Lori (thornton37814) stitches in 2022 - part 2

My Three Stitching Helpers



I thought I'd repeat the photo from the top of the last thread for the second part.

Yesterday I went to an estate sale. Everything was half the marked price. Here's my haul.



There are enough buttons to begin my own button tin--reminiscent of the ones my grandmother and mother had. I couldn't resist that little casserole dish for $1. I "rescued" the Lord's Prayer stitched piece and got the book on samplers.

I went to the cross stitch shop in Johnson City yesterday. The local embroiderer's guild had a pattern exchange and left the remainder as freebies in the cross stitch shop. (The owner, of course, made sure none were patterns she had for sale.) Here's my haul:

I also purchased the new issue of Punch Needle and Primitive Stitcher and one of the new Brenda Gervais designs.

July 1 began a Stitch Along with Pam of Just Keep Stitchin'. We're stitching the American Trilogy series from Twin Peaks Primitives. Some participants will only stitch one design; others will stitch all three. Everyone is free to select which one they are stitching first. I started with "Lady Liberty" on 28 count Vintage Country Mocha with the called for DMC fibers. (The pattern called for light mocha which is the base fabric for the vintage one. The vintage just has mottling in it.)

Here's my progress as 2 July 2022. I put a few more stitches in this afternoon.

Here's the progress on the birth announcement through yesterday. I got one of the next arrows done while at the fireworks event for our church tonight, but as it was getting darker, I had to put it away quicker than I would have at home. Of course, that gave me time to visit with folks outside.

>6 thornton37814: That's turning out really lovely, Lori!

>7 MickyFine: I'm enjoying it. I made a color customization today on the next line of words (time/weight/inches). I've been concerned about how light the city/state would be so I decided to do the weight line in black instead of the dark green and move the dark green to the city/state line instead of using the medium gray. Since the date line is right above the arrows and was the lighter shade of green, I decided I wanted the two greens separated a little more. I think it will be fine. I should finish tomorrow unless the anticipated family situation requires me to leave tomorrow.

>6 thornton37814: I really like this. The colors complement one another so well, it makes it easier to make adjustments. Are the bear, the first name, and the arrows the same color?

>9 lauralkeet: Yes. They are all black (DMC 310). Some of the feathers on the arrows vary in color, but they are all colors in the mountains or trees.

>6 thornton37814: This is just a lovely birth sampler especially knowing it is in concert with the baby's room decor. Have the parents seen your progress or will this be a complete surprise?

>11 beebeereads: They know I'm doing something with a mountain theme, but they haven't seen it. I began the bottom set of mountains today. I might finish it this week, but it could be delayed because of my cousin's impending death and the travel and other things it will require.

>12 thornton37814: So sorry to hear about your cousin. The sampler will be beautiful no matter when you finish it. Take care.

>13 beebeereads: I had to take a break tonight. I managed to stab my hand with the really short pair of scissors. It wasn't too deep, but I needed to clean and bandage it and avoid getting blood on the fabric. It was a freak accident as I was shifting some stuff.

>14 thornton37814: Ouch!

>15 beebeereads: It doesn't hurt (yet). Will resume stitching this morning. I read after the injury last night.

>14 thornton37814: Oh, that has to hurt!

>17 avaland: It's okay for the most part. Just a tiny pain once in awhile, but the wound is closed back over. As I said, it wasn't very deep--just enough to make it bleed good.

I failed to upload my progress yesterday so before I begin working on it after a long day of work, here's my progress on Mountains Birth Announcement. It's nearing completion. Just a little more of the mountains and a couple trees to go.

I took the piece to Hobby Lobby to be framed. It won't be ready for a couple weeks, so I won't have it when I meet my great nephew.

I never got around to uploading last week's stitching. These photos reflect progress as of Sunday the 17th.

The first piece is a completion.



