'Ornamental Pool' - the Great Leap Forward

Well, it feels like a great leap to me and it's a fitting expression for a stitching sinologist to use, isn't it? (If you don't get this one, do a web search for 'great leap forward' and you should soon see what I mean!!) Anyway, the rayons and metallics are now done and the rest is mostly good old stranded cotton and relatively simple embroidery instead of all this couching and messing with tricky threads. It feels good to be getting on with it though and I must say that my music lesson on Tuesady afternoon did me the world of good. Just doing something purely for me for an hour just scratched the self-nuture itch and I felt much more like doing stuff straight afterwards. So, the appearance of a picture of my viola at the top of my 'bits and bobs' sidebar is in grateful recognition of her contribution to keeping me the right side of insanity boundary!!!

Back to the 'Pool', I'm hoping I haven't made a goof in choosing to use rayons for the coloured sections of these elements as the contrast between their sheen and the ordinary cotton is quite stark. Still, they go well with the metallics, which may have looked out of place with cottons, had I used those instead. I wanted the fish etc to stand out, but I may have overdone it. We shall see when it's complete. Here are close-ups of the two recently completed bits. I just need to get the embroidery done by Saturday, I've decided, as it doesn't take too long to finish it up (less complec than COS was!) and I can even do that en route to Germany. Wouldn't be the first time as I distinctly remember finishing up a wedding bell-pull in the car on the way to the ceremony!!!

Well, it's mid-year and time for a stitching review. Actually, I really haven't accomplished much at all, but here's what there is:

*Finally got 'Child of Spring' finished up into a scatter cushion.

*Finished Derwentwater's 'Bluetits and Seedheads' cross stitch, which was started last July.

*Started and worked about 40-50% of Derwentwater's 'Goldfinches and Thistles' cross stitch, but that's now on hold whilst I get all the obligation stitching done, (so much for my 'learning year' without multiple events to stitch for!).

*Worked one small ribbon piece, 'Rose Arch' and mounted it in a card.

*Worked one small gold- and rayonwork dragonfly, but haven't used it for anything yet.

*Worked the 'Branches of Your Life' as a leaving card for my old boss.

So, not really that much in total. Come to think of it, there wasn't much movement in the six month period before that either, with 'bluetits' being started, some bedding made for one wedding and the waterlily and dragonfly pic being done for another, and that was it!

I finally delved into the murky depths of the laundry basket and dealt with all the 'special treatment' stuff in there - hand-washing and bleaching, so that's something, but all that ironing, yack!