Hello my blogging friends! I finished part 1 of the Ocean Pearl SAL from the Tiny Modernist.
I can’t wait for part 2 to come out. This is such a fun stitch. I am using all of the suggested overdyed flosses for this one and I like how it is stitching up. The DMC equivalents are also provided. The fabric is 16ct aida Cascade (retired color) from Fabrics by Steph.
After finishing Ocean Pearl, I knew I had to pull Blossom out. I have been wanting to get back to her the last few months. She is from Mirabilia and she is just the sweetest!
I haven’t stitched on her in almost a year and was so excited to pull her out. I have been looking forward to stitching all of her beautiful colors. I actually stitched on this for a couple of nights before taking this photo, so I don’t have picture of where I was when I put her down almost a year ago.
My photos really do not do her any justice at all. Her colors are so beautiful, bright and cheery. Perfect for getting into the Spring mood even when the weather outside is not saying Spring.
Just look at those colors! So pretty.
So that is where I am with her as of last night. I am stitching her on 16ct aida Busy Izzy from Fabrics By Steph. This fabric has many of the same colors as in Blossom, but much paler, so she really pops on this fabric. I think I made the perfect fabric choice for this one.
I am in desperate need of some new scroll frames. If you use a scroll frame that you love, I would love to hear about it. Let me know in the comments. I would also love to know what you are working on this week.
Hello blogging friends! How are you doing? The sun is shining here today. Still a little nippy outside, but warmer temperatures are coming next week.
This week was a busy week for me. I spent a lot of time going through my crafting stash and doing a bit of reorganizing and getting rid of what I no longer want. I went through all of my Mirabilia and Nora Corbett patterns and made sure what was kitted was put into my Xstitch app as kitted. Even if it was just a bead pack or fabric. I was pretty much caught up on that. But there were a lot of patterns that I needed to add. Serendipitous Jo reminded me of the Inventory part of the app. There were some items already in the inventory section, so I have used it in the past. I think the reason I didn’t continue using it was because you can’t put a photo of the pattern in that section. But I guess when I go to stitch that pattern, I can move it to kitted and then add a photo. Almost none of my Nora Corbett patterns were in the app unless they were kitted. I added all of the Nora’s and a few Miras; there are a lot. I have been collecting them since the mid 90’s. They have their own storage trunk!
I still have a whole filing cabinet of patterns to go through maybe this week. I also went through a closet that had 2 bins of yarn in it. I will probably never use that yarn, so I donated all of it to a local senior center. The Activities Director was quite pleased as she said that a lot of the women don’t get to get out and shop for yarn. I am happy that it will bring joy to the women there. I am really trying hard to let go of the things that I know I will not use or no longer want. I guess this is my Spring-cleaning phase. Anyway, enough of that. Now on to the crafting.
I pulled out the April pillow to get it started. Good thing, too, because it is more of an Easter themed pillow.
I had forgotten how large the holes in the canvas are. Three strands don’t really give enough coverage, but that’s ok. It is what the kit came with so that is what I am going with.
It only took me about 2 1/2 days to get the stitching done on this one. When I finished, I noticed this:
I tucked the threads in and did a little stitching on the back by hand. Hopefully it holds up. I didn’t see this when I started the pillow, so maybe I pulled the piece too tight in the hoop. I do love a tight as a drum fabric. So, note to self; do not pull the next pillow to tightly in the hoop.
I think it turned out pretty cute and it is finished in time for Easter too. This is an old kit from Pine Mountain Designs. Another pillow finished, and 6 more to go.
I also stitched a bit on the Ocean Pearl SAL from Tiny Modernist.
I really like working on this piece. Very relaxing. I am stitching on 16ct Aida Cascade from Fabrics By Stephanie. And I thought this one was going to be my last new start for a while. You know, I had planned on getting back to my WIP’s. But just look at what I saw while browsing social media the other day!!!
