The Stitchery

Tutorials

2007-08-14T16:47:00.000-04:00

Just a couple of tutorials I want to keep track of:

Tissue Cozy

Crayon Roll

Thanks to Day for the ideas. :-)

One last update from the Christmas stitching

2006-01-31T14:12:00.000-05:00

Here's a picture of one of the other items I finished for Christmas last year:

Click to enlarge

It's a Bent Creek pattern (Arbor Day) stitched on natural linen using Weeks Dye Works and Gentle Arts Sampler Threads fibers. I like the different characters of the three trees, and how it fits in the frame. I stitched it for a friend who loves trees, natch.

Sorry for the extreme lack of stitching content around here lately -- but it's the natural result of an extreme lack of stitching. We're expecting a baby any day now, so I think the drought is likely to continue for a while longer...

Finished Pieces

2005-12-30T09:42:00.000-05:00

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

2005-12-10T20:14:00.000-05:00

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.

No time to stitch!

2005-10-16T16:47:00.000-04:00

Well... sorry to drop off the face of the earth like that! I stitched quite a lot in September, but since October began, I simply haven't had any time. Work has been very busy (I even went on a business trip), and my chorus is gearing up for its annual show so there is a lot of work to do there, too. I am still trying to keep up with reading some blogs (not doing that great, though) and I hope things will calm down a little once November starts. But you never know!

My goal for October is to finish the second half of the pansy I started in September, for the SAL I am working on with Renee. And I think that's about all I can commit to!

Hope you are all well! Thanks for checking in. I will try to update more when I have a little more time.

One HD and One WIP

2005-09-25T16:08:00.000-04:00

First of all, thank you for the nice replies to my last post! I appreciate people trying to help me find the little elf I saw so many months ago. Unfortunately, I haven't been able to locate him yet, but I have seen some other really cute patterns!

Now for an update...

Click to enlarge!

Here's a small happy dance. These chickens are a Margaret Sherry design from one of the British cross stitch magazines. I stitched them on a Charles Craft tea towel and I think they turned out really cute!

I have been wanting to stitch a Margaret Sherry design for awhile, because I am intrigued by the way backstitch is used in them. I've bought a few of her patterns (mostly cats, one bear) and have even started stitching one of them, but in the end, these colorful chickens called my name. I love chickens anyway, so I will probably keep this towel.

The backstitch was not as tough as I expected. I was a little worried that my tea towel was inset with Aida, not evenweave, and I have heard that it can be hard to do the backstitch as represented on these patterns on Aida. However, the Charles Craft towel was really soft and easy to work with -- much more giving than most Aida I have used. So the stitching went fine. As always, I'm fascinated by the difference backstitch can make. Check out the chickens a couple of days ago, before I added the outlines.

The chickens weren't on my September objectives list, but I started and finished them this month. I'm actually not sticking to my objectives very well at all... here's another small WIP I started today:

I've actually gotten a little more done than is shown here, but the rest of it doesn't look like much yet. This cute little plane is from a book of alphabets I bought recently, which I really like a lot. There are so many cute designs in this book... I can't wait to try more of them. I'm stitching the plane on light blue 18-count Aida that I got in a grab bag of odds and ends from the Thistle in Glastonbury.

So anyway, I have been doing a little stitching! As usual, just my customary small designs. But lately my mind is really on finishing. I set myself a goal of finishing at least two completed items this month... I don't know if I will make it or not, but I do feel like I'll be doing a lot of finishing soon. I have several pieces from Sudberry House, and some frames that I would like to fill. I am a little nervous, having never framed anything myself (except for that little ladybug I stitched for my friend's daughter, but that was a kit with frame included and had very clear directions).

I also got my sewing machine fixed so that I could use it to finish things, but I just don't know if I have the patience or courage (or time, for that matter) to try anything new. We'll see. I have to start somewhere!

This is driving me CRAZY

2005-09-16T07:57:00.000-04:00

Maybe one of you can help.

Months ago, I read on someone's blog (I think it was a blog) about how she had stitched birth announcements for her baby boy. The pattern was a little elf in a pointy hat, which she stitched all in red, and I think it was a freebie from a French needlework site. She had some help from a friend to finish them all up, I remember. And I thought I bookmarked it, but apparently I didn't. Does anyone else remember this? I want to find that pattern.

