Christmas in July

July is over and we're on the downhill slide toward Christmas! Unlike most stitchers, I don't have a ton of Christmas designs in my stash, but I do seem to have accumulated a dozen or so  small, ornament-sized designs. I had intended to work through them this year, stitching one per month. The reason you haven't seen any Christmas finishes this year is because this is my first. {sigh} Maybe I'll try again next year. Anyway, here's a Lizzie Kate freebie found here. As you can see, I've fiddled with mine a bit. It's stitched in GAST Buckeye Scarlet (my favorite red!) and good ol' DMC ecru.  The snowflake I added to the mug is from some random book in my little stitchy library, and the cookies are JABCO.

Mmmm... cookies.

Almost finished with another Button Up Birdie (#13!) and hope to have that posted soon.
Happy Stitching!

All that waiting...

...on the royal baby was so tiring.

Woodland Babies Finished!

Just finished the last Woodland Baby (Victoria Sampler), a little fawn. This one is in the 2012 Just Cross Stitch Christmas Ornament issue.

And here's the whole family.

I think they'll be living in the finishes box for a while, as I just can't make up my mind about how I want to finish them. I could make little round ornaments out of them, but I also thought a wintery wall hanging would be really pretty. But for now, I'm just enjoying the small triumph of having finished this series. Yay, me!

Now then, what next... ?

New Family Member!

Tiger Lily has a new cousin!

You can see her here. I hear she's learning the ropes of helping with stitching.

Stitchy Happiness

There are lots of great things about having stitching as a hobby, and one of them is how happy I can be made by small things, like a magazine. Perhaps I'm simple-minded, but it sure makes me easier to live with when I can get all excited about the annual Just Cross Stitch Halloween Special Issue and remain unmoved by designer shoes and bags. Just ask Mr. Wonderful.

I love Halloween. I don't love the gory, bloody, body-parts-strewn-everywhere direction it seems to have taken in recent years. The Halloween I love is the Halloween from my childhood: fat pumpkins, smiley black cats, and cute little ghosts. Halloween is one of my favorite subjects to stitch and the appearance of Halloween stitchy magazines every summer is an event at my house, so when I called my LNS this morning and discovered they had just received their shipment of the JCS Halloween Special Issue, I was off and running. What was I supposed to be doing? Cleaning the house. Did I clean the house? No. Do I feel guilty? Maybe a teensy bit, but it goes away when I'm flipping through my new magazines.

I also picked up the floss and fabric for our next SAL... but the design is still a secret!

Pretty, huh? The fabric is 32 ct. Blue Spruce. If you're getting in the mood for Halloween stitching, too, check out the Stitchy Cousin's newly posted freebie finish here. How cool is that?!

SAL Update: Miss Witchy Face

No update last month, what with computer problems and all kinds of nonsense, but I have a little progress to show this month. Most of the witchy figurehead is done.

I think I'll finish the bow of the ship and then go back to working on masts and sails.

The deadline--October--is creeping up on me. Must. stitch. faster. Or if not faster, more. This is the largest piece I've ever done, and surprisingly, I haven't gotten tired of it. But I'm already looking forward to our next SAL, which will remain super secret until this one is finished. Hint: more spooky!

Itty Bitty Baby Bunny

Six done, one to go! Here's the baby bunny from Victoria Sampler's Woodland Babies series.

When I finish the last baby, I'll be getting back to Victoria Sampler's Button Up Birdie series.  I was close to finishing that series, having stitched 12 of the 14 birds... and then they published four more birds! So now I have six of those left. I wonder if I can get them stitched before any more are added. I wonder if there will be any more Woodland Babies. I wonder if there will be a baby skunk (how cute would that be?). I wonder why I'm blathering away on my blog when I should be stitching on Skeleton Crew. I wonder if I can finish that on time... 

Independence Day

(Brooke's Books Spirit of America Angel)

Summer Stuff

Just back from a week's vacation in Bar Harbor, Maine, with lots of hiking in Acadia National Park. Spectacular. A few pictures coming soon.

We rolled in at 1 a.m. Saturday morning after a four-hour flight delay due to weather, but I actually managed to get a little finishing done when I regained conciousness.

Here's a little freebie from The Little Stitcher. It's stitched on 28 ct. dirty Cashel linen with DMC Color Variations.

And here's my little summer freebie (posted below) finished.

So. I have a functioning computer, a new camera, I'm back from vacation, and I have some time to stitch. Stand by to be astounded.

First Day of Summer

Summer is my least favorite season, not because of the heat--which doesn't bother me--but because it's right before fall, my favorite season. By the time Independence Day rolls around, I'm done with summer and wish it would hurry up and leave so I can get down to the business of enjoying fall and winter.

I just finished this little freebie from The Stitcherhood. Back in February I did the Spring freebie, and it turned out so cute I decided to do all four seasons. Summer is stitched on 28 ct. mushroom evenweave with GAST Tropical Ocean and Buttercrunch, and an old skein of Needle Necessities #108. I added some seafoam with Caron's Snow (sparkly!) and also a few JABCO buttons.

The Supervisor checks the back.  Looks good.

I think we finally have our computer issue sorted out. At least according to some very helpful dude in India. That means I'll be back to blogging awesomeness. Let's all eat cookies today to celebrate!

Happy Father's Day

I'm Back (sort of)

Well, I had a couple more posts in me this month, but we've got a super annoying computer problem at the moment and I'm having to create this post on Mr. Wonderful's laptop, which is also super annoying. So, I'm super annoyed. But I have a cute finish.

