Jenny Bean is Finished!

Jenny Bean Halloweeen Sampler

Shakespeares Peddler

32 ct R & R Alabaster fabric

Regular called-for GAST threads

After having troubles getting the wrinkles out, I put this project onto stretcher bars to finish it. My goal was to finish it before leaving on vacation, and voila! here it is! I even managed not to lose the notes for the type of fabric I used. There are several large projects on the back burner that I am anxious to start, but more to come on those later. Right now, I have pulled out 4 small projects--Jeannette Douglas' Take Time to Quilt patterns (all 4 seasons)-- and threads to take on the airplane with me. Plus a couple of Christmas ornaments AND Day 5 of Renaissance Designs 13 Days of Christmas. That should give me plenty to do for 2 weeks. :)

I finished this last night while watching Kenneth Branagh in Wallander on DVD. It is from Masterpiece Mystery and I was able to get the DVD's from my public library. He looks very different (older and has put on a few pounds) from the Danish prince Hamlet he played a few years ago. Well, I guess we are all fighting that same battle, huh? :)

Update Jenny Bean's Halloween

Here is what I have been working on-Jenny Bean's Halloween Sampler. I am finished with the inside portion and starting on the border. The colors are much more appealing than the picture on the chart shows.

I was working on this in a hoop, but when I tried ironing the hoop marks to take the picture--they do NOT want to come out. And since I am using overdyed threads, I didn't want to use a steam iron or spritze with water. So I did the best I could with a dry iron and put the sampler on stretcher bars to finish it. What do you recommend? I am also having trouble with the hoop marks on My Lady's Quaker.

Happy Birthday, Dear Emma

Happy birthday, dear daughter! I can't believe it has been 25 years since I carried you home-all 4 lbs, 7 oz of you. Yes, you fit perfectly into a shoebox. :) And here you are at your wedding with your nephew. It was a lovely day. Your dad and I are so proud to call you ours.

Nancy's Needle

Two Cabins

Here is Emma's present for her birthday last year. I finished it into a purse made from a placemat. I really like the symbolism of the path from your house to mine. Here is to the next 25 years!

ANG SOTM Progress

The picture is crooked-but I think you can see all the important parts. :) Here is my ANG Stitch of the Month progress thru April & May. I did change the thread on May's part to the Vineyard Silk 051 Macaw instead of the Vineyard silk 008 Berry-it seemed like all I could see was an ocean of red and no green. (You can click on the picture.)

The April and May stitches were ones I had never used before and really liked the results-especially Crescent cup. It gives some dimension and makes a perfect cup to put beads in. I want to try this stitch again on some other project. This mottled brown canvas is starting to grow on me.

Thanks for all your vacation stitching store suggestions. I will definitely be trying to fit in some of the VA and NC stores--even an hour is better than nothing-right, ladies?!

My Name is Teresa and I am a Stitching Addict

Nancy's Needle

Tulips and Fans Quilt

18 ct mono canvas

Called-for threads

My name is Teresa and I am a stitching addict. Yes, it has been several days since my last blog posting and I have been busily stitching, trying to finish up this project. Lots of yummy Watercolors threads--love them-no laying required! Now this goes into my "to-be-finished" pile. It will be a few weeks until I can get any further with that pile.

Meanwhile, I must turn my attention to my upcoming vacation and pull together some small projects that will fit in my carry-on luggage. First we will be attending my nephew's high school graduation in Raleigh, NC. Then it will be on to do some fun "touristy"sight-seeing like: Mt Vernon, Monticello, and Colonial Williamsburg. Then on to Indiana to put my MIL's house on the market. Yes, a lot to squeeze into just 2 weeks.

Hope your weekend is including lots of stitches!

I Won a Giveaway!

Thanks so much to Sherry over at Inhale Life for the wonderful Family Sampler chart by Pat Rogers' Counted Collection. Now that all 3 daughters are grown and married, this should come in very handy!