Oh my gosh you guys! I saw this posted in the Durene Jones Cross Stitch group by Heather Hopkins. I hope that she does not mind me posting this picture here. But I think this is the cutest pattern and the best finish ever! I absolutely fell in love with this pattern and this finish! It is not usually my style of pattern, but I just gushed at the sight of this. So much so that I immediately went to Durene Jones’ Etsy shop and purchased the pattern.
It is the Haberdashery Shop, and it is so adorable. I just want to start it right now! I want to stitch this on a soft aida. I don’t know why. It just came into my mind that it should be stitched on soft aida. So, I will look through my stash and see what I can find. It is a full coverage piece, so the color really shouldn’t matter. Probably something light though. I will let you know what I find and if I caved and started it 😉
Well, that is what I have been up to. For now, it’s time to do a little cleaning up in my craft room. What have you been up to lately?
Hello blogging friends! I feel like I have been missing in action for months. So grab your favorite beverage as this may be a long post 🙂 I am finally recovering from having the flu for the last 2 weeks. The first week I didn’t do much except ache, sleep and fight a fever. Ugh, I am so glad that is over. Just before getting sick, I went to Joanns craft store and bought some crystals to finish my Chandelier piece. I came home and laid them out and then went back again and picked up more to cover all the places I wanted a jewel to hang. So last week I sat and sewed them all on. Here is my finished piece.
I really like how it came out. The crystals are sparkly, even though they don’t show much here. And I am glad to have this finish off the scroll frame. This was a AAN SAL stitched on 16ct Winter Solstice from Fabrics by Stephanie. Here are a couple of more pictures.
I also finished the March Mermaid on the Treasures of the Deep SAL by Shannon Christine Designs.
This is a SAL put out by Fiberlicious and I am stitching it on 16ct Maldivian Dreams by Fiberlicious. I also stitched a couple of more frames to be ready for the next few mermaids. There will be 12 in all, each mermaid representing a birth month. So sweet!
I also stitched on the 2nd block of the PR 20th anniversary piece and this is how far I am before putting it away.
I have pulled out an old WIP to work on for now. I call her the Pink Princess.
I will be stitching her without the wings. I started her March 2015. I can’t believe it has been 3 years! The fabric is amazing! It is 16ct Tintagel from Fabrics by Stephanie. I am LOVING all the pink in this one. It’s going to be amazing!
And when I am not stitching, I am working on a new hobby; Diamond Painting! My best stitchy friend sent me a custom made Diamond Painting for my Birthday. It is actually a picture of a photograph I had taken a couple of years ago. It was such a thoughtful gift and I am loving Diamond Painting.
I am about 1/2 finished placing all the little tiles down. I find it quite addicting. When I plan about a half hour to work on it, several hours can go by. It is very peaceful and calming. If you don’t know what Diamond Painting is, it is kind of like cross stitching, but without a needle. The canvas is a sticky pattern filled with little squares with symbols that correspond to a colored tile. Much like a colored cross stitch pattern. The tiles are picked up with a pen with wax in the bottom of it and the tiles are placed on the corresponding symbol. I am loving it and already thinking about my next canvas 😉 I am not going to reveal the finished picture just yet. Can you tell what it is?
Well, I think I have taken up enough of your time for now. I am happy to be doing better and getting back to a normal routine. What have you been crafting on lately?
Hello friends! Happy March! I have no idea where February went, but I do hope that March slows down a bit. And it is coming in like a Lion! This is what it looks like out my window right now:
Really? After all of our snow had finally melted and we have had temperatures in the 50’s the last 3 days. We are expecting 4-6 inches today. It has been snowing steady for the last 4 hours and starting to pile up out there. Good thing I have no plans to be out today or tomorrow. Enough about the white stuff. Let’s get to the stitchy stuff 🙂
First, I brought this adorable little pixie home from the framer a couple of weekends ago.
