A L-O-N-G Overdue Stitching Update

  • Posted on March 23, 2013 at 11:50 pm

I managed to finish all of my Pay-It-Forward gifts and sent out the last two in February, before we left for vacation. One went to Nancy and the other went to Bonnie. I’m ashamed to have discovered that Nancy’s had been finished for a year before I actually send it. All it was waiting for was two f-bombs. So, basically, it took me a year to make up two f-bombs to include in her package. Shameful, shameful, tsk-tsk-tsk. Bonnie’s didn’t actually get finished until February, so I wasn’t behind in shipping it from that standpoint. Just behind in stitching it up. Probably because I stitched all 5 gifts over one. I must have been a glutton for punishment. I’m not horribly well-versed in stitching over one, so it was quite a crash course.

Anyway, here are the results:

The Sweetheart Tree – Teenie Tweenies – Wild Violets:

Just Nan – Floral Sunshine (finished as a biscornu pendant):

Then, I stitched up Lizzie*Kate’s Dance in the Rain, which was kindly sent to me by Michele:

I had to whip this one up before we left for California so that I could hand the chart over to Mel when I saw her. Yes, I finally got to meet Mel in person! YAY! We got along even better than I would have imagined. She’s just as lovely as you think and more, I assure you. :)

I’ve also stitched up another Christmas ornament from Tor Rhuann Designs. This one is from 2008, named Christmas Candles:

I’ve started on the 2009 ornament since then, but I have managed to remind myself that I actually had some stitching goals for this year and I need to get back on track if I want to accomplish them.

Since putting myself back on the straight and narrow after that ornament finish, I have completed two items on the list:
Lody Steward – Pagoda Pincushion — Complete stitching
Lody Steward – Pagoda Pincushion — Complete finishing

And here are the results:





This week, I’ve been making progress on these two goals:
Nora Corbett – Bluebell Pixie — Complete stitching
Mill Hill – Flower Basket Fantasy — Make significant progress on, if not complete, stitching

Here’s where Bluebell was the last time I posted progress in early January:

I didn’t pick her up again until more than 2 months later, but here’s where she is now:

And here’s where Flower Basket Fantasy was when I last touched it in January 2012:

As of today, it’s here:

I should definitely be able to finish this one with a few more weeks of work.

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Normal is a Four-Letter Word

  • Posted on March 6, 2013 at 11:43 am

Some days I despair of ever being normal. But what is normal, really? Normal for me is not normal for others. But is normal for others normal for all? Is there such a thing? I’m starting to think that normality is a myth. I should rejoice in what is my normal and not worry about whether or not it meets up to society’s definition of normal.

Are society’s accepted norms really realistic anyway? Look at what society considers beautiful. Stick-thin, anemic-looking models are the unhealthy aspiration of many a little girl. But why? That is not normal and that should not be the goal for which every woman strives. Trust me. I’ve been unhealthily thin and still would have been told to lose a little bit of weight by a top modeling agency. I’m serious. Those woman are put through hell. Their self-worth is continually challenged. They are told by one client that their hips are too big, by another that they need to lose a little weight so that their cheekbones are better defined. They are taught that they never live up to the standards set by others. They develop body image issues on a scale that most of us will never even begin to comprehend.

Why does a woman’s stomach have to be flat? How is a woman expected to be as thin as a rail and still somehow have curves? Why are implants required to be desirable? Why should lips be fuller, eyes rounder, teeth whiter?

Who decided that this is good? Who decided that this is the standard to which all others should hold themselves? Who decided that this is normal?

Perhaps “they” should be taken out of the equation and replaced with “we.” For “we” are far kinder and more fair than “they.” Even better, we should replace “they” with “I.” Because we really shouldn’t care what anyone else thinks anyway.

—

Hmm… somehow, what I had intended to be a post about my current state of mental and physical well-being turned into a reflection of my own continuing struggle with body image issues. Isn’t that interesting?

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Book Review: Kiss Me Hello by L.K. Rigel

  • Posted on March 2, 2013 at 3:41 am

Kiss Me HelloKiss Me Hello by L.K. Rigel
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I stayed up until 3:30 in the morning (with a horrendous cold, no less) to finish this book in one sitting because I just could not put it down! I absolutely devoured it and wanted more once I had finished, even though L.K. completed the story lines in a wonderfully satisfactory manner. In my mind, this is the ultimate romance story – just a little bit of steaminess, with plenty of intrigue, a touch of history and a ghost! I’m a fan of L.K.’s work overall, but I think that this is truly her best work to date. It’s a quick, beautiful and seamless read. Brava, L.K.! You have outdone yourself!

