My Tuckaway Shoulder Bag by Olde Colonial Designs

As you can see here, I modified this design. I didn’t want to use the included charm, and the over-one alphabet just didn’t do anything for me, so I used “Improve each Shining Hour” from the poem by Isaac Watts. I stitched a bee over one and added a wooden flower button (because the poem begins How doth the little busy bee/Improve each shining hour). I thought the Rhodes hearts added  a nice touch. I stitched it using the threads included in the kit on a piece of 32 cream linen from Vikki Clayton (fabric, oddly, wasn’t included) and then put it in the tuckaway bag that was part of the kit. I had the most buggery time getting it as straight as it is, which I know still isn’t perfectly straight. Tuckaway pillows/bags are not my favorite finish. I used some fabric glue to hold it in place as I do  not intend to switch it out at a later date.

Vonna (of the Twisted Stitcher blog) gave me this kit and several others when she was housecleaning about 1 1/2 years ago, so it was really wonderful to finally stitch it up!

Little Lamby by Brightneedle

Although it’s called Little Lamby, I didn’t stitch the lamb that was intended for the center of the heart, LOL. I personalized it with the initials of the friend I made it for, and put the year and my initials on the backside.

Stitched over one on pink/natural 28 ct Graziano using Belle Soie Butterscotch, Silk N Colors Dried Roses, and Gloriana Summer Foliage and Raspberry Parfait. I filled it with lavender and it smells utterly amazing. The whole thing isn’t even 2 inches square and is blanket stitched closed.

my baby brother, my design

Nick came home from school with a poem he said was about Arden and it quickly become a family favorite. (Note that the actual author is Bruce Lansky.) In fact, I  liked it so much that I modified it slightly and created this sweet prim design from it. Nick picked the colors and I chose motifs from antique samplers and art work that I thought worked well with what a boy would’ve stitched around the 1830′s, when it wasn’t unheard of for boys to stitch – especially as a form of punishment if a boy had been particularly naughty.

The story behind this design is loosely associated with the Dame Snowe series that I began for The Gift of Stitching magazine. In this instance, the stitcher is a boy who is being punished for hiding the basket that contained his baby brother in the shrubs behind his family’s homestead. Nicholas was sent off to Dame Snowe’s school for the weeks it took him to complete a sampler as penitence for his wrong-doing. Being a very mischievous and smart little fellow, Nicholas performs his punishment with a sharp sense of humor that must have exasperated his parents even as they found it impossible to hold their laughter when he presented his finished sampler.

Stitched on very distressed (I used coffee and tea over several treatments to get this effect) white 36 count linen using Crescent Colours one-over-two with a stitch count of  99 by 80. The hemstitched border was done randomly using random snippets of floss in the lightest colors left from my stitching, and then the linen was cut crookedly around the hemstitching and fringed. I backed the stitched piece with a scrap of light interfacing to prevent any show-through of the final backing fabric. The entire stitched piece was then mounted on a piece of  homespun fabric and framed in a homemade frame that I cleaned up and randomly sanded down.

Abby Cadabby

I scanned an image of Abby Cadabby into my PCStitchPro 9 program and ‘cleaned it up’ a lot to produce the design for this charity quilt square for Cole’s Quilts. Despite all the cleaning up, there was still a ton of confetti stitching and in the end I filled in blocks with one color instead of changing every two seconds. There are over 40 colors in this, if you can believe it. I suspect this will be my first and last time creating a graph from a scanned image! But little Isabel loves Abby Cadabby and I wanted to make her smile. 

mary garry, seasonal mementoes

Finished as a simple, prim needlebook using overdyed wool on the outside and a high-quality piece of white wool felt from Vikki Clayton to hold the needles on the inside. I used a couple of vintage buttons to hold the white wool ‘page’ in place and added some red, white, and blue decorative pins for fun.

blackbird designs, smalls from Loose Feathers designs

Here are the two smalls I made for an exchange in the BBD exchange group.

mystery French design

Ages ago, I got this little cut-out freebie from a French designer with an order I placed online someplace (pretty good on details, aren’t I?) and I thought it would be perfect for the Arbor Day exchange I participated in. I’ve stitched it using Thread Gatherer Silk N Colors on HDF Cream linen and backed it with some fabulous local overdyed wool felt. The buggery silk started to run when my new iron leaked a little bit (still learning which settings I need to use) but in the end it doesn’t show up too badly … I hope. It’s filled with a delicious-smelling balsam potpourri.

 

 

And the complete exchange included a super-cool sampler-style placemate (with a tree, of course!), some casserole mitts made by the lady who owns the local quilt shop, an address book (with a tree-theme!), a FQ of finishing fabbie, a pair of scissors, and a bookmark I bought in Amsterdam.

Wabbit’s Wonder by Sheepish Designs

I’ve stitched this sweetie for an Easter exchange. I used my own choice of colors (mainly GAST): Pomegranate (heart), Briar Rose (buds), Sweet Pea (flower), Straw Bonnet, Harvest Basket, and Shutter Green; I used HDF silks for the ear/nose (Examplar Pressed Petals) and eye (BeGrimed). I love how the satin stitching changed the look of this sweetly simply design. I did make some mistakes, LOL, but I’m not telling. I personalized it with the initials of my partner and myself at the bottom. It’s filled with lavender but not overstuffed. I thought it would be nice to lay in a drawer for a fresh scent, or on a desk top. It’s backed in a green and natural homespun-style check.

The complete exchange I sent:

Spotted Dog by Prairie Schooler

From the “Christmas Past” leaflet  using suggested DMC on ivory Aida. I could stitch this one with the ‘right’ colors because my stash finally arrived. Had to stitch this one like a madwoman, really zipping through it, to make sure it would get there in plenty of time. Kyle wanted a dog, airplane, or helicopter for his quilt … and given my stash, that meant a dog, LOL. I hope he enjoys this playful-looking pup. I like how the ivory Aida and the typical PS color scheme compliment each other. Went for a rustic/slightly prim style for the lettering of my name & location in keeping with the design.

Viceroy by Jennifer Colby

From her “Birds and Animals in Cross-Stitch” book. I had to sub out the color scheme because I started before my stash arrived from Holland and I could not find the called-for DMC colors here at The End of the World, but I think I stayed pretty close to the original. The little border band bit was thrown in by me to make the teeny design a tad bigger, since this is for a quilt square. Didn’t want it getting lost…  LOL. Stitched for Laurel of the Cole’s Quilts requests. I hope having such a realistic-looking butterfly on her bed will make her smile.