Christmas is a coming!

This is supposed to be a quick post but I'm sure it won't be!

Here are my finished Noel and Merry Christmas stitched as part of the Needlecraft Haven Freebie of the Month.   I've done a few months now, Christine chooses a free chart for the month and we stitch it up with a Big Reveal on the final weekend.  These two are by Log Cabin Needleworks.

These are stitched on 28 count evenweave tea-dyed (after my family had drunk the tea I reused the bags!).  I added the border to Noel so they would match, it's my current favourite DMC 115.  I also added beads for the holly berries. 

I'd like some advice on this page, there is a gap next to Merry Christmas, does it need filling?  I have a small piece of the same evenweave left from trimming that I could stitch part of the green scrolls onto.

I have decided to start scrapbooking my smalls as I have acquired rather alot of the them thanks to the Forums and Blogs!  For Christmas Hubby is buying me a super special concertina sided scrapbook which comes with 12x12in pockets that you slide these mounts into.  The mounts are only a few pence (69p to be precise!) and there's a HUGE range available.  The books come with 10 pockets as standard and can expand to fit 80 pockets.  Any bets on how long it will take to fill a whole one?

I hope you're all enjoying the Advent Calendar as much as I am, there is a slight time-lag with some of the posts due to the different time zones we all live in.  The USA bloggers are posting after the Aussies have gone to bed!  But the calendar is filling up nicely.  I've met some new followers through it and I hope you have too.

One of my new followers is Evalina Maria originally from Poland, now Yukon.  She is running a great activity after Christmas which I'll be joining in with: 12-days-of-christmas-in-blogland.  Sound fun?  Pop over and sign up.  There will be blog posts about arty-crafty things (how difficult will that be hahaha) and a giveaway.  Mine will be a little giveaway with alot of love so don't feel you have to send a crate of stuff out to join in!!

Also though a new follower I stumbled across this class - Thistle Threads  click on the "next" button under the picture to read all about the project, wipe the drool off the keyboard and breathe a sigh of relief when you see it is fully-booked up.  Why the sigh of relief?  The price!!  It looks like the most amazing project and course ever and I would so love to join in but hubby would kill me, we'd have to sell one of the children, any offers?

Finally, I've finished my posting out of cards etc, if you receive anything from me, let me know it's arrived safely, I put alot of faith in the Post Office, it's nice to know it's justified!

A Blessing Counted

Remember way back when I stitched my first Travelling Pattern?  It was Shakespeare's Peddlar's Count Your Blessings and I asked people to tell me who their Stitching Blessing was.  Freddy's Mama (aka Kirsten) told me about her friend Irene and as Kirsten's name was pulled out of the hat I decided to make a little something to thank her "blessing".

The design and stitching was simple.  I like the quote "Stitching Friends are Friends who Count", it's a nice pun and a lovely sentiment.  I laid out the quote on graph paper in an invented font and added the symbols from the Travelling Pattern (anyone know the name for those 8 leaved symbols?).  Then I decided to make it into a padded ornament.  I stitched round three sides inside out then turned it the right way out, so far so good.  I stuffed it and slip stitched the final side.  Now I have two nice corners and two different corners.  So I decided to put cord around the edges, but I should have buried the cord ends inside the ornie before sewing it up.  So I was left with two ends.  Which I sewed together and tried to hide with some gold braid wrapped round them!!

I sent the ornie off to Irene with an explanation that this is my first and probably only ornie!  It arrived yesterday and as I remembered to take a photo before it went off to the USA I can show you all, here it is:

The back is made from one of the fabric samples I got earlier this year.  They make lovely ornament backings so I will include them with any giveaways I do so people who actually like making the things can do so!!  The thread is a variegated DMC.

I hope you're all enjoying the Advent Calendar and hopping over to the blogs to see what people have to say.  Isn't it funny how similar Day 2 and 3 are, and also that Joysze and I both chose the "hutch" designs to show?  We stitchers have so much in common.

