Finally Fully Finishing Fun for May

    

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).

Just one framed piece this month.  I had a very simple black frame in my stash which was the perfect fit for a recent finish - Hocus Pocus Cabinet from The Primitive Hare:

Not very exciting, but does the job!

Finally, the Just Nan-athon continues.  Here are Days 7, 8, and 9:

Yes, there is just one photo.  In the past when I have finished a design in the previous year, I started a new one the next year.  But this year I decided to continue on whatever I was stitching in an attempt to get more done on each one.  So last year True Blue Heart was Day 7, I finished the projects for Day 8 and Day 9, so this year I stitched Day 7 for three days in total.  And got a lot done!

 

April Stitch from Stash and Pie

 Here's my monthly Pie for April:

My April "focus" piece was A Partridge in a Pear Tree from Cottage Garden Samplings and that only took 12 days for a finish!

stitched on 35 count cream linen

After that I went back to March's choice determined to finish it.  The Primitive Hare Hocus Pocus Cabinet fell victim to the frog and looked like this at the start of the month:

And now it looks like this:

stitched on 32 count Vintage Country Mocha linen

I spent a lot of days on this because the black was so tedious!  I really didn't want to stitch on it at all some days but made myself add at least 2 lengths of black.  The lettering was much more fun.

I used a mixture of DMC, Anchor and Jodyri threads for this one.  Some half stitches using one strand for the bottles, Smyrna for the Spider Eggs in the jar and some whipped backstitch for the threads the little spiders are hanging from.

Now I need to find a new black frame for it in time for Halloween!

In the evenings I started with The Quiet Hour Sampler from La Broderie and finished the month on the Circle Cross Zodiac Tarot. 

I finished Aries:

Only 1 more sign to go!

stitched on 28 count Sky Blue evenweave from Silkweavers

Finally, another zero spend for Stitch from Stash.

April WIPocalypse New Designers

       

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 "24 in '24" for this year. This month I stitched on 5 of them and had 3 finishes.

8. La Broderie - Quiet Hour Sampler - Finish

17. Cottage Garden Samplings - First Day of Christmas - Finish

22. Primitive Hare - Hocus Pocus Cabinet

23. Cricket Collection - Spring - Finish

24. Cottage Garden Samplings Halloween Sampler

Finally, Measi always gives us a topic to discuss:

April – Which designers have you discovered lately?

Because I've been working on my older designs and those in my stash, I haven't really been looking for new designers too much this year.  Circle Cross who does the blackwork is the most recent designer I got really excited about and wanted to buy all the things from her.

I also have a few designers in my list that I haven't stitched before this year - Rainbow Hunter who does the Alice bottles being one.   I also have Stitchy Princess, Life in Stitches and Maria Bravko still to come this year when the WIPGO Board chooses their names.

I did see quite interesting designers on the Lindy Stitches Nashville Shopping List videos.  She's made a playlist of those one so you can easily find all the lovely enabling in one place!

Lindy Stitches Nashville Shopping List 2024

April 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.

This year I am trying something different for IHSW - an A-Z Challenge!  These usually take place in April and people stitch one letter every day except Sunday.  I don't want to swap projects daily so thought I could do 2 or 3 letters per IHSW instead.  

April is G and H.  Once again I wasn't working Friday so I started there with H for Hocus Pocus Cabinet from Primitive Hare.  

Here's where I finished:

stitched on 32 count Vintage Country Mocha  linen

Next up on Saturday was H for Head - Art Nouveau Head from Craft Collection and now my oldest WIP.

It went from here:

to here:

stitched on 14 count white aida

I got loads done as it was quite easy and repetitive.  I had originally swapped G and H over as I thought my big stitching day was going to be Sunday and I wanted to focus on Gardens of London for the day.  However, it turned out that I got more hours in on Saturday.  The problem with Gardens is that I need to have the computer open and sit in front of it to stitch which wasn't possible on Saturday.  Whereas the Art Nouveau Head is just one piece of A4 paper and a smaller piece of fabric.

I did get the gold backstitch finished on one Guard's Box and started on the final one:

stitched on 32 count Cotton Clouds Belfast from Crafty Kitten

I'm thinking of adding in another day on this one before the end of the month to make up for it.  At least to finish the gold on the boxes.

Another very successful IHSW.  It's fun to get a chance to work on some of my older pieces for more than just 30 minutes for the Longest Day Marathon.

Next month I have only one project for each of I and J.  Then we come to my first blank which is K.  I do have a Lizzie*Kate design on my 24 list so I may have to start that one.  To fit in all the letters in 12 months I have to have two months where I stitch 3 letters or skip a letter.  It makes sense for May to be that month.

Finally the next IHSW will be 17th - 19th May 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.

