We are spanning the seasons In the Garden! The January block in our BOM series is Cardinals and Holly, seen prolifically here in Maryland in the winter. How about where you live? We're having a wonderful time in our monthly classes at Primitive Homespuns Wool & Needleworks. A number of ladies have been there every month, and some just choose a favorite block or two and join those classes. We tell some stories, and share quite a few laughs. Stitching with friends is always a fun time! If you can't join us at the shop, you can still stitch along with us: the patterns are available on our website—needleseyestories.com—and the Cardinals have joined the garden. Here is a photo tour of how these birds took flight. The branches were stitched first, and then all the other components were stapled to the background to keep them in place while stitching. I like the puff that is achieved when I appliqué and embroider the units; I miss that when it is fused. With everything in place, this made some great car trip stitching when we traveled from Florida to Maryland. I used Valdani #12 pearl cotton for the center vein. To be sure I stitched the arc in the outer veins, I marked them with my chalk pencil, which easily disappeared after stitching. Whenever I stitch a bird, I feel oddly compelled to include some feather and fly stitches. The tail is filled with "feathers" and the wing with "fly"—of course! I stitched the berries in place, and thought that I could be finished. But it is winter, after all, so I decided a bit of snow might be nice. I added random straight stitches and knots with Weeks Dye Works floss—aptly named Snowflake. Do you know how many variations of white floss there are? It took me a while to find just the right one. I confess, the name helped me decide! A few size 15 beads added some sparkly ice to the snow. Mr. Cardinal looks rather happy! We had some Show and Tell with blocks—in progress or finished—from previous classes. Kara and I are enjoying creating our wooly/ribbony garden. Embellishing with embroidery is always our favorite part, and these blocks give us plenty of opportunity for that. The Cardinals and Holly pattern is now available on our website, both in digital and hard copy format, as well as all the patterns in the series thus far. We would love to have you join us In the Garden! Cardinals and Holly Past posts in the BOM series: Introducing "In the Garden," A BOM Series: Cornflowers "In the Garden"—Oak Leaves and Acorns "In the Garden"—Violets