Hometown Holiday: The Bookstore
Designer: Diane Williams of Little House Needleworks
Fabric: 28 count natural linen by Zweigart
Fibers: DMC 640, 3023, 3777,3828, Ecru; Classic Colorworks - Hickory Sticks, Roasted Chestnut, Steamed Broccoli
Start date: 20 April 2022
Completion date: 13 July 2022
Comments: This was a lunch time stitching piece so I'd only get about 30 minutes/day in 5 days a week at most. I began it right before the end of the semester and worked on it the 4 weeks I worked this summer. I did finish it at home because I lacked about an hour of stitching.

I have one other finish, but I'm waiting on it to download to the computer. I forgot to rotate it before sending it from my phone. So next you get a piece I started July 1. I had not worked on it very many hours as of Sunday because I was also working on other things.



Lady Liberty (American Trilogy Series)
Designer: Twin Peaks Primitives
Fabric: 28 count vintage country mocha by Zweigart
Fibers: called-for DMCs

I'm making good progress on this one this week so you'll see more progress if I remember to upload on Sunday.

Okay - I got this one rotated.



Mountains Birth Announcement
Designer: Inna, a Ukrainian designer from Stitches Lovers Shop in Etsy
Fabric: 32 count white lugana
Fibers: DMC blanc, 310, 318, 415, 470, 762, 937, 3078
Started: 8 June 2022
Completed: 12 July 2022

It is being framed. Frame is green with black border on both sides of the green.

The birth announcement piece turned out great, Lori!

>24 MickyFine: It really did.

That bookstore is cute as is the birth sampler.

>26 dudes22: Thanks, Betty! I'll finish that bookstore off when I finish other pieces in the series. They'll be block finishes to make a Christmas village. I don't remember which ones I own I have kitted, but I'm thinking either the quilt or needlework store will be next if one of those is kitted. If not, I'll probably kit those when I get to the cross stitch shop. I won't be starting until I'm back at work in August, but I'll probably begin on one before I get back to the shop.

Great work!

>28 avaland: Thanks!

Love your work!

>30 beebeereads: Thanks. Recently at the needlework shop, I said, "My backs aren't perfect." Sandra and Amie said my back looks better than at least 95% of the ones they see. It made me feel much better. I am trying to catch little problems like a knot/loop in the thread early so I am more likely to go back and fix it. I'm also being more careful about running threads between letters or other chart elements. It's paying off.

I'm sure your backs are nicer than mine. (Perhaps all the embroiderers here should share photos of our backs one day... except I don't know if I'd want to share my shame.)

LOL - I don't know. I can't share that one I was working on since it is off being framed (for back to be hidden), but my current piece is not bad. I am having trouble with it not lining up. I can't find a counting error down either side of the Statue of Liberty or around the face, so I'm not sure whether or not I can find it. I'm compensating by adding an x on the pedestal. I'm going to work the vertical pedestal lines in hopes of finding the error and going back to correct it, but if it still doesn't match, I won't sweat it. I should be able to correct the problem with minimal frogging if I do find it.

Pattern: Amazing Star
Designer: Lynda Keske of Keske's
Source: Just Cross Stitch Christmas Ornament issue, 2016, page 62
Fabric: 40 count Platinum Newcastle linen from Zweigart
Fiber: Weeks Dye Works Holly
Start Date: 8 June 2022
Completion Date: 26 July 2022

Pattern: Heartfelt StitchAlong
Designer/Sponsor: Fat Quarter Shop
Source: FQS web site download
Fabric: 28 count pale gray gingham evenweave
Fibers: DMC 321, 470, 472, 646, 760, 761, 844, 3024, 3705, B5200
Start Date: 18 February 2022
Completion Date: 27 July 2022
Note: A section of the design was released monthly.

Design name: "Modern Nordic"
Designer: Tracy Horner of Ink Circles
Source: Just Cross Stitch Ornament Issue 2017, page 63
Fabric: 32 count Platinum linen from Zweigart
Fiber: DMC Coloris Cotton Floss 4517 (Elves)
Start Date: 8 June 2022
Completion Date: 30 July 2022

Design Name: Lady Liberty
Series: American Trilogy
Designer: Twin Peaks Primitives
Fabric: 28 count Vintage Country Mocha from Zweigart
Fibers: Called-for DMCs
Progress as of Friday 29 July 2022

You've been making great progress on your projects. Love the heart one!

