'Twas Three Days Before Christmas...

I should be packing instead of blogging. We're leaving for a week with my family tomorrow morning, and I'm frantically doing laundry and looking for enough clothes to last us for the trip. So no stitching here today, but I did do a scan of my little holiday project from JBW Designs. I'm afraid this is one tree that won't be up for Christmas, but it will accompany me and hopefully see in the New Year. Of course I discovered a place where I was a row off, so it was one step forward and two steps back for a bit. I'm still fixing it up which is why there's an empty patch under the reindeer.

One good thing came from starting to get ready to travel - I went into the pantry for a plastic bag to contain all the various chargers we have to take along, pulled one out of the basket, and lo and behold it held the floss for the birds' feet in Hope Perches that I'd been searching out for days. I'd just about decided to use something else but I really wanted to do it with the floss the chart called for. So a few more stitches and the birds will be flying.

I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas (or had a lovely Chanukah) and a very happy and fulfilling New Year. Thank you so much for all your encouragement and support in 2007. It got me through a lot of tough moments of doubt. I love this stitching community!

Hope is nearly perched

At long last I have a picture to post. I really slowed down on my stitching and didn't have anything to show that was all that different from the last picture. But I'm finally done with the birds and the poetry lines. All I need to do is the birds' feet, and wouldn't you know it, I can't find the floss I bought (GAST Nutmeg). I know it's floating around here somewhere, so it's really frustrating that I can't quite finish yet. This will be the first piece I'll have framed when it's finally done. I do love the saying, though my husband makes all kinds of jokes about birds flying around inside a person.

I have one UFO I've been working on lately - JBW Designs Christmas Motif Sampler II. I hope to get it done before Christmas, and to finally figure out how to make a little pillow or ornament. I'll try the pulled thread method and see what develops. I'm still very wary of trying to finish anything, though seeing all the gorgeous ornaments on blogs lately makes me long for them.

Looking through my little but growing stash, I'm deliberating on what to start next. I bought the floss for the Autumn pinkeep from The Gift of Stitching but with yesterday's ice storm I'm not in a fall mood. I have LHN's The Bookshelf but I'm not sure I'm ready for that yet. I have a lovely chart by Papillon Creations with a cherub and lute player that I might do. What I'm really hankering after is Gingerbread House (oops - it's Cottage) by Country Cottage Needleworks but I haven't been able to get the chart yet. Well, something will call to me soon.

Staci, thanks for thinking of me! I knew when I started this blog that I wouldn't be able to post updates as frequently as most other bloggers. I'm just so incredibly slow, but I keep plugging. You know what I wish? I wish a quick stitcher would post a video of how they do it. I just am in awe of the speed in which people turn out projects, and I'd love to see what the process looks like. I think I stitch as fast as I can but I'm a turtle compared to all the hares out there!