A Little Quilting

So just a short little post as all the holiday hub-bub is keeping me quite busy.

I decided to try quilting again now that I have my new sewing machine. This week I made my first real quilt block. It may end up going in a full size quilt, or I may make a pillow cover from it and some other peices I have, or something else entirely. I am practicing for the quilt I decided to make for my bed.

I am rather amazed at how it came out!

I hope everyone's holidays are amazing...and 2019 holds nothing but good in store!

Fun Mini Finish and a Field Trip

This week was a little more settled than last week. It was a welcome break! I was able to do some work on my Thy Needle WIP (sorry, no photo yet). I also made a little ornament on some perforated paper I found:

I discovered working on silver performated paper rates with stabbing yourself in the eye with a spoon. The reflection off the paper was difficult to work with using indorr lighting. This might have been better made during the summer on a lovely 75 degree day while sitting under a tree in the shade. But now I am wiser...and have a cute little ornament. I decided not to finish the back of it so the lights from my tree would twinkle through the holes. It looks fantastic up. I do suggest using the perforated paper for ornaments because finishing is as easy as trimming the edges, but again not with strong indoor lighting on reflective paper.

I also got around to purchasing a hardanger pattern that looks amazing (Winter Wonderland) and retrieved the 3rd in the Summer House Stitche Workes Fun and Fancy Free series from my local shop:

Also, I assembled a puzzle (which you can see in the background above). 

I even found some time to go to A Stitcher's Garden bi-monthly stitch in last night! It was great seeing everyone and enjoying some odd and interesting conversation while stitching the night away!

Today is a cleaning and studying day, but I will hopefully be working a bit on stitching tomorrow :-D.

Little Fishees and Thy Needle

The last few weeks have been quite busy. It seems that everyone I speak with feels like they are in over their head with tasks. Likely it is in part due to the early season winter storms that came through. I thought I was prepared for winter; I had brought everything in, emptied my exterior water pipes, and even gotten all of my snow gear out. However, living in a town house for 6 years and an apparent for 2 years before that made me forget one important item: no one would be coming to clear my driveway! So it snowed and I woke up to 8 inches and got my shovel and went out to clear my driveway...and remembered that I just had shoulder surgery and can't shovel. Surprise! Of course this was the day before I was scheduled to have my snow tires swapped in.

I muddled through thanks to a delightful neighbor who brough his snow blower over and then pushed my car out of the driveway. I ordered a snow blower which I assembled today (40 degrees and rainy for that). I even ordered some snow melt. Good for me.

Despite all of the busy between work and the catch-up winter prep (the snow really was gorgeous and so much less mud in my house), I still was able to get in a bit of stitching.

Over last weekend I finished another mini project (even though I said I wasn't going to do another). It ended up going to a co-worker for her son's room:

I also spent most of that weekend learning how to assemble a quilt from the tops I made about 2 years ago:

The Christmas one is now hanging from my stairwell:

It turns out that I am maybe not so awesome at quilting yet. I plan to get better, but don't yet know when I will be able to budget some time to work on that. I have some exams I probably should get around to studying for first.

During the week I tried to make a little time to stitch and was able to get some work done on my Thy Needle project:

Currently I'm taking a quick break from it all to work on a jigsaw puzzle and enjoy the sun through the window.

Happy stitching!

Side Project

I ended up wanting to do a project that would come together quickly. And so this is what I did between Friday and just a few minutes ago...

...and now back to our regularly scheduled project :).

Winter is Here!

Last night winter came on strong. I went to bed with a few flakes in the air and woke up this morning with eight inches of snow and a few flakes running through it:

The dogs were having a great time running through the snow. I get the feeling we will lose most of this over the next day since it is predicted to rain, but I definitely enjoyed the winter wonderland. One of my neighbors was kind enough to clear my driveway with his snowblower as I still can't quite shovel due to my shoulder injury. Soon I should be back to doing all of the things I need to with both arms functioning.

In the mean time I still have been able to get some stitching time in. This week I completed the letter A in Black & White. I love how the shading in the stitching came out. I used Week's Dye Works Eggplant on a Silkweaver solo.

I have the letter R ready to go. But I made myself a promise that for every two letters I could work on another project. I started Thy Needle from The Primitive Needle (tribute to this delighful designer here). I have been meaning to work on this cute little project for years. I just have a bit done, but it is really coming together:

Next week the holiday season officially begins with my trip to Boston for Thanksgiving. Then I will be back to studying for a bit as I have some certification exams to address. But my projects will always be there for me!

