Spring Time finish

Managed to finish another project that's was a WIPocalypse goal that I had set for myself. On a *roll* here people :D! This one sat for a bit because I had a bit of a hard time seeing the fabric. In my defense is IS a 34 count, which is WAY lower than what I usually stitch on. I'm a 14/28 kinda gal, and have always admired folks who can stitch on tiny thread counts. I wish I could stitch on a 40 count, but I'd have to have a magnifier and I'm not sure I want to make that kind of investment. Eh, a decision for another day. :)


I tweaked the design a bit as is my custom. It originally said 'Spring Time' however, I changed it to 'Stitch Time', left off the border and will attach an antique button to it later on. I am thinking about doing a pinkeep with this one, as I have not ever made one and I'm weary of framing things.


At any rate, here it is:


Design: Spring Time


Designer: Citrouille's Designs


Fabric: 34 count linen in Oaten Scone by Access Commodities


Fiber: Gloriana Threads silk floss in #188 Northern Lights

Well, I best be off. Things to do for tomorrow and I need to get out another project to finish. No rest for the wicked! :P


Hope everyone is having a great week! :)


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Respectfully submitted,

C.

Spring Fling 2012 March Contest

There are two equinoxes every year – in March and September – when the sun shines directly on the equator and the length of day and night is nearly equal. Seasons are opposite on either side of the equator, so the equinox in March is also known as the "spring equinox" in the northern hemisphere. However, in the southern hemisphere, it's known as the "autumnal (fall) equinox".



What all this basically means is that I am finally having a contest, LOL! I have been organizing my stitching closet and other places. I have decided that I have come to a point in my stash accumulation that I will only do so much and some things I will just never get to. That being said, here is the goody bag in question:




~ Mini kits from the UK cross stitching magazine. These are complete with all the materials, including the charts. I have started two of these and know I will never finish them. Designers include Margaret Sherry, Fizzy Moon, Disney, Julia Hawkins, and Bentley Bear.

~Original hard copy charts: Brittercup Designs, DMC, Imaginating, Lanarte, Lavender Wings, Lizzie Kate, Michael Powell, Popcorn Bear, Boofle, Adam Prescott and SanMan Originals.

~ Three magazines: Cross Stitch Quick, issue 11 March 2004. Cross Stitch and Needlework September 2008. This includes the Nora Corbett Halloween Fairy which was designed exclusively for the magazine. Cross Stitch Collection Issue 124 Christmas 2005. This is just the magazine. Please note that the Victorian Christmas magazine insert is *NOT* included.


~ Accouterments: Shiny metallic threads, mini stitch bag, stitchable mirror and case, plus probably fabrics and some other threads. More will probably be added to this. :)




Now, for the 'rules':


1. Please post a comment to this post ONLY, please.

2. One entry per person.

3. I will ship anywhere in the world. :)

4. Followers of my blog get a second entry, although it is not necessary to be a follower.

5. Contest ends Sunday, March 25th, 2012.


Thanks for entering and good luck! :)


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Respectfully submitted,


C.

Thank you notes to heaven (Salem 1692 finish)

Put the last stitches in Salem 1692 last night. I really enjoyed stitching this piece. I deliberately left off the stars, as I am hoping to find some charms in different finishes that I can attach instead of stitching them in yet more Old Crow. :P


At any rate, here is the finish:



Design: Salem Witch



Designer: Lisa Roswell of The Primitive Needle


Fabric: 28 count linen in Legacy by Picture This Plus


Fibers: Crescent Colours Belle Soie silk in Old Crow.



***Stitcher's note: Stitched one strand of silk over two threads to achieve a more aged look.

It is my custom that when I finish a piece, I generally email the designer to show them what I did with their work and to thank them for designing the piece. I feel very sad that I cannot email Lisa Roswell and show her what I have done. I hope she would have liked what I have done. It was a joy to stitch and I have other pieces of hers that are on my Mount Everest sized to do list. If there is internet access in Heaven, I hope she sees this and is happy with my work. I tried to do the piece justice and I hope I accomplished the vintage look she always favored in her designs. Thank you so much, Mrs. Roswell. I spent many an enjoyable hour stitching this piece and I look forward to stitching more of your designs!


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Respectfully submitted,


C.

Finally, a finish!

