Thank You Karen!!!

An Emblem of Love continues to cruise along well. All that is left to stitch now is the flowers in that last upper half medallion, and then the year in the bottom right corner. I have two gifts that just have to get finished soon, like yesterday! Both have to travel (very far) overseas for the holiday! Yikes! I only just started one of them today, and the other is on the runway... so I will be lugging those to work this week. But if I can get them done quickly, I might be bringing EoL along too - want to get it done, as I can see that light at the end of the tunnel!
Today I received this most beautiful ornament from Karen! It is so beautifully stitched and finished. I am so honored to own this ornament, which I was lucky enough to win in her recent ornament raffle in her blog. It is very special to me for two reasons: 1) I now finally own some of Karen's stitching to enjoy and display proudly, and 2) Betsy Stinner (Earth Threads) is one of my all time favorite designers! I have been blessed to take several classes with her in recent years, and this ornament also helps me to think of her and those wonderful classes! Thanks again Karen! I will treasure it always, and it is already displayed prominently on our Christmas tree (as it will be for many years to come!).

And, I got an email from Becky tonight, letting me know that a little fob I stitched for her has arrived (the post if officially slowing down now for the holiday!). I have wanted to stitch something for Becky for the longest time now. She has sent me so many gorgeous hand made gifts over the past year or more... and now I finally got to send her something! I also was feeling she needed some cheering up! I hope it helped.

"B" from Nature's Alphabet
Elizabeth's Designs
Silkweaver Belfast Solo
DMC floss, Weeks Dye Works, Mill Hill Petite Beads
Stitched 12/4/06 - 12/6/06

Stitched on today: Started a gift, and An Emblem of Love

Not a lot of Stitching Mojo Today

It took me forever to get in the mood to stitch today, but I finally found little pockets of time. And I am now past half way done with Part 12 of Mystery IX... I seem to be on track with it, and I look forward to getting to the point where I do the beading - hope that will be soon!

I spent most of the day doing round one (the family round) of our Christmas cards, and doing the laundry... now to go put that laundry away and spend some time trying to find the perfect gift to stitch for a dear friend - I have looked several times with no luck, getting frustrated - sure many of you can relate!

Stitched on today: Mystery IX

Well, it's something... and Gingher Heaven

Mike and I had a lot of running around to do today, so stitching time was limited. We went to Massachusetts this evening and had a wonderful belated birthday dinner with my Mom. She and I split a bottle of wine... this also limited my stitching today - LOL. I did, however, manage to stitch a gift for a friend... and I managed to finish the fence in the bottom right corner of Mystery IX... but those urns... not after drinking wine! They will wait until tomorrow!
And, I am in Gingher Heaven today! Joann Fabrics had all of their Ginghers at 50% off today. I had been eyeing these Amanda Designer Series 4" Embroidery Scissors for a while now... and the sale came along and with some luck I was able to get them today - the last pair! They are bright and so pretty! My collection is growing now! In a short couple of months, I have been able to get Lanell, Jamie, Alyssa, Julia (have to wait until Christmas for these - Mike wrapped them and put them under the tree - what a tease!!), Olivia and Amanda... Like I said recently, I really don't need this addiction! Anyhow, here you go - meet the new member of my scissor family! I can't wait until the Olivias come in from ebay... after Christmas I will post a picture of the entire "family" - LOL!

I still have some lovely hand-dyed fabrics for sale - the ones still available are listed below, and you can scroll down to yesterday's entry to see their photos.

Silkweaver Morning Dew 36 ct Edinburgh Linen, 18" x 26", $17 -sold
Silkweaver Golden Promise 36 ct Edinburgh Linen, 18" x 26", $17
Lakeside Linens Misty Rain 36 ct Edinburgh Linen, 18" x 27", $17 -sold
Sugar Maple Fabrics Atlantis 28 ct Jubilee, 18" x 27", $15
R&R Reproductions Fanci Blue 32 ct linen, 12" x 21.5", $12
Silkweaver Tuttie Fruitie 28 ct Cashel Linen, 18" x 26", $17 -sold

Thank you to everyone who left comments and emails about my first Christmas ornament :-) I really appreciate the support! I already posted it off to a friend yesterday - I hope she likes it!!

Stitched on today: Started and finished a gift, and Mystery IX

Lots of Hand-Dyed Fabrics For Sale

Tonight's update of Mystery IX reveals that I somehow managed to cut the project off at the top of the photo... sigh. Anyhow, I started another corner and I managed to finish the steps at the top of the garden (not that you can see them - besides the photo being cut off, Blogger ate my first post and now won't upload photos, so I resorted to Photobucket).

I finished my first Christmas ornament today - I stitched one from the December issue of The Gift of Stitching Magazine. The chart calls for tons of french knots, which I am loathe to do. But, she does offer an alternate idea of using Mill Hill 03003 beads... and it turns out I had them, so I used them insetad - very glad I did! I used a simple loop with the cording at the top for hanging, but when Mike took the photo he looped it like two bunny ears - no idea why... but I didn't create some kind of strange finishing technique, although it looks that way!

