IHSW and a Joyous Minuet for Elizabeth Burrows

IHSW hosted by Joysze of Random Ramblings

The idea being to spend as much time as possible during the third full weekend of each month on your favourite pursuit - stitching!

This weekend I got LOADS done.  We all either have colds or are recovering from colds so from Friday until Sunday we hermitted together.  Apart from hubby who had a job on and had to keep us in wood for the burner.

On Friday I stitched my piece for the Hallowe'en Ornie SAL blog, this month it's Vampires.  When I chose the topic for February I had this piece in mind so I was a little surprised when I pulled the magazine out to stitch her and realised she is supposed to be a witch!  Anyway, minus the broom and the dinky little hat plus some fangs she will look alot more vampy.

Brooke's Books from JCS Hallowe'en 2013

She's not really bald, I have left the black until last.  I also need to order some metallic black for her cloak.  And some beads, so that's biting into next month's Stitch from Stash budget.  Biting - get it? hahaha

On Saturday I stitched more of the Vampire and all of Day Four of the Spooky Countdown by Primitive Hare:

Cheery little block isn't it?

Sunday was dedicated to Day One from The Little Stitcher 12 Days of Christmas but I'm saving that for my themed TUSAL post.

And on to the Joyous Minuet for Elizabeth Burrows.  Elizabeth stitched this design in 1725 and the Minuet was a very popular dance at that time so I'm sure she would have skipped a measure or two when she finished her piece.  She was only 16 so I'm not sure if she would have allowed to attend dances, or maybe that was considered quite grown-up and time for a match to be found?  She is quite proud of her date of birth and includes it in the sampler along with the year of stitching.  An older unmarried woman may not have done this.  I read somewhere or other that many antique samplers have the date of birth unpicked so as not to give away the lady's age to any would-be suitors!!

Here's what I said when I started to stitch her back in January:

As most of you know I have been assisting Nicola with her Scarlet Letter Year Challenge.  The Challenge officially ends on 20th February 2014 but we will be continuing with the blogs and the stitching because it's such a great group of stitchers.  Anyway, there will be a Grand Prize Draw on the 20th for everyone who has completed a Scarlet Letter Sampler during the year.  So how embarrassing would it be if all I have to show is one large outlined band and a bit of blue? 

So when I won Elizabeth Burrows in the Advent Giveaways I knew I must try my best to stitch her!  The Scarlet Letter website says this about her "This small early eighteenth century English alphabet sampler is actually more challenging than it appears at first glance."

The 1725 on the frame refers to the date Elizabeth stitched her sampler, but this is the really exciting bit - in the bottom row it says 179, this is because Elizabeth also includes her year of birth 1709 but rather than use all four digits she uses 179 as that was how the year was pronounced then (Seventeen Nine, rather than Seventeen Oh Nine).  Now anyone who has my email address may recognise those numbers, they are my date of birth which I incorporated into my email addy!!  So it seems most serendipitous that this sampler chose to come to me to stitch her!  We are made for each other!

I used the 35 count linen that Nicola kindly provided me for this one and Janet Carsels.  The threads are three from Olde Willow Linen Threads which I won in a giveaway from Riona.  The fourth is a DMC.  I finished this one in plenty of time for the end of the blog, a whole two days early!!  The most challenging part was the counting over three for some of the bands.  You need to keep a good rhythm going for those.

Finally, World of Cross Stitching magazine are continuing their series entitled "Blogging Friends of Jo's" in this month's mag they feature Justine:

So why not pop over and say Hi to her!

Counting on with the Countdown

The third block of Spooky Countdown by Primitive Hare was very stitching-intense. Virtually the whole block is stitched so it took a little longer.

I made one small change, the chart doesn't make it clear which colour the backstitch lines are to be stitched in.  The cover illustration is quite small but I could see that the lines were orange.  However the only orange listed is 3776 which is used for the pumpkin stitching.  So I used 3774 which is a darker orange.

I am also making great progress on Elizabeth Burrows for the Scarlet Letter Year Challenge.  I have only one row of Montenigren Stitch and I'm done!  Here is the bottom half of the sampler so I don't spoil the grand unveiling of the finished piece!

