Patterns of the Orient - FINI!

This is the most challenging piece I have ever attempted.  Some of it was fun, some of it was hard, some of it...well you don't want to hear the language that came out of my mouth.

Caroline's Stocking - DONE!

It took about twice as long as I had planned, but the stitching on Caroline's stocking is finally done!  Yeah!

It took lots of different fibers: Silk and Ivory, Vineyard Silk, Splendor, Silk Lame', Kreinik metallics, Neon Rays +, Flair, Frosty Rays, Appleton crewel wool, Paternayan wool, Fancy Fur, Santa's Beard and Suit, overdyed floss, cotton floss, Watercolours and a few others.

I spent a lot of time on the faces, the eyes were particularly challenging.  Santa's beard is a simple packed outline.  His coat is a staircase variation.  My favorite is the dotted Swiss on the lavender dress.  Santa's bag is something called Virginia's stitch.  The cradle and angel's dress are burden stitches.  When doing the big lavender gift box, I misread the stitch diagram for offset Scotch and ended up with something I like--I just don't know what it is.  The only frequently used stitch that wasn't fun was the "frog" stitch.

Sign

A sweet little angel in Wayne, PA will soon have this sign hanging above her bed.  I bet you can guess who she is!

Ribbons of Hope

This piece by Laura Perrin is a beauty! The foundation color is a new Watercolours called Primrose. Complementing this is a selection of Perle cottons, Neon Rays +, Petite Treasure Ribbon and gold beads. I'm planning to teach it in October, which is Breast Cancer Awareness month. A donation toward breast cancer research will be made for each student taking the class. Note the "pink" ribbons in the three large ribbons.

IT'S FINISHED!

July was a productive month! I FINALLY, FINALLY finished stitching this piece taught by Tony Minieri at a Chicago ANG workshop three years ago. Still not happy with the clouds, but they're the best I could do.

In July I also finished the Heart-to-Heart design of the four red and gold dresses on black Congress cloth, a Christmas ornament, and put the finishing touches on two other projects.

Now I can get busy on a new piece called Ribbons of Hope, finish an ornament that's been in the works for a few months, and look for new projects. I'm declaring some UFO's NTBD's (never to be dones), which eases the guilt over what's left.

Heart to Heart

IT'S FINISHED!!!!

At long, long last this project can be moved from UFO status to Completed Projects. It was one of the most challenging pieces I have ever done.

Working on black Congress cloth wasn't as bad as it sounds. Probably the hardest part was the pattern couching on the waistbands. Whew!

Christmas 2008

I try to stitch a Christmas ornament each year, and some years I'm able to do more! For Christmas 2008 I did this Santa from Princess and Me called Bellringer Santa. Isn't his coat gorgeous?

You can see all of the ornaments I've done in the album on the right titled "Christmas Ornaments." There's also a picture of a special little grandbaby.

Lilac Collage

You can almost smell the lilacs in this collage of ribbons with a floral center. For this design by Laura Perrins, I used a combination of Watercolours, Perle cotton, FyreWorks, Shimmer, Ribbon Floss, and cotton floss on sage green canvas.

Tulip Collage

Another project to share: Laura Perin's Tulip Collage. Tulips are my favorite flower and pink is my favorite color, so this might be my favorite project.

This picture doesn't do it justice, though. There's just enough sparkle and beading to make it pretty without being fussy.

Windy City Santa

What a cutie and what a great stitching project. Libby Sturdy's design is full of interesting and challenging techniques. It's well worth the time and effort. Anyone with ties to Chicago will certainly enjoy displaying this piece at Christmastime.

Hot Stuff In Cool Colors

I just finished a wonderful piece designed by Debbie Rowley for DebBee's Designs. It's called "Hot Stuff." I changed the colors to lavenders, blues and greens for a "cooler" palette. If you're looking for a new challenge, try this design!

The piece is done in Splendor, Needle Necessities overdyed floss, HiLites, cotton floss, perle cotton, Patina, and Watercolours, overdyed and regular metallics, and Neon Rays.