Red Berries
Rosewood Manor
White Opalescent Cashel Linen
DMC floss and Mill Hill Beads
Stitched 12/7/06 - 12/8/06

I am going to let go of quite a few hand dyed linens right now. PayPal is required. Shipping is $1.50 for one piece in the US, and I will give you a discount, of course, on shipping if you buy more than one. Good shipping rates outside of the US too - just leave a comment here or email me (see the About Me section in my sidebar for my email address) if you want any of these!

Back row left to right:
Silkweaver Morning Dew 36 ct Edinburgh Linen, 18" x 26", $17
Blended Needle Enchanted Night 36 ct Edinburgh Linen, 13" x 18", $12 -sold
Lakeside Linens Autumn Red 36 ct Edinburgh Linen, 18" x 27", $17 - sold
Front row left to right:
Country Stitch Kiwi Antiques Barley 35 ct linen, 18" x 26", $15 - sold
Silkweaver Golden Promise 36 ct Edinburgh Linen, 18" x 26", $17
Lakeside Linens Misty Rain 36 ct Edinburgh Linen, 18" x 27", $17



Back row left to right:
Sugar Maple Fabrics Atlantis 28 ct Jubilee, 27" x 36", -sold half, other half still available, 18" x 27" for $15
Sugar Maple Fabrics "Oddball" (lavender/grey) 32 ct Belfast Linen, 18" x 27", $15 - sold
R&R Reproductions Fanci Blue 32 ct linen, 12" x 21.5", $12
Hidden Treasures Winter Sky 28 ct evenweave, 18" x 27", $10 -sold
Silkweaver Romantic Interlude 40 ct Newcastle Linen, 15" x 16", $10 -sold
Silkweaver Tuttie Fruitie 28 ct Cashel Linen, 18" x 26", $17 -sold

I took a photo of the little bit of snow we got this morning... our first snow of the season... but wouldn't you know, I cannot find where I stored it in my computer!

Stitched on today: Finished Red Berries ornament, and Mystery IX

Corner Close Up

OK, how Mystery IX ends is revealed here... I finished the upper right corner (minus the beading - and there will be a lot of that!) tonight... there will be 88 little tiny urns (all empty) around the outer edge... not sure I like those, but nonetheless, that is what Martina chose. I mean... they are empty??!! Odd! I do like the sparkly fence underneath them, though. Perhaps the urns will grow on me when they are all finished?

I have been busily devoting a ton of time already this month to working on more gifts... I hope I can finish those as well as Mystery IX....

Might get our first snow in the morning. I have tomorrow off, as chance would have it. However, fate has it that my Jeep is at the dealership lot right now awaiting a repair to the remote auto starter, and the Chrysler is a couple of miles down the road with a "For Sale" sign on it... so, if we get the possible 3" of slick stuff tomorrow, that leaves us with only a Corvette to get around in?? Well, the good news is that it should only be a morning event... we'll see... if we can at least get to the Chrysler, we should be OK!! LOL

Stitched on today: Started an ornament, Blessings Be Thine and Mystery IX

Mystery IX Update

Back to working on Mystery IX again tonight... did a good chunk of the upper right corner, but there are still a few more things to add to it. I didn't spend a whole lot of time on this tonight, as I spent a fair amount of time finishing up an important gift.

New DVD Release Tuesday is a day late for us this week, and of course, like everyone else, we got Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest - definitely going to watch this one in the next couple of days!!

Stitched on today: Finished a gift, and Mystery IX

Women of the Mayflower is Finished

I managed to get the final stitches in at work today, so may I present:

Women of the Mayflower
Sarah Ullman, Olde Willow Designs
Silkweaver 36 ct Edinburgh Solo
Olde Willow Stitchery Hand-Dyed Threads
Stitched 5/26/06 - 12/05/06
Here is this week's update on Paradigm Lost. It took about 3.5 hours just to do this bit more of the next large motif... it's a slow one, that's for sure!! (OK, I was a little distracted by checking in on several news reports from the Red Sox at Winter Meetings - two big moves tonight!). Anyhow, to non-sports fans, this was simply Paradigm Lost SAL night :-) I hope it moves faster next week.

And, the other little gift that I sent off that arrived yesterday was for Amy :-) As a child and family psychotherapist, I have the mentality of an elementary school teacher. I just adore children, and I was so tickled when an 8 year old stitcher joined our blogging world! I had to send her a treat!!! There are way better photos of this fob in Amy's bog!

