Birds, Bees, and Berries

As promised, here is Birds from Lizzie Kate's Summer Smalls! I wasn't kidding when I said these were quick to stitch! Bees and Berries are soon to follow!

(Sorry about the blurry picture... I think I must have deleted the "good one" when I was going through my photos! Am I the only one who takes a half dozen shots of everything and then goes through them all later to pick the best one?)

Sum-Sum-Summertime!

I thought this would be an appropriate finish to share today! This is from Lizzie Kate's Summer Smalls and it's just too darn cute! I'm also working on Birds from the same collection and should have that one finished PDQ! If you're looking for a quick summer project, I couldn't recommend these more! I used the called for Weeks Dye Works threads and the colors are super summery! The pinks make me want to dive face first into a big slice of watermelon!

Thanks for stopping by!

Liberty Framed

I spent a couple of hours this afternoon painting and pinning and straightening and pinning some more. I ended up with red paint on my shirt which I totally deserved for even attempting to wield a brush while wearing white.

Durr durr durr! What was I thinking???

Anyhoosie, this is what I ended up with after all my effort. Not too bad but I'll only award myself the "I Did My Best" ribbon for this one. Next time I'm in town I'll swing by JoAnn's and pick up some ribbon for a hanger and maybe a few doo-dads to dress it up. Right now it's just... meh.

Every time I frame something I learn a little more. This time it was to trust my eyes and not the ruler. If it looks wonky, you need to make your adjustments before you have the whole thing in the frame.

And most important... wait for the paint to dry.

It's Finally Finished!

A Prairie Year

by Prairie Schooler

stitched on 28-ct. Lambswool linen

with DMC

I am tickled pink to have this one done! And it didn't take me eight years! This has to be some sort of record for me!

I love how it turned out! I just wish I knew what to do with it now. Have it framed? Or make it into a wall hanging?

I'm going to have to have a serious finishing day here soon!

Now For Something Completely Different

I've always, always, always wanted to stitch a Mirabilia or Lavender & Lace design. Or to be more accurate, I've always, always, always wanted to finish a Mirabilia or Lavender & Lace design. In my many years of stitching I have started one of each. I have most of the blue fairy complete on L&L's Firefly Fairies and around the beginning of this millennium I started Mirabilia's Ashley's Roses. I just love the summery look of her dress!

Every time I'm deciding what project to work on next I think to myself, I really should try to get a little more done on these. And every time I choose something muuuuuch smaller!

(Have you seen these charts??)

So Tuesday when I decided to reward myself with a new start, my Big Box of BAPs was sitting right there. Nostalgia took hold and I opened it to find Ashley in her beautiful summery dress, looking up at me.

Doggone it, Ashley! You win!

Here's where I am after two days of working on her big pink bow...

My goal today is to get the rest of it done. I have dinner already simmering in the crock pot, and as soon as the sugar soaks into my strawberries, I'm going to scarf them down and get busy stitching!

A Little Finish

A Little Liberty

by Lizzie Kate

stitched on 30-ct. natural linen

with DMC

I started this kit from Lizzie Kate last summer and got as far as stitching the sunflowers and the word Liberty before setting it aside. Per my usual MO, I never picked it up again and into the WIP box it went. It took me a few hours one afternoon last week to finish the stitching and I attached the beads yesterday so this is another one for the win column! Woohoo! I have a little frame I picked up at the thrift store that is the perfect size for it but I want to paint it first. Tomorrow just happens to be errand day so i will have to add a stop at the craft store to my list.

I've been working on the December block for my Prairie Year piece but that's going incredibly slow. I recently discovered Floss Tube and it's a major distraction! I set up my laptop so I can watch videos while I'm stitching and it's like having a friend right there with me! And yes, I will admit to sometimes talking back to these friends like they can actually hear my comments! I might have to launch my own Floss Tube channel but we'll have to see. I'm awfully shy.

I've been itching to start something new so I might look outside of my WIP basket today and see what I can come up with. I've been doing pretty good getting old projects finished so it might be time to reward myself!

Have a great day!

November in April

A Prairie Year - November

I got behind on my Prairie Year months at the end of last year so I thought I'd get them all finished since I only had two more to go. It felt a little strange stitching a turkey in April! He must think he's a spring chicken!

Here's what he whole thing looks like now...

I know I should continue on with December, especially since it's so cold and grey outside today. I have the fireplace going so I might just grab a cup of coffee, tuck myself under a blanket, and at least get started on it.

Thanks for visiting!

