'Tis The Season

Well, apparently, I managed to get into the holiday season any way. At least stitching wise I did. I suppose I should be a lot further along on this one than I should be, but I really do not care. I have stitched a lot the past two years and quite frankly, I am not halfway wondering if I am just not burned out completely. 

At any rate, here is what I have so far, on this Christmas Eve day:

Design: 'Tis The Season from the Joyeux Noel book

Designer: Barb Adams of Blackbird Designs

Fabric:  R and R Reproductions 30 count overdyed linen in Witches' Teeth 

Fibers Used: Crescent Colours Belle Soie silk in Collard Greens, Fern Frond Slate, Tree Trunk, and Tulip. Gumnut Yarns Stars silk floss in #991 ecru.

Stitchers' Notes: As this piece of fabric is not large enough, only the cardinal and a portion of the branch will be stitched.

I have tonight and tomorrow off, so I am hoping to get more time in on this piece. 

I must be off. I am wishing everyone the happiest of holidays and the most blessed of new years!

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Respectfully submitted,

C. 

We Interrupt This Project...

...for a special stitching emergency. I was notified the other day that a chart from the Blackbird Designs Lending Library Facebook group was winging it's way to me. For those of you not familiar with the Blackbird Designs Lending Library Facebook group, it was started by Patricia Geary in an effort to share legitimate hard copy BBD charts with other stitchers. There are certain rules that have to be followed, so as to allow for the overall running of the group to go as smoothly as possible. 

This meant a brief interruption on my Motifs Abécédaire 30 sampler that I am currently stitching. But these things happen and I don't really mind. :)


As is my custom, I am more enthralled with the bonus designs rather than the main design. This one went VERY quickly as it was all of 35 high by 75 stitches wide. As this chart is very OOP and VERY hard to find, I wanted to stitch this on a very special fabric. I have a tiny amount of a long discontinued fabric from R and R Reproductions. I did a floss toss on 28 count Cashel linen by Lakeside Linens in Vintage Lentil but it just popped on the R and R Reproductions 30 count overdyed linen in Witches' Teeth. So, that is what is used and I am VERY happy with the outcome. I really do need to get a sewing machine so that I can put all of these things together. When it eventually gets put together, I think this one will be on display in the 'permanent collection' that I have displayed. I need to find a nice backing fabric for it that is not overly wintery or Christmasy. 

At any rate, here are my efforts from yesterday and today:

Design: Winter Garden Pincushion (Bonus Chart from the leaflet Winter Wonderland #39 from the 2010 Loose Feathers series) 

Designer: Blackbird Designs

Fabric:  R and R Reproductions 30 count overdyed linen in Witches' Teeth

Fibers Used: Crescent Colours Belle Soie silk in Collard Greens, Fern Frond, Icing, Tree Trunk, and Tulip.

Stitcher's Notes: Chart on loan from Patricia G of the Fans of Blackbird Designs Facebook Group. Replaced the cotton embroidery floss for silks. Left off initials. Began Monday, March 7, 2016. Finished Tuesday, March 8, 2016. 

Well, I had best be off. Time to make the donuts. I hope everyone is having a great week! :)

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Respectfully submitted,

C. 

Distraction Stitching

Well, I have officially hit the wall with the Oriental Beauty. I have managed to stitch a bit more on her, but now I have gotten into Quarter Stitch Hell. Quite frankly, I am in no mood to deal with it. I suppose at some point next week I will get her back out and just hammer away at it, but right now, I am simply not in the mood. 

So, instead, I got this wee bit of a thing out last night. I was in the mood to stitch a Blackbird Designs piece for whatever reason. It is the companion piece to the Tulip House Stitching Companion that I stitched back in 2012. I have the card case somewhere and eventually, when I get a sewing machine, I will put the box together. It is enough that the cross stitching is at least done. I will need to find two colors of blue fabric for this piece, as that is what it calls for. I really should look into the Moda line of quilting fabrics that Barb and Alma have done for the company. I will also apparently need hand dyed trims, although, I think I might cheap out and just do it myself. I have some brown fabric dye, so why not, eh?

Well, at any rate, here it is, the Tulip Pincushion:

Design: Tulip Pincushion from the book A Stitcher's Journey

Designer: Blackbird Designs

Fabric: 30 count Friendship Blend linen by R and R Reproductions

Fibers Used: The Gentle Art Sampler Threads in Apricot Blush, Chamomile, Endive, Lexington Green, Melon Patch, Pumpkin Patch, and Toasted Barley. 

Stitcher's Notes: Began Friday, January 29, 2016. Finished Saturday, January 30, 2016. Companion piece to the Tulip House Stitching Companion. Fabric substituted for the called for 30 Cafe Kona as I was not overly thrilled with the way the colors looked on it.  

I had best be off. I need to decide if I am going to stitch another piece from the book A Stitcher's Journey or stitch on a completely unrelated piece. I really should start the unrelated piece, but the call of the Blackbird Designs piece that has grabbed my attention is strong right now. 

Hope everyone is having a great weekend!

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Respectfully submitted,

C. 

Overnight Shift Finish

About once a month, I am scheduled to work the overnight shift of Friday and Saturday nights. Basically, whoever is on duty is just minding the store and making sure things don'e burst into flames. :)

As consequence, as my sleep schedule gets thrown off, I can't stitch on anything overly complicated. I chose this latest finish for its' simplicity and it's coloring. I love the way it turned out. Me being me, there were color changes involved!

At any rate, here is the latest non Bin O'Shame finish. I need to get the rest of the year kitted up, so that I may have these on reserve for when I do the overnight bunks.

Design: hd-41 June: a year in chalk

Designer: Cathy Habermann of Hands on Designs

Fabric Used: 30 count 18th Century Blackbird by R &R Reproductions (possibly discontinued)

Fibers Used: The Gentle Art Sampler Threads in Chalk and Tutti Frutti 

Stitcher's Notes: Substituted Tutti Frutti for the called for Wood Rose. Substituted the called for 30 count Weeks Dye Works Gunmetal for the 18th Century Blackbird in stash. 

Well, I had best be off. Time to make Sunday dinner. This week is lemon and herb chicken with broccoli. Hope everyone has a great week! :)

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Respectfully submitted,

C. 

Election Day Stitching

Greetings, sports fans! I don't know about anyone else, but yesterday I had hit Acute Election Fatigue in the worst way. And since I knew that yesterday was the Super Bowl of Election events, this meant coverage was probably going to begin a midnight and not stop until, iuno....March of next year. So, I decided to pull out a lovely UFO that had been languishing in my stitchy bag. And lo, and behold, I managed to finish the stitching. Gasp! :O. Oh, the humanity! 

At any rate, here is the finished product after mini marathons of Sex and The City , Law and Order: SVU, and Create TV. The Hubmeister was glued to the computer watching events unfold live, but then again he's a political junkie like that. :)

Design: Tulip House Stitching Companion from the book A Stitcher's Journey

Designer: Blackbird Designs

Fabric: 30 count Friendship Blend linen by R and R Reproductions

Fibers Used: The Gentle Art Sampler Threads in Apricot Blush, Chamomile, Endive, Lexington Green, Melon Patch, Pumpkin Patch, and Toasted Barley. 

This was one of those rare times that I actually stitched a project with the called for fabric and floss. This sat for a while because I wasn't sure if I was liking the colors, but for whatever reason, yesterday I just decided to finish it up and get on with it. I like how it turned out, although it's not in my favored bright jewel toned colors. 


Well, I must be off. Tons to do today. Hope everyone got out to vote! :)


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Respectfully submitted,


C.