Halloween Finish

Firstly I have a confession to make - we do not celebrate Halloween in South Africa! But I do love it! This is my first Halloween piece and I absolutely loved stitching it! The chart is available as a free download on Maryse's blog.

I stitched it on Floba using some of the recommended DMC threads. I used Chameleon Threads Baked Earth for the brickwork on the mansion - I love how it turned out! The roof is House of Embroidery's Winter. The lettering is done in Weeks Dye Works Trick or Treat - very appropriate!
I finished it as a flatfold so that it can be displayed for the next couple of weeks. There is a great flatfold tutorial on Vonna's tutorial blog. Thanks for the great tutorial Vonna!

I was fortunate enough to have some fabric for the backing - it is a Timeless Treasures Fabric and tones in perfectly.

Have a great week with lots of stitching!

Start of a long weekend!

It sure has been a short week! Tomorrow is a public holiday and, like many, many other people, I'm taking Friday off! That means a four day weekend - how lucky can you get :) I hope it is going to provide lots of stitching and relaxing time.

I have been working on Mary Wigham again - I'm really enjoying it again after a few weeks break!
My aim for now is to complete all the sides - only one to go :) After that I will decide if I want to try to complete the piece, or if it needs another 'rest'.

I am also still working on Scheherazade, but being a Heaven and Earth design, there isn't much progress to show yet. The curious thing is that I am enjoying it so much, even though it is still just a big patch of colour!

Until next time, Happy Stitching!

Christmas Ornament Finish

Another weekend almost gone! At least I have a small finish to show. This is Country Cottage Needleworks Winter's Eve Christmas ornament from the 2006 JCS Christmas Ornament Issue.
I stitched it in DMC stranded cotton on self-dyed 28ct fabric. The moon is stitched in DMC Precious metal Effects E677 - I love this colour - it is a blend of gold and silver.
I stitched the little sheep in Rainbow Gallery White Wisper thread to give him a fluffy look :)

I worked a little bit on Scheherazade - not that you can see much difference yet! I am still enjoying it very much, even though I can't see a picture developing at this stage.

We had a lovely Spring day here yesterday, but today it is back to Winter! It is as wet as can be with persistent rain.

Only grey skies to be seen!

Enjoy the rest of the weekend and Happy Stitching!

A New Start!

Hello from a cold and wet Cape Town - it is back to Winter here! Low temperatures and rain predicted for the rest of the week - like I always say - great stitching weather!

I couldn't resist any longer and started Scheherazade from Heaven and Earth Designs a few days ago. It certainly doesn't look like much now and probably won't for a long time :) I started at the bottom in the middle, so I'm making my way up to her gorgeous dress.
I am stitching it 2 over 2 on a 28ct evenweave, which it much easier for me to see and should make it a more enjoyable stitch. My boyfriend was so fascinated with the size of the fabric that he took a picture of me holding it! To my defence - I left very large borders and I'm not very tall, so it's really not THAT bad :) (I'm thinking of it like stitching a portrait, so it is allowed to be big.)

I am enjoying working on it very much, even though it is just random stitching at this stage. I will definitely alternate this project with WIPs and ornaments so that I can see progress on something!

Until next time, happy stitching!

A Finish and a RAK

I finished Spot of Winter by The Drawn Thread this weekend - it was such a fun stitch! I always feel like doing some Christmas stitching at this time of year and with it's snowman, robins and trees it's Christmassy enough for me! I still have to make it into a little cushion - I have the same frosty blue linen for the backing. I will probably stitch a few more Christmas ornaments over the next few months.

I was lucky enough to receive a RAK from Daniela last week! She knows that I love the Hummel designs, so she sent me this lovely chart for my "collection". I think it is out of print - I have never seen it before. Thank you Daniela!

I am seriously considering a new start! I have a few Heaven and Earth Designs charts in my stash. I purchased this one earlier this year - her name is Scheherazade by Jonathon Earl Bowser and she is absolutely GORGEOUS! I have another one of this artists "goddess" charts which I purchased a few years ago and I think the time has come to start one of them :)

I don't know when I will ever finish Mary Wigham - she took priority over all other stitching (and starts) earlier this year, but now the stash is calling!

Enjoy the rest of the week and happy stitching!