This may also be a good time to mention that I am pregnant. My due date is in February.

HD: Two Bent Creek Freebies

2005-09-05T06:42:00.000-04:00

I've been stitching a bunch this weekend. I finished up the Bent Creek design I was working on (Swirlygig, pictured below) and then stitched another small one, Robin on an Egg (to the right, click to enlarge image).

I enjoy Bent Creek designs and had picked up the fibers for these two a long time ago. They are quick to stitch and I really enjoy working with the overdyed threads. These two used several different Weeks and GAST colors.

The robin stitched up in just a couple of hours (as you can see, it's a very simple design). I stitched it on a piece of lambswool aida from my stash. I guess there are other bird charts in this series (not freebies). I would like to find the chicken, at least.

Click to enlarge.

I stitched Swirlygig on a small piece of Silkweaver hand-dyed evenweave. I will have to check the package for the color. I like the design, but I think I would like to stitch it in different colors that appeal to me more. I think this would be pretty in purples and pinks, and I've seen it stitched that way online. Also, I'm not completely satisfied with the contrast between the alphabet and the fabric.

Finishing Swirlygig was on my list of September goals, so I am already getting started on them! Also, I've done part of a pansy for my SAL with Renee, which is also on my goal list for this month.

I think I found my flosses for the Margaret Sherry bear I was working on. (I had misplaced them and couldn't work on it in August.) Maybe I'll add that into my plan for this month as well.

Welcome, Julia!

2005-09-02T12:09:00.000-04:00

Here's a gift I made for a new friend, Julia Adelaide, who was born almost a month ago although her due date was today!

Julia, we are so glad you're here!

September Goals

2005-09-01T21:53:00.000-04:00

Time to go over my August stitching goals and set some for September.

A recap of my August goals:

- Finish Margaret Sherry bear design.

Well, I didn't get to this at all. Unfortunately, I can't even find my flosses. Why they are not with the fabric and chart, I don't know. I haven't stitched on this in a couple of months. But I have given myself until February to get it done now.

- Stitch one pansy for the SAL with Renee.

I finished one and started another one.

- Continue with German maypole design -- finish the first maypole.

The first maypole is finished.

I also stitched Delivering Flurries by Homespun Elegance and finished a ladybug picture in a frame for a new baby (I will post a picture soon). And I started on a freebie alphabet sampler, Swirlygig, by Bent Creek. I am about halfway done with that and hope to finish this week.

So I didn't quite make all my goals, but I stitched some other things instead. Once I find my flosses for the Margaret Sherry piece, I'll get back to it. For now, I think I need to keep it off my September goals.

New goals:

- Finish one pansy on the SAL. (Already started.)

- Finish Swirlygig.

- Stitch the second maypole.

- Frame and/or otherwise finish at least two pieces.

And I think that's about enough!

WIP: Maibaum

2005-08-28T08:05:00.000-04:00

I made some progress on my German maypole piece this week. Here is the first maypole, all complete. Click to see a larger version.

Like a lot of German patterns, this doesn't have any backstitching. It's a kind of primitive/native design, which I enjoy. This piece is half finished now -- there is one more maypole to stitch, and it's the same size as this one. It is easy stitching, and the little symbols on the pole are fun to do.

In case you have never seen a maypole like this, it is quite realistic. Every town throughout southern Germany (and much of Austria) has its own maypole (Maibaum) and all the traditions that go with it. The symbols on the pole historically represented the guilds present in a town.

Different regions' poles look different. Austrian poles are sometimes painted red and white (the colors of Austria). Some poles are simply stripped wood, not painted at all. Sometimes the very top of the tree is left on the pole, so it looks like there is a tiny pine tree sitting way up on top. But in Bavaria, maypoles are usually painted blue and white (the colors of the Bavarian flag). Along the edges of my fabric you'll see the blue and white diamonds of the Bavarian flag.

Click on the picture below to see Munich's maypole, one of the largest and most elaborate in Bavaria:

This piece will be finished as a bow, like the ones in this gallery, with the two maypoles on the long pieces hanging down. I have blue and white satin ribbon to finish it off. Germans love these bows featuring stitched sayings or pictures, and they frequently have different ones to display for different seasons. Ours will go on the wall along with some of our other mementos from when we lived in Bavaria.