Portrait of a Dog Fob
Brittercup Designs
Picture This Plus Mercedes Cashel linen
Weeks Dye Works - Onyx, Six Strand Sweets - Very Berry
Stitched 11/24/06

Stitched on today: Women of the Mayflower and Paradigm Lost

Another one on the homestretch

An Emblem of Love is officially on the homestretch now. I figure maybe another two Mondays and it should be all done. I will miss it. I think this has been my favorite project to work on for a while now. I tried scanning it about six times tonight, and no matter how I tried, some part or other would get a little cut off. Here is my final effort... you get the idea :-)

I got some emails tonight that several gifts I sent off were all received today (there were three, but I got one email too late - I had already put the photos in my blog today - so I will post that one tomorrow). Margaret received her gift today - and I think this is actually her official birthday too - I didn't make her a fob :-) The design I chose for her was too big to make into a fob. Margaret and I, along with dear Leslie, took a class with Liz Turner Diehl at CATS in September. So, I chose a Liz Turner Diehl design for her. I made it into a pincushion for her. This was my first time adding cording to a project, and I think it came out OK... thanks so much to Anne, who coached me along a bit and sent me some great tutorial links and photos of her own projects to help me out - thanks Anne! I had to photograph this one on a hand towel - it was a bit rainy out the night before I took the photo...

Queen Victoria's Garden
Liz Turner Diehl
Natural Opalescent Cashel
DMC floss and Glissen Gloss blending filament
Stitched 11/22/06 - 11/29/06

And, another gift that was received, this one was for Debby - her birthday is later this week. I noticed Debby likes Little House Needlework charts, and while trying to decide on what to stitch for her, my eye caught my newly acquired Country Cottage Needleworks chart, Forest Snowfall, and I decided to use elements from that chart to make a fob. There is a little tree on the back of the fob from the chart, but I forgot to post that photo! Maybe Debby will share it in her blog. I used the called for linen, but it was hard to photograph at 8 AM on an overcast winter morning before work... the snow and snowflakes do show up better in real life :-) It is also hard to see the tiny clear beads around the edges that look like snow crystals.

Forest Snowfall Fob
Country Cottage Needleworks
28 ct Pearl Gray Quaker linen
Crescent Colours floss, DMC floss, Mill Hill Beads
Stitched 11/29/06 - 11/30/06

Stitched on today: Started a gift, Women of the Mayflower and An Emblem of Love

We have stairs now

I stitched one of the sets of stairs on the border of Mystery IX. You can see it on the right side of the sampler. It is very pastel. Martina is incorporating a lot of pink in the outer border. I started some of the rest of the border on the right side above the stairs... there will be a lot of Pebbles Waterlilies and Rose Gold Petite Treasure Braid in that part. I like that she added in the pink. It balances off that yellow in the mid section of the design, and makes the sundial blend in a lot better - LOL. I really didn't get as much done as I wanted to, though. I spent most of the afternoon stitching another gift - I get really wrapped up in my gifts.

I have to confess to another addiction. I have become totally addicted to going to craft stores in the area to seek out beads, charms, ribbons, cords, fabrics, etc to use to finish gifts... sigh... another addiction! Of course, I have that Gingher addiction that is growing now too... double sigh.

We went out and got our Christmas tree today :-) No pics yet - Mike put the lights on it, but it is not really decorated yet.

Happy Birthday Aunt Bev!!

Stitched on today: Started and finished a gift, and Mystery IX

In the center of Mystery IX is...

Happy Birthday Mom!
...a sundial :-) I love that! OK, it does kind of look a little like the face of a Timex watch to me... the black lettering really stands out... but that is all just fine with me! It's a tiny area, so I can see why Martina made it easy to see. It took over two hours, though, to stitch the one over one of the sundial's backgroud. Therefore, I didn't get around to starting the final border yet. I hope to get to that tomorrow.

OK, I need to remember to renew my subscription to The Gift of Stitching very soon now, as I am excited that they will be having a new mystery sampler start next month - this time by Long Dog Samplers!!! Just can't miss that one, can you?? I also just have to stitch some of the Quaker ornaments and the Rosewood Manor Christmas ornament in this new issue. This magazine simply does not disappoint!

I decided to join Kath's Pay It Forward group... is there anyone out there who has not signed up for one yet, but would still like to do one? If so... here it goes... So for the first five people who comment on my blog there will be something - not necessasarily stitchy - made for you, by me. It will not before Christmas though. And the condition that if you sign onto my blog, please pay it forward on your blog.

Q. How do you secure your thread when you begin a new one? Specifically,
do you or have you ever used a waste knot?

A. I secure my thread in any of a number of ways.... my preferred way is if I am using two strands of a solid colored floss or silk, I will use the loop method (fold one longer length in half and pull my needle through the loop in the back of the fabric to secure it). However, if I am using a variegated fiber or a blended needle, I generally leave a tail in the back and then stitch over it for several stitches. To secure threads when I am backstitching I will either secure the end under some established stitches, or, if there are none in the area I will come up one thread over from where the stitch starts (this only works on linen or evenweave... but I don't stitch on aida, so this is not an issue for me) - I come down in the next hole and leave a tiny tail... then I restart where the stitch should start and go back down into the hole I used before...the stitch stays solidly in place... now, that is totally clear as mud, right? Basically I stitch a half stitch of backstitching and then stitch over it with its full length.. any clearer? But it works... And yes, I do sometimes use a waste knot - specifically for some specialty stitches, like herringbone (the one I find trickiest to secure).