>38 dudes22: I think that will get turned into a pillow if I get brave enough to attempt it!

Any new cross-stitch updates, Lori?
I really like the Christmas tree in >34 thornton37814:, it’s just the right amount of minimalism and stylised imagery for me.

I've just been so busy I haven't been posting. I haven't really had a lot of time for stitching since work resumed. Part of it is that I'm exhausted by the time I get home. I've been curling up with the cats and a book instead of with the cross stitch--or just curling up with the cats and dozing off. I think that tree appealed to me for the same reason.

"Needlework Shop" (Hometown Holiday series). Designed by Diane Williams of Little House Needleworks. Stitched on 28 count natural linen by Zweigart with called-for DMC (644, 729, 3052, 3777, Ecru) and Classic Colorworks (Caterpillar, Brandied Pears, English Ivy) fibers. Progress to 26 August 2022

"Lady Liberty" (American Trilogy). Designed by Twin Peak Primitives. Stitched on 28 count Vintage Country Mocha from Zweigart with called for DMCs. Progress to 28 August 2022

"Be Ye Thankful" designed by Brenda Gervais of With Thy Needle and Thread. Stitched on 36 count Vintage Country Mocha by Zweigart with DMC 522 & 3826; Weeks Cornsilk, Bright Leaf, Flatfish, Sage, Caper, Oscar, Olive, and Oilcloth; Gentle Arts Sampler Grecian Gold; Gentle Arts Shaker Fragrant Cloves; and Classic Colorworks Just Rust. Progress to 28 August 2022

Oh - those are coming along nicely.

>45 dudes22: I stitched on "Be Ye Thankful" at the cross stitch shop. Annie (FlossTuber who goes by "The Proper Stitcher") loved it so much. I didn't see if she added the pattern to her stash or not, but she was talking about doing it. She especially loved the border/basket color.

Is that three different projects you have going? You probably have them finished by now. right? :-)

>47 avaland: I need to post photos. I keep forgetting to upload. I've been focused on genealogy talks and have had less stitching time. I did finish one of those and at least one other. I've made progress on the other two. One is nearly finished, but I usually only stitch 30 minutes/day on it during lunch break at work (when I have time). The other I put aside for a bit, but I'm getting it back into the rotation, but not rushing it. I'm stitching other things that are a little more seasonal. The Gentle Arts fiber I needed to finish my Panda Pals arrived at the cross stitch shop so I'm looking forward to picking it up this Saturday. I plan to go up and spend the day around the table cross stitching with other women who do that on Saturday.

I finished "Be Ye Thankful" by designer Brenda Gervais of With Thy Needle and Thread on September 17. I stitched it on 36 count Vintage Country Mocha from Zweigart using fibers from DMC, Classic Colorworks, Gentle Arts, and Weeks Dye Works.

This is progress as of about a week ago on "Lady Liberty" from Twin Peak Primitives. It's being stitched on 28 count Vintage Country Mocha with DMC fibers. I've made more progress on the water since then.

This is progress to September 29 on "Needlework Shop" in the Hometown Holidays series by Diane Williams of Little House Needleworks. It's stitched on 28 count natural linen from Zweigart with DMC and Classic Colorworks fibers. I'll finish all of these in blocks to make a Christmas village. I need to finish what's in the windows, one more tree to the right, some snow at the bottom and a few small snowflakes in the air.

