Primitive Needle's Witch's Hollow

I finished the owl at the top of the piece in spite of some confusing symbols placed side by side: ( for Seaweed and ) for Light  Khaki.  Usually, I fall for the whole tromp d'oeill thing and end up doing some serious frogging when this sort of thing occurs.  But, happily, this time I saw the problem immediately and avoided mistakes.  I do wish all designers everywhere would make it a priority to avoid using deceptively similar symbols in a single chart.   I am wary ever since I fell into a symbol trap while stitching Brightneedle's Ghosts and Ghoulies over one and it has been languishing ever since.  I have yet to face the onerous  task of frogging the error.

Anyway, back to Witch's Hollow.  I made a whole bunch of substitutions using GAST and Crescent Colors to fill in the gaps in what I thought was a substantial WDW stash.  It entailed about a half hour staring at color charts on line and then making judgment calls about stash in hand.   In some cases, I'll be replacing one missing WDW color with several of the other brands, e.g., WDW charcoal will be replaced by GAST Onyx for the Bats but by GAST Raven and Soot and CC Blackbird for other motifs further on down the page.  The same goes for some of the shades of grey.  It just seems silly not to use what I have.  The whole point of building such an extensive stash while working was to avoid expense once on the reduced income of retirement.

I am going to have a lot of fun with this piece.  I enjoy Halloween themes and love the style of Primitive Needle.  The designer's untimely death was a sad loss.

Sunflower Sampler, Hummingbirds, Etc.

I finished this little sampler Thursday evening, using the recommended GAST and WDW floss and substituting additional WDW floss for the DMC as follows:
DMC 436   >   WDW Bright Leaf
DMC 469   >   WDW Ivy

I did eliminate the bees from the design since I thought a little more negative space was needed.  Samplers, in my ever so humble opinion, need to  breathe.  

I have started and finished another small, Crossed Wing Collection's Summer 1999 Hummingbird.  I had all the recommended DMC and GAST threads but one, GAST Lavender Potpourri for which I substituted GAST Hyacinth.  As I frequently do, I made a few adjustments.  For a softer look I have eliminated the outlining backstitch on the leaves, flowers and bird: stitching 3/4 rather than the charted 1/4 stitches.  I am stitching all the stems in GAST Pine rather than DMC 870, again for a softer more natural look.  I think I shall finish this as an ornament for the summertime display.

And, I finally chose my next BAP start, Primitive Needle's Witch's Hollow.   I had a little over half the recommended WDW floss and three of the four recommended GAST flosses.  I will spend a little time after posting this entry researching substitutions for the remaining threads.  I have such an extensive stash of over dyed cotton flosses from WDW, GAST, Crescent Colors that it seems silly to buy the missing charted threads when I may very well have a similar color in another brand..  I am stitching this on a 36 count linen from Silkweaver called Rock Quarry.

Weekly WIP Status Report

I started the week with 10 projects on the WIP list, added three, finished three and ended back at 10.

• The Jacobean Elegance afghan - with 15 more squares to be stitched.
• Making Waves needlepoint project - with more than 3/4s of the bargello rows and more than 2/3s of the eyelet area to be stitched.
• My own design, Fertile Circles needle book, the back panel needs finishing.
• My own design, Beach Find Pansies, to be completed and incorporated into an embellished crazy quilt square

• The Victoria Sampler Mystic Smalls class project - I need to stitch the needle book and the biscornu
• Another needlepoint project, Rice Pudding, using many variations of the rice stitch.
• Yet another needlepoint project, an Owl, again a project using lots of specialty stitches.
• Piper's Christmas stocking  adapted from a Dimensions kit.
• HAED's The Tangle Fairy, barely started
• The Goblin Market:  FINISHED!

• Morning Glory The Sheltering Tree.  JUST NEED TO FINISH THE OVER ONE LETTERING.

• Jeanette Douglas Christmas Tree Ornament.  FINISHED.
• Jeanette Douglas Halloween Acorn House. FINISHED.
• S. Donnelly Stitchers' Hideaway Ornament.  FINISHED.

A BAP and Two One Day Wonders

I finished The Goblin Market and here it is in all its glory.  The spider web took forever or so it seemed.  I added a little Krenik 032 blending filament to the web  to make it shimmer as webs do in nature.   This piece was a lot of fun to stitch with all it's cheerful colors and its multitude of motifs.  The variety within the piece itself kept ,my interest.  The eagle-eyed observer will note a few counting errors but they didn't really detract from the overall design.  So I am satisfied.  The next project from the WIP list that I'll be tackling: The Mystic Smalls.

