October Smalls

The Smalls SAL is hosted by Mary's Thread

Usually, I use the JBW 12 Days of Christmas for my Smalls, but this is October and that means only one thing:

I have a number of spooky smalls, mostly from this year's Just Cross Stitch Halloween Ornament Special.

Mosaic Halloween by Twisted Willow Design

Stitched on 32 count Platinum linen

Autumn Mouse Scissor Roll by Just Nan

stitched on 32 count Cognac linen and 32 count Vintage Country Mocha

Framed Fright by Barefoot Needleart

stitched over 1 on 28 count Moondust evenweave from Crafty Kitten

Happy Halloween by StitchyFish

stitched over 1 on 28 count linen from a Crafty Kitten grab bag

I have left this photo uncropped so you can see the narrowness of this scrap of fabric!  It was just too good to throw away.  The original design had a bat but I decided this was enough, it will make a nice header for a scrapbook page.

I used the same Victoria Motto Sampler Violet Grey for the letters and 310 for the spider and webs.

And now, something not spooky at all, some little Bubbles of Happiness from Lin Pulsion:

stitched over 1 on 25 count white evenweave

Finally, the annual Trick or Treat Hallowe'en Blog Hop starts tomorrow!  My post will go up in the morning (GMT) and the participants will be posting throughout the day depending on their time zone.  So remember to check back if a blog hasn't posted to start with.

October WIPocalypse What to Stitch Next?

  

WIPocalypse is hosted by Measi's Musings

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 "20 in '20" for this year.  This month I only stitched on 1 of them but I did have a finish!

October was always going to be a weak month for WIPocalypse because it's Dark October where I focus on my Spooky stitching.

Only one piece was on my 20 in '20 list and that was Just Nan's Autumn Mouse Scissor Roll.  I showed the piece rolled up and unrolled before, so here are a couple of close-up photos:

stitched on 32 count Vintage Country Mocha linen

I love each of the little scenes with the cute mice running around.

This photo shows the part which ends up inside the roll.

The phrase says

"Where pumpkins hide, scissors slide"

because the panel at the end becomes the scissor pocket.

The rest of the projects I have been stitching are not on my WIPocalypse list, but it's OK, they are still keeping the End of the World at bay!

The first one is Just Nan's Scream House.  I decided to stitch the internal walls first.  This is Netty Nightshade who is directing the decorating with her faithful cats at her side and her pet spider in her hand.

stitched on 28 count Wood Violet linen from Permin

The fabric is actually this colour:

At bathtime I have been stitching this little small on a scrap of fabric. This is Happy Halloween by StitchyFish Designs:

stitched over one on 28 count linen from a Crafty Kitten grab bag

This is a freebie I have been stitching whenever I have five minutes spare!  The title is  Bubbles of Happiness from Lin Pulsion:

stitched over 1 on 25 count white evenweave

I only have 6 more bubbles and I am caught up.  Then it's just one bubble per week which will be easy.

Measi always gives us a topic to discuss:

October – How do you choose what you’re going to stitch on next?

As most people know, I have my rotation which I set at the start of the year to make sure I stitch on my WIPocalypse projects.  This year it has been:

12 Days of Christmas

Scary Apothecary

Alice in Wonderland

Discworld

Project chosen by Tiny Decisions app

Except for Joan Elliott July and Dark October!

One of the things I decided back in 2015 was that I was going to stitch more gifted designs which was the start of the Gifted Gorgeousness SAL.  I was being given so many nice charts that I wanted to make them a priority  When I am planning my WIPocalypse lists I do give precedence to charts which have been a gift to me.

I also try not to have more than one design from each designer, with the exception of Just Nan!  I have been determined to stitch more of the chart collection I have so I have been choosing a different sampler every two months.  The lovely Leonore and I stitched Morning Meadow in the summer and we are about to stitch Snowfire Christmas starting in November.  If anyone would like to join us, please let me know!

I also work through my Just Nan Smalls that I stitch for Maynia, stitching on one until it is finished.

