Whisky - my first doggy friend!

About 22 years ago, my father was posted to Pune, Maharashtra. I had very few friends in our campus, and was more or less a loner. And then I found Whisky, aka Whiskers, an adorable cocker spaniel belonging to our neighbors.

She had the most beautiful, melting eyes. Every evening her owners would often tie her to a pillar in their verandah. I would peep around the corner and make a little sound - and Whisky would jump to her feet, wagging her entire body! I would then take her out for a walk.

Once when her owners were away on a holiday, they had left Whisky care of me for thirteen whole days. I remember feeding her with my hand initially, since she was missing her family. After her walks I would brush her coat till it shone. I would even smuggle her into my bed, much to my parents' consternation! I was in tears when I had to return her to her owners.

Whisky was my first doggy friend. She taught me what it was to care and love unconditionally. We were together for barely two years, after which her family moved out. But I still remember her eyes, and treasure her memories!

This embroidery is dedicated to her.

An Indian Summer Garden - Finished and Framed

Here is the peacock in a summer garden. I loved working on it, racking my brains on which stitches and colours to use, and am pretty satisfied by the end result. Here it is framed.

Just looking at it would suffuse warmth into a cold, wintry evening!

WIP - An Indian Summer Garden - Part 6

Here's the peacock, all finished. I've used a host of stitches here - satin stitch, padded satin stitch, outline stitch, fishbone stitch, chain stitch, whipped chain stitch, herringbone stitch, long-and-short stitch, french knots, running stitch and, of course, straight stitch.

I hope I've been able to capture the colourful resplendence of the bird here. Next up, the entire piece.

WIP - An Indian Summer Garden - Part 5

After the myriad foliage, it is time to bring the royal bird to life - err, thats the poet in me! I love the bluish green ring around the deep blue center of a peacock feather, and my endeavor was to capture that in thread. The center of each feather is in french knots, followed by a bullion knot around it, and nested blanket stitch encircling them. The stem of the feather is in back stitch, and the fine wisps in fly stitch.

WIP - An Indian Summer Garden - Part 4

This design has three clusters of leaves, which I chose to work in trellis. I think, when working a trellis, the choice of colours is of utmost importance, for there needs to be a balance between the colours that complement each other, and one or two colours that "pop-out". Here the bright orange couching catches the eye immediately, while the dark and olive greens complement each other. The outer border of each leaf is worked in coral knots, while the leaf buds are worked in bullion stitch.

WIP - An Indian Summer Garden - Part 3

There is another vine that surrounds the peacock in little bursts of colour. I've worked the vine in chain stitch. The flowers are a combination of pistil stitch and french knots. The leaves are padded satin stitch, seed stitch and stem stitch. Nothing complicated, yet eye catching!

WIP - An Indian Summer Garden - Part 2

Entwined around the tree branch is a vine with delicate orange blossoms. I love the way the vine, its leaves and flowers create an intricate mesh of colour.

The vine is worked in back stitch and stem stitch, the leaves in fly stitch and the flowers in nested laze daisy.