While rooting about in my stash for the next new big project, I came across three small charts: Jeanette Douglas' A Christmas Tree Ornament, Sue Donnelly's Souvenir Stitcher's Hideaway Ornament and Jeanette Douglas' The Halloween Acorn House.  I also found a few scraps of mystery linen on which to stitch them..

I paired this antique rose linen with the Jeanette Douglas chart, adjusting the color way to pale and non-traditional tints including Belle Soie's Creme de Menthe, Fern Frond, Beanstalk, Lily Pad and Cabbage Patch for the tree and GAST Pink Azalea for the tent stitched vertical strips in the background.  I am very pleased with the result, so much more subtle than the usual bright Christmas reds and greens.

The second one day wonder was this souvenir Tree Ornament from The Stitcher's Hideaway Retreat in 2013.  Better late than never.  It's pretty straigh forward stitched on raw linen in Dinky Dyes silks.

The final small resulting from my search is this little Halloween Acorn House.  I'll be using as many of the suggested WDW, GAST and Crescent Colors as I have on hand, making appropriate substitutions when necessary.  I have WDW Trick or Treat, GAST Straw Bonnet, Crescent Colors Blackbird and Hickory Sticks.  That leaves me needing replacements for CC Colonial Copper, Just Rust, Plymouth Rock and Tufted Yellow.  As soon as I have posted  this blog entry, I'll search online to see what those shades are and then I'll pull equivalents from my GAST or WDW stash, both of which are mych moe extensive than my CC stash.  Since this a two sided piece, it'll probably take three days to stitch.

And I still haven't selected my next new large project start!  Nothing is really pulling at me at the  moment.  That's probably a goof reason to stick to the WI[P list

A few small finishes

Mehitabel's Redwork Sampler

Aury.s Patriotic Quaker Heart 2013

As for the rest of the day:

Piper's stocking comes up in the rotation today.  I am going to try to stitch two square inches every week on this piece until I am done with it.  If I keep that pace I should have it done in time for Christmas of 2014.  Of course, the goal is to have both Piper's and Rocco's stockings completed by Christmas of 2014.  There will have to come a time, probably in July, when I start working on both of the stockings as the main focus of my rotation.

You Gotta Have Heart

I have The English Band Sampler and its Algerian eyelets set aside "for later" while I have started a new heart.  The chart is called Couer Courage from Les Grilles d'Elise Lotte.  I am using a small scrap of mystery even weave in a soft shade of ivory and have chosen GAST Mulberry for the actual stitching.  I had two partial cards of Mulberry that were close enough in dye lot to work well together.  Between the two cards, I should have enough to complete the project, with a tiny bit left over.  Yet again, I am stitching from stash.  The blank space in this piece is supposed to be filled in with the word Courage but I will be charting my wedding date and stitching that instead.

I also stitched a few more lengths of GAST Freedom on Aury's Quaker Heart 2013.  I find I am liking having a few different projects ready to hand by my stitching chair.  It does make for a somewhat messy lived in look but home is supposed to be the place one can kick back and relax, right?.

And, because we haven't had enough snow this past week, we are expecting another 3 to 5 inches today.  When I find the young student in my program who has been praying for snow days, I am going to sit him or her down and suggest insist he or she shift his or her focus to praying for world peace or the end to hunger and disease and poverty.   Can't be wasting all that sanctity!

Fickle, Fickle, Fickle

Twenty four inches of snow in three days prompted me to nestle down in my stitching chair and stitch up a storm, if you'll pardon the very bad pun.

For the past three days, I have been a total gad-about: stitching a little on one project, switching to another, and then dropping that one for still another.  Call me fickle but I really am enjoying switching gears frequently.  It's as though that fierce focus of the past several months has exploded into billions of glittering smithereens.  Nothing holds my attention for more than an hour or two.

First up, Pineberry Lane's Mehitabel's Redwork Sampler .  I am working this on a scrap of the same linen I am using for the grandchildren's Christmas stockings, Silkweaver's Meadow Mist 36ct.  It is a very greyed down, pale sage green.  A nice neutral color.  The silk I am using is Needlepoint Inc.'s Russet Red Range, a deep red left over from stitching Primitive Needle's Black'd Skie.  So, both silk and linen are from stash, giving me that virtuously frugal reduce, reuse, recycle glow.

Next up is Milady's Tea House from the Indy 2006 Town Square series.  This particular chart was done by the folks from Milady's Needle.  I just have the over one stitching in the windows and the specialty stitching in the door step flower pots to do.  This is another project that is stitched from existing stash.  I had to substitute five of the dozen or so called for fibers but it is working our quite well..

