WOWSA!!

I took a big sigh Thursday at 4:45 PM when I signed off my work computer for the last time this year.  On Friday, I had an enjoyable lunch with one set of in-laws, went to the grocery store and finished all my errands.  I am determined to stay home as much as possible this coming week.  I will be out and about on Tuesday as I have to have my car inspected Tuesday morning and on Thursday as The Hubs is finally having his shoulder surgery, but other than that I'm planning to be in and stitching or crafting.

Before I get into my normal blah, blah, blah stuff...

I was reading through my blog list and was scrolling through Jill Rensel's (of Rensel Studio fame) blog and saw this:

WOWSA!!!  There was no information on who stitched it but I am in awe of whoever did.  They combined two Lavender and Lace patterns Celtic Christmas (the lady in the red dress) and Oh Christmas Tree (the two children and the tree) along with bits from other patterns or maybe designed them themselves.  I can't even begin to estimate the amount of time it took to design, never mind stitch this - I would count it an accomplishment to finish one of the two larger pieces that were used.  Pop on over to Jill's blog to see this and many more beautiful pieces and if you know who did this piece, tell them "Congratulations."

So on to my inadequate pieces :-)...

I have been enjoying my hummingbird rotation (flitting around from piece to piece) of the last few weeks.  Last weekend I pulled out Enchantment of Winter by Terrence Nolan and spent a few hours with it.  I loved working on it but it is kitted with silks and my hands are very dry so it kept snagging.  I'm going to have to do some major softening before I pull out a silk piece again.  Despite the snagging, it went from here:

to here:

This is stitched on 28-count Wintered Marble from Stitches 'n Spice there are very subtle splashes of light grey and blue  with the called for threads.

After my time with Winter, I decided a Santa fix was needed so out came Mirabilia's Santa's Magic. He looked like this when he was last out:

And today he looks like this:

He's stitched on 32-count opalescent Ametrine from Silkweavers.  I do wish the photograph could show you how sparkly he is but the camera keeps adjusting and unsparkling it.   I think I've mentioned it before but if you have an older pattern mine is from right around 1996 it calls for #8 Kreinik braid - don't do it!!  Order the #4 and save yourself a lot of headache.  I'm using #4 and don't see how you could get the heavier braid through the fabric without distorting it.  Also and this is soooo irritating, my pattern says that you'll need multiple skeins/spools of 085 and 202hl without saying how many more.  I am almost through my second spool of 085 and nowhere near done, so an order was sent to 123 Stitch and should be here by the end of the week.  My plan for today, tomorrow and maybe Boxing Day is to finish his beard and the Wisper parts of his sleeves so that I can get to the other Kreinik in the design.

And before I forget because I have forgotten almost every month this year here is my December TUSAL photo:

TUSAL is hosted by It's Daffycat and is the easiest SAL ever to participate in.  Collect all the snips and bits from your crafting, put them in a container of some sort and post a photo on the new moon each month.  I'm good at the saving the bits part, but not so good at the posting picture part.

A finish, two starts and IHSW

After the grocery shopping and housework, I had a very productive . 

First up, the finish. 

This is Just Nan's Holly Bows.  It's done on 32-count Stone Grey Belfast with DMC and the beads from the bead pack that came with the pattern.  I really do like this fabric color and have a few patterns that would look really nice on it.

After I finished Holly Bows I put Goldie on the frame to put a few stitches in so that I could put it on my WIPocalypse list for next year.  The stitching was so easy that I did a bit more than a few stitches:

Goldie is my in-law's German Shepherd.  I took a puppy photo of her and put in an order with Heaven and Earth Designs for a special order stocking.  If you look really carefully, you can just see an outline of her ear to the right of the large stitched area.  I worked on this Saturday evening and Sunday morning and then put Japanese Zen Garden from Chatelaine on the stand (again to just put a few stitches in).

It was nice stitching a Chatelaine again.  This is stitched on 32-count Sky Blue Jobelan (after looking at the pattern there aren't areas of solid beading so the hand-dyed 32-count should be okay).  I am using Martina's DMC conversion for all the fibers except for a couple she didn't list a conversion for.  There are lots and lots of sparkly stitches that are charted in this bit, but even with all the PTB (Petite Treasure Braid) I have, I didn't have any of the ones called for.  I have an order in for the PTB, the two silks and the bead pack.  Not sure when they'll all show up but will carry on with the DMC I do have and fill in once I get all the goodies.

Goldie and Zen are the two pieces that I will focus on in 2018 as I would really like for them to be Christmas gifts next year - boring blog with just the two pieces - you have been warned.

The last Gifted Gorgeousness check in for 2017

Even though I have been talking about holiday preparations and 2018 stitching plans, it is hard to believe that there are only a couple more weeks left in 2017.  I am really not sure how the end of the year sneaks up on my like this every year.

