Yay! Both Jenna’s and KerryCan’s bookmarks are ready to post!
And for David, here’s my artsy shot of the week. Taken looking West while filing up the car at six this morning:
Tag Archives: cross stitch
November Smalls
Smalls SAL is a monthly stitch-along hosted by Heather @ Stitching Lotus. This months’ post is here
My Small really is a small, but a big achievement for me. Mr Darcy only took 3 hours, from re-charting a Cloudsfactory (I changed the shape a little and definitely the dimensions) to picking threads to stitching. And thanks to the stand from Andrea, NO PAIN.
Dear Darcy will be heading off to Jenna next week!
November WIPocalypse
November 25 – Topic: Which designer has inspired you to stitch the greatest number of designs and why do you think that is? (via Hazel, who I follow on Instagram!)
There’s a few designers that I collect/hoard/stash. I have a lot of Theresa Wentzler’s, altho I only have two finishes and two WIPs & one more kitted up; I went thru an Alma Lynne phase and I have one finish but another 10-15 charts; obviously a Winnie-the-Pooh phase when Lou was younger (those three finishes are currently hanging in Mase’s bedroom, and will likely move along to first grandchild). I have probably 20 BHG Christmas magazines that I pick stuff out of, & some Ink Circles gifted to me by Lynne, and 8 Lavender & Lace (MLI was Nora’s mum) but in the last year my stitching revival is mostly Nora Corbett. I would have 40+ charts stashed away and four current WIPs:
- Persephone
- Arezzo (over one)
- Roses of Provence (I’m re-thinking my decision to frog the current fabric, it might be easier now I have a portable stand)
- Reindeer Parade (my mish-mash with Rudolph complete except for beads, and Blitzen partially done)
I have quite a few finishes for only 20 months too:
- Stargazer
- Mediterranean Mermaid
- Santa’s Sleigh
- Shimmering Mermaid’s compass (I don’t like this mermaid, but I had to do the compass)
- Audubon St Yellow Figbird
- Audubon St Scarlet Tanager
- Audubon St Blue Monarch Flycatcher
- Fairy Letter L (click on the Conversion tab for deets)
- Fairy Letter C (again, click on Conversion for details)
And I’ve stitched on 5 of the seven Mira Round Robins too which has been fun!
I’m trying not to hoard too much. I have far more than I will ever stitch in my lifetime and while Z and M have fleeting phases of wanting to stitch it isn’t the norm by any means! However I think I will encourage it over the heat of the summer months. With seven weeks away from school there is only so much TV and Wii a boy can deal with!
Here’s last night’s bit of stitching. I played with the stand & while Lenna’s Mermaid Tails RR is far too big to fit on any scroll, my little bookmark fitted perfectly on the smallest set:
Isn’t he cute? I re-worked the CloudsFactory design as I wanted a slightly round but not as round as their characters Poirot. This morning I sat down for 30 mins and I have the beginnings of Mr Darcy (Jenna’s bookmark). He should work up nice and fast!
WIP Wednesday
I’m still managing small portions of Persephone most days. She has an “armbow” and last night I found the edge of page one. Yay!
Today I was totally spoilt by a stitching friend, Andrea. This box arrived (to scale, that teddy I made sits 30cm high):
And inside are the bits to make this!
It’s a lap/desk stand. I’m so grateful and can’t wait to put it together.
Test
There’s an awful lot of chatter about the new editor, so I thought I’d try to post as my (android) app updated yesterday too.
So far, so good.
On the stitching side, I’m going with my thoughts of changing out Persephone’s dress. I’m not an aqua/teal person, I’ll have to change out the brown bugles (oh darn) but here’s my initial floss toss.
Top row is charted.
Middle row is probable.
Bottom row is the possible. It’s always good to have a set of options!
Have fun this rainy weekend, folks. I’m prepping to get soaked at the concert tonight but hey! FLEETWOOD MAC BABY!
WIP Wednesday
I’ve managed to complete a little more of Persephone. Much of it while Z was surfing sport channels; it was too hot much of the weekend to spend time outside from 11-3 & I’d rather they didn’t risk sunburn so it’s easy to say yes to TV, board games and so on. I’ve gotten up and worked on her a little each morning (around 20-25 min) and I’m up to the second “jellyfish” as Mase calls them.