Report: Sudberry House Garage Sale

2005-08-27T10:58:00.000-04:00

Boy, this month has flown by. I have been doing some stitching and will have an update with some pictures later this weekend, I hope.

In the meantime, I wanted to write about my visit to the Sudberry House annual garage sale. As you probably know, Sudberry House makes great wooden boxes, trays, and other items to show off needlework. They also have some charts for designs that fit with their wooden items.

Anyway, every year, they have a big sale at their headquarters in Old Lyme, Connecticut. The sale runs from 9 - 1 on each Saturday in August. I went this year on the first Saturday of the month, when they have the biggest crowd -- but also, the biggest selection.

I got there around 9:30 and it was really busy! The street outside Sudberry House was already lined with parked cars on both sides, and their driveway was the same (see picture). What was funny was that their parking lot wasn't full. I guess people saw all the cars outside and decided that the parking lot must already be full -- but it was pretty empty. However, I wouldn't have wanted to drive down the driveway with all the shoppers walking in and out.

Once I made my way back to the buildings (it's in a very pretty wooded area), I saw that they had tables set up outside, piled high with things for sale. They also had more stuff in cardboard boxes set around the edges. The first thing I came to was a row of boxes with a sign saying "Free! Three per person." These boxes were full of little cross stitch kits of Christmas designs, birds, and flowers. I found three I liked, including the state bird and state flower of Georgia, the Brown Thrasher and the Cherokee Rose. Then I moved on to the main event.

The first table I stopped at was covered in trays, both large and small (you can see them stacked up on the nearest table in this picture). There must have been at least a hundred. I picked out two little ones that are very pretty, a tea tray with brass handles and another wooden tray with cut out handles. On the other tables were stacks and stacks of boxes -- recipe boxes, trinket boxes, even music boxes. I picked out several. There were also clocks, key racks, stools, and all kinds of wooden items for showing off needlework.

Some people had brought their finished pieces with them and were picking out wooden items to go with them. Others were simply buying in bulk, snatching up whatever looked good. There was one lady who was buying enough to stock a good-sized shop, but when I asked her, she said it was all for her. She had at least a dozen sampler frames, probably fifty boxes, and a piano bench that could be covered with a big piece of needlework. She assured me that she stocks up every August, and uses up all that stuff during the year. She must be an incredibly fast stitcher.

When I got ready to check out, it was a little confusing at first. Everyone had to stand in a line where workers with adding machines totaled our purchases, and then we went around the corner to pay at a different table. The line for the adding machines was long but it moved very quickly. It probably only took me 15 minutes to check out completely, with waiting in both lines. So even though it was crowded, it wasn't frustrating at all.

The best part was that I got some great bargains. Six boxes, two trays, two key racks, and a candy dish with a glass liner (I already had one of these at home). I think my favorite pieces are the recipe box (which I want to keep for myself), the red painted box (I am going to use it for that red bird I stitched a couple of weeks ago), and the tea trays. I got a bunch of stuff and my total was less than $100. If all those things were full price it probably would have been more like $300! So the trip to the sale was definitely worth it, for me!

Now the garage sale is over for this year, but they'll do it again next August!

Weekend Update

2005-08-14T22:02:00.000-04:00

Here's a little piece I bought in an antique store in Pennsylvania over the weekend:

Click to enlarge.

It is cute and well-stitched. It's a Pennsylvania Dutch hex symbol -- this one is the Distelfink (a goldfinch or "thistle finch") and it is a good-luck sign. The Germans who settled in Pennsylvania painted signs like this to put on their houses and barns. I like these hex signs so I was happy when my husband noticed this one in stack of antique linens. Plus, it was only $2.00! I will have to do something special with it.

While we were traveling, I also did a little stitching:

Click to enlarge.

This is called "Delivering Flurries" and is a design by Homespun Elegance. I am crazy about cardinals and birds in general so when I saw this at my LNS earlier this summer, I snatched it up. It is stitched with Weeks flosses on (I think) Lugana. All the stitching is done now, but it's not finished because I still need to add two buttons for the wheels of the snowman's cart. Also, on the chart, the bird is carrying two ice skate charms in his beak. I don't know if I want to add charms, the buttons may be enough. If I do add a charm, it may not be ice skates. Maybe a basket? I can't decide.

