Finally Fully Finishing Fun for June

     

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).

It's been a framing festival this last month.

First of all, a professional frame job.  I wanted Snowfire Christmas by Just Nan to coordinate with another sampler I had in my collection so I took the original to my framer and asked her to match it.  

Here's the other sampler for reference:

Elizabeth Designs - Joyeous Noel

To make up for the expense, the next two are charity shop frames!

Just Nan - Morning Meadow

A 2020 finish

One of the members of the JN FB group always stitches the name of the sampler at the bottom and I thought this was a brilliant idea and will do it from now on.

This is a recent finish and FFO'd within the same month too!

Just Nan - Nan's Garden

In the JN FB group we have started choosing a sampler to SAL every two-three months.  Nan's Garden was the choice for Spring and we allowed ourselves two months to stitch it, a band or two each week,

Here are some close ups of the bands:

I managed to get a copy of the chart which included the embellishment pack and the cute frog charm

The chart also came with a Just Nan charm which I fitted inbetween the hedgehogs.

The fabric is actually a nice reed green 28 count linen which is very hard to photograph.  There is so much natural light at the moment everything is bleached out.

Our current sampler is Follow the Needle and I have stitched Band 1 so far:

stitched on 28 count Lilac Brittney evenweave

Finally, I'm going to be taking sign-ups for my Summer Blog Hop on the same theme as last year - Stitching Friends are Friends Who Count.  Have a look at this post for last year and let me know if you'd like to take part this year.

Stitching Friends Summer Blog Hop 

August Stitch from Stash and Pie

Well, August turned out to be a very productive month, with no fewer than 5 finishes!

Here is the Pie:

Yes, those couched lines on the Discworld Mappe took nearly 2 weeks to stitch.  To be fair, some of those days were very short because it was sometimes difficult to get the enthusiasm to start on them.  I also stitched the lovely silver stars around the edge of the Mappe.  I intend to do a full post this week dedicated to the Mappe, so I will show lots of photos then.  In the meantime, here's another full picture of it:

stitched on 32 count Murano custom-dyed by Sparklies

Holly Noel by Just Nan was the first finish at the start of the month and then it took 20 days to get another finish.  This is the Alice freebie from Passion Creative:

stitched on 28 count linen from a Crafty Kitten grab bag

The original is charted in two shades of grey but I knew I wanted blue for Alice.  Originally I planned to use the dark blue for all the darker stitching but having done her eyes I realised it was just too dark.  So I used the intended lighter blue for the rest of the dark stitching and chose a new light blue.  I love the way this turned out and hope to scrapbook it very soon.

The next finish up was my Summer Sampler SAL with Leonore.  We have both been stitching Just Nan's Morning Meadow over the last eight weeks.  Here's my finish:

stitched on 32 count pale green linen (matches DMC 772)

I didn't have all the charted threads or beads so I substituted blended DMC for the Caron Waterlilies, standard DMC for the Perle and beads which I did have in my stash.

I also made those bunnies darker so they would show up better

This is a very early Just Nan - JN013 copyright 1993, the year I started stitching.  She uses some absolutely wonderful speciality stitches in this sampler.  Some I was familiar with and some that were new to me.  The butterfly stitches are fantastic and I like the satin stitch flowers too.  She uses Mosiac Stitch to great effect, there's so much texture in this piece.  I do wish she would do more band samplers but I have several in my collection so I can't complain too much!

Another Just Nan was the final finish for the month.  This is Jasmine Mix, 49 x 49 stitches but 17 colours and 1 kind of bead:

stitched on 32 count Vintage Country Mocha linen

I absolutely love this one.  The way the B5200 just pops off the fabric and those gorgeous dark pinks, the splashes of yellow.  Great little design.