She’s going to come off the stand for a few weeks as Lenna’s piece arrived yesterday. She’s big and beautiful! I need to take a decent photo. My options are Siren’s Song, Undine or Moonlight Laguna. I’m not sure which one I’ll choose!
WIP Wednesday
Woo hoo! I actually have some WIP progress to share with y’all. It’s taken four days but I have nearly finished beading the wallpaper and hair portion of Persephone. I am not used to back-stitching a Mira’s skin with two strands, but it was definitely right to do:
she looks so pretty!
The only thing I am not happy about is that the Mill Hill beads 82023 (the long brown tubes) take up FIVE spaces not the four as charted. You can clearly see the issue in this shot where the one on the right leans, because the end is on a stitch, & the light bounces off it differently:
I don’t know what to do about it; I may not notice in a year or so & I can adjust my stitching for the bodice etc where these bugle beads will next appear. I don’t really want to re-stitch but given that I am now determined to frog those hands on Stargazer that annoy me, it means that I probably will notice! What do you think?
Inheritance
Last week a workmate’s mother lost her fight against cancer. Judith was also a stitcher, and I am very fortunate that I have been given a large portion of her stash. The only request was from her husband, asking that I finish her Grecian sampler (that’s the one started below on the white linen). It’s quite unlike anything I have in my current WIP pile, and definitely one for my “16 in 2016” list.
Also included is this sampler. I took the notes from a historical sampler blog www.Needleprint.blogspot.com
This stunning sampler from the Wyndham and District Historical Museum in NZ, which was likely stitched by Mary Meikle in 1836. It is probable that Mary was born to Robert Meikle and Sarah McPherson in Lanarkshire, Scotland. Robert’s name is worked in black, the custom being that he was deceased at the time of stitching. In fact, Sarah went on to marry Andrew Wilson in 1826, who would have become Mary’s step-father. I particularly like the variation on the dedication: I have done this to let you see how kind my parents were to me. Which feels a little less remote than the usual – what good care my parents took of me. This is such a fabulous Scottish sampler with its large thistle, cupped garlands, row of family initials and the distinctive paired urns in the lower corners. But not only that, there are two darling confronting birds perched on a heart over the word Amor – Love. And look at the labelled deer and lepord. And for good measure, at the base is a Solomon’s Temple above which the date stands with its quirky reversal of the numeral 3. For your copy of this sampler contact Sherelyn at Heirlooms, NZ or visit the Heirlooms web-site.
I’ve never stitched a historical sampler – or any really, apart from birth records. Has anyone out there done one?
Monday, marvelous Monday
I am pretty happy this morning, even tho I am at work! I did no computer work over the weekend (yesterday’s post was via they Swype keyboard on my phone) and go into the week relatively pain-free. The steering wheel is causing a bit of grief & I don’t really like typing or mousework but ten minute bursts will be fine.
i managed 80-odd beads over the weekend. Slow progress, but it’s still progress. I went back & filled in the missing one after this photo.
Persephone as at 8th November
Having that stand is awesome.
Also, the full Skid Row crew is at work today. I’ve already lol’d and just about spat my breakfast out at one point. Laughter really is the best. Claire’s version of the Lizzie*Kate best describes my workmates:
Hi Five for Friday!
I’m feeling so so grateful right now. Here are some things I love this week:
- The doctor & physio are on the same wavelength & ACC has approved the claim. I have a referral to a hand specialist already!
- Simon fixed my old tapestry stand. It took me about an hour to attach the fabric to the strips on the frame (I kept stopping to rest my hand and to oogle the sheds in George Clarke’s Shed of the Year) & I will have to learn to stitch either with two hands or left handed, but I will be able to stitch! Next step is to sort out a smaller frame so I can stitch smaller projects.
- The forecast for the weekend is awesome. School fundraiser fireworks show tonight, bonfire at the FIL’s hobby farm tomorrow. Neither will be rained out.
- Plenty of flowers on my dwarf apple, and lots of bumble bees!
- I started shopping for the 12 Days of Simon that I will do again in December. I have a set of Jelly Moulds (that will be day 8, as there are 8 moulds) & a T ornament (for his last name).
- While one of the fish I brought last week didn’t thrive, it was easy to get a replacement. Meet Refund (the grey gourami, he’s very curious about hoomans) and Reward (the yellow gourami, I used my reward voucher to pay for him). Yay for Animates.
sewscrapmuse 