First Finishes for 2013

The last week has been very productive due to having several days off work and no school either.  Our daily routine has been - get up, eat breakfast, stitch/play, build Lego, eat, stitch/play, build Lego, eat, read blogs, bath child, read story, stitch, read blogs, sleep.  BLISS!

I won this chart from Shirlee, the Hilarious Easily Influenced Stitcher.  It arrived on 18th December, I ordered the fabric, satin thread and charms on the 19th, they arrived on the 21st, I started stitching on the 22nd and finished on the 2nd January.

I used all DMC but did get the DMC satin for the baubles which is a PITA to stitch with but looks great.  It would have been easier if I'd needed 2 strands because I use the secured needle method of stitching so less slippage but for coverage, three strands were needed.

I used a Just Buttons cardinal instead of the Mill Hill bird (cheaper and nicer) but as it was slightly bigger I used it on the top garland instead of the round wreath, which now has the red star. The variegated threads worked well on this.  The green is DMC 92 and the red 115 (of course!).

I do enjoy having a seasonal stitch to work on over Christmas and this was a lovely one.  The fabric is 28 count platinum linen and has distorted a little due to the satin stitching in the words so I think I'll get it professionally stretched and framed.  I got a framing voucher for Christmas so that's ok!

I'm thinking of getting something like this frame:

I usually go for the more subtle plain frames but at Christmas I do like a bit of grandness!  This design came from Cross Stitch Collection Christmas 1995 and has been on display every year since then.

My next finish was the Needlecraft Haven October Freebie Challenge.  Each month Christine chooses us a different freebie to stitch within the month.  As I was still stitching Hallowe'en designs I missed that month and thought I'd catch up actually during Christmas.

Here it is on its backing fabric:

And here it is on our tree:

Freebie from Balades et Broderie

Stitched over 1 on 28count evenweave.

I'm not a fan of stitching long straight borders so I changed the white border into a backstitched lace effect instead.  I really enjoyed stitching this design, more than I initially thought I would.  Stitching over 1 made all the difference for me, it's just so sweet and delicate!  Christine really does have great taste in choosing these designs for us each month.

The third finish (!!) is one of my new monthly challenges, the JBW Alphabet Cat from JCS Hallowe'en issue 2012.  I've decided to stitch one a month in appropriate colours for that month.  So here is January's offering:

The fabric is 28 count white sparkly evenweave and the backing is a piece of ribbon stitched onto some navy 14count aida for ease of finishing and to make the design stand out more.  I'm planning to get a little snowflake charm to attach before I stitch it together.

I also scrapbooked the Santa design I stitched in December:

Nice and simple, a silver holly border to cover the edges!  I also added a little cartouche in the gap after I'd taken the photograph, it says Ho Ho Ho!

This was a giveaway from Kaye of Kitten Stitching and one of my resolutions is to try stitch gifted designs sooner rather than later!  I've won several gorgeous designs over the last year and feel a little guilty that they sit in bags not being stitched.  So this was one, Shirlee's another and there are more on my "13 in '13" list.

Finally I had a lovely surprise at the end of December.  My sub's copy of World of Cross Stitching arrived and as I browsed through it I spotted a rather familiar sight (or site), my blog on the Blogger of the Month spot!! Apparently I offer "amazing SALs" as well as "stitchy gossip", is that like bitchy gossip only about my fellow stitchers?  LOL.  Anyway I'm really chuffed to be chosen for this spot, so Thank You WOCS.