Celebrating a New Year and a bit of Stitch Strolling......(578-584)

 

 Happy New Year one and and all!!! I could wax on forever about the year 2020 but I will suffice it to say "good-bye and good riddance"! Here's to a happier, healthier 2021, albeit with a few more months of minimal sacrifice for the majority of us. Hang in there folks, we will make it!!!

On to some needlework topics......The USPS was, understandably, quite overwhelmed this year and there was some anxiety about whether items would arrive...or not. I still have one gift to a friend floating around in a distribution center somewhere, so won't share the gifts I made until I know all have reached their destination. But, I was thrilled to receive some lovely gifts from stitching friends. First up is Robin who sent three adorable ornaments all which jumped on my tree after arrival. The one on the right is a key painted as a snowman...this one really tickled my fancy! Thank you Robin, I love them all!

This photo shows my gifts from Vickie and Carol. Vickie made the bluebird from an antique quilt  and Carol's ornament is so sweet and  impeccably finished. These are also hanging on my tree with the exception of the quilted magnet, which I have stuck to my rolling metal tray next to my stitching chair. Thanks ladies for your thoughtfulness--it is much appreciated.
 

 

One gift I will share was to a dear friend.....Hand and Heart Stitchers Mat by Scattered Seed Samplers. This created a bit of worry as it was mailed across the pond, leaving December 3. It arrived Christmas Eve, safe and sound......a Christmas miracle, perhaps? 

Since this was a relatively low key holiday season, I managed to squeeze in some personal stitching/finishing. To be honest, I kind of liked the absence of the usual holiday frenzy. So, here are some pieces to add, officially,  to my Stroll.

I finished a 6th square on Houses of Hawk Run Hollow (second from left on bottom row) . I stitch right to left, so that is actually house #7.
 

Next is my finish of the 2020 Blackwork SAL by Peppermnt Purple. I have a lot of banding left, so I'm goingto continue to add the 2021 SAL to this. So far, it's about 38" long!

 

 

This is Be Merry and Bright by The Scarlett House...more on this later....stitched over 0ne on 35 ct. Lucky Penny linen from R&R.

Next up is the 2003 Santa from Prairie Schooler. I couldn't believe this was the first of their annual Santa's I have stitched!!! I saw this frame at Michael's with the checkered mat and had to find a design to fit...and get it stitched this year since it has 2020 engraved in it. The PS Santa fit perfectly with a little tweaking.

 

 

This fun piece is Rack Stack  by Plum Street Samplers. I did this the beginning of the year and finally got around to finishing it. I painted a wooden box and mounted the stitching on top. Isn't the reindeer charm cute?

This was a quickie I did for a friend's baby's first Christmas. Again a tiny frame from Michael's with December Joy from Twisted Threads. Stitched over one for a perfect fit!

 

 

I love how Reindeer Feed Sack by Carriage House Samplings turned out. (I think I'm on a reindeer kick). This hangs on my back door.

 

Last, but not least, is Merry and Minty, the generous offering from Brenda Gervais, made just in time for Christmas. I finished this on two halves of a wooden box (I took off the hardware) and joined them together with a  ribbon wrapping around the seam. I used beads for my candy canes, but otherwise stitched as called for.

Now, back to Be Merry and Bright..... an internet friend had paid this chart forward to me with the original fabrics and leftover fibers. I am now going to also pay it forward with a drawing. I did not use the fabric or leftover fibers she provided, so they will be included. To enter, please mention you'd like to be included and I will draw a name on January 15th.

Whew...that's it for 2020...I must say I did get a lot accomplished and am so thankful I had this rewarding craft to help get me through this challenging year. I remember at the beginning of lockdowns, stitchers joking "no problem..we've been preparing for this our whole lives"!!! Truer words may never have been spoken for us!!! I got a lot of stash stitching done, while trying to support LNS's. I did tend toward small projects that gave me a sense of accomplishment and that I could finish using items on hand..... I do have to admit to 'jumping for joy' when Hobby Lobby reopened. It has been a lonely 9 1/2 months but I have zoomed with my guilds, been active on FB and IG, and that has helped tremendously to keep connected. 

I truly appreciate all those that take the time to read and comment on my blog. I do try to respond to every comment, but if you are a no-reply blogger, I'm sad that I can't reply to your posts. If you'd like to strike up a conversation, please change that setting or add an e-mail address to your comment. Wishes to all for a happier, healthy New Year!!! May we get back to our retreats/events, meeting in person, hugs and NO masks!

