A Large HD

Hi all and thanks so much for all your wonderful comments!  I am especially delighted to hear what you had to say about the fabric choices in my last post.  Get this, not a single person had picked the same fabric!  I love it - that means that whatever I pick, it will be right!

I have to show off my latest finish real quick.  This is the Drawn Thread SAL that I have posted about a couple of times in the past.  Well, she is done; here is Drawn Thread's Sampler of Stitches:

Here is a picture of the entire sampler:

 ...and a close-up of the last part (finished yesterday night):

 

I loved to work on some of the parts while other parts were pretty painful. 

I did notice that I enjoyed stitching the larger areas rather than many, many very small areas.  The larger sections allow you to practice the new stitch and get a flow going.  

I also learned that I love to do pulled thread work!

I have absolutely not idea what I'd like to do with this sampler.  I am looking at it and it is pretty and all, but I am very much undecided.  Right now, I have a real hard time believing that I will ever frame it and hang it on my wall. 

I'll bring it with me to tomorrow's stitch-in and see what my peeps say...

I also got a really nice surprise in the mail earlier this week - my floss from Examplarery arrived, so I guess that the Canadian postal strike is over.    All the text is in and now I get to concentrate on the border, which I really do enjoy!  I think that Queen stitches are a lot of fun.  

It is not all song and dance though; I almost threw a fit yesterday when I realized that the border is not the last part that I have left after all!  I also need to fill in the rest of the grout in the house!  Blah - I am not looking forward to that.  Not  at all.  I know that this is the very last part, and that it should be "easy" since it is just filling in areas with cross-stitch, but it is that boring "invisible thread" type stitching, so I am real keen on skipping it all together.  I know that I won't, but I will at least dream about it for a while... [ Oh, and I should probably work on whining less too.  ;-)]

And this is the final stitch-update for tonight - the Rosenstand bird bell-pull in coming along nicely.  I think that I have completed 1 page out of 4 now, which is not too bad.  As I mentioned in the last post, it really is a long piece, but the stitching-intensity is pretty low, due to all the naked areas. 

This is yet another one of those kits where the colors on the cover-photo have very little resemblance to the real thing.  The real-life colors are much brighter and greener than the dull browns and olive greens in the picture.  Luckily, I still like the way it looks, so that is great.  The bird is clamping onto the bamboo (I think that is what it is) very close to the bottom on this design.  I am already looking forward to stitch on him!  But fist there is a large tuft of leaves to take care of at the top of the bamboo.

Lastly, I wanted to show you the somewhat funny in a low-key (and probably low-cost) way; the "fortune cookies" that we get from the Thai restaurant close to work.  We eat lunch there about every other week and I have now convinced my co-workers to ask for the statement cookies rather than fortune cookies with the bill.  Here is the interesting mix of random sentences we got last time:

All in all, pretty funny, I think!  My coworkers do this thing, that I am sure is in no way unique for that group, where they read the fortune to the rest of the lunch participants and always end the fortune with "in bed" to make it all so much more amusing.  

After glancing at the examples above, I don't think that "sprucing up" is necessary at all.  But, now again, DH keeps claiming that I have an odd sense of humor and that I am easily amused...  I hope that maybe one of you, dear blog readers, has the same type of humour.  Makes the world such a more amusing place to be, doesn't it!?

Well, time to get to bed.  We have a "morale boost even" at work tomorrow, which means that we will have to play games and eat sandwiches in the park from 10 AM to 2 PM.  I am looking forward to it, even though I have a feeling that we will be up in the 80:s temperature wise.  Take into account that I am the type of woman who "glistens" bucket-fulls and  you get the picture.  Not necessarily a pretty one....   :-b

Take care, stay out of the heat, and have a wonderful weekend!

Finally Friday - Finishing Weekend!

Do you ever feel like all your stitched up pieces just keep piling up in a box or on a shelf somewhere?  That is one of my biggest problems... I just don't take the final hours to finish up!  Well, this weekend I'll try to finish my newly stitched fob, ornament and the Birdcage designed by Just Nan!  The laundry can wait; I'm on a mission!!!

