Tag Archives: conversion details

November WIPocalypse

Posted in embroidery, goals, grateful, me, Mirabilia, Nora Corbett, Smalls SAL, stash cache app, stitch from stash, stitching patterns, WIPocalypse by

Hello everyone! WIPocalypse is the monthly check-in SAL hosted by Measi on her blog, and via the Facebook group – we welcome all enablers! Click on the icon to the right to learn more.  If you’re a crafter, please join up either on your blog or via the Facebook group – we welcome all enablers!

Oh gosh. Here we go again with a catch-up post, as I missed October’s. Stitching without real goals means I am not at all as regular with posting as I would like to be, especially as I do use this blog as a form of a diary. Must do better, Paula!!

Since my last WIP Wednesday post, which would have been my last stitching update, I have finished Luce Mia, however she is quite converted from the original. Not so much that it’s glaringly obvious, but more so that she fitted in with the mermaid wall and our overall household aesthetic.

Converted Luce Mia
OriginalUsedfeatured
Luce Mia
722GAST Silver Fern2 skeins
3347987 
33483347body
898/4203078/3852hair
3347/3348987/3347tail
991924ribbon
958931ribbon
993932ribbon
9643752ribbon
1623753ribbon
MH 10030MH 42029ribbon
MH 42031MH 10030hair
MH 42031MH 02007body
3799356skin
3799898brow
3799310eyelash

I have completely given up on Stitch from Stash. I’m sick of feeling guilty about spending this year, and figure that my spend is helping smaller businesses and individuals who are finding it tougher than I am.  I am thinking about maybe next year trying to do it all from stash, as that could be a reasonable way to get thru my list and be a bit more productive than I have this year. I am toying with the Magical Stitchers group challenge, which will be based around the Percy Jackson books. Mase and I were planning on reading these anyway, so it could be a good fit. I’ll have to see which charts I can match to mythology – probably quite a few Mira’s!

At work I have been moving along on the Barbados Santa’s, and these are about three quarter’s done now. I will have new Santa’s for my tree this year! At home, I am working on a Faby Reilly biscornu and sadly, think this might be the first & last time I purchase one of her designs from Etsy. In the UK magazines, her charting symbols are quite clear and distinct from each other but I haven’t found this to be the case here. The actual result tho is amazing even without back stitching, so it might be something like childbirth, where you forget the pain and do it again anyway! I have also sent away for the teaching resources for the Embroidery Guild modules – OMG!! Scary stuff indeed.

October Question: How do you choose what you’re going to stitch on next? Right now, it’s all about what makes me happy. I’ve only got the backing to do for one of my Secret Santa presents; and this biscornu; then I can leap into something else. I’m thinking Holly, or Day Nymph (both by Nora Corbett) or finishing Fairy Tales (which needs those yellow roses frogging and re-doing, as the colours aren’t showing well enough). I just brought a hessian-like tree skirt from Spotlight and am thinking of doing some of Nora’s Reindeer around it…

Hands On Design altered for my Santee

November Question: What new discoveries did you have in the stitching world this year? I learnt that I like the DMC variegated threads when I use them in embroidery; and I learnt how to do French knots finally! Didn’t really venture too much out of my lane, except with the Sirens of the Sea piece and starting a Chatelaine banner. It’s enough that I want to learn more, hence applying to do the EGNZ modules.

I can’t believe that we are finally in the home stretch of 2020. I hope 2021 is a better year; that a validated vaccine against Covid-19 is available (and cheap for developing countries). That we all get to spend more time with family and friends than we do with fear. And so on… My list is growing!

WIP Wednesday #223

Posted in conversion details, cross stitch, family, goals, me, Mirabilia, Nora Corbett, round robin, stitch from stash, stitching patterns by

As you read this, I am enjoying the day off work, as our Primary school teachers are striking for better pay & conditions today. Mase the Ace has his bestie, Noah, staying overnight from Tuesday after school (his mum is a teacher) until rugby training today. I’m likely running on coffee fumes but also having a blast.