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A Nifty, Gifty Finish

  • Posted on January 27, 2013 at 1:57 am

I have now had my first official stitching finish (not just a finish-finish) of the year. When I was putting away some stash a few weeks ago, I found that I have my own copy of Lizzie*Kate’s Good Things design. You may remember that I stitched a version for myself as part of a traveling pattern group a couple of months ago. Once I found that I had a copy, I decided to do it again for a fellow stitcher who lost her stash in a house fire. I was told that she likes peach tones, so this is what I came up with:

I had to leave off the border because I stitched it on 28 count fabric instead of 32 count fabric and I still wanted to fit it into a 5×7 inch frame that I had on hand. I actually framed it properly, lacing it to a piece of mat board instead of just ironing interfacing to the back. It definitely turns out nicer when laced, but if the frame is just a standard picture frame, there isn’t really enough room for a laced piece. Trying to put the easel back on afterwards without flattening the stitches isn’t always possible. The corners of this one are a bit squashed, but over all, it’s not bad.

The recipient emailed me today to let me know that she received it and was pleased with it, so I’m happy. :) After completing that project and framing it, I found and brought out my last PIF piece and put some more stitches into it. I should be able to finish the stitching on it over the next week or so, depending on what things I have scheduled after work.

Speaking of schedules, it is WAY past my bedtime and we have places to go later. Happy Sunday!

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Another Finish-Finish Done and Out the Door!

  • Posted on January 9, 2013 at 9:47 pm

I had my first music lesson since before the holidays last night and I got Here Comes Treble finished as a hanging ornament just in time!

Ink Circles – Here Comes Treble

And that’s it for me for tonight. Nothing else to report, really. Got through a challenging situation today intact and I’m proud of how I’m doing so far in this new year. Now to go relax so more!

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Final Finishes of 2012, First Finish of 2013

  • Posted on January 7, 2013 at 1:17 pm

My final two finishes of 2012 consisted of one stitching finish and one finish-finish:

The Drawn Thread – Merry Little Christmas Ornament (Finished as an ornament)

Ink Circles – Here Comes Treble

I started the finishing on this one last night and will have it completed tonight. I am just finishing into a hanging ornament. Unfortunately, I left practically no margin when cutting the mat that I mounted it to and I was too stubborn to waste the mat, so I forged ahead. I’m sure my music teacher won’t mind.

And my first finish of 2013 was a finish-finish:

Tor Rhuann Designs – 2011 Ornament

This was my first time doing a ruched ribbon finish and it was quite time-consuming. I worked on it while watching Brave and then Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve and I think it took me a couple of hours. Very fiddly, but very pretty.

Since then, I have been working on Nora Corbett’s Bluebell Pixie, from the Pixie Couture collection. We have a SAL going on Facebook and I have already put a good amount of time into her:

I’m not sure how much I’ll be able to touch her this week, but hopefully I’ll get some more time in on her this coming weekend, at the latest.

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Last of the Reindeer Ornaments [Edited]

  • Posted on December 22, 2012 at 12:14 am

I ran out this evening to Walmart and (shock of all shocks) I was able to get everything on my list, including all of the DMC floss that I needed! I think that’s the first time I’ve ever gone anywhere and been able to get all of the DMC on my list. Wow.

Anyway, without any further adieu, here is Sharon Bennett (a.k.a. Daffycat)’s Stocking Reindeer:

You can’t see from the photo, but I did the cuff of the stocking in Wisper thread. And yes, folks, it’s Wisper, not Whisper. Just saying.

As for the finishing, I haven’t abandoned all hope… yet. I picked out backing fabrics for everything and picked up some ribbon at Walmart for ruching. Am I hopeful that I’ll get everything done before tomorrow night? Not in the least. Is it worth trying to at least get some of them done? Absolutely.

Oh wait, here’s a finish. The first time I’ve tried to do one like this and I’m not loving it, but hopefully someone else will.

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Yet More Christmas Ornaments

  • Posted on December 21, 2012 at 12:57 am

I have been trying to crank out Christmas ornaments this week. I did two over the weekend and crawled through another one and finished a 4th one tonight. Unfortunately, I was able to finish all but a 5th reindeer because I ran out of reindeer brown, er I mean, DMC 801. So that last little reindeer is waiting for me to try to run somewhere tomorrow (I guess that’s actually later today) and pick up some more floss. Bummer. It doesn’t really matter, though, because as I sit and look at the huge pile of stitched ornaments I have that I wanted to finish-finish into their final ornament form and I consider what other things I need to get done before Christmas, it’s slowly starting to sink in that there is no way this is all going to happen. And since the ornaments were an afterthought, they will be the first things dropped off of the to do list. We’ll see what miracles I can accomplish, but it will probably take me 2 solid days, at least, to get through all of the finishing I have to do.

