And my first finish in over a month. I am still currently in a 'Stitch when you feel like it' mode. I have had this happen before, and I am confident that this too shall pass. I have also managed to get the Summer Glory heart, which was designed by Linda Culp Calhoun for Leisure Arts magazine framed. I love the way that it turned out:
It is now hanging up in a place of pride in the hallway. I smile every time I pass it. :) And now, onto my latest finish. I really enjoyed stitching this piece. I also highly enjoyed playing around with the colors. It really does feel like a summer piece, however, the saying is also a good reminder. At any rate, here is my latest offering:
Stitchers' Notes: Former freebie obtained from LNS. Wording states "When the winds of change blow, Adjust your sails".
Time for me to be off. I need to clean up both the remnants of stitching and breakfast and get the day started. I hope everyone is having a great week!
Trucking right along on the UFO's. Managed to get this one stitched up during my Hercule Poirot marathon tonight. This makes two finished in one day and 19 UFO's finished so far, I think. I should try for 20! :) At any rate, here it is:
Got a lot more done on my Harvest Sampler yesterday. Had to stop when it got dark out, as my head was beginning to hurt a bit. I picked up a really cute CEC freebie to stitch and I finished it during The West Wing last night.
Here are the updates:
The WIP:
Design: Harvest Sampler as featured in the Fall/Winter 1996 Holiday Crafts magazine by Better Homes and Gardens
Managed to finish up Leaves last night. It was a quick and fun stitch. I picked the Quaker Acorn freebie back up, however, not much progress was made due to it being late and my eyes were tired.
Been working on my two projects the last few days. I am hoping to have the Cross Eyed Cricket finished within the next day or two. I do not have a whole lot left to stitch on it, and then I will pick the Quaker Acorn back up and try and get that one completed. I have a band sampler set aside as the next start, and I may do that really soon. :P
Ah, autumn in the desert. While the rest of the country is experiencing cooler weather and heartier food fare, in the crisp evenings during this time of year, yours truly is still baking in temps of 95 and above. But wait, dost my eyes and ears deceive me? The weatherman actually predicting a 10 degree drop next week into the frigid unforgiving wasteland of the mid 80's? Get out the parkas! Round up the soup and stew recipes! Get out the mittens and balaclavas! It's gonna be a long, and chilly ride into that which is known as winter.
I realize the snarkiness of this post has reached maximum capacity, however, there are reasons for this. And as we are dealing with the subject of my person, there is a story attached to it. Back a few weeks ago, I started experiencing severe pain and strain in my hands and arms, which neither ice, nor rest, nor scarfing down Advil as if they were M & M's seemed to abate. I hied myself to a doctor forthwith, as my hands and my arms are not just my livelihood, I WASN'T ABLE TO STITCH. That, my dear friends, is what caused sheer panic at the disco. I could not even hold a mere 6 inch Q-snap frame and stitch for any length of time. The thought of potentially having to give up a hobby that I have been practicing and collecting for the last 15-20 years was too much to bear. I procured a recommendation from a coworker and made an appointment. It wasn't as bad as I feared, however, I will have to change some things, take some drugs that probably aren't covered by my insurance after the samples have run out, and cut back some of my hours at work. Such is the price we pay, being in this thing called life, eh? I am counting my blessings that it wasn't as bad as I had feared, and there are simple things I can do to assist in the recovery of my person and for long term health and well being. Yay for that, yea? :)
It's taken a bit of time, but I feel a lot better and I am now able to stitch for short periods of time. I started one of these before my hands and arms gave me the middle finger, and the other I started the other day. Here I present my meager offerings for your viewing pleasure :)
***Stitcher's notes: One thread silk over 2 fabric threads.
Well, I best be off for now. I have to work today, and I have some things to do before I go. Hope everyone is having a great week and stitching their butts off! :)
Taking a break from studying to screw around on the intarwebs, because, well, that's what the intarwebs are for, no? Posting captioned pictures of cats and social networking, yea? :D
Yesterday was apparently, tying up loose ends day. It was also SanMan Sunday. Some of the ladies of the SMO message board have chosen Sundays to stitch on any SMO projects. I finished off two SMO's and a LHN that had been sitting for a bit. I'm happy to have them completed. I put the Cross Eyed Cricket that I had been working on back in the Q-Snaps and I will be working on that from now on. It's over halfway completed, so I hope to have it finished soon. Then I can start on a present for DH, Maria Diaz' Seafarer's Globe from a UK magazine. I have a hideously expensive piece of Legacy Linen by Picture This Plus to stitch it on. I got all of the DMC threads for it this morning at Michael's, however, they did not have one of the colors I needed, so I will pick that up later. I am waffling between using Kreinik braid and Rainbow Gallery's petite Treasure Braid. The design calls for DMC Light Effects and I'd rather have major dental surgery than to stitch with that crap. I haven't really used PTB, however, there is some in the Checkered Love kit by M Designs. I may wait on the stitching of the map until I've had a chance to try the PTB out.
