Framing Day!!!!

This is a "stitchy" Welcome piece I finished a while ago and BC EduCATed.

Here are three Halloween pieces. The bottom left is SP Jenny Bean Halloween Sampler.

Jeanette Douglas Designs Pineapple Stitches

Jeannette Douglas Designs Pomegranate and Pears Stitches

Well, I decided to head to town early today and see if I could find some frames for my big pile of finished stitching projects. Earlier this month I went through all of my pieces and measured them all and recorded the information in my Stitching Notebook. Fortunately, I had this with me today. My first stop was at Shakespeare's Peddler. I wanted the frame for her Jenny Bean Halloween Sampler. Theresa has been straightening her shop and had several frames priced really well. Since I had my handy, dandy notebook, I was able to pick up several that would be perfect. After visiting with Theresa, I headed to Lowe's to pick up some paint and to pay for our new carpet. I then stopped by Hobby Lobby. They had the frames for 50% off and I found two frames that were perfect for the JDD pieces. So after an afternoon of stretching needlework, I have 7 pieces ready to display. Not bad for a Saturday afternoon.

Progress update...

Well, I haven't been stitching as much this week as I have the past 5 weeks. My job is justing taking too much time away from my hobbies. I am really having fun with these two though. The Jenny Bean Christmas Sampler is very cute. I love the holly leaves. I am surprised at how quickly the stitching is. I am sure I will have this one completed during February.

The Halloween Fairy is just too pretty. This one is also stitching up very fast. The pattern is on two pages of the magazine and my progress is most of the cross stitching from the top page. I still need to add all of the beads and the metallic threads, but those always seem to go quickly for me. I just love the colors of this piece though.

I think my next start will actually be a continuation. I have all four parts of Raise the Roof Christmasland. I finished the first part already. I think I will stitch on part two over the weekend. Should be fun.

I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!!

Two new starts...

Well, this weekend I decided to organize my stitching stash...again. We have decided to move our bedroom downstairs into my current craft room. Our current bedroom will become a den for the boys to watch TV, play videogames, etc and for my crafting area. Friday the boys helped me move just the cross stitching supplies. It was a total mess, so I had to get everything straight again. I got my threads all together, my patterns all organized, and my fabric sorted by count, fabric type and color. It looks so pretty. While I was doing all of this I selected my next few projects:

First I started the Jenny Bean Christmas Sampler by Shakespeare's Peddler. Theresa posted her newest Jenny Bean sampler on Saturday, so I thought I better get ahead of the game. I am stitching this on 40 ct and it is so pretty. I just started, but I already love the colors.

Next I started the Halloween Fairy by Nora Corbett that was in the September 2008 Cross Stitch & Needlework. I bought this way back then and have had it kitted and ready to go for some time. I picked a 28 ct. Silkweaver Jobelan Solo and absolutely love it. The colors are perfect. This one is stitching up fast, which is surprising considering how detailed it looks.

Finally, I have finished yet another piece. It's small, but it still counts. I found a skein of Six Strands Sweet Fruitcake in my cleaning and decided to use it to stitch Shakespeare's Peddler Abby Rhoades ornament. I think it is cute and will make a great ornament on my tree next year.

Well, January is almost over and I am so happy that I was able to get so much accomplished. If I can keep up half this pace I just might accomplish all of my goals this year. I did pick up some new patterns at Theresa's on Friday. Have you seen the new Lizzie Kate Green Flip-It series. It is adorable and since I am a biologist I really need this one for my office. Also, since I am a cat owner too I had to buy the new Cat Advice for People.

Hope everyone has a great week!

And another finish...

Alright!!! I love finishing these patterns. This is the last of the patterns I have been dreading. I bought the button pack to go along with this pattern and then realized that the size was off. But, my resolution this year is to enjoy myself and not fret over things that don't really matter. So, I used the buttons anyway. I figure the button bees are closer to the "front" of the piece and that the butterfly is just really healthy and big. I think it looks so pretty. This piece will be finished as a box top.