Then, I started Aury's Quaker Hearts 2013 that I somehow failed to stitch the year it was published.  I use the same blue linen for the Quaker Heart series as I do for the Town Square series, so I cut the linen for this in a  six inch wide strip long enough to stitch the heart and my four next Town Square buildings.  I wound it on my doodler lap frame which, while not the most portable frame I have, is one of the most comfortable configurations of scroll rods that I own.  I am using GAST Cranberry, Oatmeal and Freedom for this piece.

Correction

I don't know why I thought I had to stitch Piper's stocking over one.  Once I had completed a square inch of stitching over one, it was abundantly clear that the scale was way off.  So I frogged it out and restitched it Monday.  All I can say is that frogging over one stitching on a 36 ct linen is a real pain in the neck.

Here's a photo of where the project stands right now. The chart is set in summer but since I am using this as a Christmas stocking I am converting the brown, tan, and gold ground to shadowed snow with shades of white, lavender, grey, lavender blue in various blended needles a la Teresa Wentzler.  I am leaving the flowers in place, as if they are poking through the snow just because I like the idea of adding some Christmas-y red and green to the piece.  Right now I am stitching the chart with the straight edges as it came.  Once I've filled in the bottom, I'll go back and add some more stitching to extend the design into the curved spaces of the toe and heel

 

And the Snow Keeps Coming

The day started with a two hour delay but soon morphed into a closing.  By 5:00pm, we had at least 7 or 8 inches on top of what hasn't yet melted from last week/  And the predictions for Tuesday night into Wednesday are for another 4 to 8 inches of snow topped off with an inch or two of ice.  And we have two more months of winter left to survive.  Ah well, we have had some exceptionally mild winters in the past few years so I guess we were due for a rough one.  We haven't yet gotten to the point when the town sends in the front loaders and dump trucks to take the snow away and dump it into the Hudson River.  But that may happen this week.

So I may have more stitching time than usual this week as a result. Today, I spent some time doing the one strand stitching on the band.  This involved the satin stitching in the dark blue squares and the Algerian eyelets around the blue squares.  It was all rather time consuming.  I didn't even manage to finish up one of the 8 squares before my eyes started to cross.  And I was using a magnifier and a stitching lamp, so that's saying something.  But I would far rather take my time and get it right since frogging one stranded stitches is truly horrific.

And February Begins

I am beginning the month with ... surprise, surprise ... The English Band Sampler.  The satin stitching on Band 6 continues to be the primary focus.  The outer petals in DMC 352 stitched up relatively quickly though I had to go back and frog out two petals that were stitched in the wrong direction.  That's what comes of stitching after 8:00pm; I make mistakes.   The remaining crosses in the octagonal medallions didn't take more than an hour. Then came the long haul: doing all the narrow fawn colored satin stitches inside the navy blue squares and in the connecting diagonals.

I have already stitched two of the fawn stripes in the top far right square in the recommended two strands and I really don't like the lumpy and untidy results.  I then stitched one square with one strand to see if it looks neater.  I like the look of one strand better.  I'll have to frog the pair of stripes done in two strands.  But it would be a shame to have worked so hard and so long on this piece only to be aggravated by dissatisfaction with one small aspect of the whole.  I would far rather take a little extra time and effort now than be tormented by having to look everyday at a piece that I know could have been better.  Another solution would be to replace the dozens of tiny horizontal satin stitches with three long vertical stitches using two strands.  I admit I am sorely tempted by such a quick fix.  Opinions anyone?  Which do you think looks better, always remembering that these are close-up shots.  When hung on the wall, these will be viewed from a distance of several feet and as a small part of a much larger whole.  The one stranded stitches won't appear to barely cover the area from such a distance.  Instead, the human eye will adjust and blend the stitches into a continuous line of color.

Band 6 Progress for the Month

This Band was started on January 1 and I have worked on it exclusively throughout the month.  I am no closer to finishing it since it was last seen in Tuesday's photo.  I suspect that will not happen till sometime in the second or third week of February.  Alas, it's just going to take as long as it takes.  Rushing satin stitches can make an unholy mess so it's better I just keep plugging away at a snail's pace.