I had to ask Marsha the designer what the bottom four rows said as it wasn't 100% clear to me.  They are:

ELIZABETH BURROWS SHE

MADE THIS IN THE YEAR

1725 AND WAS BORN AP

RIL THE 13 179 GB AB EB

What confused me was the April split over two lines in two colours!  The 179 is actually 1709 but she would have pronounced it Seventeen Nine so stitched it that way.  And by coincidence my Birth Date is 17/9 (17th September), this sampler was meant for me!  The final three pairs of initials are most likely her family as the all have the last initial B.

February is such a short month isn't it?  I knew I had to finish this piece by the 20th which would leave the rest of the month for my other stitching, specifically the Little Stitcher 12 Days and the Hallowe'en Blog Hop.  But of course there will barely be a week left of the month rather than the usual 10 or 11 days!

Finally my arm is aching where Joysze has twisted it up behind my back to join the Stitching Bandits' Chatelaine Challenge.  They don't call themselves the Bandits for no reason!  I really can't afford or justify buying an entire Mandala design this year so I said I would stitch one of the smaller freebies just to show willing.  I also said I wouldn't take up a place on the group blog, I'd post via Joysze.  But no, she has to send me an invite to the blog!  Of course it would be rude not to accept LOL.  Follow our their progress by clicking on the cute racoon creature below:

The Continuing Story

of my three current WIPS.

Some people rotate, some people OAAT (one at a time), I just seem to muddle along!  Usually I have a small project for the daytime when the boys are about and a large project for the evening when there is peace and quiet.  But as I am stitching to a deadline I have been stitching on Elizabeth whenever I can.  Here is my latest progress:

Several people have admired the colours.  They are from Olde Willow Linen Threads except for the pale pink which is DMC 152.  I planned to use the Olde Willow yellow but it blended into the fabric too much.

This is an unusual part of the rotation - I stitch while the Small Boy is in the bath, so one or two lengths each day.  Slow but steady progress.  Here is a close-up of the border I am currently stitching:

If you look back to the previous post you will see how much I have stitched in four days.  Slow but steady!

I did make time at the weekend to complete another block on my Primitive Hare Spooky Countdown.  Giovanna and I are stitching one block a week on this:

I decided to stay with the 32 count over 2.  I have changed the DMC 3012 to the slightly darker 3011 when it is stitched alone on the fabric as in the leaves.  It looked fine for the face details but didn't show enough against my fabric.

I have been keeping a close eye on the Comments to my blog.  They are coming in thick and fast so I apologise if I haven't replied to your recent ones.  If you said "lovely stitching" please assume I am very grateful and say "Thank You" if I don't get a chance to reply!!  Anyway, I recently got my 5000th comment, woohoo!!  This came from Gwen of Guava Gems.  Gwen is one of our Scarlet Letter Year stitchers and does some lovely stitching, you should check out her First Finish for 2014, a gorgeous mini-sampler which fits into a little tiny tin case.  There will be a little something in the post to Gwen.  After I finish my SL sampler!!

I've being doing alot of those "Which character in XYZ are you?" quizzes on FB just lately.  They are so much fun!  Apparently I am "Present Day David Bowie" in the "Which Era David Bowie are you?" quiz.  It says everybody loves me and hangs on my every word!  I was joking with my son and hubby that I got this result because I ticked "I don't have friends, I have followers".  The Large Boy asked how many followers I have now, quick as a flash I said "454".  A little too quickly it would seem from the look on his face!  Hubby and I just couldn't help laughing at his expression, a real WTF?  moment!  Apparently Mothers are not supposed to know exactly how many people follow them...

Bizarre - Planet Rock has just started playing a David Bowie track as I was finishing typing that, Life on Mars!

Finally, today is the last day to send me your photos for the Secret Stitching Sweetheart Blog Hop.  I currently have 13 which would be most unlucky, we managed 14 the last two years!   So send them in please!

Starting a New SAL

because I don't have enough to stitch already!!

The new SAL is actually part of my planned stitching this year so that's OK.  Back in 2013 Chiara of The Grey Tail sent me a signed copy of Spooky Countdown by Primitive Hare.  Giovanna also has this chart and so we decided to do a little SAL, one motif a week until Hallowe'en.  By starting on 31st January this actually gives us 30 weeks to stitch the motifs and 10 weeks spare to stitch the top and bottom pieces plus fnishing (and catching up on missed weeks!)

