Look at me! Another post in the same week!

I thought I'd update my finishes since 2014 when my needle went cold and I stopped blogging for a long while. I actually had two more finishes that year, this one was on my birthday in 2014!

Just Nan's Magic Wings-April 4th, 2014. One of those Filagree Fancies kits.

Later that summer I signed up for a counted canvas piece by Kathy Rees called Sudoku Delight & chose the blue/green colorway. Took it on vacation, which was a good thing cause it rained most of the week! It has since been framed. Completed August 24th, 2014.

I returned to another hobby, crocheting, but while in a neighboring town found myself in a needlepoint shop and picked up a painted canvas by Rebecca Woods on sale called Cat Tangle...with a yarn theme! I used some of that DMC wire for the yarn, wrapping it and couching it down to give the piece a 3D effect. This has also been framed, still need to hang up a bunch of stuff but our recent move has us still unpacking! This was completed on April 8th, 2015.

 That's it. That's everything off my needle until this year. Lots of stuff hot off the hook, crocheting up a storm, gifts, chemo hats for Duke Hospital, throw pillows, afghans, even a queen-sized bedspread in the round, designed by Frank O'Randle on Ravelry. Maybe I'll do a crochet post later, of all the best stuff at least. The hats would be pretty boring though.

Just no stitchy stuff in all that time. I'm feeling the shift back to stitching though...at least I did finish the Mill Hill cat earlier this year (and blogged about it) and I've been working on a couple of UFOs in June. (There will be a post about that too!) The move (in the middle of the Covid19 pandemic no less) has sucked all the energy out of me and we are literally in the final week of it all, with the old house about to be listed for sale, so revving up my needle again...new start coming soon! Thanks for dropping by, please comment if you feel the urge!

Happy 4th of July America!

So, a fellow blogger https://serendipitousstitching.blogspot.com/ has this monthly thing going...this month of July it is houses...where you post pics of all the things of the theme that you've stitched over the years, and I thought, hey! I can do that! What a way to get my blog kickstarted again!

So, "Houses" by StitchinKat...including my interpretation of what's included in the term, cause I think birdhouses count! 

First, a couple of ornaments. This one is from a JCS ornament issue early on. I'll have to go in search of it to be sure but I think it's called Reindeer on the Roof. eta: I found it! It is Mary Garry's Sewing Cabin-Reindeer on The Roof from the JCS 1997 Orn. Issue. 

Here's a birdhouse entry! Season's Tweetings by SanMan Originals.

This is called Birdhouse Row by Sekas & Co.

And this is A Bird for All Seasons, a Dimensions kit I stitched in the 90s!

This one is by Mosey 'n Me and is called Welcome to My Garden.

Castles count as houses don't they?  The famous Castle by Theresa Wentzler, gold conversion by me (look for it elsewhere on this blog).

Another birdhouse, from a Leisure Arts leaflet, slightly edited to say "shelters friends" rather than "shelters a friend". Made as a gift in the 90s. Hey, it says "house" right in the words!

Yes, I live in a nuthouse! This now hangs beside the front door. The tail is stitched with Fuzzy Stuff! Welcome to the Nuthouse by Waxing Moon. 

Of course, there had to be something from Little House Needleworks, this is Schoolgirl Lessons.

Another SanMan Originals, a house of a different construction...ice! It's called Sharing the Holidays. 

This is a Mill Hill kit, the Gingerbread House. Made as a gift for my MIL who liked to make them with my daughter when she was little!

So, technically this is a sheep's house, but who's counting...heh, heh. ;-)

From a class by Chessie & Me, it's called Shepherd's Christmas. There's always a Chessie cat charm in there somewhere!

Here is Carriage House Samplings Christmas at Hawk Run Hollow, which I took quite a few liberties with...including stitching it on 40ct silk gauze! Notice I also gave block 4 with the deer a night sky with a moon (so you could see the snowflakes on the gauze), changed the color of the horse in block 6 (to honor a friend named Cinnamon), added a singing ginger cat (my Leo) behind the lamppost in block 8, and left out the ghostly(?) figure in the 12th block. But look at all those houses!

This is by SamSarah Design Studio, the March Birdhouses.

And another SanMan Originals for the 4th of July! It's called Americana Birdhouses.

