Laura's Quilt

Here is my square for Laura's quilt. It is a section of TW's Pennsylvania Dutch Heart. The design looks so small I think. I may have to add some leaves to the side to fill the square out more? On the other hand, I like how delicate the heart looks. What do you guys think?

A Week With Blue Topaz

I spent this week with my Blue Topaz project. I am very happy with this project and I am quite happy with my progress considering that I didn't have too much time to stitch this week.

I think I will put this aside for now and work on my square for Laura's quilt. I will be stitching the heart from TW's Pennsylvania Dutch Heart.

Another New Start

As soon as I finished my Dinky Dyes ornie, I started looking for another project to start. I remembered seeing this wonderful pillow design in a magazine before but I could not remember which magazine, who the designer was or what the title of the design was. All I could remember was that it was blue and yellow and it was so pretty.

So I looked through all my magazines until I found it. My new project is Blue Topaz by Laura Tillson of Snapdragon Designs. I started stitching this design on Saturday night and here is what I have done so far:

Super Secret Project

I started a super secret project in October 2005. I finished it in December, but I couldn't share the pictures. Well now I can!

The project was a model stitching job for Kat Rocha of Cross Eyed Kat. It was a relatively quick stitch even though I had to frog an area of the pyramids and change the colors. I had so much FUN! Everything about the project was beautiful. Click on the picture to see the progree pics.

I wish I knew how to do hardanger. Kat ended up doing the hardanger herself. I'll post a picture of the finished model after I get permission.

This design was released in Nasville. So make sure you order from your LNS/ONS!

I have to go run errands now. I'll update my gallery later with dates and more details/descriptions.

Another HD

After taking almost 2 weeks, I finally finished my Dinky Dyes Ornie project. This freebie chart was given to me by Dani. I stitched it on 28 count white opalescent cashel using Dinky Dyes Wild Cherry (#26). Dani was right. The project will use the entire skein of floss. I ran out of floss and had to dig through my ort jar (I love my ort jar) for a strand that was long enough to stitch 9 Xs. But I LOVE it. I will finish it into an ornie once I figure out how to make tassels.

Laura

This morning I found out that Laura passed away on Friday night. I didn't know Laura that well, but I have had the chance to chat with her and read her posts on her blog as well as on the various stitching boards that I visit. I am deeply saddened by this tragic loss. She was so young (I think she was my age). It happened so quickly. I have been in a daze since this morning. I don't really know what to say to comfort Neil, their families or her friends. I am just so sad and devastated.

February Stitching Goals

My goals for February are:

• Finish Ye Olde Coffee House
• Finish the Dinky Dyes Freebie
• Finish Oak Tree's border
• Continue working on CB and DH's stocking
• Start something new! (or 2) :)

Crappers! I just notice an error on my YOCH project. I knew it looked off. I need to frog the right border. Grrrr. Darn it. Oh well.

Santa's Wildlife Stocking

As promised, here is my progress pic for Santa's Wildlife Stocking. As you can see, I managed to stray away from the what should have been my focus and move on to the foxie without finishing the poor bear. LOL

In other news, excuse the mess here. DH is fixing our server so everything is broken at the moment.

Dani, if you are reading this, thanks so much for the chart! I got it in the mail last week. I sent you an email, but I'm not sure if you got it. I can't wait to start stitching in. You know what? I think I'll got work on that now! :) I just saw this wonderful skein of Dinky Dyes. :)

Ye Olde Coffee House

I didn't get a chance to work on Celtic Banner today. I spent most of this week working on Ye Olde Coffee House and DH's stocking. I really, really like this project. I'll have to make sure to take a proper picture. I fabric just doesn't show well in the scan.

I only have the vines and the bottom border left to do and its done. :) I'm hoping to finish it this week. *finger crossed*

Watch this space for a new WIP pic of DH's stocking tomorrow. Good night!

A day of progress pics

I've been very lazy with posting progress pics. So I spent a bit of time today and got all my scans ready and got a bit organized.

First up is Celtic Banner. I stitched *very little* last Sunday. I only got to work on the border. Today, I was able to stitch more. I finished the knotwork as well as one of the squares next to the knotwork.

Next is Santa's Wildlife Stocking, aka, DH's stocking. I got to work on his Thursday night and Friday night. Progress has been slow, but I like the details on the project and I definitely like working on linen better than the Aida that came with the kit. You still can't see any of the sparklies on the fabric. I will have to charge the batteries for the camera and take a decent picture. Maybe we'll have sunlight again in Buffalo next weekend.

And to save the best for last is Ye Olde Coffee House by Little House Needleworks. I started this on Monday night and I worked on it on Tuesday and Wednesday nights as well.