Oh, and I really wanted to thank Karen for the lovely fantasy charts she sent to me - they have arrived safely. I correctly guessed the name and designer of her recent start, and she sent me these as a little reward. She is so sweet!

Stitched on today: Finished a gift, and Mystery IX

This is going to take a while...

Part 12 and the center of the design were released today, so the mystery has been fully revealed - very nice! Martina did seem to pull it all together well. Not sure yet about all those extra silks, but I see now that the grey ones will be used. Anyhow, it is going to take a while to finish this up this month. She gave us quite a lot to do. I started tonight with the center design - it looked like more fun than the border - oh yes, we get to go all the way around the design again... and add stairs above each pool. There is something that I just love that is going to go in that very center area still - I worked my way in to it tonight - tomorrow I hope to stitch that special little thing that Martina gave us for our center. I love it! You'll see...

I am going to keep in mind that M9 is going to take a while when I set my goals this month -
November Goals:
1. Finish Part 11 of Mystery IX - yes
2. Work on Paradigm Lost SAL with Jo - yes
3. Work on An Emblem of Love SAL with Karen - yes
4. Work on Houses of Hawk Run Hollow SAL with Becky -yes, a little
5. Stitch some gifts - yes, finished 11 gifts this month
6. Work on Bordeaux Sampler SAL with Anne - yes
7. Work on Women of the Mayflower - yes
8. Work on Dianne's Neighborhood RR - sadly, no... still don't have a chart I like!
***I also put in some time this month on A Christmas Spirit and The Mermaid and the Sea

December Goals:
1. Finish Mystery IX
2. Work on Paradigm Lost SAL with Jo
3. Finish An Emblem of Love
4. Stitch some gifts
5. Work on Bordeaux Sampler SAL with Anne and Leslie
6. Finish Women of the Mayflower
7. Work on Dianne's Neighborhood RR
8. If at all possible, work on Houses of Hawk Run Hollow

Feeling a little better today - thanks to those of you who sent me get well emails :-)

Stitched on today: Started a gift, and Mystery IX

On the Homestretch with WOTM

I came home early from work today, struggling with a nasty stomach bug that much of my office building also has... we are like a cruise ship, everyone on board is falling ill. So, I spent most of the afternoon finishing up another birthday gift. But, after that, I pulled out Women of the Mayflower and finished up the names... I am on the homestretch now. I just need to finish the green border at the bottom, and then on each side. I think I got a better photo of it tonight since upping the resolution on my camera.

I got an email from Kath today - she received her little birthday gift from me. What a terrible photo I have of this one! I pretty much ignored all basic rules of photography when I took this photo. I know Kath is going to take a photo of it soon, so maybe she will get a better one. To understand this gift, it is important to know that Kath loves sheep. She is a true Kiwi :-) So, I decided to make a fob for her of a little shepherd boy to mind the many stitched sheep in her collection.... believe it or not, that white blob in the photo with the brown dot is actually a sheep (the dot is its eye) - figured I would tell you, since the photo is really that bad! Sigh...

Shepherd Boy Fob
Told In A Garden
Natural Quaker Linen
DMC floss
Stitched 11/19/06 - 11/20/06

Stitched on today: Finished a gift, and Women of the Mayflower

Finished Part 11

Just in time for December, I managed to take a few minutes to finish Part 11 of Mystery IX tonight.... it's anybody's guess now how this garden is going to finish up next month. I would imagine Martina will give us the center motif, but that will not be the entirety of Mystery IX. That is not how she did it with Mystery VI. I am thinking there may be some bits of border to add by each of the little pools now? Of course, there is the issue of several silks that have not even been used yet...

I heard from Cathy tonight that she received my little birthday gift - good timing, on the eve of her actual birthday. I have so enjoyed getting to know Cathy recently - she is my Gingher Designer Series Scissors Enabler - LOL!!! I didn't embellish this fob very much - I felt the design was too delicate to need or tolerate much fancy embellishing... Happy Birthday Cathy!

Poinsettia Basket Fob
Brightneedle
36 ct Cream Edinburgh Linen
WDW and DMC floss
Stitched 11/25/06

I got some great news when I got in from work tonight. I recently applied to be a mental health provider with another company recently contracted with Medicaid in Massachusetts. Tonight I came home to two copies of my new contract waiting for me :-) What a relief. This new insurance company is running an all out TV blitz for new members, and if any of my existing clients see it and decide to pick up the phone to join the new group, I will still be able to see them! Whew!!

