The frog finally found me!

Arrrgh!  This supposedly simple bookmark has been such a challenge!  I started it in February and finally got back to it now, since I'm sending several bookmarks to my friend's nieces as back-to-school gifts. This free chart is from Lady Kell of Kincavel.

I seemed to have a good start the first day:

Then I was happily stitching away (and watching TV at the same time) and somehow missed an entire letter! Oops! My daughter thought it was so funny that she told me to take a picture before I fixed it.

Then I was making great progress on the flower border, but noticed that I was one stitch too low, so I carefully ripped out 20 stitches to fix the problem (circled in pink).

I re-stitched that part, one stitch higher (circled in pink), but THEN I noticed that I had left a space, one stitch over to the right (circled in green).  Bummer!

So I ripped out all those stitches back to that point, and not so carefully this time!  See all my shreds of floss in the glass star shaped ORT dish.

Hands Off My Book - update #1

I hope that frog is done with me now and finds his way to someone else instead!  Wish me luck to get this bookmark finished without any more rip-rip-ripping!

Craftymoo's giveaway!

Sarah is having a wonderful birthday giveaway on her blog, Craftymoo.

My Prairie Schooler SAL updates

Santa's 12 Days of Christmas (Day 3) update #1

Santa has one of his three French hens at last!  There will be two more in the hen house and Santa will be holding a basket of eggs.  Linda and Kaye are stitching these designs, too.

Summer & Winter (June)

After finishing March, April, and May in the Spring & Fall booklet, I started on June in the Summer & Winter booklet.  The mother bird is feeding worms to her three baby birds in the nest.  I'm using a printed Aida fabric for all of these monthly designs, except I messed up April so I used light pink instead.  Linda and Rosemary are stitching these designs, too.

I bought the pretty Q-Snap cover from Christine at Q-Snap Huggies.  This is the 8" x 8" size.

Halloween House update and two bookmarks!

Halloween House update #20

I finally started on the second floor.  Most of the other stitchers in our SAL started with the second floor first.  Check out their progress HERE.  One person has already finished!

My son gave me the Twisted Stitches cross stitch book.  The first thing I stitched was this bookmark, which will be a gift for my friend's niece.

Memento Mori bookmark - finished!

"Memento Mori bookmark"
Designed by Phil Davison
Twisted Stitches
Started 8/15/2012, Finished 8/17/2012

I also got back to this Spooky bookmark, which was one of my Super Duper Ultimate Crazy February Challenge starts.  Linda and I had new starts every day in January and February (it was all her idea!).  I will give this bookmark to my friend's other niece.

Spooky bookmark - update #1

I found this free design on a Hungarian blog, amintkipattan.  Barbi has lots of cute free charts!

Happy Stitching, everyone!

TUSAL #8 and two more finishes!

I finished another one of my Ultimate Crazy January Challenge starts!  I used the Random Number Generator to choose which of my WIPs to stitch and it came up with this one!  Does anyone remember the Barrel of Monkeys toy?

Monkey Read, Monkey Do - finished!

"Monkey Read, Monkey Do"
Funk & Weber Designs
Started 1/21/2012, Finished 8/11/2012

I finished another monthly square in The Prairie Schooler Spring & Fall booklet.  I will start June next, from the Summer & Winter booklet.  I guess I'll wait until they're all done before I finally decide what to do with them.  I wanted to get a square frame and change the design every month, or make 12 flat ornaments or pillow-type ornaments.  I used Aida fabric with a printed border that I had cut into fourths, so that is why there is a blank corner without the background print.

Spring & Fall (May) finished!

Spring & Fall (May)
Book No. 90
Designed by Pamela Byrd Smith
The Prairie Schooler
Started 7/14/2012, Finished 8/13/2012

BBQ Queen has her chef's hat now!  I will start on the smiling sun next week.

BBQ Queen update #17

I decided to take a pic of my ORT jar in the front yard in the grass, just for something different!  Don't forget to check in on Daffycat's blog for your TUSAL blog post, too!

