When the Frog Comes to Visit.......... (10)

I rip it, rip it, rip it!!!!   This always reminds me of a little green Pac-Man and of course I loved this since it WAS green! It is Rip-It by Jackie du Plessis of It's Fine-ally Stitched and houses a tiny seam ripper and yeah...let's hear it...green pins. The ripper remains sheathed at all times (except for this photo) because I'm afraid I'd slice part of my finger off!!! :)

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

ABC Pinkeep (9)

ABC Pinkeep from With Thy Needle and Thread

I'm not usually a "bird" person.....never liked them after seeing The Birds when I was 10. I begged my parents to let me go with friends and they caved. Big mistake!!!! But this little birdie I could handle. It perches on top of a small oil can (as shown on the chart).    An aside, I was unpacking this past week and stumbled across two more oil cans; they were wrapped nicely in bubble wrap......and a good amount of oil!!!! I never thought to check to see they were empty!!! Thank goodness I had them wrapped up good and tight---lesson learned!

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

Cape Cod Girls (8)

I stitched today's post back in 2009 and gifted it to my sister. There were two reasons for this, first, she is a hair stylist, and  second, our maiden name is Codd (hence the spelling adaptation). We spent a childhood being called "codfish cake" and years explaining our name is spelled C-O-D-D...like Cape Cod but with an extra 'd". So here is Cape Cod Girls by The Primitive Needle, stitched over one.

BRRRRRRR....baby it's cold outside---hope you are staying warm and cozy wherever you may be!

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

Stasi

My Stitching Collection (1-7)

Almost a week into 2017 and I remembered something I'd been swishing around in my head for a while. I had the idea to start posting a project a day---- some finished, some UFO's---- and see how far into a year I could get. Sadly, it was languishing in the nether regions of my brain, but when I saw Syd from Syd's Stitching Room post a photo a day, it nudged the thought back to the forefront. Thanks Syd!!!!  So I am going to attempt this starting with smalls (since all my framed pieces are still packed). If it's a set, I'll do one piece of the set/series a day. Some days I may miss and I'll bunch a few together like I'm going to do today to catch up. So here goes.....days 1-7; there will be no rhyme or reason in how I post these....just whatever suits my fancy. P.S. I may not remember all the info on the projects but I'll do my best!

1. Under the Deep Blue Sea by Sue Hillis

2. Pocket Band

3. Needlebook

4. Scissor Pocket

5. Pincushion

6. Thread Keeper

7. Needlepoint Dolphin by Annie's Shells

So with that accomplished here's what I've been working on currently. First up is the piece for the January challenge on All About Smalls. I'm close to being finished with the stitching.

Then in between the tiny work I did some more on the Beekeeper's Cottage Etui.

The green and red is helping keep Christmas in my mind!!! LOL

The house is de-"Christmased" and looking rather naked. Time to get my butt in gear, paint and hang pictures! I need to get that done in order to finish up my sewing room, as that's where all the boxes are being stored. My Christmas gift from hubby is a cutting table, but it's on hold since there's no place to put it right now.

So, in conclusion......thanks to all my friends who I asked to send me some of their snow.....it worked!!!!

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

Stasi

 

Moving on up......

to the BIG time--- that is diopter lens on my Dazor lamp!!! The piece I'm stitching for the All About Smalls January challenge is a bit more challenging to see than I had thought. I'm working it on a piece of 50 count Kingston linen that I had bought eons ago (when I was younger and had better eyes). However, when I counted out the threads, it's 58 threads to the inch. Soooooo, out came the 5 diopter lens that had been patiently waiting to feel needed. I bought this little puppy back when my beloved Twisted Threads closed in 2004 and I still had my employee discount. It's been hibernating, wrapped tightly in bubble wrap, for over 12 years in my coffee table.......and now has emerged to resuscitate my tired old eyes!!! 

So, here's what I got done last night. I'll probably take a break from this today and give it a try with the new magnification later this week. I added a dime to the photo for scale.

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

Quick Post on a Dreary Day

This will be quick today but I wanted to show that I have been working in my sewing room. Here is my bookcase resplendent with all my needlework books!

 And I decided (just about 30 minutes ago) to take on the January challenge on the All About Smalls Facebook page. You had to post a photo of your project by today and then get it stitched and finished by 1/31. You're also supposed to encourage the other participants with "likes" and comments and post a weekly status update. The winner gets a $25 gift certificate to a needlework shop--should be fun! Here is what I chose:
Sew Scissors by iStitch Designs. I'm going to do it as a scissor fob.

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

Stitching into 2017

Happy New Year! We had a very quiet, peaceful evening watching some Star Wars and, on my part, beginning a new needlework project.

 I've been spending some time, the last couple days, organizing my craft/sewing room. I still have boxes to unpack and am feeling slightly overwhelmed. My goodness, how did I ever amass such a huge collection of charts, fibers, fabric, class kits and sewing accoutrements??? Guilt/shame has been creeping in and I'm questioning whether I'm a closet hoarder ( and believe it or not, I got rid of a lot of stuff before the move!!!)? I'm really not that way in the rest of my life, but I'm starting to think I'm addicted to the pursuit of textile arts. And is that a BAD thing? I'm not off to the races or casinos and I have something concrete to show at the end of all my work. It fulfills me creatively, keeps me grounded and off prescription meds. I enjoy going to classes and retreats and have met many wonderful fellow stitchers who have become good friends. So, is my pursuit of this "hobby" (and that word seems a misnomer in this case since this is so much more than a "hobby"; it has come to define me) so terrible??? Okay, okay...enough of my ranting! I'm going to start talking myself down and get back to my stitching.

 But before I do, I want to share my new stitch for 2017. It is Beekeeper's Cottage Etui by Carolyn Standing Webb. I have been on the hunt for this for awhile and put out a request  on the Swan Sampler Guilds Yahoo page to see if anyone had one they'd be willing to part with. Someone answered my plea and sold me their complete kit. Am I a lucky girl or what??? There is a lot of blackwork on this and the charts are hand drawn, so it's a bit of a challenge to see some of the lines, but a lot is repetitive and I am figuring it all out.

 So, I'm hoping to get a lot of stitching and finishing done in 2017, from my stash of course---yeah who am I kidding!!!!! I'm already planning on some beautiful, fabulously designed, must have classes this year--- uh-oh, I'm beginning to "justify" my above mentioned addiction!!! All kidding aside, I'm signed up for two Catherine Theron classes in March and two Betsy Morgan classes in June at Salty Yarns. And who knows what other opportunities may come my way!!! 

   Okay, so I'm feeling better about the stash overload...at least until I go up to my sewing room again!!!

Hoping you have a happy, healthy New Year with lots of calming, stitching time. Thanks for stopping by and your "twisted threads" of friendship!

Stasi