SAL – Pumpkin Cottage – 04

This is the scheduled three-weekly post for the SAL that I’m doing with several other crafty blogs and I’ve finished Pumpkin Cottage.

This is how it looked last time.

I didn’t have too much left to do. The tree on the left needed to be finished, then pumpkins, flowers, birds and a fence on the right. Then all I needed to do was pull out the gridlines and take a photo 🙂 It needs a press but as it’s just gone into the box with lots of other projects waiting to be framed in some way, I didn’t bother with that just yet. Honestly, if I did get around to framing them all, I don’t have enough wall to hang them up. I’d have to set up a rotation 😉

I’ve no idea what I’m going to stitch next. I’m torn between fishing another kit out of the box or printing out one of the many digital charts that I have. I’ll have to have a rummage and see what leaps out at me.

For the stitch-a-long I’m linking up to these lovely blogs.

Avis, Claire, Gun, Sue, Constanze, Christina, Kathy, Margaret, Cindy, Heidi, Jackie, Sunny, Hayley, Megan, Deborah, Mary Margaret, Renee, Carmela, Sharon, Daisy, Anne, Connie, AJ,Jenny, Laura, Cathie, Linda, Helen

Do allow for people being in different time zones, so not posting all at the same time, but it’s well worth doing a bit of blog hopping to see all the lovely projects that are being worked on.

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SAL – Pumpkin Cottage – 03

This is the scheduled three-weekly post for the SAL that I’m doing with several other crafty blogs and I’ve done some more on Pumpkin Cottage.

This is how it looked last time

I didn’t get as much done as I’d hoped as I’ve had a pretty busy few weeks, but I have now finished the text and the cottage and made a start on the scenery. 

I like to listen to audio books while I’m stitching. I’m listening to a John Scalzi at the moment. It’s the first book in The Collapsing Empire series and I’m really enjoying it. I like Scalzi’s books anyway, and his have the added bonus of being narrated by Will Wheaton who is by far my favourite narrator. Oddly, I find music too distracting and I get very little stitching done if the TV is on. Does anyone else listen to audiobooks while stitching?

For the stitch-a-long I’m linking up to these lovely blogs.

Avis, Claire, Gun, Sue, Constanze, Christina, Kathy, Margaret, Cindy, Heidi, Jackie, Sunny, Hayley, Megan, Deborah, Mary Margaret, Renee, Carmela, Sharon, Daisy, Anne, Connie, AJ,Jenny, Laura, Cathie, Linda, Helen

Do allow for people being in different time zones, so not posting all at the same time, but it’s well worth doing a bit of blog hopping to see all the lovely projects that are being worked on.

SAL – Pumpkin Cottage – 02

This is the scheduled three-weekly post for the SAL that I’m doing with several other crafty blogs and I’ve done a bit more on Pumpkin Cottage.

This is how it looked last time I’ve now added the flowers to the borders and done most of the text strip. I had hoped to finish that bit for this update but I didn’t quite get there. I’m still quite happy with my progress though and I’m really enjoying stitching this. It’s such a contrast to my last project!

I’d forgotten how much I love using variegated threads. I love the roof of the cottage. It’s so textured because of the variegation.

For the stitch-a-long I’m linking up to these lovely blogs.

Avis, Claire, Gun, Sue, Constanze, Christina, Kathy, Margaret, Cindy, Heidi, Jackie, Sunny, Hayley, Megan, Deborah, Mary Margaret, Renee, Carmela, Sharon, Daisy, Anne, Connie, AJ,Jenny, Laura, Cathie, Linda, Helen

Do allow for people being in different time zones, so not posting all at the same time, but it’s well worth doing a bit of blog hopping to see all the lovely projects that are being worked on.

SAL – Pumpkin Cottage – 01

This is the scheduled three-weekly post for the SAL that I’m doing with several other crafty blogs and I’ve got a new start.

I’ve had this in my stash for at least five years but somehow it never made it to the top of the pile. It’s a Country Cottage Needleworks chart and it uses DMC plus some variegated threads.

I usually make a shade card for my projects, but it tends to be a bit of card with holes punched very unevenly and my scrawly writing on. Also unevenly. This time I got posh and made it on the computer, printed it, stuck it onto card, punched holes where marked and I have a lovely even card for my threads.

Look at the pretty colours!

I did the gridding slightly differently this time, and I think I prefer it this way. It’s a bit easier to see what I’m doing, although the other way worked fine too. This was quicker to grid though, which is definitely a bonus.

I’m really enjoying the stitching. The fabric is lovely, I’m stitching over two, and it’s full crosses. (I have to keep checking that the crosses all go the same way, mind, as I’ve got so used to doing tent stitch). It’s so nice to be able to see what I’m doing and to use colours that you can tell apart.

So, this is where I’ve got up to.

I’d like to add that I’m not enjoying writing this post. I’m using the new WordPress editor and I really, really don’t like it. It’s taking me ages to figure out how to do anything. I’m not impressed. Pah!

