These two little Tropical Fish are different, but were both worked using the pattern in the next step. The difference between them results from using a variety of tropical colors of thread, and selecting different surface embroidery stitches for each version of the fish. It's amazing how different two items can be just by making a few small changes.
I've finished my versions of the fish as plant pokes, set on a wooden skewer and filled with polyester fiberfill. This is a really cute way to display small embroidery projects, but they would be adorable as ornaments or worked on a pillow front.
Because these little ornaments are small, this is a terrific project for using stitches you may not yet have tried. In my versions, I have used stem stitch, running stitch, back stitch, French knots, French knots with tails, blanket stitch, chain stitch and fern stitch - but not all in the same fish. You can choose to use virtually any number or type of embroidery stitches in your version of the fish.