Happy Thanksgiving

My Thanksgiving table set with my Autumn Candle.

and my Thanksgiving needlepoint WIP.  This is the bottom of Rebekkah's dress.

Have  a wonderful day!

Linda

Christmas...Check!

Here's what was sitting on my doorstep this afternoon

With a beautiful topper

and trim

and look who is none too happy that Halloween is over

Have a great week!

Linda

A Great Weekend

Hi there,

First,  let me show you something I have not seen since I was in high school.  Take a look at that score!  I am unashamedly a product of the 1972 Undefeated Miami Dolphins.  And believe me I have been waiting for those days to come back.  On Sunday we got a taste :-)

Here's what I was trying to stitch on Sunday..stitch guide by Amy

And here's my progress on the Pumpkin Parade.  Just finished the grassy hill and the fence.  Yes, it goes ALL the way across the canvas.  I still have more to finish before lesson #2 :/)

Have a great week,

Linda

Idiot Proof Compensation

Hi there,

I'm still working on the Pumpkin Parade...have found a new show (to me) which may carry me through   lesson #1.  Homeland..since it's now in season 5 and I'm on the second episode I'm good for a while.

Here's my compensating on the grass.  The idiot proof part is taking a contrasting thread (I'm using the grey from the bricks) and completing the pattern until you get over to the color that you're working on.

And here's where I'm stopping for the night

Have a great week,

Linda

Pumpkin Parade

Hi all,

I am determined to keep up this time, so I'm working on Lesson 1 every day at least for a few hours.

I've got the bottom of the canvas done, started the path and am working on the grass in the background.  I don't like random stitching so I do some grass then some of the bricks, etc.  It's time to switch to the brick path so naturally I had to blog :-)

Have a great weekend,

Linda

Change of Season

Hi there,

Here's the first good news...maybe hurricane season is  over

Here's the second part of good news... a new home study :-)

Don't worry, when I finish my Halloween homework I'll work on the Candy House.


Have a great week,

Linda

Cupcake Magic

Hi there,

This week I'm starting on the background so it doesn't hold me back at the end.  It's a plaid, so you do a running stitch ALL one way and then ALL the way the other way.  It's a lot of work but it pays off in the end.

Here's some photos of the cupcake.  I found I needed to do the cupcake in order to anchor the running stitches.  The french knots are flair.  I attached the beads with clear beading thread.

And here's the bigger picture...still tons of work to do

Have a great week,

Linda

We are Lucky

Hi there,

We've had some luck this week!  First off, my Mom fell for the 3rd time and "only" broke a bone in her hand.  Found and got an appointment (! ) with a  wonderful surgeon who did the surgery the next morning. For now she's happy to use her walker!  Next we are spared from Hurricane Joaquin and it is actually below 90 outside.  Doesn't take much to make me happy.  Last bit of happiness is... my new home study from Amy has shipped...now this is my 4th home study and I have yet to finish the first three (Roo Bear, Nativity and the Creche) but MAYBE MAYBE I will keep up this time.

Here's some more windows on the candy house.  I made a mistake, there are SEVEN WINDOWS.

Candy Cane Window

Lower left window

Have a wonderful weekend,

Linda

So Many Windows

Hi there,


First, a look at my Christmas finishing! Yep, you can officially hate me now!

And here's the candy house...SO far to go and SO many windows.  Here's 2 out of 5.  Going to work on the pink and green candies tonight (french knots) and then bead those candy canes.

No pressure here...gotta take it slow and NOT STOP!

and here's Emily when I tell her..."just hold on, I'm coming"...don't you wonder what she's thinking?

Have a great week,

Linda

Sure Took Long Enough

Hi there,

The pumpkin bullions on the bottom panel slowed me down.  My least favorite stitch!

Happy Sunday!

Linda

Coloring the Candy House

Hi there,

I had to find a way to keep up with the 95 plus sections in this project so as I finish a section I'm coloring it it in highlighter so I won't have to go back and re-check each little section.  No "coloring-in" until the section in complete!  Fortunately we have a great line drawing all numbered - remember paint by number??? Looks like I have a ways to go...

Moving on to the beaded shutters next...

Have a great week,

Linda

Making Progress on all Fronts

Hi there,

I am making progress with all my stitching and knitting projects.  I can't tell you how wonderful it is to have my Christmas projects at the finishers.  I've even finished my summer reading for my book club... Bleak House which was wonderful and quite a saga (and quite long).

Here's some photos of the candy house- I'm down to 81 areas to go!  Going to work on this lower left window section now.  There are so many beads and french knots in this piece that you need to spread them out or it will be overwhelming.

The pink will be dripping icing when I'm ALMOST DONE.  As in 3 more areas to go

 

And here's some knitting- this is going to be a blanket when it's done - 12 different blocks.  Naturally, I'm doing 2 blankets at the same time.  The other one is sage green.

AND I LOVE THIS!!!  Cashmere and Mohair.  Don't ask, don't tell about the price of the wool :-)

Have a great week!

Linda

Cutting Canvas

Hi there,

Don't you just love cutting your canvas?  It's so liberating.  It took a quiet room and almost an hour for me to cut, glue and stitch around a hole the size of a quarter.

