Gifted Gorgeousness October Link-up Post

       

Welcome to the October 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.

In September I worked on the Bothy Threads 12 Days of Christmas kit which was a Christmas present:

stitched on 32 count grey-blue linen

Here are the first two Days completed:

stitched on 32 count grey-blue linen

This next project is stitched from charts which were Birthday gifts and on fabric which was a giveaway gift.  It is my spooky conversion of the CCN Main Street designs.  I started my fourth shop this week.  The turquoise Bakery has become a grey-blue shop:

stitched on 32 count Murano in Charcoal Slate from Sparklies

I originally started at the bottom of the shop but the shade I had chosen was too bright so I moved to the top to try out a different set of colours there.  I have gone for 930 and 932 for the walls which will be filled in next time.

My focus project for Dark October is Just Nan's Scream House.  I started the internal roof pieces in September:

stitched on 28 count Wood Violet linen from Permin

Then stitched on two of the outside walls at the start of October:

stitched on 28 count grey linen

I switched to the CCN Main Street conversion for WIPGO Weekend and just stitched the external roof pieces each evening:

stitched on 28 count grey linen

Now 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 "October 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.

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Finally, there will be a Hallowe'en Trick or Treat Blog Hop as usual this year. I am sure you all know how it works but for those who need a reminder - here's a link to last year's

2020 Hallowe'en Trick or Treat Blog Hop

If you want to take part, just leave a comment here or email me if you are a "no reply" person. I need an email address for you to take part in this hop.

Finally Fully Finishing Fun for October

   

Hosted by Rachel the Ten Hour Stitcher

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).

I decided to try get a headstart on myself this month and framed these two small pieces on the 14th September.

The first one is from 2014 and shows Frankenstein's Kitty and the Bride of Frankenstein's Kitty both by Carand88:

This one is from 2017 and is Spooky Night by Shepherd's Bush:

The spider's web is a scrapbook cutout to add a little something as the frame was a little bit big for the design.

Then I got a big one framed, this was my Summer SAL Sampler with the Just Nan Junkies - Follow the Needle:

I mounted this on a page from a Monet Calendar and put it in a box frame.  There was an extra Ornament design included in the chart and I want to finish that and pop it on the corner of the frame.

Back to Hallowe'en for a special Mouse House.  You all know I've been stitching the Just Nan Mice for a while now and looking for some way to display them all.  I bought this raw wood house on eBay and painted it black.

Here's how it came:

Then I printed off some tiles, bricks and floorboards:

Stuck them to the sides and floors:

Ready for the mice to move in!

I am considering adding some wallpaper.

Of course I am keeping up with my Primitive Hare Celebrations and here is Mabon:

Finally, there will be a Hallowe'en Trick or Treat Blog Hop as usual this year. I am sure you all know how it works but for those who need a reminder - here's a link to last year's

2020 Hallowe'en Trick or Treat Blog Hop

If you want to take part, just leave a comment here or email me if you are a "no reply" person. I need an email address for you to take part in this hop.

October TUSAL and my Stitching Library

    

It's TUSAL time!

Here is my TUSAL jar with my current focus piece, Just Nan's Scream House:

Here's the full picture.  This is going to be my focus piece for October:

stitched on 28 count grey linen

What's on my Shelf?

This is a new feature I'm going to include on my TUSAL post until I run out of books! I started a Page on my Happy Dance blog for my Stitching Library and realised what a huge task it was so decided to break it down to one book per month. For the next four years...

Unintentionally, it's another Joan Elliott book this month.  I chose this one because Green Goddess is featured in the book

Title: The Ultimate Joan Elliott Cross Stitch Collection
Author: Joan Elliott
Publisher: Future Publishing
ISBN: 9781858704012

This bookazine (a cross between a magazine and a book) came out as a Limited Edition and sold out very quickly.  Copies started to exchange hands for large sums of money.  Despite all the designs becoming available on Joan's website.  Joan had been asked numerous times if it will be reprinted and says it was not a good experience and it won't be happening.  She does offer all the charts herself and it's actually easier to stitch from her charts than the book as the spine tends to break if you press down too hard!

You can see from the Contents page just how varied the subject matter is.  Obviously there are elegant ladies but there are also oriental designs, Christmas designs, traditional pictures and some sweet cards.

The back cover features nine different designs:

As well as the Green Goddess I used this book to create a special card for a friend:

We'd been stitching Round Robins together and joking about doing one which wasn't just faces.  Someone had done Mermaid Tails and I suggested we do various feet for one!  That was a joke but I thought the hands from the four seasonal fairies would make a nice card.

It definitely took some planning to get the placement just right.   I never did stitch the feet...

Finally, there will be a Hallowe'en Trick or Treat Blog Hop as usual this year. I am sure you all know how it works but for those who need a reminder - here's a link to last year's

2020 Hallowe'en Trick or Treat Blog Hop

If you want to take part, just leave a comment here or email me if you are a "no reply" person. I need an email address for you to take part in this hop.

