Author: My Time Stitching

I am a wife to a wonderful man and mother to two terrific sons. I love cross stitching, knitting, stamping and scrapbooking. I have decided to start a blog as a way of documenting and sharing my love for cross stitching, knitting, crocheting and anything else I may be up to ;)
Good Bye 2023, Hello 2024
Bella Filipina Designs · Country Cottage Needleworks · cross stitch · Fabric · Fox and Rabbit · Hand Dyed Fabrics · Knitted Shawl · Knitting · Mystery Stitch A Long · Pixie · Sampler · yarn

Good Bye 2023, Hello 2024

My Time Stitching8 Comments

Happy New Year, my blogging friends! I hope that you have had a wonderful Holiday season and that your new year will be everything you hope it will be.

The last couple of months have been very busy for me and they really went by so fast I could hardly keep up. I have been stitching and decorating and my Christmas was such a joy. All of the kids were here and we started new traditions, pulled in some old traditions and made lots of wonderful memories. So what have I been stitching on?

Well, most of my time has been spent on stitching on 1 project. I am still trying to get all of my WIPs finished (that is the ultimate goal ;) Around mid November I pulled out my 2022 MSAL, Changing Seasons from Fox and Rabbit. When the final section came out on the 1st of December 2022, it was the outside border section. I worked on the top border that month and it took me so long to get through it. I knew I wouldn’t finish it before the end of that month, so I put it away. Because I didn’t finish it, I didn’t think it would be wise to start the 2023 SAL. But when Foxx & Rabbit put out that 2024 would probably be their last SAL, I knew I wanted to participate. But first I needed to finish the 2022 SAL. So this is what it looked like when I pulled it out.

Oh the colors in this are so beautiful and rich and regal! I couldn’t wait to start stitching with DMC 115 again. And so I stitched and stitched. Stitching 4-6 hours a day, hoping to finish it before the end of the year. 

So much stitching, but I enjoyed every stitch I put in, and took out. I did have to frog a section that took me 2 days to rip out. Ugh. But then I was back on track and paying close attention to where each motif was; counting from every angle.

In between decorating, shopping, wrapping, house stuff and everything else, I finally made it across the bottom border. I only had the left border to do! I was so excited to see this piece coming to a finish. And late on December 27th, I put in my last stitch!

Wow! I LOVE it! I will not lie…that border was massive! But it is finished. I do still have to add my initials and the date. And there are 2 very tiny blue dots on the piece that I have to try to clean. One on the front and one on the back. The only thing I can think that they are from, is Blue Slurpee! You know, sometimes when you drink from a straw and let go, a little drop can be flung from it? That is the only thing I can think of. It is funny that the spot on the front didn’t go through to the back and the spot on the back didn’t go through onto the front. Anyway, I will have to figure out how to clean the spots. The fabric is a hand dyed so I don’t want to wash it. We’ll see how it goes. But it is finished for the most part and I am free to start the 2024 SAL. I am still deciding on fabric for that one, though I will probably use 18ct aida (first for me) in white. It is what I have in stock and that is large enough as it will use a little bit more that a fat quarter. More about that when I get a start on it. Anyway, the above sampler was stitched with DMC 115. I also used a darker burgundy for outlining the letters, but I don’t have the number right here. If you want to know, I am sure it is in the older posts from 2022 or leave me a comment and I can get it for you. The fabric is 16ct Aida Winter Wishes from Fabric by Steph. 

After finishing the sampler, I pulled out my knitting, since I had neglected my knitting in order to spend all of my free time stitching on the sampler to get it finished before the end of the year. I pulled out my Impulse Buy shawl.

The pattern called for 400 yards making it a 1 skein shawl, but I was thinking I wanted it longer. So I went on the hunt looking for another skein. I was worried about the colors matching the skein that I had and after talking with my Mother in Law, she said she would send me her skein that she picked up the same time I did when she visited in October. So I kept knitting. And I received her skein in the mail.

Just look at all of those beautiful colors in that skein! 

I ended up adding about 24 grams from the extra skein. I think it will be long enough after blocking. So I finished the shawl.

It still needs to be block and the ends woven in, but it is a finish for now. And it was my last finish for 2023. The details are: Impulse Buy Shawl by Barbara Benson and is available on Ravelry. The yarn is La Jolla by Baah in color Sleigh Ride.

I also had another fully finished object. In my last post I mentioned that I had put another project in for framing. 

I took Holly Berry Pixie in to get framed. I wanted her to be hanging in my house for the Holidays. So many frame choices! So many frames didn’t look good or were not deep enough to account the beads.

I have never gone through that many frames while trying to pick a frame out for a cross stitch project. But I wanted it to be perfect. And one that both my husband and I agreed on. And we finally did agree on the perfect frame.

I didn’t go into the framers planning on a dark wood frame. I thought I wanted a silver frame. But none of the silver or gold frames looked good at all. Hubby suggested a wood frame. I was very doubtful as I never go for wood frames. But that is the frame that we landed on. I really did like the look of it from what we could tell and couldn’t wait for her to get all framed up. A few weeks later, she was ready for pick up and I couldn’t wait to see her.