March WIPocalypse Thread Colours

      

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 "24 in '24" for this year. This month I stitched on 6 of them and had 2 finishes.

1. Sweetheart Tree - September Strawflowers

Finish

3. Rainbow Hunter - Alice Bottles

Finished Cheshire Cat

13. Joan Elliott - Faces SAL

22. Primitive Hare - Hocus Pocus Cabinet

23. Cricket Collection - Spring

24. Cottage Garden Samplings Halloween Sampler

Measi always gives us a topic to discuss:

March 31 – What colours – and brands – of thread do you love using? Do you have a particular colour that you absolutely love?

I am a big fan of DMC thread, it's easy to get hold of, it's nice to stitch with, it comes in a wide range of colours and it's pretty consistent over the years colourwise.  I do have skeins that are different shades so I keep them in separate bags and don't mix them in the same project.  815 is one example, I have a dark skein and a bright skein.

My all time favourite DMC is 115, a wonderful dark variegated red.  I think this is a favourite for quite a few people having seen this question in various groups.

I do use GAST and WDW especially if someone else buys them for me, same with silks.  I'm not a massive fan of stitching with silks to be honest.

I use Krienik and DMC Metallics depending on what is called for and what I have.  

I do have quite a collection of Jodyri Threads as I belonged to their Threads of the Month club for a while.  I stopped because their Post Office kept on losing my parcel and I'd have to rerequest it.  I am trying to use the threads where I can and Hocus Pocus Cabinet had two different skeins in there.
I prefer the skeins which have different shades of the same colour such as Cafe au Lait which is brown/cream.  Some of their threads have 3 totally different colours which I would find difficult to stitch with.  The one I used for the middle bottle was green, white, pink.  I cut the skein in the middle of the green to minimise that colour and it turned out rather well. 

Finally, a Mary has been leaving lovely comments here.  But Mary is "no reply" and does not have a blog listed on her profile so I can't respond to her direct.  It's not Mary from Le Couer Celtique, or Mary from Mary's Thread or Mary from Mary's Stitching Spot!  So if you are Mary, please drop me an email and I will save it so I can reply to your comments.

Extra Weekend!

There are five full weekends in March this year.  Last weekend was IHSW and next weekend is "End of the Month" and time to post WIPocalypse, Pie and Stitch From Stash so this weekend feels like a bonus weekend.

So what did I stitch for my bonus weekend?

My focus piece has been Hocus Pocus Cabinet - Focus Pocus? but progress has been a little slow due to being so busy in the week.

I managed to finish all the colour and now just have the black surround and the lettering to do.  I changed the colours to a mixture of Anchor and Jodyri.  The original used GAST and WDW.

Here's where I am now:

stitched on 32 count Vintage Country Mocha

On Sunday I caught up with two weeks of leaves on my Temperature Tree from The Steady Thread:

stitched on 28 count Meadow Mist linen from Silkweavers

stitched on 28 count Meadow Mist linen from Silkweaver

As I had finished my Small for the WIPGO Board I switched to the Circle Cross Zodiac Tarot for the evenings.

I completed Aquarius and have made a good start on Pisces:

stitched on 28 count sky blue evenweave from Silkweavers

🐇 Good Friday - Friday 29th March 🐇

Finally, it's time to sign up for the Annual Easter Treasure Hunt.  If you would like to take part this year, just leave a comment here.  The week before Easter I will send you a letter of the alphabet which will form part of the mystery phrase.  On Good Friday you will post that letter along with a photo of something seasonal that you have stitched (could be Easter or Spring or just something cheerful and sunny or floral).  We all hop around like little bunnies to find the Mystery Phrase!

Here's a link to last year's hop so you can see how it all works - Easter Treasure Hunt Blog Hop 2023

Finally Fully Finishing Fun for March and TUSAL

  

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 do something different with my latest Christmas Ornament finish.  Rather than make a 3D ornament, I mounted it over some wadding on a piece of card.  We display greetings cards from strings hung from our beams on the ceiling.  They are out of the way and make a lovely colourful display.

Just Nan - Snowberries

Fewer people send physical cards now so we usually have at least one string empty at Christmas.  I thought it would be nice to fill it with ornaments.  When Christmas is over, the card folds the other way to protect the stitching and beads in the storage box.

    

It's TUSAL time!  

Here is my TUSAL jar with my current projects:

stitched on 32 count Vintage Country Mocha linen

On the left we have The Primitive Hare Hocus Pocus Cabinet and on the right is my evening stitch - September Strawflowers from The Sweetheart Tree.

stitched on 32 count Antique White linen

🐇 Good Friday - Friday 29th March 🐇

Finally, it's time to sign up for the Annual Easter Treasure Hunt.  If you would like to take part this year, just leave a comment here.  The week before Easter I will send you a letter of the alphabet which will form part of the mystery phrase.  On Good Friday you will post that letter along with a photo of something seasonal that you have stitched (could be Easter or Spring or just something cheerful and sunny or floral).  We all hop around like little bunnies to find the Mystery Phrase!

