"Oh bother..." said Pooh.

[TroubleT]

As a kid, I was always a fan of the 100 Acres Wood and Pooh was my favorite character.

Then, I went to college supposedly leaving all of that "kid stuff" behind.

I took classes on history, languages, sciences...all grown up material and one day, I signed up for a philosophy class. The professor had one particular book that was required reading. It was called The Tao of Pooh. "Seriously?" I thought. "How could there be any connection between this philosophy class and Pooh?"

I read the book and learned. This book is amazing beyond words and the author is a master mind.

In a nut shell (wouldn't want to ruin it for those of you haven't read it), this books teaches Taoist principles using the characters from the beloved Wood. I now work to make several of those principles a part of my every day life.

My professional life has been ultra stressful in many ways this past month. I've found myself caught up in it all and was coming home mentally drained and exhausted. While cleaning this past week, I found this book sitting on my shelf and remembered Pooh with his teachings.

I then decided to make something for my desk at work that would remind me daily to not let stress sweep me away, to slow down, and to enjoy life.

This is my embroidered rendition of the cover of Tao of Pooh. The main lines are split and stem stitches. The detail work is single thread back stitch. I also added a bit of crayon tinting. I'm very happy with how this piece turned out.

[vtgirl]

Awesome. Such a good book and a good daily reminder. That picture was my very first tattoo. Unfortunately it was poorly executed and has since been covered up but the thought that put it there will never go.

[kaz814]

Oooh, I love it!  I really like the crayon coloring, too - gives it more depth, too. 

Awesome work!

[PixieVal]

I have this book, and I love it! I love the crayon tinting, especially on his jacket!

[MareMare]

That's so cute! I just saw something about Tao and Pooh...maybe it was on your blog?

Yeah it was, der! I just read everything in my google reader and sometimes don't notice whose blog it is lol!

[zkatom]

That is sooooo awesome!!!!  I love that so much.  Great job!!!

[TroubleT]

Thanks everyone! I'm now giving some consideration to doing a similar piece for the sister book Te of Piglet.

I've got to start working on my camera skills. I didn't realize that it posted so dark. 

[Eleka]

This is AWESOME! I love those books so much! In fact I have lent my copies to my Tai Chi class members! I *LOVE* this project!

[TroubleT]

Eleka, your kitty AV is fantastic!

Thank you for your comments. I'd love to take Tai Chi one day.

[teapotdnky]

I've always wanted to read that book and your tesimonial definitely convinced me. I love your rendition! Waaaay cute!

[Pixiefirefly]

That is awesome! Wouldn't it be cool to do a swap based on that book?

[GatbysRevolver]

Too cute Whenever my friends ask me to explain Taoism I just hand them the same book and say read it lol.

[alwaysinmyroom]

lovely project and a reminder to embrace the simple things in life...love the tinting with the black...

can't wait to see more of your pieces!

[kittykill]

This is just too adorable for words! Awesome stitching.

[Scarlet_Angel]

This is absolutely fabulous

[mafiosagrrl]

I love this so much!  It looks great.  I'll have to find a copy of that book, it sounds very interesting.  Thanks for the suggestion...

[sarahnade]

The Tao of Pooh was one of the first books I read from my parents' "grown-ups" bookshelf. One of my faves. This is really lovely. I love the "crayon" effect, too.

[luckdragon]

This is really great!  I love it!

[Mellifluous]

I recognized the picture immediately and it made me click to see the bigger image. You're right to be happy with how this turned out, that's some great stitching and tinting.