Advent Calendar Success and a Travelling Pattern Finish I can show you

The Advent Calendar is being a great success, I hope you're popping by each day to see the new addition then going over to the blog owner to read about their stitching and Christmas traditions.  There are still four days left if anyone wants to join in the fun.  All you need to do is email me asking for a day, post a stitched Christmas/Winter pic on that day, let me copy it onto my blog and tell us about a Christmas tradition in your country/home.

I shouldn't have favourites but I did love Cucki's How to Say Merry Christmas in several different African languages, fascinating!

Finally I have a finish I can show you - the latest Lizzie*Kate Travelling Pattern.  This came to me via Kate and here it is with Madame Muriel.

The card came with the pattern, it's great isn't it?  I decided to stitch the pattern in vaguely Christmassy colours and used variegated DMC 115 (red) and 92 (green).  I changed the flowers to bright red with yellow centres so they were a little like poinsettias.  But not much! 

What I want to know is - how come I can do the most complicated TW and Mira's with nary a frog in sight but a simple little simple thing like this and they come along in pairs?  First of all I stitched the entire satin stitch top border 2 threads to the left and had to frog it.  Then I found I had stitched the "L" 2 threads too high so the red border was too high and the side satin stitches were out by 2 threads.  I was not going to frog two whole sides so I jiggled the bottom two corners adding in extra stitches and no-one will know.  Except 159 of you and you're not telling!!

As this is a Travelling Pattern it must be moving on now.  To be in with a chance, leave a comment saying that you want to be in the Stitcherhood.

It has travelled well and had visited 8 homes before mine ~ you can check out all the gorgeous finishes at the following blogs:

Hooked On Stitches
Old Ragged Threads

Loretta Stitching Blog
Reflections In The Pond
Erica's Places
My New Perspective
Buttons & Stitches
Kate's Floss Box

If you would like to be part of this sweet Travelling Pattern here are the rules:

1. Comment on this post, saying you would like to be part of the Stitcherhood.

2. You agree (if you are chosen) to stitch the design and send it along to the next person in a timely manner. If this means dropping everything in your rotation to concentrate on this project...so be it. If you can't bring yourself to do this ~ don't sign up.

3. You must have an active blog to participate. If you have a blog but never post to it ~ you won't be chosen to be the next stitcher.

4. This is a giveaway-type Travelling Pattern. That means you must follow it from blogger to blogger to enter each time it is ready to send along. Commenting on this post doesn't make you a guaranteed part of the Stitcherhood.
I'd also like to know - if Life is indeed a Stitch, then which stitch is your life?

Mine would be the Serendipity Stitch, yes there really is such a thing.  I discovered it while deciding on a blog name.  I didn't want to use one which as already in use in the World unknown to me.  Here's a link to how to do the Serendipity Stitch.

This lovely card is from Shannon, she recently posted that she would like to exchange some ornaments this Christmas as she only received one card last year.  Well, ornie finishing is a "tried it once and didn't like it" thing for me so I offered to send a stitched card instead.  Here's what I received yesterday - a gorgeous little snowman in a snowflakey wreath.  He's stitched on perforated paper and is so sweet.  He's hanging off my clock at the moment as we won't put our tree up for a while.  He's my first ever stitched ornie present and I'm so pleased with him.

I'm also rather pleased because I have realised that I can now do ornie exchanges with people who don't mind perforated paper ornies.  I had it in my mind that an ornie must be a stuffed pillow but clearly it doesn't need to be!  Watch out next Christmas for exchange offers galore!

BTW, is anyone else thinking "that card would chart and stitch up nicely"?

And finally, I've mailed off all my cards and parcels to go overseas (yesterday was the last posting date) so if you get something from me, let me know when it arrives safely!  Now to start on the UK post...