Enough about that, though. Bring on this week’s ornaments! All of these reindeer are freebies courtesy of the lovely Sharon Bennett, of Daffycat Designs. I just love this whole series of reindeer, if you couldn’t tell.


Mistletoe Reindeer


Ribbon Reindeer


Holly Reindeer. Yes, I’ve stitched one of these already, but I wanted to do them all on exactly the same fabric, so I stitched it again.


And the original Reindeer, named Jinglebell Reindeer. I added the border used in the others to this one.

The remaining reindeer is named Stocking Reindeer and simply needs a body to go with the head, stocking and border that I’ve already stitched. Blasted DMC 801!!!

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More Christmas Ornaments

  • Posted on December 5, 2012 at 12:16 pm

My push to stitch a bunch of Christmas ornaments at the last minute is still proceeding, albeit at a slightly slower pace. I did finish two more this past weekend, though:

1. Christmas 2006 – Wreath by Tor Rhuann Designs

2. Christmas Star by Tor Rhuann Designs

Watch this space for more, as I already have 2 more that are in progress and 6 more kitted up.

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Update

  • Posted on November 25, 2012 at 9:46 pm

Many of you may have been wondering, where the heck have I been?!?!?!?

Well, work has been … work. :) There has been a lot of it and it has consumed most of my life for the past year, but the huge project I was working on is now complete, thank goodness. Now I can try to re-establish some boundaries, reclaim my personal life and hopefully regain some sanity. Needless to say, I’m behind on… well… everything. I guess I have a thing for ellipses tonight, but there’s much that I’d rather leave unsaid at this point, so you’ll just have to write your own filler. I’ll just say that it’s been a very challenging year and I will be quite glad to see it go.

With that said, I’m already looking forward to 2013. I have a lot of fun things planned for the first few months, more ideas on the back burner and much planning to do. It’s all good.

As far as stitching goes, here is what I’ve been doing since I last posted a stitching update back in July:

  • Started the final PIF gift, but didn’t get very far before I put it down again. I will probably get to it in the new year.
  • Started Passione Ricamo’s Fairy Mystery SAL. I’m on steps 2/3 of the 5 available and have some serious catching up to do. Here is where I stood after completing step 1:
  • Stitched Lizzie*Kate’s Good Things:

    The fun part about this one is that it has now become a traveling pattern and is crossing the globe.
  • Stitched Teresa Wentzler’s Sun Dragon, as a purple moon dragon:

  • Started another instance of Teresa Wentzler’s Sun Dragon, this time as a turquoise moon dragon:
  • Stitched My Mark Designs’ Be Calm, in mint:
  • Framed My Mark Designs’ Be Calm, in mint:
  • Stitched My Mark Designs’ Be Calm, in blue/purple, for my cousin:
  • Framed My Mark Designs’ Be Calm, in blue/purple, for my cousin:

    I just framed it last week and packed it up Friday night, so it is winging its way across the country as I type this.
  • Started stitching a lovely little Joan Elliott design for my mother, called Water Wonderland, then realized that I don’t stand a chance of finishing it in time to have it framed for Christmas, so decided to whip up some ornaments instead.
  • Stitched Star, from Mill Hill’s Winter Greetings Charmed Ornament series of kits, for myself:
  • Sent Nora Corbett’s Sunflower Fairy away to Jill Rensel for framing. She did an absolutely fantastic job and I just got it back this week, but haven’t had a chance to take a good photo of it. As soon as I do, I will post it. In the meantime, here is the photo she sent to me before she shipped it back:
  • Started Here Comes Treble by Ink Circles, as a Christmas gift for my music teacher.
  • Stitched Lizzie*Kate’s Cross Stitcher in Residence, another traveling pattern:

Over the long Thanksgiving weekend is when I decided to try to crank out a few ornaments for my mother, which has now spilled over into trying to stitch a few for my step-dad, as well. I kitted up 6 or 7 ornaments and have already completed two:

  1. Holly Reindeer, designed by Sharon Bennett:
  2. Merry Little Christmas Ornament, designed by The Drawn Thread:

That’s enough for now. I really need to go throw some more stitches into some pieces before bed. Or work on transcribing more Adele songs. I need another day off… or two! :D

I hope that all of my U.S. friends had a lovely Thanksgiving holiday. I know that I have much to be thankful for in my own life, including any and all of you who are still reading this blog! Have a great week!

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My Stick Family from WiddlyTinks.com