Still here in the grass . . .,

but atleast now I have a little man and three sheep to keep me company!

I also have half of the woman's dress done there. Soon I hope to be out of this grass! It is driving me crazy! There are very slight changes to the color with blended needle and half stitches that are very time consuming.

Still working on the rug. Very slowly ! Here is a picture of the end of row 51, beginning of row 52:

. . . and so it goes.

I am always thinking of the next project, more correctly the next 6 projects!

One that I have always wanted to do is The Old Aviary, which appeared in the Summer 2006 issue of Sampler & Antique Needlework Quarterly.

This is an expensive project. The design is laid out over 4 issues of the magazine. There is a large piece of 40 count linen required, and all the silk threads! Pricey!

I decided to use part of my gift certificate from Petra to purchase the magazines. Down Sunshine Lane had three of them, and I got the remaining one on ebay.

I have a lot of odd silk threads in my stash and I wanted to use them if possible. The pattern calls for Soie d'Alger and Silk 'n Colors. The Soie d'Alger, I can match fairly easily, but I have not been able to find any conversion, anywhere, for the Silk 'n Colors.

I do not necessarily need an over-dyed silk. The single color silks are just fine with me.

Does anyone know of a match for Silk 'n Colors: Latte (9710), Old Lace (111), and Spring Blush (9711) ?

Of course if you have the colors, it is easy enough to make a substitution, but with just the description, it is tough.

I would love to hear from anyone else who is working on this. Of course, I am a ways off from starting this project, but it would be nice to have it kitted.

What a Surprise!!!

Just imagine my surprise when I read in Petra's blog that I was the winner of her birthday drawing!
Then the next day I got an email that my prize was a $50 gift certificate for Down Sunshine Lane!

Well, it is safe to say that I am over the moon about this!
Thank you sooo much Petra! I am just thrilled!

I have already spent over an hour pouring over DSL's website. Quite the fortunate dilemma I will have trying to decide what to pick!

Time for an update

February so far still has us in the grips of winter. This morning the temp was about 15F. Brrrr!

I know that doesn't sound cold to my Canadian friends, but we are used to it being about 10-15 degrees warmer here!

Here is a picture of my dwindling woodpile. My poor hedge in the background is completely eaten by the deer!

We started out the winter with what I thought was more than enough wood, but now, only halfway through the winter, we definitely will have to order more. Somehow the price keeps going up and up! I don't quite get that. It is quite high now. Last time I ordered, I couldn't find a cord for less than $200 (unstacked).

On the stitching front, I have made very slow progress on Peace in the Country. It is very slow-going with a lot of color changes and backstitching. I am really tired of working with greens! I will be glad when I can move on to the angel.
Now, on to the ever-growing rug!

I haven't worked on the rug for the last two days. I have had to scrounge for more wool. I searched all the local places with no success. I put out a call to my local freecycle. No luck! I finally decided to use some of the pieces in my stash that I previously decided not to use. I will have to find a way to make it work, (just like they did in the old days)!

Here are some pictures of my progress:

Completed row 46, beginning row 47

Completed row 47, start of row 48

Completed row 48, start of row 49

Completed row 49, start of row 50

Completed row 50

I know these are boring pictures and they don't give you an idea of the rug size, but the rug has gotten incredibly heavy. It is very hard to move around. The only way I can work on it is to have it folded over.

Here is a background picture of the tiny dining room:

You can't tell from the picture, but the other side of the rug falls down to the floor.

Quite the mess eh?!

One Year Today!

Hard to believe a whole year has passed, but today is my Blogiversary! One year ago today I made my first entry.

I am a little disappointed that I didn't make more entries, (and finish more projects).
A lot of the projects I took on were fairly large in scale. They are fun to work on, but unfortunately don't make for exciting blogging!

Well, a year later, and I am still working on the rug! The last row just took forever with the holiday distractions and all. Here is a picture of my last completed row 45.

By now I am about half finished with row 46. Groan! About 11-1/2 rows to go! Hopefully it will measure something like 8' x 12' when it is finished.

This this what I have finished so far on my Christmas quilt 'Tis the Season. I haven't been working on this too much. I think I will put it aside for a few months.

I have picked up Peace in the Country again, and have made a little bit of progress on this. This one turned out to be more detailed than I thought. The angel is yet to come. It is positively huge in relation to the town below!

It is quite cold here now, way below freezing with a lot of snow on the ground! This time last year it wasn't anywhere near this cold!

That's all for now. Hope we all have a great year!

A Snowy New Year's Eve in New York!

This was the picture outside my front door about an hour ago.

It is still coming down! The temperature is really dropping too! I will have sympathy with the many revellers down at Times Square tonight!

Times Square on New Year's Eve is one of those things that you have to do once in your life, but only once!
It is best done the way I did it, eighteen years old, full of energy and enthusiasm, and oblivious to the cold!

Now, thank you very much, I will stay warm by the fire!

Today is a natural day for reflection on the previous year, but also a time to look ahead.

Here are my finishes from the past year.

