What a weekend! You’d think that, with the whole isolation thing going on, it would be really easy to focus and achieve Great Things when it comes to needlework projects.

For me, I’m more like the dogs distracted by the squirrels in Up. “Squirrel!”

Or the goldfish swimming around the bowl with its every-three-second discovery: “Oh, look! A castle!”

It was so easy to completely forget what I was supposed to be doing and to be instantly distracted by something else.

This is not a good thing, as I’ve established a number of deadlines for myself.

But deadlines are never as attractive as The Next Thing. That Big Idea. The Experiment I Should Try Right Now. Those Videos I’ve Been Meaning to Watch. (Squirrel!) Those Hexies and That Audiobook. That Little Bin I Found to Organize those Things. What Bin? (Hey Look! A Castle!)

That’s how my weekend went. I was the Queen of Procrasti-distraction. Maybe it’s not the worst personality foible, but it doesn’t get one very far. I was a little dismayed that Monday came without much to show for the weekend.

But at least Monday came! And it’s a good day to begin again!

So let’s talk about a needlework finish that’s not finished.

I’ve been calling this project the Floral Heart, which developed alongside of the voided monograms that I’ve also been working on.

It’s a lavender sachet. Tucked inside the middle of it is a small, relatively flat, heart-shaped muslin casing filled with dried lavender.

This lavender insert caused me a little problem with finishing ideas, because I didn’t want the heart to be loose. I wanted to finish it over something that would keep the shape of the heart tight and crisp – I prefer embroidered shapes like this to keep their shape and their crispness and not to go all limp and lumpy.

But this makes for a very close, tight space to fit any filling (like the lavender-filled muslin) into. Still… it’s working ok, and for that, I’m happy!

Initially, I planned to finish the edge of the heart with some beads and knots, a lot like this white and blue needlebook here.

But the knot and bead finish wasn’t quite bold enough around the edge. It looked skimpy. I forgot to take a picture to show you.

So I picked the knots and the beads out and tried again, using a heavier thread and a larger bead, hoping that it would improve the look.

But it looked ratty. It lost the “clean edge.”

And again, I forgot to take a picture.

So I decided to skip the beads and knots and to make a homemade twist out of #8 perle cotton.

I started with a fine twist, using four strands folded in half.

But it was too skimpy. So I Picked it Out! Again!

And yes, I forgot to take a picture.

Next twist: five strands, folded in half. Nope. I didn’t even bother sewing any on at that point.

Then I twisted six strands folded in half together, for a twelve-strand twist, and it was just right.

I started sewing it on, and this is as far as I got.

I will finish it today, or die trying!

I still have to finish this model. The colors are quite bright, but you won’t see them all together like this, in this quantity.

Fortunately, I found in my ribbon drawer this length of gorgeous, coral-and-pink silk ribbon that shimmers one color or another, depending on the light. It works well with this piece, although in the photo, it might look a little garish. It’s a lovely piece of ribbon that makes me happy whenever I see it. I can’t wait to get this piece finished, too!

Is there such a thing as too much color? I don’t think so! I love heaping all these pieces together and reveling in the color!

Well, the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel is shining quite brightly on these projects. I expect that they will be finished by the end of the day. Yay! I’ll share the finish down the road. And then I’ll be putting them together into a neat little package for you, in case you want to work them, too.

Another project on my desk right now is the final touches on the Leafy Tree project e-book. The stand-alone e-book for the Leafy Tree will be available this month, too – hopefully, shortly after Easter. If you’ve requested just the e-book, I haven’t forgotten you! I’m editing it so that it works without a kit.

There’s a good bit of stuff to keep me busy on this end of the computer screen – I hope you’re equally entertained, enjoying some creative pursuits, or at least getting in some good Rest and Relaxation!

Hang in there, my friends!