Daisies, Cow Parsley, stitching journals and designs.

"The Earth Laughs in Flowers."
-  Ralph Waldo Emerson  

With our English Summer time only appearing at odd moments I have not been able to stitch outside a great deal.  When the sun has shone I have had some quick walks along country lanes so that I can pick some wild flowers to photograph and to flower press.  

I have decided with some of my new designs that I will be, and am stitching, that I would like a few more detailed flowers and the only way to do this is to get up close and personal with them, study them, take photo's and press them and keep some for the future, so that I may take a look even in the Autumn and Winter months ahead.

You can then study colours and hues, how a flower grows and dances in the breeze and you are more able, I believe, to capture their beauty in thread!

Sorting through my threads has been great and I am able to match threads to a flower that I have picked.  I can then, when I have photographed a particular flower, pressed it and catalogued it, I am able to put little samples of threads by them so that in the future some of the pre stitching work has been completed and I feel I have achieved a little in preserving nature and keeping great records of my work.

As you know I buy lots of threads from America which are the hand dyed Shaker threads and they do several white colours.... yes they do, not all whites are brilliant white or cream.  This has enabled me to be a little picky as to which one I use to match as closely as humanly possible.

I enjoy the wander around the lanes picking a few little flowers and coming home and cataloging them after taking the photos.  I put them, as you can see, in a jug in my kitchen and give them water until later I am able to pop them into my flower press.

As you can see I have been up early today and was able to get some great Cow Parsley before it all disappears and some lovely wild daisies..... What a great find.

Well I have lots to do today so I will leave you now and get on with my day and my stitching.

Have a great day yourself and Happy Stitching!

I took this photo last year at the lavender farm in Hampshire....

"Flowers are the sweetest things God ever made and forgot to put a soul into."  

-  Henry Ward Beecher, Life Thoughts