WIP-wise, I have been throwing a few hours into Persephone but also a couple of smaller pieces. I am feeling the need to accomplish and finish, so first up was the quick Portrait of Antique Vines. This is the 25th Anniversary cameo from Nora Corbett of Mirabilia designs:

My changes included changing out the white linen for a Crafty Kitten hand-dyed opalescent scrap that was in my stash (thanks to Lynne for including it when I brought some fat Q’s). I’ve omitted two of the three Caron Waterlillies, and changed out the other for 229. I was pretty careful to stitch down from the mirror top down one side then the other so that the blends matched vertically. Then some of the black beads are also omitted (most noticeably in her “crown” as I liked the younger appearance of just a tiara. I changed the beads to the petite black (42014 I think) to add delicacy.

Next up is my Mirabilia Mermaid Round Robin (on Countrystitch Cook Strait lugana). The missing piece was originally planned to be Enchanted Mermaid, but as her face is much larger than Waiting for Ships I’ve happily changed her out to Renaissance (which came out post my original plan). I’ll have to ask Stephanie (HI STEPHANIE!!) to help me work out the SFS credit, as I’ll have stitched two portions plus all the frames plus all the beads…

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Hope you all have a lovely week!

WIP eh..Thursday. Yay, it’s Thursday!

Posted in Christmas, conversion details, cross stitch, family, Mirabilia, Nora Corbett by

So far, so good. I am swimming along at work (have counted to 10 a few times, but yesterday didn’t hit my self-imposed swear limit, so getting better) and at home. Great amusement is had by the adults of the house, removing critical pieces of the children’s equipment like laptops they try to hide at night…I am also upping the “mean mum” stakes in expecting the boys to monitor their own cell data useage – they do not have the password to the WiFi! Oh, this is fun!

On the stitching side, I am hitting my goals and then some. For the first week of the year, the StitchMaynia 12 Days of Christmas SAL continued, so I worked on the Hands On Design chalkboard Christmas, completing the first trilogy with Be Merry & Believe:

This week is my Magazine SAL week, as hosted by Heather Stitches on Facebook (that link is to her blog, BTW). Because the 12 Days SAL finished on the sixth, I started this piece a bit early, but I have a finish. This is Country Cottage Needlework‘s  Merry & Bright from the Just Cross Stitch Christmas Ornament 2010 issue (as I brought myself the DVD via 123 Stitch in December, I’m planning an ornie for each of this SAL’s entries). I’m planning on a cube finish with present buttons added:

img_20170109_055847_880

I did not use the threads recommended (Stitch From Stash, people!). If you want to copy, I did this 2 over 1 on 25ct ivory Lugana with the following DMC changes:

  • the circle is 3364
  • @ is 347
  • the square is 434
  • the dot is Kreinik 032
  • and the half circle is 895

And as that took me only 3 days, I pulled out one of my existing WIPS, Arezzo. All that 1 over 1! Add on Nora’s doctor’s scrawl of a chart, and it can be heavy going. I find it takes me a few moments to adjust even tho I have blown the chart up and use a high-lighter. I have frogged the error that caused me to put her away and made a lot of progress over about 4 hours. I don’t know the original stitcher of this version but she did a beautiful job. Me? I’m plodding along:

And at work, my focus is to finish the stitching part of the second variation of Mill Hill Fireflies. I’ve sorted out the blue thread, and expect to have this ready to bead for Saturday:

20170111_080415

 

WIP Wednesday & Smalls SAL

Posted in conversion details, Mirabilia, round robin, stitching patterns by

Yay, Wednesday already! Work finished the fiscal month (oddly) early, rather than rolling it over into a 5 week month, so I’m like the duck – serene on top, paddling furiously underneath. It makes for a long, long eight hours! Luckily the children are just as tired so last night, they took themselves off for reading time just after seven. Bliss! A quiet house!

sunday's progress. primrose urn

sunday’s progress. primrose urn

WIP-wise I have put a few more threads into Persephone but mostly I’m forcing myself to work on the next NZXS RR. It’s just not my cup of java at all, from the aida cloth to the flower urns – I am reminding myself that THIS is why I said I’d organise a round robin or two! Once I had added the leaves (all the yellow and green was done last night, the urn on Sunday) I did like it more. It’s a very quick little piece. I do like the bird.

tuesday's progress

tuesday’s progress

I also finished Summer Queen, my contribution to Rachel’s RR. I converted some beads and of course the metallic DMC, as I loathe that stuff. Kreinik all the way! Look Zeb! I’m using my birthday notebook!

Summer Queen

Summer Queen

paula's summer queen bead conversion

paula’s summer queen bead conversion