Category: Fabric

Good Bye 2024, Happy 2025!
Bella Filipina Designs · cross stitch · Fabric · Hand Dyed Fabrics · knitted scarves · Shannon Christine · yarn

Good Bye 2024, Happy 2025!

My Time Stitching5 Comments

Hello my blogging friends! How have you been? I have missed you so much! It’s been a while and 2024 is over! I can’t say that it was all bad, but I am happy to welcome in 2025. My biggest highs of 2024 came near the end. In October my husband and I celebrated our 40th anniversary. We chose to spend it at the zoo with our kids. It was there that our youngest son and his wife told us that they were expecting their first child. We are going to be first time Grandparents in June 2025. We are over the moon. We had a wonderful day, being all together at the zoo. And about a week before Christmas, we found out the baby is a girl! We can’t wait to meet our Granddaughter this summer ❤ And just a fair warning, there will be even more pink things to come 😉

So how were your holidays? What have you been crafting on? Did you finish all of the projects that you wanted to in 2024? I am happy with what I finished in 2024 except for 1 project. I will talk about that in the knitting part of my post. Even though I haven’t been posting, I have been crafting and I plan on sharing the things I have worked on in future posts.

I do have a new word for 2025 and that is PATIENCE. I definitely need to have more patience in my life with what I am crafting on, what I need to get to, with healing, learning new things, and with myself. Something I am definitely going to work on this year.

So let’s get to what you are really here for…My Stitching. What am I stitching on?

I have pulled out the Black Water Sirens SAL from Bella Filipina Designs. This SAL started on October 31, right in the middle of the fabric with a Treasure Chest.

I am stitching this on 16ct Aida Epically Evil Fairy Godmother from Those Missing Stitches. It only took me a few days to get this Treasure Chest stitched up, minus the beads which I will add at the end of the SAL. After finishing this first part, I stitched on other projects and couldn’t wait to get back to this one. On Christmas day I pulled it out again to get stitching on part 2. And this is where it is as of last night.

Part 4 came out on December 30, so I have some catching up to do. But I am so happy to be stitching on this one again. It is going to be amazing. My fabric is actually green and not yellow like in the photo above.

Yesterday I picked up a couple of pieces that I had put in for framing. This one I put in for framing in early December. When I brought it home, it began puckering more and more.

The frame I originally chose was not deep enough for the spacers and the beads and the ribbon on the headband were pressed up against the glass. I took it back and had to pick a different frame. Picking a frame takes me so long. And this time was even more difficult because I thought I had already chosen the perfect frame.

The first frame I chose is a frame that I often go right to. I love this frame and didn’t know if I could find another one that I really loved. But I did find one that I thought would be a good fit and when I picked her up yesterday, I knew it was the right one.

I love how it looks; like a shadow box with the deeper frame space and the extra spacers. I love it! The pattern is The Frog Princess from Brooke’s Books Publishing. The fabric is 16ct Aida Friendship Greene from Fabrics by Steph. Eventually I want to stitch all of the Princess dresses from Brooke’s Books Publishing and maybe this frame will be perfect for all of them.

The second piece I had put in for framing is Winter Snowfall.

I finished stitching this piece back in February of 2022 and was so happy to finally put it in for framing. I did have a difficult choice though. Picking the perfect frame is so hard! But I did make a decision and this is what I chose.

It is really is so beautiful. The frame really picks up the gold beads in person. So immediately after taking this photo, the Christmas picture was pulled down from the wall and this one put up in my dining room. It is the space that I am always changing out my framed pieces. Right now my dining room is decorated in a pink and white winter theme, so this piece is perfect!

Again, the pattern is Winter Snowfall by Shannon Christine Designs. It is stitched on 16ct Aida Valyrian Steel from Fabrics by Steph. There is a companion piece to this that I would love to stitch some day.

The last stitch I have to show you today is a knitted piece.

This is the Lothian Scarf I finished for my husband. I had hoped to get it finished before Christmas, but that didn’t happen. I finished it a few days after. It still needs blocking and I will take a better picture of the pattern in it then. The pattern is a free pattern on Ravelry by Home of Cords. I couldn’t get the edge stitches to be tight so I changed them to garter stitch. The pattern is charted on a graph and was very easy to follow. It was a really relaxing knit. The yarn is from Passions Yarns. It is their Baby Weight Fingering in the color Go Your Own Way. It is 70% Bably Alpaca and 30% Silk so it is really soft and was easy to knit with. Hubby picked this yarn out when we went to a Fiber Fest in October.