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

Stasi

 * A little side note...I am starting my 10th year of blogging and finally got photos to be  side by side!!! Not sure how it's happening, but am thrilled...just hope it lasts!!!

 

And the winner is.......Lynne

 

I will get this in the mail to you Lynne, tomorrow! Have a great week, everyone!

Stasi

Getting into the Christmas spirit....and a little strolling (573-577)

 

 The holidays are bearing down on us and many are getting into the Christmas spirit earlier than usual. Some of our neighbors are already all decked out for the holidays and I'm of the opinion that whatever makes this year a little more festive....go for it!!! I am still enjoying my fall decorations, but have been working heartily on some Christmas stitching...both gifts and for myself. So...I am going to get right to it (of course I won't be sharing any gifts until after they are received)....this will be a total stitching post! :)

 I have a few finishes from when we least met...the first is a gift I made for a friend's birthday back the end of October. I had found this teeny, tiny black 'dish, salt cellar, container' (not sure what it is) awhile ago and was holding for a design that would fit in it. Debbie's birthday is near Halloween, so I felt it called for a Halloween design. So, October Boo by Twisted Threads to the rescue!! I stitched it on a 46 ct mystery linen, over one, with DMC and mounted in the dish.

 

Next, are two FFO's from last post......Mary Smith  from Lisa Cowell, which was a guild class piece. It was finished as a small pincushion.

 And, Sew a Needle Pulling Thread by Shepherd's Bush. This was a gift from Salty Yarns' Jamboree and was a kit including the pre-made bag.....quick stitch and oh so sweet!!!

 

I finished the stitching on my Coming to America: the Women of the Mayflower by WTNT right on time....almost. I posted a photo of my completed work and a fellow stitcher kindly sent me a PM asking if I realized I had forgotten to stitch the inner part of the bottom border. Ooops...I had completely missed that, so my finish was actually a couple days after landing.I changed out some colors, to show better on my fabric, and stitched the names in three different colors.
 

As a companion to this piece, we received a chart called Celebrate Harvest. Here is my version stitched on 30 ct mystery linen, over one, and mounted on a small board from Hobby Lobby that I painted brown.

I finished the stitching on Reindeer Feed Sack by Carriage House Samplings....stitched on 28 ct natural/evergreen Tattersal fabric with Sulky #1181, DMC Perle #3033 and GAST LE Xmas Tree. I will finish as a "sack" and ordered a cute snowflake hanger I hope will work. 

 I am a little ahead of the game for the holidays....I have the ornaments for my grands completed.....way ahead of usual!!! Our friend, Robin in VA, had gifted me this chart a bit ago, knowing I like to stitch on perforated paper in the car. I stitched one of each of the snowman heads then "headed" (sorry, couldn't resist) to Hobby Lobby to find inspiration on how to finish. I stumbled across these pre-made ornaments and they worked perfectly...just glued the stitched piece on in place of the "O"!!! After last years needlepoint ornaments, this was a very pleasant respite!!! Chart is Snow Pennies by Thistles.

Finally, I read about a SAL on IG, co-sponsored by Terri of Chocolates for Breakfast fame, for any of the Houses of Hawk Run Hollow series. I had started this (HOHRH) back in 2006 and got four houses done before it fell into my dark hole of UFO's. I resurrected it and got one more house completed. It will now be put in time out until after the holidays. I'm stitching on 40 ct Pearled Barley with the called for Soie d'alger fibers.

 

Following Robin's generosity, I am going to pay the chart for the Snowmen forward. If you are interested, please leave a comment with the word "snowmen" in it and I will have a drawing on November 30th for a winner. This was originally done on a 32 ct linen, so doesn't have to be stitched on the perforated paper.

 Thanks, as always, for stopping by and your "twisted threads" of friendship! I wish you all a Happy Thanksgiving and that you can make the best of our challenging times. We have much to be grateful for and we need to focus on that. Bee well, everyone!

Stasi

 

Fall is Here.....my favorite tme of year!!!! And time for some strollin'.......(568-572)

 

Greetings! Time flies when you're having fun...and even when you're not! It's been a busy few weeks...some ups and some downs...but hanging in there nonetheless! About  week after I last posted, Rich and I slipped away for a few days in OCMD.....a much needed change of scenery. It was different than usual...masks on the boardwalk...carry out for dinner and a not too crowded beach. We sat there for two days on the beach just breathing in that salt air and being lulled by the waves...which were HUGE! 

