2020 Stitching Finishes and Some Current WIPS

 I've been enjoying seeing stitchers' finish parades and thought I'd do one of my own.   I'll group them in themes.

Valentine's Day

This was a wip from a previous year (by Pine Mountain Designs) and

a little freebie by Lizzie Kate.  

Little House Needleworks

St Patrick's Day

A freebie by Plum Street Samplers

Patriotic

Fall/Halloween/Thanksgiving

Give Thanks Turkey by Theresa Kogut

Primitive Needle

Little House Needleworks Autumn Sampler

Miss Fortune by Prairie Schooler

Salem Remembered by Primitive Needle

Autumn Alphabet by The Scarlet House (I changed the pumpkin from an orange to an off white.)

Trilogy

Christmas

Bent Creek Stockings for my daughter's family beautifully FFO'd by Vonna, the Twisted Stitcher.  I'll also include the stocking I made (also FFO'd by Vonna) a previous year for my granddaughter.  These were so fun to stitch!

I often stitch a yearly ornament for us and our kids.  When I saw this one, I knew it had to be the one.  It's by BeverlyStreetShop on etsy.  There are also designs for a masked snowman and toy soldier.

I wish I could say I'd thought to do this but I saw someone else online frame a PS Santa in this Kohl's sled frame.  I stitched the 2008 Santa for this frame. 

Anytime

Strawberry House by Little House Needleworks

Birth Sampler for our Grandson (with ID info edited out)

Samplers

Ann Pegg 1877 by The Scarlett House

Jane Marshall by Hands Across The Sea

Garden Gate Sampler by Prairie Schooler

Little House Needleworks Melicent Turner

Some models I stitched that were released in 2020.

Home for the Holidays by Country Cottage Needleworks

Little House Needleworks Hometown Holidays Post Office

Little House Needleworks The Hive

WIPS

 I have quite a few but the 2 most active ones are a stocking (from The World of Cross Stitching #195) for my future daughter-in law and Martha Dawson by Hands Across the Sea.  I'm also working on a model.

2020 has been quite a year to say the least.  I'm thankful to have had my stitching to keep me busy and calm.  Here's hoping 2021 will be a better year.

Happy stitching!

Merry Christmas!

 Christmas will be a lot quieter this year because of the "C word" but we'll reflect on past Christmas' spent with family and future Christmas' to come.  We're blessed with our health, a warm house, plenty of food, and the promise of better days to come.  I also feel blessed to have my cross stitch hobby with lots of things to stitch to occupy my time while we can't go anywhere.

I finally framed my 2008 Prairie Schooler Santa in a sled frame I found at Kohl's last year and am pleased with how he turned out.

I'm also FFO'ing the Covid Santa ornaments (from Beverlystreetshop on Etsy) for our family's 2020 ornaments.  I used Vonna Pfeiffer's hoop finish tutorial on Youtube.

I took a little break from model stitching last night to put a few stitches in my wip of Blackbird Design's Joyeux Noel.  I'm working on the band of greenery and berries.  One of these years I will finish it.

I'm beginning to think of my 2021 stitchy plans (I loosely plan bc I've found that I often don't stick to a plan.)  Without thinking too much, I have quite a list....working on wips, some HATS samplers, stockings for our son and future daughter-in-love, etc. From the looks of it, I'll be quite busy stitching.

With the promise of 2 vaccines currently starting to be used, there's some light at the end of the COVID tunnel.  We just have to be patient and keep taking precautions for a while longer.

Merry Christmas!

Happy stitching! 

Another Thanksgiving in the Books...Moving on to Christmas

This year's Thanksgiving was strange this year due to COVID precautions.  Our Austin boys got tested before visiting and although it wasn't totally without risk, we felt that their visit was worth the little increased risk we took.  (They're all working from home and not going out much (wearing masks when they DO go out.)  We also did a Zoom visit with the relatives we would have seen on Thanksgiving which was strange but better than nothing.  I was so distracted setting up for the Zoom that I forgot to take pictures.  One of the boys took one of the table before I put out the food.  We even used paper plates for the first time for Thanksgiving instead of the good china, our nod to trying to make it a little safer.  I must admit that I didn't miss hand washing the china but I did miss getting to use it.  Hopefully next year!

I finished the Theresa Kogut's Give Thanks Turkey but didn't finish it in time to FFO it.  (Maybe next year!)

I blame it on COVID but I was very late choosing an ornament to stitch for the family ornaments (total of 5!).  Then I saw someone stitching A Very COVID Santa (from BeverlyStreetShop on etsy) and knew I'd found the one!  I'm not celebrating COVID by stitching it but it will indeed be something to remember in future holidays when we finally get back to normal (whatever normal will look like).  I popped the first one temporarily in an embroidery hoop to see what it will look like FFO'd that way.

I mailed off the rest of the stockings (designed by Bent Creek) I made for our daughter's family and they received them yesterday.  Our poor granddaughter (4) forgot that I'd made hers a couple of years ago and was a little sad that there wasn't one for her in the box (although I sent her some treats in the same box).  All was well when I explained that I stitched hers FIRST and wanted her brother and parents to have their stockings too.  I stitched them and they were beautifully FFO'd by my friend Vonna Pfeiffer aka The Twisted Stitcher.

