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Well, I unwrapped Mr Mabel's Christmas present properly, hooped up the fabric, found that I needed a smaller hoop (less room around the design, but much better tension), re-hooped, and decanted all the materials into a project box. May try and do some stitching on it over the weekend!

Gorgeous!

Last year's stitching, really, but I've just posted a FoF with a more detailed description of the box making course.

I see that Lexi continues to be confused as to why there are threads occupying her box.

And how she can get into it...

Well, yeah. Obvs.

Not really up to canvaswork or any of the complicated things I've got on the go, so I extracted a battlement-couched heart from a larger RSN project and added a few vine-y things around it, just so I could do some stitching without too much thinking.
The three lattices haven't been couched down yet - unusually they will be held down with large crosses over all three instead of a small stitch only over the top one. That lattices are wool, the green stuff is sulky blendables 12-weight.

Love battlement stitch. Sulky 12 is about the same size as two strands of embroidery thread? Fab colours...!

I've started on the large-cross-couching-down and I think I actually like the effect of traditional battlement couching better, but I'll stick with it for this one.
Yes, the 12wt is about 2 strands, or like perle #12 (in texture it is a bit more perle-like). Interestingly, it is a Z-twist so stem stitch has to be done "the other way round".

S and Z! My life at the moment is ruled by such things because I'm learning to spin wool on a spindle. First Z, then ply as S (then hot water, no agitation, to set the twist).

So I would do outline stitch rather than stem! Easy enough. I have a few reels of these threads -- some of the variegated colours are fabulous -- and need to use them!

Always useful to make samples so you remember why you did something and whether it was what you wanted and is pleasing.

Finished the heart - definitely prefer battlement couching with the traditional small couching stitches over the top layer, but it looks nice enough. I worked the two leaves at the top in fishbone stitch with two needles on the go, alternating the colours.

I think that looks lovely

Jo

Boy, that was fast. And it's pretty!!

Flu-brain is still preventing any Certificate stitching (which is unfortunate as my next class is on Saturday) but I did manage a little more on Heather lewis's Elizabethan Beauty. The flower is now finished, and I've started on outlining one of the leaves. Looking forward to getting to the goldwork stalk, although that will probably have to wait until my brain is up to scratch again as it's a complicated stitch I've never done before! I've put in two pics of the flower, just to show the difference the direction of the light makes to needlepainting.

Looks gorgeous! I’m amazed by how much difference the light makes!

A leaf-and-a-bit

Very nice, indeed!

The silk shading is all done; I also attached the spangles as I've done that lots of times before. So now it's "just" the braided gold stem.... I will leave it until my head is clearer.

I’ve never seen that stitch used on the heart. It’s wonderful.

All your work is lovely, love the heart most.

thank you! Battlement couching is one of my favourite filling stitches, it is relatively quick once you've laid the first lattice and it's so textural