As mentioned in the Christmas Ornaments, I am working my way through my embroidery stash have discovered other decorations. A Love Bug, an Umbrella Duck, and two Frogs.  May as well continue the clearing of the stash. Only one of each of these, so it should be much faster. Oh, during the first one, I discovered they don’t use embroidery floss (where you normally separate out two parts); these are just straight up single cords. But easier and harder. Not sure I like the feel of this thread.

Love Bug (7/27/2025-7/28/2025) 2.5 hours: First picture to show the one package. Each comes with instructions (on the back of the picture), a pack of threads, a needle, a display holder and a sticky back for presentation. 7/27/2025 – First photo, nearly forgot to take a picture to start!. 7/27/2025 – That is because of burnout. I completed an edit, third down on it and I powered through eight-hours solid for the final day. I am establishing the new normal of one hour embroidery and one hour of reading before bed. Tonight I am NOT up to reading anything, so I do two hours of embroidery getting most of the Love Bug complete. 7/28/2025 – Finishing the writing took hardly any time, onward to the Umbrella Duck!

        

Umbrella Duck (7/28/2025-7/29/2025) 1.5 hours: (7/28/2025 see above) 7/29/2025 – The Umbrella Duck is quick with virtually no backstitch.

Flower Frog (7/30/2025-Present): 7/30/2025 – First photo is a picture of the two kits. The Flower Fog & the My Pad Frog. 7/30/2025 – Flower Frog has a LOT of green cross-stitch to do. 7/31/2025 – The green face is complete, next up is the pink cheeks and the pink petals for the flower.

       

8/1/2025 – All the rest of the details take hardly any time at all.

My Pad Frog (8/2/2025) – 2 hours: 8/2/2025 – Brain insisted on taking a vacation so two hours on the embroidery that evening and the final decoration is complete.

Assembly (8/3/2025) – 3 to 4 hours: Big breath. Time to do the assembly. This is a big step for me because it involves cutting the material after the embroidery is done. No going back if you screw up the cutting!

First picture is getting everything together (about half an hour getting together and laying it out). – Second picture is matching the frames and the back support to the projects. – Third picture is after two hours of putting on the back adhesives (need to position perfectly), cutting (oh the cutting), and inserting into the frame. Does it look good? Now another deep breath, and then put Elmer’s glue around the edge on the back so they don’t pop out.

       

Fourth picture, wait hour and flip over! – Fifth picture, ho-ho-ho and stockings are complete, except I seem to have lost one of the frames (in the 30 years) since I bought them. – Sixth picture – For Santa and Santa Claus ornaments complete.

       

And the traditional decorations – Love Bug, Umbrella Duck, Flower Frog, and My Pad Frog all are done.

          

Finally, the Cardinal. I finished this piece of embroidery three decades ago, but never put it in the frame. I had never framed anything before at that point and it was so beautiful. The concept of gluing the aida cloth to some random piece of cardboard (unlike the other decorations, this one did not come with a self-adhesive piece), cutting the aida in a circle, the very opposite of how the fabric is made, and then gluing all of that to the frame, and it still has no way to attach to anything!?! The whole thing was beyond me. I am very proud of finally making this complete. Now, I just need to figure out how to hang or display this piece.