As I am typing I am looking out the window and watching a pair of tufted titmice at the feeders.  They are very happy that I put out some shelled peanuts and chopped apples I found one at the back of the crisper drawer that wasn't so crisp earlier.  I think they're eating the apples and hoarding the peanuts.  If you're not in the eastern part of North America, here's what they look like:

  Not a colorful bird but so very cute.  I did not take this picture, but this one is a bit chilly as they aren't normally that fluffed up.  I can also hear a cardinal calling but haven't seen it at the feeder yet.

So today is the check-in for the last  for this year.  Gifted Gorgeousness is hosted by Jo at Serendipitous Stitching and is a way for us to say "thank you" to those that have gifted us with stitching things, show things we're giving as gifts or anything else we can shoehorn into the subject.  It is a stressless SAL as you post as you can and Jo gives us plenty of leeway in our shoehorning.

Since last month's post I have been a stitching fiend for me anyway!  I had one finish that was a gift - A Glimpse of Santa -

and two finishes and a start, Kari's Snowflake, Snowgirls and Holly Bows (photos below in that order) that I am shoehorning.  Because I finished my obligation stitching this year, the stitching time freed up is a huge gift to myself so I'm counting these pieces

as part of the SAL.

 This weekend is also an  weekend, so grab a project and stitch.  Another no stress SAL that only requires that you stitch and post.  I haven't been too good about it this year, but I plan to give it a go again in 2018. 

I have pretty well pulled my 2018 stitching plans together and have a list of SALs that I am interested in for next year, but will probably take until midnight on January 1 to have it finalized.  My plan for the weekend is to finish Holly Bows and then start Goldie and/or Japanese Zen Garden.  See you Monday with an IHSW update.

A tired camel

After the last few years, I didn't think I'd every say it, but the Screaming Camel of Happiness is tired.  Yes, I have another finish!  Those that may be new to my blog, please do not think this is normal!  I typically go months and months without progress never mind an actual finish.  I will be back to that pattern soon enough but am enjoying this while I can.

Here is my completed Just Nan's Kari's Snowflake:

It's stitched on 28-count opalescent Desert Sky evenweave from Silkweavers with DMC, Kreinik and the embellishments that were included with the pattern.  I like the design, but oh my aching head, I had more frog visits on this piece than any in recent memory.  The design is less than 3" square so it's not like I had to count to much more than 5...  Anyway it's done and will soon be moving in with the other several dozen unfinished finished pieces.  Someday I need to sit down and figure out what to do with all of them.

After finishing the snowflake, I pulled out Just Nan's Holly Bows and got it to here:

This is stitched on 32-count Stone Grey Belfast.  I love how the colors pop on this fabric.  If you look closely you'll see something very unusual in this picture.  Yes, it's in a hoop.  I seldom use a hoop for smaller pieces but my hands were protesting after I finished the snowflake so I pulled the hoop out and clamped it in my lapstand.  My hands are happier and it is so much nicer to use both hands for stitching.  Fortunately the design fits within the opening so I don't have to move the hoop or really worry about marks.

Before I started stitching this weekend, I pulled fabric and threads for the two projects that will be my focus pieces next year Goldie a special order stocking charted by Heaven and Earth Designs and Japanese Zen Garden from Chatelaine.

I was heart sore to hear the news of Martina Rosenberg's passing this last week so when DSon picked a Chatelaine for me to stitch for him I was thrilled. What better way to remember a wonderful designer.  Unlike Goldie, Japanese Zen Garden was not a planned start, but sorting through my stash, I have most of the fiber (I'm using Martina's DMC conversion) and a large enough piece of fabric (32-count Summer Sky Jobelan) that I should be able to start in the next couple of weeks. 

I will be starting both Goldie and Zen this year as I want them on my WIPocalypse list for next year, so Holly Bows will be my last finish for this year and probably a while. 

Because the two new pieces are large and detailed (each in their own way) they will be the only two pieces in my rotation next year.  I may have to take some time out to stitch another wedding piece and am reserving Sunday mornings for small stitching just so I can have some finishes next year but you will be seeing mostly Goldie and Zen next year. 

So remember a couple of weeks ago I showed you this? 

Well the same yard looked like this

on Saturday.  Yes, winter has arrived in central Virginia.  It's all gone today but it was very pretty outside this weekend made all the prettier by the fact that I didn't have to go out in it.  No snow forecast for the rest of this week, but it is supposed to be very cold on Wednesday almost cold enough to pull out my New Hampshire winter coat and then warm by the weekend again.  I don't think I'll see the dandelion again until spring but with the weird weather we've been having I'm not sure I'd count it out.

2017 Online Advent Calendar

Welcome to day 6 of the 2017 Online Advent Calendar hosted by Jo at Serendipitous Stitching.  Before I talk about Christmas, I want to wish these two ladies very Happy Birthdays!  Yes, my sister and my new niece share a birthday.  It was very nice of my nephew to find someone that shares a birthday with his mother - two very special St. Nicholas Day gifts.