Advent Calendar Door No 1

Here is the first door on our shared online Advent Calendar:

This is a cute little house I stitched many years ago which comes out at Christmas.  It came with a plain wood "hutch" which I painted a lovely Christmas Red.  I love all the little festive details on this piece.

The tradition I would like to share is our Christmas Eve and following morning routine.  After tea and bath time we put out a mince pie and some milk for Father Christmas and a carrot for the reindeer.  We used to have to leave the carrot outside as the large boy insisted the reindeer could not come inside!  Now we buy special reindeer food from the Christmas Craft Fayre which has glitter in it.  The Nursery children make it and sell it to us all to sprinkle on our gardens so the reindeer see it from the sky and know where to come.

We have a special plate we can write on and the large boy makes a list of the things he and his brother would like.  Then we go to bed for a story and a reading of The Night Before Christmas, both the traditional version and the modern one by Carole Ann Duffy.  We leave stockings by each bed which Father Christmas will fill.

In the morning there will be a full stocking beside the beds with a comic in the top.  Once this comic has been read cover-to-cover it is okay to come and wake Mum and Dad.  My own parents started this tradition when we were small!  Then the stockings are opened in our bed.  The two boys and I have stockings and hubby has a pillow case because that is the tradition is his family!  Father Christmas also leaves a pillow case (or Santa Sack) for MIL when she comes round after breakfast.

The stockings contain small presents, toys and games, chocolates, chocolate coins and of course the comic.  After we've opened them and perused the contents we go through to the Lounge where OCD Santa has arranged the presents into 5 separate piles - the large boy, the small boy, Mum, Dad and Grandma.  We take turns to open the presents with me writing a list of who gave which present ready for the Thank You letters.

ps an apple corer makes excellent "reindeer teeth marks" in the end of a carrot.

Tomorrow's Door will be opened by Agi, find her blog here.

In which Madame Muriel unchains herself from the bookshelf and looks forward to Advent

Another exciting week (and a bit) here in sunny Suffolk.  I went to a protest afternoon last week.  Actually it was entitled "An Afternoon of Tea and Cakes to Support our Library" so the chains were uncalled for.  The libraries in this country are all under threats due to the cost cutting exercises going on and my hostess's local branch in particular as it is small and situated in a lovely old building which needs maintenance.  The powers-that-be would much rather sell the land and make all the old ladies and young children travel miles into town to get their books.


Unfortunately for the powers-that-be the local community are rather vocal and have raised their voices (and their tea-cups) to say "No ifs, no buts, no public service cuts".  The National organisation The Women's Institute are right behind the library service with their Love You Library campaign so my hostess and her good friend Pauline arranged this afternoon of support to spread the word - Your Library Needs You.  It's such a fun campaign to join, all you need to do is join your local library and borrow books - simples (as that annoying meerkat says!).  No chains are necessary!


Here is a picture of the rather lovely building:

Isn't it wonderful?  It was such a thrill for me to meet some national treasures in the form of the WI ladies.  They are well-known for cake baking, crafts and naked calendars.  I'm not so sure about the last one but my hostess assures me it is true.  There is a musical too apparently.


We are fast approaching December and today my hostess climbed into the loft to retrieve the advent calendar.  Here I am with it:

Each day has a little book with a different story or poems on the Christmas theme.  If you click and squint you will see there are excerpts from Little Women and Wind in the Willows plus many more classic stories.

There is also this second Advent Calendar, countdown to consumerism!  This is a Lego Star Wars calendar with a Lego figure or item each day until Christmas Eve.  The larger boy does like his Lego.

He has another calendar at his Grandparents, usually on a traditional Nativity theme.  The child is "cherished" apparently.  Not "spoiled" because he is charming and not ruined at all.  But "cherished".  This is according to his doting grandparents.  Hah!  In my day you got an orange and ha-porth of nuts in your stocking.  Which was a stocking off your legs, not a felt and embroidered extravaganza with your name on it.  Hah again.