I do have some pictures from the Sudberry House sale last weekend and I still plan to post a report from that. I got a great haul on some of their wooden pieces. I am wondering whether this snowman will work in one of the tea trays I got, or if the buttons will make it too bulky to go under the glass. There's a kind of wooden mat in the tray, under the glass, so it might work. Hmm.

WIP: Stiefmütterchen SAL

2005-08-10T14:49:00.000-04:00

Here's pansy #4 from Stiefmütterchen by Der Feine Faden. I am now 1/4 finished with the entire piece!

This pansy was not much fun to stitch, as it was mostly white-on-white. The picture's not great, but in person it looks good. I think it looks nicer alongside the other pansies I had already stitched:

Click to enlarge.

Despite not being as much fun to stitch as some of the others, this fourth pansy has cemented my liking for the chart as a whole. I really like how naturalistic the flowers look, how unique each one is. Even seeming imperfections add to the realistic character of the design. There is no backstitching to come, and I really think it looks best that way. I am looking forward to stitching the next pansy -- an orange one that Renee has already stitched on her SAL. (Renee and I are doing the flowers in a different order.)

Now I have to decide whether to put this away until next month (I had one pansy on my goal list for August) or if I want to take it on our weekend trip to Pennsylvania. I will want something easy to stitch while we're traveling, so I may not want to take along the Margaret Sherry piece. I'll have to think about it.

Sudberry House Garage Sale

2005-08-03T09:45:00.000-04:00

You may be familiar with Sudberry House. This company makes nice wood accessories for showing off needlework. Their boxes, clocks, trays, and other items are probably available in many of your LNSs.

I drive right by the Sudberry House factory and outlet on my way to work every day. It is just off exit 71 on I-95 in Lyme, Connecticut.

Well, this morning I noticed that their Garage Sale banner was out. I had forgotten about the Garage Sale, but it runs every Saturday in August, from 9am to 1pm. The first Saturday is the best day, I've heard, so I am planning to go this weekend.

Are any of you other New England stitchers planning to attend? I will report back on what it's like and what I find.

HD: Flower Fairy RR

2005-07-31T22:09:00.000-04:00

Can you believe it? I thought I wouldn't have a single happy dance for July. But here she is -- the Spindle Berry Fairy I stitched for the International Round Robin I've been involved with since the beginning of the year. Click to see a larger version.

After I finished the flower fairy, I started on the next pansy on my SAL with Renee. I don't know if she will have time for a pansy in August, but I wanted to do something small before going back to my next WIP. Boy, this pansy is tough. It is mostly white, and on the white fabric it is very hard to see where the stitches should go. I rarely have problems with miscounting when stitching over two, but white on white certainly complicates things. After stitching out my first needle full of white floss (not a very long strand, as it tends to get dirty in longer lengths), I decided to break down and start some of the gray just so I could have some points of reference. Of course I am saving the black for last so that it doesn't "run" when I stitch the lighter colors. I'll post a WIP picture when I make a little more progress.

I don't normally set monthly goals but I guess I will give it a try for August:

- Finish Margaret Sherry bear design (a gift). I still have about 3/4 of this to complete.

- Stitch one pansy for the SAL with Renee (already started).

- Continue with German maypole design -- finish the first maypole.

That is pretty ambitious, considering how little I've been stitching these last few months. But I'll try!

Stash!

2005-07-30T16:04:00.000-04:00

Today I went to my favorite LNS, The Thistle, and picked up a few charts. Click on the images to see larger versions.

First of all, I was looking for this "Tiny Little Teapots" book by Cross My Heart, Inc. Renee is currently doing a Round Robin with some other bloggers and she has chosen charts from this book for her RR. I loved the cherry teapot she stitched, so I called The Thistle to ask if they had the book in stock. They did! These charts are really cute. My favorites (besides the cherry teapot) are the Delft teapot, the valentine teapot, and the honey teapot. But all of them are adorable! I can't wait to stitch a few.

As you can see from the teapot picture, I also picked up "Barnyard Sampler" by Cedar Hill. I have noticed this pattern before but I think the crazy mixed-up letters on the sampler held me back. Today I noticed how cunning the little baby chicks are, though, and the chicken-scratch letters seemed to tickle my funny bone. So I picked it up. Just what I needed -- another chicken pattern!

