Bright, thick fog and, unbelievably, birds singing their hearts out in the woodland – the first time this winter. On the rise of the hill, the silhouette of fox, unscented by my dog, warily turned his head in my direction, then trotted silently away: later, I heard him barking in a distant field. This morning’s threads are Madeira 30 machine rayon embroidery thread, eight strands. There are three colours – a beautiful grey with a purple sheen like a pigeon’s breast, a variegated grey and a pale silver-grey. I sewed in random stacks of three running stitches and then infilled where needed. So, that is my first row finished (it will be five rows of six hearts). Tomorrow I’ll start on the second row.
