Stitching Update

It's been awhile since I've posted but I haven't been totally idle. At Celebration of Needlework a vendor had a whole bin of old Brightneedle charts, and I picked up this one. I've stitched it for a therapist friend of mine; I thought the sentiment was perfect.

Let Wisdom Flower
Brightneedle

Belfast Country Cream / WDW

I also stitched my first Lizzie Kate design, and enjoyed it so much I bought another one (Talk Less, Say More). Unfortunately I don't like the other two designs in the series - I don't particularly want to stitch the words Whine and Hate. So I'll just do two out of the four.

Fear Less, Hope More
Lizzie Kate
Cashel Mocha

WDW/GAST

Finally, I framed the Thomas Jefferson quote that I made for another friend. It always feels so good to finish a finish!

Jefferson's Book Quote

Barbara Bangser

18 count Charles Craft Aida

DMC

Now I'm working on a fairly new Silver Creek Samplers design. DS and I are going to Lake George for the holiday weekend and I'm looking forward to stitching by the water. Have a great weekend!

A Trip to Celebration of Needlework

Last Saturday I went to my first-ever cross stitch workshop at Celebration of Needlework in Nashua, NH. DH and DS accompanied me to the hotel where it was being held, and we stayed overnight. DH went in to register us and came back out to the car and said "you're going to be in heaven - there's needlepoint everywhere!" I had to gently correct his understanding of my craft, but otherwise he was right. The lobby was filled with stitchers and more stitching accessories than I have ever seen in my life. It was wonderful! While my guys went off to the pool, I attended a workshop by Linda Duree of Stitching Treasures, who showed us how to make a Rose Garden Pinkeep:

It looks really complicated but as Linda kept telling us, it is surprisingly easy to put it together. She showed us how to do the finishing from the outside, rather than having to turn everything inside out. Here is the kit she supplied:

The linen is by Picture This Plus in gorgeous shades of greens, and the CC floss is green and purple. Linda also showed us how to make ribbon rosettes to sew on the points of the pinkeep. It was so much fun and I'm really looking forward to making it.

Of course I hit the merchandise mall and while I didn't make a lot of purchases, I found among other things an old Brightneedle chart with a design that is perfect for a therapist friend of mine. It says "let wisdom and compassion guide thee." And Linda had cording drills for sale so of course I had to buy one - I've never made my own cording and if I can ever figure out how to use the thing I'm sure it will be my favorite gadget.

Next year I'm hoping to attend Celebration for more than just one day. It's a little intimidating since everyone seems to know each other, but the lure of being around other stitchers will hopefully overcome my shyness. If anyone plans to go next year, let me know!

In other stitching news I made a few small things for friends who don't read my blog. I haven't finished them yet, but I have until July when I see them both at a children's book convention this summer.

Imagine
Bent Creek
Taupe Belfast/DMC

Jefferson's Book Quote (Kit)
Barbara Bangser
18 ct Charles Craft Aida
DMC

Finally, I will leave you with a cartoon I found online that I know we can all relate to!

Continuing my Owl Obsession

When I saw this in one of ABCStitch's emails I fell in love with it, and ordered it straightaway. It was great fun to stitch, though attaching the owls with invisible thread was harder than I thought it would be. I can't seem to get the crease out of the linen no matter how much I steam and iron it. Any suggestions?

Moonlight Owls

Puntini Puntini

Taupe Cashel

DMC Color Variations 4150

I was sorry to learn the news that The Gift of Stitching Magazine is going to cease publication with the May issue. I was a subscriber for awhile and enjoyed getting it each month. All back issues are 50% off now. I did a Google search for the table of contents for one of their issues because I was looking for a certain chart. One of the searches led me to a website that I found absolutely appalling. It appeared to be a forum where people were requesting and posting scans of charts which could then be downloaded if you had some kind of membership. It was obvious that the site activity was illegal, and it really made me sad to see how many users were using it to cheat designers out of their work. I know designers know about this site and they have to vigilantly police it to have their charts removed when they see them posted. How upsetting and discouraging for them. I'm glad there are so many good people in the cross stitching community who would never dream of doing this.

For my next project I bought this from my LNS; truly words to live by. I'm stitching it on Light Mocha cashel with the called for GAST and WDW threads. My LNS visit was not cheap, but it was worth it!

Summer Song Finished

I finished up Summer Song yesterday morning and headed to Joann's hoping to find some backing fabric to use for my pillow. I wanted something with sunflowers on a black background. The only thing I could find had a green background, and it really didn't look right. So I picked out the fabric the stitching is lying on top of - the color of the design is actually more orange than it appears in the photo - it's as orange as the color in the lettering. I'm still not completely satisfied so I may wait until fall, when sunflower material may be more available.

I find myself without a project now that this is done. I'm just not sure what I want to stitch - has that ever happened to you? I'm trying to use my stash rather than buy new charts (famous last words) but nothing is really appealing to me. I guess I better get back to stash diving and pick something out before I go into stitching withdrawal!

All Over But the Lettering

I don't usually have something to post so soon after a previous entry, but I've actually made real headway on Summer Song by Midsummer Night Designs. I was so happy to finish the brown in the center of the flower - what a tedious job that was! But I really enjoyed stitching the flower petals - they are much brighter and more variegated than they appear in my photo - darn flash! There are a few places where I had to fudge a bit, including an over three stitch that I discovered when I was so far along I didn't have the heart to frog it, but overall it turned out pretty well. I even got used to stitching on the black fabric. Now all I have to do is the lettering, and it's done. My plan is to make a pillow. Have a happy rest of the weekend!

A Little Behind on the Holidays and a Frog (the good kind)

Yes, I know it's February, and Halloween is long gone. But I fell in love with this design by Vee and Co, and decided that I could think of it as getting a jump on next Halloween's stitching. Doesn't she look deliciously crafty as she stirs her cauldron? The fabric is a much truer orange than my camera shows.

Vee and Co
Witch's Brew
WDW 30 count linen
DMC 310

I was wrong about the Oakhaven Designs 2012 SAL - I thought it would be all cats, but February's chart was of a dog. I have no idea what's coming next!

And finally - a find! I went to a flea market last week and saw this odd-looking candlestick - the candle holder seemed rather small for a taper to sit in.

I turned it over, and voila - it became a flower frog!

I'm going to stitch a little pin pillow for the inside hollow. I'm still not sure whether it's really a candlestick or a flower frog. What do you think?

My First Beaded Edging

For about halfway around this ornament, I was thinking the title of this post was going to be "My First and Last Beaded Edging." It was hard to pick up the beads, it was tedious to get through the stitches, and I couldn't remember whether I'd just stitched a bead on or had skipped a stitch between beads. But I finally got into a rhythm. I started being able to keep track of the bead/stitch/bead pattern by saying "bead" then "no bead" over and over. It actually started feeling kind of fun to watch the edging grow. Now, the beads aren't always turned the same way (I think I wasn't always pulling the thread through the stitches in the same direction), but for a first effort I think it's passable. Next time I will follow Staci's tutorial and do the backstitching over two threads instead of one - I think it will be easier to keep the front and back lined up. The front of the ornament is from the JCS 2004 ornament issue. The back is an amalgam of two Country Cottage Needleworks trees. The 2010 date tells you how long it took me to screw up my courage to try the beaded edging!

Tidings of Joy
Heart in Hand Needleart
WDW and CC

Country Cottage Needleworks