IHSW

Thank you to everyone for the comments on my last post.  Midsomer's population has been reduced by another seven since last week - three in one show alone I never would have thought that bell ringing was such a dangerous hobby!

Another International Hermit and Stitch Weekend has come and gone. Thank you to Joyce for organizing this once again - although I believe she found something other than stitching to do this weekend.   I had grand plans for a very intensive stitching weekend, but was in a bit of a stitching funk yesterday.  As a result I spent the majority of the day reading, doing housework if I was doing housework instead of stitching you know it was a real funk!! and playing around in iTunes it took several hours for me to decide on eight new songs - turns out iTunes is rather like blog reading, you start in one place, follow links and end up hours later nowhere near where you started! Today turned out to be a perfect hermitting day - windy, pouring rain and cold so I was able to settle in and get some stitching done.

On the frame this weekend and for the coming week is Papillon Creations' Eightsome Reel. 

Papillon Creations' Eightsome Reel
Stitched on 28-count Chai Tea Jobelan with HDF conversion

I was able to stitch the red/blue medallion and gold/grey circle on the right.  This puts me at half-way.  It is going to be a push to finish this one as I as I believe I have mentioned before am not enjoying stitching with these fibers but I am too stubborn far along to throw in the towel.

Last week's project was Chatelaine's Japanese Octagonal Box. 

Chatelaine's Japanese Octagonal Box
Stitched on 32-count ice blue Belfast with recommended threads and beads

One more bonsai and a bit more of the slope of Mount Fuji done.  In order to get the colors more true to life, I tried scanning instead of photographing, as suggested by Jo, and it worked.  Unfortunately, I cannot get the scan to copy over to my blog, but I will continue trying.

Here is the link to the list of International Hermit and Stitch participants for April in case you want to end up miles from where you started...

A Good Week

My birthday week was a roaring success.  Lots of relaxing, lots of reading and lots of stitching were done and I have renewed my obsession interest in Midsomer Murders.  I caught the odd show when A&E was still doing sensible television I think they show NCI-take-your-pick-of-cities and Law and Order 24/7, but was never able to watch it consistently.  One of my birthday gifts came with a free month of "Amazon Prime" which includes lots of free streaming videos, so I started with Season 1 and am working my way through.  I doubt I will be able to finish the entire series before the end of the month, but I checked and Netflix also carries it so I should be able to get "caught up" if watching 15 or so seasons all in a row is considered "catching up". I have only once, so far, figured out the mystery before the grand announcement, but it is fun to watch the "gears turn".   As much as I love the show, I always have the same question, "How is there anybody left alive in that town/county?"  And when you throw in Inspectors Morris and Lewis  and how many others that don't get aired in the US and it's amazing that there is anyone left alive in England at all.  I suppose anyone watching US crime drama would say the same thing about us, I mean Jessica Fletcher of "Murder, She Wrote" had to start traveling to continue solving murders as there just weren't enough people in Cabot Cove, Maine to keep a series running very long.

The only thing we weren't able to do was get out on the boat. The wind this week wasn't terrible but it was steady and kept the Small Craft Advisories up all week they're supposed to calm down tomorrow or Monday.  But as I mentioned stitching took place and I am very happy with my progress.  Debbie Mumm's Summerhill House was on the frame.  Here is what it looked like when I started:

And here is where it was when I took it off the stand on Thursday:

Debbie Mumm's Summerhill House
Stiched on 28-count Bluebell Jobelan from Wichelt with recommended DMC

There is a little bit of cross stitching left, lots of backstitching, and all those gaps are beaded and well as beads in the trees and scattered here and there it wouldn't be a Mill Hill pattern without beads would it?. I am hoping to have a finish the next go 'round in the rotation.

Yesterday I started Chatelaine's Mystery XV - Deep Blue Sea. I didn't get as much done as I had hoped as I got a late start, but I am pleased with what I did get done.

Chatelaine's Mystery XV - Deep Blue Sea
Stitched on 32-count Summer Sky Jobelan from Wichelt with Martina's DMC conversion

The colors are really off on this one just like they are with every photo I take no matter with overhead, daylight bulb or real daylight

Japanese Octagonal Box is on the frame for this coming week.

A Start, A Finish and OH MY!!

Thank you everyone for the nice comments on my stitching.  I think I finally figured out the email notification/reply thing it only took me what 1-1/2 years?

We are now having slightly below average temperatures.  I had frost on my windshield this morning!  Now, I know those of you that live north of the optimal climatic zone as was once written of New Hampshire in a turn of the 20th century travel guide will not necessarily find that unusual, BUT it's very strange here. I don't mind changing seasons but I really would like it to decide which season it wants to be and stick with it.

Stitching wise, here's what I worked on this week:

You saw the kit for this one, here is the roof minus beads:

It's stitched on 14-count violet Aida.  There will be silvery beads in the spaces in the middle of the "X".  I wasn't able to start the house itself as I have to stitch this in hand and my hands can only deal with that for short periods of time.

Yes, you read correctly, I also had a finish!!

Marsh Marigolds on Logan's Creek is now hanging on the "wall of finishes" in the den.  I can not get the fabric color to photograph correctly it is actually a very pale green - almost the color of young celery. 

Last and certainly not least, I got this in the mail today:

Isn't it beautiful?  Jo at Serendipitous Stitching stitched this for me.  The flower is backstitched and then she colored in the background.  I have loved all the others I saw on her blog, but not as much as this one! Daisies and pansies are my favorite flower and it got here just in time for my birthday. which I wasn't going to say anything about but since I just had to show off the card, the secret is out.  My birthday is Sunday - I'll be slightly younger than the dinosaurs.

Debbie Mumm's Summerhill House has gone onto the scroll rods.  I took next week off from work I declared a birthday week and what better way to celebrate? so I am really hoping to make some progress on it.  I do have a few things around the house that I'd like to get done, but pretty much it's a do whatever I want to do week. And part of what I want is to start Chatelaine's Deep Blue Sea but I will wait until Friday to do that.