I finished this one yesterday. I almost finished it on the plane, but I still had about 15 minutes of stitching remaining. This is "Eek!" by Marsha Worley & Elizabeth Newlin of Bent Creek. It's stitched on 28 count Clay linen with the called for DMC fibers. I wish I had used the orangier color for the pumpkin, but I don't think I'll go back and frog it out and restitch it. I may change my mind during my fall break which is coming up--depending on how I decide to finish it. I'm debating between using an 8 x 8 frame and a pillow. I'll see what options are available fabric-wise. It looks like I can pick up a frame for about $15.



This is showing up really dark. I'll try to get a better picture, but I accidentally left that project bag at home.

These are really nice. Be Ye Thankful is my favorite.

>53 mnleona: I really like that design too. I have a similar design for Christmas by her, and I'm looking forward to stitching it soon!

Fingers and toes crossed! I'll find out tomorrow if I got into Stitch-con or if I'm on the wait list. I'm optimistic I'll receive an invoice! I really want to go on this cross-stitch retreat. It's one of the few that works with my academic schedule!

"Singing Sparrow" designed by Susan O'Bryant of Sweet Wing Studio. 32 count stormy night lugana with Classic Colorworks, Gentle Arts, and DMC fibers. Progress to today.

"Lady Liberty" by Twin Peak Primitives. Progress to 9 Oct 2022. 28 count Vintage Country Mocha with called-for DMCs.

I've not been stitching as much on this lately, but I'm stitching a little on it.

It's a finish!



"Needlework Shop" in the Hometown Holiday series by Little House Needleworks. (Designer, Diane Williams). Completed 8 Oct 2022. Stitched on 28 count natural linen by Zweigart. I'll put it in my pile to finish as blocks for my Christmas village. I'll probably do final finishes Thanksgiving week.

I've chosen backing fabrics for pillow finishes for a couple designs. The cross stitch shop owner, another stitcher, and I went to the quilt shop in the same shopping area as the cross stitch shop and picked out these!

Great backings!

>60 dudes22: Aren't they perfect?

very nice work! My fav is the cat of course.

>62 al.vick: Of course!

Chart: "Singing Sparrow"
Designer: Susan O'Bryant of Sweet Wing Studio
Completion date: 15 Oct 2022
Fabric: 32 count Stormy Night Lugana from Zweigart
Fibers: Classic Colorworks (chocolate mousse, blue corn, toasted marshmallow); Gentle Arts Sampler (acorn); Gentle Arts Simply Wool (garden gate); DMC 676

I love the effect the wool thread gave to this! A lady in my church requested that I re-stitch this design for her. I won't get to it immediately, but I'll try to pick up another piece of fabric and restock the fibers so I can hopefully get to it Thanksgiving week.

IN PROGRESS

I needed more of the "Raven" fiber. It took forever for them to get the base fiber and then took another 5 months before shops got their shipments. I will hopefully finish this soon. I have the rest of the second Panda and some tree behind the panda to go. It should stitch up fairly quickly though.

Chart: "Panda Pals"
Designer: Michele M. Lash of Brittercup Designs
Fabric: We think it is 27 count Linda
Fibers: Called-for

I've begun a couple other projects that will have photos in next week's update. One is the Mercantile in the Hometown Holiday series. I think I have one more of this series kitted and own a couple other patterns. I need to dig through my stash to be sure. I want to purchase several more, but I'll probably wait until next year to do so. The other is called Schoolgirl Lessons. It is my first effort using silk fibers. It's a single color piece so I'm just using a Belle Soie silk from Classic Colorworks.

very nice progress. the sparrow is cute.

>65 thornton37814: Nice to see more progress on the pandas. I know you've been waiting for thread for this one for a while. :)

Very nice, Lori. I love watching the panda take shape.

>67 al.vick: Thanks!

>68 MickyFine: >69 lauralkeet: I should finish the panda either tomorrow or Saturday, I think.

I finally finished this one yesterday!



