All the grass is planted

and the sheep is fleeced and The Shepherdess is ready to be finish-finished!

I'm fairly pleased with the shading in the grass, much more than I thought I would be. I do have a couple of hints on working that part, if you're doing this class with Barbara through Shining Needle.

First of all, thread up several needles with various shades of green thread, even the ones you don't think you'll use. You may surprise yourself--if you lay the thread out next to a stitched area, the one you think is absolutely horrible may be exactly what you need to make that section pop.

Secondly, take pictures as you work. This may sound weird, but the camera will show you things your eyes don't see when the work is right in front of you. I hadn't planned to have so much of the lighter greens in the lower section, but without them, the whole area was just . . . boring.

I have read over the finishing directions and think I can do what they say.  Of course, since I'm still on cough syrup for this cough that is never, ever going to go away, I am in an altered state of consciousness. With that in mind, I may wait until Barbara goes over that section in the online class.