This is a little freebie that I can't provide the link for at the moment, but when I get my computer back I'll add it. If you want to hunt for it, it's at Balades et Broderies par Carmela. This one is stitched in Gentle Art Baby Spinach, Bittersweet, and Sable and Weeks Periwinkle.

 Off to set the laptop on fire.

SAL Update: Meet the Boys

Skeleton Crew finally has a crew!

Meanwhile, this was going on behind me...

Overcome with fatigue, no doubt.

Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day to all the mothers, and to all those who mother.

Fun with Paint!

Me, again. I'm on fire, huh? Today I have a non-stitchy finish for you, but it's sparkly, so it belongs here. Y'all know I'm big on sparkly. Have you seen those gorgeous sparkly bowls and platters they have at Pier One Imports? They're from Turkey and/or Italy and start at about $25. I drool over those every time I go in there, but it did occur to me, after I examined one closely, that I should be able to make my own. Kinda. So, off I went to Hobby Lobby.

My supplies. The plate was $1.50 (50% off) and the acrylic paint was $3.93 (30% off) and the glitter spray was $4.79 (40% off coupon). Grand total: about 10 bucks. The paint colors are all metallic: Ice Blue, Blue Pearl, and Aquamarine.

I gave the plate a good spray with the glitter stuff, but it wasn't sparkly enough. So I went to my old stand-by, Glamour Dust! It goes on white, so you can see what you're doing, and dries clear. When I do the next one, I'll skip the glitter spray and just use a couple of coats of Glamour Dust. If I don't factor in the cost of the glitter spray, my sparkly plate now costs less than $6. How about that? By the way, all the painting goes on the back of the plate.



 Slapped on some paint. Just swirled it around. Artfully, you know.

It looks messy (and it is) but it doesn't matter because when it dries and you flip it over, you get this:

Pretty good, huh? (The blob at center left is a reflection.) Of course, it's not as gorgeous as the ones at Pier One... but it's also not as expensive! And I made it myself, and in my book, it gets extra points for being homemade. Homemade is awesome. Within reason.

It's now waiting for a coat of silver spray paint and a coat of sealer to finish off the back, but that has to wait until we get some dry weather. We're socked in with rain all week. When the sun comes out, I may be able to get a better picture to show. Then again, the sparkliness may fry my camera, so we'll see. I'm already planning another one in fall colors. (I heard you gasp... I know, right?!)

Little Things

"Little things comfort us because little things distress us." (Pascal)
It's fun to go big every now and then, but it's the little things that get us through day-to-day life.

A little finish... this is my fifth Woodland Baby (Victoria Sampler). Two more to go.

A little package... my new set of counting pins from The French Needle. Aren't they pretty?

A little face...

 Happy Stitching... even if it's just a little.



Tutorial: How to supervise an evening of stitching

1) Check that all supplies are present and correct. Coat with fur. Taste floss.

2) Settle comfortably. Stare until attention is directed back at you. 

3) When bored, nod off adorably to hint that it's bedtime.

4) If the hint isn't taken and stitching continues, be more obvious.

5)  If stitching persists, fake exhaustion. This should cause the stitching lamp to be turned off and everybody can go to bed.

More dancing sheep, please.

Because we all need more dancing sheep in our lives. This kind of speaks for itself, doesn't it?

 

This is a Mosey 'n Me freebie available here. It's stitched over one on 28 ct. mushroom evenweave with Weeks Dye Works Azaleas, Dutch Iris, Fiesta, and Moss. The sheep is DMC 310 and Wisper W88. The braid it's trimmed with has been in my finishing stash for years and years and years, just waiting for the perfect project. I think this was it.

Hope you have the kind of day that sees you leaping joyfully over the meadows, trailing brightly colored ribbons in your wake. If you can't swing that, milk and cookies around 3 o'clock is an acceptable substitute.

Raiding the Finish Box

I've been digging in my finish box again! You know, that box (or drawer) where all your unfinished finishes live. I'm supposed to be having a finishing day once a month, but naturally I've missed the last couple of months. But I'm back on track... at least for this month. 

I finished a couple of smalls but I can only show one. The other I can't show until Tuesday, so come back and check... it'll make you smile! This one is a little design called Bird Bath by Hinzeit. I used one of my favorite techniques for trimming it. I use two colors of 1/4" wide picot ribbon and simply pin and twist all the way around. It's quick, allows you to bring out a couple of colors in the design, and looks fancy but is easy to do. 



 

I also did some framing. This first piece has been framed for a while but I hadn't photographed it. It's an out of print design from Redbird Designs called Texas Home. The chart was graciously loaned to me by Sandi in Texas. The frame is Mill Hill.

 

Here's another Redbird Designs piece you'll recognize from my blog header. It's called A Texas Garden and it also is out of print. The designer has resumed designing after a lengthy break, but as far as I know, she isn't planning to re-issue her old designs. The frame is one of my do-it-yourself projects. I bought the frame at A.C. Moore and the star applique at Hobby Lobby. I used white paint mixed with a staining medium to create a whitewash effect.



 



 

And that's what I did today! I'm making a pretty good dent in my finish box, especially when I don't count the 12 (of 14) Button Up Birdies I have stitched or the 4 (of 7) Woodland Babies I have stitched. They don't count because I haven't decided yet how I want to finish them. That's my story, anyway.

 

Happy Finishing!

A Furry Little Fan

The Washington Capitals just clinched a spot in the Stanley Cup playoffs. Mr. Wonderful was at work, but Tiger Lily and I cheered them on to victory.

Actually, the cheering was a bit subdued. It's hard to cheer when you have a cat on your chest.

GO CAPS GO!!!