Naptime With the Werewolves

When there's a loud lightning strike nearby...

...but it's okay to go to sleep because you're under the blanket with mama. 

Why were the three of us passed out in the middle of the day? Because I took a nasty virus Saturday evening that came with a very persistent fever that didn't break until Tuesday morning. So I've spent most of the last three days asleep, which is a terrible waste of stitching time. When we get sick, the goal is to be just sick enough that we can't do housework, but not too sick to stitch. Right? 

Anyway, there's been a lot of sleeping around here. A lot.

Fuzzy werewolf paws

Think I've finally turned the corner, as my Grandmother would say. Probably not strong enough to do laundry but I should be able to stitch!😂

Christmas in July! (& Fall & Halloween)

 

Look at this adorable wee mole in his jaunty little hat! Isn't this the cutest? I had to pause summer birds and Halloween mania just for a minute to stitch this cheerful little guy. He's from Lola Crow on Etsy. I stitched him on 32 ct. grey Basalt Splash.

I added a bit of stash in preparation for some fall projects. The fabrics are (top) 32 ct. Sandbar linen by Under the Sea Fabric and 32 ct. Service Lugana by Atomic Ranch Fabrics.

I also rummaged around in my hoard and pulled out some Halloweenish fabrics.

I have a stack of small Halloween designs I want to stitch so, as I do with most of my multi-design projects (like Summer Birds and Christmas Open House) I put them all in a presentation book (Avery, a few bucks at Walmart) and made a pretty cover. The picture is a free printable from the Purple Pumpkin blog.

Next up is either July Basket or a summery/spooky little design I found that's perfect for those of us trapped in summer and longing for fall! And my copy of the new Pigeon Coop Designs book should be here this week, and I'm pretty sure there's a bird in there I need to stitch right away. 

Happy Stitching!

Settle in, it's a chunky one!

 

Let's just breathe, shall we? Let's look at new fall stuff, and new stitchy stuff, and talk about stitching plans, and pet some fluffy kitties, okay?

Fourth of July has come and gone and in my autumn loving heart, it is time for fall. Every year I have to strongly resist the urge to drag out all my fall decorations on 5 July. What I do instead is allow myself a couple of new goodies to get me through the rest of the summer. So I made a quick trip to Hobby Lobby and found some stuff I needed. The picture above is a set of fall lights and they are so much prettier in person. These are real fall colors--orange, brown (yes! brown lights!), and gold--not just the orange you usually see. Initially I only got one set, but after getting them home and plugging them in, I went back for a few more sets. They're that pretty.

I also got some pretty trees and a tiny canvas print in soft autumn colors.

Of course I've done a little stash enhancement: a sweet winter fox and some mini quakers.

I also got some lovely bird scissors to go with my Nimble Birds sampler I'm working on. These cut well and feel substantial.  They're available in several finishes (this is bronze) in a number of Etsy shops and on Amazon. I assume the manufacturer is the same.

Project bags! Can we ever have enough? The fancy handmade ones are beautiful but they can be expensive. I fully support those who make things by hand charging what their work is worth, and I have a couple of these, but if you need a lot of them the cost can be prohibitive. I was nosing around on Amazon and found these mesh book/document bags and I love them. These are well made and come in a set of four for about $15, but there are a number of similar styles and sizes to choose from. Just a thought, in case you want to do a bunch of project prep at once.

For the second year in a row I've purchased the Just Cross Stitch Halloween issue. For me, the annual JCS Christmas Ornament issue and later the annual Halloween issue were must-purchase for many years, but after JCS was sold, I found the changes to the magazine didn't suit my taste. Last year I was pleasantly surprised to find several things to stitch in the Halloween issue, and there are some cute things in this year's issue as well. I always used to look forward to these annual issues and it's nice to do so again.

I think I might eventually stitch all three of these designs, and maybe even a couple of others. Yes, I'm still working on Summer Birds, still working on Nimble Birds, but y'all. Halloween is calling. What do I say? Well, kinda like resisting decorating for fall in July by buying a few autumn things, I plan to spend a little time putting together the supplies for a few of these projects (project bags!). Choosing fabric and pulling threads is fun and that should hold me for a bit. Maybe I can sneak in a Halloween stitch here and there!

So that's what's new in the sewing room. As promised, here are some sweet, fuzzy babies to smooth out your day!

Tummy rub!

Happy Stitching!

June Basket

 

I'm still on track with the Cosford Rise Stitchery flower basket series! The only change to this one is the same change I've been making throughout this series, which is to use DMC Blanc for whiteish or off white colors, just to add a bit more brightness. This one has a busy little bee.

And here's January through June. Such a charming little series; I'm really enjoying stitching these. Along with my bird project, I am definitely getting in some colorful stitching this year.

Summer Birds, So Far

 

How bright and cheerful and fun is this?! This is my progress so far on my Summer Birds project and I have to say, it's turning out exactly as I had envisioned it and I'm having a blast stitching all these birds! I wanted a colorful jumble of birds in a variety of styles, and I think I'm well on my way to achieving that. Although I don't have many yet, I'm looking forward to getting these finished so I can begin working on my display. It will be a bit sparse at first, but I hope to fill it in over the rest of the summer. 

These just make me smile.

Hope y'all have a wonderful Independence Day and a safe and peaceful holiday weekend. The month of June was a little wild at the Wonderful household, but we made it through and I am tired! I would love to spend this long weekend in the sewing room, reclaiming it and getting some work done. We'll see. 

Enjoy the holiday and Happy Stitching!

