QS Iris Update

Did you all feel the earth shake? I know that I caused a slight tremor here, when I actually got to stitch on my QS Iris, on Stitching Thursday! No one could be more shocked than me! I actually kept pinching myself to make sure that I wasn't dreaming, but found that it not only hurt and left bruises, but slowed down my stitching progress. Next time, I'll just let it flow, even if it is a dream!

I tried to get a photo in more natural light since the shades are so subtle, and no matter what lighting I use, it shifts the shades considerably. Also, I've sadly discovered that my camera is now having technical and mechanical problems, so my photo taking is now more of a challenge.

Here are the before and after:

I hope that everyone has a wonderful weekend, doing something that you love to do!

QS Iris Update & New Pattern

Progress on my QS Iris has been sporadic and slow, but I have gotten a little more done since I last posted. My planned span of lazy days of doing nothing much more than stitching disappeared in a *poof*, almost the moment I dreamed about them, but as always, I keep hoping that life's events will soon fall into some sort of order to allow me more time to stitch.

Here is my update on my QS Iris:

I don't know if it the colors, or what, but I am finding this depressing to stitch, which surprises me, because the finished piece appears to be gorgeous. I guess I just haven't gotten to the colorful parts yet.

So what do I do to pick myself up? What any marginally sane person would do in the same circumstances. I took advantage of the recent HAED sale to celebrate Michele's Birthday (Happy Birthday, Michele!! Wishing you a fantastic year, and many, many more!), and bought myself another HAED pattern. Honestly. .I did go through the ones in my stash, and while I eventually want to stitch them, right now, none of them inspired me out of my funk.

But this one is tempting me, and I couldn't resist. It is a new pattern, Luna, by Marjorie Sarnat. My pattern arrived today, and now I have to go about getting fabric and seeing what threads I need. Then gridding and seeing where to fit it into my already crowded rotation.

Hmmmm, I wonder if one of my kitties would let me paint him or her to look like this one. I guess not. I'll have to be happy and love my furry friends, just as they are, and settle for a fanciful stitched cat.

I wish everyone a happy, peaceful and productive Stitching Thursday tomorrow!

I'm In Trouble!

Ok. .now I'm in big trouble! I can't add hours to the day to fit in more stitching time, and I get the newsletter from Michele, with new artists listed.

And the first one that I click on is Marjorie Sarnat, and her KleoKats. We have a whole herd of furry babies, and I love stitching them too, both the realistic and fanciful. .and some of these are now must haves. I don't know whether to be happy or frustrated! lol

And anyone who loves detailed Santas, Dragons & Merlin, is going to love Miles Pinkney. Go take a peek!

And I know that I'm going to have to stitch a N.A. piece for my hubs. .Michele Zarb is extraordinary!

Didn't I read where Diane is thought to have a machine that stitches faster? Methinks I need to either borrow it, or find one of my own! lol

I hope that everyone is staying cool, and has a beautiful evening!

OT: Blog Communication Problems

I have just found out a useful tidbit. When you are trying to bring up a blog and get that annoying box saying that Internet Explorer cannot communicate and will be shutting down, click ok, but instead of giving up, or trying to reload it, simply hit the back arrow up in the left hand corner of your screen, and the blog page will come back and work fine.

Now I've got to sweep up, and try and glue back all of my hairs that I've pulled out over the past few days. The hard part will be finding the proper follicle for each hair. Sigh.

QS Iris, An Update! Finally!!

I'm hoping that Blogger & Internet Explorer will cooperate long enough for me to get this posted! Just when I think that everything is repaired, I get the error message, and the blogs shut down. I can't even read my favorites!!

All of you keep me SO inspired!! I don't have the time right now to comment on everyones individual projects like I'd love to do, but I do look at them, and admire them in my heart! Everyone is doing such beautiful work! It is an honor to be among all of you! The atmosphere is so thick with creativity, it is electrifying!!

So, quickly! I actually was able to sit down this past Thursday and get some stitching done! Not a lot, but at least I am making slow progress. My stitching time has been extremely limited lately, so I treasure the moments that I do have.