In between that, I see what is calling.  When the Just Cross Stitch Halloween Ornament Special arrived this year there were a lot of designs I really liked in it so I decided to stitch a few of them this October.

Making plans is fun, but sometimes you have to go off plan and stitch what you want!

Finally, last chance to sign up for the Hallowe'en Trick or Treat Blog Hop.  I am sure you all know how it works but for those who need a reminder - here's a link to last year's

2019 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 IHSW

 

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.

Once again, I worked on Friday so my weekend got off to a late start, bath-time to be exact!  This is Framed Fright by Barefoot Needleart from the Just Cross Stitch Hallowe'en Ornament Special:

stitched over 1 on 28 count Moondust evenweave from Crafty Kitten

I used a Victorian Motto Sampler thread called Violet Grey for the Castle, it is subtly variegated and was a gift from Beth in IL.  The tree and bat are DMC 310.  There is supposed to be an ornate frame all the way around it but I didn't fancy stitching all that yellowgold so I will use a scrapbook frame instead.

I finished that one on Saturday evening so I started a new bath-time stitch, another one of the designs from this year's Just Cross Stitch Hallowe'en Ornament Special.  This is Happy Halloween by StitchyFish Designs:

stitched over 1 on 28 count linen from a Crafty Kitten grab bag

Basically I am using up scraps of fabric and choosing designs that suit the fabric colour.

Saturday and Sunday daytime was dedicated to my Just Nan Autumn Mouse Scissor Roll and we have another finish!

Scissor Roll stitched on 32 count Vintage Country Mocha linen

Here are the four sides of the roll when it is all rolled up.  The lining wool is doubled over at the pumpkin end to make a little pocket for a pair of scissors.  These ones are a little bit too tall.

I am not really a fan of sewing but it didn't take too long to blanket stitch all the way around.  The whole piece is 10 inches long when unrolled.  There was the added incentive of my next new start when I finished it too!

This has been my Unicorn chart for many years (along with Mirabilia's Touching the Autumn Sky).  This was a Limited Edition for Silver Needle and I was lucky enough to be sent this chart by a destashing stitcher earlier this year.  It had to go to the top of the list!

stitched on 28 count Wood Violet linen from Permin

SCREAM HOUSE!!  Yes, I got the Scream House chart and finishing instructions!  The project is charted for 30 count linen from Weeks Dye Works which is incredibly difficult to find here.  I wanted to go slightly larger so you can see all the details so when I went off to the needlework shop to collect my Owls of October II, I had a rummage through the linens to see what I could find.  This is called Wood Violet and is more purple than it is showing.  It's a Permin linen which means it is stiffer than Zweigart but that's OK because stiff is better for 3D creations.  

The charts calls for DMC and some Weeks Dye Works threads.  Four of them have good substitutions in DMC but the 5th is for the borders so I dug out this silk by Stef Francis which appears to be called "49" and was a gift from Mouse.  It is mostly all purple and pink apart from that patch of yellowygreen in the middle.  It is nice to be using gifted threads.  I have 13 days left this month, let's see how much I can stitch by the 31st.

Finally, the next IHSW will be 20th - 22nd November 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.

July Pie

It's always nice to get the "extra" day at the end of a 31 day month, it feels like a stitching bonus.  It's not been long since I posted (yesterday) but I have finished another piece on one of my monthly SALs so I have something to show you.

Happy Hallowe'en by Imaginating

And the whole thing:

This could actually be a finish but there are various words and phrases around the edge which I will be stitching for the September theme.

As you saw yesterday, my Ten-a-Day project is almost finished and a number of people asked if I will do another project in the same way.  The answer is Yes, I started one on the 1st July!  It was obvious that Spring in the Square was not going to take a year so I thought the halfway point of the year was the perfect time to start Summer in the Square.  Here is my progress after 31 days:

Summer in the Square

Just for comparison, here is Spring at 31 days:

I don't know if this is going to work, but remember my Book of Spells?  Before I had it framed I got the finished piece colour-photocopied with the idea of making a book cover.  I found a "fake book" box in a homeware store which was roughly the right size and finally got round to covering it at the weekend.  I trimmed the paper to size and glued it to the box.  It's not a perfect fit as the box spine is bigger than the Book of Spells spine but it's good enough.