Vacation...Keeping my Hands Busy

I have been on vaction this week. It has been my first vacation since sometime in the last decade where there was no plan to do something specific. No spending the week painting a new house, no trip with a bunch of people I am only moderately interested in spending time with, and no sporting event. This time I spent the first week sitting around my house and now will spend the next few days visting Maine to see if I can spot a moose. That isn't to say that I have been sitting here doing nothing. I have been going to PT for my shoulder, running errands, puttering around the house cleaning and organizing, and taking care of all the stuff that piles up when you are busy driving back and forth to that job thing. I am so excited that I finally feel like I have some control over my home space. Yes!

Meanwhile, it hasn't been all cleaning, errands, and painful arm exercises. I have been able to stitch!!!! I was able to spend a day hanging out at the stitching shop with Gail and Pat and Jackie...my friends from the local stitching retreats. I bought more floss. I have been bringing my stitching everywhere and spending my free time stitching. I even fnished some projects.

On the 22nd I finished the letter "D" in the art deco Dessins DHC series "Black & White". On the 23rd I started letter "A" and can't believe the progress I have made:

This is stitched on a Lugana 32 count Silkweaver solo in Weeks Dye Works "Eggplant".

Gail was awesome and let me have some of her left over fabric from the March stitching retreat. My dog ate the last piece of the project I was working on back in the spring. With my move and all of the upheaval I have had this summer with classes and work I wasn't able to catch up with her. But this week I was able to get the tiny tiny piece of fabric and finish the pin cushion for the project:

It only took a couple hours from beginning to end. What a satisfying project! The completed pieces from the retreat look amazing together:

Only a few days left to power through some stitching, then it's back to studying, working and PT. But maybe with a bit more balance?

Crusty Exterior, Soft and Squishy on the Inside

So I decided that I wanted to work on a new project, so I did. So much for my plans to knock out a bunch of my WIPs before starting anything new...as usual :-). A close friend of mine and I share the same birthday, so I decided to make him one of my horoscope kits I got from Thailand (I'm sure there is some irony in this). I knocked it out in a few days:

I have a few more kits like this, but I think I will try to complete 2 more letters in the Black & Whie project before I start the next one. I think that's fair... 2 WIPs completed before 1 new project.

Overall it was a lazy weekend of me reading and stitching punctuated by cleaning the hot tub and taking in a bunch of yard things now that the weather is turning cold. Soon my shoulder should be healed enough that I can exercise more. I'm not sure if I want to sacrifice my reading or my stitching however. This is working out for me currently!!

Back to stitching! Too bad I can't do it while I'm sitting in the hot tub.

Birds in the Round

Owing to my currently half-functional right arm, I still have plenty of time to sit around doing things that do not require heavy lifting. So, today I was able to complete another project. It is a lovely little piece that I have been meaning to finish for some time:

Ronde d'Oiseaux by Dessins DCH on Eggplant R&R Reproductions 30 count linen using Crescent Colors "Rain Shower" 6-stranded floss.

I'm also working on the letter "D" from Black & White. No photos of that right now however. Maybe I can whomp that one out this week and then get onto something like Seasons of the Trees :-).

Voila!

I completed a project beginning to end without letting it sit for three years! Today I finished Dandy Dreams by Silver Creek Samplers. It was a fun little project and definitely helped me through the long hours stuck healing post-surgery. I will be back to work on Monday and feel good having finally made something with my own hands!

A few nights ago a couple of my dogs had a fight and the adrenaline rush prevented me from getting much sleep. So instead I cleaned out my stitching cabinet and rearranged my kits and WIPs. I was a little disturbed to discover that I have 15 pair of embroidery scissors. I also have two scissor fobs that do not have scissors...um, oh no!! I also moved all of my kits to my stitching box in the living room so I can just pull one out when it's time to work on the next project. Then all of the WIPs were moved to a bag...a -large- bag. There is also a small (thankfully) pile of things that I don't quite yet know where to place. Ah, the odds n ends!

Currently my WIPs include:

• White Nights of St Petersburg by Chatelaine
• Seasons of the Trees by Rosewood Manor
• Sampler Book by Erica Michaels
• Fragments from an English Garden by Samplers Not Forgotten (a reatreat project)
• Nova by Genny Morrow Designs
• Ronde d'Oiseaux by Dessins DHC (no longer operating)
• First Bass, Alto Gether Now, and Here Comes Trebel by Ink Circles (First Bass is done)
• The Bramble and the Rose by Ink Circles
• Black & White by Dessins DHC

I have been working on "D" from Black & White on and off between other things. I'm hoping I can make some headway on that project this year. It's a great travelling project since each letter is just one color. So far I think I have 8 of the letters done with "D" being the 9th. I have a ways to go with that one for sure. 

