how i design and stitch.

i have so many ideas in my head as i am sure many of us creative types do. i try to keep my ideas in a journal and i have little drawings and of course tons of notes, clippings from magazine and newspaper articles, all there to incourage me and inspire me.

this particular piece i am working on is an online project and i wanted to change it up a bit to make it my own. which i like to do as much as possible. i wanted this to be simple due to the time limit i have to complete it. i will use this flower to put on the front of the door of a small chest. the originial designer created a different looking flower.
  the way i start designing is on grid paper. sometimes i may start on the computer, either on my PCStitch program or Jane Greenoff program, both work great but this time it was pencil and grid paper. I next pick out a scrap piece of linen it doesn't for me have to be the exact same count but close to the finish linen piece. next i pick the colors and thread i want to use sometimes i will use scrap thread just to get an idea of what i want. then i sit down and start to stitch the pattern and i always make changes as i go. the first one i stitched is ontop feeling happy with it  i started the bottom piece which will be the final piece and i love it. simple and so far so good. i think i will add a few simple stars around the outside of the flower and i have the bottom yet to finish with different greens to look like grass or weeds.
the best part about designing as i stitch in hand is i can use the original sample piece on another project, a bookmarker or put into a quilt, the front of a journal, the sleeve of a shirt or dress.
the ideas are endless.