But first I have to show off the completed part 8 of the DT SAL!

Joyce was wondering which design this is, since I neglected to share that in my last post - sorry about leaving that out... (Go and check out her progress on her gorgeous Chinese Mandala, by the way!)  The design is the Sampler of Stitches by Drawn Thread.  It was published as a 9-part series of "chart packs" a few years back (2008, I believe).  Each chart pack (included charms or beads where the design demanded it) was $10 or more, so I told myself that if I bought all 9 charts, I would really have to stitch the sampler!  Luckily, a couple of my friends were really interested in stitching the project too, so we made it a SAL and that has kept as all fairly well on track.  
Just one more part to go, iron, add charms and wooohooo!   Oh, I have to frame it too?  Kinda' like "finishing it"...? Oh....
                                            ;-)

Here is the pile of Grand Plans...  Bitten off too much?  Yeah, aim high and maybe finish one ornie, is my motto!

Well, have to stop babbling - time to get that ironing board out!

Happy Stitching and See You in a Bit,

A Couple of Quickies

Hi there!  I am writing a quick update before hitting the road to work!

My cheating this weekend paid off!  I did finish up The Dragon of Hope for my LLS and I like the result.  The chart comes with two options for the globe, so I thought that one of them can be used as a really cute fob, so that is the plan as of today.  ;-)  

Since I am pretty bad at posting progress pics, you get both one of those and the finished stitch.  As you can see, I started with the easier part and saved the confetti stitching for last.  I would say that this is a very quick stitch either way.  It was also almost fun to back-stitch.  I haven't had to do that for ages!

 

And here below is the finished DT Pumpkin pocket.  The finishing was pretty easy and I would almost say clever.  Oh, and see that pretty polka-dot pumpkin colored lining fabric below?  Well, it is reversible and is a Gingham on the other side.  Too cute!  I made sure that I cut it very carefully, so now I have a snippet left to use for something fun!  I am thinking that I may try to make a tiny pumpkin pin-cushion, kinda' like a tomato pin-cushion, but with pumpkin colored fabric.  

I opted to go with a silk ribbon instead of a Hedebo-ring, because the finished purse does not really want to close.....  I am not real pleased with the thickness of the ribbon - I think that it needs to be several times thicker, both for looks and for practical reasons.  If I find something in the future, I'll probably "update" this piece.

So, if I were to sum up; fun stitch, easy finishing, great material, and a pretty cute result!  (I have no idea what to use it for, though...  ;-))

Well, that's it for now.  Have a great Tuesday and talk with you in a bit!  Happy Stitching!!!!

Spring is Coming - Everything is Growing!

So, it was raining like crazy here last weekend and it doesn't look a whole lot better for the upcoming one.  That is all right with me - we usually get into a drough sitiation here before half the summer is gone, so the more "cats and dogs" in spring, the better I'd say!  

I was pretty bad at stitching this past weekend as I ended up with a pretty fabulous tear duct infection in my right eye on Sunday.  It is still healing and now it just looks bad, but I don't really feel it anymore.  No wonder I was cranky on Friday!  ;-)  Anyway, when I finally started to stitch, I got about one half of one of the Richmond horse riders done before I jumped into something completely different - the Pumpkin Pocket kit by Drawn Thread.  I love it!  It is the first time I have worked with Valdani over-dyed floss.  It is beautiful and feels so soft.  I also really like the lining fabric that comes with the kit; a really pretty polka-dot on a soft orange background.  This baby will get finished up this weekend! 

 

My garden is running amok right now.  The rain and the warmer days makes all the spring bulbs grow so that it almost is a visible difference from morning to evening.  I am thrilled - I sat all of these bulbs in October last year, so I can't wait to see what'll happen...  I am also "lucky" enough to have a memory like a gold-fish, so I am extra excited a to discover what I planted... :-)  I do recall spending days on getting all of them down in the ground.  