Nimble Birds

Finally got started on this gorgeous bird sampler, Nimble Birds by Owl Forest Embroidery. (I put links to all my Owl Forest sources in this post.) I'm using Owl Forest threads and stitching on 32 ct. Sand Dollar by new-to-me fabric dyer Tropical Stitches. My plan is to work on this sampler throughout the summer alongside my other bird projects. 

If brightly colored tropical birds are more your thing, there is a companion sampler called Exotic Birds.

Happy Stitching!

Summer Birds: Barn Swallow

 

Another little lovely from Pigeon Coop Designs! Isn't this one so pretty? It's one of a pair of swooping swallows. I only stitched one because I'm trying to get as many different birds stitched as I can, but at some point I'll stitch the other one. The only changes I made were using DMC Blanc for the clouds and using a Smyrna stitch for the single stitches, as I like the look better than single cross stitches and they're easier to finish off if you're not carrying thread between stitches. He's stitched on 28 ct. Blue Whisper.

I am so excited for the Pigeon Coop Designs book being released at the end of July. I provided links to all the PCD stuff in this post, in case you missed it.

Also, I just noticed this morning that he is having a great sale on his digital patterns until the end of June. If you've been thinking about picking up a few, now would be a good time!

Happy Stitching!

A Recipe For You

 

While looking for snack recipes to try for Mr. Wonderful, I found this one for protein balls/energy bites, made half a recipe as an experiment, and proceeded to eat most of them myself (not all at once, y'all). I love this recipe. It's easy and has everything you need in a little pick-me-up snack: protein (peanut butter and protein powder), a quick-releasing carb (maple syrup), and a slow-releasing carb (oatmeal). I also added 1/4 cup of mini chocolate chips, because... chocolate. They're delicious, and keep very well in the fridge. I used a small cookie scoop and got about a dozen and a half from a halved recipe. For me, one is usually enough if I'm feeling a bit crashy. 

Enjoy!

Summer Birds: Baltimore Oriole

 

My latest addition to my Summer Birds collection is an adorably chunky Baltimore Oriole. If you've never seen one, they are rather sleek, and not chunky like Chickadees or Juncos, but I loved this little guy. They are beautiful birds, and their bright orange coloring makes them look almost tropical. I stitched him on PTP Flash, which unfortunately is no longer available. I found some on clearance years ago, and when I realized it was being discontinued, I stocked up. Although I'm not a huge fan of orange in general, I really love this fabric color, and it's also great for Halloween designs. I'm sure there's something similar available somewhere. 

Hope y'all are enjoying summer and getting lots of stitching done. I am loving all this bird stitching!

May Basket

 

Just a couple of small changes to this one: I used DMC Blanc instead of GAST Picket Fence to make the flowers a bit brighter, and I used CC Blue Moon instead of GAST Uniform Blue to soften the blue.

We're by ourselves again this week as Mr. Wonderful is TDY. As usual, I have sewing room plans. Today I spent a lot of time prepping my next few projects: the Owl Forest Nimble Birds sampler I showed a few posts ago, a couple more summer birds, a fox (!), and June Basket. I like to have 4 or 5 projects all ready to go so when I finish one I can immediately pick up the next one. It takes me a while to pull threads, choose fabric, and cut and press it, which is why I like to prepare several at once. I even go ahead and mark the center so all I have to do is pop it on the q-snap and start stitching. 

My next major sewing room job is reorganizing the cubby shelves where I store all my stash. I have three units that cover one whole wall and they need a re-think. Hopefully I can get that done this week.

As always, I have finishing and framing waiting. I'd like to get started on my birds so I can display them and just add to them throughout the summer, but that may have to wait just a bit.

Busy, busy, busy. So thankful to have such a soothing hobby to keep my mind and hands peacefully occupied. 

Summer Girls

 

Summer Birds: Goldfinch

 

I am steaming along with my summer birds projects! Latest finish is this realistic Goldfinch from this Etsy shop. I stitched him with the recommended DMC (except for the blue highlight on top of his head, which I omitted) on pale yellow fabric. When choosing my designs for this project, I didn't try to stick with a certain style, I just picked out what I liked: realistic, whimsical, highly stylized, etc. And I'm stitching them on colorful fabrics, so the look I'm hoping for is a sort of busy, bustling, cheerful little flock of stitched birds in all shapes and styles and colors. I am really enjoying this project. Four finishes so far, and a notebook full of birds to choose from! Who will be next?

Summer Birds: Spring Robin

 

New finish for my Summer Birds project and introduction to the new (to me) designer I mentioned! This is Spring Robin by Pigeon Coop Designs, stitched with the recommended DMC on 28 ct. PTP Highland. 

I've had a prairie design by Pigeon Coop in my Etsy favorites for quite some time but hadn't really explored his work very much as I had just stumbled across it and marked it. Then I happened to see a couple of his newer bird designs and decided to investigate. That ended with me buying several designs and pre-ordering his book, which comes out this summer. And I never buy designs sight unseen! I am definitely not a mystery sampler/SAL/design kinda girl. I tried that once, and ended up having to redesign the last few parts because I didn't like them. Lesson learned. However, I made an exception here. I just love his unique style and the fact that the book is all nature designs. He's periodically releasing sneak peeks from the book on his Facebook page, and has also released all of the chapter and design titles. I can't wait!

I really enjoyed stitching this pretty little Robin. This style stitches up quickly and is very relaxing, much like the geometric and mandala designs I love so much.

If you enjoy nature designs and are looking for something a little different, do check him out at all the links I've provided, and Happy Stitching!

Saturday Sampler: Full Color Edition

 

Linen: 32 ct. Mater Samich by Dames of the Needle

Foxy Fall by Far Away Designs

Floss organizers by BagzplusUSA

Nimble Birds by Owl Forest Embroidery: pdf downloads, printed patterns and thread sets, kits