Besides the teapots, I was also hoping to find some charts of backyard birds. My birdfeeder has been so active all spring and summer -- I have chickadees, cardinals, bluejays, sparrows, wrens, doves, and several different kinds of woodpeckers that stop by every day. I was hoping to find charts I liked of some of those birds. I ended up with these:

I enjoy the folk art style, and the chickadee and wren are two of my favorite feathered visitors. I would still like to find some more charts, maybe a variety, but I wasn't completely taken with any of the others I saw at the store.

However, I was lucky enough to find a Valerie Pfeiffer chart:

I love English robins, and I prefer them to American ones. The English ones are fatter and rounder, and I think they are so cute. So even though there was a cardinal chart and a chickadee chart, also by Valerie Pfeiffer, I got the robins. I think they will be a lot of fun to stitch this winter.

And finally, as usual, I could not pass up a "grab bag" of fabric. I love these $5 bags... they are stapled shut, so you never know what you will end up with. Today I got a nice variety:

As well as a nice big piece of cream 22-count hardanger and some 14- and 18-count Aida in pink, blue, and white, there were some unusual things. I got a large piece of 8-count hertarette (which I have never heard of before) in rose, a piece of 28-count Quaker linen in khaki, some 7-count monk's cloth (so soft!) and a nice piece of Klostern in mushroom. I am never sure what I should stitch on those large count pieces of fabric, but I am sure that one day I'll figure it out. If I am ever teaching someone to cross stitch, it will come in handy!

There was plenty in the package that I will use, and the best part is -- the value of the pieces added up to $27, and I got the whole lot for $5! I will definitely get $5 worth of use out of all that fabric.

So, I guess I have some stitching to do!

WIP: Stiefmütterchen

2005-06-05T10:37:00.000-04:00

Click to enlarge.

Pansy #3 is complete! I finished it this morning. This piece is my stitch-along with Renee; she finished her third pansy this week too, although she is stitching them in a different order from me. The next one I plan to stitch is mostly white, with not too many color changes. Maybe it will go pretty fast, although I'm afraid it might be a little boring for the same reason.

I also started something new this morning--one of the recent Margaret Sherry designs from her Ellie May collection. It is intended as a gift so I probably won't talk about it too much, but I will say that it's fun so far. The squashed stitches are proving to be a fun challenge (nothing too difficult though), and there are some blended colors as well. I am looking forward to spending time with it in the coming weeks.

Now I have to do some cleaning around the house, but hopefully I'll have time for some more stitching later on today. I'm glad I seem to have come out of my slump... I hardly stitched at all last month, and I think I felt more stressed out because of it.

WIP: Maibäume

2005-05-29T23:19:00.000-04:00

I guess I finally broke my slump. Yesterday morning I started stitching the next pansy on my SAL with Renee (this is my third one). This pansy is pretty small and only has three different colors of floss, so I think it will stitch up pretty fast. Maybe I can finish it tomorrow.

This evening, instead of continuing with the pansies, I made a little progress on my Bavarian maypole pattern (pictured above). The picture is of a traditional maypole, with the symbols of different city guilds attached to it. I still can't decide if I want to stitch the pattern the way it is drawn, or try to add some different symbols that are more appropriate to Munich. I think I'll just stitch the pole before I decide what I want to use for the symbols. I like how the maypole looks with the border on the material. I got the chart and the fabric in Munich a couple of months ago. Blue and white are the national colors of Bavaria.

In other news, my first Round Robin is just about done. It hasn't gone exactly as I hoped or expected, but I will be getting my piece back and I am grateful and relieved about that. I would still do another RR, but definitely with people I knew rather than strangers from a bulletin board. Live and learn!

Not a Stitching Month

2005-05-22T07:20:00.000-04:00

Well, May has been a very busy month for me, and not in the cross-stitching way. In fact, I've hardly had time to stitch at all.

Except for one thing:

Click to enlarge!

I stitched this little design to make a birthday card for Renee, whose birthday is today!

Of course the reason I chose this pattern in the first place was because of the watering can! It is supposed to be a potting bench. The chart was a Rainbow Gallery freebie, a design by Erica Michaels. However, I modified it quite a lot. The original was a lot wider and had more flower pots on the bottom shelf, and the writing just said "May" on the top shelf (it is part of a monthly series). I added the writing freehand and cut down the length of the design so it would fit on the card. I also took the opportunity to use some of the Weeks colors I got on eBay last month!

Anyway, I think this is going to be my only finish for May... but at least it was a gift for a friend! So, happy birthday, Renee! Hope it's great!