She is the White Trumpet Angel by Nora Corbett. I stitched her on a one of a kind hand dyed fabric from Fantasy Dyed Fabrics in 16ct Aida. If you haven’t checked out her fabrics, you should. She usually posts new fabrics on her Etsy on Monday’s and you can purchase what she posts right away. She has great customer service and super fast shipping. She is so sweet! I have yet to hang her in my craft room, (the framed piece, not Johanna, LOL) but I will. She will join the other 3 pixies I have hanging in there.
I have been stitching on the Passione Ricamo 20th Anniversary piece and finished the first block a few nights ago. Sorry for the crooked picture.
This piece is going to be amazing when it is finished. Here is a close up of the block I just finished:
It was so much easier stitching this block than it was that Fairy to the right. It probably took me about a week of evenings to stitch her. I hope all of the blocks go as quick, then I can have this piece finished in a few months. Wouldn’t that be awesome!
And I have a new start! When you see what it is, you will know why I couldn’t resist…
A year of mermaids!!! WOW! As soon as this was released, my BSF (Best Stitchy Friend) sent the link over to me and I caved almost immediately. She is such an enabler, LOL. But I love her and she knows me so well. So this is a year long SAL designed by Shannon Christine and put out by Fiberlicious. I have received all of my supplies and started it the other night. Here is my progress:
The mermaids are birthstone mermaids and the SAL starts with February. Isn’t she just the sweetest little mermaid? And boy is this piece full of bling!! But my beads and crystals will have to wait until the very end. I am stitching on 16ct Aida Maldivian Dream from Fiberlicious. It is a beautiful hand painted fabric. If you are interested in this SAL, you can order through Fiberlicious.
Well, that is what I have been up to. What are you up to these days? Do you have any new starts? What WIP project are you trying to get finished?
Hello blogging friends! It is mid February already and I feel like my ambition in January is stuck in January. But I am making progress on things 🙂 First up, I have a little Fairy!
Boy did she drive me crazy! Not sure if it was because the designer made the large fairy a lot smaller to fit into this space or what. But the backstitching was so crazy, that I ended up doing it my own way. Too many zig zags within a stitch or 2 that were just not possible on the Aida, so I did my own thing and I think it came out pretty good. I am not that happy with her face. Her green eyes are not that visible, but I will leave it for now. I am just happy to have her finished. Not sure if I will continue with this piece or put it away for now. We’ll see how I feel tonight. This is the 20th Anniversary SAL from Passione Ricamo that was put out in 2014. Yeah, I slacked on this one, but I am hoping for a finish this year…maybe…Anyway, I am stitching her on 16ct Aida Nantucket Sky from Hand Dyed Fabrics by Stephanie.
I also have a framed finish! Yep, I picked up from the cross stitch store on Feb. 3. I still don’t have a place to hang it, but it’s home and I love it!
Sorry about the crooked photo. I was trying not to get the glare from the window and maybe my head was tilted, too. What a truly remarkable piece! I loved every stitch of this one and am so proud of myself for keeping up with it and finishing it in the month of December when the last section was released. I love my color choices and where I placed the colors. I would not change a thing about my choices on this one. So, for all the info on this one: 2017 Mystery Sampler from Linen and Threads. Stitched on 16ct Aida Castleview from Silkweaver. Threads are Sullivan’s variegated London Fog and DMC 3888. I am hoping that my color choices for the 2018 Sampler make me as happy as this one. I haven’t started it yet, as I am waiting on a bigger piece of fabric and some threads. I will be sure to share once I get it started. If you are interested in the 2017 or the 2018 Mystery Samplers, you can find the info about them on the Linen and Threads website. They are both FREE patterns, so that is even more amazing!