I think she turned out fabulous! I love the dark wood and the decorative swirls on the frame. She was so much smaller than I expected for some reason, but I love her! And I am very happy to have her hanging in my house for the holidays. The pattern is Holly Berry Pixie by Bella Filipina Designs. Fabric is a One of a kind from Fantasy Dyed Fabrics (no longer dying) in 16ct Aida.

So now I am back to working on my Beach Boardwalk series. This is the Saltwater Taffy Shop. It is the 6th shop in the series and is so cute. I just love the colors. After this one, just one more to go. The series is from Country Cottage Needleworks. I am stitching on 16ct Aida Friendship Greene from Fabrics by Steph, using all of the called for fancy flosses. 

 I think I had a pretty productive year as far as my crafting goes. I think I have had 21 cross stitch finishes (mostly smalls) and 6 knitted projects. Not bad. I am looking forward to crafting in 2024. I still want to work on getting my WIPs back to one project, though I doubt I will do that this year. It is always in the back of my mind, but all of my projects are large projects. There is also my oldest WIP that I definitely want to finish this year. It is my 30 year old WIP! More on that when I get back to stitching on it. 

I have also been thinking about my word for 2024. I kept coming back to the word Enjoy. So that is my word for 2024. Enjoy.  I want to enjoy more. When I am stitching, I want to be sure I enjoy the stitching on the project and not focus so much on “having to get it finished”. I want to enjoy all of my crafting while I am working on them. I want to enjoy where I am and who I am with, even though my anxiety seems to get the best of me. I want to enjoy what I choose to do instead of thinking I should be doing something else. This year I just want to enjoy. Do you have a word for 2024? I would love to hear about it and why you chose that word. 

That is what I have been up to. What have you been up to? Leave me a comment and let me know. 

Again, Happy New Year! I hope your year is full of Sparkle and Shine. I wish you a year of love, joy, happiness and good health and full of what you love to do ❤

Happy Stitching!

ginny

Hello December
Country Cottage Needleworks · cross stitch · Fabric · Hand Dyed Fabrics · Knitted Shawl · Knitting · Mirabilia · Pillows · yarn

Hello December

My Time Stitching14 Comments

Hello my blogging friends and Happy December. The days keep moving faster than I can keep up and here we are ; December 1. If I blink, it will probably be Christmas! As you may have noticed in my feature photo, I have finished my December pillow. As per most of the months, I pulled it out just a few days before the start of the month.

I can’t believe this is the final pillow!

This pillow went as fast as the others. I worked on it a little at a time over 2 days.

For some reason I decided to be a messy stitcher for this one. I didn’t bother taking the time to separate the threads ahead of time or put them on floss drops or anything. It was ok. Sometimes you just have to be a messy stitcher. And in a flash it was finished!

I am a little disappointed that the green fabric is upside down. But I think the bows kind of hide that imperfection. And there was a rip on the side where the fabric was supposed to be joined to the cross stitch fabric. I had to stitch that up before getting started. But it is finished and I am so happy !

My monthly pillows are now all finished and I can pull them out each month knowing that I won’t have to stitch any of them up before displaying them. They have been in my stash for a lot of years and it feels great to get this project out of my WIP pile. The patterns are from Pine Mountain Designs and are no longer available. Though you may be able to find them on a secondary market.

So what else have I been up to? Well, I had put my Ocean Pearl piece in for framing to see how the framer would do with framing needlework. You know I have been on the hunt for a new framer or framing service.

It took me a while to decide on a frame for this one. I ended up picking a black frame with some swirls on it. And here it is all framed up.

She turned out beautifully. I am happy with it and have since put another piece in for framing.

Knitting. What is on my knitting needles?

I started the Impulse Buy shawl. The yarn is La Jolla from Baah yarns in color Sleigh Ride. When my Mother in Law was here in October, we visited a yarn shop and both picked up a skein of this beautiful yarn. The colors are so gorgeous and will go with so many tops in my wardrobe.

This pattern is super easy and very relaxing to knit. After the initial cast on and a few rows, it is just a 4 row repeat. I love stitching on this. The yarn is soft and squishy and the pattern is so lovely even though you can see it so well with all of the busy colors. The lace is just on the edges, so I am hoping it will show much more after I finish it and block it.

Now for what I have been stitching on. I added the 5th shop on my Beach Boardwalk series.

The Souvenir shop is the latest shop and it is so cute with the sand castle on top of the shop. I am really loving this series and will be sad when it ends. Just 2 more shops left. I received a shipping notice yesterday that my next shop is on the way. Can’t wait to get it and add it to my Boardwalk. Patterns are from Country Cottage Needleworks and I am stitching on 16ct Aida Friendship Greene from Fabrics by Steph.

I also pulled Rosamund out and gave her some love.

Oh how I have missed stitching on her. She is so beautiful!

I am loving every stitch on her.

And here is where I stopped with her. I put her away to stitch on the Boardwalk. I’m not sure if she will get worked on again this year, but I am definitely planning on finishing her next year. The pattern is Rosamund from Mirabilia. I am stitching her on 16ct Aida Salem from Fiberlicious Yummy Fibers.