TUSAL #8

Passione Ricamo Fairy Mystery SAL Part #1

Passione Ricamo Fairy Mystery SAL - update #1

I finished Part #1 of the PR Fairy Mystery SAL, except for the beads.  There will be about 300 beads in this section alone!  We get one part each month for 12 months.  Part #2 came in August so I better get back to stitching!

Two Prairie Schooler SAL updates!

Spring & Fall (May) update #2

I watched the Olympics all day on Saturday and stitched the bird's legs and all the grass and flowers underneath him.  There will be more flowers on top, and the word MAY on the bottom, and then this will be done!  Linda and Rosemary and I are stitching all the monthly designs from The Prairie Schooler.  My daughter said I should skip ahead to September instead of stitching June, July, and August, so at least I'll have a chance to display a finish during the correct month!  You can see what they will all look like on my UCJC page, #26.

Santa's 12 Days of Christmas (Day 3)

I also watched the Olympics all day on Sunday and started Santa's 3 French hens.  There will be 4 rows of 3 across to fit all 12 designs on one piece.  I will be so happy to display this for Christmas 2013!  Linda and Kaye and I are having a Sunday SAL.  You can see what they will all look like on my UCJC page, #31.

Just some backstitching!

I love how backstitching makes such a big difference and I didn't want to wait until the end on both of these, so here is a quick update of just some backstitching!  You can click on the photo to see it full screen size.

Halloween House update #19

The first ghost has appeared!  I also did all the backstitching on the windows and doorway.  Next week I'll start on the second floor.

BBQ Queen update #16

I did a lot of backstitching on BBQ Queen, too.  Now you can see the flamingo so much better.  Next week I'll start on her white chef's hat.

WIPocalypse update #8 and LOTS of finishes!

I've had six finishes since the last WIPocalypse update!  I finished Cackle, Trick or Treat, Spring & Fall (April), Santa's 12 Days of Christmas (Day 2), a Butterfly ornament, and a long lost UFO from 1998!  Welcome Cottage was all stitched except for the word, "Welcome," which I finished and framed today.  The kit came with the printed mat.

Welcome Cottage (newly discovered long lost UFO)

Welcome Cottage - finished and framed!

"Welcome Cottage"
Designed by Michael A. LeClair
JCA, Inc.
Started 7/31/1998, Finished 8/1/2012

Cackle - finished!

Trick or Treat - finished!

Spring & Fall (April) finished!

Santa's 12 Days of Christmas (Day 2) finished!

"Santa's 12 Days of Christmas" (Day 2)

Book No. 125

Designed by Pamela Byrd Smith

The Prairie Schooler

Started 3/24/2012, Finished 7/28/2012

Santa #2 and this ornament are both counted towards my X-Stitching Christmas Challenge for July on Lady Kell of Kincavel's blog.

Butterfly ornament - finished!

"Butterfly"
Designs for the Needle
Janlynn
Started 2/22/2012, Finished 7/31/2012

I also added backstitching to Dog House Sampler, which I finished last year but I was never happy with it since the dog bone and fence blended into the fabric.  Now it's framed in a perfect blue and brown frame that I bought at a thrift store.

Dog House Sampler - finished (without backstitching)

Dog House Sampler - finished and framed!

BBQ Queen and the flamingo have legs now.

BBQ Queen update #15

Two more jack o'lanterns are backstitched on Halloween House.

Halloween House update #18

I started "May" in the Spring & Fall booklet from The Prairie Schooler.

Spring & Fall (May) update #1

I also started the Passione Ricamo Fairy Mystery SAL and the Lizzie*Kate Very Scary Mystery Sampler.

Passione Ricamo Fairy Mystery SAL (Part #1)

Lizzie*Kate Very Scary (Part #1)

What a busy stitching month I've had!  You can see current pics of all of my WIPs on my WIPocalypse page.  Don't forget to check in on Measi's blog with a link to your WIPocalypse update, too!

Happy Stitching, everyone!