This is of course a "house of worship", the Duke University Chapel Tower, a prominent feature on campus in my hometown and where I attended college. My mom worked there for 47 years and I made this for her. It was from a kit by a defunct company called Happenchance Designs. I added a few birds in flight cause I could. My brother has it now.

No list of "houses" would be complete without some of Elizabeths Designs' little cottages! I have a mad plan to make them all and incorporate them into a landscape quilt of some sort...3 done so far! 

Beekeeper's Cottage

Bluebird Cottage

Ladybug Cottage

This is from Dutch Treat, one of the first ones she did, the Colonial Tabletopper. Stitched in 2002.

By Brooke Nolan for The Silver Needle in Tulsa, OK. So fun to stitch! Wish I was actually at Camp WannaSew! 

And finally, a giant biscornu, sofa pillow size. Another SanMan Originals pattern, Welcome Square. I'd just become obsessed with biscornu and thought, why not? It's square, I can make it a biscornu too! Turned out pretty good I think!

 So, that's all my "Houses" for the month of July. August is going to be Books. I'm hoping that includes book-related things like libraries, bookshops, bookmarks, etc. I'll have to ask!  Anyway, this was fun!  Love to hear comments from you all! 

 Well, I finally have a finish after all these years! Yep, the Wild Orange Cat from Mill Hill is done! Just need to frame it in their frame and move on to the next UFO/WiP! 

I have been getting back into the Facebook stitchy groups too and put some albums on the TW & Just Nan groups there. In particular, I posted a picture of my gold dragon conversion of Teresa Wentzler's Castle that I stitched way back in 2007! Thankfully someone (Michelle!) saved all the conversions and was able to send me mine, which I had lost to an old laptop failure. (see below)

Castle Gold Dragon Conversion

 I used mostly what I had on hand or easily found. I only changed the dragon colors, nothing else. The chart symbol or description is on the left, the thread I used on the right. 

4......Rainbow Gallery Sparkle Braid SK01 (1 strand)

3......Rainbow Gallery Sparkle Braid SK02 (1 strand) will need 2 cards 2......Rainbow Gallery Sparkle Braid SK03 (1 strand) will need 2 cards 

1......DMC Precious Metals Effects E168 (2 strands) 

V.....DMC Metallic White 5272 (2 strands) 

6......Kreinik #4 Braid 102 (1 strand) 

7......Kreinik #4 Braid 002V (1 strand) 

8......Kreinik #4 Braid 150V (1 strand) 

9......Kreinik #4 Braid 152V (1 strand) 

s......DMC Metallic 5279 (2 strands) 

r......DMC Antique Effects E898 (2 strands) 

e......DMC Metallic 5279 (2 strands) the edges of large wing (cursive e symbol)

z......DMC Metallic White 5272 (2 strands) 

%......DMC Pearlescent Effects E746 (2 strands) 

w......DMC Pearlescent Effects E746 (2 strands)

 

dot in circle......DMC Metallic White 5272 (2 strands) 

triangle point up......DMC Pearlescent Effects E746 (2 strands) for eye use Kreinik #4 Braid 152V 

#......DMC Pearlescent Effects E746 (1 strand) with Kreinik BF095 (2 strands)

 

backstitching on dragon only.....regular DMC 3371 (1 strand) 

eye......Kreinik #4 Braid 152V (1 strand) 

eye backstitch......DMC Metallic White 5272 (1 strand) 

nostril......Kreinik #4 Braid 150V (1 strand) for these symbols I did not change the floss only added metallics 

\ ......DMC 676 plus Glissen Gloss BF 406 (2 strands each) 

- ......DMC 677 plus Kreinik #4 191 (2 plus 1 strands)

x ......DMC 729 plus Glissen Gloss BF 407 (2 strands each) 

upside down U.....DMC 3045 plus Rainbow Gallery Nordic Gold ND2 (2 plus 1 strand) If you are stitching on a smaller count fabric, you may want to only use one strand of the floss with the metallic.

Well, It's been a few years, eh?

 Well, it's been a few years, eh? 

I can't believe it's been since 2014 that I last posted on this blog!  I'm trying to get back to stitching after a long drought. Was crocheting, writing a bit of fanfic, having a touch of empty-nest syndrome whilst daughter was off in college...she's home now thanks to Covid-19 forcing her here. We've managed this past year, despite being in the middle of packing to move when the lockdown came. 