Here's a link to last year's hop so you can see how it all works - Easter Treasure Hunt Blog Hop 2023

March Plans

At the start of the year I made a list of 24 projects I want to stitch this year for my "24 in '24".  The order I stitch them in is going to be determined by the WIPGO Board.  Jessie-Marie calls two numbers each month and those will be the two projects I stitch that month.  One small and one medium.

In February, the numbers 3 and 24 were called.  These related to the collection of Alice in Wonderland Bottles from Rainbow Hunter and Spring by Cricket Collection.  I completed one of the Bottles in February and the other one today.

Here's the Cheshire Cat:

stitched on 32 count Antique Blue linen

For March, the numbers are 1 and 10.  These relate to September Strawflowers from the Sweetheart Tree and Hocus Pocus Cabinet from Primitive Hare.

Hocus Pocus Cabinet is a PDF I've had for quite a while (2018) and it's easy to forget about PDFs compared to paper charts.  So when I compiled my list I went through all my Paid For PDFs and added quite a few to the "24 in '24".

I decided to use a nice piece of 32 count Vintage Country Mocha for this design.  There are only a few dark, muted colours in the design and I'm using my own conversion rather than the charted GAST and WDW.  Because "Stitch from Stash".

I started with all the black outline of the bottles and the brown labels so now it's a case of filling in the middles.

The variegated brown is from Jodyri Threads and is called Cafe au Lait.  I'm really pleased with how this is turning out.

stitched on 32 count Vintage Country Mocha linen

There are two designs included in the PDF.  If I finish the main one in plenty of time, I will start the smaller one.

My Small for the month will be this one from The Sweetheart Tree.  I'll be starting this one tonight.

It's only tiny, 3 x 2 inches, and I do have the nice charm.

🐇 Good Friday - Friday 29th March 🐇

Finally, it's time to sign up for the Annual Easter Treasure Hunt.  If you would like to take part this year, just leave a comment here.  The week before Easter I will send you a letter of the alphabet which will form part of the mystery phrase.  On Good Friday you will post that letter along with a photo of something seasonal that you have stitched (could be Easter or Spring or just something cheerful and sunny or floral).  We all hop around like little bunnies to find the Mystery Phrase!

Here's a link to last year's hop so you can see how it all works - Easter Treasure Hunt Blog Hop 2023

Finally Fully Finishing Fun for November

    

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 managed two Fully Finished Objects this month, the first being my Primitive Hare Celebration freebie.  This one is for Samhain at the end of October:

Six down, two to go.  These are framed so they go around in a deosil or clockwise circle:

Deosil being the opposite direction to widdershins which is a wonderful word!

I also got Gathering Eggs by Nora Corbett a nice frame:

A simple dark wood frame in a style I have used a few times before, this is an A4 size for certificates and is longer and thinner than a standard 8 x 10.  You can see enough of the fabric on either side to make it worth using the mottled fabric.

I also finished another one of the shops on my CCN's Main Street Spooky Conversion:

I converted the Bakery into the Millinery Shop with some lovely witch's hats on display in the window.

Here is the original:

I kept the blue and purple colourway but used a grey-blue instead of a pastel turquoise.  I used a dark blue for the trim and frames instead of white and added the red accents.  I wanted the broad band across the middle to look like a hatband.  I also changed the hearts at the top to look like hats although my son said they look more like bells!

The hats have red and purple bands in a nod to the poem "Warning" by Jenny Joseph which starts:

"When I am an old woman I shall wear purple

With a red hat which doesn’t go, and doesn’t suit me."

When I was stitching this in October, I happened to see some of the local Red Hatters on their way to a function resplendent in purple with fabulous red hats.  Rather serendipitous, I thought!  You can find out more about the Red Hatters on their website - British Red Hatters

stitched on 32 count Murano in Charcoal Slate from Sparklies

🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄🎅🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄

Finally, it's time to sign up for the Advent Calendar Blog Hop!  For this hop, each participant is allocated a day in December to make their post on.  They will show something they have stitched on a Christmas theme and answer the topic question I set.    I then copy their photo onto my blog post in the style of an Advent Calendar.

So if you'd like to join in, please leave a comment or send me an email.  Let me know if there is a date you would particularly like or one you'd like to avoid. I will be in touch towards the end of the month!

Here is a link to last year's so you can see how it works:

2019 Online Advent Calendar