Our Agave

When Jim and I moved into our apartment last summer, I insisted on getting a cute little agave plant for our outdoor space.

Well lo and behold after a few months this “little” succulent grew to nearly 3x its original size and now barely fits in the pot I put him in:

Part of me wants to transplant him into a roomier container … but I fear this will only encourage more growth and he will end up taking over our entire balcony!  (Our agave is apparently male, by the way.)

Alas, I still have not yet decided what I want to do with him (suggestions welcome here) – But I was inspired to create a new embroidery piece in his honor!

I have really come to love the satin stitch – Maybe I’m weird, but I love the feeling of perfectly filling something in.  As a kid, I was definitely a color-inside-the-lines kind of girl and I guess that translates to my stitching 20+ years later …

Have a happy weekend!

The Final Frontier

Space has always been a fascination of mine – So when I came across this link a few weeks ago I just couldn’t stop looking at it!

It’s a high-definition, zoomable, 360-degree panoramic view of the night sky … How cool is that!?

I’ve been meaning to do another pointillism-style embroidery so I figured what better inspiration that the evening sky?

Here it is, “The Final Frontier” (can you tell Jim and I have been watching a lot of Star Trek recently?):

It took a few weeks for me to find enough collective time to finish each of those hundreds of French knots, but it was totally worth it.

Does space inspire you?

Inspired by a Marine Microbe

I came across this odd-looking microorganism while reading about phytoplankton species for one of my classes:

The coccolithophore (as it is called) is an ocean-dwelling microbe that prefers to spend its time catching rays and photosynthesizing in the surface waters of marine environments.

I was particularly drawn to the calcium carbonate scales that surround its single-celled “body” and was inspired to create a modern embroidery piece mimicking their unique structure.

This design reminds me of a kind of “modern lace” – I also chose floss that reflected the colors of the sea.

I ordered a bunch of “new” vintage embroidery hoops that should be arriving in my mailbox throughout the week – I can’t wait to create more pieces highlighting this simple and delicate stitch!

Coccolithophore via Wiki

Pangaea

via Dan Meth

Florida Wildlife Collection

“Florida is America’s basement.  It’s wet, it’s filled with mold, strange insects, alligators …”  Robert California

This is my favorite quote from last week’s episode of The Office – Probably because it’s so true.

Yes, the tropical heat and humidity can be just completely unbearable at times – But it is this climate that allows Florida to house some of the coolest wildlife in America.  I feel like every day I come across a new and interesting creature whose identity I need to discover.  I’ve come face-to-face with 4-foot iguanas, even bigger alligators, prehistoric-looking knight anoles and tiny, curious geckos.  The aquatic and avian life here is also pretty amazing – I spotted a juvenile brown pelican floating in the pond outside my lab window just this past week!

A few months ago, the local mangroves inspired me to stitch this tropical embroidery piece.  I have since decided to expand on this idea and start the Florida Wildlife Collection.

I aim to create an embroidery art line highlighting Florida flora and fauna – I already have my second piece completed and a third in progress – Check it out!

The Mosquito: (listed in the shop)

The Little Blue Heron: (in progress)

How does nature inspire you?