My hostess has been busy mailing out cards and prizes this week, single handedly keeping the Postal Service going.  She was delighted to hear they have started arriving and seeing her stitched cards popping up on other people's blogs is making her squeal with excitement.  Here is the card she stitched for Rachael for winning the Doll's House 100 Followers' Giveaway:

 The motif is from World of Cross Stitching magazine and is stitched on 40 count Newcastle over 1.  The coin is a 2p piece and shows the stitched area is only an inch wide.  As the Giveaway prize was the Doll's House chart my hostess wanted something small scale to send but baulked at the 48 count silk gauze this year.  Maybe next year...

And here is the card sent to Shannon, this one was stitched on 36 count over 2:

Finally my hostess asks me to remind you all that Advent starts tomorrow and her online Advent Calendar post will be visible dated 24th December so it stays on top of the blog.  There are some places left, just send my hostess an email and she will send you a date.  All you have to do is post a stitched picture of something festive on your date and maybe a Christmas custom special to your country or your family.

Travelling Pattern Travelling Onwards

I put all the names of the people interested in Cucki's Lizzie*Kate Travelling Pattern into a bowl and asked hubby to pull one out.  The lucky person is:

Threadbear

Please contact me with your address and I'll send it on to you.

Here's how I framed the picture:

I used a sheet of scrapbook paper and some sparkly stickers of hearts and butterflies.  I think I might have gone a bit OTT with the smaller stickers, it's a bit spotty now.  The paper was perfect.  I think I might scrapbook more of my smalls next year.  The local shop has some gorgeous papers for sale and it's got to be easier than making ornies!  I'm not good at it and I don't enjoy it.  My first (and probably only) ornie is off to it's new owner this week so I'll post a picture when she receives it.

There were some lovely suggestions for names for the hand-coloured paper - Threadbear's was Gobstopper!  Other people suggested:

Light of Love

Shine of Ray

Neapolitan Ice Candy

Sunshine Skittles

End of the Rainbow

Psychedelic Love

Love's Rainbow

Aren't they all beautiful names?  OK, maybe Gobstopper isn't the most beautiful but it is fun!

The Advent Calendar idea has been a great success, people think it's a good idea and a fun thing to do.  The first half of Advent is full but there are spaces after the 13th so if you want to join in then please email me as soon as possible.

I'll be posting the doors up on the 1st December with everyone's link under the relevant door with a new picture appearing each day.

I have been stitching on presents for other people so I have no progress pictures to show you this week, maybe next...

Finally, the Joan Elliott Round Robin will be taking place next year, we have four people so far, if you want to join us then follow this link and sign up soon.



Advent Calendar idea, iStitch and IHSW

I has this fab idea the other day - an Online Advent Calendar with a different blogger posting a picture each day.  I would have a future-dated post on my blog with 24 little door pictures and a link to a different blog each day.

Each participant would be allocated a day (or 2 depending on how many sign up) and on that day they would make a post called "Advent Calendar" and post a nice festive stitchy picture.  Preferably of something they have stitched themselves.  Maybe some information about the picture and a Christmas tradition their family have.  Or if you don't celebrate Christmas in the traditional way then something about how you do mark this time of year.  I would then copy the picture into my blog so we have a central place to see all the lovely Christmas/Winter Solstice stitching.  How does that sound?

To sign up, just send me an email with your blog name and any days you can't do (if you're off skiing or shopping the German Markets for example).  Also, any days you would particularly like (something special to your culture or your family).  Once I have a few people I will send out the date(s) you have been allocated.  By signing up you give me permission to copy that one picture, just one time and repost on my blog.  Me and me only.  Other people can include links to the calendar but please don't copy pictures without the owner's express permission.  My email is in my profile.

Stitching news - I promised to talk about the iStitch Mystery Sampler which I have now finished.