Stitched on today: Finished a gift, Women of the Mayflower and Mystery IX, ... then started another gift

Paradigm Lost

And, here is this week's update of Paradigm Lost. I have begun the next really huge motif now. This one may take a while, it is a little deceiving. The stitching is pretty dense, but also has a good rhythm to it. So, it is hard to tell yet how long it will take. I got another email asking about the fabric for this sampler. I am using Silkweaver's 40 ct Purely Primitive linen. The silk floss is Vikki Clayton's Hand Dyed Fibers silk in Konini. Thanks for all the wonderful comments and emails about this sampler. It really is a special project, and it is wonderful that so many stitchers are expressing an interest in stitching this one too. I look forward to seeing the linen and fiber choices you all will be making for this one :-)

A really old friend of mine (she isn't actually old, but rather I have known her forever - LOL!) has decided to start up a stitching blog. I figured you might want to take a peek. I hope you will enjoy Carrie's blog :-)

Just as I wrote asking about the Sugar Maple Fabric TOTM, mine did come in yesterday - that does seem to be how fate works! Mindy sent me a FQ of Butterflies & Fairies belfast. Of course, I already put the pretty fabric away and forgot to scan it! I will have some nice hand dyed fabrics up for sale in my blog again soon... by the weekend, I would say :-) For now, these standard fabrics are available:

Zweigart 32 ct Dark Teal Belfast, 14" x 19", $6.00
Zweigart 32 ct Mulberry Belfast (discontinued), 13.5" x 18", $6.00
Zweigart 32 ct Willow Green Belfast, 18" x 27", $12 -sold
Zweigart 28 ct Steel Grey Cashel linen, 18" x 27", $12 - sold

Thank you for all of the lovely comments on the most recent fob finishes - I hope to finish something tomorrow, and it is NOT a fob this time! Gulp!

Oh, of course it is New DVD Release Tuesday! This week's selection: Superman Returns

Stitched on today: Stitched on a gift, Women of the Mayflower and Paradigm Lost

An Emblem of Love Monday... and reaching Singapore!

Here is this week's update on An Emblem of Love... I made my way to the right side edge of the sampler now (although it was a tight fit on the scanner tonight). Too tired to finish that half medallion tonight. Severe insomnia last night leaves me pretty exhausted tonight. I know I will sleep just fine when I go to bed in just a moment :-)

Meanwhile, I just got an email from Zohrah letting me know that her belated birthday gift has safely arrived in Singapore. I had to stitch this little fob for her, as Zohrah and her little boy Adam are in the process of buying their first house right now (well, pretty much Zohrah is buying the house, but I am sure it will be Adam's too!)...Zohrah says the fob smells beautiful like clean linen - how nice to hear, considering I am married to a smoker! LOL

Spring's Notice Fob
Blackbird Designs, freebie available here
32 ct Cream lugana, GAST, WDW and DMC floss, Mill Hill beads
Stitched 11/16/06 - 11/18/06

(***Anne, the fob is modeled on my new Jamie Ginghers... that guilty indulgence of mine... which, so very sadly, is now compounded by a) I bought some Alyssa Ginghers a few days ago, and b) now today I bought some Julia Ginghers thanks to sale at Joann's online store.... add to this the pair of Lanell Ginghers I got from Cathy recently... somebody has got to stop me! I don't need this fetish!).

Stitched on today: An Emblem of Love, and worked a little bit on the gift I have been stitching on for a bit now...

About online mystery samplers...

While I did again spend a bit of my stitching time today working on a gift, I then made time this evening to work on Part 11 of Mystery IX... I made good progress and now have very little left to do - one more small area of the green "meadow" border and the queen and eyelet stitches to make the flowers. I finally figured out (with Mike's help) how to up the resolution in my camera, so I am hoping the photo is better tonight?

A few people have asked me via email and via comments if I really like how the mystery is turning out. My answer is, yes. I like Martina's style very much. While a mystery may take a funky turn here and there on any given month, it somehow comes together in the end. I know these questions are primarily being asked by stitchers who are contemplating starting a mystery - many are interested in the upcoming Mystery X. I say, if you can afford the kit and online subscription with Martina, to go for it! As an example, here is the mystery I stitched in 2004:
This is the former Mystery VI, now sold as Indian Summer Reflections. (I apologize this photo is crap - you can see it better on Martina's chartpacks - LOL - I should take a better photo of it someday when I think of it). I did this one online on a monthly basis as well, and did keep up with it. It had many strange twists and turns, but I just love how it came out. All Martina told us was that it would be an autumnal themed garden following her mandala themed format. Other than that, we could peek at the supplies on her boards and Yahoo groups. The rest was a surprise. I like surprises, I have no complaints. The same goes with Mystery IX - what we knew ahead of time was that this would be a French garden. It turned out to actually be the King's Vegetable Garden, or Le Potager du Roi. I am looking forward to seeing what Martina will offer us to stitch in the center of Mystery IX - I love the wreath of leaves with the personalization that she gave us for Mystery VI, and I hope it will be similar, but following this theme rather than an autumn theme. So, long story short - I say, yes, try an online mystery! You don't have to keep up with it month to month. Many stitchers don't. You can do it at your own pace. It is just my OCD that keeps me driven (and many stitchers as well) to keep up with the monthly bits. (However, I am done with these monthly commitments - I am considering signing up for Mystery X, but taking it at my own leisure this time... won't even be buying the kit right away, no stress with that one, I have way too many other things I want to stitch - Now, I know many of my friends are proud to hear me say that!).

