Desert and Southwest needlepoint patterns

The desert Southwest, including several styles of saguaro cactus, two styles of prickly pear in a pot, and one round view of the Grand Canyon.

The saguaro is a tall ribbed column with two arms, standing upright. The prickly pear grows in a terracotta pot, its green and dark green pads set one on another with raspberry flowers on the upper ones. The classic Grand Canyon is a round view on pale yellow: flat-topped rocks in apricot, dark orange and terracotta under a light blue sky, a dark green tree at the left and a teal river below; its rock layers are horizontal bands, so count them from the top down. All are on a four-inch square for 18 mesh. Where a design uses close greens and sands, lay the threads from the list side by side before you start. Most are marked intermediate; each page gives its level and thread list.