Painting With Floss

I love finding new fabric and threads that I have never seen before. They really get the creative juices flowing, experimenting with color combinations and designs. I found this latest fiber at my LNS about a week or so ago. I fell in love with the the colors, the softness and the texture. They are called Baroque Silks and they are by the Pure Palette.  It is hand dyed 3 ply 100%  silk thread that can be used on 13 mesh canvas (as is) or it can be stranded to use a single ply on 18 mesh canvas.  Each skein is 15 yards and currently there are 89 beautiful colors. I paid $4.50 for each skein, which is not bad for 15 yards of silk. As these silks can be divided, I am thinking of using different thicknesses for the same project, to see what the outcome would be. Here are the ones that I picked up:

#3007 Hollyhocks

#3017 Desert Sage

I have really enjoyed stitching with these. I am going to have to dig through my stash to find other projects to stitch with these. They really are lovely!

Here are the results of my experimenting:

Design: Three Peacocks (A Faithfully Reproduced Antique Sampler

Designer: Beth Twist of Heartstring Samplery

Fabric Used: 28 count natural linen of unknown manufacturer

Fiber Used: The Pure Palette #3017 Desert Sage baroque silk 

Stitchers' Notes: Stitched one ply (equivalent of three strands) over two fabric threads. Did not stitch border. Fabric and fiber test.  

I think the one ply is a *wee* bit thick for the fabric, although, the colors certainly do pop. I will have to try the ubiquitous two over two or one over two on a finer fabric and see how that works out. 

Well, I am off to keep up my stitching area. DH has requested that I stitch on something fall like with orange and yellow leaves. This means shopping in stash, which is a-ok by me! :)

I hope everyone has a great weekend! 

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Respectfully submitted,

C. 

The Busy Little Bee

The bee, from her industry in the summer, eats honey all the winter.

    -Proverb

It seems as though this summer I am emulating the honey bee. Busy, busy, busy. And more likely as not to get busier as the summer progresses. I suppose this is a good thing, as if one does not labor to produce, one cannot complain of the lack of fruits thereof. I have managed to finish up a quick little piece, although, I do need to find a proper frame for it. I have something specific in mind, however, I am not willing to pay upwards of $100.00 to get it. Ah, well. I shall find what I need at some point. I suppose I can hold off until I find the right one. 

At any rate, here is my latest finish from Leaflet Silo:

Design: Kitchen Mixer

Designer: Hugs Are Fun

Fabric Used: 28 count Raw Linen/Silk blend (80% linen/20% silk) from Wichelt

Fibers Used:  DMC Embroidery Floss Art. 117 in B5200, 310, 415, and 742

And there's more exciting news. I finally have a lap stand! Mine is courtesy of Pam Reid, via FlossTube. The materials were all of $11.00 at Home Depot. DH put it together for me this past Sunday, and I cannot wait to try it out. I have Lady Of The Flag in the snaps and ready to go. I am hoping for a wee bit of free time this upcoming weekend so I can get some time in on her. I think this is really going to work out for this project and others that are as large. 

New stash arrived today as well. I wanted to get this one before it went OOP and prices get out of hand. I am one of these folks that don't mind 'what the market will bear' prices on my hobby, however, if I can get it at at 'decent' price I am not going to complain! There are thirteen designs in this booklet by Barb and Alma of Blackbird Designs. I have some ideas that I am kicking around with these. I am really wanting to stitch on fall related pieces now as it is so hot here in the desert, but I am going to hold off for a while longer. 

I've decided that I want to do something patriotic, and this one has been on the 'Why haven't I stitched this yet? I love this!' pile for quite some time. It is called July Celebration and it is from the  Blackbird Designs book called A Fine Collection:

DH loves this one and I have already put the first stitches in. I am using Crescent Colours Belle Soie silk in Cinnamon Stick, Collard Greens, Ivy League, Harvest, Indigo, and Tulip. The fabric is 36 count Edinburgh linen in Antique White. Should be good times! :)

Well, I best be off. Time's a wastin'. I hope everyone is having a great week!

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Respectfully submitted,

C.  

Liked It So Nice

...that I stitched it twice. I know of a lot of folks who stitch something once and then never again. With some designs, I just cannot help myself and I feel compelled to stitch them over and over. The really cool thing about cross stitch is that you can change all sorts of things to make it truly yours. 

This next project was another loaner from Patricia G of the Fans of Blackbird Designs Facebook Group. It came with two charts, Spring's Notice and Savoir Faire. I have had Spring's Notice in my freebie collection for quite some time now, but I *really* wanted to stitch Savoir Faire. It had been somewhat very elusive until the Fans of Blackbird Designs Facebook Group and their Lending Library. This fantastic group of ladies has been a godsend and I am hoping to contribute to the Lending Library some time in the near future. 

At any rate, here are my stitching efforts for the week. I am pleased with the outcome.  I have a few ideas on how to finish these, but I must think about it some before I make my decision.

Design: Savoir Faire

Designer: Blackbird Designs

Version One: 

Fabric Used: 28 count natural linen of unknown manufacturer

Fibers Used: Crescent Colours  cotton floss in 12 grain, Amethyst, Brown Sugar, German Chocolate, Prickly Pear, Purple Pansy, Steamed Broccoli and Wasabi. 

