flower basket -- update IV + another pin cushion

The basket itself is finally finished, and so are branches of plum flowers.  So it leaves me no option but to work on chrysanthemums and peonies leaves.  I am not very happy with these leaves as they are now, to be honest, and that's why I have not been very keen on working on them so far.  I can choose to redo them, of course, but I really don't want to.  My instructor told me that they were not bad, that I have just finished the "ground work" so what I needed to do  was to "beautify" them.  I am not really sure about it, though.  He, however, told me that I had better redo one of the daffodil leaves, the longest one on the top, and I quite agree.

Here is another pin cushion, in the (almost) same design but in different colours and size.  Thank you, Lady of the Lock and Laura B. for your kind words on my previously listed pin cushion in pink.  This one still glitters a lot but it doesn't bother me as much as the previous one does, possibly because I just don't like the combination of that particular shade of pink and gold, is all. 

I brought it to the embroidery class to show it off, and the instructor suggested that I might want to insert a little bit of emerald green in the gold and dark green stripes part, so that it would bring the purple brighter.  His suggestion in colours is always reliable so I am making exactly the same one right now but with a row of emerald green, so that I could compare the effect the brighter green is supposed to provide.

Flower Basket -- update II or maybe III

It doesn't look like I made a progress since last post but I did; plum branches, which were not shown in the last post, are mostly done  and basket is half way done, I think.  So it leaves only leaves (no pun intended) and a lot of touch up with flowers.  You can see what it was like in June in here and see how much (or how little) progress I made in about half a year :)

Flower Basket - update

Still need to work on leaves a lot, but I am now optimistic about finishing it off soon. 

flower basket

I have been kind of hibernating during summer months and as predicted I have not worked on the embroidery project during summer but in about a month the autumn course will commence so I have to start threading the needles and work on the on-going project, seriously.

I have made a little progress since June, but not much as you can see, and the peony petals as well as leaves still need a lot of work but it looks rather nicer, if I may say so myself, now that the centre of the flower is done.  I truly hope I would be able to make more progress before the course starts on 30th September.

*** shop update ***

This is just a reminder that tomorrow (Japan time) is the last day before you can shop at the current price at my shop although the new item (24 cards of silk thread) will remain the same price.

flower basket

It's so humid down here it's suffocating. I know there are a lot of places with more severe climate in the world, but 80% humidity at 29 degrees C inside is bad enough for me. And it's just started, it's getting worse...

The Japanese embroidery class I attend is only held twice a year, 3hrs x 6 times over 3 months twice a year. So there is no wonder (at least for me) I cannot finish the flower basket in timely fashion because I do not do it at home. I have been working on this since summer in 2008 and I really would like to finish it this year.

*** shop update ***

Since my declaration to keep a slower pace at my shop, I have time to enjoy other things, including spending the evening doing nothing particular, than just filling the order. I really was exhausted I think, not that I made that big a sale. Now I think I am ready to pick up the pace a little bit. Your First Thimble kits are now available again and I am working on the medium pin cushion kits (I have not forgotten that I had got a request for two of them) and of course Starter Kits. I will notify here when they becomes available, pincushions soon, starter kit hopefully soon.

Camellia

I am a thimble maker but I do Japanese embroidery, too. The most obvious characteristics of Japanese embroidery is using silk floss. Well, the embroidery threads are called floss, but what I mean here is untwisted silk fibers. You twist the fibers as you go, or choose not to twist, depending on what effect you want to create or what stitches you choose.

This camellia is not very big, and I haven't decided what to do with it. I originally planned to make a small fabric covered box but it may end up as a cosmetic bag. We will see...