I advise everyone, NEVER move in the middle of a pandemic! 

Anywho, I do have a current WiP (and several that have been languishing) as well as tons of new things I want to start! 

This is a Mill Hill kit by Laurel Burch, the Wild Orange Cat. Mostly beading & bs left.

I'll get to the UFO/WiPs in a future post, but this is what I want to start next! Am I crazy to start something so dense after so long? It's a full kit that came with pre-gridded fabric! Never bothered with that before, but this might just be the one that needs it most!

Also, in the process of moving, I'm de-stashing with my Etsy shop called RiversongNeedleArts since early 2019. I'll have a totally new batch to upload next month, cross stitch supplies mostly, but also yarn & regular fabric. My new hobby room is smaller than the old one, so stuff needs to find new homes! 

It's good to be back, off to stitch and watch opening night with my Carolina Hurricanes hockey, and stitch!

 

May Flower Girls!

So, I've been stitching on my Beaded Peacocks by Chatelaine in May, also did some crochet, and read/watched a lot of Doctor Who.....plus I did my May Just Nan SAL entry, Flower Girls!  It is stitched on a 32ct Silkweaver Solo lugana.   Next up for Just Nan will be one of the new designs, to be stitched in June! Plus, I need to get my stitching mojo back, so I may start something else and take a break from the Peacocks for a while....lots of backstitching gets boring!   Happy May, welcoming June!

April Just Nan, flashback to Winter

Just in the nick of time, my entry for the Just Nan SAL for April!  This is Snow Deer, stitched on fabric I believe is 32ct Cinnamon Roll linen, using DMC and Silk N'Colors Latte 9710 for the deer. I will have to frame it tomorrow when I have some time...sorry the pic is a little blurry, it's late at night here now!

Next is a baby gift for my SIL's second grandson in the last 4 months!  Pictures to come!

A little reminder about Copyright

It's the middle of April and I am plodding along on my Chatelaine design, the Beaded Peacock Tile, and trying to find time to stitch up another Just Nan design for the SAL I'm doing....but wanted to post this as a reminder. The needlework world is again sending out requests to please respect the copyright of designers, DON'T share electronic or photocopies of charts and patterns!

http://needleworkcopyright.blogspot.com/2010/09/snowball-effect-of-copyright-violations.html

I have a few freebies here on my blog, please don't share them, but link back to my blog posts so they can be downloaded legally from me. Just because they are free patterns, it doesn't mean you can copy them and share the copies. I own the copyright. Send friends to my blog, don't share the charts directly. This is how I keep track of the number of downloads, as I am trying to start up my own design business. I use the info to see what is popular and what is not. I have not yet had anyone tell me they have stitched one of my freebies, or seen any pictures, so I have no idea if they are popular, all I can go by is the number of downloads.

Thank you for letting me stand on my soapbox for a while!  Back to stitching some lovely designs!

March Just Nan flowers!

Continuing the Just Nan SAL stitching, this month I actually stitched two (and one of them twice!) First up is the JN Pin Keepers Garden, all the stitching done, just need to make it into a pin keep for the fancy pins it needs! It is stitched on Silkweaver's 32ct Jubilation opalescent lugana.  Once I get it finished off I'll post another picture.  I think it will be really cute!

I also stitched the Filigree Fancies kit Pansy Basket...twice!  I am participating in an exchange and stitched it for my partner...she is doing a different pattern for me, and I am not going to put up a picture of her's so it will be a surprise!  This is the one I decided to stitch for myself, on 28ct ice blue jobelan.

I also framed my Joan Elliott Blackwork Peacocks in an interesting tabletop frame I found on ebay....

I have gone back to my Chatelaine Beaded Peacocks Tile for a few days....still trying to decide my next Just Nan, and want to do another TW small in April as well......busy, busy stash diving!

Blackwork Peacocks!

My other February finish is Blackwork Peacocks by Joan Elliott from the UK CrossStitcher magazine #209, February 2009. I used white 22ct hardanger fabric and Nile Blue silk floss from Hand Dyed Fibers. Finished size is 4.5" by 3.1".