I have to admit I was surprised to see how many projects I had open...and all of them are absolutely delightful!

And, of course, I had to accompany my friend Anna to A Stitcher's Garden again a couple days ago. As if my money and I don't already part too easily! I was good and got only one item...

This project is from Little House Needleworks. I am very much looking forward to completing this project sometime between now and the end of times!

Anna and I also stopped by Michael's to pick up some frames and other random project bits. While I was there I found a lovely book on hand quilting which has patterns for all of the traditional quilt blocks and a straightforward description of how to bind a quilt! The Handmade Quilt by Carolyn Forster.

I'm looking forward to being back at work next week, but I will definitly miss the ability to stitch when the mood takes me! 

Stitchy Tuesday

Yesterday was an eventful day. I had my second physical therapy appointment and was looking forward to having my shoulder stretched to improve my range of motion when I received a phone call from my friend Jaspreet involving a lot of tears. She had just been involved in a car accident. Fortunately, I was headed over to the hospitals anyhow, so I was able to check in with her. After all was said and done she ended up spending the night here so I could keep an eye on her to be sure that she didn't have any after effects from a concussion. So what better thing to do than to spend the time learning to stitch (stitch therapy is real!)...

This girl took to stitching like a fish to water! She picked the Stoneware Cat pattern with a delightful Silkweaver Reflections scrap fabric I had (I think it is Jamaica Sunset) and Weeks Dye Works "River Rock".

I did end up working a bit on Black and White the day before. But, of course, I decided to start a new project (because one can never have enough WIPs).

This one is Dandy Dreams by Silver Creek Samplers. I changed the floss colors and the fabric color...photos to come as I progress!!

Some Finishes and A New Purchase

I freaking finished something!! So excited!

I was sitting at my friend's booth (Chickadee Homestead) at the NYS Fair all weekend and what else is there to do but stitch and chat??!! So I was able to apply the finishing touches to my "Wicked Doll" project from the 2017 A Stitcher's Garden stitching retreat...

Pretty much I applied the edging and hanger. I love how it takes 2 years to get to such things. I think the work maybe took 45 minutes?

I also spent a lot of time working on my "Yei" project which was a gift from my mum when she went to (I think) the Grand Canyon. It is a simple yet delightful project. I decided to just stitch it on the Aida it came with rather than switching to linen since it's a full coverage project. I haven't decided how I will be finishing it, maybe a pillow or a wall hanging. It might live in my box of completed projects for a while waiting to tell me it needs to live in someone's home.

Oddly, I had a project along with me as an extra little "well if I finish everything else I will work on this" and it turns out it was already done but never posted. It's an adorable cat. I think it shall become a pin cushion...

I found some delightful fabric for backing. I think I would rather use my new machine to sew it together than to hand sew it, so finishing will have to wait until I can use my arm to a greater extent. My surgical site is healing well, but 4 more weeks of passive range-of-motion, so no machine sewing, only holding. This is a sad turn of events because I just picked up a brand new sewing machine!!! It's the Baby Lock "Jane". I was able to get the floor model from my local quilting shop (Calico Gals) because they are bringing in newer models. This was a huge stroke of luck because there is no way I would have been able to afford this delightful industrial-strength machine otherwise. Now I can sew quilts, cross stitch finishes and CAMPING GEAR!!!

Menawhile, I have a pile of found WIPs to keep mye busy for the rest of the week... do I go back to my orange project? Season of the Trees? Black & White? It's going to be a difficult decision. I do so hope I am able to finish a few more in the next few weeks!

Something Long Awaited and a Trip to the Shop

Surprisingly I have been stitching more consistently lately! I have made good progress on my delightful "orange piece" and am quite happy with that. My furniture, which might have been eaten a bit by the dogs in March...

...was returned newly reupholstered...

...and I was cleaning the craft storage area a bit and found about 18 unfinished projects. I guess I have more to do!

Meanwhile, I recently (finally) had some shoulder surgery so I thought I was going to be knocked out of stitching again. So sad. But it turns out that, since it was my right arm, I can hold a piece or use a frame and just go ahead and stitch with my left arm...YAY!! So I have been able to use my recovery time to relax a little and enjoy myself. Not that my time hasn't been filled with all those things one puts off while they're working (doctor appointments, minor chores, sleep, etc.). But I have been able to find a little time to work on one of my newly rediscovered WIPs...

