~ Late at Night & Early in the Morning ~

Good Morning Friends & Folk!

~ thanks for visiting with me again today…

this morning's sunshine is bright already, 

so me thinks I'll do a little Spring Cleaning in my Kitchen Garden.

Last evening I punched more loops

in a quiet little corner of our Keeping room

with pillows & blankets and good lighting

and watching TV

{I actually like to 'listen' to the TV while I work, 

and it's usually Travel Channel, History Channel SyFy or PBS}

see the table that my sponge ware crock-lamp is setting on?

it's an OLD crank-driven butter churn!

I bought it when we first moved here to VA 13 yrs ago and love it still :)

no, I have never cranked out any butter with it ~ but I do churn butter in an old crock churn!
my family loves my fresh butter, especially when I add our garden fresh chives, or cinnamon to it's creamy-goodness!

Here is my progress thus far on my 'motto' punching…

I've finished the scalloped border & all lettering with my chosen Valdani threads,

and now I'm outlining everything in DMC black {310} then use the DMC 3021 as an accent color...

once everything is outlined in black, then I'll begin filling in the background…..

 I like the contrast between the darker, more primitive colors of the background 

against the lighter colors of the variegated threads, do you?

little loops make me happy

Make sure to fill-in any small details before you fill in your background too,

 like I did here with the black inside the lettering {like the 'O's & 'A's}

 I'll go back in and draw pencil lines where I will punch with the DMC 3021

to add that old blocked-looking 'hooked-rug' background that I love so much…

like this perfect example below:

… see how the background instantly ages it?

love love love

small details do count ;)

Using a pencil to make subtle guidelines on your background

 is a perfect way to add movement and age to your work…

don't be afraid to think out of the box ~

{I don't think I've ever been 'inside the box'!}

a couple of squiggles, 

… a few added directions for my punch needle to follow,

and I'll be done!

 I'll be back later to show you my finish ~

heading out to the garden now to play in the dirt…

Have a most

Bee-You-Tea-Full day my sweet friends!!

~ Blessings from the Farm ~

 Lori