I think that it does look like some Hyacinths here below, but we'll have to wait and see. 

Here is visual proof that I may have bought more bulbs than I probably have space for.  (At least I am hoping that these were planted by me.)  I do recall that I bought a lot of bulbs that are supposedly early, middle and late spring bloomers, but it seems to me that they are all coming up at the same time.   

I have some fun stuff going on in my indoor pots too.  This plant is a Hoya Carnosa that has been taken from a parent plant that I have.  The parent plant never bloomed, but if you look closely, you can see 3 or maybe even 4 flower clusters.  I think that maybe this plant is sitting at a better location.  Plus my parrots have not tortured the will to bloom out of this one.  Yet.  Anyway, these white flowers give off a lot of honey and the fragrance is wonderful.  I did not perceive the Hoya as an uncommon houseplant back in Sweden, but I have not really seen any here in the US.  Can they be found around here?.

It is an interesting plant in that it prefers to have the roots pretty cramped up, so it does not want to be repotted often.  After re-potted it usually refuses to grow and bloom until the pot has been packed with roots again.  The flowers sprout out from the same tiny "knots" on the vines season after season, so it is important not to damage or cut the "knots" off, or the future flowers in that location are lost.  I am so happy - this is the second time this plant is on its way to flower and there are so may more locations this time around.  I promise to post pics as soon as it starts to bloom!

And now to something completely different.  Here is something  that grew in my mail-box the other day.  This is the tomato pin-cushion from the newest Little house Needlework and Impie, Hattie & Bea collaboration.  I am holding it up so that you can see how huge it is!

Scrappy, below, is our tiny parrot model for today.  He (or she?) is showing off the needle-book that comes together with the tomato in the "Fresh from the From the Garden" set.  

About the garden set: I am very pleased with colors, craftsmanship and so on.  I can add this kit to my (unstitched) Traveling Stitcher and the Scissor Bed & Pin Pillow....

About our model: Scrappy is Henny's (model from last time) cage-mate.  He can say "Hi Scrappy" and "Come here" in a really high-pitched and squeaky voice.  He doesn't mind being held and kissed and he is pretty skinny, so he freezes easily.  One of his favorite hang-outs is on top of the microwave in the kitchen or under a blanket on DH's or my lap.  He will cozy up in a blanket cave like that for hours and his feet are all nice & toasty once he finally decides to come back out.  Henny, on the other hand, will run around under the blanket and nip at anything she can get her little beak arund.  Seriously annoying if you are trying to grab a quick nap!   Scrappy is a little sweetheart and never picks figts with the other birds.  He doesn't chew on stuff either, but he does like to help me stitch by nibbling on the linen.  Sometimes I give him a small cut of linen and he goes to town with that - chewing and pulling and nipping.  Heaven for a little piece of Scrap!

A pile of other stuff landed in the mail box too.  I ordered a bunch of stuff from three different stores at very different times, but all the packages arrive on the same day.  Since it was on Friday and I was in a dark hole that day, I didn't even have the energy to get excited, but let me tell you that I am getting there now!
The only problem is that it will be a challenge to be good and stick to the projects I need to finish before digging into all these goodies!

I ordered these French books from the fabulous on-line stitch store Violarium in Finland (product selection is great and shipping is very reasonable - check it out, if you haven't had a chance before!).  My favorite purchase is the book lying in the bottom - absolutely gorgeous projects and definitely a great motivation to learn French.  ;-)  DH and I had some fun trying to make out what the first couple of sentences mean.  They did not make sense at all...  :-b