Here is the finished design:

And my progress so far:

I found it very hard to decide which fabric to use, 28 over 1 or 32 over 2.  Anyway I started on 32 over 2 and it seems rather large to me.  Maybe this weekend I'll do a test piece on 28 over 1 and see how that looks.

My main focus has been my Scarlet Letter Sampler, Elizabeth Burrows.  I really want to finish this by 20th February but it will be pushed to the wire!  I do have the 19th off work so maybe I will spend all day frantically stitching and post a finish at 11.59pm.

The other piece I am working on is Noel Blanc by A Mon Ami Pierre.  I stitch one or two lengths of thread each evening while supervising the Small Boy's bath.  The first photo is from 20th January:

 

and here is today's photo (16 days of stitching later)

This is the full width of the piece and it is now too wide to fit on the scanner so I have to photograph it.  I like this piece alot and have every intention of finishing it to display next Christmas.

Famous Friends - WOCS magazine recently featured a link to IHSW on their FB page as a rather brilliant new idea (only slightly spoiled by FB deciding to add the WIPocalypse logo not the IHSW one!!).  This raised lots of interest among their FB readers and one lady said she would like to join in but didn't know how to start a blog.  Ever helpful I sent her a copy of my "How to Create a Blog" crib sheet.  And here is the result - Pam's Stitching Diary.  She has posted some of her finishes, including a gorgeous lifelike Alsatian dog.  I am not a dog-lover but if I was forced I would have an Alsatian, I think they look like such intelligent animals.  Obviously not as intelligent as cats but they are only dogs LOL.

Finally, only three days to sign up for the Secret Stitching Sweetheart Blog Hop.  Just send me a photo of something suitable to be sent to another stitcher as a token of friendship/love before 10th February.  More details found on the link from the Big Heart to the right of the blog.

Stitch from Stash January Update

Stitch from Stash is hosted by Mel from Epic Stitching

Essentially the idea behind Stitch from Stash is that we are limited to spending US$25 (or £15) per month.  There are various exemptions (Birthday money, existing mag subs, clubs etc) but the idea is not to try and pervert the rules and stitch some of that stash!  I will be posting on or around the 20th of each month because that is when I get paid!

Money from Christmas 2013                  : £ 40.00

The Little Stitcher 12 Days of Christmas : £ 15.95
Mirabilia Fairy Tales                               : £  4.99
Just Nan Red Hat                                   : £  4.00
One Skein DMC                                    : £  0.90

Balance                                                  : £ 14.16
January budget                                       : £ 15.00
Available to carry over into February      : £ 29.16

Allowed purchases:
World of Cross Stitching mag sub for three issues : £ 8.99


So I haven't even touched my January £15 because it's all been Christmas money so far!  And yes, you did read that correctly, I spend 90p on one skein of DMC.  That is US$1.49 and is how much my LNS charges.  If I need more than a couple of skeins I send away from t'internet but for just one skein I bite the bullet and support the local store.  It's not even a proper LNS either, I have the choice of a small haberdashery dept in a department store, a knitting shop or a general craft shop.

New Starts from Stash: Just Nan Lady Scarlet's Christmas, Scarlet Letter Elizabeth Burrows

WIPs or UFOs worked on: A Mon Ami Pierre Noel Blanc

Just Nan -Lady Scarlet's Christmas

Scarlet Letter - Elizabeth Burrows

A Mon Ami Pierre - Noel Blanc

I also acquired some more stash, but it was a gift!  A while back Susan from Yellow Flower Meadow showed some lovely Nutmeg Cottage finishes on her blog.  She offered to send me the gently used charts which was very kind of her.  The parcel arrived today and contained not only three little cottage charts but also the Prairie Schooler Santa I had admired in the same post (I loved the Sun and Moon motifs on that one), a copious amount of white thread (B5200 and Blanc) and some orphaned Mill Hill beads!  She had remembered that I commented once I was happy to run a home for abandoned Mill Hills now alot of people are switching to Delicas.