Pattern Name: Panda Pals
Designer: Michelle M. Lash of Brittercup Designs
Fabric: 27 count Linda (we think)
Fibers: Gentle Arts: Avocado, Tarnished Gold, Slate, Flax, Shutter Green, Tea Rose, Raven
Completed: 22 October 2022

Pattern Name: Schoolgirl Lessons
Designer: Diane Williams of Little House Needleworks
Fabric: 32 count Country French Cafe Mocha linen
Fiber: Classic Colorworks Belle Soie (silk) - Rose of Sharon
Progress to 22 October 2022

This is my first time stitching with silk. It's a single color piece. I'm loving it.

>71 thornton37814: The pandas are so cute!
>72 thornton37814: The color of that thread is sooooo pretty.

>73 lesmel: I'm glad I finally completed that panda design. I started it years ago and became frustrated when I had to frog a big section of it. I decided to put it away for a while. I ran across it last spring and decided it was time to finish it. Then I had the problem getting enough of the Raven fiber to finish it. I knew I needed to do the second panda in whatever dye lot I ended up getting so I ordered two floss drops of it. I didn't dip into the second, but I had only about 4 inches remaining on the thread drop so I'm glad I ordered it! I really love the "Rose of Sharon" color fiber too.

Congrats on finally finishing the pandas! They look so good.

>75 MickyFine: Thanks! An enabler at the stitching table found the penguin design on the shelves at the store. She thought I needed it to go with the pandas. That designer mainly did cat patterns, so I have most of them--but not all. I guess I should be on the lookout for these other animals she designed. They really do stitch pretty quickly, but you do need a lot more fiber than you think you will at first glance.

Hurray for the pandas! And for having enough floss. I can imagine you'd have been stressing out if you didn't have the second drop. I know I would.

The pandas looks lovely, Lori! So cute. And silk embroidery for the new work, how fancy!

>78 lauralkeet: It was definitely a close call on that second floss drop.

>79 PawsforThought: I'm happy with the pandas, and I'm loving the silk!

Those pandas are cute. How will you finish it?

>81 dudes22: Good question. It will probably be unfinished for a bit. Framing is so pricy, and I may try to get some other finishing inspiration.

>59 thornton37814: Those are great backings.

I love the Panda bear piece.

>83 avaland: Thanks. Hopefully I'll get an update on my current WIPs posted this weekend. I forgot to take photos last weekend. I honestly haven't had a lot of stitching time this week so don't expect great amounts of progress. I've had something every night this week--and tonight is no exception. I actually have two meetings on tonight's agenda--one in person earlier and one virtually later, so I guess I'll see how that pans out. There should be plenty of time for me to get home between them because the first one is earlier. I don't expect the virtual meeting to allow time for stitching if it is like the usual line-up for these meetings. The in person meeting will probably be boring, but I'll survive because they are also usually fairly short.

>84 thornton37814: Busy woman!

Can you recommend any creators on FlossTube who are worth watching? Seeing your gorgeous creations has whetted my appetite to maybe take up cross stitch again after many, many years.

>86 rosalita: I think it depends on what you like. I enjoy JustKeepStitchin' with Pam and Steph. They show off a lot of stuff at the retreats, etc., and they also do shop tours when they visit one. I've found a lot of other FlossTubers through their mentions. I also enjoy Country Stitchers. Brenda and the Serial Starter is also pretty popular, and I watch it. Helen D. offers some great finishing tips. The Proper Stitcher (Annie) is local to me. She's begun a finishing series too, but I think people don't watch her for the finishes. A couple of newer ones I enjoy are Welcome Stitchery and Two Needles Pulling Thread. Shop owners often show things that arrive. Cobweb Corner and Anabella's are good for that. Some designers have channels. I enjoy watching Nicola Parkman (Hands Across the Sea Samplers). A couple of other popular ones are Priscilla & Chelsea (Stitching with the Housewives) and Teresa Kogut's Creative Whims. There are also some fabric & floss dyers that have channels (Fox & Rabbit (fabric dyer & pattern creator), Floss Toss (fabric dyer & a floss dyer that work together)). If you are looking for inspiration, a lot of stitchers put their stuff on Instagram, so you can follow a lot of folks there--even if you don't watch their channels.