This is one of three coffee-themed charts that I have from Little House Needleworks. It is from the June 2004 Just Cross Stitch issue. The other charts I have are Coffee Menu and Spot of Coffee.

I am stitching i on 32 count Vintage Belfast Linen in Country Mocha using 1 strand of DMC floss. I decided to do 1 strand over 2 to give it a delicate look. I started with 2 strands, but it looked a bit bulky. I definitely prefer the 1 strand.

Ta-da!!!!

This is my first finish for 2006!

I loved working on this project. It was a relatively quick stitch. It only took about 8 days to finish. I love, love, love this project. I learned so many new stitches. I really love all the details. I did make an error though. I stitched the vines in the spot motif using 2 skeins of silk instead of one. I didn't frog it because, a) I didn't have enough silk to do it over and b) I really like the effect of the thicker section. Also, I didn't stitch my initials. Instead, I just stitched my name. :)

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Last Sunday, I worked on Celtic Banner. I didn't get a chance to do a lot on it though. I'm really hoping that I finish this project soon. I am almost there but I keep getting distracted by all the other projects that I want to start!

I used to be so good with following my little rules. I used to work on this one section/band at a time, now I've been working back and forth between the knowork, the square on the left of the knotwork and the band above the knotwork. Confused? I am.

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It has been a productive day. I felt like doing something creative, but not necessarily stitching. So... I baked! Let me backtrack a bit... My DMIL gave me an old family recipe for Christmas cookies and frosting. She also gave me her Christmas cookie cutters, some even belonged to her mom. I felt so special. :) DH and I made the cookies after Christmas cause really, who has time to make Christmas cookies before Christmas? It was a lot of work and I bitched the whole time, but in my crazy, loopy way, I had lots of fun. Last Thursday, I bought some heart-shaped cookie cutters at Michaels and today I used my new cutters.

Manic Stitching

I've been feeling under the weather this past week, but I still stitched as much as I could. On January 4th, I started working on DH's stocking, Dimensions' Santa's Wildlife Stocking, designed by Donna Race. This is actually a re-start. I did the project originally in late 2003. But the fabric in the kit was this extremely stiff Aida and I wasn't feeling it. I decided to re-stitch it recently, so I purchased some 28 count white opalescent Cashel linen. The scan doesn't show any of the sparklies at all, but trust me, they're there. This is 3 days' worth of work.

I also picked up The Drawn Thread's Winter Into Spring again this afternoon. I stitched letters f to k and the 5th band as well as a section of the Spot Motif Band. The 5th band is made up of Interlaced Herringbone and Petite Beads (the beads will be left for last). The Interlaced Herringbone was such a challenge... okay fine, I'll say it. They were an absolute pain in the butt! OMG. It was extremely frustrating. I had to frog the area twice and the interlacing was a bit confusing. It is well worth the effort though as the effect is amazing. Even DH was impressed. :)

I am tempted so start another project, but I think I'll stick to the 4 that I have actively going right now. Tomorrow will be the Celtic Banner SAL. I'm so excited. That poor project hasn't seen the light of day in ages.

Guilt-Free January

In celebration of Guilt-Free January, I have decided to start Drawn Thread's Winter Into Spring on Monday. This is my first DT project. I purchased the chart at The Needle Hive in November. I didn't realize that I purchased a kit. I thought it only had the chart, beads and fabric. The other day, I decided to go through all my charts and voila! it had all the fibers too. :)

This is a relatively small project but still very challenging. I did my first ever Sprats Head Heart which confused the heck out of me and it had to be frogged and re-stitched a couple of times. I also did my very first set of Double Shell Stitches as well and Double Backstitches... and I'm only on the 4th band!

In other news, I have invited myself to two SALs. I am joining Dani and her friends in their Celtic Banner SAL. I also invited myself to Jo's Santa's Wildlfie Stocking SAL. The CB SAL is on Sundays and the SWS SAL is on Thursdays. I still havent' figured out a schedule for myself, but this works for now.

I received some of the fabrics I ordered from Silkweaver yesterday. I got:

• 18x27 28 ct White Opalescent Cashel Linen for SWS (DH's Stocking).
• 18x27 32 ct Light Sand Belfast Linen for Fox Hollow.
• 18x27 28 ct Denim Blue Jobeland for Russian Nights (Cross Stitch Collection Nov. 2005)
• 13x18 32 ct Flax Belfast Linen for I don't know what.
• 13x18 32 ct Water Lily Jobelan - I forget what this is for too.
• 13x18 32 ct Country Mocha Vintage Belfast Linen for Ye Olde Coffee Shop.

