Stitching, Gifts and Stash

Hello dear stitching friends from a hot, hot Cape Town!  I have stitched and finished another Christmas ornament, making it two ornaments this month!  This cute design is by The Prairie Schooler and is featured in the November 2009 issue of The Gift of Stitching Magazine.  I absolutely love Prairie Schooler designs!

 He is stitched on 28 ct evenweave in DMC threads and finished as a mounted hanging ornament.

I have also been stitching on the Shores of Hawk Run Hollow by Carriage House Samplings - it is one of my stitching goals this year to complete at least a few of the blocks on this piece.  That whale is a big fellow and it is taking a long time to fill in the sea background.  I am stitching it on 32 ct Harvest Beige Minster Linen in DMC threads.  (The colour of the fabric isn't completely accurate on the photo - it is actually a very rich colour and the threads look great on it.)

I have also been inspired to work on Train of Dreams by Heaven and Earth Designs.  It is wonderful to see this beautiful picture emerge, but there is so much more stitching to do!

Last week I went to my favourite quilt shop and bought some fabrics, mainly for finishing, but who knows what use I might find for them!

Carol had her birthday earlier this month, so I sent her a little gift:

Her favourite colour is blue - easy for me to remember, since my favourite colour is also blue - so I put a 'blueish' gift together, including a pinkeep, scissors fob, ribbon, thread, fabrics and a chocolate.

The pinkeep is stitched in House of  Embroidery stranded cotton in a shade called Iris.  The design is taken from Elizabethan Cross Stitch by Barbara Hammet - it is one of my favourite stitching books of all time!

I was also so excited to receive this lovely Valentine's gift from dear Annie last week.  Now I have another scissors to add to my collection - it even came complete with its own pouch!  I also love that beautiful Valentine's coaster! Thank you for the wonderful surprise Annie!

That's about all for now - until next time, Happy Stitching!

Michelle

Stitching Goals and Gifts Sent and Received

Can you believe that we are already ten days into the new year?  This year, for the first time I have decided to set some (hopefully obtainable!) stitching goals for myself.  The first goal being to stitch more Christmas ornaments - at least one a month.  Here is my ornament for January:

It is a 'Treasure Christmas Pincushion' by MTV Designs and was featured in the November 2008 issue of The Gift of Stitching Magazine.

It is stitched on 28 count evenweave fabric in DMC stranded cotton and House of Embroidery threads and trimmed with gold seed beads.  What a fun stitch!

Some of my other stitching goals include finishing at least a few blocks on my Shores of Hawk Run Hollow start and to completely finish the huge Historic Countries Sampler from The Gift of Stitching Magazine.  I am also going to try to restrict my amount of new starts until a few WIPs are done.  That being said - there are some new starts in the pipeline, but I will tell you more next time!

I sent out a few gifts to some blogging friends over the Holiday season and am happy to report that all gifts were received in good order.  This little package went to Edit - I love the little Winter Wonderland cushion and might even make one for myself  this year!

This package went to Annie - I am definitely enjoying pincushion finishes at the moment!

This gift went to Babs, along with an extra scissors fob for her mom.  I was lucky enough to receive some of the lovely Belgian Lace that her mom makes in a giveaway some time ago.

Here is a close up of the hand made gift goodies:

I also sent a gift to Lee in Brazil:

Here is a closeup of some of the contents of the package.  Lee collects thimbles and I found this cute little fellow in a local antique store - perfect for a Christmas package!  I made the fob, biscornu and scissors/needle book for her - all in pink!

I was also lucky enough to receive a lovely Christmas package from Edit.  I absolutely love the fabrics and can't wait to use them for some finishings!   I also love the ornament - it was on my 'to do' list and now I have one.  Thank you for the great gift Edit!

That is it for now!

Until next time - Happy Stitching!

Michelle

More Christmas Ornament Stitching!

I know it is very soon after Christmas, but I felt inspired to do more Christmas ornament stitching after seeing all the lovely pieces and ornament trees on so many blogs!  I purchased a few designs from Atelier Soed Idee earlier this year and Simone was kind enough to send me this chart of 'Christmas Robin' as a Christmas card. When I saw the picture I just knew I had to stitch it - here is the stitched (and finished) piece:

It is stitched on self-dyed evenweave fabric in DMC threads and finished as a hanging pillow ornament.  It was such a fun stitch - thank you Simone!

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and spent a lot of time with their families.  A little bit early, but I would like to wish you all a very Happy and Prosperous New Year!  Thank you for taking the time to visit my blog in 2011 - I hope to be a more frequent blogger in 2012 :)

Until next time - Happy Stitching!

Michelle

Merry Christmas!

Can you believe that it is almost Christmas?  All my Christmas stitching (and finishing) is done for the year and on display.  Here is an update:

 I stitched 'Scandinavian Christmas' by Atelier Soed Idee on self dyed 28ct evenweave in the recommended DMC stranded cotton.  I finished it as a long pillow and I love how it turned out.  I must say - I really love this design!

 This little cutie is a freebie that can be found at Matrioshka Biscornu and was a lovely quick stitch.  I also added some beads to trim the tree and finished it as a little pocket pillow.

 This winter sheep was already stitched and has been finished as a hanging ornament.

 Here is the reverse - I love this sweet Christmas fabric.

 Here is another stitched piece that needed finishing:

 'Red House in Winter' is also finished as a hanging ornament and backed with poinsettia Christmas fabric.

