Hot Off The Q-Snaps

I finished this latest piece up just moments ago. It took exactly a week to finish the stitching. It probably would have taken only a few days to complete, but I was not in a hurry and just stitched when I felt like it. The stitching however, has been completed just moments ago and I am pleased with the outcome. 

Design: Sampler 69b

Designer: Ria Lanser of Stofnest Designs 

Fabric Used: 36 count Edinburgh linen by Hand Dyed Fibers in 

Xenops 5315 (equivalent to DMC 762, very pale grey)

Fibers Used: Crescent Colours Belle Soie silk in Old Crow

Stitcher's Notes: Both the chart and the designer are retired. Began Wednesday, December 7, 2016. Finished Wednesday, December 14, 2016. 

Finished Wednesday, December 14, 2016:

Well, I had best be off. I need to figure out what, if anything, will be my next project. I suppose I should really stitch something more in line with the season. But alas, my holiday stitching apathy is continuing unabated. Hopefully, this ceases at the soonest possible moment.

I hope everyone is enjoying their holiday season and I hope you all are having a great week!

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Respectfully submitted,

C. 

Wanted: Mojo

Because I seem to have lost mine. I was terribly excited to start the much anticipated Noel 2009 by A Mon Ami Pierre. However, when I went to start the project, everything just sort of fell flat. I could not get into the project at all. I am terribly disappointed in this turn of events, as I was so looking forward to the project. These things happen I suppose, but it sure is rotten when it does happen. 

I have taken to cleaning out my stitching area again and getting things organized as well as decorating for the holiday season. In doing so, I came across a freebie design that I have had for quite some time. It reminded me of the Vierlanden samplers. Vierlanden is an marshy area south east of Hamburg, Germany where these distinct samplers were made. The name dates back to 1556 and refers to the four parishes Curslack , Kirchwerder , Neuengamme and Altengamme that are identical to the present districts. Most of them were made in the first half of the 1800's although there are a few from the late 1700's. All contain similar geometric motifs and flowering plants in urns. The motifs were stitched on various household linens. 

I am also quite keen on stitching these samplers. The catch was, I did not feel like stitching a huge project. And most Vierlanden samplers are quite large. However, this design is not that large (approximately 100 by 100 stitches), and it is a monochrome. Traditionally, Vierlanden samplers are stitched with black thread on white fabric, however, there are some Vierlanden samplers that were stitched with whatever materials were available at the time of the stitchers' choosing. I chose this latest start as I had the materials available and it appealed to me. 

Well, at any rate, here is what I have so far: 

Design: Sampler 69b

Designer: Ria Lanser of Stofnest Designs 

Fabric Used: 36 count Edinburgh linen by Hand Dyed Fibers in 

Xenops 5315 (equivalent to DMC 762, very pale grey)

Fibers Used: Crescent Colours Belle Soie silk in Old Crow

Stitcher's Notes: Both the chart and the designer are retired. 

I am really taking my time with this one, as nothing holiday or winter related is really calling to me. I have almost decided that next year will be dedicated to cleaning up more of the Bin O'Shame projects and working on some of my HAEDs and larger projects. I haven't quite decided, however, this is where I am leaning so far. 

Time for me to bolt for the door. I hope everyone is having a great week and a wonderful holiday season!

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Respectfully submitted,

C. 

To Boldly Go

where I have never gone before. This latest finish was a combination of designer, floss and fabric that I have never used in my 20+ years of stitching. It was a lovely little experiment and I really enjoyed playing around with things. 

The floss is by Rainbow Gallery and it is a 12 ply silk floss, called Splendor. It was my first time trying it. It seems a bit thinner than my ubiquitous Au Ver À Soie  Soie d'Alger or my Crescent Colours Belle Soie silk. It is as soft as both of these, however, and it is less than $4.00 per card at my LNS. As I have a number of fall related projects that I wish to stitch up, I am looking at cost this time around. 