I did purchase a little treat this month.  I saw a former shopowner selling off some Just Nan exclusive kits from when she owned a shop, for a bargain price and had to snatch one up!  Then the Just Cross Stitch Hallowe'en Special came out so that's an essential purchase.  It is very good this year, now I just have to figure out how to fit a couple of the designs into the rotation!

August
Just Nan Regency Roses	£8.50
JCS Halloween mag	£7.50
Total	£16.00

Finally, with only 2 days left in the month after completing Discworld I decided to pick up a very old project.  So old, it's not even on my WIP list as I didn't discover it until I was stash-diving for old finished pieces to FFO.  This is Bramble Harvest from Needlepoise charted by Judith Stanley in the days of hand-written charts.  This is just the cover, I literally have some blackberries and a row of Fly Stitches and it's a finish!

look at that price tag - £7.50 for an entire kit!

August WIPocalypse Mystery SALs

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 stitched on 6 of them.  2 finishes and 1 goal met this month.

Joan Elliott - Faces

(Project 2)

Lyndisfarne - Discworld Map

(Project 5)

JBW - 12 Days of Christmas

(Project 11 - Book 3)

Hands on Design - Broomstick Fuel

(Project 15)

Amanda Butler - Alice in Wonderland SAL in Cross Stitcher magazine

(Project 17)

Just Nan - Morning Meadow

(Project 19)

Measi always gives us a topic to discuss:

August – Have you participated in any of the mystery SALs on Facebook (or other social media)? What do you think makes a successful mystery SAL?

I have taken part in a few Mystery SALs but I am much more cautious about committing myself these days!  The current one is a good example of why.

My usual guidelines would be:

Do I like the designer?
Do I like the theme?
Is there a sneak peek?
Can I keep up?

The Joan Elliott Faces SAL scored highly in all categories.  I love Joan Elliott.  The frame was so pretty and the first face was gorgeous.  Then she released the second block.  A cat's face.  I like cats.  I would have liked a witch's cat.  But this was a moggie and just didn't appeal to me to stitch it.  So the entire SAL stalled!  And we all know that once you fall behind, you stay behind.



I am determined to complete this because every Longest Day Marathon I get it out and love stitching on it.  So the plan is to substitute an owl from one of the fantasy designs for the cat and stitch a block or two each year until it is done.

Other SALs which have also fallen by the wayside include Around the World in 80 Stitches by Papillon.

Reason - it's so fiddly!  I chose to do the speciality stitches version and I am just not loving all the stopping and starting.  I think I prefer my speciality stitches in a band sampler.  I have done loads of those and love them!

The plan for this one is to stitch all the dark green outlines.  Then all the light green foliage.  Then set small goals and see how that goes.

Finally, a successful SAL to finish with!  The Stitchonomy Snowflake SAL from last December.  One snowflake per day.  Of course I decided to be extra and do them all in beads but still completed it by the end of the month.

The Hallowe'en SAL starts soon.  Will I start it?  Will I keep up with it?  We shall see!

August 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.

I have been focusing on my Discworld Mappe this weekend, adding the Longitude and Latitude line which is extremely tedious and leads to much procraftination - doing anything to avoid stitching those lines!

stitched on 32 count Murano custom-dyed by Sparklies

So what was I procraftinating with?  I did some FFO'ing which I will show on the 10th for Rachel's FFO Gallery.  I also did some tidying-up on my Happy Dance blog, added a few photos there.  And started writing my "21 in '21" list too!

This one is my current Just Nan small, Jasmine Mix.  There are 17 different colours in this piece just 49 x 49 stitches!  I still have to add two shades of yellow, some pink and quite a lot of white.  And beads!

stitched on 32 count Vintage Country Mocha

I reached the final row of Just Nan's Morning Meadow, my Summer Sampler SAL with Leonore.  This is a pretty motif and once it is done I only have to add beads.

stitched on 32 count pale green linen

I'm doing very well with my bath-time stitching so I will only show this portion of her face.  It's amazing how a few stitches in just three colours can be so effective.

stitched on 28 count linen from a Crafty Kitten grab bag.