So that is all I have to share with you today. I hope that your holidays were wonderful and that your 2025 will be filled with Love, good health, happiness and of course, lots of stitching. Tell me in the comments what you have been crafting on. I want to hear all about it.

Happy Stitching!

Ginny

Catching Up On What I Have Been Stitching
cross stitch · Cross Stitch Patterns · Fabric · Fox and Rabbit · Hand Dyed Fabrics

Catching Up On What I Have Been Stitching

My Time Stitching7 Comments

Hello Blogging Friends! So I feel like I am getting a handle on things and thought I would catch you up on what I have been stitching the last few months. Back in March, I made a very small preorder from the long list of wonderful things that came out at the Nashville Market.

Yep, that is all I ordered and it arrived pretty quickly. And I started one of the projects right away!

I was so anxious to start this project even on 30ct linen! I was also on the hunt for the box that she was finished in. The pattern stated it was purchased at Hobby Lobby, but my local Hobby Lobby had never seen it before. I did end up finding someone on Poshmark that was selling it. I was so excited to have found it and it arrived in perfect condition.

It only took me a week to stitch this and stitching on 30ct linen wasn’t too bad. I wouldn’t do it all the time, but for a smaller project like this I would do it again. The pattern is Keeper of Secrets and the fabric is Underwater 30ct linen; both by The Primitive Hare. The Underwater design is printed on the fabric and I believe it was made for this pattern. I really enjoyed stitching this.

I used all of the called for threads and stitched 2 over 2.

I wish I had stitched her more to the left instead of in the middle of the fabric so more of the fabric background would show in the finished piece.

The framer did a very nice job and I am really happy with how it turned out. I don’t have anything in the box yet, but one day it will be filled with some “special secrets”.

I then pulled out the Rainbow Dice piece and stitched on it as much as I could, trying to get it finished.

I was able to get it finished in time for my son’s birthday.

He loves it and is going to try to find a frame he likes and I will get it framed for him. The pattern is from Rack & Pinion on Etsy and the fabric is 16ct Aida Everything Else from Mystic Fabrics.

This next project has been in my stash for a very long, long time. I am talking like 20 years maybe. I purchased it to make for a long time friend, and somehow it got buried in a bin. Her birthday was coming up, so I decided to get it done in time to send it for her birthday.

It was a pretty quick, tiny stitch. I stitched it on 28ct Lugana white 1 over 1. Then I had to fully finish it. That took me about a week so sit down and get to fully finishing it. It is so hard for me to cut into a finished cross stitch. I am always afraid I am going to ruin it. Anyone else feel like that? Anyway, I had put the project on hold for long enough. I needed to get it finished and in the mail to the recipient, so I was finally on a mission.

I think the top of the that wooden box was about 2″ square. So tiny! I finished the stitched piece the best that I could and glued it on top of the box. I have not done very many finishes myself. But I think it turned out pretty good.

I tucked in a pair of earrings in her favorite color.

It has been sent and was received in time for her birthday and she was happy ❤

For my current stitching, I am all caught up with the Fox & Rabbit Mystery SAL, Faith Hope Love.

I can’t believe that this one is over half finished. Just a few more months left to this one. I am stitching it on 18ct Aida white. The blue floss is Mermaid from Forbidden Fiber Co. and the other colors are DMC. I can’t recall the numbers, but if you want to know what they are you can leave a comment or look back at a previous post.

And the last project I will leave you with today is The Deadly Aquarium by Lola Crow Cross Stitch.

I finished Exhibit 10 this week and exhibit 11 comes out today. I am looking forward to seeing what that is and stitching it up. Just 2 more exhibits left after today. I cannot believe this one will be over in just a couple more weeks. The time sure did fly by. I am stitching this one on 16ct Beanstalk from Fiber on a Whim. The fabric is actually a beautiful darker blue, but I have not been able to photograph the true color at all.

So, that is a good chunk of what I have been up to this summer. I do have a few knitting projects to share and a few more cross stitch projects as well as a storage update. They will have to wait for my next post. This one is already a bit long. So, what have you been up to? Let me know in the comments. I’d love to hear what project you are working on.