The boys left us yesterday and a cold front arrived bringing rain that will probably go on all day.  I'm looking forward to putting away the Thanksgiving decorations, maybe putting out a few Christmas ones and then being a couch potato today while watching football and stitching.

Happy stitching!

 We've had a few cool days here but it's back to 80's weather for a few days.  The ragweed pollen count is lessening so at least I can go outside without sneezing and my eyes itching.

I've mostly been model stitching this week (almost done) but pulled out my own project last night....Give Thanks Turkey by Theresa Kogut.

I managed to finish stitching Miss Fortune the day before Halloween and have an idea for an FFO but haven't gotten around to it yet.  As is often the case, she was a lot cuter "in person" than the photo on the chart.

I worked a little on my Carolyn Manning piece for the sal.  It's going to be an enjoyable stitch;  with all the repetitions you can get "in a grove" with this one.  It's amazing to see just how many DMC reds there are!

 

Our Thanksgiving will be a bit smaller this year.  2 of our kids will come here (after testing for COVID).  This weekend I plan on 2 baking/freezing cookies (chocolate chip and oatmeal) to send back with them when they go back home.  I hope to make some peanut butter cookies too before I get caught up in Thanksgiving plans.

Be well and....

Happy Stitching!

Salem Remembered, Ann Pegg framed, WIPS, 2 Upcoming New Starts

 I did manage to finish stitching my Salem Remembered (Primitive Needle) piece but not sure how I'll eventually FFO it.

 

I picked up my Ann Pegg 1877 (The Scarlett House) and we finally remembered to go outside yesterday to get a beauty shot.  (I like to photograph them outside under natural light so I don't need a flash that would reflect off the glass.)  The framer told me this was the nicest needlework he's framed and further said he could hardly tell the difference between the front and the back.  It made me feel good.  I've printed off the lyrics to the hymn from which the "motto" (on the sampler came) and will put it on the back of the framed sampler along with my name, the name of the design, the designer, and the date I finished it.

I finished one of the models I've been stitching.  It has arrived "home" and the designer is happy with it.  Now I just have 7 more  models (one is small-medium sized and the others are small) to stitch.  So fun!

I've been working a bit this weekend on one of my pieces, J. M. Gardner by With Thy Needle and Thread.  It's a small sweet sampler and I'm enjoying it very much.

I'm joining a SAL starting Nov. 1 with one of my Facebook stitching groups.  We're all choosing a design by Carol Manning.  My choice is Ruby from her Shooting Star Collection.  I've gathered up my reds and will probably use a piece of fabric from my stash.

Another project I'd like to start is a turkey by Teresa Kogut that was in one of my stitching magazines.  (While looking for a picture online, I see that she's released it as a pattern since then.)  I'd gathered up the overdyed threads when it first came out but finally ordered some fabric for it today.

I feel like between all the Facebook stitching groups and watching Flosstube that I want to stitch "all the things".  I've also decided I should always have a sampler wip since there are so many I want to stitch.

Our city's water crisis is almost resolved but the county told us they found some mosquitos in their traps with West Nile virus.  Mosquito spraying has been more frequent.  There's so much ragweed pollen outside now that I can't spend much time outside anyway...although the weather has been gorgeous lately.  Oh well--more stitching time.

Stay safe and...

Happy Stitching

Model Stitching so Not Much to Share...and 2020 Strikes Again

 I can't believe it's already October!  You'd think with less travelling and group activities during COVID precautions that time would seem to go more slowly.  That hasn't been the case largely due to my watching more Flosstube and getting excited about stitching "all the things".

I'm also busy model stitching so I don't have much to show.  I did pull out my years-long wip of Salem Remembered by Primitive Needle and started PS Miss Fortune to stitch when I give myself some time off the models.  I really enjoy having something seasonal to stitch during the actual season whether I finish or not that particular year.  

For Salem Remembered, I'd waited on buying the third silk floss needed for it and find now that it's not being dyed anymore.  I have some silk in my stash that will work though although it might not be exactly what the designer had in mind.  I may even finish this project this year!

Just last night I started PS Miss Fortune.

Our most recent 2020 challenge is that our city's water system is contaminated with naegleria fowleri (aka a brain-eating amoeba).  Tragically, a local little boy died from it last month.  While we're dealing with the big inconvenience of using bottled water and boiling water before using (and being very careful when showering not to splash any in our noses), we have nothing to complain about when we think of that poor family who lost their child.  We're learning a lot about municipal water systems and the amoeba now.  Our city and state is working hard to find/fix the source, flush out and eradicate the amoeba in the water system  (and also providing bottled water at a drive-through POD) and we hope it's cleared sooner rather than later.  (Could take 60 days, give or take.)  

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naegleria_fowleri

Ann Pegg is still at the framer's.  I think I'll give him a call Monday in case he got busy and forgot to call/text me that she's done.

Be well and......

Happy Stitching!