And no, you can't see any iris yet, darn it. This is still all of the muted background. The colors are actually lovelier than what this image shows.

Wishing all of you a beautiful and safe weekend!

HAED Mother's Day Sale!

For all of you who don't have enough. . .HAED has started their Mother's Day Sale! 25% off all of their patterns!

For those of you who do have a nice stash. .there are new patterns that you haven't seen yet! lol

QS Iris

It has taken me through 3 changes of fabric, and frogging numerous threads, trying to decide whether to stitch with 2 or 1, but the QS Iris and I have finally arrived at a meeting of the minds in at least getting started.

With all of the wonderful patterns, so far along, I'm almost embarrassed to post this photo, but I'm trying to remember that everyone has to start somewhere. I always feel this way about starting any of my stitching projects! lol It is just worse with HAED designs because it takes so long for an image to appear. .but well worth the wait!

If nothing else, this should prove that I am indeed stitching on my QS Iris! lol

Wishing everyone a beautiful May Day tomorrow! May you receive many May Baskets full of beautiful flowers!

Oooooh, Look At What I Found!

Ok. .I know. .it's not the greatest habit to have, but it is better than eating a whole bag of Cheetos or Oreo's. .

I'm bummed, so I went window shopping at HAED, and look at what I found among the new patterns! I love all of the details! (And it would be SO different from all of the blues of my Iris pattern! lol)

http://www.heavenandearthdesigns.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=4638&zenid=002453e443e74b399b6b8917ffbdc058

Froggie Goes A Courtin'

I'm sure that none of you wants to see a photo of my frogging techniques. I had posted a photo of my meager beginnings of my QS Iris, after many mis-starts, on my personal blog, and was going to duplicate it here, after I had completed a little more on it. There just wasn't that much to see!

Well, now there is even less. I had been debating as to whether to stitch with the two threads, as indicated in the pattern, or a single (I'm using a 20 count). I even did a sample stitching on the corner, and couldn't decide. .one is too lumpy looking, while the other shows the fabric. .what to do, what to do. .well, after getting two completed blocks done, I looked at it this morning, in strong natural light, without any sight aides, REALLY up close and personal, since I am so nearsighted, and with the two threads, it is just totally unacceptable. I'm going to have to live with some fabric peeking through, I guess.

In all of my years of stitching, I have never ever had so much frustration and problems in getting a project just started!! Yeah, I've got a couple of UFO's laying around, but one is almost done. .the other was one that I would take with me to work on while in Dr's offices, and I know that it will get done too, but they were well along before I put them aside. .and still haven't considered them out of my life forever. But my Iris pattern? I'm getting the feeling that the Stitching Goddess is trying to tell me something! lol

So after I get through pulling out all of those threads, I'm going to start with the single thread. If I don't fall into a natural rhythm, and look forward to working on it, then I'm going to set it aside and try another pattern. As my stash basket knows, I've got a lot of HAED to choose from. (sigh)

Every day, I see all of your wonderful patterns coming to life, and I can't even get past the first couple of blocks. .I feel so discouraged right now. .but hopefully, once Mr. Froggie gets through with his tea and crumpets and moves on, I'll feel better. .at least I'll feel like I'm starting anew. .again.

I hope that everyone has a great weekend! At least with one froggie in residence here, you won't have to worry about a visit! lol

New Fabric Arrived!

My replacement fabric for my QS Iris arrived yesterday, and I spent most of the afternoon and evening putting grid lines in it. I'm still not done, but it is going a lot faster and easier than with the Dublin.

I've been reading everyone's entries, and am discovering that I'm not the only one who is having difficulties with seeing the higher count fabrics, so you might want to try what I have just done, and see if it helps.

I bought a 20 count lugana from Silk Weavers, and I LOVE the fabric!! With getting a 20 count, it isn't going to be that much bigger than the 25, but is easier to see.