(edit - that worked, if you are listening with the sound turned up you'll hear the Small Boy whooping with joy in the background!)

Onto pie for the month.  Not surprisingly Joan Elliott dominated this month with 22 days dedicated to 3 of her projects.  Truly a Joan July!

Spendingwise we have started a new Stitch from Stash. same rules as the first six months.  My budget stays the same and I won't be taking credit for finishing.  Unless someone is going to give me real money for finishing a project!

This month I treated myself to two Jardin Prive charts,  the Needlework ABC which has been a mystery SAL this year:

And this Hallowe'en design which might be my choice for the Hallowe'en Ornie Blog when I complete Happy Hallowe'en:

I also succumbed to a subscription for the Australian magazine Inspirations thanks to Janet Granger showing the most wonderful etui on her blog - Janet Granger.  It's absolutely stunning, it's not cross stitch so I'm highly unlikely to make it but the magazine is a thing of beauty and I have a little bit of extra spending money this month so I spent it!  Luckily magazine subscriptions don't count for SFS.

July
2 Jardin Prive Charts	£13.77
Inspiration	£30.00
Total	£43.77

Finally, there will be a Tenuous Shoehorn Linky Party on Tuesday 8th August and the theme will be "Loved Ones".   8th August was my Nana's Birthday which is why I chose that day for the Linky Party and I'll be showing a couple of projects that relate to her.  Some of us have lost loved ones this year; people and furbabies; some people have been celebrating special wedding anniversaries, some have new babies or grandbabies and some have children growing up (too) fast.  So there's plenty of scope for stitching there!  Get your thinking caps on and be ready to link up on the 8th August.

Edward -

I thought I said no more birds; but this morning I woke up to find no less than seven swans all trying to get into our tiny goldfish pond.  I'd rather not think about what happened to the goldfish.  The whole house seems to be full of birds - to say nothing of what they leave behind them.
Please, please STOP.
Your Emily

12 Days of Christmas (Correspondence) - John Julius Norwich

Swans are beautiful to look at but can be very vicious.  Plus, they mate for life so where does the odd number come from?  Poor left out swan.

I stitched the swan using two strands and the background using one.  I really like this effect as the swan stands out much more.

Here's where I was last month:

And here's where I am now:

I've done a lot more of the left hand angel and almost completed the left-hand border too.  Just a few more green leaves and the tiny holly berries.

I stitched one of my Hallowe'en pieces this month, Happy Hallowe'en by Imaginating:

We have a little Ghostie and a leafy L too.

I'm in such complete control with my Ten-a-Day project that I decided to start another one!  Reaching the half-way point of the year on Spring in the Square I could see that I should finish it well before the end of the year.  So what better time to start Summer in the Square?

Here is Spring in the Square at 187 days:

Summer in the Square at 6 days:

And the current 30-a-day Royal Blossoms at 19 days:

Finally, thanks for the sympathy over Photobucket!  I am even having problems downloading my own photos from the site.  I had to resort to photographing the screen for one or two photos!

I am slowly working my way though 2012 at the moment.  All my finishes are on my desktop but some of my WIPs are not, usually ones where I used the scanner instead of the camera.

Dear Edward

Whatever I expected to find when I opened the front door this morning, it certainly wasn't six socking great geese laying eggs all over the doorstep.  Frankly, I rather hoped you had stopped sending me birds - we have no room for them and they have already ruined the croquet lawn.  I know you meant well, but - let's call a halt, shall we?
Love, Emily

12 Days of Christmas (Correspondence) - John Julius Norwich

And we are back to birds!  Luckily for me, there was only one goose-a-laying to stitch this month:

I got all the goose and her nest completed and started on the lettering before I realised the entire picture was one row too low!  So I just stitched the lettering one row higher and it touches the nest but looks fine.  I have also noticed that I haven't stitched the bottom right hand corner bits.

