Pollinator's Garden - Nashville Preview

February 14, 2024

Pollinator's Garden is up next, and as you will see, I couldn't stop stitching those flowers! I love the "vintage" and slightly "botanical" feel of them and I went a little nuts stitching different versions of this lovely design.

I did a small "skinny mini" version using just the first half of the chart and leaving the bees off:

Pollinator's Garden - October House Fiber Arts Journal

I stuffed this one with crushed walnut shells and backed it with a nice green leaf-y print from my stash.

Then I stitched the main model:

Pollinator's Garden - October House Fiber Arts Journal

Usually, when I stitch on 32 count linen, I tend to prefer using 2 strands. But for this design, I just loved the way 1 strand looked. It gave it that nice vintage feeling. I backed this one with a nice vintage looking taupe from my stash and I stuffed it with wool roving, so it has a bit of structure.

Stitch count 261 x 33

Fibers
Classic Colorworks (CC)
Rose Petal, Wild Berries, Blue Beatrice, Little Sprout, Sweet Potato

Gentle Art Sampler Threads (GAST) Mustard Seed

Weeks Dye Works (WDW)
Molasses, Honeysuckle, Whitewash, Lilac, Seaweed, Curry

Linen
32 ct. Dusty Road linen by Seraphim Fabrics

Then, since I just couldn't stop, I stitched another version that combines Pollinator's Garden with The Queen Bee:

Pollinator's Garden - October House Fiber Arts Journal

I stitched this version on 36 count Dove linen by Weeks Dye Works. The chart is split in half with the first part above and the second part below The Queen Bee. They line up just perfectly. I left 3 stitches between each row.

I did make one color substitution for the darker linen. I used Gentle Art Sampler Thread's Pine in place of CC Little Sprout. But other than that, the colors all worked perfectly on both the light and the darker linen. I trimmed the pillow with Dames of the Needle chenille in Lush Meadow, and stuffed it with polyfil.