Bella Filipina Designs · cross stitch · Fabric · Hand Dyed Fabrics · knitted scarves · Shannon Christine · yarn

Good Bye 2024, Happy 2025!


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!

cross stitch · Shannon Christine designs

Winter Snowfall Finish


It is still winter where I am and the snow is still here. In fact we had another 5-6 inches yesterday. Today the sun is shining and I am happy for that. I am also happy that I have another finish for 2022! On February 7 I had finished all of the stitching on my Winter Snowfall project.

Ready for beading

Yesterday I finished putting in the over 1600 beads!

Finished

I am so happy to be finished with all of that white and all of those beads. It was so worth it. Another WIP out of the pile! The stats on this one: Winter Snowfall by Shannon Chirstine Designs. I stitched on 16ct Aida Valyrian Steel from Fabrics by Stephanie. DMC colors are 818, 3354 and B5200. Mill Hill beads are 00479 and 40557. I have a new project in mind that I want to start. But it depends on how long it will take to get to me.

That is what I have been up to. What are you working on?

Country Cottage Needleworks · cross stitch · Shannon Christine designs

So Much Snow, Inside and Out


Hello blogging friends! How is your January going? Mine has not gone well, but that is a story for another day. And the last few days we have been getting snow. So much snow outside.

Snow Day

This photo was taken this morning. It has been snowing all day. There is also so much snow inside, with my Winter Snowfall project.

I have finished all of the pink on this project, so all that is left is all that white snow. I have been trying to push through to get this done, but I am so bored with the white. So since it is my Birthday today, I decided I needed a new Birthday start!

February Sampler of the Month

So I started the February Sampler of the Month by Country Cottage Needleworks. I have so many CCN patterns that I want to do. I wanted to do this series last year, but didn’t get to it. I am skipping January for now since it is almost over. I will be mounting all of the months myself in order to pop them in and out of 2 different frames I purchased for them. We shall see how that goes. But this project will be a nice break from all that snow 😉 I am stitching on 16ct Aida Beautiful Beige from Wichelt. So for the rest of the day I am going to enjoy my birthday by stitching on a new project and eating cake.

What new project are you itching to get started on?

cross stitch · Shannon Christine · Shannon Christine designs

Snowflakes and Pink Trees


The temperatures started out in the negative today. Brrr. I had a few errands to run but only did one and then came back home. It is supposed to get into the 30’s tomorrow, so I will try again tomorrow before the snow comes. I would much rather deal with the snowflakes on my cross stitch. So what am I stitching on?

Pretty pink snowflakes

I started Winter Snowfall in December 2020. The pattern is from Shannon Christine Designs. The entire pattern has 3 thread colors and 2 colors of beads. The snowflakes are done in B5200 and then you can choose any 2 colors you want to add. I chose to use 2 shades of pink. She does suggest a couple of colors on the pattern if you are undecided.

Winter Snowfall

I think this is where I was when I picked this up on New Year’s Eve. This one is the next WIP in my “work on it until finished” project. There are only 2 more Scroll frames with projects on them after this one, but I think I have 2 additional projects that are started. But I am getting them down. This one is going to be so pretty when done. I just love all the pink trees and snowflakes that form a big tree. And that sweet little pink reindeer will look even cuter when I bead his antlers.

Lots of white

That is a lot of white snowflakes at the top! I didn’t think I would ever get through it. And then I noticed that not all of my skeins of B5200 match. What?? How can that be? They were all in the project bag together. Ugh. But you know what? I am leaving it. It is what it is. I am not tearing it out nor am I starting over.

Snowflakes and ornaments

This is what I have completed so far. I am moving the scrolls so I can start on the lower section. You see all of those snowflakes across the top? I have to do the same at the bottom. Hopefully I can get through it without getting too bored. I want this to be a finished project this year.

Winter Snowfall

I am stitching on 16ct Aida Valyrian Steel from Fabrics By Stephanie. Threads are DMC B5200, DMC 818 and DMC 3354. Beads will be white and gold, but I haven’t decided on exact ones yet.

So that is where I am with this piece. Shannon Christine has a new companion piece to this one called Falling Snow. I would love to do that one in Red and white. But I have to get through this one first.

So that is what I am up to. What are you stitching on?