Halloween Finish and Christmas Plans

Here is Wicked Wanda all done.  I made a couple of minor changes to the pattern.  I did not want to do the wording, so I added the bat, and I changed the border.  Using a Cosmo variegated thread I did some stitches I learned doing my Chatelaines; Rhodes stitches I believe they are called.   I am really happy with the finished product.

The materials and patterns for the Nora Corbett alphabet came.

I am not aure about the fabric.  The suggested fabric is 32 count Water Lily linen.  It is extremely stiff.

Depending on timing and how things go I may do the "H" for their last name.  Have not decided if I will do it for Christmas or later.

For the 'R' I am using 32 count linen in Silver Moon which is a very pale grey.  It is a really fun stitch that is working up really fast.  Of course it has lots of beading that will take some time.  I will be doing an "A" also.

In the suggested supplies from 123 Stitch they included a spool of thread for beading,  here it is.

It is awful stuff.  It shreads like crazy and  is impossible to thread on a needle.  I am trashing this and using the nymo thread I prefer.

I have also made some good progress on Pumpkin Patch Quilt Shop.  I think I will finish it before October.  That is the plan anyway.  I made some changes to the pattern.  I did not think the ghost on the left side of the roof needed a heart; and I replaced the heart on the shop to the State of Texas since I plan to give this to the local quilt shop.  I will also change the wording on the sign so it meets the local shop a little better.  It is going pretty fast and I am about half way through the project.  This project has a lot of outlining but I am doing it as I go so it is not too bad.

I have made more progress on the Ink Circles project.  I have not decided if I will finish all the black outline work for the whole piece before I add the color, or if I will put the color in as I go from page to page.  So far, I am not yet sick of the black. Photo is a little blurry but you get the idea.

The good news is that I got a new laptop ....actually an Apple Airbook...and so far it is working like a charm.   There is a really large learning curve (especially in the photo portion of the program) but since it is so much like an IPad it is not too bad.  Not nearly as frustrating as the Windows 10 so far....

That is it for this week.  Thanks for visiting.

Computer Woes

I recently had a crash on my laptop computer.  It is in the lab now where they are attempting to retrieve my data files.  I have lost everything.  Sad as that is, it is not the end of the world.  I can re-purchase the patterns from Chatelaine that I lost.  Not optimal, but does take my to-do list down a bit.

The biggest problem is that Windows 10 is on most new computers.  It does not work with Blogspot.  Photos will not load from the computer to the blog, so any photos I took with a camera cannot be posted.    I am going to attempt to use my IPad for future postings until there is a fix or I get my old computer back without the new Windows 10.  The funniest thing is that for some reason I cannot type on my Ipad without a thousand errors!  Who knows what I might post!

And while I am on the subject, the photo program for Windows 10 is just terrible.  You cannot organize your photos into files or folders where you want them.  It seems they all go into one place by date I believe.  It is interesting to me that microsoft had such an easy photo program before, and they just chucked it and put in something unusable.  I guess there must be a crisis in Silicon valley.

So that is my tale of woe for today.  I am hoping the issues will be resolved but I am not holding my breath!

My advice, for what it is worth, is that if you like the way your photos are organized, do not upgrade to Windows 10.

Plans for the Rest of 2015

Before I get into the WIPs and planned projects for the rest of this year, I have to share a "gadget".  I have tried every type of eye assistance to enable me to stitch without sitting under my Mighty Bright light.  I LOVE my Mighty Bright light and have several of them as a matter of fact.  I have tried many types of magnifying lamps and it is by far my favorite.  That said, I have tried many, many things that might help me stitch during the day in different places...like in the car, on the patio (stitching outdoors is one of my favorite things), on the porch, in a waiting room, etc.  Over the years I have tried it all, clip on magnifiers (I have every strength they make I think), the kind that are like headgear (once again I have every strength), the one that is supposed to hang around your neck and sit on your chest.....none of them worked.  I recently purchased BIG Vision from one of the thousand catalogs that I get.  They came in a few days ago and I used them this evening on the patio.  THEY ARE AWESOME.  They are plastic so I want to make sure I don't scratch them.  I cannot remember what I paid for this pair, but I went on Amazon and they have them for about $15.00.  I am definitely going to order at least one more pair.  They fit over my glasses and work like a charm.  So far, I am sold!  Here is a photo.

 

On the Cross Stitch stuff.

I have decided on my projects for the rest of this year.  Well, for the time being anyway.
In addition to Books Reading Books (HAED), Pumpkin Swirl (Glendon Place), Gardens of London (Chatelaine), the Ink Circles, and all the rest,  I have added a few more.


I want to do a couple of Halloween themed projects.  These two patterns are from the September 2010 issue of Cross-Stitch and Needlework magazine.   I plan to do these in DMC.  Just what I need, more WIPs, right!  I think that only bring me to 7 or 8.

Wicked Wanda:  I am going to use a variegated thread for the border rather than all the color changes and because I am not that crazy about 'words' I will probably leave that off.  For this project I decided to support my local quilt shop that carries DMC and Cosmo threads.  It is quite a shock to pay so much for DMC floss but I need to do my part to keep the local shop in business.  I suppose it works out since the pattern was relatively free from an old magazine.  I am doing this on 28 count ivory Jazlyn.

Here is the progress so far:

This is a really fun project.  She is turning out to be larger than I had anticipated and I am enjoying it.


Pumpkin Patch Quilt Shop:  I want to do this for the local quilt shop here in town.  The ladies there are so nice and supportive.  They are always trying to get me to quilt!  I am using a piece of 32 county DMC linen that I dyed myself during my dying phase. 

Here is my progress so far:

I got a little carried away with the Halloween theme.  I also have my first Alessandra Adelaide pice called Haloween Tree.  I think I am going to do it on a 28 count linen from Dye Stitch Love called Key Lime.  It was the April 2015 fabric of the month selection.  It is a color I would not usually choose, so I thought I may branch out a little.

I may not get to the AAN this year.  That should give me time to change my mind about the fabric!


I also decided to do a piece for each of the Grandgirls for Christmas.  I decided to do a Nora Corbet Alphabet design for each of them.   I will post them when the patterns and materials arrive.

That should keep me busy for the rest of the year!

Thanks for visiting.