And finally - this is a large part of the reason why I am excited about spring!  Shoes!!!!  I love shoes.  Almost all of them have very high heals and "character".  I got the pairs below from Off Broadway Shoes.  I am aware that the polka-dot and gingham shoes are *possibly* over the top, but I believe that I get away with wearing shoes like these by balancing the outfit with very strict and classic clothes (and balancing period, of course...).  Long black pants, shirts that cover shoulders and no deep cuts up front.  You have to admit that they are serious eye-candy, right!?  Love'em - can't wait to click-click-click around in them!!!  (My colleague The barbarian always says that she can "hear the clippeticlop of tiny Swedish hoofs" when I am marching down the corridors at work....)
I got these babies when P.Snickety and I went to the Off Broadway the day before her "BIG" B-day party (she says "BIG" - she turned 30.... sigh!).  She got a pair of cool pumps with zebra print and was adventurous enough to ask her husband for his opinion.  The judgment came in as "80's hooker".  No worries - she didn't care and wore them to the party.  She was very happy!
Luckily, my DH doesn't say much, since he assumes that he "just doesn't get it".  ;-) 

Well, enough aimless babble from me today.  Time to get myself into bed!

Take care and Happy Spring-Stitching to all!

Quick Update - Invisible Stitching...

Well, I am being a bad girl and staying up way past my bedtime.  Again.  I just have to write a quick note before bed!
I have been busy doing stuff other than stitching the last couple of days.  One of my co-hashers and I have been discussing T-shirt designs for our next set of shirts.  I like drawing, even though I am not skilled in any way - it looks so much better in my head than on the paper... :-(
Anyway, I have pumped out 4 designs in 2 evenings, which is not too shabby, right?  You can check'em out in this pic:

We'll see what the verdict is later this week.  I may have gotten these done too late in the game, but we may be able to use one of them in the years to come.  When I showed DH, the comment was "it's for the hash, so they don't have to be perfect..".  Hmmm, translation is probably something like "not too great, honey, but at least you tried...".  It's been fun drawing,  but I really do get stitching withdrawal and end up being a tad cranky.  Anyone else notice this type of reaction to events interfering with stitch time?
He is on my list of people I adore today though - I actually squealed when I got home and walked into the kitchen, since he had left some Valentines Day surprises on the kitchen table for me.  Best of all was a tiny pot of baby crocuses.  I can't wait to see what color they turn out to be.  Wait, I lied - best of all was the waist high pile of freshly washed and dried laundry that was magically folded away before I got home from work.  THAT is my kind of Valentine!

I did get a bunch of stitching on Saturday and Sunday, but unfortunately most of it is invisible!  :-b  If you click on the photo you may be able to see the fruits in the vine resting against the right side of the house.  It is not real motivating to stitch for hours on something that does not show up at the end of the day (over-one at that).  At least I am done with the white on white stitching on this piece.  The left side vine is also completed and I got in all the colorful blue doves flapping around the house.  The motives that are left to get down are the two riders and the tiny black dog galloping across the yard.  I am NOT looking forward to figuring out where all the over-one stitches are to be placed....

 

Oh, and here is the last photo - I never showed off the finished 7th DT SAL part.  I got in the silk I ran out of last week and whipped out the last stitches.  I am really pleased with this project.  I was pretty unimpressed and unmotivated during parts 4-5, but now I am back to being happy both with stitching it and with how it looks. 

Before I get ready for bed, a piece of sad news.  Poor Hogsie passed away Friday night.  He seemed a little bit tired the last few days, but he kept running in his wheel and eating and drinking, so I did just not understand that he was sick.  I have now learned the hard way that it is really tricky to keep track of the health of a nocturnal pet.  He was generally not up when the rest of us were out of bed.  I think that it got too cold and he started to go into hibernation mode, but pet hedgehogs should not do that because it can be mortal.  When I checked on him before going to bed, I found him cold, damp and fatigued.  I fell dozed on and off with him on my chest and folded a rice warmer around him to get him to warm back up.  He seemed to be doing better, but I fell asleep and when I woke back up he had passed away.  Poor, poor little guy.  He is buried in our backyard now, so we can visit him whenever we want to, but I will still miss him. 

I have hugged and kissed all the birds a little bit extra today.  I am very glad to have them!
Well, off to bed with me!  I am awful about responding to your comments and e-mails right now, but I will do better this week!  Last week was a whirl wind, but now I should be able to get back to what's important...  ;-)
Good night and talk with you in a bit,