February Ornament SAL

If you haven't figured out by now, I love ornaments.  I haven't put my own tree up in a few years but I keep stitching ornaments and I give most of them away.  Here's the ornaments I've stitched up since last month's report.

Progress on my latest ornament

Dove of Birds

JBW Designs

  Merry Christmas Deer

Little Stitcher Freebie

 'Tis REd

La-D-Da

I also did the finishing on this one

Merry Little Christmas

Drawn Thread

February TUSAL & More

Its TUSAL time, sorry no artistic photography this month, just a jar, that's all!  You can seem some of the reds and greens from my smalls stitching the last few days.

I've had a couple of finishes this weekend and I've done a wee bit of finishing too.

 'Tis Red

La-D-Da

2010 Just Cross Stitch Ornament Issue

Stitched on 30ct Coconut Macaroon Linen

Stitched with Caron Waterlillies Emerald

Red Threads Letter C

Rosewood Manor

Used the same fabric/threads as above since I had a little fabric left after the ornament.  I stitched and finished this on Saturday

 Merry Christmas Deer

c2012 Little Stitcher Freebie

Stitched on 32ct Dirty Linen Belfast

Stitched with Carrie's Creation Colonial Red & DMC

 I also whipped up a back for this ornament

 I finally did the finishing on this little Drawn Thread Freebie I recently stitched

How do you store your ornaments and small pieces awaiting finishing?  I used to store mine in either a big ziplock or a large zipper mesh bag.  A couple of my quilting friends use scrapbooking boxes to keep their blocks in while piecing their quilts.  I thought well, they're 12x12 that seems ideal for my ornaments/smalls.  This past week all storage was 40% off at Michaels so I thought why not, and picked two up.  I'm quite pleased with them.

Crosses And Culture With A Little TUSAL On The Side

NAC Orchestra

The Canal and the Chateau Laurier were very pretty that night

Day 10's start was a brief one because it was also an evening filled with culture!  I had barely an hour's worth of stitching time on Thursday night before I was meeting my parents for dinner and off to the NAC (National Arts Center) for an evening of Legendary Russians with the Orchestra.  We're very lucky to have things like the NAC in our backyard.

Tis' Red (well in this case Green) by La-D-Da from the 2010 JCS Ornament Issue

I would of had more done on my start, but I really didn't like the colour I initially picked.  So I cut away the extra fabric and started over with something that didn't change colours as much!  Once again its another ornament, I'm finding on the week nights these are quick and easy to start.  Also with having large projects on the go like : The Accolade, The Big Red, Cirque des Circles and ABC Christmas Sampler I really don't want to start anything else of size.

Its also time for the first TUSAL of the year.  There are a great assortment of threads in here from all of my Crazy Starts!  I even cleaned my vase for you this time (it looked pretty scuzzy on my first post of the year).

Ornamentification, Art Deco & More

My holidays are finally here!  No work for two weeks, and this year I feel like I have really earned my time off.  Life has been very busy for me (as usual), this last week even more so.  I'm trying to remember if I even found any time to stitch at all?  This past week I only got home before 9PM twice, and that's a long day when you leave the house at 7AM.  I have a fairly low-key Christmas Break planned and I've been looking forward to focusing on things like blogging a little more, stitching a lot, and focusing on ME!  Eating properly and being active in some form each day.  I've got some trips planned into town so I can get to the gym, but barring that I have a treadmill in the basement.  After Tuesday, Taekwon-Do will be on holiday as well until January 4th, so it'll be up to me to find a way to keep active.  Sigh, life was so much easier when I was content to sit on my behind, stitch, and be over 200 lbs.