But that isn't the only change I made. .since the Iris has so many blues and purples in it, I bought a piece in the Silver Mist color. It is the lightest, prettiest silvery blue, that has subtle shading in it. I figure that it is going to be completely covered in threads anyway, but, if I decide to do 1 over 1, there may be little peeks of fabric, and this color will look like a lovely background instead of the white glaring through. .and, the biggie, which is why I really ordered it in this lightest of light colors. . . .I can see the weave of the fabric better!!

Working under my bright Ott light, the white was creating such a glare, that was making it hard to focus on the weave, and it was hurting my eyes, causing me a headache. (although I didn't know it at the time) Take away the Ott light, and it was harder to see the weave, so that wasn't the answer.

It is hard to believe that just that slightest of color shift can make a difference, but it sure did for me! Like I said, I've been working on it for hours at a time, and the gridding is singing along! I think that from now on, whenever I am stitching something in the higher counts, no matter if the fabric shows or not, I'm going to buy tinted pieces that coordinate with the pattern.

This is one experiment that has turned out very well!

On a more humorous note, I was looking at the QS Iris pattern, and discovered that the very first stitch in the very first block, is a confetti stitch! Aaaack!!! I'm off to a roaring start! lol

I hope that everyone had a beautiful weekend, and a great start to a great week!!

Good Morning, Everyone!!

I was catching up on HAED's Blog, and saw that they are working on some Christmas Stocking designs, and will be releasing the patterns in May/June! My whole family is really big on stockings, and each one of us has several. .not that we expect them to all be filled, even though we are all exceptionally good, all year long! lol We just like so many different designs, and those of us that stitch, love making them. And they add instant holiday spirit when they are hung! So no doubt, I'll be adding some to my growing HAED stash.

I also want to take this opportunity to tell everyone what a beautiful job they are doing on their projects. Once again, I've gotten behind on leaving individual comments on each one's entry, but I have looked and studied all of the photos, and continue to be in awe, and inspired by each one's stitching. I've never been in the company of so many talented people before! It makes me almost afraid to show mine, once I get going on it again.

Everyone have a super, super, day! Oooh!! Tomorrow is stitching day again! Where oh where is my fabric? I'm keeping my fingers crossed. .the mailman hasn't been here yet today.

Hugs to everyone!!

A Winner Already!

Michele just posted that they have a winner already, and that it is the fastest that anyone has ever found the bunny! Was it one of us here? Is there a Kathy Wilson among us?

Even though I wasn't looking for the bunny, I discovered that there are a lot of new patterns, so guess who added a few more to her wish list! lol And doesn't the sale make it nice and convenient. I'm my own worst enemy sometimes! lol

HAED Contest & Sale! ~ A BIGGIE!!

I don't know how many of you get the newsletter from HAED, but they are launching their 25% off sale starting today at noon CST, and running through the 14th.

AND, they are having a contest, with the winner getting 12 charts of their (the winner's) choice, (one a month) for being the first to find their bunny in one of the charts. Here are the details as stated in Michele's e-mail:


Easter Contest - Easter Bunny Hunt
As promised we will also be running a Easter contest in which you will need to find this little bunny (cruelty free logo) and the first person to email the name of the chart that the bunny is found on, the lucky winner will receive a year's worth of free charts. That person will be entitled to make a selection each month and have that chart sent to them via email.

This is one of the most challenging and anticipated contests that we run each year and the chart with the bunny image is live now so go hunting and have fun!Contest details:You will need to find the bunny on the image of a chart that we offer, most people do this by opening a chart that they feel the bunny would be common for and then look closely and keep hunting. Remember, we are tricky so look very closely and this can take some time so please be patient and we wish you the best of luck.


I feel rather greedy even looking since I just won a pattern from Michele, and lets face it, it will probably take me a year to finish it! lol I did go on the site, and there are over 100 people on there right now, no doubt searching! I hope that someone from our little group here is the winner!! Let us know if you win!!

Hugs & Good Luck!

