May Cake Finish

I finished this guy up just in the nick of time. With this finish, this concludes the 'Spring' birthday cake freebies from Brooke Nolan of Brooke's Books. I am waffling on continuing with the Summer series, or if I should pick up something from the Bin O'Shame. I have not had a finish from the Bin O'Shame in quite some time. (Almost a year, I think). I really do need to get back to it, as I am soooooooo close to finishing them all up. 

Well, at any rate, here is the second finish for the month of May and the eighth for the year. 

Design: May Cake

Designer: Brooke Nolan of Brooke's Books

Fabric Used: 32 count Belfast linen from Silkweavers' in Dusk 

Fibers Used: DMC Embroidery Floss Art. 117 as called for in the chart. Anchor six strand embroidery floss in 02, Brightest White. 

Beads Used: Mill Hill beads in #02031 Citron,   #42101 Purple and #03050 Champagne Ice Antique Glass seed beads. Kreinik #4 braid in 007 - Pink.

Stitchers' Notes: Design from the 12 month series of monthly Birthday Cakes. Finished Tuesday, May 29, 2018. Left off border. Substituted DMC Embroidery Floss Art. 117  B5200 for Anchor six strand embroidery floss in 02 Brightest White. Eighth finish for 2018.

Time for me to be off. I need to clean up my area and check on dinner. Hope everyone had a great Memorial Day weekend. Happy stitching!

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Respectfully submitted,

C. 

A Quick SMO Finish And A New Start

I managed to start and finish this guy up in one day. This is a really, really old design of Sandy's, 2005 to be precise. What I cannot remember is if this was a part of the Fright Night festivities or if this was just a random Halloween freebie. I suppose it doesn't matter in the long run, however, I do like to be precise in these things. 

I have wanted to stitch this guy up for a long, long time now, however, I just never got around to it. I'm glad I did, because it is such a fun little project. Try as hard as I might, I could not photograph this piece correctly. The fabric is a very pale purple and unfortunately, it appears as gray. Even on a sunny day! Ah, well. These things happen, yes?

Design: Creepy

Designer: Sandra Dering for SanMan Originals 

Fabric: Picture This Plus 28 count cashel linen in Sprite (DMC 3743 Variegated) 

Fibers: Access Commodities Soie d'Alger in Mode, Noir, 234 and 1336. Kreinik #4 001 silver braid. 

Accoutrement: Mill Hill beads in #00167 Christmas Green. 

Stitchers' Notes: This is a MEMBER ONLY freebie for the 2005 Halloween festivities of the SanMan Originals Message Board. It is not for sale or trade! Started and finished on Tuesday, September 12, 2017.

My new start is also another halloween related SanMan Originals project. If I recall correctly, this was a Secret Shop purchase in 2011. I tried to resist stitching it on the fabric that I chose, as that piece was earmarked for another project. That is, until I realized, that I would not be getting to that project any time soon. Then I figured, there are a few other projects that I wish to use that fabric for, and when I get around to the intended project (Sacre Coeur by Jools Line of Long Dog Samplers, for the curious), I will just order another piece of fabric. :)

Well, at any rate, here is my start so far: 

Design: Ghost White Pumpkin

Designer: Sandra Dering for SanMan Originals 

Fabric: Picture This Plus 28 count cashel linen in Gothic

Fibers: Access Commodities Soie d'Alger in 2143, 3441, 3842, and 4534. Crescent Colours Belle Soie silk in Icing and Shepherd's Pasture.  

Stitchers' Notes: This is a 2011 Secret Shop purchase. As it is a .pdf file, unfortunately it is not for sale or trade. Began Tuesday, September 12, 2017. 

Well, I must be off. I hope everyone is having a great week so far. Happy stitching!

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Respectfully submitted,

C. 

