Weekend Progress Report #48

Stitching progress this week:

I finished the empty panel on the round robin ... but a photo of the whole piece ... with all the lovely contributions from the other stitchers ... will just have to wait till daylight. The piece is so large that using my Ott lamp as I usually do with my photos just doesn't light up the whole project

I frogged out my error on the Workbasket Quaker Sampler and restarted the piece. Now the recommended linen for this piece is Lakeside Linens' Navy Bean 32ct. But since I am stitching from stash as much as possible, I have substituted Silkweaver's Shadowlands 36ct. I wasn't all too happy with the way the recommended GAST Dried Thyme faded into the Shadowlands ... so having frogged it all out anyway, I replaced it with GAST Forest Glade ... same tone family but several shades darker. Otherwise, I am using the recommended GAST: Cranberry, Midnight and Gold Leaf. This piece has three medallions in the center which I will fill with the dates 1971-2011 on either side and my husband's and my initials in the center heart. Several years ago, my favorite framer lost his wife who was not only his life partner but also his business partner. The heart went out of him and he shut down his business. At the time, he had in his possession an anniversary sampler I had made and a birth announcement celebrating my grandson's birth and I have given them up for lost. I'll be using this sampler to replace the anniversary sampler: 40 years is a nice round number and better than the 37 years celebrated in the lost sampler anyway. I know I tend to be a slow stitcher but, counting the stitching I had to frog and the frogging time, the progress you see here is the work of 6 and 1/2 hours ... pathetic, huh? On the other hand, I am really enjoying this piece so the longer I get to do so, the better!

I'd also like to take the time to respond to some comments that readers have made during November.

To Rachel S: I do use pillow forms for my pillows, for the most part. Whenever I stuff my own, I get weird corners because I have never mastered the art of tapering the corners to make them appear square. Having little or no spatial intelligence, I always forget whether I am supposed to taper them at an oblique angle of 100 degrees or an acute angle of 80 degrees to give the illusion of a sharp 90 degree corner. This lack of spatial intelligence is why I always just squeaked by in geometry and trigonometry while doing quite well in algebra and calculus. I've got plenty of the logical/mathematical and verbal/linguistic intelligence [google seven intelligence theory] but virtually no spatial intelligence. Also, I'd love to do an unofficial Ice Dragon's Kingdom SAL with you, each of us posting on our own blogs ... maybe starting in February.

To Carol: The generic all year round pillows are mounded on my bed. Seasonal pillows are used to decorate the couch at the appropriate seasons and then are stored for the next year. And, I 'm glad you liked my Pilgrim Woman with Pies ornament ... see below for a funny story about that ornament.

To Hillery: Thanks for all the kind words about my designing skills ... I plan to do a lot more this year ... stay tuned for future developments.

To Sharon: Glad to find a kindred spirit when it comes to attitudes about overdyes. Whether silk or cotton, they are addictive and I am weak ... but I do believe designers need to be aware that not everyone shares the passion ... DMC conversions are becoming an economic necessity for many stitchers.

To Dani: I loved reading your answers to the stitching meme and have to add that I find your disciplined pursuit of one BAP at a time to be amazing. Me, I've got stitcher's ADD and constantly need a change of pace. And thanks for your encouragement as regards the encrusted crazy quilt project.

And, in closing, a stitching anecdote. Normally, my husband is the most appreciative audience of my stitchery ... very supportive: driving me to retreats [I am not comfortable doing serious highway driving], bragging about my work, gifting me with new charts, tolerant of the multi-colored orts that stick to his clothing and a companion as I stitch, either reading or watching DVDs as I work. But the other day, as he was going down the steps, leaving for work, he called up in a very puzzled voice, "Uh, why do you have a Groucho Marx nose ornament on the Thanksgiving tree?" Groucho Marx!!!!????!!!! Well, naturally, I took umbrage. How could he possibly mistake any of the gorgeous ornaments I had stitched for Thanksgiving for something so ludicrous? But, damned if he wasn't right! As I came down the steps a few minutes later and casually glanced at the tree, I had to admit that the Pilgrim woman with the pies did look like Groucho ... her apron made a perfect nose, the skirt below it looked like a mustache and her outstretched arms holding pies in her hands did indeed resemble eyes. The curses of an open mind ... I had to admit Bill was perfectly right ... and now I will never look at that ornament without thinking of Groucho.