The also new to me fabric that I used is a 22 count linen called Ariosa. It is by Zweigart and it is a very nice fabric. It a 60% Viscose, 40% Cotton linen in a 22 count. I purchased this particular piece in a white and dyed it myself. I love the way it turned out. It is perfect for the piece that I had chosen to stitch. 

The designer was also new to me. While the chart was a freebie, I had never stitched any of the designs by Teresa Murgida of Primitive Acorns. I have had this particular freebie for quite some time, but never got around to stitching it. It stitched up in less than a day, and probably would have taken less than two hours, had I 'applied' myself. But it was Saturday, so I was not in the mood to 'apply' myself to anything but faffing about. :)


At any rate, here are my efforts from yesterday. 

Design: The King of Autumn (freebie)

Designer: Teresa Murgida of Primitive Acorns

Fabric Used: 22 count Ariosa linen by Zweigart in Weathered Barn by Fleur De Luce hand dyeds. 

Fibers Used: Rainbow Gallery Splendor 12 ply silk floss in Black (S801). Crescent Colours Belle Soie silk Collard Greens, Harvest, Mango, Pumpkin Carriage, Tree Trunk and Tulip. 2 mm silk ribbon in Witchcraft by Vicki Clayton of Hand Dyed Fibers. Kreinik #002C Gold cord. 

Stitchers' notes: Began and finished the stitching on Saturday, August 14, 2016. Fabric, Splendor fibers and designer were firsts. Fabric hand dyed by me. 

Well, I must be off. I need to do some things to get ready for the week. I hope everyone is having a great weekend!

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Respectfully submitted,

C. 

The Last Finish For July 2016

This tiny little finish is courtesy of the Blackbird Designs Lending Library. It arrived in the mail the other day, and I was anxious to get to it. Although we have up to eight weeks to finish a project, I get antsy after about a week or so. I don't want anyone thinking I've made off with their chart, ya know? :)

As is my custom, the main design was nice, but the smaller project attached to it appealed to me more. I have some fabrics that I can pair with this to make it an actual pincushion. I am toying with the idea of hand dying my own rickrack trim for this project, but if I manage to find something that looks better than the picture in my head, I will certainly use that instead. :)

At any rate, here is my latest effort:

Design: Patchwork Pinkeep

Designer: Blackbird Designs

Fabric Used: 36 count linen by Hand Dyed Fibers in Earth Stars-5211 (equivalent to DMC 822)

Fibers Used: Au Ver a Soie Soie 100/3 Spun Silk in 004, 124, 126, 197, 312, and 705.

Stitcher's Notes: Stitched one strand of floss over two fabric threads. Design created exclusively for the Silver Needle Stitching Club. Chart on loan from Patricia G of the Blackbird Designs Lending Library Facebook Group. Replaced the cotton embroidery floss for silks. Substituted cross stitch for satin stitch on the inside of the leaves. 

I had best be off. I hope everyone had a great weekend and I wish everyone an awesome week!

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Respectfully submitted,

C. 

Tiny Fall Finish

I really lollygagged on this one. It should have taken all of a day at most, however, here I am, over a week later and it's finally finished. This week was a wee bit busy, and to be honest, I wasn't feeling all that up to scratch. I am hoping that this changes, as I have many projects that I wish to work on. This also includes the loaner chart from the Blackbird Designs Lending Library. It arrived in the mail and I really do need to get to it. 

I love the way this one turned out. It's a seasonal freebie and I can see stitching this as a Halloween tree as well. Once I finish with the loaner chart from the Blackbird Designs Lending Library, I may do just that!

At any rate, here is my humble offering:

Design: L'Arbre d'Automne

Designer: Jardin Privé 

Fabric Used: 36 count linen by Hand Dyed Fibers in Earth Stars-5213

Fibers Used: Au Ver À Soie  Soie d'Alger in 4126. Crescent Colours Belle Soie silk in Carrot Cake, Cinnamon Stick, Cranberry, and Old Crow.

Stitchers Notes: Freebie may be found here. Substituted called for DMC floss for silks of my own choosing. Will be stitching this again as a Halloween tree. 