 Then we got a call that a fellow employee Rich had worked closely with, had tested positive for Covid...not the kind of call you want to get while on a mini vacay. The long and short, Rich was tested the next day (Thursday) when we got home..rapid test was negative, but doctor said to isolate until we got the final results. That didn't happen until  Monday so we had to miss my nephews wedding in Baltimore that weekend....bummer!!!! Final results were negative, so a big sigh of relief!!!

Thank goodness that didn't stop me from stitching, so I have a few finishes to be added to my Stroll. First up is Seeking Refuge by The Scarlett House...finally got it framed. Years ago, I had found a large frame in the discount section of Hobby Lobby. It was probably about 24 X 40" and for a song (must have been a boo-boo) and I figured one day I would cut it down into a couple frames as the moulding was so lovely. Enter my SIL and all his fancy tools; he cut to the size I gave him and did a great job! But....when I got home I realized I had measured wrong and the frame was about 1 inch to tall. Soooo, I added the row of diamond shapes at the top and all was well....I think I may actually like that better! :)

Next is the silk gauze piece I did for my younger daughter and son-in-laws anniversary. It is Heart and Compass by Erica Michaels. I love the colors in this and had the tiny frame on hand.

 Next is the project we were sent from Sassy Jack's September Soiree. It's a biscournu called Mountain Sunset from Sassafras Samplers. I changed the colors up a bit to darker tones, but keeping the feel of the Blue Ridge Mountains. 

 

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Here is Fallen Leaf, a freebie from La-D-Da.It's stitched on a 36 ct. mystery linen with Glorianna Topiary. I then mounted it on a wooden acorn I picked up from Target a couple years ago.

Now on to some WIPS. First up .....I'm on the names in the Coming to America piece by With Thy Needle and Thread.

I started a new piece...Reindeer Feed Sack by Carriage House Samplings. I'm stitching it on a28 ct natural/evergreen Tattersal fabric with a red Sulky thread. I've never used Sulky before and I have to say I'm loving it. It;s the same as two strands of floss and the one strand is so much easier to work with. I had bought mini collection of 'reds' and chose the more barn red shade (the one in the middle).

Last is a project for my Guild class on Thursday. It's a freebie from Lisa Cowell called Mary Smith, and will become a tiny pincushion. It too is stitched on a 36 ct mystery linen with Waterlilies Fiesta.

 

So, this past weekend I attended the Jamboree at Salty Yarns virtually. We had the option to attend in person or via Zoom; I chose Zoom because of our recent experience with Rich and my desire to err on the side of caution. There were 15 zoom attendees and I think it all went swimmingly!!! We received our class kits in time for the event and I am so tickled with all of them. The teachers all collaborated with a theme honoring the Lankford Hotel and Boardwalk. It was as close to being there, as possible, and the teachers were great dealing with both types of attendees. I'll start by sharing our "goodie" bag which was filled with lots of fun stuff....then a photo of our little gifts at each class. One, which hadn't arrived in time, is a green face mask that says "Salty Yarns".

Then, here are the class pieces all called Boardwalk Revue. My first class was with Linda of Erica Michaels and is a stitched version of the Lankford Hotel, accompanied by a strawberry, that will sit in a blue wooden box.

 

My second class was with Clara Blalock from The Stitching Parlor. It will be a needlebook and thimble and thread holders, that can also lay in the wooden box.

My final class was with Pat and Peggy from Fern Ridge and we made a peyote beaded scissor fob, which I am happy to say I finished. The Lankford is known for its white rockers, so this was perfect!!! I have sat and rocked in them many a time!!! Don't you love the bicycle charm too???

It was a great time, though I dearly missed being with my friends in person. Though there's something to be said for attending in your jammies and being able to sleep in your own bed at night! :)

In closing,here is a photo of a Bee pillow I made for my newly recycled stitching chair which, by the way, is perfectly comfortable for a weekend of stitching!!!

 

Thanks for stopping by and your "twisted threads" of friendship! Take care and bee well!!!

Stasi

Zoomin' into Fall (565-567)

There was actually a "nip" in the air this morning; I do believe fall may be on it's way. Woo-hoo!!!

On a sad note, my heart goes out to all facing these horrific wildfires and the pending hurricane in the south. I know we Americans are resilient, but how much more can we take??? It seems there is a continuous barrage of natural disasters on top of Covid and the daily news. But we will persevere and hopefully come out the other side a stronger, more united nation. Hang in there all and prayers going out for those in affected areas.