So that is some of what I have been up to. I had started making my Christmas Cards about a month ago and I need to get back to that and get them finished. I also want to decorate for Christmas this weekend. Busy, busy time of year. Trying to balance it all and keep up with everything has been an issue for me the last few months, but I am doing what I can, when I can. How about you? What have you been up to? I hope you are getting some stitching in and taking some time for you. Take care and Happy Stitching.

Stitchy Hugs,

ginny

What I Have Been Stitching
Bella Filipina Designs · cross stitch · Fabric · Hand Dyed Fabrics · Mermaids · Mystery Stitch A Long · Stitch A Long

What I Have Been Stitching

My Time Stitching6 Comments

Hello my blogging friends! How are you doing? My mind has been heavy with thoughts and so I dive into stitching. So let’s get started on trying to catch up with what I have been stitching on.

A couple of months ago I started on a project for my Daughter In Law for her birthday in October.

She is a Taylor Swift fan and I knew she would love this. The pattern is from Frizzy Lizzie Stitches and it is so cute!

Can you name all of the songs mentioned in this stitch? Fabric is 16ct Aida Pixie Pink from Fabrics By Steph. I have not tried framing something on my own, so I decided to make it into a pillow.

It made a really cute pillow and my Daughter in Law loved it. I am hoping to make another one for myself someday.

Next I pulled out this WIP and gave it some love.

This one is Rainbow Dice from Rack and Pinion. Blocks of color are really not my thing so this one is a bit boring for me. I am making it for my son, so I will eventually get it finished.

Over the summer I found a seller that makes Floss Buddy Flips that I have fallen in love with.

They come in different sizes depending on how many floss bobbins will fit in them. Each Flip has a vinyl pocket on the back for holding a pattern or extra floss or whatever you want to put in there.

I usually use plastic bobbin boxes to hold the bobbins for each project or 2 projects in a box. I end up having a stack or bag full of little bobbin boxes for projects. Using the Flips I can put them right into the project bag with my pattern, beads, specialty threads and treasures. If you are a bobbin user, these are great. They hold my acrylic bobbins as well as the paper bobbins. They are well made and are sold on Etsy from Bagzplus.

The next project I worked on was the Mugshot Villains SAL from AbbieSue Designs.

I started on the blocks about a week before the SAL started and didn’t get very far.

I figured the first row was a good start for the first few villains. Snow White’s Evil Queen was the first Villian that came out on October 23.

This one took way longer than I thought it would. I am stitching on Aida, and there are so many fractionals! And from what I hear, there are lots of fractional stitches in all of them. So I will probably not be keeping up with this one. Especially since there have been 2 more releases since this one that I have not started on. A villain comes out every week for the most part. But it will be awesome when it is finished. I am stitching on 16ct Aida Masquerade from Picture This Plus.

Another SAL that I have started on is Mermaids of the Seasons from Bella Filipina Designs and Fiberlicious Yummy Fabrics. I mentioned this one in a previous post and was afraid that my fabric and embellishments would not arrive in time for the start on September 15. But they did arrive the day before the release date.

So, I was all ready to start on the 15th. The Spring Mermaid came out first and she is a beauty! I started stitching the border on the called for fabric shown above, but the gray was not showing up well. I wasn’t happy with it. So, I switched to one of my standby fabrics from Those Missing Stitches and that worked out so much better.

The colors really look lovely on this fabric.

Spring Mermaid was such a sweet stitch! I will save the beading for the end. Summer Mermaid came out on October 15 and she is also a beautiful one in pink.

And here they are together.

I can’t wait to see which mermaid comes out next week! The fabric is 16ct Aida Adventurous Alice from Those Missing Stitches.

Still trying to get caught up on my projects both here and in stitching them. I think I have made this post long enough. So come back to see what else I am stitching on and what is on my knitting needles. What are you stitching on these days?

Happy Stitching!

ginny

Well Hello November!
Country Cottage Needleworks · cross stitch · Cross Stitch Patterns · Fabric · Halloween · Hand Dyed Fabrics · Pillows

Well Hello November!

My Time Stitching12 Comments

I slowed down and it was the end of October and today is the first of November. The last time I posted was September 1, wow! This may be a long post, or I may have to break it up into pieces. Anyway, grab a drink and settle in. Here is what I have been up to.

Goodbye, October.

Hello November.

So, September was spent getting my house and spare bedroom ready for my Mother-in-law’s visit. She arrived the end of September and spent 3 weeks with us. We had a great time. Busy all the time, lots of shopping, some crafting and just visiting and hanging out. I even taught her to do counted cross stitch. She was just about finished her project by the time she left. We had fun and I was sad to see her go.

Now onto what I have been stitching…where to begin…The Beach Boardwalk. I think I was on the 2nd shop the last time I posted. Since then I have added the Bicycle shop and the Boardwalk Banner.