As you can see, I still have some work left to do:
the satin stitches in the outer petals in DMC 352
the satin stitches in the blue squares and the olive green diagonals, DMC 3770
the satin stitches in the remaining crosses within the octagonal medallions, DMC  791
the Algerian Eyelets in DMC 3770
The straight stitches in DMC  3011
The bottom border in DMC 311

When I consider that I once deluded myself that this could have been my last finish of 2013, I just shake my head.  My cyber-friend Dani has called this the never-ending band and she nailed it.  And I suspect Band 7 will be very much the same.  Then, of course, I still have to go back to Band 2 and fill in the signature.  At the time, I couldn't decide whether I wanted my full name or just my initials and a date.  On the one hand, I am determined to keep working on this piece till I can claim victory ... even if that victory comes in June!  On the other hand, I am seriously considering dropping Band 7 altogether and declaring this piece done, done, done once I finish the signature.

The Worst Winter in a Very long Time

It's official: this has been the worst winter in a very long time and there are still two more months to endure.  This morning's forecast included the prediction that another Arctic cold front [for some reason, this is now called a vortex] is coming our way.  This one will bring even colder temperatures than the two previous ones.  At least the sun has made an appearance today after being conspicuously absent for two dreadfully overcast and snowy weeks.  It is still quite cold at 17 degrees, though there is the promise of a high of 18 degrees this afternoon.  Ah, a veritable heat wave!  But at least it is bright. Everyone has been talking about Seasonal Affective Disorder lately as if it were a modern day plague.

I have already had to cancel Tuesday classes five times because of weather this winter and may have to do so yet again.  One would think this would all make for good stitching weather but that's not the way it is turning out for me.  Even wearing warm cashmere gloves on my short drive home from work leaves my fingers very cold and cramped.  I don't know whether it's rheumatism or arthritis or simple age, but it takes nearly an hour of cradling my hands round hot mugs of tea.to limber up enough to stitch.

But some stitching has been done and here is a photo as proof.  I have finished the second color of satin stitches, DMC 799, and have started on the third, DMC 817.  There is still the fawn, DMC 3770, to work inside the navy blue squares and in all the olive green connecting diagonals, as well as some green in the ;eaves of the floral motif and another shade of blue in the crosses in the octagons.  Then it is on to the Algerian Eyelet and the few little straight stitches.  With only three more days in the month, it is doubtful that this band will be done before February.

Even More Satin Stitching

I thought there were five distinct colors of satin stitching.  It turns out there are six.  But as I was working my way through the first color, I noticed that I had left some of the cross stitching undone ... in the octagonal medallions and half medallions.  Filling in the cross stitches set me back a bit and I did not quite complete the DMC 353 satin stitches on Sunday as planned.  So here it is Monday morning, and I've only managed to start the second color, DMC 799.

At the rate I am going, I doubt I'll be able to finish all the satin stitching this month.which is a real disappointment.  My first finish of 2014 is likely to come in February or even March.  This is a far cry from the good old days, when I could count on three or four finishes a month.  I am stitching more slowly and seem to have less time to stitch as well.

And the Satin Stitching Continues

I do like the way this band is evolving.  More like tapestry than your average sampler.  I have noted the resemblance to a Persian rug several times.  But it is so apt a comparison that it bears repeating.  I am almost done with the satin stitching in DMC 353.  I should be able to add another color on Sunday.  I'll be working half a day today.  But once home, all I'll need to do is heat up some leftover chicken cacciatore for dinner and stitch to my heart's content.

English Band Sampler Progress Photo

There are five different colors of satin stitching in this band and I am halfway through with the first, DMC 353.  I plan to devote most of tomorrow to housework and laundry and perhaps some baking but I will manage to reserve an hour or two for stitching.

Simply Satin Stitching - Sorry No Photo

Judging by recent progress, I expect the satin stitching to take nearly as long as the cross stitching on this band.  At this point, all I have managed is about one third of the satin stitching in just one color, DMC 353.  There are five other colors left to satin stitch.  And then there are the Algerian Eyes and a few stray straight stitches left to do.  And , of course, there is still the narrow band/border to stitch in DMC 311 at the very bottom of this band.  I am reluctantly resigning myself to the fact that I may not finish this band this month.  Even if I abandon my plan to start the two other major goal projects for the month, Piper's stocking and Milady's Tea Shoppe, I am not sure I'd have enough time to finish the band.

I do apologize for not posting in a while but I have been having problems accessing all the design functions of my blog with my home computer.  Since the home computer is where I have all my photo albums, I have been unable to load photos of my stitching or even write new posts.  I am going to have to see about setting up a photo album here at work and e-mailing photos from home and posting to the blog from this computer.  At least, that's the plan until I resolve the problems at home.  If I manage it today, I will make a rare double post with just a photo just before bedtime.

