Beaded Embroidery

Here's a beaded sampler I embroidered a few years ago.  The fabric is hand dyed Aida.  Most of the beads are from Mill Hill except for the red beads forming the outer square which were re-purposed from a necklace that broke.  

 

Not related to the piece above, but I've been browsing through Judith Baker Montano'sFloral Stitches: An Illustrated Guide.  It's one of the first embroidery books I bought, and I think I refer to it more now than I did when it was new in 2000.  It was this book that gave me the idea to start hand coloring Aida, and since I didn't really know what I was doing when it came to dyes, I came up with my own method that continues to serve me well.