February Comes to an End



Have several WIPs that I have been working on, a couple of finishes and some new starts.

 

 

My first finish for this month is a Biscornu.  I decided to use the materials from the Stitchy Box that I received.  It is my first attempt and I have to say it was not as easy to get the thing sewn together as everyone would have you believe.  Not for me anyway.  It turned out fine, but I would not give it to anyone as a gift as it is pretty pitiful.  I will try another one and perhaps I will get better!

I am still working on this Dinky Dyes Berry kit.  It is my travel project  because it is the perfect size to carry around and only has a few colors.  It is coming along, but I am anxious to finish it.

I had another little finish this month.  My Daughter in Law has chickens and is always bringing eggs.  It is great.  I did not photo it once I got it in a frame.  It is a 5 x 7 by My Big Toe and was a lot of fun to stitch.  Did not take long.

Another WIP is this Budha for my sister to give to her brother in law.  I was hoping to finish it by the end of March.  I have become obsessed with other projects so I have to really use some discipline to get it done.  It is a kit.

 

 

I continue to make progress of Books Reading Books, my HAED project.  I am almost finished with Page 4.  Slow going but I am still liking it.

 

 

 

And last but certainly not lease is my latest obsession.  I started Gardens of London by Chatelaine and just can't put it down.  So much fun, so many different silk threads, different specialty stitches, love it.  It is going to take forever, but so far I like it.  

It is difficult to get a good photo of all the detail and specialty stitches.  There are also hundreds of beads that will go on this project once the stitching is done.  I can't wait.

 

 

And, as practice for the large Gardens project, I decided to do a Mini Mandala.   I am doing Mini Mandala II B.  I decided that since I was using this for practice I would use all DMC and a piece of evenweave that I attempted to dye a grey color.  I am enjoying it, but it sure does make a difference when you do not use the special threads!  

Hmm, wish I could get a better photo

 

That is a little better, but the part that looks white is actually shiny silver.   This is a good practice piece for me even though I am coming up on some pretty intense back stitching.

Have been clearing out years of stash and found a group in Florida that teaches kids needlework.  So, I am sending off a huge box of kits, notions, fabric and the like to them this week.  It dawned on me that I will never live long enough to do all the projects I have and that my tastes have changed drastically in the past few years so it is time to purge!

That is it for this month

thanks for visiting

End of the year Update

I have had a few finishes and some starts that were scheduled to be in 2015, but I got anxious and started them early.  I just needed some smallish projects during this busy time of year.

This is a tiny ornament size piece that was fast to stitch.   More practice on linen for me.  It is from Twisted Threads.  There was actually enough fabric from 123 Stitch to do the thing a couple of times.  Sweet.  This was also my first project using Weeks Dye Works threads.  I like them, and the variegations look much better in the photo than I can see in person. 

 

And in keeping with my resolution to actually finish my finishes, here is the finished product.   Since it is only 3 x 3 I got a little canvas and easel at Walmart.  I laced it and covered the back with felt which gave me a place to put my initial and date.

 

 

 And speaking of linen, I did not post the finished yellow rose from Thea Gouvernour.  It was not bad either.  There are a couple of places where it is off, but I can't even tell where it is anymore.

 

So, all in all I am feeling pretty good about linen and evenweave fabrics.  I think I will prefer evenweave simply because, as the name implies, it is more even than linen and is easier to count.  I have not attempted to grid on it so far.  I am going to switch out the fabric on the Thomas Kinkaid Tinkerbell (5x7) that I am going to do.  In checking the pattern, there are a ton of half and quarter stitches, so I am going with a 28 count evenweave.  It will probably come out bigger than 5x7, but I wanted to do some framing this year so what the heck!

 



 

Made some progress on Books Reading Books.  Am into the second page.  Still enjoying it, but still not able to get the hang of parking.  The colors are so close I just cannot seem to make it work for me yet. 

Pulled out Bay Dunes to finish it now that I am headed into the new year.  Would love to finish it before New Year's Day, but.......it is beginning to frustrate me for some reason. 

I started on the kitted Biscornu but I am not too happy with it.  I am not sure there will be enough fabric for the bottom and the top, and somehow I am a row off.  I will probably finish it, but I have found I am not fond of stitching with a hoop.  Makes it harder for me to stitch with both hands and always taking it on and off the hoop is a little annoying to me.  Probably why I like the larger projects.