I can't drive anywhere so I have to sucker friends into taking me places. Fortunately, I recently discovered my friend Anna, who has been my chief chauffer, is a stitcher. Again...YAY! Tuesday this delightful human took me an hour to Utica and as a reward I took her to the quilting shop Calico Gals. She found some great stash and I found a sewing machine that I need to replace my previous one. I am excited to be picking it up in a couple of days!

Today I needed to go to a couple of doctor appointments, so again Anna volunteered to take me around (I really, really appreciate her). So today I introduced her to A Stitcher's Garden. After she cleaned house there I am wondering if her husband is going to start asking a few more questions before we go on trips together in the future. I would like to note that Matt (her husband) is a longtime friend of mine and, frankly, I question his judgement as a result of this :-D. 

Of course, I did not leave empty handed from the shop. I picked up a few new patterns and also a delightful scissor fob:

 All Through the Night's "Blackbirds"

 Heartstring Samplery's "Once Upon a Summer Huswife"

 Rosewood Manor's "Swirling Flowers"

Rosewood Manor's "Two Blue Birds"

What a fun trip! While I was there I was able to catch up with one of my friends from the annual stitching retreat. Buuuuuut, I think that I shall now avoid the stitching shop for another six months or so!

Hopefully I am able to get most of my errands done this week so I can continue to concentrate on healing...and stitching!

Update on the Orange Piece

Today was a delightful day. I had a million and ten things to do, and was able to get through most of them and also find about 30min to stitch. It wasn't a lot, but it scratched an itch. Unfortunately, I will be having shoulder surgery in August, so again I will be unable to stitch for a while...but maybe it will only be for a short while this time. I am hoping I will be able to make great progress, or even maybe finish this delightful piece before then (ok that's a little bit of a high hope).

There has been a good amount of frogging done on this piece. I am hoping I am through all of that and can just focus on adding to the stitches rather than redoing my boo-boos. Basically this is just about 1/4th completed. The upper right, where the large flower is, marks the center of the piece. There is just a bit to go on the lower part to get the 1/4th completion point. Cross your fingers for me!!

Happy stitching (or gardening, or whatever your hobby may be).

Retreat Finish and Back to the Bramble

On June 3rd I finished the needle keep from this year's stitching retreat. I would still like to finish the pin cushion, but I have to wait to get a piece of the matching fabric from my friend Gail. I accidentally cut through the piece I had. Oops!

The needle keep was definitely a fun project and I learned a great new (easy) finishing technique. I guess I can make all sorts of things now which require structure. The front and the back of the peice came out great:



When it is folded up only the stitched parts are visible:



And this is a picture of it as it is folded:


Meanwhile not much other stitching has gotten accomplished while I settle into my new home, attempt to sell my previous home, take classes for a certification, and do that job thing. This weekend I was able to find some time to myself and took the opportunity to pull out a long-time WIP:


Unfortunately I found an error with the decorative flower on the upper right section and just spent a couple of hours ripping. But, now I am ready to press on! At least I have a dog and cat hair free zone to stitch in my new place. I won't have to worry about the dogs trying to lick the procject or wander off with it!

Time for Me to Fly...

I'm getting ready to move in the next week. It's been crazy getting everything ready for the new house between the paperwork, the packing, and trying to get things set to move my pack of dogs and the cat. Today I was able to take some time to relax a little and finish the last project in my current house. It's just a little that I received at a previous stitching retreat, but I think it will make a nice cover for a coaster box at the new place.

Also, my dog helped me work on my projects a bit last night by eating a needle and about 14" of thread. But I learned a neat little trick to get thst all through the pup: feed him a handful of cotton balls soaked in mineral oil. It collected all the thread and everything came out (pun intended) alright today! Whew!!

Some Assembly Required

I was able to finish stitching the last piece of Grandma's Heart while I was waiting for my dad's loaner car to get fixed. This is why I don’t mind waiting!

Now I just need to find someone with an iron available  (mine is packed while I move) so I can assemble the last heart. Then it's the blanket stitching around both of the stitched hearts and attaching everything together. I can't wait to complete this gorgeous project!

Annual Stitching Retreat Summary

This past weekend was wonderful! It was the annual A Stitcher's Garden retreat, and it was well run as always. Jan, Jackie, Gail, and Amber bent over backwards to make the retreat fun for everyone. Beth from Summer House Stitche Workes brought a project that was perfect for the event and had some new techniques for me to learn. And the ladies had a local woman, Lisa, in to teach us how to make a scrapbook that coordinates with the retreat project.

This was the scrapbook kit from Friday evening.

The inner pages assembled after painting the sheets with scrapbooking ink.

The assembled journal :). It is lovely!

Then, of course, there is the retreat stitching project kit and assembly...

And...the stash enhancements...