Spot the Cat

Spot the Cat

by La-D-Da

stitched with Needlepoint Silk

You would think I'm a machine with the way I've been cranking out finishes lately! This one didn't have much left to do, mostly just the stars and moon and a few bits here and there. Makes me question why I put it down when all I had was maaaaaybe three hours of work left. Oh well! That's just how we roll in the Empire!

I wish I could tell you what fabric I used but I haven't a clue. It calls for 30-ct. Confederate Gray from WDW but I'm pretty darn sure that's not what this is. If I ever figure it out, I'll be sure to let you know!

We have another bee-yoo-tiful day ahead of us here! Unfortunately I have to stick around the house waiting for the appliance repair folks. Our fridge has been out since we got back (over two weeks!) and it's been one wrong part after another and a lot of phone calls and waiting. We do have another fridge on the lower level we've been using but after the first week of trudging up and down the stairs every time I needed something cold, well, let's just say I'm ready to be done with that!

At least I can pop some windows open, put on some music, and stitch while I wait!

And Another!

May Word Play

by With Thy Needle and Thread

stitched on 32-ct. Cobblestone linen

with Gentle Arts Sampler Threads

This was so much fun to stitch! I love all the little motifs! From the birds and bees to the white picket fence, just a heck of a good time! And the best part is I have the June Word Play waiting in the wings! Woohoo! I really want to finish this as a door knob hangy thing with the rusty jingle bells and all. I saw the model at my LNS and it was just too darn cute to pass up!

My Big Basket of WIPs is calling to me but first I better put away some thread and get the ottoman cleared off. I have vowed to be more organized here at the Empire instead of leaving things in piles that seem to keep growing and growing. Something about my thread though... even when it's organized it still seems to be a huge mess. I may have to come up with a whole new system.

Thanks for stopping by!

Woohoo! A Finish!

At Home With Jane Austen

by The Sampler Girl

stitched on 30-ct. Abecedarian R&R linen

with Classic Colorworks

I found my missing Sassy Brass yesterday so I sat down and finished the missing bitts lickety split! I'm not lying when I say I've had this sampler all kitted up in my To Do Basket for at least eight years! I don't know why it took me so long to finally stitch it! It is such a pretty piece, quick and easy and just the happiest colors! And I couldn't agree more with the quote from Emma!

Love love love!

It's an absolutely gorgeous day here in southwest Michigan! I have the windows open and I'm seriously thinking about trying out my stitchy goggles on the deck this afternoon. I can watch the coots on the lake and maybe get a little sun while I relax with my stitching! I wonder what the neighbors would think if I hauled out my floor stand!

Much Better!

Soooooo much better!

Everything I think I might work on in the next couple of months is kitted up and waiting for the mood to strike! The rest has been put away in an orderly fashion!

Now for some serious stitching!

Two Days Later

I started stitching in 1985 so this pile represents 30+ years of WIPs. There's a birth sampler I never finished for my son who will be 27 this month, an SB from the 90s that only needs the beads and buttons sewn on, a house warming present for someone who has since moved from said house, fall projects I stopped working on when PS Santas called to me, winter projects that got set aside when the weather started warming up, BAPs I lost interest in, Mania starts and stitch-a-longs and the list goes on and on.

Now comes the fun part! I get to go through this mess and decide what I might still like to finish and get it all organized. I'll need to find missing threads I've pilfered for other projects and get things kitted up again. I'll make a list or two and order what I need and hopefully come out the other side with my sanity intact!

 

 

One More

I finished the 123 block on my Farmer's Alphabet this morning. And yes, I'm officially stalling! I'd almost rather have a root canal than organize my stash! But it really REALLY needs to be done since I seem to never put anything away! It's super cloudy and chilly outside so the perfect day to sit in front of the fire and sort through boxes and bags. I just need to figure out where to start!

R is for Rhubarb

I finished the letter R on my Farmer's Alphabet before having to set everything aside and focus on cleaning and packing and shutting down the house in Florida. We are back at the lake in Michigan now so I've been busy cleaning and unpacking and opening up the house here. I haven't had a chance to organize my stitching so I have no idea which old projects I want to keep working on and which new ones I want to start. I managed to make quite a mess of the Empire before I left so maybe the first step is to get things put away so I have some room to ponder. It might finally be time to pull out every single project I have yet to finish and make a real plan to get some of them done.

Deep breaths... I can do this...