 

I also broke down and started another project.  It has been kitted up for months and I just felt the need to start something new.  So far so good.  It will be a gift this year.  I switched out the white Aida for this fabric because I had the fabric and I thought it might be a little more masculine.  I also switched out the threads from the kit for DMC.  I have supplemented kits before, but this is the first time I have done a total replacement.  Seems like a waste to me.  Not sure what I will do with the kit threads.

 

 

 

 

And here is my Christmas Present.  I know it looks funny, but it is a QSnap holder that goes on my Lowery stand.  Have not used it yet as I am just working on a 6x6 hoop.  But I am ready for a larger project.  Perhaps the Chatelaine I have planned for this year. 

 

 

And last but not lease, I have been doing some work on Tree of Stitches so that I can learn the specialty stitches for the Chatelaine.  I am not too happy with it.  I am better with some stitches and not so good with others.  Not sure if I will finish it or start over.  I began using random threads that I had left over and the colors are, well, just terrible. 

 

 Did not get this posted before the end of the year, but that is the update anyway. 

 

Thanks for visiting.

 

Hope your New Year is fantastic.

 



 

2015 Plans and Resolutions

As I begin to think about stitching in 2015, I find I have several projects planned that I am stitching specifically for someone in my family.  I am liking that idea, so 2015  may be the year of the stitching gift. (Warning to family)

I also am going to attempt some new techniques, new fabrics and new types of threads.  I am looking forward to it actually.  I think it is easy for me to get into a rut with my stitching which may explain why I had so many starts toward the latter part of 2014 and very few finishes. 

I am also going to try my hand at some fabric dying.   I picked up some thrift store buys on fabrics so I don't feel as if I am going to throw money away on something that might not turn out.

And I want to work on actually finishing my finishes. 

This is where the internet, facebook, UTube and the like have really been enablers for me.  I have seen so many beautiful projects done on various fabrics, colors, threads and so forth and they are made into banners, pillows and all sorts of lovely things.

I am going to try my hand at making a biscornu.  It is a funny shaped pin cushion.  Should be interesting.  I already have a bag of walnut shells that are used for filling and I have more beads than any human needs so it should be fun.

Of course my HAED Books Reading Books will take me well into 2015.  I would like to finish it in 6 months, but we will see how it goes.

I am going to do a project that is sent from the designer in parts.  I have received parts 1 and 2 already but will not start it until January.  It is the Lizzie Kate Things Unseen project.  It comes with a fabric and threads that I have never used before and is an embellished sampler which is a new thing for me. 

I will be doing a projected called Tree of Stitches so that I can learn to do some specialty stitches.  Should be interesting.   I am going to use variegated threads that I already have in my stash and plan to dye the fabric for this project.  I am doing this in preparation for a Chatelain design I want to do.

 Because several of my projects are huge ones, I am also going to do a small 5x7 Charles Kinkaid Tinkerbell.  I think it is just a section of a larger piece, but I figure I will need some finishes to keep me going.



 

Big plans for 2015 in the stitching arena.  I should also add to the list all the Christmas projects that I didn't even start this year. 

 

I am also going to make a concerted effort to learn to frame my work.  The cost to have then done is just crazy and I have not been happy with the last two things I had professionally framed.  The Michaels is only about 30 minutes away so I have access to mats and supplies so I am going to go for it.

 

And finally, I am going to refrain from buying any kits, patterns, fabrics or notions.  I am putting myself on a cross stitch diet.  I know a lot of stitchers take great pride in their stash, but it is just making me feel overwhelmed and lazy!  Of course that has not stopped me from stocking up during this final month of the year.  Kind of self-defeating I know.

 

Taking advantage of more sales I picked up some fabrics for next year.

These are linens,  32 ct.Belfast Ruby Wine, 28 ct Antique Green Jazlyn and 28 ct Thunderstorm Cashel.  The Thunderstorm is much more grey than it appears in the photo.  Lovely.  One of my 2015 goals is to try fabrics that I don't normally use.

And because I have several large projects planned for 2015 I picked up two kits that are smaller and should be faster finishes.

These also fit into my plan to use different threads and fabrics as they use threads from The Gentle Arts, Weeks Dye Works, Crescent Colours and Classic Colorworks.   I may start these before the end of the year just for  the heck of it.

And last but certainly not least I hit the HAED sale on patterns:

These will probably be 2016 - 2017 projects.  They are huge, of course, so I do not plan to kit them up until after 2015. 
So as you can see, I certainly do not need any more supplies. 

Wishing you a great December and wonderful Holiday season.  Merry Christmas to all.

Thanks for visiting.