i spend a lot of time simply noticing and studying the things that are around me, so the inspiration for this design came, literally, from my own backyard.
clover and plantain leaves, wildflowers and wee mushrooms, and this friendly snail.

in my reading, i’ve discovered that snails symbolize serenity, persistence, wisdom, and (no surprise) patience.
they live life at their own pace, and they are at home wherever they go.

maybe we can all bring the lessons of the snail into this project, and into our lives. take it slow + steady, be patient, keep going.

sometimes when i'm not sure where to start, i choose the easiest or most straightforward place and begin there.

for this one, i'm starting with these plantain leaves... keeping it simple with a whipped back stitch [2 strands]. the whipping creates a smooth line with a slightly raised texture, which i think is perfect for these glossy leaves.

i started with basic back stitch (that's the foundation row) and now i am adding the whipping to all of the stitches.

these clover leaves are so fun! i used a simple back stitch [2 strands] for the outlines and the midrib, and then straight stitches [1 strand] for the veins.

moving along, here are my stitching notes for the snail:
snail body upper [back/2], snail body lower [brick/2], eyes [satin/2]

and for the snail shell spiral [brick/2], shell lines [straight/2]

next up, brick stitch gives these flower seed heads a really perfect texture! 
taking a super close-up photo made the colors turn out wonky, but here are the stitching details:
flower stems [back/2], flower seed head [brick/2], stamen [straight/2]
i also added a tiny straight stitch (using the cream colored floss) at the end of each stamen.

and last but not least, these mushrooms... they're so cute!
i used a whipped back stitch for the outline (2 strands, just like the plantain leaves)
for the gills, i used star stitch/2 strands for the purple, and some straight stitches/1 strand of the cream floss.

and that's it! here's the completed hoop:

🍀🐌🍀