Next, I go back to the Beaded Peacock Tile by Chatelaine Designs, and start my next Just Nan design for March.  Not much more stitching to report, other than a couple more crocheted hats. Today was a beautiful March lamb of a day, hard to believe we are supposed to get more winter weather tomorrow! My daffodils are starting to come up!

My Just Nan finish for February 2014

My entry for the Just Nan 2014 Stitch-a-Long is another small one, part of a seasonal set. This one is Winter Spell, mounted in the WhimZi frame that came with it.  I had originally meant to stitch a different Just Nan design this month, but got drawn into another project (more on that tomorrow!), and just ran out of time! We have had quite the winter here in North Carolina, getting far more snow and ice than we are used to, so this seemed a good choice! This one took just 3 evenings in front of the TV, and it's done! Stitched on a 28ct Blue Breeze opalescent Jazlyn evenweave.

 No doubt I'll return to the series this year, to get Spring Spell, Summer Spell and Autumn Spell completed!

My Just Nan finish for January 2014

As part of my participation in the 2014 Just Nan Stitch-a-Long, my first entry is a small one indeed, but oh so satisfying! A fellow Just Nan Junkie on Facebook, Zeb Ahmed, has organized a fun challenge for the members of our little group...to stitch as many designs by Nan Caldera of Just Nan as we can in the year, trying to increase the net presence of Just Nan designs and hope that people notice!  If anyone is interested in joining us, it's not too late! Just visit Zeb's blog here....http://www.ixari.net/just-nan-design-list/just-nan-stitch-along-2014/

My collection of Just Nan stash continues to grow, and at one point I had a list of the ones I'd like to get done this year, but of course it's still in flux as I see other's posting pictures of their happy dances! I decided to start small with a JN WhimZi called Whirlibirds, which came with it's own little ornament frame. The WhimZi frames are no longer available sadly, but you might be able to find them in shops or online if you are diligent in your searching! This is a little kit, all you do is supply the fabric and DMC threads. It's only 2 inches square!

I was uncharacteristically out of two of the DMC colors called for, so I used my best judgement to pick the blue and green colors for two of the birds. The fabric is a bit of leftover linen from my stash. All I had to do was stitch it up and pop it in the frame! I love how cheerful it is! In a dreary cold January, it's a welcome warmer that makes me smile!

Now I have to decide which Just Nan design I will stitch in February! Hmmmm..........

Getting the New Year of 2014 off to a stitchy start!

As mentioned I am getting my stitching mojo back and have joined FOUR SALs (stitch-a-longs) for 2014 on four different Facebook stitchy groups!  There are badges on the side bar here for three of them, still need to figure out how to make my own badge with words to add the last for the Peacock SAL.

SAL #1 is the Teresa Wentzler Tinies SAL, by which it is meant that folks in the group are picking out designs by Teresa Wentzler (refered to as TW) in the small range for a quick stitch each month, many from older magazines when she first started out as a designer, and many are her smaller freebies from her website.
For my January stitch, I choose a freebie called the Peacock Tapestry Ornament, which is an element of the full Peacock Tapestry design, a corner of the border in fact. I used a 28ct pearl cashel and the called for threads and beads. I made it into a biscornu ornament with a peacock bead I had on hand (from the Just Nan line). Here is the result!

The second SAL is with a small group of  folks stitching a Joan Elliott design from a magazine. It is called Blackwork Peacocks....I am working on it at the present and will post more when I have something to show off!  I am also in a group stitching different peacock designs during the year, so the Blackwork Peacocks will help in that effort. In addition I have a Chatelaine design called the Beaded Peacock Tile in my rotation. It comes back up next week in early February. Here is my progress so far. More on that later!

Earlier in the year I did another pair of small designs. One is a cover kit from the magazine Cross Stitch Crazy #177 by Kate Knight. I switched out the aida for a small piece of light blue opalescent linen. Unfortunately I did the backstitching in the wrong shade of blue, but I wrote it off to a happy mistake and lived with it!

I think it was meant to be seen as a peacock, but I think it looks more like a Victoria Crowned Pigeon!

One other finish in January was this ornament by San-Man Originals called Quaker Tuck. It is an exclusive to the San-Man bulletin board members and the tuck and button came with the pattern. I stitched it on a small piece of Silkweaver Solo linen.

More on the 4th SAL, the 2014 Just Nan Stitch-a-Long tomorrow. Happy Stitching in the New Year!