Slow and Steady Progress

This week I have been focusing on my Donna Kooler piece for the Zodiac SAL on Saturday, so I can't show that.  I did get a couple more days done on Dracula by Dam Good Crafts:

stitched on 32 count Amortentia Belfast from Chromatic Alchemy

This is a great design on a gorgeous fabric but I discovered in October than it's easy to get burned out just doing rows of black.  So once I finish 12 Days of Christmas this will become my "bath time project" and I will stitch a length or two of black each evening while the Small Boy is in the bath.

Slow and steady is the name of the game on this next piece; Just Nan's Summer in the Square.  I started Spring in the Square on 1st January for the Ten-a-Day challenge and when it became obvious I was going to finish it before the year was over, I started Summer on 1st July.

We are now on Day 152 or 1,520 stitches:

As well as the Ten-a-Day I've also had a Thirty-a-Day which has been the series of Just Nan freebie ornaments.  I got a little behind with the fully-finishing so spent Sunday doing Lacy Diamond which was finished in September.

A simple padded diamond backed with blue felt, white bead hanger and a white tassel.

I'm not working this weekend so hopefully I can get another one fully finished.

Pie for this months shows a variety of projects, with Just Nan Memories taking top spot.  I spent five days on the Kooler Zodiac because I did Scorpio at the beginning of the month and Sagittarius at the end.

Stitch from Stash was a great success, the only thing I spent was £ 8.72 on a magazine subscription which is an allowed purchase anyway.

🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄

Finally, the Advent Calender Blog Hop starts tomorrow!  I will put up the main post in the morning and you can follow the links each day to see what each person has posted.  I will be updating the post every day with a new picture.  Hope that you enjoy the fun this year.

Look here, Edward

This has gone far enough.  You say you're sending me nine ladies dancing; all I can say is that judging from the way they dance, they're certainly not ladies.  The village just isn't accustomed to seeing a regiment of shameless hussies with nothing on but their lipstick cavorting round the green - and it's Mummy and I who get blamed.  If you value our friendship - which I do less and less - kindly stop this ridiculous behaviour at once.

Emily

12 Days of Christmas (Correspondence) - John Julius Norwich

The picture that accompanies this chapter is wonderful.  I do recommend that you buy the book (ISBN 9780385410281) for the illustrations.   Thankfully Joan Elliott's Lady Dancing is rather more sedate than Quentin Blake's drawings.

The gaps are for beads to be added at the end.  In the evenings I've been working on the lettering at the top:

Here is where the piece was last month:

And here we are now:

I have completed another Just Nan ornie as part of my 30-a-day stitching challenge.  This was a quick one, a mere 18 days for the stitching.  I will finish it as an ornie next weekend:

Just Nan - Lacy Diamond

stitched on 32 count Twilight Blue linen

Of course, a finish means picking up the next ornie in turn.  This one is called Holly Knot and is stitched on 32 count lavender evenweave:

I stitched 60 stitches on it when I started it back in March so I have a head start with 90 stitches already on Day 2.  It's a pretty one, all in greens and pinks.

Finally, the competition on the Blogger of the Week is finished and I have published all the comments.  I will announce the winner on Friday.  So stay tuned for that!

August Smalls SAL

The Smalls SAL is hosted by Stitching Lotus

This year I will be showing my Hallowe'en and Christmas SAL partworks and any other Smalls I may stitch.

I reached the first letter of Hallowe'en with some creepy trees:

And the 8th Day of Christmas:

I finished another Just Nan ornie, much quicker than the previous one:

This is Snow Forest, stitched on 32 count green linen which does not look green in any of the photos.

Finished as an ornie:

Five finished ornies so far this year, Royal Blossoms was not really very Christmassy so that one will be scrapbooked instead.

And started the next one in the series:

Lacy Diamond by Just Nan

Stitched on 32 count Twilight Blue linen

Finally, I'm hosting a competition on the Blogger of the Week blog instead of an interview this week.   Just pop over and identify the person who stitched each of the chosen photos.

Blogger of the Week