And, this is just my desire to share some excitement here! I have seen many do this already, and this weekend it was my turn - I got an outstanding deal on a brand new pair of Gingher Alyssa Designer Scissors on ebay! Yay! I have been coveting these for a while. Now, to go camp out by the mailbox to wait for them. I think I want to stitch Brightneedle's Something Blue fob for them (whenever I get the free time to do so!).

Stitched on today: Stitched on a gift, and Mystery IX

More Progress on Part 11

I made more progress on Part 11 of Mystery IX late tonight, after I spent the bulk of today's stitching time making another gift (from start to finish, want it to get there on time!). I really like stitching the leaves on the trees, so I look forward to finishing those up really soon. And after that, I will only have to do another outside border of flowers with the green border. Should be no problem :-)

Kathy from Canada, thanks for visiting my blog :-) Paradigm Lost is by Long Dog Samplers. You asked where to get a copy, and you can get it at many places, but it is currently on sale here (click). Enjoy!

Is anyone else who reads my blog a member of Sugar Maple Fabrics' Treat of the Month (TOTM)? If so, have you received your fabric yet? It is November 25th, and still no sight of mine... I know sometimes Mindy's fabrics are late, but figured I would ask if anyone got theirs yet... thanks :-)

Stitched on today: Started and finished a gift, worked on another gift, and Mystery IX

Finally working the last corner now

I guess I was looking for every excuse in the book today to avoid working on Mystery IX yet again. So, I started and finished an entire gift today.... then got around to working on Part 11. I am glad I did, as I finished the third corner and have now made a dent in the final corner - with a week left to the month.

I heard from Bea today, alerting me that my gift to her also has made its trans-Atlantic voyage successfuly, and I grabbed her photo of it from her blog (the photo I took before posting it off was very overexposed and I was hoping I would not have to use it - thanks Bea, for a better photo!). I kept the construction simple on this one as it is a Prairie Schooler Design... there is a small primitive silver charm with a heart on it attached at the back of the fob's ribbon - you can sort of see it leaning against the scissor package. I wanted to give it a little something. I am really glad she has this now, as I totally missed her birthday back in September.

"B" from Christmas Alphabet
Prairie Schooler
32 ct Sage Jobelan, DMC floss
Stitched 11/14/06 - 11/15/06

I hit WalMart today - had to, needed shampoo and a condolence card for my FIL who lost his dog recently - and they had a big DVD sale - picked up The Omen for half price.

Stitched on today: Started and finished a gift, and Mystery IX

Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving to my US friends :-) I couldn't think of a better project to work on today than Women of the Mayflower. And, now I am coming down the homestretch with it. I realized I had a skein of Olde Willow Floss in Gratitude Olde Rose in An Emblem of Love's kit. It is a mucher darker skein than the one I had been using for Women of the Mayflower. I used it to stitch "Women of the Mayflower" and it looks great - I did not need to go with a different color after all. Granted, this sampler is truly impossible to photograph well. The colors are so delicate and do not show well in photos, but they are stunning in person. I will definitely try to get a natural daylight photo of this sampler when I finish it (weather permitting - it is late autumn and relatively gloomy most often now) - hopefully a photo in daylight will show it more realistically.

I also worked on the current gift today - for quite a while, I just hate putting that one down!

Mike and I had a quiet Thanksgiving at home this year - I got to stitch and watch football. How rare! It was his mother's year to host, but for some reason Mike declined that invitation and wanted a year without having to travel. Fine with me :-) He made his first turkey, and it came out just perfect!

Stitched on today: Sitched on a gift, and Women of the Mayflower

Thank you US Post!

I am so distracted today - I started another gift earlier today (wow, there really are a lot of stitching blogger birthdays in November and December!), and I am really enjoying working on the gift. But I put it aside to devote my attention to Mystery IX again. Well, I got more done on the corner, but I need to get a bit more dedicated to it within the next week... December is creeping up. (Blogger is acting up, so I used Photobucket to post the photos today)

I heard from Karen today that she received a little gift I had made for her - a RAK this time around, as she is very, very good to me! The US Post got this to her in only 9 days! I got her all interested in the Boston Red Sox in 2004.... she loves sports as I do! Sadly, her favorite player, Keith Foulke, is not likely to be returning to the Red Sox in 2007... The photo is poor, but if you click to her blog, you get to see a much better photo! There is a tiny silver heart charm on the back of the fob - along with our initials - because I wanted to girlie it up a little bit - I think you can see a hint of that charm in her photo -

Boston Red Sox Fob
Nomis
Opalescent White Cashel linen, DMC floss, Mill Hill Beads
Stitched 11/11/06 - 11/12/06

OK... off to put a few more stitches in on that gift!!

Stitched on today: Started a gift, and Mystery IX

Almost Thanksgiving

It's almost Thanksgiving now! Half a day of work tomorrow, and then off for four days! Nice :-) Good chance, perhaps, to make more progress on Mystery IX.... In the meantime, tonight's update of Paradigm Lost. I finished the big motif with the strange birds tonight, and as I cleared that one I realized I am heading straight on to another huge, monster sized motif! Not as frilly as the last one, though. It takes up almost a whole page of the chart, though. I get to stitch a little elephant first - neat!