Well, here are the finishes, that were finished last night, 02.28.10.
Finish #1:
Designer: Diane Williams of Little House Needleworks
Fabric: 28 count light cream Monaco evenweave
Fibers: Crescent Colours House Wine, Hickory Sticks and Bean Sprout, DMC 434, 644, 676, 937, and B5200
Note: Substituted CC Hickory Sticks for the called for DMC 3371 as I did not have 3371 in my bags at the time. (Usually, it's the other way around...DMC for specialty threads, LOL!)
Finish #2 and 3:
On the right:
Design: Snow Much
Designer: Sandra Dering for SanMan Originals for SMO Members Only
Fabric: 28 count opalescent lugana
Fibers: DMC B5200, 305, 601 and 3806
On the right:
Design: Kiss Me February 2010 Calendar
Designer: Sandra Dering for SanMan Originals for SMO Members Only
Fabric: 16 count (I think!) pale pink aida
Fibers: DMC 318, 415, 602, 603 and a tiny bit of Kreinik blending filament
Here is the current WIP. Please bear in mind the lighting is not good today, so the picture isn't the best. :/:
Design: February Heart from CEC Leaflet #240 Peace
Designer: Cross Eyed Cricket
Fibers: DMC 224, 500, 503, 822, 3032, 3033, 3721
Fabric: 28 count Monaco, hand dyed by me in a color I like to refer to as Dark Honey Ale :)
Here is The Next Big Thing. I swear I love the planning and pulling of mats better than i like stitching at times! I really get into changing the threads and fabrics to make a project uniquely my own. :P
Design: Seafarer's Globe from the UK CrossStitcher magazine #187, June 2007 edition
Designer: Maria Diaz
Fabric 28 count linen by Picture This Plus in Legacy
Fibers: DMC
In the above picture, you can tell that the 3031 is the odd man and is the one that Michael's did not have. I will pick another one up at Joanne's or maybe Stitcher's Paradise later this week. I managed to somehow snap one one but TWO of my beloved platinum needles by John James and both were my favorites. Le sigh.
The Hubmeister and I watched the heartbreaking loss of the US men's Olympic team to Canada in hockey for the gold medal yesterday. The US played their hearts out and I am proud to say, it wasn't a 'Gimme' for the Canadians in the least. Luongo gave up two goals, and BOTH were entirely his fault. Maybe now the yapping will cease that Marty is 'washed up' and a 'burned out has-been'. Luongo is naught but 30, but consistency has never been his forte. I noticed that when the Canadian players were being announced as they were being given their gold medals, Luongo was summarily booed, while Marty was cheered, despite the fact that Marty was pulled after the Canadians suffered a loss to the US in the preliminary rounds. Intéressant, n'est pas?
Two US players were of particular note during the game. Thanks to NJ Devil Number Nine, Mr. Zach Parise, the USA managed to hang on until an OT could be played. Thank you, Mr. Parise, for giving the US hope and that was one HELL of a goal, 24 seconds before the end of regulation play tying the game 2-2, forcing a sudden death OT.
And of course, much thanks and gratitude go out to Mr. Ryan Miller, of the Buffalo Sabres who was backstopping for Team USA. Without you, Mr. Miller, Team Canada would have run all over us, like a John Deere in the middle of harvest season in Iowa. Team USA could not have hung on like they did without you and some of the most awesome goal tending I have ever seen, and that includes my beloved Martin Brodeur. You played your heart out and made the Canadians earn every last goal, right down to the wire and for that I thank you. I am proud that you played and started for Team USA and silver medal is nothing to be ashamed of. I saw the disappointment and heartbreak written all over your face and oh, how I wish the US could have scored the goal first! You did more than your best and for that I thank you. After your performance, while I may be a Jersey Devil girl forever, I am a Ryan Miller fan for life. :)
For Mr. Miller:
Hope everyone is having a good start to their week. I've screwed around long enough and now need to go study some more. :P