I'm still waiting for my Autumn Fields Belfast and my Cream Belfast. I'm also waiting for some fibers I purchased from Bobbie. I cannot wait to get all my stash and I can start all my new projects.

Welcome 2006!!!

It's a new year and its time to look at 2 things: What I got done in 2005 and what I'd like to get done in 2006.

I had 10 finishes in 2005.
MLI's Provence Sampler
TW's Beginner's Whitework Ornament (3 versions)
Passion Broderie's Dragon Chinois
M Designs' Celtic Heart
DD's A Dragon's Tea Party
Cross Eyed Kat's Wanna Trade?
Michael Powell's Church Window
and my super secret project

For 2006, I would like to finish:
Eva Rosenstand's Wildlife
MLI's Celtic Banner
Dimensions' Santa's Wildlife Stocking
Hinzeit's Oak Tree

I would also like to start several new projects this month. It is after all, Guilt-free January. :)
DD's Not Forgotten (to be stitched in Wichelt's Summer Sky)
DD's Blackwork Dragon (to be stitched using Caron Waterlilies in Flame)
Drawn Thread's Winter Into Spring (I bought a kit and I'll probably start this tonight)
Bleu de Chine's Birds
Bent Creek's Fox Hollow
Little House Needlework's Spot of Coffee
Little House Needlework's Coffee Menu
Mirabilia's Shimmering Mermaid

Hey, I can dream, can't I? :)

BTW, here is Oak Tree after 2 weeks of stitching:

Oak Tree After 1 Week

Here is Oak Tree by Hinzeit after one week. I was hoping to get more stitching done, but it has been a very busy week. I also had plans of stitching all day today, but we ended up shopping instead. No stash shopping just yet, but I will definitely go shopping this week.

And The Winner Is...

...Oak Tree by Hinzeit!

This chart was one of the many charts I purchased at The Needlehive on my birthday. I really like this chart. Its so simple, and yet so pretty.

I am stitching it on a piece of 30 count Legacy Linen in Vanilla Gold. The design only uses 8 colors. I've only done a bit of the border so far. I'll take a progress pic after a week.

I think that this design has been discontinued. I cannot find a picture of it on line. The pic that came with the chart was poorly taken. The border is supposed to be Xs and satin stitches, but you can barely see that on the picture.

I started stitching on the top left side of the design. I think I will leave the satin stitches last as I don't want the thread to snag.

I still haven't decided if I will do a rotation this year, or if I'll work on one piece at a time. We'll see I guess. I would really like to have more finishes in 2006 than I did in 2005.

Dance With Me!

I finally finished my super secret project. Unfortunately, I can't share pics right now. Stay tuned some time February 2006 (I think). Not being able to post progress pics SUCKS. I love sharing progress pics. I love looking at them. I love receiving comments about them. I cannot wait to get permission to share.

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So what else is up? I got a nice bonus at work. Whoohoo. Of course, it disappeared in the land of bills and responsibility instead of disappearing at an ONS or LNS. :P Oh well. I plan on shopping after Christmas.

What else? We've been getting a LOT of snow. I'm lucky I work for a company that cares about its employees getting home safely. We've been sent home early 3 times since I started in October. The first one wasn't a snow day though. A girl at work had her wedding Friday night, so we all got to go home early to have time to get ready for the wedding. The other 2 times were definitely snow days. I got to go home at 2:30 today. The snow wasn't bad, but it was nice to go home early.

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Now that the secret project is done, what to work on next? I was going to work on Celtic Banner, but I think I'll work on Wildlife instead... OR do I start something totally new? Hmmm... decisions, decisions, decisions.

No, I'm not dead

I'm not dead, just lazy about blogging . But today I'm back with lots and lots of pictures!

First of all, my very late bday prezzie piccies.


The flowers T got me stayed alive for a little over a week. They smelled really, really good and they were so pretty. The roses wilted before the other flowers did (I have no idea what they are). The other ones stayed alive for 2 weeks. They came in a pretty pink vase which I kept and is at the moment sitting in a cupboard in the basement.

I also got a whole bunch of Hello Kitty stuff. The Choco Cat pillow was something I picked out. It's so cute I just had to get it! Inside the tin box are a whole bunch of stickers, gel pens, colored pencils and stamps, all Hello Kitty, of course.


Next are the charts I got from The Needle Hive. I got A LOT! One day I'll be able to stitch all of them. hahaha. The Cross Stitch calendar I got at Media Play. It has yucky, stiff Aida fabric in it, but I figure I'll just replace the fabric. The designs inside are cute and simple. I like that it had the mat already. All I need is to find the right size frames. One day I'll learn to stretch and frame my own work.