Speaking of gifts, I was also sent this lovely Stitcher's Tray from the Mouse House:

Here it is full of my stitching necessities

And here is a close-up of the cute little dragon needle-minder!

Finally, the sign-ups are open for February's Secret Sweetheart Blog Hop.  Basically you send me a photo of a suitable stitched picture which I will then forward to a mystery participant.  You will get a photo yourself, display on your blog and wait for your Secret Sweetheart to reveal her identity!  Click on the Heart photo to the right for more details.

First Happy Dance of the Year!

My first start of the year is my first finish too!  Just Nan's Lady Scarlet's Christmas:

Stitched on 28 count platinum linen using the recommended threads except for the blue stockings and the reds in the lettering, the berries and the ladybirds.  I also stitched the mice and the ladybirds over 1.  And I made the Gingerbread Men smile.

I also have the triple series of Lady Scarlet's Journey to stitch so I'm not sure how to finish this one yet.  I have this nice red tuck in my stash which I won in Kath's Giveaway so I popped it in there for the time being:

I looked up how to make these and it's not too difficult, you just need to be able sew a neat line!  I might have a go at making one with some Christmas fabric as this one is just a tiny bit too small.

So having finished one, I have to start one!!  As most of you know I have been assisting Nicola with her Scarlet Letter Year Challenge.  The Challenge officially ends on 20th February 2014 but we will be continuing with the blogs and the stitching because it's such a great group of stitchers.  Anyway, there will be a Grand Prize Draw on the 20th for everyone who has completed a Scarlet Letter Sampler during the year.  So how embarassing would it be if all I have to show is one large outlined band and a bit of blue? 

So when I won Elizabeth Burrows in the Advent Giveaways I knew I must try my best to stitch her!  The Scarlet Letter website says this about her "This small early eighteenth century English alphabet sampler is actually more challenging than it appears at first glance."

Here is my progress after two days of stitching:

It's an interesting chart.  It looks lopsided on paper but that's because some of the rows are stitched over two and some over 3, like this row.  Have you ever stitched over 3?  It's like waltzing - 1,2,3 - 1,2,3 stitch, 1,2,3 - 1,2,3 stitch.  I'm using some of the 35 count linen Nicola sent me so the over 3 works out to about 11 or 12 per inch.  I'm also using some Olde Willow Linen Threads I won in giveaway by Riona.  The red and blue are a very good match, the green is darker and there is a yellow instead of the charted pink but it will give the same effect of a much paler colour.  Perfect!  Stitching with linen threads is very different to silks or even cotton but it does make me feel more in touch with Elizabeth, I'm sure she didn't have DMC or Thread Heaven in 1725!

Here's the finished picture from the SL website:

The 1725 on the frame refers to the date Elizabeth stitched her sampler, but this is the really exciting bit - in the bottom row it says 179, this is because Elizabeth also includes her year of birth 1709 but rather than use all four digits she uses 179 as that was how the year was pronounced then (Seventeen Nine, rather than Seventeen Oh Nine).  Now anyone who has my email address may recognise those numbers, they are my date of birth which I incorporated into my email addy!!  So it seems most serendipitous that this sampler chose to come to me to stitch her!  We are made for each other!

Finally it's just over a month to Valentine's Day so it must be time to launch the 

.

Secret Stitching Sweetheart Blog Hop

 

It's really very simple, all you have to do is email me a picture of something you have stitched which is suitable for a stitching friend on Valentine's Day.  It could be a heart, or a pair of cute creatures, or the word "love" or anything which warms your heart. Really anything you think a fellow stitcher would like to receive in her email Inbox.   It can be something you've stitched in the past or something you've made especially for this year.  It could also be quilted or sewn this year as I know some of my followers do other crafts too.

Send me the email by 10th February.

When I have all the emails I will randomise them and send one to each participant on 13th February.  Then on 14th February you must post the picture you receive onto your blog under the heading

 Secret Stitching Sweetheart. 

There will be a list on my blog of everyone joining in, so check out all the blogs and find out who got your picture and identify yourself  in their comments as their

Secret Stitching Sweetheart. 

Does that make sense to everyone?  I hope so!

If you'd like to be involved then leave a comment on this post, I'll be putting little reminders up from time to time and will email on 9th February to make sure you send the pic in time.