Not there yet, but on the way...

I finally went to the local store and could not find any thread I thought would work, so I went back through my pearl cotton collection and pulled out something else. As it turned out, it seems to show up across the colored sections, but I did not have enough to finish the four outer rounds of the labyrinth.  On Tuesday, I made a trip into town to see if I could buy more. The shop didn't have the brand or color of what I was using but I did find something close, and to tell the truth, I can't tell where one left off and the other began.

So... now the labyrinth is overlaid on the medicine wheel. I wanted to  buy shell buttons, and that shop had some beautiful ones, but they were VERY expensive ... over a dollar per button, so I held off on that purchase.

Now I have begun embroidering the animals of the four directions in each corner.

The bear for the North,





                                                     

                                                       The mouse for the South,

and the Eagle for the East.

I still have the owl to work on. I am just embroidering them by quilting with regular black thread.

I'm planning to quilt in the plain areas of the corners but have yet to come up with a design.

I am wondering how adding something Japanese, as many of those have meanings ... like the karakusa that symbolizes longevity and prosperity due to its continual growth. I will have to do a bit of research before I get to that part.
The owl is waiting in line to be stitched.

Meanwhile, dog care has been cutting into my usual schedule. We are both lucky that we are still on a summer schedule and "business trips" and sleep are somewhat negotiable. The weather is weird and the only thing I can say about it is, if you don't like it, wait a few minutes and it will change. The problem is carrying an umbrella which chases the rain away, but leaving it at home and getting dumped on. Dressing for a walk in a sauna and going into a store where you have to grab stuff quickly and get out before your brain freezes over. Ah, well, better to focus on a bit of hand work.