Happy Stitching!

ginny

A Finish, New SAL and A Birthday Start
Country Cottage Needleworks · cross stitch · Fabric · Floss · Fox and Rabbit · Hand Dyed Fabrics · Mystery Stitch A Long

A Finish, New SAL and A Birthday Start

My Time Stitching15 Comments

Hello blogging friends! I hope the new year is treating you well. It is hard to believe that today is the last day of January. It was a busy month for me and I am glad I have found some time to get one last post in before the month ends. 

So, what have I been up to? Well, I have a finish.

I finished the last of the shops on my Beach Boardwalk series. This piece was so fun to stitch and I am very happy that I stitched all of the shops together. They look so sweet all in a row. The patterns are from Country Cottage Needleworks and are available to purchase in stores and online. The fabric I used is 16ct Aida in Friendship Greene from Fabrics By Steph. Now I will be on the lookout for the perfect way to finish this piece.

Since I finished the 2022 Mystery Stitch A Long from Fox and Rabbit at the end of December, I knew I wanted to start the 2024 SAL. I had already decided I would use white fabric and a slightly variegated thread I had ordered online. Since it is possible that this may be the last SAL from Fox & Rabbit, I thought it would be fun to play with colors on this one, but I needed to see the first section on January 1. That first week of January I went through many color changes, stitching and frogging. 

The name of this SAL is Faith Hope Love and my main color thread is the blue thread from Forbidden Fiber Co. called Mermaid (of course 😉 ) I also knew I wanted pink and gray, but what shades? After a few days of playing with threads and colors, I finally landed on my pallette.

The blue thread has some light variegation and that will be my main color. This will be my first time using multiple colors of my own choosing. Fingers crossed they will play well together. My fabric is 18ct Aida White. Yes, that is correct. I am using 18ct aida. Mainly because my local Michaels store was out of 16ct in a large enough piece. And I was impatient. So, here is my start.

I am happy with the look of this January section. The February section came out today, and I think I will be spending a quite a bit of time trying to figure out my coloring. 

Last week was my birthday and it was a big one; 60! I can’t believe I am 60. My husband made my day special with lots of surprises. He even had the local bakery make me the beautiful cake that is in my header above. A big birthday deserves a big new start. I have been wanting to stitch the Epic Storybook Princesses from Cloudsfactory for several years now. So when the pattern went on sale last summer, I did not hesitate to purchase it and decided it would be my Birthday start in 2024.

This is such and amazing pattern! I just love it so much! Mine will be set up like the picture above. I am happy my favorite princess is at center bottom. I also purchased the Raya pattern for the empty space on the bottom left. I am not sure what I will be putting in the bottom right as of yet. I am thinking about Encanto. While the main character in that movie, Mirabel, is not a “princess”, she is the one that saves her family. But we will see. Another princess or 2 may come out in the next however many years it will take me to stitch this piece. 

Figuring out how to wrangle this very large piece of fabric has been a bit of an issue, but so far I have managed. My fabric is 16ct Aida Ariel’s Grotto from Fabrics By Steph. The size of my fabric is 50 x 36! Wow. Definitely the largest piece I have ever worked on. Here is my progress after a week of stitching on it.

I started in the center with the Pocohontas section. These little characters are so cute! So far I have made 2 changes. The blue swirls have been changed to a lighter blue as the called for blended into the fabric. I may have to use the substituted color throughout the piece as it is used a lot as in Cinderella’s dress, the Genie’s face and other places. I also took out the light green strands of the Willow tree because I just couldn’t see them. I decided to stitch them all in the daker green. I will probably finish out the Pocohontas section before putting it away to stitch on the 2024 SAL.

I also finished my Minka top, knitting those sleeve edges and blocked it. I can’t say that I am 100% happy with it. I wish I had made it longer. We’ll see how I like it this summer. I also blocked my Impulse Buy shawl and have worn it several times and love it! It is so soft and squishy and keeps me warm. 

So that is what I have been up to during the month of January, that is just about over already. I can’t wait to see what I get into during February. How did you spend your January? Did you start something new? Finish something? Leave me a comment and let me know. 

Happy Stitching,

ginny

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