It's Been Awhile

Happy Saturday to you all! I know it's been a while, almost a month and a half since I last posted. I haven't felt really up to stitching a whole lot. I do not know if it is a combination of stress, fatigue, or just stitching burnout, the end result is the same. I suppose it does not matter a great deal, as I have stitched a grand total of 111 pieces the last two years. That is a great deal of stitching! I have made my unofficial yearly goal of 12 projects, so I am just coasting at this point. Then again too, the weather where we are has been unseasonably chilly. It's quite difficult to get 'into' stitching mermaids and other summer themed projects when the low is almost in the 30's at night in the middle of May! :O

I have tried off and on to stitch, but nothing has 'clicked'. It just felt like going through the motions. I remembered that I had this project that I purchased on the secondary market some time ago. I have seen quite a number of recent finishes of this piece and it looked like it did not take too long to stitch, so I thought I would give it a try. The color combination used is the same one that I used in the Summer In Bloom taken from the book Maria Selby Humphrey - 1831 piece that I finished up a couple of years ago. I really do love the way the colors harmonize together. The funny thing is, I purchased the silks on clearance and only purchased them because I loved the colors and the feel of the silk! :)

At any rate, here is my latest finish. I need to find some nice buttons for the upper right hand corner, but otherwise, it is completed. 

Design: Buttons and Blooms

Designer: Blackbird Designs

Fabric Used: 28 count white linen of unknown manufacturer

Fibers Used: Au Ver a Soie Soie 100/3 Spun Silk in 124, 126, 197, 312, 663, and 705. Kreinik silk serica thread in Light Charcoal, #8073. 

Stitchers' Notes: Substituted called for GAST and WDW threads for in house Au Ver a Soie Soie 100/3 Spun Silk and Kreinik silk serica thread. Shop chart exclusive for Elegant Stitch. Began Friday, May 12, 2017. Finished Saturday, May 13, 2017. Please note that the chart is not for sale/trade. 

Welp, it's time for me to bolt for the door. I hope everyone has a great weekend! :)

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Respectfully submitted,

C. 

The First Of A New Series Finish

Back in February, Linda Ebright of Lizzie Kate had announced seven new holiday themed designs for the 2017 Flip-It series. The designs cover the Valentine's (Love), St. Patrick's Day (Luck), Easter (Basket), Fourth of July (Liberty), Halloween (Boo), Thanksgiving (Thank) and Christmas (Merry) holidays. Each Flip-it will have a antique gold charm and the stitch count for the individual holidays is 43W x 58H. I picked up the first three, Valentine's (Love), St. Patrick's Day (Luck), Easter (Basket), at my LNS as I love the composition of the designs and the elements used. My LNS was having a sale on stitch banding. I managed to find the perfect banding for each of the season. I purchased enough to complete all seven holidays, once they have been released. 

I have also decided that I will be swapping out the colors. The called for fabric is a 32 count light mocha. However, most of the banding is white, so color substitutions are necessary. For this latest finish, I chose a floss I really love, Anchor. I love, love, LOVE the coverage of this floss. I really do need to use more of it. 

Well, at any rate, here is my latest finish, completed just in time for St. Patrick's Day!

Design: Luck (#F-165 from the 2017 Flip-It series)

Designer: Linda Ebright of Lizzie Kate

Fabric Used: 27 count antique white Fanciful Hearts stitch banding in antique white, green and gold by Mill Hill. Item number MH07450107 in 4.5 inch wide banding. 

Fibers Used: Anchor six strand embroidery floss in 108, 240, 246, 259, 316, 403, and 1012. Kreinik metallic threads in #4 Very Fine Braid in #002HL Gold. 

Stitchers' Notes: Began Saturday, March 11, 2017. Finished Sunday, March 12, 2017. Stitch banding distributed by Wichelt. Substituted called for fabric and floss for those of my own choosing. First finish of seven that will be released throughout 2017. 

Well, I had best be off. Time to get my materials together for the next project and clean up my stitching area of today's finish. Hope everyone had a great weekend! 

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Respectfully submitted,

C. 

A Bit Late In The Day

...but I am way early for next year. :)


I am, naturally, referring to my latest finish. I completely missed the deadline for New Years' this year, but the stitching is finished really early for next year :). I have wanted to stitch this one for the longest time, but never really 'found' time to stitch it. I had this design printed out and in one of my freebie binders that I have in my stitching library. I had a small piece of leftover fabric that I had leftover from another project. It was perfect for this small design and I love how it turned out. I need to find an appropriate way to finish it off so that it may be displayed at the end of the year. I also need to find more New Years' projects to stitch. I really do not have enough of them and I really do love New Years' projects. 