When hubby took me Birthday shopping in January, one of the things he bought me was this:
A cute Cowl pattern and a very soft, squishy skein of yarn. So I started it 🙂
Oh my gosh! Those colors are so gorgeous!! Very nice pattern, too. I do have to pay attention, at least until I get the hang of the pattern. I am in love! And I can’t wait to see more of the color variations. The pattern is Aspen Cowl by Javori Designs. The yarn is Ella Rae Seasons Yarn color #52. One ball will make the cowl using drop and eyelet stitches. the yarn is 76% acrylic, 14% Wool, 10% Nylon and has 219 yards. The yarn almost looks like a crocheted chain. Gives it that nice squishy texture. According to the pattern there are 280 rows and I have 32 completed rows. Long way to go to a finish, but it is going to be gorgeous when finished.
It is another cold day outside today, but the last 2 days were warmer so our snow is melting. I will leave you with a picture of a sparkly icicle with the sun shining through. So pretty, but glad they are all melted now 🙂
Hello blogging friends! We are a few weeks into January and already I have a few finishes. Earlier in the month I finished the 1 ball cowl I had started over the summer and I just love how it turned out.
The yarn is “Shawl in a Ball” from Lion Brand. The color is Community Coral. It was pretty mindless knitting in stockinette stitch and so it became my take along project for knitting on car rides that were 1/2 an hour or more. After the new year, I decided to bite the bullet and knit on it until I finished the skein. I have already worn it once and it is nice and warm.
Next up I have my first 2 scrapbook pages for the year. They were part of a kit from my Local Scrapbook store. January pages of the Calendar Club.
I have done the calendar club at this shop for the past 4 or 5 years, but this year is going to be my favorite as she will be using products from Blue Fern. I Love their products and I enjoyed creating these pages. Hopefully I can get more pictures on them and keep up with it all year. Photos will hide those finger prints on the 2nd page from me putting lotion on my hands. Ugh.
Next up is my first book finish.
I finished this book on Wednesday. It is the 2nd in The Guardian Trilogy from Nora Roberts. With all of my hobbies, reading takes a back seat, reading usually only at lunch time or when I am at a hair appointment or take my car in for an oil change. One of my goals this year is to read more. I am happy to have my first book finished in January. This series is pretty good. I am anxious to start the 3rd book and see how it finishes up.
I finished this sweet little thing last night:
She was a pretty quick stitch. Binge watching the old X-Files has certainly helped me move right along with her. She is White Angel Trumpet, a Poison Pixie from Nora Corbet. I stitched her on a OOAK 16ct Aida from Fantasy Dyed Fabrics. The fabric looks like it has poisonous gasses in greens and grays. I think it is perfect for her.
So I dug this WIP out to work on for now.
This one is Passione Ricamo’s 20th Anniversary SAL. It is quite a large piece and I would love to finish this one this year. There are many blocks on this one each containing a portion of different PR patterns from over the years. I am stitching on 16ct Aida Nantucket Sky from Hand Dyed Fabrics by Stephanie. It is truly going to be an amazing piece. Not sure how long I will stitch on it, but every stitch will put me closer to a finish, right?
So that is it for my finishes so far this month. I have a long list of goals for 2018 and I am still trying to put them into a “18 in 2018” order. I hope to have that list nailed down for my next post. So what are your goals for 2018? What are you currently working on? I’d love to hear all about it 🙂
Last week I finished section 13 of the Passione Ricamo SAL #4. I am feeling much better after my surgery and am able to stitch on my scroll frames once again. I stitched like crazy on this section so I can get caught up. I’ve been working on section 14 this week and am just about finished. I will post pictures soon. Section 15 was released over the weekend, so I have more catching up to do. This is a busy time of year for me as Stampin’ Up! Is nearing the end of the catalog year, so I am pulling retired stamps and accessories and getting ready for new product. My craft room is a mess! Tomorrow is Mega Meet, an awesome scrapbook convention. I will be going there to see what new stuff I can’t live without ;). I am also trying to squeeze some scrapbook time in. So, that is what I have been up to. What are you up to this time of year?
My Time Stitching 