The more eagle-eyed of you (and those that have stitched the design) may have noticed the slight difference in my finished piece.  The final block was for a Sajou initial and Carol gave us a whole alphabet to choose from.  Unfortunately the letter "J" is an awkward one.  It is not symmetrical at all and often looks unbalanced to my eyes.  I waited until other J people had stitched the piece but I still wasn't feeling the letter at all.  I tentatively emailed Carol asking for help, would she mind sending me the bonus chart so maybe I could use that?  Bless her, Carol sent me a rose!  I don't know if it comes from one of her other designs (which are all lovely BTW) or she charted it especially for awkward people but it's lovely.

Carol is my New Best Friend and Favourite Designer now, how many other designers would not only not be offended by whinging about their design but also send a replacement chart idea?  If you missed out on the SAL the chart is now available here for a very reasonable price.

The box was a Christmas present last year, it's from RUCraft and came filled with a selection of DMC threads.  It's been quite popular as one of the magazines gave it away with new subscriptions this year.
The fabric is 36 count evenweave and the thread is a blue from De Havilland threads many moons ago.  It is silky and smooth, one strand is fine for 36 count so I have loads left!

I'm signed up for the TUSAL as well as the WIPocalypse and my own JustNan-athon plus my "12 in '12".  This is being amended as you read.  Too many BAPs!  I also found this great idea on Heather from It's All Geek to Me's blog.  Theme-a-licious, each month will have a different theme.  I've added them all to my page about 2012 projects (see top bar).  They are all achievable for me except the Mad March one.  To join us just go to this post and sign up.

Finally, IHSW was last weekend and I did indeed stitch but can't show you anything because it's all for other people so you'll just have to take my word for it!  My tea-dyeing was a triumph though.  I know other people do use tea to dye fabric but how many make a cuppa first?  It seems a waste not to use the tea itself so as my tea-drinking brother was coming round I saved his teabags then used them to dye the fabric.  How tight-fisted am I? haha.  At least I let him have his drink first not make him drink it after the fabric had been soaked in it!

ps new follower Purple Stitcher - there's a problem with commenting on your blog, email me and I'll try help!

The Continuing Adventures of Madame Muriel

What a busy week I've had, I've been to work!  Honestly, I haven't been to work since the days of Knitty Nora's Knitting Emporium.  (Joke for British readers!).  Anyway, this workplace is where my hostess pops off to twice a week to earn some money.  She's done so much voluntary work over the last 9 years she can't believe she actually gets paid for being there.  And it's in coins of the realm, not in books.  Although I'm sure she'd be happy to work for the latter.

Here I am, on the shelf at my age:

This is the Craft and DIY section which my hostess does her best to keep in order.  Knitting/crochet at the top, Sewing seperate to Cross Stitch and Embroidery, plus a small section of "alternative craft".  You can see them on the bottom shelf to the left if you click and squint.  "World of Geekcraft" etc.

I "met" this lady, or her merchandise at least.  She is HUGE right now (her persona, not her body!) and very popular.  You can buy just about anything in her little floral prints.  Here's a link to her website Cath Kidston.  I think some of her goodies may be coming in my travelling bag when I travel onwards.

I also "met" this lady, Kirstie Allsopp.  She is what they would descibe as a "posh gel", that's a hard "g" as in "golf" not as in "jel".  She has a TV programme where she tries her hand at craft, she's even met Emily Peacock and had a cross stitch lesson! 

This is the closest I've got to the capital city so far, it's from a book called "Stitch London", aren't those corgis cute?

Here is a poster advertising the area where I am:

This is Ed Hardy.  Cross Stitch from tattoos.  Whatever next?  Certainly Not Your Grandma's Stitching, which should please Anna no end!  If anyone is interested in finding out more about this book, my hostess owns it and is happy to send a review.

This is a footballer.  A footballer.  Not a soccer player and not an American Footballer.  But a real footballer who plays real football.  Well, it's a cardboard cutout of a real footballer.  Apparently he's written a book (or helped write a book or something) and came to the shop to sign copies.  They raffled the cutout off to raise money for his favourite charity.  What a nice footballer.