Finished: Thursday, April 28, 2016

Stitcher's Notes: Stitched two over two. 

Version Two:

Fabric Used: 32 count white Belfast linen 

Fibers Used: Crescent Colours  cotton floss in Brown Sugar, Crushed Pineapple, Frozen Margarita, German Chocolate, Pink Champagne, Queen Bee and Spun Sugar. The Gentle Art Sampler Threads in #0191 Kiwi.

Stitcher's Notes: Stitched two over two. 

I am kind of sad to see this one leave me. I could see stitching this at least three more times! But, alas, the next stitcher is anxiously awaiting the charts, so I must bid it fare thee well. In the mean time, in between time, I will comb my usual haunts looking for a copy that I may add to my collection. Hooray for stitchy quests!

Well, it is time to be off. I need to clean up my stitching area and do the coffee and blog thing. I hope everyone is having a great weekend!

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Respectfully submitted,

C. 

500th Post

I can't believe I finally made it to 500 posts. I suppose I should have a contest of sorts to celebrate. I will have to think on it some and see what I come up with. :)


This past weekend I was not feeling so hot, so I decided to take a minute and actually sit down and look at each project from the Bin O'Shame 
to see what I had, instead of just counting what was there. What I found actually surprised me. I found quite a number of projects that were barely started. And in some cases, not started at ALL! So, I did what any sane person in my position would do. I promptly removed them and put them in the kitted pile. After all that is said and done, a further 12 projects got removed, so I am now down to 40 projects left over from the Bin O'Shame! This includes ALL of the HAEDs, of which there are 5 started, and Christmas at Hawk Run Hollow by Carriage House Samplings. Woohoo! There are quite a number of small finishes so I will definitely be able to make my goal of 10 projects completed from this bin next year. 

With this post, I am getting a head start on that. I've had this since it first came out in 2006, however, I never really worked on it that much. I left the wings off as I hated the two colors that were chosen for them. The skeins of floss did not look well together and combined with the beading it just served to annoy me to no end. So, they got left off. Oh, well. I think she looks lovely without them! 

Well, here she is. I forgot to take a before picture. whoops! :)

Design: 2006 Christmas Elf Fairy (full kit)

Designer: Nora Corbett for Mirabilia 

Fabric Used: 32 count Natural linen from Zwiegart

Fibers Used: Crescent Colours cotton thread in Bella Rosa, Bing Cherry, Black Coffee, Bramble Bush, Cupid, Pink Champagne, Sassy Brass, Spinach, Zach Black. Rainbow Gallery Wisper thread in #88 White. Kreinik metallic thread #4 VFB in 015 HL Chartreuse. 

Bling Used: Mill Hill petite beads in #42010 Ice. SJ Designs beads in #59 Plated silver. 

Stitcher's Notes: Left off wings as I could not get either the stitching nor the beads to sit correctly. I will either be restitching this with the wings or I will find a pair of small opalescent wings to attach to her. 

Finished as of Monday, August 24, 2015

Well, I best be off. Tons to do today. I hope everyone is having a fantastic week! 

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Respectfully submitted,

C. 

Faded Glory Progress

Ever notice how some projects just do not show their progress very readily? With the last project, progress was showing very, very quickly. #25 out of the Bin O'Shame is such a project. I am having to go a bit slower on this one than the others as there is a metric f-ton of quarter stitches involved. I am actually dreading the upper left corner of this piece because that is where the bulk of the quarter and three quarter stitches are located. I am hoping it will not be as bad as I am thinking it will be. I am determined to finish this in time for what would have been my father's 69th birthday on the 29th of August. This project is special because I foolishly thought that I could finish it within 3 weeks working a full time job. It was not long after, maybe two weeks, that he found out that he had pancreatic cancer. He died in October that same year and for obvious reasons, I have not been able to touch it since then. I have attempted to stitch on it every now and again, but it was just too painful. This year is somehow different and it doesn't hurt as much. 

Well, at any rate, here is what I have in four days of progress:

Design: Faded Glory from Portrait of the Civil War (an OOP booklet)

Designer: Jeanette Crews Designs

Fabric: 26 count undyed natural dirty linen

Fibers: DMC 347, 415, 762, 930, 931, and 3328

As of Thursday, July 16, 2015:

As of Monday, July 20, 2015:

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

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Respectfully submitted,

C. 

Fast Liberty finish

Got a quick one day finish under my belt just now. Last one for June, which brings my grand total for completed stitchery to seven. Yay! Go me! Anyhoo...here's the pic and the related stitchy notes:



Design: Liberty


Designer: Lizzie Kate


Fabric: 28 count natural linen


Fibers: Crescent Colours Antique Lace, Bandana, and Wavy Navy


Started and finished on Wednesday, June 30, 2010

I'm off to go crawl in the bed for a bit. Not feeling too hot right now and I need to go where it's cool and a bit dark.


Hope everyone's having a good day! :)


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Respectfully submitted,


C.