Sidling up tp Satin Stitching

When last seen, The English Band Sampler still needed cross stitching in navy blue at the far right, a re-stitch of one frogged dark coral medallion in the lower right corner, and some more cross stitching in medium and light coral in the medallions and some  olive green inside the dark coral flower shapes.  When I started this band on January 1st, I had no idea how very long it would take to finish the cross stitching and start the satin stitching that appears to dominate the model photo.  Eighteen days and counting.  I am determined to finish the cross stitching this weekend and still have some time leftover to start Piper's stocking and even get a few sewing finishes done.  

Here's a shot of Saturday's and Sunday's progress.  All the cross stitching is finally done.Not bad considering that on Saturday I worked Confirmation interviews from 8:30 to Noon and then attended the 5:30 Mass before adding a two deep adult presence to the Teen RCIA.  At least, I wasn't the presenter and didn't have to prepare a lesson.  Sunday was manly deoted to housework and laundry but I did manage to squeeze in some stitching time.  So, on to the satin stitching, finally.

And Back To The Sampler

I called myself a will'o'the'wisp in yesterday's post but here I am back to stitching the sampler.  It's not really a contradiction though, since being a will'o'the'wisp essentially means being inconsistent, flitting about whichever way the winds blow.  And what could be more inconsistent or flittery than preparing a rotation of four or five projects and then reverting to THE BAP.

I wholeheartedly recommend this sampler to any stitcher who subscribes to Sampler and Antique Needlework Quarterly.  It appears in the 2012 Spring, Summer and Fall issues.

I am currently working on the navy blue [DMC 311] cross stitching and after that I'll have to do some more stitching in the olive green [DMC 3011].  I figure this will take the better part of the weekend.  Happily this weekend is a long one due to Martin Luther King Day.  I'll be losing the better part of Saturday to 8th grade Confirmation interviews in the morning and to Teen RCIA in the evening after Mass.  Some weeks I think I live on the parish campus.  I also have to fit some wardrobe shopping into my weekend this week.  I am in desperate need of winter slacks, a few sweaters and a blazer or two.  I figure everything will be on sale but completely picked over OR all put away, with only next season's clothes on display.  And then there is my 32 year old winter coat.  I think it is time to replace it.  I am not sure how much time I will have for stitching on Saturday but Sunday and Monday look pretty clear.

The Interminable Cross Stitch Outline Marathon

And the Interminable Cross Stitch Outline Marathon continues.  It just goes on and on and on.  I  am beginning to wonder how it all fits into this confined space.  There is still so much left to do: I am still working on the dark coral.  It seems every time I look at the chart, I see yet another spot that calls for DMC 350.  And then I have to stitch the navy blue and some more olive green.  I had some hope of completing both Band 6 and 7 this month.  I no longer cherish any such naive hope.  Indeed, I begin to think I shall be lucky to complete Band 6 by the end of the month.  It is beautiful, it is a joy to stitch, but, oh, is it ever so dense!  So, my hopes of a first finish for the year in the first month of the year are dimming rapidly.

On a happier note:  I just got an e-mail stating that my sewing machine is ready to be picked up from the repair shop.  My husband will pick it up today between his stint as a volunteer archivist at the county historical society and the meeting of the local Civil War Round Table.  This means, tomorrow morning,  I can zig-zag the edges of the linen for the rest of my monthly goal projects.  So, followers of my blog may be seeing a bit of variety over the next few days.  Maybe a start on Piper's Christmas stocking and a start on Milady's Tea Shoppe from the Town Square SAL.  And, if I am really feeling wild and crazy, perhaps a sewing finish or two over the weekend.  I am beginning to feel the urge to implement rotation stitching again.  

Almost Ready to Satin Stitch ... Not!

I have been working steadily on the cross stitching involved in this band.  It is very deceptive.  When you look at the model photo, what catches the eye is all the satin stitching.  But there is an enormous amount of cross stitching that needs to be done first to frame the satin stitched areas.  This phase of the band is both enjoyable and interminable.  An odd combination.  I usually have severe episodes of stitcher's Attention Deficit Disorder whenever any aspect of a project drags on for more than a week.  I started Band 6 on January 1st and here I am still cross stitching the outlines two weeks later.  And I am pleased with it. I know I am still at the stage where I am using only three colors and some of my readers may not find the progress all that exciting or worthy of another photo.    I promise I'll be adding more color soon, just have a little patience.  As I said in a previous post, I believe this band will be even more stunning than Band 5.  The whole band reminds me of a rich Persian carpet.