In the Forest - La-D-Da

The Chase - Paragon

Illuminated House Blessing - Patricia Andrle

Christmas Chick - Valerie Pfeiffer

'Tis the Gift -La-D-Da

The Red Thread Snapper series - Bent Creek

Beach Roses - Just Nan

MacIntosh Poster - Charlotte's Web

Harvest Blooms - Hands to Work

Not all of these are framed yet. I have to spend some time on that. I wish there could have been more of them, but then, that's what next year is about!

There are many designs that I want to work on next year, but I don't have a real plan just yet because I need to focus all my attention on finishing my braided rug.

I would love to do Patricia Andrle's Cardinal Sampler, as well as her Fine Feathers. I doubt that I will be able to do both. Also I have waiting for me in my stash, The Loara Standish Sampler. This is a major undertaking which I am finding quite daunting! It would probably take a year to do by itself!

Of course there are numerous others calling to me!

I want to wish all of you a very Happy New Year!

Let's hope it's a good one!

The Cat Who Came for Christmas!

Meet Hermie!

The last thing I needed, the very last thing I needed, was another cat!

Hermie had been casually visiting for the last 3 years, however during the last year I became aware that he was completely dependent on me for food. Also, it became apparent that he had no place to go. At one time he belonged to someone who was renting across the street, but apparently they thought he was disposable, and just left him when they moved. We noticed that he was no longer crossing the street, and just before Christmas we found him crouching under the tarp on our wood pile.

Well, what could we do?

Hermie as it turns out, is quite a character, and has made himself at home! (Why do they always have to sit on the top of the chair)!?!

Of course this has not gone unnoticed by the other cats who clearly do not appreciate this interloper! They were used to seeing him outside, but sleeping on the bed is another matter! There has been quite a lot of howling, growling, spitting, and the occasional fur flying! Hopefully soon they will all become used to him.

Christmas generally seemed to be much more stressful this year than it should have been, family matters, etc. Not sure how to fix that, but somehow we need to simplify our lives so we can appreciate the things that really matter.

On the stitching front I have not made a lot of progress. I am disappointed that 'Tis the Season, the lap quilt I have been working on, is taking so long to finish. I have only completed 4 of the 9 squares, and scarcely any of the border.
This will takes months more, and then there is the quilting! I am not one of those people who enjoys Christmas stitching after Christmas. Somehow I guess I will have to put it into some kind of rotation, though I have never been very good at that.

One very nice thing I got from my husband was Love Is Enough, from Millenia Designs in England. They do a beautiful job on their kits. This one is a William Morris design.
I am looking forward to working on this! I have to somehow find the time for it.

Of course my main project, THE RUG, is still unfinished, and I must concentrate on that first. I made a little progress on it. I will post a photo later. I still have a long way to go though!

Just no hurrying this rug!

During the last few days I have spent quite a bit of time working on the rug. I have the sore neck, shoulders, and arms as well as the rough hands to prove it! It now measures about 70" X 115"

I was disappointed when I realized that it would not be done by Thanksgiving, but now reality has set in and I realize that it will not be finished by Christmas either!

Bummer! It is just no fun having Christmas dinner on the coffee table!

I just finished row 43 today. It takes 2 to 3 days for each row, and that doesn't count the time to prepare the wool. I figure I will need 58 or 59 rows. Very best case senario with no interuptions (ha ha) it would take me about 2 months to finish it.

Here are some pictures:

Row 42

Row 43:

I just started row 44 today. This will be the last one in my medium shading. I am adding blue as my wild row.

On the stitching front I have been working on the little lap quilt 'Tis the Season. I have almost finished one of the squares. I know this one will never be finished by the holidays!

Oh well! Maybe by next Christmas I will be organized!

Look what I won!

Recently I visited Teresa's blog Sew Many Thoughts. I really admired her turkey dishcloth. As luck would have it she was having a give-away, and I won!


I think it is a terrific idea! I have some plain knitted dishcloths, but no turkeys! I love Thanksgiving, and it just seemed to be a perfect fit in my kitchen! I love the harvest color!

Here is a picture.
It really looks much too nice to use!

Thank you very much Teresa! I will enjoy it!

Long overdue post

Here are my latest photos of the rug.

This is the start of row 41.
At this point the rug measures aproximately 66.5" X 111.5".



Phew! This thing is hard to measure. I need to move it around to get a good measurement, and that is more easily said than done!

Since I took this picture I have made quite a bit of progress on this row, but I have had to temporarily stop working on it due to some sort of painful carpel tunnel or tennis elbow type thing. OUCH!!!

Hopefully I will be able to get back to it soon. The bad news is that I an running out of medium color wools. I need a lot of tans to complete this. I guess I will have to go back to scrounging the thrift shops again!


On the stitching front, I made a little more progress on Peace in the Country, but it is coming along very slowly. I am having trouble getting into it.

Also, I picked up another project. In the hopes of getting myself into a holiday mood, I have started working on a little holiday quilt.

'Tis the Season is one of those stamped quilts. It is easy to do when I am practically brain dead at night watching tv.