At any rate, here is my latest finish:

Design: New Years' Magic

Designer: Brooke Nolan of Brooke's Books

Fabric: 28 count Cashel linen from Picture This Plus  in Phantom

Fibers Used: DMC Embroidery Floss Art. 117 as called for in the chart. Kreinik metallic threads in  #4 Very Fine Braid in #001 HL Silver, #032 Pearl #4 braid, and #3223 Ametrine. 

Accouterments: Dazzle-It Czech glass beads in crystal white. 

Stitchers' Notes: This design is a freebie on the Brooke's Books website. Border and year left off in favor of a generic Happy New Year design and to keep the design more 'open'. Substituted called for Mill Hill beads for in house supplies. Began Sunday, February 19, 2017. Stitching completed Thursday, February 23, 2017.

It was really hard to capture the darkness of the fabric with the bling of the Czech glass beads. it was totally worth it, however! :)

Well, I need to be off. I have chosen my next project and I need to clean up my area in order get started on it. No rest for the wicked. I hope everyone has a great weekend! 

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Respectfully submitted, 

C. 

Easter Sunday Finish

I hope everyone had a great weekend. DH and I had a wonderful weekend. Saturday was spent running some errands and going to the book store. Saturday night was spent with family having a birthday month dinner. Everything was fabulous and a good time was had by all.

Yesterday was spent with the The Easter Fairy. I had wanted to get her finished by the end of May as she has sat for some time. I took my time, but I managed to get the The Easter Fairy finished late last night. I had to wait until this morning in order to take pictures, naturally. I decided to leave the wings off and I like her the way she is. I am waffling on obtaining the rest in the series. I know I want to get the New Year's fairy, but I am not sure on the other ones. 

Well, at any rate, here she is. My latest finish and the number 6 finish for 2016 from the Bin O'Shame projects. 

Design: The Easter Fairy (Limited Edition kit)

Designer: Nora Corbett 

Fabric Used: 28 count linen in Spring by Picture This Plus from their Crystal (opalescent) line

Fibers Used: Crescent Colours  cotton floss in Baby Chick, Bella Rosa, Betty Bluebell, Blue Beatrice, Blueberry Tart, Bramble Bush, Fool's Gold, Sassy Brass, St. Bernard, Tufted Yellow, Wasabi, and Zach Black. 

Bling Used: Mill Hill glass seed beads in size 11/0 #02010 Ice. Mill Hill glass Sitting Bunny in Matte Brown #12192. 

Stitcher's Notes: Substituted kit fabric for the 28 count linen in Spring by Picture This Plus from their Crystal (opalescent) line. Substituted stitched blue egg for Mill Hill glass Sitting Bunny in Matte Brown #12192. Declined to stitch wings. Number 6 finish for 2016 from the Bin O'Shame projects. 

Last update as of Wednesday, May 28, 2014:

Finished Easter Sunday, March 27, 2016:

Well, I had best be off. Have a great week, everyone! :)

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Respectfully submitted.

C.

Pre-Game For Easter Weekend March 2016

Easter is early this year, on this Sunday as a matter of fact. I have rested my hands and arms a good deal and have taken all of the precautions that one normally does during these times. They feel well enough to get cracking on something else. 

I have chosen The Easter Fairy (Limited Edition kit) by Nora Corbett,  as the next item up for bid. I have not touched her since May 28, 2014, so it is past time that I finished her up. She is, as you can imagine, a resident of the Bin O'Shame . When she is finished, she will be number six from the Bin O'Shame. which is nice. This will also mean that within the first three months of 2016, I will have hit the halfway mark on the Bin O'Shame goal of twelve projects completed from that bin this year. Yay! As I am leaving off the wings on this piece, it *should* go fairly quickly. If I do decide to stitch them, I think they should be done in all metallics. The question is, do I even go there with myself, as metallics are notoriously difficult to deal with ? Time will tell, I suppose. 