We also had a planning meeting for the "Save the Library" campaign, I'm a "silver-protester", such fun!  We're having a Tea and Cakes Afternoon of Support next week.  It won't be a sit-in.  We'd never get up again!!

Stitching photos?  Well, I can't show you the cards until they've been posted off and received.  The big thing is for someone else.  The little thing is for the Needlecraft Haven and can't be revealed until December.  Bit of a dead loss really.  We did do some tea-dyeing this afternoon, that's always fun. 

So, that's all from me today, so until next time I'll say "Cheerio".  Yes, Barbara, they really do say Cheerio when they're saying Goodbye to their friends.  It's a kind of Au Revoir sort of Goodbye when they expect to see their friend again soon.

150 followers free chart

150 followers!  Wow!  Well, it's actually 152 as I type.  I thought I'd hit this number after the next IHSW but not so soon.  I wonder how many of the original 50 followers are still reading?  I know plenty still comment so that's all good.

I thought I'd give everyone a little something this time round.  I am proud to present my very first ever freebie chart!  It is very homespun, eg handdrawn on graph paper and scanned.  I hope the little squares show up okay when if you print it out.  The design is based on a poster I drew for our school's Christmas Craft Fayre last year.  Each year the PTA have to organise two major fundraising events and I'm in charge of letters and posters.  I have to draw a poster which children from age 3 to 11 can colour in.  Not a simple task!  There must be enough written information but not too much.  When I drew last year's I thought "that would make a nice chart" so here it is:

I've put my blog on the bottom because I download lots of free charts and get cross with myself when I don't note down where they came from.  And because I'm a shameless self-publicist!  How else did I get 150 followers in such a short amount of time?!!

I'd be absolutely over the moon if someone actually stitched this design and sent me a picture.  I might even send you something!  The idea is that you can choose any colours you like, you can put patterns on the parcels, you could even bs the ribbons so they aren't so blocky.  I think it would look good with blackwork on the parcels.   The round parcel would look good in a metallic too.  Let your imagination have free rein.  That DMC memory wire stuff would make good ribbons too...

As always I try to return following but not everyone's following profile points to their blog.  So leave a comment and I'll find you that way.

Last night I stitched a small amount on the neglected Tree of Stitches.  It got put away in favour of the Dark Alphabet then I got obsessed by My Lovely Sewing Tools.  Anyway I will be stitching it every week from now on and hope to finish by Christmas.  Here's a reminder of what it looks like (the Norwich stitches aren't finished, they need their top weaves done.

I have also found this great Laura Perin Mini Mystery Monday.  Laura is known as The Two-Handed Stitcher and produces beautiful work mainly on canvas.  She is putting out a small part of this design each Monday.  My Mum gave me some strange material earlier this year, she wasn't sure what it is or where it came from.  It's a hard open fabric with a count of 21 to the inch.  Anyway it seems to be good for Laura's project.  The coverage is interesting as Laura recommends DMC Perle 5 which I don't have so I experimenting with what I do have!  Some random unlabelled variegated purple which is perfect and some DMC with various strands, either 4 or 2 depending on what I feel like.  The green is Madeira which I got free from somewhere or other.  I'm not a Madeira person but I'm using all 6 strands without separating them first and it's covering very nicely.


Part 1



Part 2

 Part 2 was scanned, I'm not so happy with the gold coverage.  I may have to redo those Rhodes stitches.  The trouble is I cut the ends too short and they're starting to unwind themselves!  There isn't so much to anchor them on the back as there is with cross stitching.  Different techniques call for different methods!

Madame Muriel will be returning to the blog again with some more myths to bust.  Thanks to everyone who has mentioned one so far, keep them coming.  They make me laugh and she enjoys being an investigative granny (it makes her feel like Miss Marple).

Finally I am working hard on Christmas cards which you can't see until the recipients have received them.