It's Been A Long Summer
I'd like to say I have an excuse or two for not posting for the last 3 months but I don't. It's just life and lack of enthusiasm. I just hadn't been stitching anything that really got me excited to share. But recently I started a Halloween project that really sparked my interest and even got me to stretch the boundaries of what I would normally take on. I guess I just got bored and then finally decided to try something different and that got me going again. :D
First off I haven't finished the Lady in Red. I stopped half way through her when I saw this project I'm doing now. It was taking me forever to finish her because I had just lost all interest in it and wasn't working on it. So I did something I don't normally do, I put it aside in favor of a new project. Here is where (almost) I left off with the lady:
I actually finished the entire top of this project and was moving down towards the bottom when I put it aside. Looking at it now after some weeks I am once again interested to work on it. I think that I now finally understand why so many of you do rotations. :D
Here is the project that got me sparked up again! It's all thanks to San, she asked for this magazine (Cross Stitch and Needlework/Sept) and it had this wonderful project in it! It was so beautiful that I just HAD to do it.
It's by Nora Corbett from Mirabilia. I have never stitched one of her patterns before and I didn't think that I ever would. They just seemed to difficult for me, but this one was right there and it was a HALLOWEEN project and I couldn't resist. I even bought all the Kreiniks and Beads for it and I intend to put (almost) all the beads on it. Me, the no bead person...it's a miracle. LOL
Here is my current progress:
I started this right at the very last few days of July, so even I am impressed at how fast I have put this together. I am done with all the DMC stitching and am now into all the Kreiniks and then the beading. I have to say it was a fairly easy project to stitch and I enjoyed every moment of it. I did make some minor changes to it. I changed some of the backstitch colors. I wasn't sure the Kreinik would be all that easy to work with, but I stitched up the green on the pumpkin last night and it went very easily. I have to say that the colors in the picture are a bit misleading as some of the beads look orange and white. The beads around her skirt are actually a very pretty red and the ones that look white up by the moon are actually seafoam colored. I was a bit surprised by that but the colors are still very pretty. All in all I would say that if you love Nora Corbett and you can get your hands on this magazine, you won't be disappointed in this project.
Lastly I leave you with Greg's recent finish. This is another charity stitch. He just didn't have time to finish his Liberty project so he did this up as a replacement. It's from Bent Creek:
Hope everyone has been having a great summer!
Lady In Red
Just an update on the Faith, Hope and Honor project I'm currently working on. It's going pretty well, if not so fast. I probably could go faster but why hurry? :D
Here's an update pic:
There are a couple of things I changed here, 1) her skin color and 2) her dress color.
I changed her skin color because she was basically Ecru, which meant you'd never see her against this fabric without backstitching and the pattern doesn't have any backstitching. So I opted to come up with a realistic skin color, as realstic as I could anyhow. After a couple of experiments I think she looks nice. This is a combination of a DMC color and a specialty thread that Greg used for Evangeline. I feel it's just the right combo of pink and peachyness to look make her look alive and not like a blood drained corpse. ;)
The dress I changed because when I pulled the color that the pattern called for it was too coral pink and not red enough. I wanted red. I like this so much better the pink just didn't suit me or this project. Red is more regal to me.
The lion is an interesting thing to stitch. It's made of two different colors that are so close together that you can barely tell one from another unless it's right in front of you. I'm not sure why the designer felt that it needed 2 colors but I stuck with it. I do love how the mane is turning out. At first it seemed a pain to stitch it but once I saw the effect I loved it.
I have to say that the colors that you see in the model stitch picture are definately not like the DMC colors. The DMC seems brighter and stronger. For example the green blocks in the model pic seem more blackish, but the DMC is a definate forrest green. I'm sure that this is because the designer intended this to be stitched with silk specialty threads. These threads are beautiful but if you are on a budget forget it they will break you. I think sometime it would be nice to see a designer show us two model stitches, one with the specialty threads and one with DMC so that we can see what we are actually gonna stitch if we opt for the conversion. (This is just a pet peeve of mine.)
Overall I still love this pattern and the symbology of it and I know it will be a long time favorite. :D Not to mention that it is a relatively easy stitch. :D
In other news, a couple of weeks ago we went on vacation to Minneapolis and while there visited a very nifty cross stitch store. If you are ever up that way check them out:
StitchvilleOur jaws hit the floo when we walked in, I haven't seen that much stitching stuff all in one place before, it was totally amazing. They have everything you could possibly ever want, let's just say we spent a cartload of cash there and had a blast doing it.