Finally, the next IHSW will be 18th-20th September 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.

August Gifted Gorgeousness Link-up Post

Welcome to the August 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 main project for Gifted Gorgeousness has been my Discworld Mappe by Lyndisfarne Designs, which will be a gift for my son.  I completed all the cross stitch in July and started some of the longitude and latitude lines today:

stitched on 32 count Murano custom-dyed by Sparklies

I changed technique for the lower four lines and they look much better.  It's really hard to keep the lines taut.  This is one time where a frame might be useful!

I finished my Just Nan design, Holly Noel, which was a gift from Brenda:

stitched on 28 count Beige evenweave

And FFO'd it too!

At the end of July I worked on my Joan Elliott Faces SAL piece, the fabric for this was a gift from Dawn of Crafty Kitten.  I did a few days this month because I really wanted this block DONE.  The skin took sooooo long but was worth it in the end:

I used 00557 for the beads within the figure and 40557 (the petite version) for the background.

Close-up of her lovely over one skin:

The whole piece so far:

stitched on 28 count Jazlyn in Snapdragon by Crafty Kitten

The final gifted project for this month is the 12 Days of Christmas by JBW.  Two of my friends bought two charts each for my Christmas present.  I started one design per day for the 12 Days of Stitchmas and have almost completed the Eighth Day: 

stitched on 40 count white linen, 1 over 2

Last month I showed a photo of the Birthday Countdown Box I had made for a friend.  She loved every day and took a photo of everything on the final day:

The gifts are a mixture of things I have bought (e.g. some GAST threads), things from my stash (e.g. charms) and things I have made (e.g. scissor fob) as well as some hand painted aida.  I discovered that diluted acrylic paint is great for painting aida.  If it's too bright - just give it a tea bath!

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 "August 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, I have been stitching away on my Summer Sampler SAL with Leonore.  I completed another two bands last week and this is where we are now on Just Nan's Morning Meadow:

stitched on 32 count pale green linen

Stitching Friends Summer Blog Hop 2020

Regular followers will know that I host a number of Blog Hops throughout the year, each with a different theme.  Four of them are the same each year but the Summer one varies depending on what I feel like!  This year I felt it would be nice to see how well we know our Stitching Friends.

Several years ago I designed a little ornament for an exchange on this theme - Stitching Friends are Friends who Count.  It's a pun on being important to us and counting crosses!  This year, more than ever, we have found the value in our stitching friends who have kept us company online when we couldn't meet up with our real-life friends.

I had 11 people sign up for the Hop and assigned each one a blog for them to visit and write a little piece about their stitching friend.  I asked them to choose a design they thought their friend might like.  Christine then had the idea that we should try guess who each person was, so I asked people not to reveal the name until the end of the post!  So why not see if you can guess each one as you go?

These are the participating bloggers, in no particular order:

A Patchwork of Crafts

Tiffstitches a Blog

Needle, Pen and Sword

My Blog by Margaret

Le Coeur Celtique

Aimetu's Stitching

Elfin Stitches

The Alchymyst's Study

Jocondine

Stitching in the Mid West

Life Outside the Washing Basket

I thought I would join in with a surprise for one blogger.  She didn't sign up for this Hop but has taken part in the several other Hops over the years so see if you can guess who she is.  Let's see how long it takes her to identify herself too!

The blogger is a mother.  Mother of dragons, mother of cats and mother of boys.  

She lives in America but has a European heritage.

She is definitely a collector - cross stitch charts, Disney memorabilia, dragons, pets, beer.

She is a very sociable, she enjoys meeting friends, going to retreats, doing charity work, supporting her sons and going to the drive-in cinema.

There's always some lovely stitching going on, at the moment we are looking rather spooky.  Maybe a project for my Hallowe'en Blog Hop?