Well, I had best be off. Tons to do today and I need to get myself in gear here. :)

Hope everyone has a fantastic weekend! :)

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Respectfully submitted,

C. 

Getting A Head Start On Halloween

While I am awaiting another loaner chart from the Blackbird Designs Lending Library , I decided that I could wait no longer to stitch on a Halloween or Fall related piece. I have been really indifferent towards stitching, despite the  happy dance that occurred when I procured more long sought after Good Huswif and Primitive Needle designs. 

I saw this one in the 2016 Just Cross Stitch Halloween bookazine (Issue four, Volume 9) and knew right away this was the next piece that I was going to stitch. I do not have a sewing machine in order to make this into a pillow as it is finished in the bookazine. But perhaps with the forthcoming fall and halloween merchandise that is already appearing in Michael's and Joann's, I will be able to finish this in a different way. 

At any rate, here is the latest finish:

Design: The Skeleton Key

Designer: Lee Fisher of StitchyFish Designs

Fabric Used: 36 count Edinburgh linen by Hand Dyed Fibers in 

Xenops 5315 (equivalent to DMC 762, very pale grey)

Fibers Used: Crescent Colours Belle Soie silk in Old Crow

Stitcher's Notes: Chart featured on page 85 of the 2016 Just Cross Stitch Halloween bookazine (Issue four, Volume 9). Began Thursday, July 14, 2016. Finished Saturday, July 16, 2016.

Well, time for me to go. I need to clean up my stitching area and find something else to stitch on. 

Hope everyone is having a great weekend!

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Respectfully submitted,

C. 

#35 And A New Start

Here is another one I should have waited to post as I managed to finish it up the same day that it was posted. Although, in my defense, when I had posted yesterday, I was still waffling as to whether or not I wanted to add any of the smaller elements around the design, or perhaps stitch the raven one over one one on the right side. I decided that where I was was a good stopping point, so I just left it as is. When I was finished, I cleaned up and had to wait until today for good sunlight in order to take a halfway decent picture. It took a bit longer to finish than it should have, however, the one symbol that the designer chose to use was a giant plus sign  that takes up almost the whole block. As such, it makes counting out stitches a bit difficult. Ah, well. These things happen. 

At any rate, here is the tiny finish that I had last night after dinner. I enjoyed stitching the piece. 

Design: Thine Is The Trick And The Treat (retired and out of print design)

Designer: Prairie Moon (retired designer)

Fabric: Fleur de Luce Hand Dyeds (that's me!) 28 count Monaco fabric in Storm Clouds 

Fibers: Hand Dyed Fibers in Old Maid of the Abyss , Six Strand Regular (discontinued floss line).  Access Commodities Soie d'Alger in Blanc.

Stitcher's Notes: Last stitched Thursday, November 4, 2010. Please note that at this time, this chart is not for either sale or trade. Since completed, this is now #35 from the Bin O'Shame.

As of Thursday, November 4, 2010:

As of Friday, September 4, 2015:

Finished late Friday, September 4, 2015:

Afterwards, I was looking for another project to stitch and didn't feel like stitching anything out of the Bin O'Shame. There *was* a project that I wanted to stitch, however, I could not get a good read on the floss toss I was doing. So, I elected to wait until another time to stitch Plum Pudding Needleart's Blessed Be. This design has been in my stash for quite some time and one that I really am in the mood to do. Since I could not get a good 'read' from the fibers and floss that I had pulled for Blessed Be, I decided to go ahead and stitch something completely new. I decided that instead of kitting something up, just grab something from Kit Mountain, which is what I am calling the several bins that are storing the projects that are all kitted up and ready to go. This way, I get to start in on those bins before my anticipated start date of January 1 for next years' stitching goals. Woohoo! Two lists tackle in the same year! Go me! 

