I Believe I'm On a Roll

   Shocking but true, I have another finish!  I am making an effort toward finishing up some wips and I have another finish since my last post.  It was about 1/3 done, which seems to be about where I lose interest on most pieces, so it needed some significant work.  Add to that, the constantly changing colors and it might be an outright miracle that I finished this one at all!!  But I persevered and I put the last stitches into The Pink Sparrow Sampler by WTN&T last week.

40 ct. Lakeside linen with called for threads

Might I just add, I did press this piece.  I don't know what the deal is here and it happens to me all the time.  I pressed it with steam on the linen setting and it looked really crisp.  But as it cools, it looks like it was wadded into a ball!  Any tips would be greatly appreciated.
  So, this one took a week longer than I thought it would because I had some misadventures in computing along the way.  The latest Windows 10 update crashed my computer 3 times and even my techie son couldn't get it back up the third time.  I spent some hard earned but well spent  money with the Geek Squad and they got it back up, eventually.  It still isn't right but is functional so I am limping along until my DC son can get home and get it back up to snuff.  Keep your fingers crossed for me!
  Moving on,  I got my red Santa back from the framer.  Yeah!!!!!  He  is gorgeous if I do say so myself!

One Starry Christmas Eve by WTN&T
40 ct Weeks Aztec red linen
w/ my cotton conversion

It did take longer to get it back than the framer said it would but since we had a snow storm in the middle I figure I should cut her some slack!
   Alas,  these finishes do not keep me from starting new pieces.  I know the idea is to finish wips but what is life without new starts??!!  My January 1st start was Ann Wallace by the Scarlet Letter. Love, love, love this one and look forward to working on her this year.

This is how far I have gotten.  Keep in mind that I don't have a regular schedule for my rotation, just work on things in the rotation when I feel like it.

40 ct. Peeps Lost Sheep by Dames of the Needle
w/ called for DMC

Next up is barely worth a picture at this point and probably won't be finished until next year.

I bought this and kitted it as soon as it became available to us normal folks and I plan to make this my 35th wedding anniversary sampler.  Hence, the long time period I have to work on it.

Last but not least is my most recent start.  I kitted this one as soon as it came out too and I think it needs to be stitched!! I love these colors and I splurged on the silks.

40 ct. Lakeside Meadow rue
w/ called for silks

It's worked in Belle Soie which is not my favorite silk.  It is taking an extraordinary amount of time to stitch since the lengths used have to be cut so short to avoid fraying.  But in the end, I think it will be worth it since the colors are so vivid.  I start adding the red today and look forward to that pop of color!

So that's it for me for now.  I am planning to pull some more wips out of the bag too so I hope to have another finish in the very near future.  I'll  keep you posted!  Laura

January Stitch From Stash Report

    It's almost the end of January and I am happy to report that I have been a good girl this month!!  Here is my report:

Budget:  $25.00
Spent:    $00.00

No finishes but I did have one new start, all things from my stash, even the chart!!!
    I finally got started on one of the Scarlet Letter SALs I signed up for on Facebook, Elizabeth Shepard.  I pulled linen from my vast pool of 40 ct. and did a conversion to Needlepoint silk. I know this looks black but it is really a very dark green.

40 ct. Italian linen
w/Needlepoint silk

It has been fun so far but I still haven't started Mary Hurst and that one is starting to call loudly!!  I have a couple of small pieces I would like to finish before I jump into that big girl but we will have to  see how it goes.
   Speaking of small pieces,  I also made some good progress on Pink Sparrow this week and this is where it is now.  It's probably a little over 1/3 finished.  Hard to put aside but the rotation is large and I still have a couple that are not started yet!

  So, that is all for now.  I have almost all of my chores done and my stitching chair is calling!

Hope you're having as much fun with your stitching as I am,  Laura

You Know What They Say About the Road to Hell...

    I had good intentions for IH&SW, I really did.  My younger son and the FDIL were coming for the weekend to attend the Beer Fest with The Hubs.  Not being a beer drinker myself, I was going to be the duty driver, drop off and pick up was supposed to be the extent of my involvement and I was going to have the entire day to stitch and catch up on my shows.
   Things being what they always seem to be when you make a plan, that plan changed in a hurry!  The son and the FDIL had a big fight the night before and she decided to forgo our company, sticking us with her $50 ticket in the process.  Being the tight-fisted fiscal conservative that I am, I said no way we are wasting a ticket, and the others involved were only too happy to use my beer tickets!!
   We had a great time!!  The weather was nice, the event was in a tent so we were warm, the beer drinkers had lots of brewers and different brews to chose from. There was music, New Orleans themed food, and of course, the people watching was unmatched by anywhere I have ever been, including New Orleans down on Bourbon Street!!
   So, not much stitching was done over that weekend.  I did manage to get SOME done though.  I made a good start on Serenity Harbor.  I have the first part finished now but for the weekend report, I only managed the left side within the allotted time.  I have enjoyed this stitch so much and if you haven't joined this SAL, I highly recommend it!

40 ct. Lakeside Pecan Butter
w/called for DMC except sun

I really like the colors the designer chose for this one and so far I have stuck to the DMC with the exception of the sun.  I stitched the sun in an over-dyed floss but I'm  not too crazy about the color.  I will probably change it later but for now, it will stay until I figure out what I want to do there.  Also don't have the arching outline in yet.  I'm going to wait until I need to roll the scroll frame before I put it in.
   Once I got that finished, I pulled out an oldie but goodie and in going back through my posts, I don't think I have worked on this since last August.  I am currently referring to this as the Headless Bird Sampler.  lol

Pink Sparrow Sampler by WTN&T
40 ct. Weeks Parchment
w/called for colors

It's small but 'fiddly' as my mother would say.  Lots of small motifs and lots of color changes.  I am hoping to finish the top section today. (I may be overestimating the time factor here, as usual, but we will see!)
   I still haven't started either of the Scarlet Letter SALs I have signed up for yet so I need to get moving on those asap. Can't linger for too long on one piece!!  I also haven't touched the 3 pieces I carried over from last year yet.  As you can tell, I don't have the rotation worked out yet, just taking it as the mood strikes.  But, I'm not bored yet either and I feel like I'm making progress. That's a good thing!!
  So that's it for me for today.  Thank you all for stopping  by and I want to welcome my new readers.  It's nice to know I'm not out here in cyberspace alone!!

Hope you're all enjoying your stitching as much as I am,   Laura

August IH&SW Report

  I managed to find some significant stitching time this past weekend.  I worked on Ann Bowers for 2 afternoons although it probably doesn't look like that much progress.  This is before:

And this is now:

That vine is 4 rows deep and that one leaf has 6 different colors in it!  Add to that, I was also trying to watch tennis and you can see where the progress might be a little slow!!
  Sunday is my regular house cleaning day so I was pretty deep into the day before I got to the stitching.  I had thought I might put some more stitches into my Scarlet Letter piece but I promised my LNS that I would stitch a particular piece for them as a model and I figured I better get it started! I saw a recent finish of this piece over on Keeper of the Crowes  and I just love it!!  Her finish really spurred me on the get this one going!

WTN&T The Pink Sparrow Sampler

This is where I managed to get to with this one:

40 ct. WDW Parchment w/ called for threads

  I will put this in the rotation with the others, that will make 4 right now.  I think 3 might be my ideal number so I need to get this finished fast!  M. Woods should be winging her way to me this week and I may be tempted beyond endurance to make a start on her!!  And I have learned that time split between too many projects gets nothing done fast.  I think I may have to give up sleeping in order to have more stitching time!!!