I thought of two projects I would share that she might like.  The first is one I stitched:

These are the 12 Dragonlets of Christmas, a series of freebies from Dragon Dreams on their Facebook page.

The second design relates to what is probably my favourite post of each year:

Strutting Tom by Lindy Stitches

"I am not a turkey, I am Strutting Tom,

I am a model and I strut my stuff

on the turkeywalk.  Oops I mean, the catwalk"

If that doesn't give it away, then head over to this post to discover the blogger and what on earth I am talking about!  I am not a Turkey

Finally, I have finished another week on my SAL with Leonore.  We are both stitching Morning Meadow by Just Nan.

stitched on 32 count pale green linen

I added three more bands of speciality stitches this week.  Band 9 were star eyelets, band 10 were small butterflies and band 11 was a rice stitch with a vertical cross.  There are beads to be added in the final week.  These band samplers are great for learning speciality stitches, the diagrams are clear and the rows are just the right width to perfect each stitch.

July Smalls, Stitch From Stash and Pie

The Smalls SAL is hosted by Mary's Thread

This year my Smalls will be my JBW 12 Days of Christmas ornaments which I started on Boxing Day 2019 for the 12 Days of Stitchmas.  I completed the Seventh Day in July:

stitched on 40 count White linen, 1 over 2

(Beads will be added at the end of the set of three)

I haven't beaded my Holly Noel yet but I did make good progress on the next Just Nan. This is Jasmine Mix:

stitched on 32 count Vintage Country Mocha

On to Pie:

The July Pie looks rather different to previous months as the Discworld Mappe does not take up half the pie.  I reached a great place to stop and move on to Joan Elliott July.  Here's where I finished Discworld:

stitched on 32 count Murano custom-dyed by Sparklies

I should be able to complete it in August now.

My Joan Elliott project got ten days but they were very short days in many cases and over-one skin is incredibly time-consuming.  So I went from here:

to here:

stitched on 28 count Snapdragon evenweave from Crafty Kitten

I am going to carry on with her in August to get her finished.

The freebie Alice in the Pie was an impulse start.  I was looking through my freebie folders and thinking "I really should stitch some of these".  I used the random number generator to choose one and up popped Alice from this blog - Passion Creative - French Blog

stitched on 28 count random linen from a Crafty Kitten grab bag

I am using an Anchor thread in medium blue.  The original intention was that this would be the lighter shade but the darker one I choose was too dark, so I have just left that as her eye and will choose a different blue for the lighter parts of the design.  She has been coming to work with me for lunchbreak stitching and she also comes out at bath-time.

Leonore and I are halfway through our Summer Sampler SAL now.  We are both stitching Morning Meadow by Just Nan:

stitched on 32 count pale green Belfast linen

Stitch from Stash started a new reporting period at 1st July.  Stephanie's rules state that you can treat any profit from the first period as a gift and spend it penalty-free.  But I don't do that, in the same way I don't credit myself for finishes.  I follow the original rules set on the blog back in 2014.

July
Crafty Kitten Fabric	£8.00
Total	£8.00

Every so often, Dawn from Crafty Kitten has a Sale Album on Facebook.  She includes mis-dyed pieces, pieces with dye spots or faults in the fabric and some left-over pieces.  Each person bids with "me please" for the ones they want to buy and she randomly picks names to get them.  I "won" the perfect fabric for the Hallowe'en design from Autumn Lane Stitchery that I showed you in my WIPocalypse post - how's that for Serendipity?  I'll show you when it arrives!

Finally, the lovely Clare from Aimetu's Stitching is asking for some help with her smalls.  Each year Clare decorates a tree for her church's Tree Festival with stitched ornaments.  I have donated ornaments in the past and this year she is asking us to join in again.  The theme is A Bouquet of Flowers.  All she needs is the stitched piece, she will fully-finish it for you.  Just leave a comment on Clare's blog to get involved.   (I include this each month as a reminder for myself!)