Design: The Mercantile
Series: Hometown Holiday
Designer: Diane Williams of Little House Needleworks
Fabric: 28 ct natural linen
Fibers: DMC 221, 950, 3022, 3023, 3052, 3828, Ecru; Classic Colorworks - Caterpillar, Brandied Pears, English Ivy

Progress to 7 November 2022

Design: Schoolgirl Lessons
Designer: Diane Williams of Little House Needleworks
Fabric: 32 count Country French Cafe Mocha
Fiber: Classic Colorworks Belle Soie (silk) - Rose of Sharon

Progress to 7 November 2022

Design: Hope
Designer: Theresa Curry and Brian Stugelmayer of Needle Bling Designer
Source: Just Cross Stitch, Ornament Issue 2015, page 63
Fabric: 36 count Flax
Threads: DMC 310, Crescent Colors - Finley Gold

Progress to 7 November 2022

Joseph is coming up! The "Finley Gold" will be the star of Bethlehem.

I took a break from Hope last week but I stitched on it last night. I'll wait and include that in next week's update since I took all these photos earlier in the day yesterday, intending to upload them before I went to the bonus choir rehearsal. I didn't get around to it.

I did have a finish for the week. It was this one:



Pattern: Schoolgirl Lessons
Designer: Diane Williams of Little House Needleworks
Fabric: 32 count French Cafe Mocha
Fiber: Rose of Sharon Belle Soie from Classic Colorworks

This one will be framed as soon as I find the right one. It will fit into a 5 x 7 frame perfectly.

I worked a little more on my Christmas village series.



Pattern: Mercantile
Series: Hometown Holiday
Designer: Diane Williams of Little House Needleworks
Fabric: 28 count Natural (Zweigart)
Fibers: DMC 221, 950, 3022, 3023, 3052, 3828, Ecru; Classic Colorworks: Caterpillar, Brandied Pears, English Ivy

This is my lunch-time stitch so I only get about .5 hours in 5 days/week. I brought it home this weekend but didn't stitch on it. I will finish it before Thanksgiving--either at work, in a meeting later in the week, or at home over our Thanksgiving Break. If it isn't finished by next Sunday, it will be close!

I had a new start. This design is special to me because it reminds me of a song the Dumplin Valley Trio sang years ago with this title.



Pattern: Blessed Beyond Measure
Designer: Susan O'Bryant of Sweet Wing Studio
Fabric: 36 count Platinum (Zweigart)
Fibers: Classic Colorworks Honeycomb & Secret Garden; DMC 310 & 356; Gentle Arts terra cotta and oatmeal; Weeks Dye Works Roasted Figs, Mocha, and River Rock. (The 356 is a substitute for Classic Colorworks Used Brick which was out of stock. It was the suggested DMC alternative. It wasn't worth tracking down the CCW fiber online for the small motifs on which it is used.)

Susan O'Bryant has become one of my favorite designers. This one changes threads a lot, but I'm enjoying stitching it. I don't know if I can finish it before Thanksgiving or not, but I can make good progress. I'm awaiting her "Let Us Adore Him" pattern I pre-ordered to arrive with a gorgeous piece of dark green fabric (Woodland). She just released the design last week. I pre-ordered it, but it has to get from the distributor to the store. I know of one store that has received their shipment with this design so I'm thinking it might come this week. I will be able to visit the cross stitch store either Wednesday, Friday, or Saturday of Thanksgiving week to pick it up.

Pattern: Hope
Designer: Theresa Curry and Brian Stugelmayer of Needle Bling Designs
Source: Just Cross Stitch, Christmas Ornament issue, 2015, page 63
Fabric: 36 count Flax
Fibers: DMC 310 and Crescent Colors Finley Gold
Completed: 19 November 2022

Pattern: Blessed Beyond Measure
Designer: Susan O'Bryant of Sweet Wing Studio
Fabric: 36 count Platinum (Zweigart)
Fibers: See message #93
Progress to: 19 Nov 2022

I did stitch on this some more today so it's a little further than this!