Here is a picture of my start. I have also made more progress on this one too, since. I will try to update with a new photo soon.
I may drop Peace in the Country for a while to work on this.

Slowly I creep. . . , inch by inch!

Still here working on the rug!

Here is the start of row 38

Row 39 is the start of the light group of rows.
I have just started row 40. . .
Phew! Still have a loooong way to go!

In the meantime, I have started a new stitching project. I have had Peace in the Country in my stash for ages. It is actually a kit from Sunset, but I decided to swop out the aida that it came with it, with a piece of 32ct Dove Gray linen.

I actually haven't been enjoying it too much so far. It is one of those designs that seems like it was designed by a computer. I am working on the the hills in the background. There are many half stitches and many, many color changes. Hopefully I will like it better when I move on to another section.

I have made a small start on it.

Says it All!

Happy Days are Here Again!

(click)

This song came out during the depression. FDR heard it and decided to play it during his campaigns to cheer people up. It became associated with the Democratic party. Although it doesn't seem to be played as much now, it is still heard in bars and other gathering places on election night! I will always associate it with my Dad who loved the song for its sunny outlook!

There are a lot of similarities to the depression now. It seemed like a good one to hear again!

HOPE IS BACK!

Fall Finish, the Rug, and a Beautiful Weekend!

Hooray! I finished up Harvest Blooms!

This one just makes me smile!

I thought I was doing well when I finished up the border with just enough rum raisin to complete it, until that is, I realized that I had another star to do.

I used blended DMC colors of purple and dark brown to do the star. I was very pleased how close it came to the rum raisin. It has a very nice effect.

I departed from the original design and added a star to the upper left and moved my initials to the bottom. I included the date on the lower right.

I am happy with this one! At some point I think I will make it into a pillow, but that will have to wait for now.

Also, I completed row 36 on the rug. I am still working on the "dark" section. I have just started row 37 here. This is my "wild" color row. I chose a faded red. It is hard to capture the colors. They look a little washed out here.

The Northeast, where I live has many problems, traffic, urban sprawl, etc., but during this time of the year it is simply glorious! The air is crisp. The sun is bright, and the colors are just spectacular!

This weekend we drove up to Rhinebeck, NY, about 80 miles north of here. We discovered when we got there that there was a Wool and Sheep festival going on at the fairgrounds. I was disappointed we had not gotten there earlier. By the time we got there, the crowds were enormous. Oh well, maybe next year! We did however go home with apples and a wonderful apple pie!

The trees were a couple of days past peak color, but still beautiful! This one was in front of a beautiful old house in Rhinebeck

Harvest Blooms and the Ever-expanding Rug!

I would like to thanks everyone who has taken the time to leave a comment or send me an email. I really appreciate it!

I am making steady progress on Harvest Blooms. I finished the border with not much to spare! I really worked to conserve the floss. The design calls for 1 strand on 36 count I believe. I am using 2 strands on 32 count. If you ever do this design, make sure you order more floss.

At first I thought the colors were a little odd, but now I am really enjoying their richness. I love how they all blend together. Rum raisin is such a good choice for the border. The brownish purple-ish color is unexpected, and perfect for autumn!

I should be finishing it up in the next few days, but I will be making a few changes. I do not want to put my initials at the top, so I will add another star to the upper left, and fit my initials in along the bottom somewhere.

Here is a picture of my progress so far. Furry is such a help! What would cross stitching be without cat hair!

I am also making very slow progress on the rug. I finished off row 35. The next three rows will be dark. I have just started row 36 here.

Harvest Blooms and the Rug

Still making slow progress on Harvest Blooms.



There is a great deal of detail with a lot of color changes to slow things down, but I think the end results will be worth it!

I like the design. I was wondering about making it into a pillow. That will not happen any time soon though because I am determined to finish up The RUG.

I just completed the 34th row on my braided rug. I am using light, medium, and dark color combinations, with the common color tan running throughout. Then, every third row, I throw in a "wild" color. I just finished up with the green as my wild color. I have just made the color change at the shoulder here. The 35th row will be the last medium color combination before I move on to the dark group.

I have miles to go on this yet!

Harvest Blooms and Braided Rug Updates

It seems that there is quite a bit more to Harvest Blooms than I first thought. There is quite a lot of detail.


I am a little disappointed in the coverage of Black Crow (Sampler Threads). I used it for the boot. It seemed a little sparse even with 2 strands. It was a bit tedious just stitching in black for ages and ages!

Now I am finishing up the flowers and bittersweet. They are fun. I like how they are turning out. The border will take some time though.

Otherwise, I have started working on my rug again. Progress on that just creeps along inch by inch. The slow part is in the preparation of the rolls. It measures about 4 feet 5 inches wide by 8 feet long. I wanted it to be about 8 by 12, but somehow it has not grown uniformly and I will have to adjust my expectations!

It was hard to get a picture of this, but this will give you an idea.



As you can see, it has completely taken over my dining room. I have it on the table and I can only work on half of it at a time. Then I have to re-position it to work on the ends and the other half.

It is getting heavy too!