Well, at any rate, here is the project that I chose for my overnight weekend:

Design: Cats For All Seasons Autumn Cat (3 of 4)

Designer: Nancy Javier and Barbara Finwall of Banar Designs for Better Homes and Gardens

Fabric: 14 count khaki aida of unknown manufacturer

Fibers Used: Unknown as provided in the kit

Bling Used:  Mill Hill beads in #02031 Citron

Stitcher's Notes: Once completed, the Spring Cat is the last in the series to stitch. 


Began Friday, September 4, 2015:

Well, I had best be off. I need to take care of a few things before I can get back at it. Happy weekend everyone! :)

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Respectfully submitted,

C. 

The Overnight Shift On Flashback Friday

This is my weekend for the overnight shift. I generally choose projects that are easy to stitch on and do not require a great deal of concentration. I also have the house fully cleaned, errands completed and meals laid out for the entire weekend. I decided on this project as I am itching to stitch on fall/Halloween related projects. I decided that I am not a fan of this color combination and that I would only stitch a portion of the design. I will probably make turn this into a flatfold or perhaps an oversized ornament. I am thinking that when I go to stitch the entire piece as it, it will probably be stitched on 32 count Belfast linen in Legacy  by Picture This Plus, from their Crystal line with black silk floss. That seems to be my 'go to' for a lot of Halloween pieces.  

Well, as this piece has been waiting to see the light of day for almost 5 years, I guess I better get on with it :). Here it is, #35 from the Bin O'Shame:

Design: Thine Is The Trick And The Treat 

Designer: Prairie Moon  (retired designer)

Fabric: Fleur de Luce Hand Dyeds 28 count Monaco fabric in Storm Clouds 

Fibers: Hand Dyed Fibers in Old Maid of the Abyss , Six Strand Regular (discontinued floss line).  Access Commodities Soie d'Alger in Blanc.

Stitcher's Notes: Last stitched Thursday, November 4, 2010. Please note that at this time, this chart is not for either sale or trade. When completed, this will be #35 from the Bin O'Shame.

As of Thursday, November 4, 2010:

As of Friday, September 4, 2015:

Well, I had best be off. I hope my US folks have a wonderful Labor day weekend. I wish everyone a happy weekend! :)

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Respectfully submitted,

C. 

Thine Is The Trick And The Treat

Yea, yea, yea. I know, I know, I know. I need another start like I need a hole in the head, but yesterday I finally got around to dyeing fabric for Prairie Moon's For Thine Is The Trick And The Treat. Which was a jolly good thing, because my threads from Hand Dyed Fibers came in. I approached these with a LOT of trepidation, as the last time I dealt with them, they shredded and knotted like no one's business. I also prefer a smoother silk, rather than a nubbly one that looks more like perle cotton. Know what I mean?


When they arrived in the mail, I was looking for actual skeins, which was what I ordered. Six skeins at five yards each. What I received instead was the floss wound on spools. 

This was actually a pleasant surprise. It's nice to have it on a spool so there are no creases in the thread, which I appreciate. However, I have had it knot up on me once or twice so far, but I will try thread lengths of no more than 10-12 inches and see if that does not fix the issue. I plan on using two other colors in this project. I won't finish it any time soon, as I have Ghostly Quaker and the Christmas Cabin which MUST be completed by the end of the month, NO EXCEPTIONS!!! The Christmas Cabin is a Christmas gift, so you can understand my clamping down on myself about that one. I'm about to get into the really busy season at work, so my stitching will fall by the wayside as consequence. But it WILL get done. Oh, yes, my friend. It WILL get done! :D



At any rate, here are the preliminary stitches in For Thine Is The Trick. I'm really liking how it's turning out so far!


Design: Thine Is The Trick And The Treat



Designer: Prairie Moon


Fabric: Fleur de Luce Hand Dyeds 28 count Monaco fabric in Storm Clouds

Fibers: Hand Dyed Fibers in Old Maid of the Abyss , Six Strand Regular.

Well, it's my Monday, so I have to get some things ready for work. Hope everyone has an awesome weekend! :)


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Respectfully submitted,

C.