Went to Stitcher's Paradise on Wednesday for a supply run & got some much needed floss to finish up the current WIP. I finished it yesterday during a Law & Order: SVU marathon. I decided to skip the alphabet that surrounds the design, as I really didn't think it added anything to the overall design. That, and I really did not feel like stitching the alphabet this time around. :P



At any rate, here it is, at long last....a finish :)



Design: October Quaker from the leaflet Quaker Evens


Designer: The Workbasket


Fabric: 32 count linen in Golden Maple by Fleur de Luce Hand Dyeds


Fiber Used: Crescent Colours hand dyed cotton in German Chocolate

I also put some time in on the 1692 piece I started in the meantime. This one is going very quickly and I like how it is coming together:



Design: Salem Witch


Designer: Lisa Roswell of The Primitive Needle


Fabric: 28 count linen in Legacy by Picture This Plus


Fibers: Crescent Colours Belle Soie silk in Old Crow.


Stitcher's notes: One strand of floss over two threads. Substituted the called for Lasagna for Carrot Cake.

Well, I best be off. Tons to do today! Hope everyone is having a great week! :)


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Respectfully submitted,


C.

October Quaker and Salem Witch

Well, I seem to be stitching a bit more, which is good, considering the amount of stash I have :P. The first WIP I have is the October Quaker from The Workbasket . I won't be able to finish it until tomorrow or the day after, as I made a huge error and had to frog out a large section, thus resulting in running out of floss. I am going to Stitcher's Paradise tomorrow for a supply run. I won't be able to stay to stitch, as I am now working on Wednesdays :(. Sucks to be me, but I have a job and it pays fairly well.


At any rate, here is what I have so far. Almost finished, yay!




Design: October Quaker from the leaflet Quaker Evens


Designer: The Workbasket


Fabric: 32 count linen in Golden Maple by Fleur de Luce Hand Dyeds


Fiber Used: Crescent Colours hand dyed cotton in German Chocolate








I started a new WIP last night while watching the old Jeremy Brett Sherlock Holmes via Netflix. I love Mr. Brett in this series and I never get tired of watching the Granada produced Sherlock Holmes.


Here is the wee bit I managed to get in before bed:


Design: Salem Witch


Designer: Lisa Roswell of The Primitive Needle


Fabric: 28 count linen in Legacy by Picture This Plus


Fibers: Crescent Colours Belle Soie silk in Old Crow.



***Stitcher's note: Stitched one strand of silk over two threads.






Well, I need bolt for the door. Lots to do before work today. Hope everyone is having a great day!


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Respectfully submitted,

C.

October Quaker

Well, I have managed to make a wee bit of progress on my newest WIP, albeit not very much. I am hoping to work on it some more today as we were not busy at work at all and I am not very tired. I'm really liking this color combination, although, next time I am going to have to try an opalescent instead. :)


At any rate, here's what I have so far:


Design: October Quaker from the leaflet Quaker Evens


Designer: The Workbasket


Fabric: 32 count linen in Golden Maple by Fleur de Luce Hand Dyeds


Fiber Used: Crescent Colours hand dyed cotton in German Chocolate

Well, I best be off for now. Hope everyone is having a wonderful week! :)


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Respectfully submitted,


C.

New hand dyed fabric! :)

New post over on my hand dyed blog:


Fleur de Luce Hand Dyeds


TFL! :)


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Respectfully submitted,

C.

Christmas In July

Managed to finish up another UFO from this year's list. Feels good to have another one done. Managed to get this one finished during a Law & Order: SVU marathon. Been on the couch since last night due to throwing my low back out. At least it gave me an excuse to lay on the couch and stitch, eh? ;)





At any rate, here's the finish:




Design: Merry Christmas from the Joyeux Noël design book


Designer: Blackbird Designs


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


Fibers: Crescent Colours cotton flosses in Antique Lace, Clay Pot, Four Leaf Clover, Spinach, and Wild Berries

I am thinking about taking out the date on the right hand side. I think it make the design unbalanced, so to speak. I'll put it away for now and think about it some.

I've pulled out another one, and I hope to get it finished soon. For now, I need to get back to the couch and back to stitching. Hope everyone is having a great week! :)


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Respectfully submitted,


C.

Merry Stitchmas!

Sorry for the lack of posting. Work has been busy and most nights I am too pooped to (cross stitch) party. It's been a long time since I had a physically active job, however, I love the work that I do and look forward to each new day.


Here is what I have so far:





Design: Merry Christmas from the Joyeux Noël design book


Designer: Blackbird Designs


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


Fibers: Crescent Colours cotton flosses in Antique Lace, Clay Pot, Four Leaf Clover, Spinach, and Wild Berries

I'm taking this with me to Stitcher's Paradise tomorrow for the Wednesday stitch in. I look forward to this every week, as it's my true me time. I am looking forward to spending time with "The Girls" and stitching my little heart out!




Hope everyone is having a wonderful week and a very merry Stitchmas!


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Respectfully submitted,

C.