Also, this is the first stitchy photo I have taken with my new camera that I got for Mother's Day! Hopefully the quality of my photos will improve now, just bear with me as I learn the in's and out's of this camera (Kodak EasyShare M381) Some of you might remember the hint I gave out about Mothers Day. :) Here's a big Thank You to my girls and great hubby!

Beaded Scissor Fob Tutorial

I ran across this scissor fob tutorial yesterday and thought others might be interested in it. I just had one of my scissor fobs break! It was only about 6 months old and I really want to be able to fix it. Especially after all the effort it was to retrieve all the beads/pieces down in the chair I was sitting in!

This is on the top of my list to try very soon-let me know if this works for you.

Mother's Day and Another Finish!

Mom and Dad

Wedding Day Oct 30,1949

Both are 18 years old.

Happy Mother's Day, Mom!

Renaissance Designs

13 Days of Christmas-4th Day

Stitch guide by Pamela Harding

Called for Threads (Mostly)

Well, the stitcher's retreat worked! It got me working on a WIP and I finished it! Happy dance! Of course, this is 4th in a series of 13, so I still have a long way to go, but #5 is already out and on the stretcher bars ready to get started.

Once again, Pamela's stitch guide stretched my stitching ability. I had never tried a packed outline/stem stitch. And the holly leaves would have been sadly too straight without the able advice of the ladies from my table at retreat. Thanks, Carolyn and Edie! And check out the berries on the holly-another first for me. They are beads covered with thread and then attached to the canvas. They turned out really cute! Now off to the finisher.

BBD's Strawberry Garden 2009

Blackbird Designs

Strawberry Garden

Vintage Pear Lakeside Linens

Called for Crescent,GAST and WDW Threads

Here is another 2009 finish. I left the blackbird off the bottom left corner to make room for my initials and year. There was some early concern about the Dried Thyme thread disappearing into the fabric color. Yes, all those lazy daisy stitches are done in GAST Dried Thyme. But I think it turned out ok. The black frame had an old magazine ad in it, so I reused it and thought it really worked on this one.

Have a great stitching weekend!

Project Progress

Nancy's Needle Tulips and Fan Quilt got a lot of work and it is moving along fast. Once the interior is finished, there is still an outer border. This will be a pillow when finished. Click on the pictures to see close-ups.

This is Renaissance Designs 13 Days of Christmas-Day 4. I am beginning to see the end of this one. It will be an ornament to match the other days. See my previous post.

This is Rishfeld Designs Christmas canvas-not sure if that is the actual name, but it is what I call it. I worked on S. The background needs to be finished and that square will be done. I think this one will make a beautiful pillow, too.

I also took my Edie & Ginger purse, Jenny Bean's Halloween Sampler, and Mary Wigham, but time ran out with no progress on those fronts. :(

Great Weekend Report!

Yes, that is the Pacific Ocean right outside my beach house at Pacific Beach, Washington! That is a sport court in the middle of the backyard. And though you can't see it, the wind was blowing and the rain sprinkled, and it was cold! Four days and 3 nights of blessed stitching was enjoyed by all, I think :)

Here is my stitching station. I worked on several different projects (all WIP's-no new starts for me, I know hard to believe ) but this one is Renaissance Designs 4th Day of Christmas. The K's lap stand worked like a dream. And I bought a Ty Beanie baby that was transformed into a frame weight--he is adorable! Yes, that is a cup of ice water on the side. My neighbor on that side, Edie, was stitching using a table attachment to her stand so I didn't think an accident would be too catastrophic. What a wonderful group of women at my table--2 from eastern Washington and Edie is from southwest Washington, close to Astoria, Oregon.

Meals were served on site except for Friday night and Saturday night suppers. We had a group of wonderful men who cooked our meals--just delicious fare, like bratwurst/sauerkraut, salmon, chicken curry. These guys know how to cook!

See the busy stitchers! There was a lot of fun conversation going on too.

I even got to see a Timeless Tomato project by Debbie Stiehler (sp?). She will be teaching this here in the Seattle area in November--I need to get signed up for her class!