 I would like to wish everyone a Very Merry Festive Season!  May it be a joyful, peaceful time filled with family and maybe even some stitching!

Merry Christmas!

Some Christmas Finishes!

It is finally December and the weather and the Christmas spirit is heating up here in Cape Town!  I have some Christmas stitching and finishing to share.

I really enjoyed stitching this LHN ornament from this year's Just Cross Stitch Ornament Issue.  It is called 'Fresh Fallen Snow' and is stitched on self-dyed fabric in DMC threads and finished as a hanging ornament, backed with red fabric.

I stitched this cute little Tra la la piece earlier this year and finally did the finishing.  It is stitched on self-dyed fabric in DMC and House of Embroidery stranded cotton.  It is also finished as a hanging ornament and is backed with green marble fabric.

I'm working on a lovely piece by Atelier Soed Idee - it is called 'Scandinavian Christmas' and I'm stitching it on self-dyed fabric in the recommended DMC colours.  The suggested finish is a Christmas card holder, but I think I might finish it as a pillow.

That is all for now - I'm off to visit some blogs :)  

Until next time - Happy Stitching!

Michelle

Christmas Ornament Finish

Here it is - my first Christmas ornament finish for this year!  It is a freebie and can be found at Gazette94.  The moment I saw this chart I just new I had to stitch it :)  It is stitched on 20 count Pewter Lugana in DMC and House of Embroidery Threads and finished off with a few crystals.  

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Here it is pictured on the fabric I used on the reverse side of the ornament - I just love the 'old world' snowmen.

I have already started stitching my next ornament and hope to have it finished very soon - it is one of the very popular designs from this year's Just Cross Stitch Ornament Edition.

Lexi, our puppy was kind enough to 'pose' for a photo today.  I can't believe she will be eight months old next week!

That's it for today - have a great week and Happy Stitching!
Michelle

I'm Back - With Some Finishes!

 Hallo dear stitching friends!  After a long absence I'm back in blogland again - I even have some finishes to share!  I  have been stitching some of Thea Dueck of The Victoria Sampler's beautiful Christmas pieces.  This is called 'Heirloom Christmas Sampler' and contains cross stitching, specialty stitches, beading and hemstitching.  I had the chart in my stash for years (and even started the backstitching on the tree a few years ago) and the time finally came to stitch it!

 I really enjoyed stitching this piece and just love all the detail.  It is stitched on 28ct cream Quaker Cloth in DMC stranded cotton and Perles, as well as some overdyed floss.

 Here is a pic of the entire piece - it is a bit difficult to photograph, since it is so long.

 Some close ups - I loved 'decorating' the tree :)

 This finish is called 'White Christmas' and is also by Thea Dueck.  This chart was also in my stash for years!  It is stitched on white 28ct Quaker Cloth in DMC stranded cotton, Perles and silver petite treasure braid by the Rainbow Gallery.  This piece also has cross stitching, specialty stitches,hemstitching and beading.  

Stitching these samplers inspired me to start a new Hardanger piece.  It is a runner and is designed by Mamen   of Hardanger Carpacar and is called 'Harmony'.  It is stitched white on white with DMC Perles on 28ct white Quaker cloth.  This piece is going to be absolutely stunning when it is - eventually - finished.  I plan to start stitching some Christmas ornament soon, so it will have to step aside for a few weeks.

 

And finally, I don't think I ever mentioned it, but we had to have our six year old Bullmastiff, Jenna put down, due to cancer.  We miss her every day, but on the upside - we have a new Bullmastiff puppy!  Her name is Lexi and she is a handful :)  Here is a picture of her (on our bed, if you don't mind!) - she is about seven months old now.

That's about it for now - I hope to be visiting all your lovely blogs soon.  Have a great week!

Happy Stitching,

Michelle

Blog on Vacation

Hi stitching friends!  You might have noticed that, yet again, it has been a long time between posts for me.  I just don't seem to have the time for blogging/commenting anymore.  

To top off my distress, a package I ordered from Anita's Little Stitches in April has not arrived yet.  I emailed Anita to find out which mail method she used and she sent me such a rude email in reply!  She claims that 50% of her business is overseas and a package has never gotten lost (and if you believe that you'll believe anything).  I have been ordering stitching supplies from overseas for years and this is the first package I have not received.  Needless to say, I was shocked by her response - I was planning to re-order, but obviously she has now lost a customer. 

Anyway, enough complaining and on to some stitching.  Here is what I have been up to:

I have made great progress on Historic Countries Sampler (from the Gift of Stitching Magazine) and hope to finish it soon:

 The Heaven and Earth Designs bug has bitten me again.  I started Train of Dreams by Randal Spangler last year and took it out again this year.  Here is my progress, not much done, but I already love the way it is turning out:

 Here is what the full picture looks like:

 I also bought a Quick Stitch from Heaven and Earth Designs a few weeks ago and could not resist starting it.  Her name is Ruby and she is a design by Meredith Dillman.  Here is the bottom of her dress.

 This is what she will look like eventually:

So, to conclude, I have decided to put my blog on vacation.  I guarantee I will still be stitching and, who knows, maybe I will be returning to blogging soon!  Thank you to everyone who shared this virtual stitching experience with me - I am so lucky to have made such wonderful friends over the past two years.  I will still be visiting all your lovely blogs as often as I can.

Happy Stitching!

Lots of Love,
Michelle