This made me smile when I found it. We used to say this all the time when we were kids, and I wondered aloud to Mr. Wonderful if kids still say this nowadays. Privacy and discretion seem to have gone out of fashion, what with data mining on one side and over-sharing on the other. I'm pretty old fashioned about privacy so this little design is just about perfect for me. It's available here. I stitched mine on 28 ct. PTP Sand (I think) with GAST threads in Apple Cider, Brandy, and Soot.
You know those super soft sugar cookies with icing and sprinkles the grocery store sells? Well, here's a homemade version and yes, they're better than the store-bought kind. These are lovely and the recipe is right here. The recipe I used is from her book Sweet & Simple and it is slightly different from the online recipe, but very close. It makes only 6 cookies (I got 7 out of it) so it's perfect for a weekend treat.
I also made scones and a tiny 6" chocolate cake. So that's how I spent my holiday weekend: stitching and baking. (And shopping for sprinkles because now I'm obsessed with this cookie recipe and I need sprinkles for every occasion.)
My full color version of Antique Beasts & Birds by Elizabeth's Designs.
Stitched on 28 ct. Natural Brown Undyed Linen (Wichelt) with Caron Wildflowers and DMC 938.
My color choices:
border: Copper and DMC 938
words: DMC 938
rabbit: Suede
dog: Burnt Toast
squirrel: Copper
cat: Caramel
bird #1: Dense Fog
butterfly: Mountain Haze
lion: Old Gold
elephant: Dense Fog
chick: Old Gold
bird #2: Oyster
horse: Burnt Toast
snake: Moss
monkey: Copper
bee: Old Gold
fish: Suede
dragonfly (?): Mountain Haze
bird #3: Lexi's Blue
One note about the design: I didn't notice until I'd finished stitching the words that the letter "s" is charted in two different ways, and the model switches them (from the chart) in a couple of places. It didn't matter to me and I left them as they were, but if that sort of thing bothers you, you may want to make note of it.
Y'all, look who just arrived at my house, all the way from Scotland! Isn't this the most adorable little pink frog you've ever seen?
Look at this face!
And she brought goodies with her! Beautiful counting pins and buttons and needles and thread. All of these wonderful gifts are from the very talented Ann in Scotland. She made the pink frog--who hasn't got a name yet--but who is very much on duty keeping me company while I stitch. Thank you so much, Ann!
And here's another peek at my progress on Beasts and Birds. I'm now down to the last row of animals and a few more words, then it's on to the border.
My sweet frog couldn't be more appropriate. It's been raining for days here, and I've been stitching by an open window, listening to the rain and to the extremely delighted frogs singing their little hearts out in the pond behind our house.
I hope my next update is a finish. My next project is all ready to go and it's calling me.
Another spring Saturday, another day of wandering the countryside looking at (and sometimes buying) stuff. Have I ever mentioned my life goal of someday owning a few chickens? Well, now I have. I want some chickens. We were plundering another pottery studio on Saturday, and the potter had the prettiest (?) chickens I've ever seen. Even Mr. Wonderful was charmed.
I mean, look at this gal:
And of course, the pottery hoard continues to grow (unlike my cabinet space).
I love this squatty little pitcher. I have a thing for pitchers. Never use them. Just love them. I think I'll start putting flowers in them and get rid of most of my glass vases. (See how cleverly I just came up with a "reason" to buy more pottery pitchers?)
Last year one of our favorite local potters was experimenting with teapots, and I got this little beauty. Saturday we discovered he'd made a few teacups. Had to have one.
I've been working away on Beasts and Birds. Here's a sneak peek at a few of the critters.
I'll post a complete list of all my color choices when I post the finish.
Finally, a finish! Here's my purple dress version of Here a Peep There a Peep from With Thy Needle and Thread, stitched on 28 ct. Lamb's Wool.
Original color --> my change
Weeks Sockeye --> GAST Old Brick
GAST Brandy --> GAST Golden Rod
CC Autumn Spice --> DMC 920
CC Candied Yams --> CC Sunkissed
CC Eggshell --> CC Toasted Marshmallow
CC Mint Julep --> CC Grape Pie
CC Ye Old Gold --> GAST Golden Rod
CC Crab Cakes --> GAST Holly Berry
I also left off the white stitches on either side of the dark stitch for the eye, and just filled in with Golden Rod instead.
And now for my next project, which I'm really looking forward to. Way back in November 2015, I had the wild urge to stitch the Plum Street Samplers Sunday Mystery Sampler (the Twelve Days of Christmas) in full color instead of the three or four colors it was charted for. It was a bit like falling down a rabbit hole. I had no idea where I was going color-wise, and obviously no idea what the finished product would look like, but I was undeterred. I chose a favorite, rustic-looking neutral fabric--Wichelt Natural Brown Undyed linen--and my favorite threads--Caron Wildflowers--and off I went. (If you haven't been around my blog for that long, click on the picture of the Twelve Days of Christmas finish in the right sidebar to see all of my posts about the project. There's a link to the free charts in there somewhere, too.)
I was really happy with how it turned out and I figured I would end up doing another project using this approach at some point. And here it is.
I saw this when all the new Market stuff was arriving and immediately imagined it in color. I love the verse, especially, and all the little critters just shouted, "Color me!" My Caron Wildflowers collection has grown quite a bit in the last couple of years, but it's not complete, so naturally I had to order some more colors to play with. I'll be using the Natural Brown Undyed linen again.
These are my new colors. I don't know if I'll use them all, but it helps to have lots of choices on hand when you're making it up as you go.
I cannot wait to get started on this! Stay tuned for critter color updates!
We spent the day at the Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival. If you're a knitter, this festival is heaven: more yarn than you've ever seen in your life, and every imaginable goody related to knitting, spinning, and weaving. Fortunately, I'm not a knitter, so there's no temptation for me. We just like to walk around and look at all the animals and shop with the many other non-knitting vendors (of which there are plenty).
A favorite fiber artist of mine. Stunning felted wool animals.
Yes, this is felted wool!
Have a great weekend!
