Progress on Rapunzel

Rapunzel.

She is driving me absolutely mad.

I just want her done.

I did, however, find my mistake that made my corners not match up.

And it was a blessedly easy and quick fix.

But she's still a butt.

Right now I'm so close to the finish that even though I want to put her down and take a break from her, I want to finish her more.

So onward and forward.

I vote we lock her away in the tower and throw away the key, lol...

2015 was a red letter year for finishes for me!

I had more finishes in 2015 than in any year I have stitched yet ~ and there have been 31 years!  I'm going to list out all my finishes for the year here, if for no other reason than to keep track of them in my own mind.  ;0)

#1 ~ For Love Quilts USA

#2 & #3 ~ The first two ornaments in the T'was the Night Before Christmas series

#4 - #8 ~ 4 Baby bibs & 1 blanket for The Legacy of Dorcas Stitching Charity

#9 ~ A Harry Potter Stitch

#10 ~ Plastic canvas tote

#11 ~ Lemon-Aid kitchen towel

#12 & #13 ~ Bluebird pillowcase pair

#

#14 ~ Monogrammed needle book

#15 ~ Honey Bee Happening

#16 - #19 ~ Cherry napkins, donation to a raffle

#20 ~ Coaster set for Legacy of Dorcas project

#21 & #22 ~ Towels for Legacy of Dorcas project

#23 Plastic Canvas wall hanging for Legacy of Dorcas project

#24 - #27 ~ Napkin set, donation for a raffle

#28 ~ Pillow ornament for Legacy of Dorcas project

#29 ~ The Beekeeper

#30 & #31 ~ Ornament made twice, one given away, and one for me to keep

#32 ~ Plastic Canvas, The Grinch wall hanging

#33 & #34 ~ Ornaments for our tree

#35 ~ Edwardian Lady Victoria

#36 & #37 ~ Pillowcase pair for Legacy of Dorcas project

#38 ~ Needlepoint eyeglass case

#39 ~ Frosty Friends

#40 ~ A UFO project, gifted to me partially finished.  I completed the stitching, did the backstitch, and signed both of our names to the piece.

#41 ~ A quick little stitch on the last day of the year

#42 - #44 ~ Halloween coasters

#45 ~ A stitching rescue, from a thrift store for .25 ~ I finished it into a coaster.

45 finishes!!!  I can't quite wrap my head around it.  It didn't feel like I did that much.  I had no clue it was adding up to that number.  I guess I can stop giving myself ANY grief at all for not stitching enough, lol!

Well, this kind of snuck up on me...

In 5 weeks I'm headed to a retreat in the Smokey Mountains.  It's a trip that's kind of traditional for me and one that I look forward to all year long.  There are two gift exchanges at this retreat.  One is a gift box full of stitchy type notions and the other is a stitched ornament exchange.  So I know all year I have to stitch something for this retreat.  But for some reason, this year it slipped my mind until now.  When I stitch an ornament for giving, I like to stitch two so I can keep one myself.  So my stitching schedule grew by two ornaments, lol.  The pattern I chose for this year's ornament is a dove inside a circle with a filigree, leafy type of border around it.  It's charted in blues and roses but I'm changing it up to Christmas colors.  I'm going to give them a simple finish in the clear acrylic ornament frames that 123Stitch sells.

I have a little finish!  :0)  I finished up Frosty Friends a couple of nights ago.  I want to "finish" this into a no-sew cube, just not sure when I'll have the time to do that.  But it's going to need to be before Christmas, lol.  Although truly, this design is appropriate for the whole winter.  One thing kind of perturbed me about this pattern though.  On the picture of the finished product that comes when you buy the pattern, it shows two different ways of stitching it up.  One is like I have done it and the other shows it larger, finished into a pillow.  This one has a border all the way around it, that obviously "goes" with the pattern, as in, it's a style that is consistent with the look of the pattern.  But after you buy it and open it, you find the border is no where to be found.  You don't get the pattern for that.  I just feel like the way it's represented on it's packaging is misleading.  Because it obviously leads you to think that you can stitch it with or without the border, but then it doesn't provide or even address the fact that there is no border pattern.

I'm still working on Lady Victoria as well.  I hope to have her finished soon.  I can't wait to start her silk ribbon roses.  Sorry, no pic.  :-(

I took a Christmas stitch that I did last year and turned her into a pillow.  My intention was always to make her a pillow for Christmas this year, so after stitching her last year I just put her away in a project roll.  But this week I got her out and finished her up.  I am **super** pleased with how this turned out as I've never done anything like this before.  I can't "sew," not in the traditional sense with a machine, so this was all done by hand.  But it wasn't difficult or even terribly time consuming.  I started one day and finished the next.

And one more little extra I want to share. ~ Earlier this year, I stitched and made this little pouch.  It had been sold as a cosmetic case, but there is no way it would work for that.  It doesn't even close up in a way that would work for that and it's rather tiny.  So I put it away (procrastinating) with the intention of turning it into a needlebook at some point - which it's the perfect size and design for that.

So I finally took the whole 5 minutes needed this week and stitched in some felt and added in my needles.  I really love it.  A filled up needlebook makes me terribly happy.  :0)

That's about all I have for now.  Happy stitching everyone!  :0)

The Cross Stitch Tag and my newest WIP

I discovered the cross stitch tag on Youtube.  Lots of the stitchers there have done it and I thought it would be fun for me to do it on my blog.

