Sampler Update

I have been working on my sampler again...I felt in need of colour to brighten the dreary days here by the bay. I have sort of mastered the needle weaving in the chain stitches leaves, and done some passable chain stitch. I picked out some areas where I finished my threads on the back and re-wove them more neatly. I may remove the cream satin stitches at the top of the sampler...the night I put those in I must have been having a brain lapse or something...I didn`t start and end my stitches neatly at all, instead, I ran the ends under the pink crosses outlining them. I don`t think I am going to frame this one, i`m going to hemstitch it,make a bag for it, (instructions are included with the pattern) and roll it up in the embroidered bag. I want to be proud of the back if someone flips it over, instead of hoping they don`t and cringing if they do.

Next up are sections of hemstitching and weaving...one problem though. I don`t have my linen thread with me. I don`t have floss in the right colour to substitute, and I also don`t have beeswax. I considered pulling threads from the sides of the sampler material, but without beeswax, those kind of linen threads are not really strong enough for stitching (i`ve done that before). There isn`t a needlework store closer than an hour away on icy roads, so i`ll have to see what I can scare up on-line. Until then I guess i`ll just run a line of basting where the cut areas should be and start on the other rows...satin stitching mostly.

Keep stitching ladies!