Here we go...
Turn it over, glue the threads around the hole and CUT.  Keep breathing while you do this...

Stick the candle through to make sure it FITS

Then turn it over and more glue and restitch the hole

ALL DONE!  And to think I have the summer candle in my stash :-)

Moving on to something much less complicated...my alligator 

Have a great week,

Linda

Ready For Surgery

Hi there,

Today was a "recharge" day at our house so I finished the stitching on the autumn candle.

Here's the finished canvas- compensating the green background was the challenge!

Here we are in pre-op.. the last step is to cut out the center of the white circle on the right to make space for the candle

The surgical site

Tomorrow is the big day - need to rest up!


Have a great week!

Linda

Ok, This Is Sad

In my never ending quest to whittle down my works in progress and retrieve magnets , I have now come to my Autumn Candle.  This is so so sad...I'll bet I can complete this is 10 days. TOPS

 

Here's a closer look

The last thing I remember about this canvas was that I was sitting in pre-op with my husband about to have surgery and thinking..."wow the light in here is perfect!"

Have a great week,

Linda

Lost and Found

Have you ever wondered where your favorite magnets are???  Mine are on my unfinished projects and are now coming up for air.... Emily sure is glad to get out of the closet!

Have a great weekend!

Linda

Blingy Background

There's a reason stitch guides usually tell you to start in on the background at the beginning!  Because it usually takes the longest and once you get the pattern down it can get a little boring.  But...I'm almost done!  No, I did not like laying 2 threads (one of which is accentuate) in a diagonal pattern and no I did not like working with crystal braid (until I used a larger needle) but look at the effect.  Perfect!

I just need to finish that sky and lay in a few snowflakes and off it goes.  I'm considering revisiting Kelly Clark's Elegant Thanksgiving.  It's the same era as this canvas (2011) but still one of the most challenging pieces in my arsenal of unfinished projects.  Hope I'm up to it :-)

Have a great week,

Linda

On To Christmas!

Hi there,

All finished with the Stitching Club!  Now to finish my Christmas projects and have the rest of the year free for whatever I want to stitch on.

Here's a last look

Next up....

Just need to finish the sky and the snow.  Did all the remaining beading last night :-)

Have a great week!

Linda

Why Compensate?

Take a look at the left and the right.  The right looks much better (and finished) with the compensating stitch.  I left out the compensating stitch on the top so it looks more ragged like grass.  ALMOST THERE!!!

Have a great weekend!

Linda

Coming Around the Bend

Hi everyone,


Did you ever stress out that your border wouldn't "meet up" when you came to the end?  You know you have!  Here I am coming around to that point- we shall see...I'm keeping my fingers crossed

And here are ladies number 3 and 4 all done!

The girl on the right has a rolled up canvas to attach to  her bag - that's the last thing to do on the canvas.  Hopefully I can wrap this up next week!

Have a great weekend and Father's Day

Linda

Stitching Girls Season Finale

Hi everyone,

I don't know how many of my followers watch Game of Thrones, but it's a big Sunday night deal for me and Emily. (She does not like white walkers or battle scenes).  Sunday was the season finale.

Can Jon Snow and Sansa Stark really be dead???  I'm thinking not.  They like to kill them off on these shows (remember Downton Abbey?) but I'm counting on Bran Stark coming back with some magic from that weird tree he encountered and bringing his sister and brother (?) back.  Jon Snow actually being his brother is another story line... And Arya?  Who knows what is happening to her, but she ought to be able to save them after she digs up needle.   See the thread here?  ( Yes that's two bad jokes in a row) .  Two kids with magical powers that should be able to save their siblings?  Plus they're the good guys.

Daeneyrs is safe - she has those dragons and an unresolved love interest :-)  She also on the good side. If you can't (or don't want to ) get SUCKED in then you should really take a look at the costumes designed by Michele Carragher.  She's been featured in Inspirations magazine.  Wow!  Talk about big projects and she FINISHES them!

On to my stuff...Naturally I read Amy's newsletter and saw the new fall canvas by Melissa Shirley and SO...I pulled out my Melissa Shirley stitching girls to finish.  Just so I can pop the new ones on the stretcher bars....

The big unfinished picture..

Right now I'm working on girl #3..did her tote bag last night.  It's in velvet so it doesn't mess up her stitching.  Those beads on her dress??? .... her scissors.

Have a great day,

Linda

Finally Dressed

Hi there,

Some girls take a while to get dressed.  My second lady is one of those.  Ruth didn't stitch the last line of the dress on the bottom and that just didn't sit well with me.  So after a weekend collaboration with my stitching friends a solution was born!  When in doubt, bead it!

Here are the three of them...I haven't finished lady #3  yet and don't worry that crystal on girl #1 is not supposed to be floating in the air :)

Have a great week,


Linda

Mole Head

Hi there,

One of the great things about working with a kitted stitch guide is that you get to try different kinds of fibers.  I have worked with tulips before but never on my "animals".  It's one of the Gumnut Yarns and is mohair which gives it a very nice "furry" finish.

I am definitely going to use it on my bunnies!

Here it is on Mr. Mole - one strand on 18 is perfect!

Have a great week,


Linda