Decisions, Decisions

Life here has been SO hectic lately, sometimes I didn't think that I was going to have any computer time, ever again! But, for better or worse, here I am! lol

For you to truly understand my dilemmas that I had this week, you need to know that decision making among things that I like, is almost torture for me. I am a Virgo/Libra cusp person, with her Moon & Rising signs in Libra, so it is natural intent to continually try to find balance and harmony, and maintain it. That is not always an easy task. It also makes it extremely hard to make decisions when the choices are all good. This past week, I had three such occurrences. But happily, now that I've made them, I feel VERY good and content, so they were right for me! whew!! lol

When I logged on here, on the evening of March 31st, it was with intent to view all of the latest updates. My mind wasn't even on the drawing, so to say that I was stunned to see my name flashing in neon lights at me, is an understatement! I read, and re-read, then looked at the membership list to see if there was more than one Suzie! lol I know that there are some other Sue's, but didn't know if anyone else went by my nickname. I never win anything, but sure made up for it this time! I was so excited, I hardly got any sleep that night. This is a very big deal to me! lol

I've been in contact with Michele several times, and I let her know my choice of pattern. It was not an easy decision. My HAED wish list is as long as my arm, so how do you pick and choose. I went with logic, since my emotions were absolutely useless, jumping from pattern to pattern, with gleaming high hopes enticing me to pick that one over all of the others. My train of thought went something like this. .I already have several patterns of Fantasy, Santas, Winter & Folk Art, and while there are a good number of each of those still waiting for me to purchase, I didn't have a scenic.

And one scenic jumped out at me, the first time that I ever entered the HAED website. It features a Victorian home, that I love so much, nestled by the sea, with a Tall Ship, which I also love, coming home under full sail, trying to beat the storm. You have the illusion that just out of the frame, there is a huge, old fashioned garden, and beyond that woods provide a barrier to the hectic outside world. SO peaceful, yet with a hint of excitement of the approaching turbulence. So that is what I requested from Michele. And now, may I present for your viewing pleasure, Seaside Victorian.

On the practical note, after living most of my life alongside a big body of water, I know that no one should build this close to the water, but I'm not letting that little tidbit get in the way of my romantic setting. lol

So after sending my choice off to Michele, I'm breathing a big sigh of relief, very happy in my choice. No regrets popping up in my face. No second thoughts niggling at me. I'm at peace and all is right with the world. I can sit back and savor the anticipation of my pattern arriving.

My reverie lasted until my next e-mail from Michele. She is presenting me with my choice of needle threaders!! Aaaack! More decision making of beautiful things! What torture! lol

After going back and forth a number of times, trying to compare the aesthetics of each one, I realized that there were things about each one that I loved, and none that I disliked! So, I did what every intelligent, well -trained- in- executive- decisions person would do. I made out little slips of paper with numbers on them, and had my dear hubby pull out one from a hat! lol

The Fates chose #1 for me, which I realize, suits me just fine! It looks rather old fashioned to me, but with a modern interpretation, which is like everything else in my home. Antiques, mixed with quirky, personal touches.

Michele has informed me that my pattern and my needle threader are coming from two separate locations, so I can happily anticipate the mail arrival twice! What fun!!!

Thursday morning, the day that I had set aside for finally working on my Iris QS, found me sitting in the waiting room of our car dealership, getting 4 new tires put on the car. I had put my pattern, fabric & floss into my bag, along with another project on 18 count, just in case the lighting was too bad, even with my little clamp on light. Well, it was terrible. More in tune for watching their large screen TV.