Now, what to stitch next???

Another January finish..i

Man, I am on a roll this month. Last night, while watching The Office, I finished Sharon's Christmas Fairy. Sharon, my sister, started this project a while ago, but had some issues with seeing the fabric. She has whined and whined about for so long and finally convinced me to finish it for her. She had stitched everything but the wings, head, hands, and tree. So I really didn't have too much to do. The wings were the most frustrating. Once I completed that, the rest just took me a few hours. The beading was easy, too. So, I guess I shouldn't complain. I called Sharon as soon as I finished and she is very excited. One more project bites the dust!!

The rest of the evening, I worked on another WIP that I have been putting off too long. I don't know what it is about this piece, but I was not enjoying it at all. Last night I finished the bee hive and now the rest should be quite easy. I hope to finish it this weekend. This was suppose to be a present for my younger sister, Bridget. I think I will frame it for her and give it to her as part of her very late birthday present. (If you are reading this, Bridget: Surprise!!)

I have been very fortunate this month to have so much time to stitch. It really feels good to check so many things off my list. Not a bad start to 2010.

Pineapple Stitches completed!!!

Yea!!! I have finished another project in January. This is Jeannette Douglas Designs Pineapple Stitches. I bought the pattern, fabric, and thread pack last spring and have been looking at it since then. I love these patterns from JDD. I stitched her Pomegranate and Pears Stitches a while back and really enjoyed it. So, since my goal this year is to stitch primarily from my stash, this is a check in that column.

One other thing that I have been doing is getting rid of some of my stash. Instead of keeping patterns that I have already stitched and will never stitch again, I have been posting them on eBay. Here's my logic... If I can get a little bit of money from selling some old patterns, then I can use that money to buy new stash without guilt. It works. I sold 8 patterns in the first week in January and made enough money to purchase the last parts of the RTR Christmasland series that I love. So, no guilt.

One other note: a water pipe burst in my craft room. Fortunately only 1/3 of the room was affected and my stash was not in that 1/3. I lost all of my mat board, foam board, craft paper, watercolor paper and several bags of polyfil. All of my stitching bags were also soaked, but I should be able to wash and dry those with no problem. The carpet has partially been removed and the walls and ceiling are almost dry. The adjustor comes by on Monday, so hopefully we can have everything back in order by February.

Hope everyone has a great weekend and happy stitching...

Busy year already...

Well, since I have some free time at the beginning of the year, I am trying to make the most of it. I finished another one of my "goal" projects the other day. This is LHN Dream. I bought this one on impulse and then decided I really didn't like it as much once I got home. Sharon said she would be happy to receive it once I finished it (she is so generous). So, I stitched it up and actually think it is cute. Too bad I already promised it to Sharon.

Speaking of Sharon... Here is the progress I have made on her Christmas Fairy. She is old, you know, so she can't see the fabric as well and begged me to finish this project for her. She is so lucky to have such a nice and young sister, don't you think. Shouldn't be too long on this one.

I don't have a picture, but I am also stitching on JDD Pineapple Stitches. I absolutely love this one. It is a lot of fun to stitch and just beautiful. I purchased the thread pack for this one, but surprisingly it doesn't have enough of some of the threads. I will need to buy a skein or two to finish.

Hope everyone has a great weekend and try to stay warm...

Finished a project already!!!

Jenny Bean's Halloween Sampler is complete. I am actually surprised at how quickly I finished this one. I had the top left corner completed back in November and then put it aside to work on other projects. I pulled it out on the 1st and just put the last stitches in it this morning.

I think this is one of Theresa's best patterns. I love the border and the alphabet. The tree is so pretty, too. Now, I can start on one of the other 16 projects that I have waiting on me. (As I stated in my last post, I have decided to pull together some of the many patterns that I have in my stash and work on these this year.)

Happy New Year everyone and I hope you have a great week.