A blog trying to focus on all the nice things in life, those moments when everything turns out right. Finding the perfect fabric for that chart you love, the ideal sampler quote, just the right picture in all the 1000s of magazines you own. Meeting people who share your interests and obsessions and totally understand why you NEED that chart when you already have enough to last until you're 104
Each month we have to share the projects we want to complete before the End Of The World. Since 2011 I have chosen a number of projects to focus on that year, starting with my "11 in '11" and increasing to "24 in '24" for last year. For 2025 I have decided not to attempt this. I want to focus on 2 larger pieces and then spend the rest of my stitching time on the series I have started. This month I stitched on 2 of them.
First up was Fairy Idyll from Mirabilia, her first outing for this year. I worked on this portion:
stitched on 32 count Vinyard Murano from Crafty Kitten
The purple bedfrills are a conversion to co-ordinate better with my fabric. The charted colours are shades of pink. You can see the large rabbit appearing too.
After her I moved back to my oldest WIP, the Art Nouveau Head by Custom Crafts which has been called four times so far this year:
stitched on 14 count white Aida
I'm working away on the golden colours in her headpiece at the moment.
Finally, Measi always gives us a topic to discuss:
March – Which are your favourite three designers?
According to my Happy Dance blog, Just Nan is by far and away the top designer for finishes, over 110 to date. Joan Elliott has 31 entries and Mirabilia/Nora Corbett 27 combined.
I think I would agree they are my Top Three. When I first started this blog I listed those three plus Lavender & Lace and Teresa Wenztler as my favourites as well as my ambition to stitch a Chatelaine one day!
I would possibly add Circle Cross for her blackwork, maybe to replace Joan Elliott as I haven't stitched so much of her newer designs.
For my Smalls stitching this year, I will be stitching the 12 Days of Christmas from Annie Beez. They don't take long which then gives me time to stitch some blackwork or another small from my list.
Here's Day 3:
stitched on 28 count black Jobelan evenweave
Finally, once I finished Day 3, I moved back to Winter's View by Susan Penny from Cross Stitcher magazine.
IHSW or International Hermit and Stitch Weekend always starts on the third Friday of the month. It's a chance to lock yourself away and focus on your stitching for the weekend. You can take part on your blog or via the Facebook page - IHSW on Facebook.
This year I am attempting International Hermit and Blackwork. I do love blackwork and have a couple of projects I want to try fit in to my rotation without being on the WIPGO Board.
My main blackwork piece is the Halloween Blackwork from The Steady Thread. It went from here:
to here:
stitched on 32 count tea-dyed linen
(the fabric is very bleached out in this photo, the "before" is more accurate)
This is the part I worked on over the weekend:
Lots of lovely green leaves, perfect for Spring!
On Sunday morning I continued with this year's Temperatue SAL. Just a very simple column of colour for each day. Charting the lows for the night time and the highs for the day time.
stitched on 14 count Aida banding
Finally the next IHSW will be 18th - 20th April so make sure you note the date in your diary or come and join us in the Facebook Group - IHSW on Facebook. If you don't do Facebook then you can check in here by leaving a comment on my post.
Welcome to the March Gifted Gorgeousness link-up. The link-up date continues to be the 15th and I will keep the link-up open until the end of each month so you have plenty of time if you are late posting.
The format remains exactly the same, there is a list of rules on the main sign-up page if you want to check what is required but basically anything connected to the word "gift" is allowed, whether it was a gift TO you or is a gift FROM you.
My focus piece for the first half of the month was a gift, the lovely Fairy Idyll from Mirabilia. I couldn't wait to get back to her this month.
stitched on 32 count Vinyard Murano from Crafty Kitten
Here's the portion I've been stitching this month:
I converted the purple colours to co-ordinate better with the fabric.
My evening piece, has ever, is Annie Beez's 12 Days of Christmas
stitched on 28 count black Jobelan evenweave
This one isn't a gifted piece but I'll be stitching it on the 13th of every month for Dark Thirteen so you'll see this every GG post too.
This is Halloween Tiny Town from Heart in Hand Designs:
stitched on 32 count Tobacco Belfast linen
I'm using the DMC conversion for this one.
Finally it is your turn to show us your Gifted Gorgeousness for the month. Please use your name or your blog name in the field and NOT the words "March Update" so I can easily see who has linked up this month. And link to the actual post, not just your blog. It is easier if you copy and paste the link, rather than typing freehand.
This SAL is designed to motivate us all to do something with that box of Finished pieces instead of just storing them under the bed. We will all be linking up on Rachel's blog on or after the 10th of each month (10 Hour Stitcher - 10th of the month).
After sorting out all my frames last month, I matched two of them up with some 2024 finishes.
First up was Moonshadow Mini by Full Circle Designs in a nice gold frame:
Then Quiet Hour Sampler from La Broderie in a deep wooden frame:
Here they are both together so you can compare sizes:
I then decided to try something a little more challenging, one of my Annie Beez 12 Days of Christmas stockings.
I photocopied and cut out the template provided, made two on stiff card and then realised it was going to be quite tricky to mount the stocking neatly on the card. So instead I drew round it on the reverse of the backing fabric and then sewed the two pieces together (right sides on the inside), folded over the top edges to make a nice hem, turned it the right way out and voila!
Here's how the front looks:
Finally, I am undecided whether to attach some trim along the top or not. It does need a little hanger but I'll wait until I've finished a few more. I hope to do at least one per month...
This year I want to focus on 2 larger pieces and then spend the rest of my stitching time on the series I have started. The order I stitch them in is going to be determined by the WIPGO Board. Jessie-Marie calls two numbers each month and those will be the projects I stitch that month.
In February, the numbers 7 and 8 were called. These related to Cottage Garden Samplings Year in the Woods series and the Art Nouveau Head.
The Swans were a finish for February:
stitched over 1 on 25 count Cirrus evenweave from Chromatic Alchemy
This is where I finished the Head for the month:
stitched on 14 count White Aida
For March, the numbers 9 and 24 were called. These relate to Mirabilia's Fairy Idyll and the Art Nouveau Head (again).
I couldn't wait to start stitching on Fairy Idyll again this year. Here's where I started her:
Here's where I am now, I've been working on the purple bed flounces. These are a colour conversion to suit my fabric:
stitched 32 count Vinyard Murano from Crafty Kitten
Finally, my evening project will be the Annie Beez 12 Days of Christmas Stockings. Here is Day 3 so far:
I spent the first half of the month working on Cottage Garden Samplings Year in the Woods and have now completed The Swans next to The Fox:
stitched over 1 on 25 count Cirrus evenweave from Chromatic Alchemy
After that I moved on to the Art Nouveau Head, which is my oldest WIP.
I went from here:
to here:
stitched on 14 count white Aida
Here's my evening pie:
The second stocking took a lot longer that the first one. Partly because it was the Christmas holidays when I started the first one so I had more time to do things in the day which gave me more stitching time in the evening.
You can see the two main projects in my Smalls post earlier today.
Finally, Stitch from Stash, a lovely no-spend month.