The People Chose Leaves

    

This SAL is all about what you want to see on the blog. Each month I ask for suggestions for themes and then put them up to the members of the IHSW Group on FB to vote for their choice. This is what they have chosen:

October - Leaves

November - Funny

December - Fancy Finishes

When I saw this theme come up I instantly knew which piece I would show:

Sue Donnelly from Stitcher's Hideaway designed this as a companion piece to Hear the Sea Call which I stitched the previous year.  I used the supplied 3371 for the verse and Threadworx Chilli Peppers
which is a great variegated green, orange and red colour.  The fabric is 32 count Belfast Linen in Tobacco.

This one is Joan Elliott's Autumn Fairy.  I was experimenting with stitching over one so just did her face.  I substituted French Knots for beads.

Then mounted her in a page from an old calendar with some foil falling leaf stitckers:

Here's another Joan Elliott design, the Green Goddess:

I really enjoyed stitching her and then gave her to my Mum.

Now it's over to you.  All you have to do is make a post on the theme of Leaves, mention The People's Choice SAL (you can copy the picture I used at the top of this post and in my side bar) and my blog. Please link up using the URL of the actual blog post, not the home page of your blog.   I look forward to seeing what you all post.

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Finally, I need your suggestions for the next poll.  Anything, no matter how obscure, weird or random will go into the poll.  Keep the theme suggestions to a single word or two - so you could have Cats, or Green, or Holidays, or Warmth etc.   Really anything which could be illustrated in cross stitch.

September Stitch From Stash and Pie

 Let's start the post with some pie!

Quite a successful last few days of the month.  I completed the second block on the Bothy Threads 12 Days of Christmas and ticked off a box on my WIPGO Board for that.

stitched on 32 count grey-blue linen

Here are the first two Days completed:

My goal is to complete Day 3 by the end of the year.

Another last minute finish, this was the Summer Band Sampler SAL with the Just Nan Junkies.  I completed the stitching but needed time to sort out which beads I was going to use as I didn't have the embellishment pack.  Then I decided to stitch the little ornament Nan included in with the main chart:

stitched on 28 count Lilac Brittney evenweave

So many pretty stitches and different effects in this sampler

Not so silent hours in my case as this was stitched over the Summer Holidays with a very not silent child sitting next to me!

This line reminds me of my dear friend Vickie and her blog A Stitcher's Story

Love these tassels

This is the Ornament design she included:

Hopefully this will be FFO'd in time for Rachel's FFO Gallery.

I took the Tiny Modernist Greenhouse to work and continued with the outline:

stitched on 28 count grey-blue evenweave

The WIPGO Board is looking great now, with four numbers ticked off in September!

The numbers called for October included one spooky project and one non-spooky project so that one will have to wait until November.

Stitch From Stash looks like I spent a lot but it was all Birthday money so a nil return for September.

I have received three of the Nora Corbett Zodiac charts already and I'm waiting for the next three.  I do plan to collect all 12 but they will have to wait until Christmas now.

The Stitch It Picasso spend was an impluse thanks to Tiff and Rachel.  I bought the Dragons they were stitching and also the Zodiac series and some Haunted Houses.  Here's the link to the shop - Stitch It Picasso on Etsy

As Leonore guessed, it didn't take me long to start one!

Here is the first colour completed on Dragon 2:

32 count Autumnal Woodland by Crafty Kitten

I started with Dragon 2 because when I cut the piece of fabric I had, it was the perfect size for three of the dragons.  The dragons are different sizes and shapes so it make the best use of the fabric I am stitching them out of order.

Finally, there will be a Hallowe'en Trick or Treat Blog Hop as usual this year. I am sure you all know how it works but for those who need a reminder - here's a link to last year's

2020 Hallowe'en Trick or Treat Blog Hop

If you want to take part, just leave a comment here or email me if you are a "no reply" person. I need an email address for you to take part in this hop.

CCN Main Street Hallowe'en Conversion

 I promised a full post on my latest shop and here it is.

stitched on 32 count Murano in Charcoal Slate from Sparklies

This is the original design:

You can see that I took the original colours and just darkened them a bit.  The peachy-orange walls became peachy-brown.  The green awnings and door became lime-green and the trims a dark brown.  The upstairs curtains stayed the same purple.

Then I added the brass cauldron sign, some cauldrons in the window and a large cauldron bubbling away for demonstration purposes so passing witches could gather around it rather than be seated at a nice little patio table.  All of these extras were designed by me using pencil and graph paper.

Here are the three completed shops so far:

Originally I planned to put another tree to the left of this shop but then I discovered that Waxing Moon Designs do a whole series of houses which should fit perfectly!

So once I have stitched all ten of the shops I can choose four of these to go in the corners.

The WIPGO Board has called CCN Main Street again for October so I will be adding another shop next month.  The Bakery will be going next to Cauldrons, but of course it won't be a Bakery.  In fact it's not going to be anything edible!

Finally, there will be a Hallowe'en Trick or Treat Blog Hop as usual this year. I am sure you all know how it works but for those who need a reminder - here's a link to last year's

2020 Hallowe'en Trick or Treat Blog Hop

If you want to take part, just leave a comment here or email me if you are a "no reply" person. I need an email address for you to take part in this hop.