But I did manage to fumble through a little stitching on my other project. Then we had multiple errands to run, since we were out, and I didn't get back home until late afternoon. Finally, after making dinner, etc. I sat down to work on my Irises, only to face the fact that I'm not having fun with the fabric. (Cindy, I admire your fortitude!). Gridding usually goes very smoothly for me, but didn't with the Dublin linen. And if it isn't going to be fun to stitch, then I know that I'll keep finding reasons not to work on it. SO, with wild abandon, I began pulling out those gridlines, keeping them in a baggie for future use. As for the fabric? Well, maybe it will be good for stitching ornies. I then came in here and ordered myself some new fabric, and will begin anew. And I immediately felt better, so it was the right decision. And, I gave myself another reason to watch the mailbox! lol

I want to thank everyone for their good wishes for my win. I know how much each of you were hoping that their name would be picked. I hope that I'm not speaking out of place here, but I've asked Cindy to discuss with Wendy, the possibility of me providing a surprise for one of their drawings, whenever they can work it into their schedule. It felt SO good and uplifting to win this prize, I'd like to pass along that euphoria to someone else.

And a BIG thanks once again, to Cindy & Wendy for not only starting this group blog, but for offering a drawing, and to Michele, for her generous and thoughtful gifts!! This is the kind of win that will keep on giving for a long, long time!

BIG Hugs to you all!!

Suz

APRIL GIVEAWAY WINNER!!!!

CONGRATULATIONS TO SUZIE!!! You are the winner of our first giveaway!!
Michele of Heaven and Earth is giving you a chart of your choice and a needle threader she has created especially for our winner! ~~HAPPY DANCING WITH YOU!!~~

I listed all commentors in Random.org (members only) I'm showing you how the top 10 came out! But only #1 won....sorry:(

RANDOM.ORG
70 names (members only)

1. Suzie
2. Joke
3. Diana
4. Valerie
5. Tetcha
6. Deborah
7. Billie
8. Susan
9. Laura
10. Juls

Suzie, please email me and I'll give you Michele's email address...unless you have it. We're so excited for you!!! Wow, you other ladies were this( ) close!!

I'm posting now because it is April 1st in parts of the world already. Wendy and I have decided there will be no set time since our time zones are all over the place....and because **NOTE: You've probably already heard this on the news, but there is a warning of a very large PC Worm Virus suppose to hit millions of computers tomorrow and there is nothing anyone can do to stop it??!! We hope it's not true...but just in case....we hope none of you are affected.**

We thank all of you who participated and hope we have you all join us again for the May drawing. We will post 2-3 weeks before drawing date. Who knows what we're giving away this time!!
Have a wonderful week! and keep stitching cause your progress pics make our hearts smile!!

Cindy F. and Wendy

Retired Pattern on eBay

If anyone is interested, there is a retired HAED pattern listed on eBay right now, with the auction ending tomorrow. So if you have been looking for, or fall in love once you see the "Fall of Kings", then you have better snatch it up! lol

I hope that everyone is having a wonderful weekend!

New Blog Alert!

Good Evening!

This is not to be considered an Enabler Alert in any way. I just thought that you all might be interested to learn that Tracy, at Silkweavers Fabrics has started her blog, and has some interesting entries on how to care for their fabrics. You can go take a peek here:
http://www.counted-cross-stitch.com/ Everyone have a beautiful evening!!

Happy Mothering Day!

I wanted to wish all of our friends in the UK, a Happy Mothering Day! I realize that it is almost over for you, but I couldn't let the day go by without sending you thoughts and good wishes for a day filled with love and laughter! I hope that your loved ones made you feel as special as you truly are! Hugs and love are being sent your way, over the Atlantic!

Grid Line

Good Morning!

I'm getting ready to go look at everyone's progress, but first, I'd like to share a reassurance to anyone who is concerned about how easy the gridwork is to remove when you are ready to do so.

A few minutes ago, I walked through the dining room, and one of our cats, Ripley (maybe I should change his name), is playing with his cat toys in the sunlight on the floor, and I'm thinking "Awwww, isn't that cute. .", then realized when the light hit it right, that he was playing with a piece of the red fish line that I use for gridding. Well, not wanting him to swallow one of the little pieces, that I'm so careful to dispose of, I bend down to distract him with another toy, while taking it away from him. .I KNOW that you all know where I'm going with this! lol And as I am tugging this piece of line, it is getting longer and longer! I'm rapidly thinking that he somehow got a hold of the spool, and unwound it, but it has a secure cover on it, and I don't see it in the immediate vacinity. THEN, Ms. Slow On The Uptake, here, realizes that she left her projects on the table last night, in hopes of getting in a few gridlines and stitching throughout the day.

