A Mushroomy Time of Year

They are popping up everywhere.

Some made up with row upon row of chain stitches

Others neatly arranged in lines of stem stitch

Some are enormous

...at least eight inches high

on long legs

Some are bright with crusty bits

and others are tiny legged bobbles

Never seen this black 'thing' before

Pretty ugly I think

And then I smiled at my beautiful Rudbeckia 

Obviously embarrassed at finding

herself in the presence of mushrooms and fungi!

Tree Invaders

Moss invading shaggy bark....

and working it's way through deep crusty canyons.... 

...creates a soft and gentle playground for woodland fairies

and a warm and cozy home for a gazillion tiny insects.

Whole cities of fungus climbing trees... makes me think of urban sprawl.

And of course old man's beard..

so delicate yet seemingly indestructible.

Uprooted

Three trees uprooted in one fell swoop during Monday's storm.
Can you see the two trees on the left were just sitting on a couple of boulders?

Our huntress.

Our ball obsessed pup.

"Pleeeeeeease pick up my ball and throw it somewhere, anywhere!"

Rooted in Rock

Sometimes the squirrels barely escape up the trees.....

 

Some Trees grow into mighty guardians....

despite being rooted in rock.

 

Their roots must dig deep.

I am told their roots reflect their canopy

A Forest Floor of Mighty Rocks

Mighty rocks are the foundation on which our woodlands grow in this part of Canada....

Somehow the trees find nourishment and survive....

I suppose it should be no surprise to find this reflected in my stitching.  This piece I named "A Chorus Line"...

Upon which there is much couching..

Perhaps things made by human hand should blend with nature....

Earth Coverings

The rusty pups disappeared into the woods for what seemed like an eternity. They just wouldn't come back to my whistles or name calling. When they finally bounced back through the woods they were as joyful and innocent as could be. Then they realized I was worried and decided to sit down at my feet (one of them is on my foot!) and spend some quiet time with me. The mossy ground beneath them reminded me of....

 

this piece of stitching that was meant to be part of something larger; but ended up not belonging.  It obviously wants to tell a story of it's own....

Perhaps it is a grassy ground covered in twigs.....

Or perhaps a moss-covered rock. No matter what is decides to be, it will involve many more stitches.

Critter Condos in the Woods

Even dead trees provide an opportunity for woodpeckers to create skyrise condos with woodland views perfect for wintering in.

Basement living becomes warm and snug once covered with a foot of snow. Liable to flood come Spring though.

Ground floor living...no vacancies...already in use.

A hole in a tree stump provides a romantic getaway for those critters who like stargazing.

Nature's patterns

Things grow in the unfriendliest of places. These two puffballs appeared on the driveway overnight.

Had to try out those tiny little piramid shapes in stitch.

Started out with a solid pattern in the middle...not too thrilled with that. Found that I preferred to leave gaps and might just leave the drawn outlines around the edges.

Tanglewood Floor Cover

A wool sports jacket once worn by some man
Was picked up at Frenchy's by a rug hooking friend.
She dyed it and shrunk it
And gave me a piece.

Onto this I felted some fancy wool fibres
Not flat like a pancake; but lumpy and bumpy.
I gathered up threads all autumnal in colour
And began messy stitching the floor of my woods.

The stitching's a pleasure and great fun to do
Because the needle glides through with the greatest of ease.
The start of this piece was a "what if I try"
Working with wool that I'd not done before.
Now I'm wondering on finishes for this piece of wool
Perhaps it needs wetting and blocking out square?
Maybe it needs a border or two?
Maybe stitched cloth or maybe more wool?

Forest Floors

Rusty pups picking up woodland gossip.

Wouldn't trust those pups near this forest floor..been stitching it for about a year now!

The base is tweed from a rug hooking friend. I needlepunched a mess of leaves and things all over. Now that fall/autumn is coming, might be time to pick it up again and add to the story.