Sunday, March 17, 2024

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

I can't think of St Patrick's Day without thinking of my dad. He was Irish to the core, and believed in celebrating it! Not with bar hopping and carousing, but with family, friends, and good food!

This was a freebie design that I stitched way back in 2011.


Nil aon tintean mar do thintean fein translates to "No hearth like your own hearth", or "Home Sweet Home".

Stitched from a freebie found at http://www.gryphonsmoon.com/, although I do not think it is still available there.

I stitched it on 32ct Natural Irish linen with 4 skeins of DMC 935 (dark green). 

I don't put much stock in New Year's resolutions, but this year I wanted to do some serious finishing! Originally I thought I might frame this, but now I am thinking maybe it would be better as a pillow. Let's hope this is the year I can get this one finished!

Right now, I am working on this little stitch from an old magazine.

The Gaelic Alphabet Sampler

It called for 18 count Floba, and DMC perle, but I decided on32ct natural linen and variegated threads. I am using "Swamp Water" for the brown, and I am a little concerned that I won't have enough. I will have to order another I think.

This is what I have so far:


The verse is done one over one, so that may prove to be a challenge for my eyes. It translates to "My Sweet Home", another variation on the theme! I think I see a trend here! 

Happy St. Pat's everybody! As my dad believed, life is too short, the little days in life need to be celebrated!


Friday, March 15, 2024

Welcome in Bloom is Finished!

Hurray! It was a long distracting week or so, but I finally finished off the back-stitching. I decided to frame it. Originally I was going to frame it the same way it appeared in the magazine. I liked the way it looked with the blue mat. That turned out to be easier said than done!

It would have been an unusual size for both the mat and the frame. Also, it would have grown quite large. I am looking to put this in a small guest room where there isn't a lot of wall space.

I decided to buy an inexpensive frame on Amazon, and then paint it navy blue. I haven't gotten the frame yet. I hope it turns out ok. Remains to be seen I guess. I always forget what a pain in the neck framing is!

I will post the photo when I get it framed, but for now, here it is:



I started working on a new little design, but I don't have that much to show yet.

Will be back in a few days with some photos.

Wednesday, February 28, 2024

Nearing Febuary's End!

 Hard to believe! I have just about recovered from the Holidays!

I didn't want to start anything large, so I picked this little design. I think it has a sort of "deco" look to it.

Welcome in Bloom by Jennifer Rodriguez

This came out of the August 2008 edition of The Cross Stitcher Magazine.

This is what I have so far:


I have finished all of the cross stitching. Now I have to do the back stitching, and there is quite a lot of it! I made a very small start on the leaves in the upper left.

I have had a lot of trouble concentrating lately. I have an upcoming medical appointment which seems to occupy most of my brain! I will be so glad when it is over!


Wednesday, February 14, 2024

Happy St. Valentine's Day Everyone!

 This holiday always presents me with a splendid opportunity to use my pink floss!

 
This year I took part in the Secret Stitching Sweetheart, sponsored by Jo of Serendipitous Stitching https://serendipitousstitching.blogspot.com.
 
This is the beautiful little piece I received! 


The finishing is absolutely beautiful!

I will be hopping around the blogs later to find out who the talented stitcher is.

Enjoy the day everybody!

Saturday, February 10, 2024

My Little LOVE Pillow is Finished!

 It has been a while since I have stitched on black linen OMG! My eyes have gotten worse! 32 count black linen is tough to see, so this is not my best work, but it is finished.

"Love" - Ezia Gladstone - New York Dreamer


The backing is unremarkable, but I had trouble finding something that did not detract.


So, this is my St. Valentine's Day display this year:



I know this is a pretty silly holiday, largely made up by the card and candy companies, but I do love pink, so it is a good excuse for me!

We are expecting to get a snow storm on Monday night. We haven't had much snow this winter, but now frankly I hope we don't get any! We have been feeding some feral cats on our deck, and I always worry about where they go when it snows. They have enough trouble with all the raccoons, dogs, possums, and foxes! We have tried to lure them closer, but they are true ferals and are very afraid of humans. To make matters worse, we think one of them is pregnant. 

I almost forgot. I haven't put this out there in a while. This is my TUSAL! I continued it from last year as it wasn't anywhere near full. A lot of what is in there are snippets from my Nut Border Sweater.


I love seeing all of your stitching feats. It keeps me creative!


Friday, February 9, 2024

Where have all the Pussy Willows gone?

Pussy Willows are my all time favorite flower! Some of my favorite memories are finding them unexpectedly along the roadside.

Usually every February I could count on cutting bunches of them. Now when I pass by where I used to find them. they are nowhere to be seen. What has happened to the roadside weeds? They are all mowed down. It seems every bit of roadside has now been thatched, mowed, sprayed with herbicide, or otherwise "landscaped"!

Yesterday my husband came back from Trader Joe's with two beautiful bunches of pussy willows! I was thrilled to see them. 






They are absolutely gorgeous! They are full and beautiful, completely all in bloom, but they have a look of "farmed" florist flowers.

The pussy willows from the side of the road never had so many blooms. They were definitely more scruffy looking, but I do miss my roadside weeds!

Saturday, January 27, 2024

Early Valentine's Finish

I have mixed feelings about this little finish. On the one hand, I am very pleased that is exactly fits in the hand carved little heart dish that my husband gave me several Christmases ago, but I was not super impressed with the kit it came in. The materials were shall we say, on the skimpy side! I'm glad I didn't make any mistakes, or I don't think I would have been able to finish it.