I have a really hard time photographing this one. The individual photos don’t show the details and the colors look washed out. So this is the best photo I could get. I love how this one is turning out with all of the shops all in a row. They can be stitched individually, too. The patterns are from Country Cottage Needleworks and I am stitching them on 16t Aida Friendship Greene from Fabrics By Steph. This week I received the next shop, Souvenir Shop, so I will have to get back to it soon. Especially since today I saw the next shop is shipping to shops next week.

Next up is the Flying Lesson that I was stitching to put on a sign for a really cool Halloween display. So I finished the stitching in early September, but then it sat on a shelf.

The fear of cutting into my stitching was the reason I put it aside. I even finished a cute little witch on the other half of the fabric.

This pattern is from the Witchy Stitcher. I changed the purple colors from the called for green, mainly to match the colors I stitched the Flying Lesson with. So I waited until 4 days before Halloween to finally get going on finishing the sign. So I gathered all of my materials and was determined to get it done over the weekend.

This is such a cool looking sign for finishing a cross stitch on.

Gluing and staining. Not my favorite.

As you can see in the above photo, I did cut into the fabric, and I finished the stitched piece onto a sticky board with some batting. I had a bit of trouble with the corners but was finally able to get them to look like somewhat pointed corners. I couldn’t find a trim that I wanted in the craft stores, so I twisted a length of black crochet ribbon around a length of purple yarn and glued it around the edge of the piece. Then I glued it onto the sign. I couldn’t wait for it to dry to hang it onto the post.

Here it is, fully finished! It’s not perfect, but I love it! I am not a fan of gluing wood pieces together nor am I a fan of staining. I did learn that I need to be better at cleaning up the excess glue because the stain doesn’t adhere to the glue. But I think I did pretty good for my first time. And here is how I decorated it for Halloween.

I did not permanently attach any of the decorations to the signpost. My idea is to make more signs for different holidays. Maybe not this year, but in the future. The wooden sign is from Chantelle’s 141 and I have heard that she will be offering just the sign portion in the future. She has some awesome wood pieces for cross stitch finishing in her shop. Click on the link above to visit her online shop.

I did not get the witch piece finished for this year. It was also stitched on 16ct Aida Gina from Fabrics By Steph. I wanted to do some kind of flat fold, but just didn’t get to it. Cutting into 1 piece of finished cross stitch was enough for this year, I think 😉 The Flying Lesson pattern is from Silver Creek Samplers and is stitched on 16ct Aida Gina from Fabrics by Steph.

Well, I think I will end this post here. I have lots more to share, so come back to see what I have been up to. For now, I will leave you with what I woke up to this morning. Hello November.

Happy Stitching,

ginny

September Is For Stitching
Bella Filipina Designs · Country Cottage Needleworks · cross stitch · Cross Stitch Patterns · Fabric · Halloween · Hand Dyed Fabrics · Mermaids · Mystery Stitch A Long · Stitch A Long · WIP

September Is For Stitching

My Time Stitching5 Comments

Hello blogging friends! Well, another month has come and gone in the blink of an eye, it seems. The end of August marks the end of summer for some. As I look out my craft room window, several trees already have some red and orange and yellow leaves already. How can that be? I want more summer. And where I am I will be getting just that with temps in the 90’s this weekend and next week. I will be sure to enjoy those last few days of summer.

August was a very busy stitchy month for me and I am hoping that September will be also. So let’s get right into what I have been stitching on.

First, you probably noticed in my header photo, I stitched up my September pillow. I pulled it out just a few days ago.

With this pillow, I had to stitch quite a bit in hand because I just couldn’t get my hope close enough to the edge and get it taut.

I stitched the entire ruler in hand and I have to admit, I did enjoy getting those stitches done in half the time. Especially since I finished ruler and went to put in the 1/8″ marks and made each 1/2″ section 3 stitches wide instead of 4. I am blaming it on paying too much attention to flosstube 😉 I don’t think that I would stitch in hand on Aida since most Aida is a bit stiff. But since this Tula fabric was quite soft, I really did enjoy stitching in hand.

So happy to have another pillow finished. My October and November pillows have been finished in previous years, so only 1 more pillow to go and this series will be totally finished and out of the WIP pile. Right now the plan is not to wait until November 28 to work on the December pillow, but we will see. These pillows are from Pine Mountain Designs and the series is called All Tied Up. They are from around 2007, so I don’t think that they are still available, but you may be able to find them on the secondary market.

Next up is the Greenhouse of Oddities.

I could not put this project down. It was such a joy watching each item appear. In the left of side of the Greenhouse is George Washington Carver who helped so many farmers with how to manage their soil to get better crops. I also found out that he dabbled in Cross Stitch, so he was my choice to add to the Greenhouse. The other choice was Charles Darwin, who was also a great biologist, with his Theory of Evolution. I am stitching this one on 16ct Aida in color Rugged Rochester from Those Missing Stitches. I think the stitching looks perfect on this fabric.

This is where I was just after the 11th and final planting section was released. I am so proud of myself for almost getting this one caught up. Especially since I started this one with the 6th section. Like I said, I couldn’t put it down and stitched almost exclusively on it until it was finished.

