The Ark part 5

I've been watching the Dodgers play the Cubs at Wrigley Field, stitching away at the main roof.  (Da Cubs are losing.)  Next, to mix things up, I'll finish the turtles and snakes on the main deck.

I am stitching the teal roof line in two long rows of continental.  In several 3-D classes I have taken from Ruth Dilts and Joan Lohr, I learned a very important tip.  Keep your finisher happy--stitching corners that will be bent by splitting the stitches at the corner.  Stitching the teal areas in basketweave would make bending the canvas more difficult.  Hopefully, the continental rows will allow for a clean, crisp edge.

Ark part 4

The great thing about working on the Ark is that if you can't think of the perfect stitch for an area, you can stitch something else while your brain works on the  problem.  The other great thing is that 6 of us are stitching this together and we are bouncing ideas off each other.  The solution for the diamond area kept eluding me.  I tried stitching a Rhodes the same size as the nearby black rectangles in the pale green.  Boring!  A fellow stitcher suggested a black beaded rectangle in the center.  Since I was going to bead the painted rectangles, this turned out to be the perfect answer.

Ark races - second leg

I'm not sure how clearly you can see this, but I have tried two different threads for the same stitch.  One of them will be ripped out....  One side is Trebizond in the perfect colors, but I don't like the loft or the sheen.  One could argue that the roof of the Ark is wet and therefore shiny, but I want a somewhat more rustic finish.  I switched to 2 strands of Soy Luster which I love.  The strands lay perfectly flat, the color works and the roof doesn't overwhelm the windows.

Now back to the Ark race!

Ark races

I'm having so much fun with this canvas because there are so many different pieces to work on--I can't get bored!

For the main deck of the Ark, I've used an overdyed thread and a random width, random length Cashmere stitch.

The snakes are a simple padded satin with the top layer a Gloriana silk floss.

I will admit to obsessing over the turtles.  I started with the idea of beading them in their entirety, but I would like to finish this piece with my sanity (mostly) intact.  I did bead the black lines and then the obsessing began.  I tried a Kreinik #12 for the gold section of the turtle on right, but felt that it was too flat.  I left the basketweave with that thread on the two sides of the turtle.  For the center, I cross-stitched each thread for a higher profile.

For the turtle on the left, I bumped up to a Kreinik #16 and simple basketweave.  The result:  6 of one, 1/2 a dozen of another.  Maybe the next time I have turtles to stitch, I will bead them.  Maybe.  But only if Brenda Hart makes me.