I know I haven't posted in awhile so I hope you are all still with me. I have been home recuperating from surgery (I'm fine) for the past 2 weeks and honestly going a little stir crazy. I am just getting back to work in the studio now but what saved my sanity these past 2 weeks was working on a new needlepoint when I couldn't really do much else. I knew that would be the project to engage me while I was stuck in the apartment but unfortunately I had already finished my Dove portraits so I had to come up with something new and personally interesting. I decided to pay homage to Mrs. Beeton and her Homemaking books of the 1860's. I have always loved those beautiful illustrations of victorian desserts and thought that they would make a lovely addition to my kitchen wall. I admit to using artistic license in the names and desserts for visual reasons but the inspiration is all Mrs. Beeton. There is a wonderful film made about her for PBS a few years back entitled The Secret Life of Mrs. Beeton which I highly recommend. In the weeks leading up to the surgery I designed the image and charted it on graph paper so it would be all ready to begin when I returned home. Here is a little piece of it so far, it will probably take me most of this year to finish but after all the pleasure is mostly in the making not just the final product!

I wasn't sure at this point whether I preferred a greenish gold or an aqua background and I have since changed the wording a bit. Half the fun is adjusting it as you go.