One Potato

Here's my progress on Farmer's Alphabet. I took the picture with a quarter so you could see just how small these little over one squares are. I'd been skipping around, doing what I could with the threads I have here with me in Florida but that got old fast. I ran over to Michael's yesterday and picked up a few of the missing colors so I could at least finish a few of the letters. Irish Potato is finished and I'm working on Rhubarb. I will have to do some frogging on the border because there's a break in it where the leaves overlap. I was on autopilot when I was stitching the squares and didn't pay attention to the pattern at all. It is not going to be fun pulling out those tiny stitches!

Phil and I are heading back north on Friday. We will be busy closing up one house and opening the other so my stitching time will be minimal. It's hard to believe our three months in Florida are over. My next post might be from the Chicken Ottoman Empire!

The Great Over One Experiment

Like a ga-jillion other people, I've been wanting to stitch the Prairie Schooler ABCs all together as one piece. To keep it to a manageable size I thought I better stitch it over one on a 25-count laguna. Question is, how much over one stitching can I actually handle? Hence the reason for the Great Over One Experiment! I started Farmer's Alphabet on 25-count mushroom lugana and so far so good. It's a bit patchy because I only have a few of the called for DMC but I at least had the right color for the border. It's boring stitching squares but it's giving me an idea of whether or not I might be able to make it through a much larger piece without tossing it in the trash 1/26th of the way through!

A Happy Little Stitch

I've been working on Lizzie Kate's Birdz & Bugz this past week and the bright colors put a smile on my face every time I pick it up! I still need to stitch the inner band and then I'll add some beads to give it sparkle. Such a fun little kit, perfect for spring!

At Home with Jane

It's been a while since my last post but I have been doing some stitching here and there.

This is as far as I can go with my Jane Austen sampler for now. I need a skein of Sassy Brass to finish it up and since I know I have one back home in Michigan, I'll just wait until we go back next month. I must have pilfered it from this project to use on another one. At least that sounds like something I would do!

I saw someone on the Stitch Maynia Facebook group with a pair of these magnifiers and had to hop on Amazon and grab a pair for myself.

 I can't see worth a darn with my old lady eyes so I always use a magnifier lamp when I stitch. I end up with a sore back from hunching over it and find I can't stitch for as long as I'd like. With these puppies I can curl up just about anywhere and stitch to my heart's content! It's super nice to be able to go out on our lanai here in Florida and enjoy the warm weather instead of being cooped up inside when I want to stitch. I can't wait to use them out on our deck in Michigan!

It's getting close to time for us Snowbirds to head back north. We've been so busy this season that the last couple of months have flown by. In the midst of entertaining guests we've managed to update both bathrooms. We still need to get mirrors hung and add a few finishing touches before we're done but they look so much nicer now! Next year we might just tackle the kitchen!

I'm going to have to go through my traveling box of projects to see what else I might have to work on while we're still in Florida. I'm pretty sure I brought a couple of things in anticipation of wanting to work on something Spring-ish. If I'm lucky there's a kit in there so I don't discover half my thread is still in Michigan!

Thanks for stopping by!

Color Me Vexed

I haven't been stitching much since my three day Stitch-a-Thon but I have made enough progress on Flock Together to share with you.

Phil brought back the blue I needed for the water but I'm not loving that particular shade so I think I will swap it out for something with a little more green in it. I stitched just enough to verify that, yeah, I want to change it.

Then there's this...

Notice my pelican's bill compared to the one in the photo. They're not even close to the same color. I thought I'd screwed up and pulled the wrong thread but no, it's what's called for on the chart. I then checked the Hands On Design website and sure enough, the DMC substitution for the GAST Chamomile should have been 3045 and not 3022. So I'll be frogging the bill, the nest, and the rope, along with the water.

Rats.

Stitch-a-Thon Day Three

Random Thoughts by The Drawn Thread

It took me waaaay too long to get everything organized so I could finally sit down and actually work on this project! I wanted to make little cards to loop the threads through but since we didn't have a hole punch or any card stock I resorted to cutting a manila folder into squares and using scissors to poke holes through them. Not pretty by any stretch but I got everything sorted and onto a ring so I can feel like I have it together. It could all be short-lived as I have a history of mislabeling my threads and not noticing until after I've stitched a bunch of green tree trunks. This I do know for certain... I love, love, LOVE this piece so far. All of the specialty stitches look intimidating when they're spread out over several pages, but you only have to do one at a time so it makes it fun!

I'm off to try to squeeze in an hour or two of stitching before Phil gets done with his work for the day. We're re-doing the guest bathroom and I think we've finally found a vanity that's going to work with our vintage yellow tile! I'm hoping we can go take a look at it tonight!

Thanks for visiting!