This is the finish. The last section, the Exploding Tree, was a beast! So much confetti stitching, but the end result is beautiful. This entire piece took me 6 weeks to stitch. That is how good it is. I will note: To the right of the exploding tree there is a space where I had forgotten to stitch one of the seed pods before taking this photo. I did go back and add it, and forgot to take an updated picture. But it is still beautiful and I am so happy with this amazing piece. The pattern is from Lola Crow Cross Stitch.

I also started the Halloween project that I mentioned in my last post.

This is a SAL with Nichol Sophr on her flosstube channel. She has chosen the pattern Flying Lesson by Silver Creek Samplers. She will do a weekly live SAL on her youtube channel. She has broken the pattern down into 4 sections, 1 section per week. Then on the 5th week she will have a finishing video. We are currently on week 3 and this is how far I have gotten after week 2.

I am doing a conversion of this pattern that Nichol had shown on her Facebook page. I am using DMC floss and a gold Krenik. The fabric is 16ct Aida in the color Gina from Fabrics by Steph. This is a cute little stitch and I have plans to finish the same way Nichol will, using a Chantelle 141 wooden sign, which I still need to order. I also have a plans to add an additional stitched piece to this display. Hopefully I can get it all finished before Halloween rolls around.

And the last project that I stitched on is the Beach Boardwalk Surf Shop from Country Cottage Needleworks.

I love working on this piece. I am doing all of the shops as one long piece-it is a Boardwalk after all 😉

And here is where I left it this morning.

I am so excited to see my second shop next to my first shop! So cute! I already have the third shop in my possession and I hope to start adding it as soon as I finish up the Surf Shop. The fabric I am stitching on is 16ct Aida in color Friendship Greene from Fabrics by Steph.

Now to a project that I am planning on starting in September. It is the Bella Filipina/Fiberlicious Yummy Fabrics collaberation SAL. This is the sneak peek picture that was put out by them.

Mermaids of the Seasons! 4 mermaids on one piece of fabric dyed by Fiberlicious Yummy Fabrics. I have ordered everything and fingers crossed all will arrive before the September 15th start.

Here are all of the flosses that are used in the project! All of those beautiful colors! I can’t wait to see what the first mermaid is. I ordered the called for fabric from Fiberlicious Yummy fabrics, but I have some back-ups just in case it doesn’t arrive in time or it’s not quite right for me.

A couple of beautiful blue fabrics that could be perfect for any mermaid 😉 These fabrics are from Those Missing Stitches. She is a new fabric dyer and her fabrics are beautiful and her turn around is pretty quick, too. You can check out her Etsy shop here.

So, that is what I have been up to in August. Lots of stitching and I hope to get a lot of stitching done in September also. What are your plans for September?

Happy Stitching!

ginny

Hello August
Cross Stitch Patterns · Fabric · Green House of Oddities · Hand Dyed Fabrics · Mystery Stitch A Long · Pillows · Stitch A Long

Hello August

My Time Stitching6 Comments

Hello blogging friends and Happy August! I do hope that August will stick around a lot longer than July did. The days just seem to go by faster and faster. I waited until the almost the last day to start my August pillow, Tropical August.

It is a good thing these pillows are pretty quick to stitch.

Everything is coming up PINK! I love it when my nails match my stitching. Nail strips are from Color Street in color Berry Bliss. They scream Summer!

Su cute and full of summer vibes and happy feelings. I will look at this pillow and smile, appreciate all of the days of summer and try to hold onto them just a little bit longer every day. This pillow kit is from Pine Mountain Designs from 2007. I don’t think it is available anymore, but you may be able to find them on the secondary market.

So in my last post I mentioned that I started stitching something new. Here it is.

This is the Greenhouse of Oddities from Lola Crow Cross stitch. I had been watching people on Instagram and flosstube stitching on this one since the start in April. I couldn’t resist any longer and finally purchased the pattern a couple of weeks ago.

I am loving every stitch of this one and wish I had started in on the SAL from the beginning. But that’s ok. I am enjoying it now. And there is nothing like a new highlighter. If you know, you know. And yes, I am a paper pattern girl but this pattern also comes with a Pattern Keeper option. I have not tried Pattern Keeper, so I have no idea how it works. I prefer paper and highlighter 😉

Here is where I am with this one.

I still have a long way to go to get caught up with this one. The next section or “planting” as the designer calls them, is due out this Friday. There are 3 more plantings left and I am hoping to get it all caught up shortly after the last planting. I am stitching this one on 16ct Aida Rugged Rochester from a new dyer, Those Missing Stitches. Beautiful fabrics! Check out her Etsy shop here.

There are so many projects on my radar right now! Yesterday I received the next shop in the Beach Boardwalk series so I will have to get back to that one. A new Halloween SAL with Nicol Sophr is starting mid August on her flosstube channel and I am hoping to participate in that one. There are a few small Christmas charts I would like to work on and today I signed up for a new Mermaid SAL from Bella Filipina Designs and Yummy Fiberlicious Fabrics that is starting in September. I want to stitch all of the things!! And that is why my 11 WIP’s are not getting finished this year. So many things and so little time!