So let's go ~~

 

1. How did you start or who introduced you to cross stitch?

No one.  I found this on my own at a very young age.  I was only 9 years old (and I'll be 39 in July) and I remember seeing cross stitch kits in the store and just knowing that I wanted to do that.  Then I remember we went to dinner at someone's house.  The wife/mother was apparently a cross stitcher because on an end table she had her current WIP in a hoop with bobbins of threads in a ring fanned out on top of it.  Just seeing that ~ I knew this was something for me.  So I got my first kit shortly thereafter and the rest is history!

 

2. Do you have a favorite theme of designer?

I tend to go more for the theme or look of a piece than follow designers.  But, there are some designers I do like ~ Paula Vaughn, Bothy Threads, Mirabilia, Lavender & Lace ~ there are more, but I do like those.  What really grabs me though is the scene.  I love homes, especially Victorian ones.  Or really, any Victorian scene ~ carriages, gardens, etc.  I'm a total sucker for ladies in pretty dresses and I also love anything bee or beehive related.

 

3. What floss brand do you use? 

Ok, for many years I have been and am a die hard DMC girl.  DMC is really where it has started and stopped for me.  But recently, I wanted to branch out a bit.  So I got my Gentle Art threads for my upcoming SAL and the threads that came with my Rosewood Manor Summer Quakers that I shared in my previous post.  I'm really looking forward to using them.

 

4. What is your fabric of choice?

.All of it.  Everything from a 14 count Aida to a delicate linen and everything in between.  It all has it's time and place

 

5. Do you use a needle threader or are you a floss licker?

I sometimes lick my floss and sometimes just use Thread Heaven on it.  Other times I want to use my needle threader.    It's pretty much split between each method.

 

6. What kind of stitching frame do you use?

In general, I prefer to use Qsnaps.  I will still use hoops if a particular project needs that, but I don't like hoops too much.  I prefer to work large projects on a floor stand with a large set of Qsnaps or stretcher bars.

 

7. How many projects have you finished?

Hmm....several.  Not as many as I'd like, but still...several.  Off the top of my head I can think of 21, but I'm sure I'm missing a few in there somewhere.

 

8. How many completed works do you currently have displayed in your home? 

Not many because most have been given away.  Only three currently on display here, but I am hoping to change that very soon.  But I do have several smaller items like hand towels and pillowcases that are stitched and used.

 

9. Do you do more stitching for gifts or for yourself?

Gifts, swaps and charity projects have gotten most of my stitching.  But I really want more in my own home so I'm going to start doing more for me to keep.

 

10. What is your favorite project you are most proud of? 

I talked about this in my last post too.  It's the Winnie the Pooh square that went into one of the Sandy Hook quilts for the little girl who was the only survivor in her class.  I'm so very proud of what that one means.

 

11. What has been your least favorite or worst experience stitching?

It was about 18 years ago.  I was in my early 20s and decided to do my first large project. It was this kit:

 

 

  It was my only WIP because back then I only had one going at a time.  It took me two solid years, working consistently because I was a *painfully* slow stitcher back then.  But, I finished it and it was gorgeous.  I wanted to get it framed but we were newly married and every penny was needed for other things.  I just couldn't afford to get it framed.  So I rolled it up and put it in a safe place.  18 years and 5 homes later ~ it's never been seen since.  I think what happened was when we moved from that apartment into our house, it accidentally got thrown away.  I really don't know.  I just know that it's gone and I don't have it. 

 

So, imagine my surprise when a couple of years ago I found the kit again!  On sale at Austintatious Offerings.  (Whom I heartily recommend by the way.  I love shopping with them.) You better believe I snapped it up quick!  So it's now in my stash to perhaps be stitched again someday.

 

12. What do you love and what do you hate about cross stitch?

I love the feeling of taking a blank canvas ~ my material ~ and taking it from being empty to being filled with something beautiful.  I even love the way the feel of the fabric changes as the design gets larger.  A bit heavier, a bit more substantial, a bit less flexible.  I love the search and hunt for something for my stash that I want to find.  I love cute notions.  I love the never ending supply of gorgeous patterns.  Love, love, love it all.

 

What do I hate?  Well, the Frog of course!!  I could totally do without him.

 

13. Have you introduced anyone else to cross stitch?

I've tried valiantly with my daughter to no avail.  I have several friends who admire my stitching but claim they don't have the patience for it.  So no, I've not really converting anyone to cross stitch unfortunately.  But luckily I have lots of online friends who stitch, so it doesn't feel like I'm the only one doing it.

 

14. What was your first project and did you finish it?  If not, what was your first finish?

My very first project was an apple, lol.  Maybe about 4 inches across by 4 inches high.  And no, I did not finish it.  I was only 9 and I remember I got discouraged that my apple looked like a rectangle instead of round.  But that was only for the first stitches so I didn't realize that I needed to keep going.  I remember laying in my bed and crying that night over that apple, lol.

 

My first finish that I remember was a marriage sampler I did for me and my husband.  It wasn't too big, but it was cute.  It's hanging in my bedroom now.  I think I did finish some small things when I was a teenager.  But I don't really remember what they were.  I remember doing some small florals, but the memory is a bit fuzzy.

 

15. How do you store your floss?

Right now my storage is in flux.  I have one DMC box and one thread cabinet from Herrschners.  The rest are on bobbins in the regular compartment boxes you can get from any hobby store.  I want to find more DMC boxes and eventually convert all my storage over to them.

 

So that's the cross stitch tag.  :0)

 

As for my current WIP ~ Honeybee Happenings ~ I've had a two day start so far.  This is what I've gotten done:

 

 

I'm going to backstich this section before moving on.  I always backstitch as I go.

 

Well, that's all for today.  Happy stitching and keep those needles flying!