Pattern: The Mercantile
Series: Hometown Holiday (no. 18)
Designer: Diane Williams of Little House Needleworks
Fabric: 28 count natural linen
Fibers: DMC 221, 950, 3022, 3023, 3052, 3828, Ecru; Classic Colorworks Caterpillar, Brandied Pears, English Ivy
Progress to: 19 Nov 2022

Lovely work on all, Lori!

>97 MickyFine: Thanks!

You have been VERY busy. Beautiful work.

>99 avaland: Thanks!

Pattern: Blessed Beyond Measure
Designer: Susan O'Bryant of Sweet Wing Studio
Fabric: 36 count Platinum linen (Zweigart)
Fibers: Classic Colorworks Honeycomb, Secret Garden; DMC 310, 356 (used for "Used Brick" in CCW); Gentle Arts Terra Cotta, Oatmeal; Weeks Dye Works Roasted Figs, Mocha, River Rock
Date Completed: 25 Nov 2022

Pattern: The Old Mill
Designer: Cynthia Stalcup Smelcer of Foxwood Crossings
Fabric: 14 count brown perforated paper (Mill Hill)
Fibers: Weeks Dye Works Merlot, Navy, Morris Blue, Sky, Spanish Moss, Flatfish, Sandcastle, Collards; DMC B5200, 3371, 729, 3031; Kreinik #8 braid color 002
Date Started: 25 November 2022
Date Completed: 28 November 2022

Foxwood Crossings is local. It's been housed in Dixie Darlin in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee for years. The lady who owns the shop is retiring and has sold the building. Tomorrow is its last day. I have many memories of shopping here over the decades. Although I'm sad to lose the shop, I haven't used it much in recent years unless I needed a fiber or something small like that and was already dealing with the Sevier County traffic. For many years, we had a better shop right here in Morristown. Then after they closed, some of the other regulars had found a better shop up in Johnson City that catered to the serious cross stitcher. Dixie Darlin always catered to the tourist crowd, and that worked really well for them.

I love this design of Pigeon Forge's Old Mill. It will hold a cherished spot on my Christmas tree!

Sleigh is adorable!

>103 dudes22: I loved it too!

>102 thornton37814: I love this, and the story behind it.

oooh... I love that sled!!!

>106 al.vick: It's a fun finish!

yes, for a very nicely stitched piece.

>108 al.vick: The biggest problem with stitching on perforated paper is that the needle wants to fall out!

>102 thornton37814: That is such a great project.

>110 mnleona: Most perforated paper projects call for using 3 strands of floss. I suspect it is mostly to make it easier to keep the needle in as you are stitching. I had seen one flosstuber mention she always used two strands instead and the coverage seemed fine to her. I decided to follow her lead to keep from using so much thread. I'm happy with the coverage.

>111 thornton37814: I used to make book marks with perorated paper. I have one I made for my mother and she did use it. I like your idea of the sled.

>112 mnleona: I have a little more perforated paper so I can do more experimentation. Right now I want to work on some of the stuff I have kitted. I haven't stitched much this week. I've been pretty exhausted when I get home. I'm just not completely over the sinus infection/cold.

>102 thornton37814: What a cute project!

>114 avaland: Thanks! I'm hoping to show off another finish by tomorrow. I have about 2 hours back-stitching left on it. I'm also trying to set up a WIPGO project for 2023, but I'm still deciding what will be in the squares. I'll spend some time this afternoon looking through various places to see what I have kitted I want to add to the board. I want some small and no more than 4 really big projects. It's okay to have lots of middle-sized projects.

