used two strands in basketweave so far to stitch his head and one paw.

I'll finish up the background, then start giving him some facial features to make him look a bit more dashing!