It's been a busy month around here. We drove up to Baltimore 12 days ago and brought my parents back for a 5 day visit.  We thought about it a lot and decided they could really use a change of scenery and chance to see our family here. We had a relatively quiet time... some competitive Scrabble games, a country drive to an Amish market...mainly just hanging out.

 While they were here, Rich and I tackled putting the chair I was reupholstering back together. When we were visiting my daughter and SIL, they were going to throw this cool chair out. It had been in my SIL's family beach house for many years and was a bit worse for wear. Rich and I kept looking at it and thinking "what a shame", when I saw it had a matching ottoman. Lightbulb time!!!! I have been wanting a stitching chair for my craft room. So home it came and the search began for fabric (which I scored at JoAnn's for $2.25 a yard), removing tons of staples (my lovely hubby did that for me), taking apart the old pieces and using them as templates to cut out the new, sewing cushions, pillows and arm rests and finally.....putting it all back together. I am so glad we could rescue it...I found a tag saying it was made in 1928! I sat in it pretty much the whole past weekend (more on that later) and it was very comfy!!! Here are some before and after shots!

 Before                                                              After---great light from a window!                                                            

 

 

This past weekend I had two wonderful virtual opportunities via Zoom.....Friendstitch and Sassy Jack's September Soiree.  Sassy Jack's event started Thursday at noon and went until Sunday at 2:00. There was a 24/7 stitching room available and 8  (some live and some recorded) sessions with designers. We received a package ahead of time with a lovely reproduction sampler chart from Sassafras Samplers and a kit for a biscournu. I worked on the biscournu during most of my time in the Stitching room. 

Friendstitch was a collaboration of Heart in Hand and Bent Creek. It ran Saturday from 11-6 and was a fun filled day. We received a box a couple weeks ago and were asked NOT to open it until the day of the event. We all opened them at the same time and what a bevy of fun items inside!!! I am not going to reveal or share what was included that day as I don't want to spoil the excitement for those in the next session in October. I will share the designs at a later date but for now, here is the cute box it all came in. 

The designs are adorable...all five of them!!! The kits were complete with fabric, fibers, wool, embellishments, etc. There were videos of a ....new to me.... starting stitch, how to mount your finished pieces, creative ways to display your items and the history of these two creative companies. A very enjoyable day and top notch in every way!!!

Now some finish-finished projects.....first up is Busy Bee Tuffet by Chessie n Me. I stitched this on a 32 ct. mystery blue linen with a mixture of WDW and Anchor flosses.

Next is Beehive Sampler by Threads Through Time, done on 40 ct. silk gauze, over one, with included DMC fibers. Tiny, tiny, tiny!!!!

And finally, A Harmony in Autumn, House on a Hill by Hands on Design. I stitched this on 28 ct. Wheat R&R linen with a combo of WDW, GAST and Valdani.  I am definitely trying to use fibers from stash,since I'm always in a hurry to start and don't want to wait for a delivery! I finished this as designed and stood it up in this little drawer you can find at Hobby Lobby in the floral section. Cathy had them in the drawers at Market and I thought it was so clever.

And I have more......I have finished the stitching on this, but need to frame....Heart and Compass by Erica Michaels. This was done on 40 ct. silk gauze (measures about 2X2) with a combo of GAST, WDW and DMC. I'm planning on giving this to my younger daughter as an anniversary present in October. The colors are so pretty in person, but subdued in this photo.

And last, but not least, is my start on Coming to America, the Women of the Mayflower by With Thy Needle and Thread. How many of you are sailing along on this???  I chose 40 ct. Sandstone linen for this and Victorian Motto Shoppe and GAST fibers. I have had to readjust as I go, because some dye lots aren't showing up that well  or are too lose to other shades. But, I am enjoying it tremendously and trying to stick to the 66 day schedule. Isn't that the cutest needle minder? I'm not showing the box and goodies it came in as I know they've been all over social media.

For my friends from OCMD/Salty Yarns......look closely at one of the seagulls on the left....I added a little something..can you guess what it is???

On a final note, I want to thank all of you who follow my blog and, especially those who take the time to comment.  Please be sure you are not set up as a 'no reply blogger' as I have no way to respond to you. Keep your spirits up...be safe....and thanks for stopping by and your "twisted threads" of friendship!  Oops..I almost typed Friendstitch!!!

Stasi