What are you creating with your needle today?

Happy Stitching,

ginny

Bella Filipina Designs · Country Cottage Needleworks · cross stitch · Fabric · Hand Dyed Fabrics · Knitting · Mermaids · yarn

Lots of Stitching Going On

My Time Stitching5 Comments

Hello my blogging friends! Another post before the end of July! I am on a roll, LOL

Where to start with my stitching…I stitched a little on Rainbow Dice.

Not much added. Blocks of color really bore me. I wonder if I will ever get through this one. Then I pulled out Esmerelda from Bella Filipina. This is where she was when I pulled her out.

And here is where I am now. Fabric is 16ct Aida Oberon from Fabrics by Steph.

A little bit of progress, but still progress, right? And then the Beach Boardwalk series came out from Country Cottage Needleworks and I finally received my Ice Cream Shop. When I first saw this one would be coming out, I knew I was going to stitch it. So I ordered everything and was all set when my pattern arrived.

The fabric is 16ct Aida Friendship Greene from Fabrics by Steph and I will be stitching all 7 shops in a row on this one piece of fabric. I will be using all of the called for Fancy Flosss.

And since I loved stitching with the Nirge Hoop, I decided to go that route rather than putting the fabric on a scroll frame and stitching it sideways.

I am totally in love with all of the colors in this one. My fabric looks blue on the screen but it is a very pale green. And then I realized that I needed a grime guard for this size hoop. Not only to keep my fabric clean, but to help hold all of the extra fabric. So I pulled out my sewing machine and all of the things.

I also made one for my largest hoop for whenever I decide to use that one. Back to stitching 🙂

I couldn’t put this one down!

And I finished it in about a week. Now to wait for the next shop to come out, which should be pretty soon.

In June I also found a project to put on my knitting needles. In one of my previous posts, I mentioned that I had been wanting to make a summer top and for whatever reasons things were not coming together with a couple of different patterns. I finally found a pattern that was going to work out.

I chose the Minka Top from Berroco. I really would like sleeves added to this one, but not sure if I will or not. I also plan to make it just a little bit longer.

The yarn is Medina, also from Berroco. It is mostly a cotton yarn and it is a striping yarn. And it is Green. I am usually not a big fan of green, but my eyes are green, so occasionally I do wear it. But it seems that the universe has been pulling me to green. My travel knitting project is also green, I have recently purchased a couple of green tops, and fabric I have chosen for a future project also has a lot of green in it.

I thought that the Stockinette Stitch would be too boring, but I am actually liking it. I am still dealing with some health issues, and knitting on this sweater has been comforting and relaxing. And I love how it is looking.

Almost to the armhole shaping! Yay!

I finished the back and started the front. I also switched to a bigger bag to hold all of the yarn, just in case I want to take it somewhere and stitch on it.

And here is my progress on the front. I may actually finish this top in time to wear it this summer! I am still wanting to figure out how I can add a small sleeve or sleeve cap. But I still have time to think about that.

During June, I also put my Dragon Princess Diamond Dotz in for framing. Finally.

Hubby and I chose a black frame with a goldish filler frame for inside of the black frame.

And here is my hubby with his newly framed Dragon Princess. I am so pleased with the frame choices we made. She looks amazing. And so sparkly.

And here she is hanging over my husband’s desk in his office. She is perfect 🙂

That is all I have for now. Next time I will show you a new cross stitch SAL that I finally bit the bullet and purchased and started and now I am addicted. So, what have you been up to?

Happy Stitching,

ginny

Happy Independence Day
cross stitch · Fabric · Hand Dyed Fabrics · Mermaids · Mystery Stitch A Long · Pillows · Stitch A Long · Tiny Modernist

Happy Independence Day

My Time Stitching5 Comments

Hello my blogging friends! And Happy 4th of July! Have fun, relax and most of all, be safe.

So, it has been a month since I last posted. I have been dealing with a health issue for the past couple of weeks, so I haven’t been wanting to do much except stitch. And stitch I have. I even have a few finishes.

First, I finished the Ocean Pearl SAL by Tiny Modernist.

This was such a sweet stitch. I did make a few changes on this one. The biggest one being that I replaced the Pirate that was supposed to be on the right side with a little mermaid sister with red hair. I also changed the color of the green mermaid because her original color blended in with the fabric. I also added some gold blending filament in the outlines in the tails to give the mermaid tails a little sparkle.

I am not sure how I will fully finish this one. I thought about trying to frame it myself, but that seems like quite the process that I am not ready for. So, I will think on it for a while. Like I said, it is the Ocean Pearl SAL by Tiny Modernist. All of the sections are available now on her Etsy as well as some other online shops. I stitched it on 16ct Aida Cascade from Fabrics By Stephanie and I used all of the called for fancy flosses in addition to the one I substituted in the green mermaid. I can’t recall what I used, but if you want to know, drop me a comment and I will find it out for you.

I also pulled out my July Pillow a few days before the start of July. Nothing like waiting until the last minute.

Luckily this was a really quick stitch and I finished it the next day.

