A Little Halloween......(295)

Another late start here due to double header baseball games with Asher. 

The paint on the mummies from yesterday has dried so here are shots of the finished product. The kit came with battery operated candles so I figured they'd make cute night lights for the season. 

Glow in the dark painted faces

 My Stroll piece today is the first of some Halloween themed projects. To start us off is an Old Black Sheep Night kit from Ewe and Eye and Friends, stitched in 1999 called Trick or Treat. It's another cube finish from JoAnn, our finisher at Twisted Threads.

I did manage to get a little bit more stitched on the ABC piece while watching the final episodes of Boardwalk Empire . And yes, a couple of you guessed Marlo Thomas from That Girl having sported the same hair style as 'Aida girl'. We are dating ourselves ladies!!!!

 
Thanks for stopping by and your "twisted threads" of friendship!

Stasi

Witches Harvest....(294)

I had a not unwelcome distraction this morning as my granddaughter came by to visit rather than go to her brother's umpteenth baseball game. I have had a little craft project waiting for her and we worked on that first thing.......little mason jar mummies that will light up and glow n the dark.

 Then I gave her a pair of pink scissors and we made her a beaded scissor fob (anything to encourage her to take needle in hand) that matched one I made for myself from a class at the Virginia Guild of Needlewomen. I'd love to share Cora's but we can't find it!!!! Thanks Sally for my flower beads!

 On to stitching....the Stroll piece today is my recent finish from a class last weekend with  Milady's Needle. It is called Witches Harvest and is stitched on 40 count linen over two. We got the black scissors and scissor fob as part of the class.

I got Week 27 of the Blue Sampler Band SAL done last evening and a few more stitches on the ABC piece. Only one more week to go, and Carol is also giving us a bonus chart!

Who does the girl on this chart remind you of??? :) I do have to say I had my hair styled exactly like that when I was in my cousin's wedding in 1967 or 1968.

Hope you're having a great weekend--- thanks for stopping by and your "twisted threads" of friendship!

Stasi

Autumnal Clock......(293)

Today's Stroll piece was the preface piece for an Earth Threads class back in 2001. I never did the actual class sampler but love this bookmark and all the specialty stitches!

 I had to start a new project last night ---it's a chart I bought last weekend after seeing Sally (thanks for enabling)  pick it out to do as a shop model. I had seen the chart and liked it but when Sally said she was doing it over one on 3 inch banding, I loved it!!! I didn't get very far, but the journey's begun. it is called Abc de la Brodeuse by Jardin Prive, a French designer. What do you think?

 I had to share this adorable purse I picked up yesterday with y'all...not something I would usually go for but it spoke to me!!! It has some kind of security protection for your credit cards, license, etc.. Then it also comes with a portable charger for your phone....I've got to see that to believe it at this point, but a great idea!

Thanks for stopping by and your "twisted threads" of friendship! Have a great weekend and enjoy this beautiful fall weather!

Stasi

A Little Punchy......(292)

Today's Stroll piece is a little departure from my usual stitching.....my first..and only....attempt at punch needle. The design is from Pep'r Pot and I did it in 2004 after we had Charlotte Dudney teach at Twisted Threads. It remains unfinished as I just don't know what to do with it!

 I worked on my recent class piece from Milady's Needle and only have to complete the nun stitch before I can attach it to the spool. Gloria has us doing the nun stitch upside down with the "legs" facing towards the design rather than away. I opted to stitch the spider webs in black rather than white as I thought they showed up better.

 I'm off to a meeting of the Virginia Guild of Needlewomen today for a class to make a scissor fob.....hope to share that tomorrow.

Thanks for stopping by and your "twisted threads" of friendship!

Stasi

 

Autumn Spot Sampler....(291)

We had to turn the heat on this morning...only 57 here in the house! Finally some cooler temps!!!

Today's Stroll piece is Autumn Spot Sampler by Earth Threads, stitched in 2001.

 
I wanted to share my stash haul from Salty Yarns; as much as I say I'm NOT going to buy, it's hard when you see so much neat stuff!! I tell myself....I am a collector...it is okay..it is okay!!!