Hopefully I will have time for another Valentine's Day finish soon.

Happy stitching!

Sunday, January 14, 2024

My First Finish of 2024 was . . .

the Nut Border Cardigan, designed by Sasha Kagan. I saved this pattern and squirrelled away the yarn for it years ago. I finally decided to give it a go.

I guess I would give it a passing grade, but not my best work. The color work seems a little sloppy. I had done some color work before, but not with so many changes. It was a learning process!

There's a certain rhythm that you get into when you are working on a project, whether it is stitching, knitting, or anything else. I never got into that rhythm with this project. It was a constant struggle!

Here it is:

Nut Border Cardigan - Design by Sasha Kagan

It came out a little too big, which surprised me because I made the smallest size. I may try to re-block it, but I am not sure that would do much good. It is too large around the neck in particular.

My next project will be a bit of a rest compared to the sweater. I just started Heart Sachet Ornament, an oldie from BH & G.


I made a small start.


This one should finish up soon.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend!

Wednesday, December 27, 2023

Still playing catch-up

Hope all of you have had a very nice and memorable time over the holidays.

For me, it was not so great. My husband and I always enjoy this time of the year, but this year, it was marred by a lot of drama from the in-laws. It was unfortunate. It turned out to be really quite unpleasant, and it left me feeling a bit shaken. It is amazing to me that such mature adults have not yet come to appreciate what really matters in life. Petty squabbling over nothing at all!

Oh well, you can only attempt to control what happens in your own life.

I was working on knitting a sweater right up to the holidays. I thought I could finish before the holidays, but realized it would take much longer. When I started working on some ornaments, there wasn't a lot of time. I did manage to finish a few.

Here are some Mill Hill ornaments that I finished up. The candy cane and the ice skates are done on both sides. The elf and Christmas tree are backed with red and green felt.

Mill Hill Ornaments

I have quite a collection of these tiny beaded ornaments. Next year I am going to set up a small table-top tree to display them, as they seem to get lost on the larger tree.

I am still playing catch-up from my recent blogging hiatus. While searching for the ornaments, I found a few more projects that I finished.

'Feed the Birds' had been in my stash for years. I finally got to it in 2022.

Feed the Birds

Also, earlier this year, I finished 'Bluebird Family' No. 4, from Crossed Wing Collection. Here is the photo.

Bluebird Family - Crossed Wing Collection No. 4

For now, I will be working on my sweater. I hope to finish it up soon. It is a cardigan, and I am currently working on the button and button hole bands, always a tricky part.

I am looking forward to saying good bye to this year, and turning the page to the New Year, always a time for a new start!

Wishing you all a very Happy New Year!

Erica

Saturday, December 9, 2023

Three years gone by were just a blur!

I would be surprised if I have any readers left, but I am going to post this update anyway. I am not going to even try to explain my absence for the last three years. I am not sure I could. I am just going to move forward, which is generally my life philosophy!

I have been crafting during this time however. I will post things sporadically as think of them. Here's about where I left off in 2020. 

I did finish quilting my HST, "In and About my Garden". I just did a simple 'stitch in the ditch' pattern. It is only a double size, so I can't use it on my bed, but I am glad to have it for my spare bedroom.

Some of these came out a little dark, but here are some photos of the finished quilt:






Here is a photo of the label I made up. I have always wanted to make a miniature quilt for the label. Boy, was that a lot of work! Took way longer than I thought it would! Lots of math involved in those tiny HSTs!



I finished the quilting this year, in 2023.


Another from 2020 was this little Halloween cat. I still haven't made it into an ornament.


Another one that didn't get posted:


I am planning to make this Goose into a pillow.


I stitched this tiny little pillow on 40ct linen.





This oldie but goodie needs to be framed.



Gracie and Olllie Needle Keep


This one was special to me. We lost both Gracie and Ollie this year. Ollie had just turned 20 years old, and Gracie was 19 years and 11 months. They died within a month of each other. We got them when they were tiny kittens and could fit in the palm of our hands. I know how lucky we were to have them for so many years! I miss them so much!








Gracie and Ollie (2003 - 2023)

 

I also finished Garden Friend from the Sue Hill Collection.


After that I stitched "Good Morning" from Prairie Schooler.

I have had this in my stash for years! I am still not sure how I want to finish it though.


Then I moved on to "Waders" from Bothy Threads.


Well, I think that is it for 2020 to 2022, although I am sure I have left some out!

2023 will be next, but I will save that for another post.

Hope all of you have been well and have been stitching away!

Erica






Wednesday, November 18, 2020

What a Year!

Where to even begin?

My last post was back before the world changed.

I am pleased to announce that I finally finished Flower Power !

This was interrupted so many times, that I was afraid I would never get to finish it. The older I get, the more I hate unfinished projects!

This design is big !



Flower Power - Crossed Wing Collection





It is quite an odd size. I don't have a frame in the attic for this one!

Another little one I stitched was Sew Happy, a folk design from All Through the Night.



Sew Happy - All through the Night

I have a much better chance of framing this one.

Over the summer, I made a HST (Half square triangle) quilt top for Martha, my mother-in-law. I used some plain muslin pieces to embroider.














 I miss you quilt! Atleast I thought to take some photos of it!

Currently, I am knitting a pair of socks. I always forget how long that takes. I guess I am a slow knitter!

After that I am not sure what I will do. Usually I have it all planned out. I think that Flower Power took so long that I got out of the habit of thinking what was to come next.

I hope all of you are staying safe out there. I hope we will be looking back on this year very soon!