Fall color and some stitching progress

I have been stitching and have made some more progress on my sampler.  I realized that I did not have enough thread to finish the sampler and ordered more.  That way I can start mixing the dye lots early in the piece.  It is fun to see the patterns emerge as I stitch.  I also like the effect of the back stitch areas.

Yesterday, I went to an estate sale for a woman who had been part of several of the needlework guilds in the area.  I bought a few things including the Plimoth Plantation Sweete Bag and the accompanying Accesories.  This piece is from The Examplarery and is an adaptation from a sampler that is in the collections at Plimoth Plantation.  I started on the scissors sheath.  It looks like it will be fairly quick to stitch and fun to finish.  I love the attention to detail in the design, the order of the colors are different on the sides of the scissor sheath and there are different designs for the front and back of the sweete bag.

The weather has continued to be nice so I took advantage of it and went to one of the nearby forest preserves this afternoon.  I took my camera instead of the dogs and took some pictures of the changing leaves and the end of season seed pods.

October at the Chicago Botanic Garden

Sunday afternoon, it was warm enough to be outside, it was not raining, and I did not have to drive anyone anywhere so I took some time to go wander around the Chicago Botanic Garden with my camera.  In addition to the obligatory fall pumpkins, gourds and colored leaves, there were some beautiful flowers, squirrels and birds.