I finished up the stitching on Leaping Stag last night and it should be an easy finish. I have the mounting board shown. I changed up all the colors and used some LE GAST I had in my stash. Here is their version.....

...and here is mine....

 Thanks for stopping by and your "twisted threads" of friendship!

Stasi


 

A Two-fer....(289,290)

I'm sorry but I was just too pooped to pop yesterday after I got home; it always amazes me how tired you get while sitting in a car driving. So, after a quick trip to Home Depot with the hubby to pick out pavers for a small patio and throwing in a load of laundry and scheduling our car inspections, I can finally sit down to blog. Warning...this may be a long one with lots of photos!!!

First I'll post my Stroll pieces...two of them in fact since I missed yesterdays. My 'should have been Monday' Stroll piece is Sampler Band Shaker Box and Accessories by Merry Cox, stitched in 2004.

Box inside with attached pincushion

Accessory Fronts (clockwise L to R) Scissor Holder Case w. Pincushion, Thimble Pocket, Tape Measure Pocket (I have buttons in mine) and Pin Keep.

Backs

Case Inside

Case Inside

Next is today's Stroll piece, Holiday Season (Autumn) by Birds of A Feather, stitched in 2003-2004. 

Now on to my Jamboree recap.....I had a wonderful time, as usual. The crew at the Lankford/Salty Yarns are always so welcoming and make us feel like family. I got there a day early (Thursday) so I don't hit traffic on the way and left on Monday again so I miss traffic. This gives me lots of time to roam Salty Yarns and start my "bag". Everyone gets a bag with a cute name tag (now made by Sally) that you can place your purchases in over the weekend and then check out on Sunday as you ready to leave. Now my bag has been recycled, I think this is my fourth time reusing, and has seen better days but as long as it carries my stash I'm a happy camper. 

Friday evening is the start of the official festivities with a homemade lasagna dinner followed by a reception with appetizers and desserts. Sara makes most of the food and desserts and really outdid herself this time. A disclaimer...(this one's for you Sally)....Sally makes the chocolate covered peanut butter cookies!!! :) Everything was delish!!!
Saturday at 9:00AM we start our first class, followed by lunch and the second class at 2:00PM. I shared those classes on the  October 14th post but here is some of the stitching I got done on the Milady's Needle class piece.

Saturday evening we are on our own for dinner but there is a dessert buffet around 7ish. Again, yummy, yummy desserts especially the creme brulee made by Sara---it was so hard to choose! Stitching and chatting usually follow in the lobby in the evenings.

Sunday morning was the third and final class. This was a gold work class called Gilded Three Petal Lily by Deborah Merrick-Wilson. I have never attempted gold work before and am happy too report it is not as intimidating as I thought. Here is what I accomplished in class.

After that class, the retreat is officially over, people finish up their shopping and start to leave, but a number of ladies stay over until Monday. It is always a wonderful time and so fun to reconnect with old friends and make a few new ones. 

We always get a goodie pack jam packed with amazing items and this time was no exception. Hers are a few shots of what we received....and we also received the stretcher bars and tacks for the gold work class.

This cute box held a $20 gift certificate for Salty Yarns

I did manage to get some more stitching done on the Leaping Stag.

And, Sally, Debbie and I worked on getting our boxes for My Stitcher's Heart painted and decoupaged Sunday after the retreat ended.

Monday always rolls around way too quickly and I have to leave this special place, but it's always with fond memories and a look to my next visit. 

Thanks for sticking with me through this lengthy post and for your "twisted threads" of friendship!

Stasi

 
 

 

A Day Late, but not a $ Short.....(288)

A Big oops...I forgot to post yesterday!!! Sorry, but the distractions here at the beach/retreat are many and varied. I'll do a quick post of my Stroll piece for yesterday and come back when I get home later today to do today's actual post...off to breakfast! 

This Stroll piece is Autumn Band, a freebie from Lindy Jane stitched in 2001 on banding and wrapped round a small pillow.

Thanks for stopping by and your "twisted threads" of friendship! Be back later!

Stasi