HD: Watering Can Round Robin

2005-05-01T12:47:00.000-04:00

Click to enlarge.

Here's my latest finish... a watering can for Renee's Round Robin! This is the second time I've stitched this little Mary Engelbreit chart. I love the colors of the flowers on this cheerful little design.

I received Renee's RR on Wednesday and started stitching on Thursday night. I finished it up early yesterday evening.

If you'd like to see the whole Round Robin so far, it's here. This piece has just one more stop -- with Lesley in England -- before it will go back home to Renee in Germany.

Hope you like it, Renee!

Weeks!

2005-04-29T15:55:00.000-04:00

Just a shot of some of my latest stash from eBay:

I recently completed two auction purchases for 10 skeins of Weeks Dye Works flosses each... there were a few duplicates, so I didn't include all 20 in the photo. But they're so pretty!

Another thing I recently discovered was "grab bags" at my LNS, Thistle Needleworks in Glastonbury. They put all the little ends of fabric in $5 grab bags and you can get some really interesting stuff in there! If my cold is gone tomorrow I hope to go up there and "grab" a couple more of these bags! It is fun to experiment with different types of fabric, and since I like to stitch small designs anyway, it's perfect for me.

In stitching news, I have started on the watering can for Renee's Round Robin (which arrived here on Wednesday). I am about halfway done with it. I think it's going a little faster than when I stitched the same design for myself. I have made a couple of small changes to it, which you can see for yourself once I post the finished version.

WIP: Stiefmütterchen

2005-04-27T23:10:00.000-04:00

At long last!

Click to enlarge image.

Renee and I are stitching these pansies as a stitch along, which means we are both working on the same pattern. However, we have already diverged! For her second pansy, she stitched the one beneath the first pansy, rather than the one next to it. I am really looking forward to doing that orange one she stitched -- I think it is really pretty.

I'm enjoying this project so far. I really like the colors. Even though the pansy I just stitched is basically only yellow and brown, it really looks great beside the purple one! I think it'll be cool when I have them all done.

But for now, I need to turn my attention elsewhere. Today I received the next installment in the Round Robin -- coincidentally, it was Renee's watering can robin. I've already picked a pattern and I know it won't take me that long to stitch, so I think I will do that next and then move on to the bigger project I need to be working on.

SAL: Stiefmütterchen

2005-04-09T08:22:00.000-04:00

I started something new on Thursday. My first Stitch-Along!

Renee and I are both stitching a pattern by Der Feine Faden, called "Stiefmütterchen." If you are wondering what the German word "Stiefmütterchen" refers to (the direct translation is "little step-mother"), check out the photo that came with the chart:

Yes, that's right! They're pansies!

Renee and I both love pansies, so this will be a lot of fun to work on together. Neither of us really knows how a SAL is supposed to work, though. Do you try to stay together? Do you put the piece into both of your rotations? Or do you just talk about it as you go along? I'm sure it depends on the people involved. Renee and I are both pretty laid back so I am sure we'll work out something that fits us both.

Already it's been good to talk about the piece together. Renee has the kit for this piece and I just have the chart, so I asked her about what size linen was recommended. (I ended up going with 32-ct antique white Lugana, actually, and it's a dream to stitch on.)

And then we noticed that the squares marked on the pattern (for each pansy) were not actually squares -- in fact, they weren't even all the same size. We both came to the same conclusion that they should be 42x43 stitches. It was great to be able to talk about it though!

Our pieces are already different, since Renee changed the color on the long stitch to navy blue and stitched it with two strands instead of one. Mine is done with the one strand of green suggested on the pattern.

Today I am planning to finish up the long stitch and start on the first pansy. I am really looking forward to this! Renee and I will be sure to keep you updated on our progress!

HD: Round Robin

2005-04-03T08:54:00.000-04:00

My round robin square is done!

It doesn't look that involved, does it? I swear, after the amount of time it took me, I feel like I should have a Mirabilia angel to show for it.

It's one of four coordinating patterns from an English cross stitching magazine, stitched in DMC colors. I picked this pattern from the ones the RR owner provided because it was in purple, pink, and green -- three of my favorite colors. And I did enjoy working with these colors, very much.

Anyway, I'll be sending this off to England this week. And then I'm looking forward to stitching on Renee's watering can RR!