Sadly this year I did not get enough ornaments finished up to give them out to all the people I like to gift them to at work.  Only the secretaries got their stockings this year.  Normally I give ornaments to the secretaries, administration and a few of my favourite people at the school.  I decided this morning when I got (too early IMHO) after I went to Weight Watchers and after I ran 3km in my basement, that I needed to put my nose to the grindstone and get ALL my ornaments finished.  So I was in for a serious ornamentification session today!  Sadly they're still not all done and I spent maybe about 5 hours working on it.  Instead of doing each ornament individually from start to finish I did each step for every ornament at once!  So I have more ornaments waiting in my craft room with just cord to put on them.  They can wait for Sunday, but they will get done!

Freebie from the Alchemist's Study blog

Love by R&P

Snow Gazing by Paw Printings -- remind you of someone?

'Tis Red by La-D-Da

I was rushed to get this one done for my WW leader this AM so its not my best finishing

I thought I'd also share where Art Deco stands as of today with you, I'm hoping to finish the Air block while on holidays.  So here's where I'm starting, let's see how far I get in two weeks. 

The Christmas Cards have started to arrive in the mail.  I must admit I feel guilty that I don't send them out anymore!  What's my excuse, I just don't have the time to do them!  Is that really a good excuse, that I don't have the time to write a special message for each of my friends and family.  Not really.  I'll try again next year!  I got a lovely surprise from my good blog-friend-and-met-in-real-life Judy!  She not only sent me a lovely card but these lovely skeins of floss that will get put to good use, and some gourmet hot chocolate!

Speaking of stitchy supplies, the other week I made a run for the border!  Actually I went down to Ogdensburg NY to pick up a parcel I had delivered to the UPS store there.  Well, JoAnne's happens to be right next door!  These wonderful Ginghers came home with me!  At 50% off too!

I hope all of you take a little time to breathe, relax and enjoy this week as we count down the days to Christmas.  I find these last days people tend to get a little crazy, we all need to put life into perspective and realize that we need to find our patience.  That "getting it all done" and being rude and getting aggravated just take the joy out of the season.  Share a smile and be understanding it goes a long way!  If it dosen't get noticed just feel good about yourself, that you are the better person.

Rebbecca's Stitchy Weekend Report

Sorry its taken me a little longer than expected to give you my report.  I've been down and out for the last 24 hours with a migraine.

Now onto the good stuff!

Friday night after work Christin and I hopped into my car and made the drive down to Rebecca's place just outside of Kingston.  Bonnie had beaten us there, but we were taking our time, stopping for dinner and to buy a new pair of shoes (me).  Rebecca's Mom Sylvia was also staying for the weekend, the four of us stitched until almost midnight Friday night.

Saturday was such a nice sunny day (for the first time in ages) that before the bulk of the stitchers arrived, I got my gear on and went for a nice 10K run.  It was a great run, beautiful country roads, and perfect temperatures!

Saturday was the main get together for the weekend.  We were joined by Trista, who was there for such a short while that I didn't get a chance to take her picture.  Of course Rebbecca and well, her picture didn't really turn out so I don't have one to share of her.  In attendance were a lot of the usual suspects!

Bonnie, she spent most of the day working on Paradigm Lost

So did Christin

Kathy Happy Danced with a San man Design

Beatrice had the same Happy Dance!

Sylvia worked on a variety of projects, but I was most fascinated with the Bunka piece she was working on

Barb was stitching up a storm with some ornaments

Beth joined us for the afternoon and was working on a gorgeous piece I don't know the designer!

On Saturday I finished up the Fire block on Art Deco Spirits

Now at the half way point!

I do also have some small happy dances to share with you!

'Tis Red

c2010 La-D-Da

2010 Just Cross Stitch Ornament Issue

Stitched with DMD 115

Stitched on mystery linen, it actually looks green

Needle Wizard Needlecase - class piece

c2008 Dragon Dreams - Creativ Festival

Stitched with : DMC, Caron Waterlillies, #4 braid

Stitched on : 28ct Mushroom Jazlyn

Dreary Sundays Are Great Stitching Days

After such a long, busy day yesterday (I was home for all of 30 minutes between 9am and 11:30PM) it was nice to be "stuck" in the house by rain and thunderstorms.  This way I wasn't tempted to do anything else but watch TV (Christin has lent me all the seasons of Stargate SG1 to watch) and stitch.