Take care!!
Lady In Red
Back again! I have been stitching away, it's been great! I had some time between finishing my last project and starting my new one (waiting for fabric) so I did a couple of smalls.
First is a mini project that Greg wanted me to do. It was a lot more complicated than it looked! But it turned out cute. :D
The hedgehog is so adorable and matches the little figure that Greg had sitting with his plants. He was quite happy with it. :D
Next I did JM Designs Rooster:
I used Needle Necessities forest green thread for this one and I love how it turned out. I thought it would be a "small" project, but it's actually about 5x7. It was fast but a bit tricky keeping all those stitches in their proper places. Not sure what I will do with it, but it would look cute in just the right frame. :D
Next up is an update of Greg's statue of liberty pattern:
He's been working on this for 3 months! But it looks so great and I keep cheering him on. :D This thing is HUGE, but so beautiful to see in person. :D
The project I'm working on now is called Faith, Hope and Honor by Carriage House Samplings.
I just fell in love with this pattern when I saw it and had to stitch it. The thing I loved most was her red dress. But when I started pulling DMC threads (I can't afford the expensive silk ones that are used in the sample.) I realized that the "red" was actually more pink than I wanted. And one of the other colors wasn't quite what I had expected either. So I did some switching and got the red dress back to the red I wanted.
That is one of the downsides of the display photos on the patterns, they can be a bit deceiving. I think in this case it was probably because the silk thread colors are a bit different than DMC. But it also might be because the picture is a bit over exposed. In the picture you can hardly see her albaster skin and it was the same in real life when I pulled the Ecru thread and realized it was the same color as the fabric I was stitching on. LOL Well that wasn't going to work for me, I like my ladies to be a bit more flesh toned or even a bit pinkish. ;) So I did so me mixing and matching and finally came out with a combo thread that give her a more fleshy appearance. I don't have a pic as yet, but will try to post one soon. Sorry. Anyway, overall I would recommend this pattern because it's easy and cheerful. Just be aware that it is a lot larger than you might think, especially on 14ct. I'm doing it on 18ct Aida and it's still going to need an 11x14 frame. But like all Carriage House Sampling patterns it will be one that I cherish for a LONG time. :D I just have to find a place to hang it. LOL, LOL
Bye for now!!
More Stuff
Well sad to say it's been another two months since I posted. I just can't seem to get in the blogging mood. But it does make for more stuff to talk about. :D
First off I have to show my new frames! Hobby Lobby had a 50% off framing sale and I had to take advantage of it. So I got two of my projects re-framed. I had wanted better frames for them for a while. They are square projects and it's nearly impossible to find square frames.
First up is my Blue Moon project:
I thought this frame would set off the project better and I think it looks great! Here is a close up of the frame:
My favorite of all is for my Pirate Map project from Lynne Nicoletti. I was never happy with the frame I had it in and I finally found one that I love!
Here is a close up:
This one looks so fabulous! I really love this frame and am glad I was able to get it.
Back in February I decided to start on an Autumn Sampler kit from Janlynn. It was a long complex project that would've taken me months to finish. But I was ready for it. So I got everything set up and started stitching. Here is how far I got
before I realized that I had started the project horizontally instead of vertically on the fabric. The fabric I had chosen for the project was narrower than it was long and that was fine if I had started the project in the right direction. As it was the project would NEVER fit on the fabric if I kept going the way I was. It was a major bummer to realize that. I had put a lot of work into it and honestly I just didn't want to start over again. It was a very tedious process and I just couldn't face it right then. So I bagged it and started on another project that I'd been wanting to do since last year.
But first I did a project for charity for Greg. He asked nicely. :D I think it turned out pretty nice. The tea dyed fabric is very pretty.
I also just finished "I will always be a wildflower" from Sam Sarah. Greg got it for me last year along with the buttons. I LOVE IT! It was easy and so fun to work on.