Michelle, Jenna and I have decided to start an SAL of Barnabee's Quest starting on February 1, 2007. I am really looking forward to that! I stitched Lady Scarlet's Journey a couple of years ago, and it was recently framed by Bren, Karen's husband, for me. I just love it. It hangs in my bathroom (Mike and I have seperate bathrooms), and I look at it everytime I brush my teeth! (**Mike actually has Just Nan's Catnip Tea in his bathroom!).

My Yahoo albums are different now - Yahoo Photos changed its format. So, I will need to fix my links. I think all the links take you to the main page, and that is easy enough to navigate, for now...

New DVD Release Tuesday - You, Me and Dupree - very funny one, we watched it already tonight :-)

Stitched on today: Women of the Mayflower and Paradigm Lost

Weekly EoL Update

It was time again tonight to work on this delicate little sampler. I have almost made my way over to the right edge now - the scan makes it appear as if I have, but I haven't. There are some more partial medallions still to stitch along the side. Getting very close now :-)

I spent some time at the craft store today, after I went to pick up my new glasses (the prescription ones - not the "readers" yet, still resisting that for a few days!!) and I bought the supplies I believe I need to try out another finishing technique... gotta have at least two tricks up my sleeve!

Stitched on today: Finished a gift, and An Emblem of Love

Very, very little

That's what I have to show tonight - very, very little. I spent a good portion of the day starting another gift and got all of the cross stitching completed on it. I hope to get to the finishing in the next couple of days. In the meantime, I really didn't get an awful lot done on Bordeaux Sampler tonight. I did manage to get another cluster of grapes done, which is in and of itself something to consider to be an achievement! Better luck next week!

Stitched on today: Started a gift, and Bordeaux Sampler

I have to wear "readers" now :-(

This is the only bit of my stitching today that I can post - I put some time in this evening working on Mystery IX again - I got the leaves onto the trees in the bottom left corner, and added some swirls by the pool. The rest of my stitching time today, which was limited anyhow, was dedicated to finishing the gift I had going - and finishing it took longer than anticipated - but I just love how it came out.

I had an eye exam today - the general every 1.5 to 2 years deal - and while the doctor increased my prescription a bit in both eyes for my contact lenses (sigh), she noted that my up close vision is still very good. However.... while I can easily stitch away on 40 ct linen for hours without a glitch, it is now difficult for me to look up from my stitching and focus on a clock, or the TV.... so... now I have to go out and buy a pair of +1 "readers" to wear while I stitch - LOL! I have to laugh, or else I will cry :-) She warned me that eventually my needlework is going to catch up with me - well, I could just tell she is not a stitcher! LOL. Oh well, at 43 I would say my vision is still excellent for up close work.

I received such a lovely RAK from my pal Karen today! She sent me Drawn Thread's Boo Scissors Keeper & Scissors Purse chart pack! She knew I wanted to stitch this set, and suddenly it appeared today! Thank you so much Karen! I can't wait until my gift stitching and my PIF stitching is done, so that I can get right to work on this! Karen is the sweetest - she spoils me rotten!!! I am trying to get her to post a WIP of her South Seas Mermaid in her blog for us (hint, hint)....

Stitched on today: Finished a gift, and Mystery IX

The Mermaid and the Sea

I spent a while today working on the gift I started last night - it is belated and has a long way to travel, so I want to get it done. That included trips to a couple of crafts stores on my way home from work this afternoon to get just the right finishing materials. I will get it done this weekend, as I made a lot of progress. When I put that aside tonight to start my regular stitching, I easily talked myself out of Mystery IX. I wasn't in the mood to spend all the necessary time to remount it on the big Q-Snaps. So, I dug out The Mermaid and the Sea, which hasn't had any attention in about a month now. I just love stitching this one. I started on the border in the corner tonight, and realized it is not a tedious border at all.. which is good, because there is a lot of border that will need to eventually be stitched on this one.

I forgot yesterday to say a huge THANK YOU to everyone who commented and emailed me about the By the Bay Needlearts freebie that I was looking for it. I have it now! Boy, did I get a lot of help from you ladies - thank you!!! If I can ever help you, please let me know!! Thank you also for the lovely comments on the Peppermint Rose fob :-) The chart was a GWP (gift with purchase) from CATS - directly from Nan who was a guest in Silver Needle's booth. It's not a freebie chart, but maybe it can still be obtained through Silver Needle? I got a few emails already asking about it.

Ever wonder who reads your blog? I sure do! It seems that new people keep popping up daily now.

Oh, I still have the following fabrics available for sale - $1.50 each for shipping in the US :-) Thanks!