'Tis Green

c2010 La-D-Da Just Cross Stitch Ornament Preview Issue

Stitched on 32ct Queen Ann's Lace Joblean

Stitched with Caron Waterlillies Winter Wheat

I started out by finishing "Tis Green" for a second time.  This time its not an ornament but a gift for someone special.  I just have to stop procrastinating and get the finishing done before the week is out!  I also have a few other things I need to get done before the annual Knowledge and Needles Open House on Saturday the 21st.  I look forward to seeing so many of my stitching friends that day!

\

After finishing "Tis Green" I really wanted to get back to one of my bigger projects like "The Accolade" or "Art Deco Spirits" but I was disciplined and made myself start my August ornament since "Tis Green mark 1" was my July ornament.  This is by an Italian designer, part of a series, I stitched the first one back in June.

Another Small Finish

As I've mentioned in past entries this year, my desire is to finish the things I have started!  Projects that are sitting in my stitching basket, some for a very long time!

First up my small finish!  I can't remember when I started this, I know it was sometime this year.  For some reason with this piece I just kept dragging my feet!  Well I buckled down this week and got it finished!

Welcome Freebie

c Prarie Schooler

Stitched over one on 32ct Queen Ann's Lace Joblean

Stitched with DMC

So what am I working on next?  I liked 'Tis Green so much... I started it again!  This time in a different shade of Caron Waterlillies, Winter Wheat.

Not only have I had the desire to stitch 'Tis Green again, I've wanted to work on a piece I started back in 2006.  I worked on this piece very briefly when I started it, but lately I've been getting the urge to do more over one!  This is The Accolade a design from Gitta's.  I'm stitching it one over one on 25ct lugana.  Doesn't look like much does it?

Some Smaller Finishes & Goals

Since coming home, an finishing up Celestial Dragon I have worked on a few smaller things.  I admit its been nice to work on some smaller, more manageable and quickly finished pieces!

First up I stitched my ornament from July which I never got to... Celestial Dragon just took too long!

'Tis Green

c2010 La-D-Da Just Cross Stitch Ornament Preview Issue

Stitched on 32ct Queen Ann's Lace Joblean

Stitched with Caron Waterlillies Royal Jewels

(picture could be better)

Next I started this on Saturday and finished it just before bed last night.  Its my friend Beatrice's Mirabilia RR that she's sending out amongst her friends.

Christmas Elegance

c2004 Mirablia

Stitched with DMC & Mill Hill Beads

Beatrice's RR To Date

July Goals - Review
Finish Celestial Dragon - Just in the nick of time!

Stitch an Ornament - Celestial Dragon monopolized all my time
Start Beatrice's RR - See above
Start 2 Smalls - See above

August Goals
Stitch 2 Ornaments
Stitch Beatrice's RR
Work on Art Deco Spirits

A Spring-y Small

Happy Easter to all my blog readers!

It was another gorgeous day here in the Ottawa Valley, so Todd and I took full advantage of that going for a 9k walk on the Trans-Canada Trail.  We're very lucky in that its not too far from our home (just a 5 minute drive), but its somethign we don't take advantage of.  Today we did, and walked one section of the trail 4.5k in one direction then 4.5k back, it was fantastic 2 hours in the great outdoors!

Here are a few shots from our walk

a mallard and his mate

another great old barn

Last night I started this little freebie and finished it up today.  I was going to finish it as a biscornu, but when I matched up the back to the front... guess what I hadn't stitched the border for the backing big enogh.  Too tired to try again, I pulled out the sewing machine and made up this little pillow, filled with crushed walnut shells.

Dragonfly Free-bee
cLa-D-Da
Stitched on : 32ct Queen Ann's Lace Joblean
Stitched with : DMC