This is the Celebrate July pillow from Pine Mountain Designs from many years ago. Just 3 more to go and I will be finished this series and can happily display them every month for years to come. The next one I will have to stitch is the August pillow and then September and December.

I also finished my first Patriotic stitch that I mentioned getting ready for in my last post. I participated in Nichol Spohr’s Flossaversary SAL and started the Stars and Stripes Forever from Cherry Hill Stitchery.

I used my new Nurge hoop and I have to say I really love it! Of course I had to make a grime guard for it 🙂

I stitched this on 16ct Aida Everything Else from Mystic Fabrics. Loved how this turned out and it was a pretty quick stitch. Then came the finishing part. I decided to make it into a pillow. It took me part of a day to finally cut into the fabric. Iwasn’t sure how big to make it and after finishing it I wish I had cut closer to the stitching, making it a smaller pillow. But it is finished. My first Patriotic finish.

Not too bad. Live and learn, right? So I think this is a good place to end this post. I have more to share, but that will have to wait until my next post. Hopefully another month will not go by before that happens. I want summer to slow down so we can get out and do some things. With bad weather, being sick, health issues, bad air quality days and lots of much needed rain lately, we haven’t had a chance to do anything. At least I have my stitching, right? What have you been up to lately?

Happy Stitching!

ginny

I Stitched May Away
cross stitch · Cross Stitch Patterns · Fabric · Floss · Hand Dyed Fabrics · knitted cowl · Knitting · Mermaids · Mystery Stitch A Long · Pillows · Stitch A Long · Tiny Modernist

I Stitched May Away

My Time Stitching8 Comments

Hello my blogging friends! Happy June! Let’s hope it doesn’t go by as quickly as May did. Sadly, I only had one post in May. I was sick for about 2 weeks shortly after my last post. And then getting back to normal took a bit. Nothing serious, but it was my first time getting sick in 5 years and I guess my immune system was sluggish. Hubby was sick first with a sinus infection, and maybe shared with me? We had also made the decision to go without masks, so maybe we picked up something while out and about one day. Anyway, I am feeling much better now and thought I would hop on to the blog and share what I have stitched on during the month of May.

First, I did finish the Anchored Waves Cowl by Stephanie Shiman using a beautiful Wonderland Yarn Blossom cake.

Just look at that fade!!! Wonderland Yarns really do have the most awesome yarns that fade so perfect. It really turned out beautifully.

I look forward to wearing this one in the fall and winter. I don’t have anything else on my needles except for my Airplane scarf, which is my travel project. I didn’t get a picture of it for this post. I have been wanting to make some summer tops for myself. I picked a crochet top from Berroco. So cute. But you know how my crocheting goes. If I don’t have pictures and specific instructions, it’s pretty much not going to happen. I couldn’t get gauge and my sides were not straight on my swatch. So, I decided to purchase a book with some summer tops from Berroco, using the yarn I had bought called Isola. The one I wanted to make does not have written instructions. Maybe they all only have charts, so I nixed that one, too. So for now, no knitting. On to cross stitch.

I stitched on the Ocean Pearl SAL from Tiny Modernist Cross Stitching.

The reason I decided to do this SAL is the Mermaid, of course. She is so cute. And on the right side of the treasure chest, the pattern has a pirate there. I wasn’t sure if he would be an important part of the rest of the design, but I decided not to stitch him. Instead, I added another mermaid 🙂

So cute!! I really enjoyed stitching on this one while I was not feeling well. I am using all of the called for Fancy Flosses and stitching her on 16ct Aida Cascade from Fabrics by Stephanie. I received part 3 and started stitching on it last night. This is how far I have gotten.

The snow globe is full of ocean life and I know I will love stitching on it over the next few weeks.

I also stitched on Blossom and I am still loving all of her beautiful colors.

Even with all of the color changes, it has been a wonderful piece to stitch.

I just started stitching the next page, from the middle towards the top. So I guess I am about half way finished. I had to take her outside to see if I could capture her brilliant colors. For the details on this one: She is Blossom from Mirabilia. Fabric is 16ct Aida Busy Izzy from Fabrics by Stephanie. I have put her aside to stitch on the Ocean Pearl piece and a few smaller pieces. I look forward to getting back to her later this month.

A few days ago I pulled out my June pillow kit.

The threads in these kits just come rolled up as shown in the picture above. Since there is only a few colors, I decided to make my own Floss Drops to put the flosses on.

I die cut the tags. Pulled out some stamps and stamped a few summer images. I used some different sized circle punches to hang the flosses on and to add them to a floss ring. It gave me a chance to use my beautiful floss ring I purchased from @themermaidsdaughter6 on Instagram. I love the look of Floss Drops. I love seeing all of the flosses hanging all together. But I will admit, I am not a fan. Seems like a lot of work to me. It’s not to say that I will never use them again for a small project. But I am happy being a bobbin girl. Anyway, I finished the pillow yesterday, in perfect time for displaying in June. Kit is from Pine Mountain Designs. These pillows are from 2007, so I don’t think they are available anymore.

I am so happy to have another monthly pillow off of my project to do list. Only 4 more to go!