Well, at any rate, here is the last update. I have not stitched hardly anything else on her, so I am hoping that I get some time in this weekend to finish the stitching on this piece. 

Design: The Easter Fairy (Limited Edition kit)

Designer: Nora Corbett 

Fabric Used: 28 count linen in Spring by Picture This Plus from their Crystal (opalescent) line

Fibers Used: Crescent Colours  cotton floss in Baby Chick, Bella Rosa, Betty Bluebell, Blue Beatrice, Blueberry Tart, Bramble Bush, Fool's Gold, Sassy Brass, St. Bernard, Tufted Yellow, Wasabi, and Zach Black. Kreinik (#4) Braid in #3223 Ametrine

Bling Used: Mill Hill glass seed beads in size 11/0 #02010 Ice 

Last update as of Wednesday, May 28, 2014:

I had best be off. I hope everyone has a great Easter weekend!

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Respectfully submitted,

C. 

One For The Money

Well, I did it. I managed to get the first of the Bin O'Shame projects finished for the year. I decided to use my unofficial yearly goal of 12 projects a month as the Bin O'Shame projects. This way I can kill two birds with one stone. This will also serve to get the Bin O'Shame  even further caught up. 

I had picked up the first project from the Bin O'Shame  after I had finished stitching the Peeps from my last post. Then I saw why it had sat for so long. The fabric had not only become stained, but there were large sections that were stitched totally in the wrong color. The project was just too far long to salvage anything, so it was just scrapped. Thankfully, it was stitched in DMC and not in silks. I then went to pick up another one, and the same thing happened! Quelle horreur! So, both of those will now be do overs. *sigh*. Ah, well. These things happen I suppose. 

So, this left me with the following:

Bin O'Shame  total as of Thursday, January 7, 2016: 27

That is an encouraging number. Now, if I can just keep at this, I will be even happier :). Work has gotten really, really busy so there is that. I am hoping to get more stitching time in, but you know how that goes. So, I guess I will just take it easy and just enjoy the journey this year. 

Here is is, the very first Bin O'Shame finish for 2016:

Design: September Dragon taken from the leaflet Gemstone Dragons (DD-69)

Designer: Jennifer Aikman-Smith of Dragon Dreams

Fabric Used: 14 count white opalescent aida

Fibers Used: DMC Embroidery Floss Art. 117 in 796, 798, 799, 800 and 806. Kreinik metallic thread #4 #001 HL Silver, #032 Pearl #4 braid, and #051 HL Sapphire blending filament. 

Stitcher's Notes: Piece picked back up on Thursday, January 7, 2016. Finished Sunday, January 10, 2016. Piece initially started in 2003 or 2004. 

As of Thursday, January 7, 2016:

Finished Sunday, January 2016:

Well, I had best be off. Tons to do today. I hope everyone had a fantastic weekend!

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Respectfully submitted,

C. 

WIP Update For Friday, November 13, 2015

Really slow progress to report on the latest piece. I've been fighting off some low grade sickness for the last month and it's catching up to me a bit. I am not sure if I will even feel up to stitching any this weekend. Although, if I do, I may get Maleficent ( QS Evil Queen) back out. There is a LOT DMC Embroidery Floss Art. 117 in 310 Black that could be stitched, certainly 400 stitches worth, and I don't have to worry about confetti or anything. 

Well, at any rate, here is the first Maiden stitched: 

Design: Moon Phases

Designer: Laura Rimola of The Little Stitcher

Fabric Used: Zweigart 36 count Edinburgh linen in Vintage Country Mocha

Fibers Used:  DMC Embroidery Floss Art. 117 in 640, 3021, 3774, 3865.  Kreinik metallic thread blending filament #1 HL Silver.

Accouterments: Mill Hill petite beads in #42010 Ice and #42014 Petite Black seed beads. 

Stitcher's Notes: Began Saturday, November 7, 2015. Stitching both the New Moon and Full Moon charts together. Original wording to be removed and replaced with something different. 


As of Wednesday, November 11, 2015:

As Of Friday, November 13, 2015:

I had best be off. I need to get something for this nausea. Hope everyone has a great weekend! :)

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Respectfully submitted,

C.