April Sweet Peas and Bees!

Time for  another freebie!  This one I called "Bee A Sweet Pea" and has charts to make a biscornu and other accessories. Click here to download the pattern and key with instructions from the list, and as always, let me know if you have any problems getting the pattern. My model was stitched with a different alphabet font because I forgot I had to change it to my own lettering from the PCStitch 10 alphabet I was playing with when I first got the inspiration!  Believe it or not, my hexagon tile pattern on the bathroom floor was what inspired it back in February when I was wishing for spring! Sweet peas are the flower of April as well, so bees and sweet peas just cried out to be paired up! Feel free to make your own lettering or leave them off and use the bees instead.

I used the two squares for the top and bottom of the biscornu, and stitched it on 30ct Weeks Honeysuckle with  DMC. The bee buttons you see in the pictures are from Just Another Button Company. I'm going to make a heart shaped pin pillow with the sweet pea bouquet and single stitched bee. The pea pod and bees could be used for a fob or anything else you might come up with. I like making patterns with lots of interchangeable parts because that lets me and all of you use your creativity!

Back to my Chinese Garden Mandala this weekend! 

More progress on the Chinese Garden and a gift delivery!

Seems ALL I have been doing is stitching on the Chinese Garden Mandala from Chatelaine these days!  I FINALLY finished up to part 8 and have kitted up my next freebie for later this month.

It may look like it's finished completely, but there is still an outer border along with vases, bamboo, mums and phoenix birds on all four sides!  I have had to tweak a bit again due to the black linen, subbing DMC 500 for the called for silk in the Winter Garden pine tree. The green silk was just too dark. Here's the close up of the final seasonal garden....I think it's my favorite!

And here is the entire piece so far....

And also this week I was able to deliver the LONG overdue gift of the New Zealand Map Banner to my dear sister-in-law Ann and her family. Ann was suitably amazed and surprised!