Here is the whole piece last month:

And here it is now:

You can see I have finished all the metallic in the border and stitched some green vine, I've also added some stitches to the left hand Herald Angel.

I've also stitched my two Hallowe'en samplers this month for the theme Something Green on the Hallowe'en Ornie SAL Blog.

Here is a green lizard and some green froggies on  Happy Hallowe'en by Imaginating:

On Witches by Oberlin Samplers I stitched an olive green letter with some green leaves and pumpkin stalks/vines:

And here is the full Itches designs!  Need that first W very soon.

Finally, I fully-finished the latest Just Nan freebie into an ornie:

Christmas Hearts

Dearest Edward

The postman has just delivered five most beautiful gold rings, one for each finger, and all fitting perfectly.  A really lovely present - lovelier in a way than birds, which do take rather a lot of looking after.  The four that arrived yesterday are still making a terrible row, and I'm afraid none of us got much sleep last night.  Mummy says she wants to use the rings to "wring" their necks - she's only joking, I think; though I know what she means.  But I love the rings.  Bless you.
Love Emily

12 Days of Christmas (Correspondence) - John Julius Norwich

Emily seems a little happier with her gift this month, even if Mummy has a bird-induced migraine.

Who remembers singing this part of the song with great gusto and not a lot of tune?

There will be gold beads in the little gaps when I finish this design.  I am saving all the beads until the end so the metallic thread doesn't catch on them.

Here is the full piece so far.  I will be stitching for another day on the top Herald Angel.  The plan is do a little bit on her each month to complete the design this year.

Those crumples do come out when I stretch the fabric out, don't worry!

I also stitched both my Hallowe'en pieces this month.  First up is Happy Hallowe'en by Imaginating:

Black cats are our theme this month

I also started some of the "Happy" as the cat was such a quick stitch

The second piece is Witches by Oberlin Samplers:

Not a black cat!

When I stitched the french knot eyes in the first cat I realised that DMC 3345 is the perfect match for the fabric which is so hard to photograph.  Here's a skein of 3345 on the fabric and they look different!  So go and get your skein and just imagine that the fabric is the same colour as that skein.

Remember my Blogaversary this year, back in April?  I had a little giveaway competition where you had to tell me your favourite quote and you could win the new Stitchrovia Quotes to Live By partwork.  There were a lot of entries and I loved all the quotes.  I used the Random Number Generator to pick a winner.  You got one entry for commenting on that post and then additional entries for taking part in the Easter Blog Hop and Gifted Gorgeousness too.   The RNG chose:

Deborah

who said "at the moment I still like "be kind to dragons, for thou art crunchy when roasted and taste good with ketchup" perhaps not inspiring words to live by but it makes me smile and that is a start."

Not the most deep and meaningful quote but it made me smile too.  It comes from the book Dragonswan by Sherrilyn Kenyon, which I have never read but maybe I should.  Find out more here-

Sherrilyn Kenyon

also here- 

Fantastic Fiction - Sherrilyn Kenyon/Dragonswan

Fantastic Fiction is one of my favourite websites.  The Bookseller's best friend, it is basically a catalogue of almost every fiction author, their books, a synopsis and links to where to get them.  It lists every book written by the author, in series order and in publication date with a thumbnail of the cover.  So when your customer says "have you got the new M.C. Beaton book, it's got Death in the title?" you can look up M.C. Beaton, discover that almost every book she has written has Death in the title, you can print off the list, show the customer and work out which one they want.

It also has recommendations under "Visitors to this page also looked at these authors" which can be useful but remember that every bookseller in the country is skewing the results by looking up both Sherrilyn Kenyon and M.C. Beaton within ten minutes of each other.

Finally, Kaye is hosting a Christmas in July Exchange, so if you want to exchange some Christmas Goodies, hop over and visit her blog.  Click the photo for the link: