Turtle Trot SAL - November

For the Turtle Trot SAL, we choose 13 WIPs to work on and post progress pics on the 13th of every month.  Claudette of BAP Attack is hosting this SAL.  Next year, we'll choose 14 WIPs and post progress pics on the 14th of every month.

I finished two of them, so now I'm down to only 11.  This is my progress to show on some of them this month.  You can click on the picture to see it bigger.

Stained Glass Nativity:  I finished the green grass under the wise men.  This is a needlepoint kit that I started in 1980.

Stained Glass Nativity (before)

Stained Glass Nativity update #4

Thomas Kinkade's Lamplight Bridge:  I stitched lots of French knots for the pink flowers.

Lamplight Bridge (before)

Lamplight Bridge update #7

Lamplight Bridge update #7

 The Sorcerer:  I finished the right side of his cloak and some backstitching.

The Sorcerer (before)

The Sorcerer update #9

Flaming June:  I started stitching the water.  I'm still on page 1.

Flaming June (before)

Flaming June update #6

How cool!  The actress Jessica Chastain on the cover of Vogue is posing just like this picture that I'm stitching!

Flaming June by Sir Frederic Leighton

Jessica Chastain as Flaming June

Majestic Eagle:  I stitched more of his wing.

Majestic Eagle (before)

Majestic Eagle update #6

November TUSAL and more SAL updates!

Stitch-A-Longs are so much fun, especially since you know someone else is stitching on the same thing that you are!  It helps motivate me to keep on stitchin', even when I'm left in the dust.  Linda already finished Thankful Critters and Santa Hang-Up, but I'll get them done eventually.

We started a new Saturday SAL with Kaye of Kitten Stitching to stitch Fall Welcome by Diane Arthurs.  I already had the pumpkins done before, and now I stitched one of the blackbirds.

Fall Welcome update #2

I'm also stitching Mary's Sampler II, a mystery SAL from Plum Street Samplers.  I stitched the star and an angel for part 4.  Parts 5 and 6 are already out and ready to be stitched.  There is a new part every Sunday until November 24, so we can have the sampler done in time for Christmas.

Mary's Sampler II (part 4)

Part 3 of the Jardin Privé Positive Thinking SAL is ready, and I haven't stitched part 2 yet!  There is a new part on the first of every month.  I'm stitching the French version, but I think I'd like to stitch the English version, too!  Nathalie also made Spanish, Italian, and German versions!

There are stitchers all over blogland in the Totally Useless Stitch-A-Long.  Here is a photo of my ORT jar for November.  I woke up Teddy, who was sound asleep, just to pose with my ORT jar.  Be sure to check in on Daffycat's blog with a link to your ORTs photo for the TUSAL, too!

TUSAL 2013 #11

More great giveaways!

Nancy from Victorian Motto Sampler Shoppe is having another wonderful giveaway! She will send the lucky winner this Sewing Necessaire with all the goodies.  Drawing on November 15.  Enter HERE and tell Nancy that I sent you!

Brenda from Time 2 Xstitch is also having a giveaway on her blog when she reaches 100 followers!  The winner will receive a Samplers Not Forgotten chart of their choice!  Enter HERE and tell Brenda that I sent you!

Good Luck and Happy Stitching!

Little bit of SAL progress

Every Monday I'll stitch a little bit more on Cut Thru' North Pole House.  There are several others who are stitching this one, too.  Check out their progress on the Bothy Threads Cut Thru' Monday SAL page!  Maybe I'll finish this by Christmas 2014.

Cut Thru' North Pole House update #3

I'm also slowly catching up on the Plum Street Samplers free Mystery SAL, Mary's Sampler II.  This is parts 1-3, but they're up to part 5 already, total of 9 parts.  I stitched French knots on all the sheep!

Mary's Sampler II (part 2)

Mary's Sampler II (part 3)

 You can click on the picture to make it bigger.

Happy Stitching!

More framing finishes!

I am so happy to have these pieces framed in time for Halloween!  I provided the frames and my friend who works at a framing shop cut the mats and mounted them. Today, I found two more frames at a thrift store that will be perfect for some other finishes.  Stay tuned!

Day of the Dead from the Twisted Stitches book has bright blue and hot pink mats in a black & white 8x10 frame.  I love how she cut the corners!

Day of the Dead - framed!

Trick or Treat by Ursula Michael was a SAL I had with Linda last year.  She used purple, black, and orange mats in an 11x14 black frame.

Trick or Treat - framed!

Halloween House is another great design by Ursula Michael that Linda, Joyce, and I just finished. She used a black mat with an orange beveled edge in a 13x16 wood frame that I found at a thrift store.

Halloween House - framed!

BBQ Queen by Diane Arthurs was finished last year.  I framed her myself in a white 8x10 frame that I bought at a yard sale.

BBQ Queen - framed!

Happy Stitching, everyone!

Late October WIPocalypse update

I saw a beautiful full moon a few nights ago, and knew it was time for the WIPocalypse SAL update!  You can see current pics of all of my WIPs on my WIPocalypse page.  Check in on Measi's blog with your WIPocalypse update, too!

Here are a few Christmas design updates!  Santa Hang-Up is a Saturday SAL with Linda.  She is almost done with hers!  I haven't had an update since August on this one.  Santa is patiently waiting for his head.

Santa Hang-Up update #5

I stitched a little bit more on Rudolph Wreath, but got stuck since the white wasn't showing up at all on this fabric.  There are actually three little snowflakes around the heart.  I might add gray or light blue to the white for all the snowflakes.  Do you have any suggestions?

Rudolph Wreath update #1

These are both stitched on the same fabric, 20 ct Valerie fabric in cream with gold threads, but Santa is stitched over 2, and Rudolph is stitched over 1.  Rudolph Wreath was a monthly challenge from Needlecraft Haven, a Yuku forum.  They find a new small design to stitch each month.

Since I finished the Cut Thru' Igloo, now I'm stitching the Cut Thru' North Pole House in the Bothy Threads Cut Thru' Monday SAL.  We also have a Bothy Threads Cut Thru Monday SAL Facebook group.

Cut Thru' North Pole House update #2

I bought the Q-snap covers from Christine's Q-Snap Huggies.  She sews them all herself and also has a tutorial on her website with instructions to sew your own!

Tardy TUSAL and Turtle Trot SAL - October

For the Turtle Trot SAL, we choose 13 WIPs to work on and post progress pics on the 13th of every month.  I only stitched on three of them since September.  You can click on the picture to see it bigger.

The Sorcerer:  I stitched the book and more purple on his cloak.

The Sorcerer (before)

The Sorcerer update #8

Majestic Eagle:  Just some more stitching on his wing.  It will really look nice when I add the backstitching on the feathers!

Majestic Eagle (before)

Majestic Eagle update #5

Canyon Waterfall:  I stitched more clouds and sky.

Canyon Waterfall (before)

Canyon Waterfall update #3

Here is my tardy TUSAL (Totally Useless Stitch-A-Long) photo of my ORTs!  Check in on Daffycat's blog with a link to your ORTs photo, too!

TUSAL 2013 #10

Big thanks to Justine of Justine's Cross Stitch for sending me a traveling chart, Be Naughty, by Lizzie*Kate.  I will stitch this one soon and then have a giveaway drawing to send it on to the next stitcher.  She also sent ribbon with bunny rabbits and Stitched With Love and a fuzzy pink sheep magnet.  Thank you also to Kate of By the Babbling Brooke for sending the Loon Lake chart and an Uncle Sam booklet!  It was so nice to come home from vacation to find international packages in my mailbox waiting for me!

Little beer update

I stitched the rest of the top shelf and another bottle on "99" by Ink Circles.  Only one more bottle to go and the top shelf will be finished!

"99" update #6

Bottle #10 is Rolling Rock Pale Ale, Latrobe Brewing Company, Latrobe, Pennsylvania.

I've been on vacation for a week and barely stitched at all.  My stitching fingers are just getting warmed up now!

Halloween House is finished!

Whoooo hoooo!  Halloween House is finished!  The black spiderweb border was the very last part.

Halloween House - FINISHED!

 

 

 

 

 

 

"Halloween House"

Designed by Ursula Michael
Imaginating
Started 1/6/2012, Finished 10/3/2013

This was one of my starts for the Ultimate Crazy January Challenge in 2012.  We had a Friday SAL with about 10 other stitchers.  Agata and Linda already finished and Joyce will be done any minute now, too!

I bought this chart from Imaginating, but you can get it at 123-Stitch or save shipping costs and download the PDF file from Crosstitch.com.

I would usually have a giveaway for the chart here on my blog, but I already promised to give it to Monique in South Africa.  Check out her blog, Cross Stitch Ramblings!

Framing finishes and a new start!

I never took a picture of this one in the frame.  This is A Paris Kiss by Vervaco, a kit I bought from The Stitchery catalog years ago.  It was framed by my friend who works at a framing shop, using a frame that I already had and she cut the mats and mounted it for me.  Do you see how the corners are rounded at the top?

A Paris Kiss - framed!

I just got this one back from her, too!  It is the free Hummingbird design by Teresa Wentzler.  I bought this square gold frame at a thrift store for $4.  She cut the mats and mounted it for only $5.

Hummingbird - framed!

Here is another one that she framed for me.  The frame is actually silver metal, but it looks black in this picture.  I love the way she cut the mats!  This is a free design from a French website, Battybat.

Harley-Davidson logo - framed!

My new start is a freebie from Kissy-Cross, Rudolph Wreath.  It will be about 4.5" square on 20 ct Valerie fabric, stitched 2 over 1.  Can you see the gold sparkly thread in the fabric?

Rudolph Wreath

 

One of these days I'm going to get all my little finishes together and actually make them into ornaments using Vonna's tutorials.  Wish me luck!