Collard Greens

Got to make my trip to Stitcher's Paradise yesterday for the Crescent Colours Belle Soie silk I needed for the pumpkin vines. I even sat down with the ladies that stitch on Wednesdays and the next thing I knew it was 2:30 when I left, LOL! It was a most enjoyable experience and I plan on repeating it next week. It was lovely to get help from the other ladies and to help others with what they needed.


I had a hard time choosing what color green I wanted for the pumpkin vines, however, I think I did ok! :P Since I was at the shop stitching and I stitched some more last night, I got a fair amount completed. I am really, really happy with the way that it is turning out. I may have to stitch this again! :)


At any rate, here's what I have so far:

Design: Waiting For The Harvest


Designer: Blackbird Designs

Fabric: 28 count evenweave of unknown origin and color. (Possibly Bay Leaf by Wichelt.)


Fibers: Crescent Colours Belle Soie silks in Carrot Cake, Collard Greens, Old Crow, and Vanilla Pudding

Well, today is my Monday so I best be off. Hope everyone has a great weekend!


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Respectfully submitted,


C.

A Wee Bit Of An Update

Got a little bit more done on the sampler. I changed two of the bottom squares to my initials and the year, rather than have the stars in those areas. I think I like it better this way. I am hoping to get it completed soon, so I can move back to my WIPs and UFOs.

At any rate, here's my updated progress! :)



Design: A Quaker Alphabet Sampler



Designer: Carriage House Samplings


Fabric: 28 count Monaco fabric in Majesty by Fleur de Luce Hand Dyeds


Floss: Threadworx 1082 Cabbage and DMC 3866

I need to go for now. Hope everyone is having a great day! :)


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Respectfully submitted,


C.

Last Finish For April 2010

Well, May Day is tomorrow, and I managed to put the final stitches in Summer Side in just moments ago. I used buttons in place of some of the stitching, but, I think it looks really good the way it is. I also used beads instead of French knots for the flowers, but then again, French knots are not my forte. :P


Anyhoo, on with the show! :)

Design: Summer Side

Designer: Sandra Dering of SanMan Originals for the SanMan Originals Secret Shop

Fabric: hand dyed by Yours Truly; color Dark Honey Ale

Fibers: DMC B5200, 310, 321, 699, 702, 729, 743, and 796. DMC Satin in S666. DMC Light Effects in E825. Kreinik Very Fine Braid #4 in #001.

Accouterments: Mill Hill frosted glass beads in #60479, Just Another Button Company large bee, small bee, and ladybugs. Converted strawberry button by unknown manufacturer.

Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend! :)


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Respectfully submitted,

C.

Trying new things

A while back, I may have mentioned (or not!) that since I was turning 40, I wanted to try some new things. The purpose of this was to get out of my shell and get to *doing* things, rather than reading about other people doing them. To get out of my comfort zone. Blah, blah, blah, you get the idea. :)


Yesterday, I decided to hand dye some fabrics that I had laying around. I gathered up some evenweaves and a pen and pad and various other supplies and got to work. I had also thrown in some plain old DMC just for giggles and dyed those as well. I had an absolute blast doing this, although, I need to perfect the dyeing of threads so they don't get so tangled up. :/ I will be on the lookout for tools and what all to make this job easier, and with a bit of luck, I can Alton Brown the thing and make up my own rig. :)


Anyway, here's the results of my efforts. I dyed six pieces of fabric, two skeins of floss, and slapped together two floss cards. They aren't the fancy ones, but eventually, I will get around to making those. Please let me know what you think! :)


PS: Quick note, I know the fabrics aren't serged and trust me, I have a serger on my Christmas list this year. If anyone can recommend a plain old one that isn't too fancy-schmancy, I'd love to know about it! :)


Notes:


Fabrics from left to right: Café au Lait, Mocha, Guinness Foam, Sour Mash.


Flosses in Heavy Cream and Ivory.


Floss cards: on the left, cotton print fabric in purple flowers. On the right, dark green velvet.









Current WIP:


Design: Paris Sampler


Designer: Stofnest


Fibers: DMC 839, 840, and 841


Fabric: 28 count jobelan in Café au Lait.











And in other news, it seems my work has appeared on two more blogs, Blackbird Designs' Show and Tell...finally post and on Aurorebbb's 21 mars 2010 posting. Yay!! Go, me!! I'm now global!! Hahahaha! :D


I am trying out Flickr and so far, I'm really liking it. Hopefully, it will allow me to ditch the crappy Webshots and make for a more pleasant experience without all those God forsaken 'interactive' ads for Delsym and cleaning products! :P


Well, I am off. I have lunch to make and I need to get ready for my Prep class this afternoon. Hope everyone is having a great day!


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Respectfully submitted,


C.