I dyed this fabric a while ago and I remember wondering what I would ever use it for, it was just such a strange color. Well you just never know, do you. It works so great with this project. I had to change out the colors because I didn't have the right specialty threads but I got close. I like the sunflower better than their original one. I think it looks more sunflowery. :D I'm not sure how I will finish this...when I saw it in the shop last year the lady had made it into a beautiful pillow. I may go that way if I can find the right fabric. :D
Lastly I have to show the gift that San sent me for Xmas. I found this frame by chance on sale and knew it was perfect for this gift. Greg did the matting and it all turned out fabulously. It's such a delicate project on a lightweight linen that is so pretty. Sorry for the slightly blurry pic, as always things always look better in person. ;)
Well that's it for now. I will try to update a bit more. I seem to be out of my slump so ....
Oh and if you are looking for my gallery I have to say that sadly it has gone away. The hosting site has gone away and I haven't found a new place for it yet.
Take care!
Wow, it's been a long time...
No I did not drop off the face of the planet. I just got bored and distracted and retreated for a while. I didn't even realize it had been this long since I'd updated.
I wish I could say I had loads and loads to show you, but I can't. I just haven't been in a stitching mood for a while. I do have some pics, but mostly Greg's. :D
I did get my owl framed finally and I finished a project that I had worked on forEVER. I guess sometimes we just need a break. Of course it didn't help that right after Xmas I got a nasty cold/virus thingy that didn't give up for over a month.
Anyhoo! Here is my framed owl!
Here is the project that I was working on for such a long time. I guess I mainly got bored with, even though when I started it I really wanted to do it. Just fickle I suppose. ;)
Greg finished up this project for me. I had begged him to stitch something fantastic for me after he finished his Evangeline. I had bought this pattern and knew he would make it turn out great and it did! I LOVE IT!
And here are some mini-projects that he did for charity donations at work.
Other than that nothing much to report. I am working on a charity stitch for Greg and I like it. It should go fairly fast.
I can't believe it's going to be Valentines day already! Seems like it was Xmas just last week. :D Hope everyone is doing well. I know you've been stitching cuz I keep lurking around your blogs. ;D Take care!
Better Late Than Never
So I finally finished my owl on the pumpkin, it's meant for Halloween which was oh LAST week, but hey it's done. ;)
I love how it turned out, it has some minor glitches that we won't discuss but overall I love it. :) Now I just need to get it framed. I think the only complaint I can put forth is that the pattern didn't have a conversion to DMC. It was specialty threads only and that was a bit of a pain, especially for those that can't get or don't want to use them. I wish that this kind of info was noted when selling a pattern as it can be quite crucial. That's my only complaint though, the pattern is well done and easy to use. And FUN! :D
I told you that I took an embroidery class and showed my progress...well here's the finished project.
The part I loved the most making this was the ribbon embroidery. I know, can you believe it? Everyone else hated it or had trouble with it but I really loved it. I have no idea what I'm going to do with this, maybe a pillow? But here is a close up of some of my stitches for San.
Not too horrible for someone whose never done them (except for lazy daisies) before. LOL
Well I hope you all are having fun stitching and enjoying fall or spring depending on where you are. :D
Happy All Hallows Eve!
Look I'm back and so soon! :) Thanks for all the nice comments from last time, I appreciate them. :D
Greg has a new post at his blog
The Bent NeedleI promised I'd post a pic of his finished Evangeline. So here it is, finally!
It looks so fantastic, no picture can ever do it justice. :D And now he's working on a new project for me, you can see a glimpse of it on his blog.
I got my African ladies all framed up. These are special gifts so I had to do something special. Let me know what you think.
I used shadow box frames because I had found these nifty African statues that I wanted to use in conjunction with the projects I stitched. Well with Greg's help we managed to get everything combined into a shadow box. I found these cool fabrics for the backgrounds at at local quilting shop called the Cosmic Cow (no I'm not making that up). I also glued some extra beads just to jazz it up a bit and it all just came together. I can't wait till I gift them to their new owners. :D
I have made amazing progress with my Trick or Treat project, it just started to flow along!
I am about half way done with the owl and I think this project is just so fabu, I love it. :) I did change some of the colors because I didn't have everything that the pattern called for, but it worked out. Glendon Place makes some great patterns I may have to get some more down the road. :D
And lastly! I hope you all had or are having a great Halloween! Here (for Lili) are a couple of pics of my house decorated. This weekend it transmorphs into Thanksgiving. ;)
And in case you think you are seeing things, YES that is a skeleton with a party hat on sitting in my rocking chair holding an UGLY bat. ;)