Zweigart 32 ct Dark Teal Belfast, 14" x 19", $7.50
Zweigart 32 ct Mulberry Belfast (discontinued), 13.5" x 18", $7.50
Zweigart 32 ct Willow Green Belfast, 18" x 27", $12
Wichelt 18 ct Twilight Blue linen, 14" x 18" (great for Shepherd's Bush), $8.00 -sold
Zweigart 28 ct Steel Grey Cashel linen, 18" x 27", $12
Zweigart 25 ct Bone Lugana (great for HAED), 18" x 27.5", $12 -sold

Stitched on today: Stitched on a gift, and The Mermaid and the Sea

A Mystery IX Update

Back to Mystery IX, but I quit early tonight. Tired. But, working my way well around the third corner now... nice to have a month when this project does not cause a lot of stress just to get it done before the month ends. Still have a ton of unused fibers, though, and will they actually all get used up in Part 12?

I got an email from Dianne tonight letting me know that her birthday gift arrived safely...Dianne loves gardening as I do, so the choice was easy for her... here it is (surprise, surprise - a fob - LOL):

Peppermint Rose
Just Nan (GWP Chart at CATS)
Zweigart Putty Cashel Linen
DMC floss, Kreinik #4 braid, Mill Hill Beads
Stitched 11/9/06 - 11/10/06

Q. Do you stitch Christmas ornaments? If so, how many do you stitch each
year and for whom? If not, why not?

A. The answer for me is easy - not yet. I am just now trying to learn finishing techniques, and I am hoping that next year my friends certainly will be receiving Christmas ornaments from me!

Stitched on today: Women of the Mayflower, started another gift, and Mystery IX

Women of the Mayflower... Fabrics for Sale

I haven't had much chance to work on Women of the Mayflower, or any other stitching, at work lately - so I brought it home tonight and worked on it a bit... not too much further to go now :-)

Thank you so much to everyone who is leaving me such nice comments and emails about the little fobs I have been busily stitching. I feel so much like a one-trick pony right now - getting good at fobs, but nothing else - LOL! I promise you, I am working hard at learning some new tricks so it won't be quite so boring for you all!

Does anyone know how to access By the Bay Needlearts' freebie called Bay View Estate? I would love to get this, but cannot locate it anywhere... any help would be great, and am willing to trade for any freebie I have that you want, my stash is huge! Thanks!!

More fabrics for sale... everytime I visit my stash, I see more purging I can do! $1.50 shipping in US per piece (found out real cost of postage last time around) - if not in US, let me know and I will give you a good deal! PayPal highly preferred.

Zweigart 32 ct Dark Teal Belfast, 14" x 19", $7.50
Zweigart 32 ct Mulberry Belfast (discontinued), 13.5" x 18", $7.50
Zweigart 32 ct Willow Green Belfast, 18" x 27", $12
Wichelt 18 ct Twilight Blue linen, 14" x 18" (great for Shepherd's Bush), $8.00
Zweigart 28 ct Steel Grey Cashel linen, 18" x 27", $12
Zweigart 25 ct Bone Lugana (great for HAED), 18" x 27.5", $12

Stitched on today: Finished a gift, and Women of the Mayflower

Paradigm Lost & The World in Stitches

It's update day for Paradigm Lost - I mastered the huge motif in the upper right, stitched the crab and started another motif on the left by the acorns. Moving along pretty well. I have heard from one or two stitchers ( a while back) that this chart has several errors in it. I don't think I have come across any yet. It seems to be well charted. Jo, have you noticed any?

I got an email from Amanda tonight letting me know that her birthday gift from me finally arrived. Mike posted it to her on Thursday, and it only had to go to Maine. The postal holiday on Saturday slowed it down a bit, but I think it did get there before her birthday, which I think is actually tomorrow... I knew Amanda liked fantasy designs, and I had a lot of fun coordinating this one for her. Here it is:

The Runekeeper
Dragon Dreams
Starry Night 28 ct Jubilee from The Dye Shop, DMC floss, Kreinik #4 braids, and Miyuki Seed Beads
Stitched 11/3/06 - 11/8/06
I visited The World in Stitches today for the first time in many months. Every time I go there they have a stunning trunk show by a popular designer. Last time I went, they had Little House Needleworks. The time before that, they had Patricia-Ann Designs. Today, they had Rosewood Manor. Oh ladies, the model for And A Forest Grew is simply amazing! If you are near TWIS, you might want to stop in and see it (Littleton, Massachusetts). While I was there, I picked up Needleprint's Sarah Moon's Quaker Sampler. Randi had three of the Ackworth Samplers charts there today - it was impossible to make a decision!! But, I did finally choose this one. Now I have yet another huge sampler to put in my pile to do!! I think I really want the companion to the Beatrix Potter Quaker Sampler too.... next time... :-)

My Silkweaver FOTM came in yesterday - I am thrilled to bits that they sent Intrigue this month! I have been hoping for that one for quite some time now, and seeing it in reality was no disappointment! After two months of linens that did not appeal to my tastes very much (Autumn Sunrise and, I think, Sundown) this was a real treat. Thanks Silkweaver!!

New DVD Release Tuesday, and it was a big one - The Da Vinci Code - we already thoroughly enjoyed watching this one tonight!

Stitched on today: Started a gift, and Paradigm Lost