I also got some lovely surprises in the mail. Sylvia sent me Dragon Dreams' Here Be Dragons, the JCS issue that had DVG's Lemons, Limes & More pillow chart and a lovely notepad. Recently, she also sent me another JCS issue with the Peach pillow chart in it. Yay Sylvia!

I also got Cross Stitch Gold issue #29 from Kati. Thank you Kati for filling a blank in my collection!

Ooh! And I almost forgot about a prize I won during The Needlework Show. I won 2 charts of my choice from Dames of the Needle. They are lovely and I can't wait to start working on Elizabeth Savilles 1841 Sampler.

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Next up are Thanksgiving pictures! T & I stayed home and made our traditional Thanksgiving fare. The turkey was absolutely perfect. The skin was crispy, the meat was juicy and it was absolutely yummy! T stuffed it with apples, oranges, onions and all sorts of spices. Then he made a mix of softened butter, olive oil and spices and I had the wonderful job of rubbing it all over the turkey. Ick. It felt gross, but the results are amazing.

We also had acorn squash, mashed potatoes, stuffing, rolls, green beans, gravy and two kinds of pie (pecan and pumpkin).

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As for stitching, I'm still busy with my super secret project. I can't wait until its done and I'm finally allowed to show pictures!

Best Birthday Ever!

This has got to be my best birthday EVER. We started celebrating my birthday on Thursday night. DH took me out to a fancy dinner at The Red Mill Inn. It was amazing. He had Prime Rib and I had Tuscan Shrimp. The Prime Rib was the house specialty, so I had to try several bites of it.

After dinner, we went to Barnes and Noble, where I got 3 magazines: Cross Stitch Collection (Nov. 2005), Cross Stitch Gold (Issue #34), and DMC's Best of Cross Stitch Favorites. After that was more shopping at AC Moore. I got Fish City and 2 kits that were in the 50% off bin (Wintertime Friends and Universal Unity). I also got a Choco Cat pillow. It is sooo cute!

DH also bought me all sorts of things at AC Moore. I got a whole bunch of Hello Kitty stickers, a planner, a metal box (perfect for cross stitch trinkets), a memory book and he also got me a Sharpie set!

On Friday, DH had a bouquet of pink roses delivered to me at work. They're gorgeous! That night we went out to dinner again. This time at Chili's. I had Cajun Ribeye and it was really good. I couldn't finish the whole thing tho so I'll be having the leftovers for dinner soon.

Yesterday, we went to East Aurora to check out my not-so-LNS, The Needle Hive. I went totally crazy! The store is adorable. They mostly carry primitives and samplers and Americana items. There were two models that I fell in love with, but both were out of stock. The first one was the Red Reindeer Sampler and the other one was a kit of brightly colored coffee cups. Oh well, its not like I wasn't able to find other things that I liked. DH was the eager evil enabler, showing me all sorts of pretty charts and kits. Here is my haul:

Fabric: 28 ct Silvery Moon Cashel Linen, 30 ct Vanilla Gold Legacy Linen and 28 ct Blue Hand-dyed Linen

Fibers: 3 GAST (Blueberry, Briar Rose & Claret), and 4 Waterlilies (Black Forest, Midnight, Periwinkle, and Plum)

Pattern Packs:
Just Nan's Pearl Orchid
The Drawn Thread's The Treasure Box and Winter Into Spring

Charts:
Bent Creek: Dance of the Bumblebee, Fox Hollow
Bleu de Chine: Birds
Little House Needleworks: Coffee Menu
The Good Huswife: Sarah's Marking Sampler
Hinzeit: Oak Tree
The Needle's Prayse: The Queen's Sampler (I got 129/1000)
Dimensions: Northern Dignity
TW: Tropical Dream
Elizabeth's Designs: Green Old Gardens
Permin: Sampler 1663, Sampler 1778
Jorinde & Joringel: Derfeine Faden

I got tired just typing that in! DH's card was definitely smoking by the time I was done. There's another store at Orchard Park, but I knew it would've been very dangerous to go visit there.

Ooh, I almost forgot! I also got a 2006 Cross Stitch Calendar on Wednesday!

I'm currently charging the batteries for the camera. I'll post pics as soon as I can :)

Celtic Banner

I started this project in January. I am almost done with it. But at the moment, my focus piece is my super secret project. The SSP is progressing rather smoothly, a lot faster than I thought it would. So as soon as that's done, Celtic Banner will become the focus piece. In the meantime, I will try to work on CB for a couple of hours a week. Here is the latest progress pic.