Pattern: Mercantile
Series: Hometown Holiday
Designer: Diane Williams of Little House Needleworks
Fabric: 28 count natural

Progress to 11 Dec 2022

Pattern: Flower Quilt Square
Designer: Frony Ritter of Frony Ritter Designs
Source: Just Cross Stitch ornament issue 2019, page 19
Fabric: 28 count flax
Fibers: Gentle Arts Blue Spruce, Buttercrunch, Cherry Wine, Mistletoe, Pomegranate
Completed: 11 Dec 2022

Plans are to make it look somewhat like a quilt with buttons in the corners and a red edging.

I love that quilt square. I can see why you had so much backstitch to do.

The quilt square pattern is really lovely. I'm a big fan of the reds!

>118 dudes22: It is nice. I found a nice red fabric that will be my backing and edging, and I found 4 little red buttons (well--there were 6 on the card) to go in the corners!

>119 MickyFine: I like the reds, but I think if I do it again for some reason, I'll substitute a red that tends a little more to the pinkish side than orange side like pomegranate did.

It's finished!



Pattern Name: Mercantile
Series: Hometown Holiday
Designer: Diane Williams of Little House Needleworks
Fabric: 28 count natural linen
Fibers: DMC 221, 950, 3022, 3023, 3052, 3828, Ecru; Classic Colorworks Caterpillar, Brandied Pears, English Ivy, and Hickory Sticks

I'm going to take a little break from stitching this series until one is called for in WIPGO 2023. (It will be my luck one will be called for January.) I purchased the styrofoam to cut into blocks, a nice green backing fabric, some cloth banding to go around the blocks, and some brown beads for the feet. I think I'll have enough backing fabric to make a few more with this same fabric before needing to switch to something else if I can't find more. (The tutorial for the block finishing is at the Little House Needleworks web site.) I don't know where I'm going to display this set but I plan to garner my courage to try the new rotary cutter and get started. I do need to figure out where I put the flat pins I purchased a few months ago before I do so as pinning is important. (I've purchased some plastic containers for things like that now, but I didn't have them back then.)

That's another nice one. Looking forward to seeing them finished.

>121 thornton37814: That's so lovely! And very winter-y/Christmas-y with the snow and all.

>122 dudes22: Thanks.

>123 PawsforThought: I've enjoyed stitching the series, but I'm going to just aim for 2-3 per year. I have the Quilt Shop kitted, but that's the end of what I have on hand. I will need to pick a couple more to kit up for next year. There are still a lot I want to do.

I love this one...beautiful work as always!

>126 beebeereads: Thanks. It is a cute series. I've started work on a Christmas small. (I think it will be a pillow for a dough bowl.) I also have an ornament kitted I'd like to complete before Christmas. I was stitching the cardinal on the piece I'm stitching and had to read the directions to see what something was. Turns out the designer wanted a satin stitch. I'm fine with that, but when I looked at the stitched model on the cover, it was stitched straight up and down and looked awful in my opinion. I posed a question to a FB group and got every opinion under the sun, but I didn't like what some of them had done. (Some were avoiding the satin stitch.) I decided to message Amie, the assistant at our cross stitch shop. She has the pattern and looked at the stitched model and agreed with me it looked awful. She also agreed with me it needed to be done diagonally. I would have trusted her opinion whether I agreed with it or not because she has a good eye for things like that. I told her if I didn't like it (because the wing color will be exactly the same as the bird color) that I might try using a Gentle Arts wool fiber if I can find one that would look right in there--kind of like the "His Eye Is on the Sparrow" piece I stitched earlier. I really loved the way that one looked. I think it used half cross-stitches instead of satin, and with a wool fiber, that might be all that is needed. I'm going ahead and stitching the other parts first so I can play with that when I'm done and not get bogged down in making it look right.

>127 thornton37814: Your process is so interesting and a bit familiar to me from my past. I often changed colors and fibers as I stitched. And yes, I remember when one didn't work, but what's a few ripped stitches to get the right result! Good luck with your cardinal...I'll look forward to seeing the finished product.

>128 beebeereads: You might get to see it before it's finished, but I'll wait until there's a little more than one one motif and a little bit of border to show.

Here's my 2023 thread: https://www.librarything.com/topic/347164