With much dread for what I'm going to find, I look on the table, and to my great relief, don't see a lot disturbed, thankfully, but when I picked up my linen, it is missing a number of strands of fish line that I had already painstakingly woven through the fabric, and if that wasn't enough, he also managed to pull one out of my other project, that has floss already sewn in that area! How he managed that, with the edges taped, I don't know, except I found evidence of tiny teeth marks on the tape. Thankfully, he didn't snag any of the floss though, I think, from the kitty hair that I'm finding on the fabrics, that he preferred to anchor them down, by sitting on them, while he worked away on the ends sticking out.

So, lesson to me, to make sure I put everything away between stitching times. And, now we all know exactly how easy it is to remove those grid lines! And if you are having any trouble with yours, Ripley has informed me that for the small price of a can of tuna in water (no oil, please) and a new catnip toy, he will gladly remove them for you!

What is it about any art form and cats? No matter what I am doing, they HAVE to be right there, watching every step. I don't know if they are studying so that in their next life, they will be an accomplished craftsperson from the moment they are born, or if they are watching to make sure that I'm doing it correctly! lol

Everyone have a great day!!

P.S. I was sitting there, re-gridding, when a thought zoomed into my head. .I wonder if he could learn to selectively frog for me, whenever I need it! Maybe I should turn his interest and talents for extracting to good use!

It probably wouldn't work though. .he only tends to do things when he feels like it, or otherwise feels that there is some benefit in there for him. And knowing what a soft touch I am, he'll want more than some tuna & catnip! lol It was a good thought, anyway.

Progress Update & A Question

Good Evening!

I hope that everyone has enjoyed a beautiful stitching day! I myself, am still in the "prep" mode, although I did get some more accomplished today.

We had an appointment this afternoon to get the car serviced, combined with some errand running afterward, so I took my floss and my bobbins, and I sat there and wound, while watching their large screen TV. I also attracted a bit of an audience, with not only other customers, but car salesmen and mechanics wandering through, wanting to know what I was doing, and why. Now I'm supposed to take my stitching back in so they can see my progress!!

And, at 5 a.m. this morning, to give myself a break from the floss winding, I started on the other prep that I do. .gridding. And after a few rows, with bleary eyes, I was ready to start bobbin winding again! And when I glance over at my 18 count, WIP, it seems gigantic!

I'm not going to give up on the 25 count, but what is bothering me, is the softness and fluidity of the Dublin Linen that was recommended to me for my Iris pattern. I've never cross stitched on something so soft before. I'm still going to try it. .I want to try expanding my stitching horizons, but if I'm not enjoying it, I want to know my alternatives, ahead of time.

So, I'm asking this. .what is your favorite fabric to stitch a HAED pattern on? I know that the results on the group poll show that evenweave is the clear leader so far, but what one(s), specifically, do you like the best?

I also want to take the opportunity here, to express how MUCH I'm enjoying sharing every one's progress on their respective stitching projects!

I had to be away for several days, and then that precisely placed lightning bolt took my on-line connections away from me for a few more days, and in that time, this group mushroomed!!! I've tried leaving comments on every one's entry, but found that I was losing ground every time I took a short break! You are all incredible!

So, I'm going to take the easy way out, by thanking everyone for sharing their updates! I've seen one gorgeous stitching image, after another, and I'd be hard pressed to name my favorite! The one that I love the most, is the one that I am currently studying! You are all SO inspirational, and SO talented, I am in awe of even being a small part of this group!

My personal goal this week, is to temporarily take a little more stitching time away from my other project, which I'm loving, to get all of my prep work done for my Irises, so that by this time next week, I'll have some actual stitching to post! One can dream!!

Now I'm going to go back and do some more gridding & floss winding. .it isn't midnight yet!!

Hugs to you all!