So that is all of my stitching for May. I am hoping for a couple of finishes in June, but we shall see how it goes. I have been spending my stitching time watching Flosstubes. I have a few favorites that I love to watch and one of them is Nichol Sophr LLC. She is a quilter, cross stitcher and card maker and I don’t know what else she does, but everything she creates is beautiful. I don’t necessarily stitch what she does, but I love watching her and seeing her projects. I am not a quilter, but I want to buy all the fabrics and make project bags (I probably won’t, but I really want to, LOL) She has wonderful tutorials on her channel and her card making videos are wonderful. Yesterday she started a Patriotic SAL and I decided I need some Patriotic pieces to decorate my house. You can find all of the details on her Facebook page group. If you want to participate and be in her drawings each week, you have to stitch on a Cherry Hill Stitchery Patriotic piece. Or you can stitch on whatever you want and hang out each Wednesday on her Flosstube Live. I haven’t had time to gather things for it in time for the start yesterday, but I did purchase a PDF from Cherry Hill Stitchery last night and pulled some fabric and floss from my stash this morning.

I will be stitching Stars and Stripes. The fabric I chose is 16ct Aida Everything Else from Mystic Fabrics and all of the flosses are DMC. So, yeah, another new start, LOL It’s ok. It’s a small 😉

So that is what I have been up to. How did your May go?

Happy Stitching!

ginny

When It Rains, I Stitch
cross stitch · knitted cowl · Knitting · Mirabilia · Pillows · Tiny Modernist · yarn

When It Rains, I Stitch

My Time Stitching6 Comments

Hello my Blogging friends! We’ve had a lot of rain where I am, so what to do when it rains? Stay in and stitch! On Saturday I pulled out my May Pillow kit from Pine Mountain Designs. These pillows are no longer available, but there are other cute pillow designs from Pine Mountain Designs that are so cute.

It didn’t look like it would take me too long to stitch. Could I get it done before May 1st?

So I pulled out all of my supplies and got busy. I stitched on it for quite a bit on Saturday. And then on Sunday I stitched on it some more. And then I ran into some trouble. I was one stitch off-after stitching the flowers and swirls on top and the letters M A and then the Y was going to run into a flower. I could have left it….but I didn’t. I ripped out all that I had put in on Sunday. Now I was doubting if I would get it finished before midnight. But I did! With about 40 minutes to spare.

So cute! I couldn’t wait to pull the pillow out of the April case and put the May inside.

So Happy May!! These pillows look like they would be pretty quick to stitch up, but they do take a bit of time. Both the April and May took me 2 days to stitch up. I have no idea what the fabric count is, but I used 3 strands of the included floss over one. Another pillow off the to do list and 5 more to go!

I also started a knitting project after not having a project on my needles since finishing my 22 Little Clouds shawlette.

This is the March Garden Society Ocean kit. I love everything about this kit. The colors are gorgeous and I really like the Cowl pattern so that is what I will knit with this Blossoms skein of Mary Ann fingering yarn in color Actiniae.

The yarn is so soft. I already can’t wait to get to the next color! And look at that cute but dangerous fish progress marker. So cool.

Finally! Some lighter green is starting to emerge. So exciting! Makes me want to knit more and faster.

I really love how these Blossoms very gradually change colors. It may take a bit to get to the next color, but it is so worth it.

So pretty!!

This is where I left it this morning. Just getting into the peachy/orangy color. So beautiful! I usually knit in the morning with my coffee. You can see my new coffee cup in the last picture. I purchased it from the Heidi Swap Shop. Stop the Blur is the name of her memory planning process. Days, Events, and vacations go by so quickly. Like a blur. Getting those moments documented is important to me. I am so far behind in my memory planning. Almost 8 months. I am hoping to get back to it soon.

Anyway, I also stitched on Blossom. When I posted about her last, I was here:

I stitched and stitched.

She is such an enjoyable stitch. Her colors are so bright and cheerful. Here is where I left her on Friday night.

I just love her! She is from Mirabilia and I am stitching her on 16ct Aida Busy Izzy from Fabrics by Steph. I will have to put her aside for a bit. Last night part 2 of the Ocean Pearl SAL from Tiny Modernist came out, so I will probably stitch on that one for the next couple of weeks. So that is what I have been stitching on. I did get a little bit of haul this week.

I watched a flosstube on Youtube (I do believe it was Sanctum Stitching) where someone was stitching on those cute Halloween pieces from Hands On Designs. I thought they were so cute and I just had to order them. Probably won’t get to them this year, but now they are in my stash. The little heart hoops are so cute. I also ordered some Hexagons and I do have some small round one’s from Stampin’ Up! in my stash. These will be so cute to put a tiny stitch into. I saw them made up on Nichol Sophr’s flosstube. I am not sure what I will be stitching for them, but I will find something. The book I ordered on Amazon. It is full of cross stitch patterns from the Tiny Modernist. Lots of cute things in there. And the thread is for a Halloween project that I was thinking of stitching later this year. It was the only thread I was missing.

So, that is what I have been up to the last few weeks. What are you up to?

Happy Stitching!

ginny