It’s done! And it’s beautiful! I am really happy with how this one turned out and can’t wait to start Block 3.

So here is the benefit of my experience with this gorgeous block:

• READ THE DIRECTIONS-once again I got carried away and dove right in. When will I ever learn?

• When tracing the design on to your stitching fabric, DO NOT trace the scales on the fish. These will be embroidered with a feather stitch and if they are already drawn you will have a hard time covering your lines. I drew some guideline scales on with a “Frixion” pen after all the coloring and back stitching were finished. The pen showed well on the crayon and after I finished the feather stitches, it ironed right off.

• Remember to just make small dots where the french knots go on the fish. I sew these last so that I won’t be handling them too much as I do my other stitching.

• I found that when I was stitching the frame I could feel a bit of stretch. I sewed the inner frame first and reversed direction to sew the outer frame. I know, hooping it would fix any distortion, but I tend not to use a hoop unless I am doing a lot of heavy embroidery.

• If you are using one of the “local” lake names, trace the design leaving lots of space around the pattern’s lettering. All of the names I did up are longer, so the arc shape is bigger. Once the “Welcome to Lake….” is drawn, go back and fill in any drawing needed.

After finishing the stitching, I am still leaning towards the lighter or shaded block. When my stitching fingers recover I will stitch the darker, more colored block and maybe we can vote. Here are some detail pictures:

Detail 1

Detail 2

Detail 3

For those that are using DMC thread, here is the list of what I used. There’s also a diagram of where I put which shade of blue to substitute the variegated Cosmo thread. I have also gone back and updated Block 1 for the thread equivalency chart.