 And speaking of St. Nicholas here's an Americanized version of him:

Christmas Presence charted by Heaven and Earth Designs

Jo asked us to share how we celebrate Boxing Day in our family.  Here in the US, Boxing Day tends to fall into category two of Jo's 21st Century Boxing Day traditions which is "going mad in the Boxing Day sales or being forced to work to serve those mad people".  What I do on Boxing Day depends on where I am.  If I'm visiting my family, we tend to hit the after Christmas sales and then just relax and enjoy being together  That is changing a bit as my niece and nephew have both married and have homes of their own, but they do visit often.  If it is just The Hubs and me here in Virginia, there's a better than even chance that I'm working unless Boxing Day falls on a weekend.  No, I'm not one of those forced to serve the mad shoppers, but Christmas Day is the official holiday, so the office is back open bright and early on the 26th (Sounds like something Scrooge said to Bob Cratchit). Fortunately, we have had enough people that don't mind working the week of Christmas that most of us have been able to take time off.  I will be taking the week after Christmas off, so I will be doing a stitcher's Boxing Day which consists of stitching while working out a plan of attack on my stash and/or WIPs for the coming year.  That doesn't mean that I won't go out to torture the poor folks that have to work retail at some point that day.  

I finally found my stitching mojo!

I am very pleased to report that my stitching mojo has returned from its walk-about and I am taking advantage of it.

Yes, we have another release of:

Pure, unadulterated joy



Snowgirls from Country Garden Stitchery is done:

 

 



I have tried for the last 10 minutes or so to get this to flip but even though it is saved landscape it still posts here as portrait every time, so I gave up.  Anyway, it's stitched on 28-count Mulberry Mix from Silkweaver with the called for Weeks Dye Works, the Weeks Dye Works replacement for the Gloriana and Mill Hill beads.  I used the White Blending Filament in the center one, but did not like the look so didn't use it in the other two. If you do this piece, I would suggest two skeins of WDW Conch.  I ran out about 1/4 way through the third snowgirl.  It would have happened sooner but I alternately mixed one strand of Conch with one strand of DMC 4150 and then one strand of DMC 950. I finished it up mixing one strand of 4150 and one of 950.  Even if using the called for 30-count I don't think you would have enough.  Your mileage will obviously vary, but I am a fairly stingy stitcher and there isn't enough of a difference between 28- and 30-count to cause the shortage so early in the piece.

To celebrate my finish, I started Just Nan's Kari's Snowflake and got to here with it:

I'm doing the rose color way this pattern has three different color ways listed on a piece of 28-count Opalescent Desert Sky from Silkweaver with DMC.  I think this is going to be another quick stitch so maybe another finish this weekend.  I do need to think about getting the stocking for my in-laws started but it is so nice to have these finishes that it's very hard to go back to something that is going to take months to finish.

WHEW!

I did it!  I crossed all the preparation things off my to-do list and two days earlier than I expected to.  The next big item on the list if going to the post office, but I won't do that until Saturday or Monday, so I have at least one day to relax.

So, the week went like this:  Sunday, I put the cards together.  I forgot to take a picture and they're all in envelopes and ready for mailing, so you'll have to take my word for it that they are beautiful.  :-)  On Monday I started in on the baking and crafting in earnest with a couple batches of cookies and the gift cards and small packages.  This year rather than make gift card presentation cards I decided to make and decorate the envelopes that hold the gift cards or small gifts.  Each one is different, but here are my two favorite gift card holders:

and here's my favorite small gift box:

This box is 1" square.  I did a little trimming after I took this photo so those little bits that are sticking out here are gone now.
Tuesday was a carbon copy of Monday.  Wednesday I did more baking and some finishing. 

I'm not thrilled with the shape of the heel, but at least it looks like a stocking and I finally framed 12 Days of Christmas from Plum Street Samplers.  I finished the stitching on this last November or December:

This was one of the more difficult pieces I have framed myself because of all the straight lines, but even if they were all wonky, I'd be happy because it's finally framed.

Today was wrapping of big gifts, packing shipping boxes and candy making day.  All the candy items were chocolate dipped, so lots of chilling, melting and waiting.  One of my recipes called for a couple tablespoons of heavy cream.  I'll be honest here, I normally throw out the remainder, but this year I decided that was too wasteful, so I poured it into a jar and started shaking it after I put the lid on.  In a few minutes, I had:

Yes, that's right about a half cup of butter.  I'm sure this isn't anything neat or new for many of you, but it's a first for me and I'm quite chuffed about it.

Now that everything is cleaned up and I've crossed all the extra things of my list, I'm feeling a bit let down.  In order to counter it, I pulled out an old WIP:

This is Snow Girls by Country Garden Stitchery and the last time I put a stitch in was something in February of 2012!! I've added a few stitches, but nothing much really, so will wait until I have something to show before I post a progress picture.  I plan to stitch this to a finish and then will start on my obligation stitching unless I change my mind again...

While walking to the mail box this afternoon, I saw this:

Yes, that's a dandelion flower with some sort of flying insect on it.  Yes, I live in the northern hemisphere and it is effectively December.  While I enjoy the warmer winters here in Virginia, I'm not sure I'm ready for one this warm.  Now that I've said something the bottom is going to drop out of the thermometer and we're going to have blizzard after blizzard.