For the stitch-a-long I’m linking up to these lovely blogs.

Avis, Claire, Gun, Sue, Constanze, Christina, Kathy, Margaret, Cindy, Heidi, Jackie, Sunny, Hayley, Megan, Deborah, Mary Margaret, Renee, Carmela, Sharon, Daisy, Anne, Connie, AJ, Jenny, Laura, Cathie, Linda, Helen

Do allow for people being in different time zones, so not posting all at the same time, but it’s well worth doing a bit of blog hopping to see all the lovely projects that are being worked on.

SAL – Ice cream sundae #02

This is the scheduled three-weekly post for the SAL that I’m doing with several other crafty blogs and I have a finish.

This is where it was last time.And this is the finished piece at 5″ x 11.5″. Isn’t it yummy. I may have had an ice cream or two in the past few weeks, although I’m still fancying that sundae at the top.

I’ve had a rummage in my finished projects box and found a couple of friends for Sundae. I’m thinking that if I’m going to fabric-frame this one, then I may as well do the others. (I currently have eight projects pressed and waiting to be framed so I wouldn’t hold your breath on that 🙄 ) Sigh. Now I fancy a mug of coffee with a slice of pie.

Right, before I go and raid the kitchen, I’ll tell you that I’ve started gridding my next project and can’t wait to start stitching it. It’s going to be a real hoot! More details in three weeks 🙂

For the stitch-a-long I’m linking up to these lovely blogs:
Avis, Claire, Gun, Sue, Constanze, Christina, Kathy, Margaret,
Cindy, Helen, Linda, Heidi, Jackie, Sunny, Hayley, Megan,
Deborah, Clare, Mary Margaret, Renee, Jenny, Carmela, Jocelyn, Sharon

Do allow for people being in different time zones, so not posting all at the same time, but it’s well worth doing a bit of blog hopping to see all the lovely projects that are being worked on.

SAL – Ice cream sundae #01

This is the scheduled three-weekly post for the SAL that I’m doing with several other crafty blogs and I have a new start.

This is a design by Country Cottage Needleworks. I’ve done a couple of the other ‘menu’ designs by CCN and they’re great fun to stitch, and fairly quick too. So far I’ve done Coffee menu and Pie menu. I may add Cake menu to my stash at some point as I think they’ll look lovely on the wall all together.

I’m using a lovely fabric. It’s 28ct cashel linen in light mocha. It feels really nice and is easy to stitch on.

As I mentioned last time, I’ve marked the squares out for ease of counting, and I’m finding it really useful again. I’m hoping to finish this in two updates and I’ve made a good start on it. I’m exactly halfway down it so I’m bang on schedule.It’s making me hungry for ice cream while I’m stitching it. I could just fancy that banana split. Wonder if I’ll manage to finish this without succumbing to temptation LOL

For the stitch-a-long I’m linking up to these lovely blogs:
Avis, Claire, Gun, Sue, Constanze, Christina, Kathy, Margaret,
Cindy, Helen, Linda, Heidi, Jackie, Sunny, Hayley, Megan,
Deborah, Clare, Mary Margaret, Renee, Jenny, Carmela, Jocelyn, Sharon

Do allow for people being in different time zones, so not posting all at the same time, but it’s well worth doing a bit of blog hopping to see all the lovely projects that are being worked on.

SAL – Snowflake Serenade #04

This is the scheduled three-weekly post for the SAL that I’m doing with several other crafty blogs and Snowflake Serenade is finished!

This is how it looked at the last update. I loved stitching Frosty the snowman. He may be my favourite section, partly because of the French knots which came out perfectly at the first attempt. (Much to my amazement!)

This is the final box, which I’m calling The 12 days of Christmas as the birds look like they might be the 2 turtle doves.

And this is the finished piece. I think I completed this in record time (for me) so I’m chuffed to bits.

I’m trying to find some nice snowflake fabric to frame it with but this seems to be the wrong time of year for a decent selection. Trust me to want stuff out of season LOL

I’ve got the next project ready to go and hopefully will have some progress to show you in three weeks.

For the stitch-a-long I’m linking up to these lovely blogs:
Avis, Claire, Gun, Jess, Sue, Constanze, Debbierose,
Christina, Kathy, Margaret, Cindy, Helen, Linda, Heidi,
Jackie, Sunny, Hayley, Megan, Catherine, Deborah, Connie, Clare,
Carmela, Jocelyn, Sharon

Do allow for people being in different time zones, so not posting all at the same time, but it’s well worth doing a bit of blog hopping to see all the lovely projects that are being worked on.

SAL – Snowflake Serenade #03

This is the scheduled three-weekly post for the SAL that I’m doing with several other crafty blogs and I’ve managed to fill in two more boxes as well as finishing the one that I’d started.

