Hello my Bloggy friends!  It is officially fall where I am and the leaves are starting to change and there was a nip in the air this morning. The sun is shining brightly today, so it is a happy day.  I have been stitching and stamping and scrapbooking and shopping 🙂  So let me begin with my Iris project:

If this is your first time seeing her, she is Iris Pixie by Nora Corbett.  I am stitching her on a One of a Kind fabric from Fantasy Dyed Fabrics in 16ct Aida. Johanna creates the most beautiful, one of a kind fabrics!  The best way to purchase them is in her Etsy shop; Fantasy Dyed Fabrics Etsy  It is so quick and easy that way.  What you see is what you get and very quickly, too.   I am finished with the bottom of the dress, except for outling and beading which will come later.  I have started on the wing, and not sure I am liking the colors.  The picture shows them a little more purply, but mine appear to be more gray.  But the Kreinik thread (the three darker dashes in the wing) are a Pewter color, so maybe they are supposed to be that way.  I will continue as the chart says, when I pick her back up, and see if I like it more.  For now she has been put aside so that I can work on another project. I can’t show much, as it is a gift but I will give you a peek:

I know, not much of a peek.  But did you notice that I am using Q-snaps on this project?  Wow!  I want to say that I am using them because they are awesome and great and all that, but in all actuality I am using them because 1.  all of my scroll frames are in use and 2.  The 14ct aida I am using is a stiff opal and I didn’t want to use a hoop.  And 3.  Almost all of the design fits in the square.   I have been using it for almost a week and while it is not the comfortable feel of my scroll frame, it’s not too bad.   I can’t rest it on my knee and stitch 2-handed like I am used to, so progress is slow.  But that’s ok.  It’s a nice change and I do plan on using this same Q-snap frame for a HAED design that have barely started a couple of years ago.  Someday 🙂

This week I received some very happy mail.

Five new lovely bags and grime guards for my last 5 WIP’s.  I can’t say enough about these bags!  They are by Deanna and you can find her Facebook page at Deanna’s Frame Covers and Storage. She does such a wonderful job creating these bags and covers for all of us crazy stitchers with way too many projects on our hands!  Her attention to detail is phenomenal, matching each fabric with the perfect lining and zipper.  She also makes covers for Q-snaps (I have 2 sets on the way!) and grime guards for hoops also.  Go and check her page out.  She even has ready made sets available for purchase.  And let her know you heard about her here on my blog 🙂

This week I finished another scarf 🙂

  I am totally in LOVE with this scarf!  Do I say that about every scarf I make?  Probably.  But I really love this one.  These are usually not my colors, but I love the vintage, shabby chic look of it.  Now I want clothes to match it 😉  The browns, tans and creams and just a hint of pink here and there make it perfect for fall.  I’m not sure you can see in the photo, but there are sequins on the yarn that give it a little sparkle.  The yarn is Patons Pirouette and the color is called Sienna Sparkle.  So pretty.

Speaking of yarn, I went to Fiber Festival with a friend last weekend and found a sweet little yarn shop there.  They also raise Alpaca’s there and so I am assuming they dye and spin their own yarn to sell in the little shop there.   I couldn’t resist purchasing a couple of hanks of the softest yarn I could find in there.

The sweet lady there was so nice to wind them into yarn cakes for me.  There is just something about a yarn cake that is so heavenly.  The yarn on the left is 100% Alpaca wool while the one on the right is 80% Alpaca and 20% Merino wool.  They are both so soft and I will have to find a scarf pattern for both.  I think the one on the right will be perfect for a infinity scarf.  I could have bought a lot more, but there is this huge stash of yarn at my house that has been growing that I really need to start using.  Someday, right?

I have also been scrapbooking and getting into the latest craze of Memory Planners.  I am totally sucked into Heidi Swapp’s world of Memory Planning.  I had purchased a planner kit many months ago and decided that it wasn’t big enough for me to add photos and journal like I want.  It was of a slimmer design.  So I decided to turn it into a little scrapbook for my husband who had to go out of town to visit his Father whose health was failing.  While he was gone, I created a little memory album of his trip with all of the pictures he texted me.  It was all finished for him the day he returned home and he was thrilled with it.

Basically I took out the calendar pages and used some of the overlay pages and added stickers and papers and pocket pages.  I even learned how to use a new phone app called PicFrame that is great for making photo collages.  I was able to get all of the photos he texted me into the album and it is a nice keepsake of his trip to visit his family.

So that is what I have been up to lately.  I also have some new cross stitch fabrics and patterns and threads that I have added to my stash, but they seem to be all over the place right now.  I even have some plans for some new projects!  Imagine that!  I am also getting the knitting bug now that the weather is starting to cool off. So come back and visit to see what I am up to next 😉  What kinds of projects do you have in the works or what fun new projects are you planning?