Finished Pieces

Just thought I would post pictures of some of the pieces I finished for Christmas this year. I forgot to take photos before wrapping up a couple of the others, but here are a few that I did manage to photograph first:


Click to enlarge all images.

The piece on the left is a free Bent Creek pattern called "Swirlygig," which I finished in a Betsy Box from Sudberry House. I lined the inside of the box with green felt and I think it came out nice. This was the first box I ever used, and I learned some things about putting the needlework in the top... I would probably put in an extra piece of stiff cardboard next time to make the whole thing feel a little more sturdy. I used two layers of low-loft batting behind the needlework and that seemed to be about the right amount of lift it needed. I'd like to stitch this design again using different colors, but I knew these colors (as charted) would go well in the bedroom of the person I made this for.

The piece on the right is also finished in a Sudberry House box, and you can see another view of it here. I made this for my mom, who has a lot of red in her kitchen and house. The design is "Delivering Flurries" by Homespun Elegance, which I stitched back in August. I added brass buttons for the wheels on the wagon and the bird's basket... I think the original design showed the bird carrying ice skates, but I liked the basket button better. I used the low-loft batting on this one and lined the box with green felt, too.



This black cat is a Rico pattern (from Germany) that I have stitched before. It's stitched with Anchor colors. I made this for friends of ours who love black cats as much as we do, and framed it in a little 5X5 desktop frame. I left the glass in it to protect the piece, and you can see my reflection in the picture. Oops!



And just a couple more. The one on the left is a Bent Creek pattern (Robin on an Egg) that I stitched in September. I really like working with the overdyed fibers and this was just a fun stitch. I used a blue suede desktop frame for it, that I thought matched the design well.

The one on the right is another rooster finished in a Sudberry House trivet. Again, I really don't think these "trivets" should be used as trivets... they just don't seem to protect the needlework all that well. But they would make nice dresser trays or something. This design was from an old kit I got on eBay -- I would like to stitch it again for myself (along with the other rooster, which I posted in the previous entry).

So that's most of what I did for Christmas. Of all the stitching I finished this year, I think the only pieces I am keeping for myself are the tea towels (I did three). I do love tea towels and all kinds of practical pieces! But there are still lots of WIPs, and a few things I'd like to finish for the baby, and the list goes on. As it always does.

Hope you all had a good year of stitching, and that 2006 will be even better!

A Small Update

Here is pansy number five on the SAL I am (slowly) stitching with Renee. I found this one tough to stitch, because two of the colors of orange are so very close... I think they were 221 and 222 (though I could be remembering wrong). But anyway, here it is. Click here to see my progress so far on the whole piece; I have done five out of sixteen pansies.

I really haven't felt much like stitching in the last couple of months. I've been pretty stressed out, so stitching would have been a good idea, but I just couldn't seem to buckle down to it in the evenings.

Now I am trying to frame and otherwise finish some things I made earlier this year (of course I am giving some of these things away for Christmas). Here are a couple of things I framed this week:


Click to enlarge.

I framed the rooster on the left in a trivet from Sudberry House, but I almost think it would be better used as a dresser tray or something. There is nothing remotely watertight about that "trivet," and if anything spilled on it I don't think it would fare too well. On the right is a small Marjolein Bastin design (my first foray with evenweave, if I remember correctly) framed in a matted wood frame from IKEA. Neither of these are too fancy but I do think they look nice.

I have some wooden boxes with frame holes cut in the top, and now I am trying to figure out how to line the boxes once I get the needlework in there. I have no idea. I am imagining some kind of process involving velvet, batting, and a hot glue gun, but maybe there is an easier way? Any suggestions would be most appreciated.

Sorry I haven't been keeping this blog up too well. I am in my 8th month of pregnancy now, and it is very difficult to concentrate on stitching or writing about stitching. I'm also dealing with gestational diabetes and it has pretty much knocked me for a loop. I am slowly regaining my equilibrium but it is taking a while.

I'll post more pictures of the finished pieces as I get them done.