This is how it looked at the last update.  This is Winter Wonderland, which I’d made a start on before. I may redo the small tree if I have enough green thread left at the end. It’s a variegated thread and when I did the large tree I dotted the stitches about a bit to get a mottled look but for the small one I didn’t, and it looks a bit odd. I’m not sure how the two WDW threads are going to hold up as there’s a lot more green and brown still to do, but I’m crossing my fingers.

Let it snow didn’t take long at all with just a bit of text and a handful of snowflakes. Finally for this update is White Christmas. The snowflakes took some concentration to get right but the box didn’t take too long to do. You can see why it’s called Snowflake Serenade now, can’t you. I’ve had Christmas carols going round in my head while stitching!This is what it looks like now with just two boxes left to do. Those last two boxes are more detailed and have a lot more in than the last couple but I’m hoping for a happy dance next update.

For the stitch-a-long I’m linking up to these lovely blogs:
Avis, Claire, Gun, LucyAnn, Jess, Sue, Constanze, Debbierose,
Christina, Kathy, Margaret, Cindy, Helen, Steph, Linda, Heidi,
Jackie, Sunny, Hayley, Megan, Catherine, Deborah, Connie, Clare,
Carmela, Jocelyn, Sharon

Do allow for people being in different time zones, so not posting all at the same time, but it’s well worth doing a bit of blog hopping to see all the lovely projects that are being worked on.

SAL – Snowflake Serenade #02

This is the scheduled three-weekly post for the SAL that I’m doing with several other crafty blogs and I’ve managed to fill in two of the little boxes plus a bit into box three.

This is how it looked at the last update, with the outline and border completed.  This is box one with the pretty snowflake. This didn’t take long, although it took a bit of concentration to get it right. This is box two with a few different things in it. I really enjoyed doing this one. I also made a start on box three, with most of the snow done. I’ll have this box finished for next time, hopefully with box four too.

This is how it all looks at the moment.

For the stitch-a-long I’m linking up to these lovely blogs:
Avis, Claire, Gun, LucyAnn, Kate, Jess, Sue, Constanze, Debbierose,
Christina, Kathy, Margaret, Cindy, Helen, Steph, Linda, Heidi,
Jackie, Sunny, Hayley, Megan, Catherine, Deborah, Connie, Clare,
Carmela, Jocelyn, Sharon

Huge apologies for missing Jocelyn off the last update. That’ll teach me to check my email a bit more frequently!

Do allow for people being in different time zones, so not posting all at the same time, but it’s well worth doing a bit of blog hopping to see all the lovely projects that are being worked on.

SAL – Snowflake Serenade #01

This is the scheduled three-weekly post for the SAL that I’m doing with several other crafty blogs and after the happy dance last time, I get to start a new project.

I had a good sort out of my To Be Stitched box and five different projects shouted loudly enough to be freed, that I’ve pulled them out and am hoping to do them all this year. (I know, very optimistic given my recent track record LOL) Apart from one, they’re all fairly small, although one isn’t cross stitch and looks a little bit scary.

This one is by one of my favourite designers, Country Cottage Needleworks, and is called Snowflake Serenade. I’m using the recommended threads and I’ve picked a fabric from my stash that I think goes nicely. It’s a 28 count Permin Linen in Lambswool. It’s nice and slubby – lovely!

This is the stash and the picture of how it will eventually look. I’ve had this chart in my stash for at least four years. I know this because I’d already taken the stash photo and it was dated 01/01/15. I thought it’d be lovely to do at this time of year and it’ll be much simpler and quicker than the last project.

I thought it’d be fun to start off by doing the outline first, as then I could have fun filling in the boxes. This proved to be a bit more troublesome than I’d anticipated as apparently, I can’t count. I was about halfway done and I had to frog a fair bit of the top as I’d missed seeing one of the very fine threads that you get in slubby linen and was half a stitch out. Once I’d put that right, I found that it was a whole stitch out for most of what there was left so that got frogged and redone. I bet you can guess how many times I counted, checked, and counted again after that, but the rest got done without any mistakes.

I was really keen to carry on so thought I’d do a bit of the border for this update too and may have got a bit carried away. Look! That’s all the border finished! I’m really on a roll with this and can’t wait to get into the little boxes now. I’m so chuffed with how good a start I’ve made for this year. Let’s hope I can keep it up LOL

For the stitch-a-long I’m linking up to these lovely blogs:
Avis, Claire, Gun, LucyAnn, Kate, Jess, Sue, Constanze, Debbierose,
Christina, Kathy, Margaret, Cindy, Helen, Steph, Linda, Heidi,
Jackie, Sunny, Hayley, Megan, Catherine, Deborah, Connie, Clare, Carmela, Jocelyn

Look how many of us there are now! We’re getting more people join us all the time and it’s great to see their progress posts every three weeks.

Do allow for people being in different time zones, so not posting all at the same time, but it’s well worth doing a bit of blog hopping to see all the lovely projects that are being worked on.