Some Stitching

I have stitched a few more of the Ink Circle Halloween ornaments:

No Heads Positive.  I used a Catherine Jordan green over dyed for the border and CC Dulce de Leche for the snakes.

No Heads Negative.  This is stitched in two Catherine Jordan green over dyed  cotton flosses.

Two Heads.  I chose to stitch the snakes in different colors though the model showed them in the same over dyed floss.

The Skull.  I used DMC white and black for the skull.  But for the snake, I used WDW Halloween.  The designer's notes called for an over dye that had long enough lengths of clearly contrasting colors to give a banded effect.  It's a little finicky since I have to keep switching from vertical to diagonal to horizontal rows to maintain the bands.

Ink Circles Celtic Beasties Halloween Ornaments

I've finished the Polipus.

These ornaments are like potato chips.  You can't stop at one.  So I started and finished another: the negative image No Heads.  This is meant to be four headless snakes twisted into a Celtic knot.  I used another scrap of 28 count Lakeside Linens Luna and a pale grey Catherine Jordan over dyed cotton for the border and filled in the background with Needle Necessities 133, a pretty blue green over dyed cotton.

And, of course, the negative image needs to be balanced by the positive, so here it is.  Still using the same 28 count Luna, I stitched the border in what was left of the Needle Necessities 133 and have started the snakes in a pale orange over dyed cotton from Catherine Jordan.

One of the pleasures of these projects is going through stash and finding partial skeins and cards of lovely floss that otherwise would never see the light of day.  Needle Necessities is a discontinued line and will never be called for in any new designs and Catherine Jordan is a private brand, probably used only in the classes she teaches.  Finding a use for these fibers is satisfying.

A Few Finishes

First up, the second of the JCS Strawberry Scissor Fob ornaments, the flower.  I stitched this on Lakeside Linens 28 count Buttercream with Carrie's Creations Sassy.

Next, Harvest Blooms.  I decided to frog the brown shading after all.  I went with WDW Terra Cotta.

And a new start and finish: Workbasket's Quaker Bear.  It was meant to be a polar bear but that didn't fit my theme so I made it a brown bear.  I used my darkest dye lot of GAST Maple Syrup for the solid area and much lighter dye lots for the Quaker motifs at the center.  If you look carefully at the head of the bear, you will note a gradually darker to lighter wedge extending from the face to a point at the back of the neck.  I was running short of the darker dye lot and blended a strand of Maple Syrup with a strand of DMC 3371 [for two 18" lengths] to transition from two strands Maple Syrup to two strands DMC 3371.  I think the strategy worked well.   I used two other dye lots for the motifs: one with a grey undertone and one  with a rosy beige undertone.

Next, I resurrected a needlepoint class piece: Making Waves ... from July 2015.  When last seen, I'd worked only two and a half rows of satin stitch.  See this link.  I am much further along and the color gradation from  white to palest blue to darkest blue is becoming evident.  The bulk of the piece is done in the satin stitch, giving me the chance to use my lovely laying tool.  Later there will be some basket weave, some eyelets and some bullion knots.

And then, because I would like a few quick finishes, I pulled out Ink Circles Celtic Halloween ornaments and completed the Celtic Cross and the Spider.  I am using some scraps of Lakeside Linens 28 count Luna and some partial cards of Catherine Jordan and of Carrie's Creations over dyed cotton floss for these little beauties.

These are fun stitches.  Even the designer's notes are amusingly macabre, as befits Halloween, explaining that the spider's legs look like a cat had played with the hapless arachnid [though no actual spiders were harmed in my project].  There are also suggestions for making boldly unrealistic color choices as in key lime spiders.  I went with the slightly more conservative Purple Pansy blend of medium purple and raspberry from Carrie's Creations.

I started the Polipus, aka octopus in Scot's Gaelic.  For this one I am using Needle Necessities 194, a color way of violet, blue-violet and pale sage.









And a short shout out to Rita re the recent giveaway: I sent an e-mail but have yet to receive your mailing address.

Ninth Blogaversary

Nine years - nine facts:

1. When visiting a needlework shop, I am most likely to purchase ...
floss, especially silk and cotton over dyes.

2. After 40+ years, I still have a penchant for stitching ...
fairies and dragons.

3.  I dabble in several other forms of embroidery ...
needlepoint, multi-media surface embroidery, beading, and crewel.

4. When it comes to textile arts, I am fascinated by ...
color and texture.

5. Though I do all my own sewing finishes ...
I have used professional framers for really special pieces.

6.  When stitching,  I almost always have a glass of unsweetened iced tea or lemon water within easy reach  Over the years, I have probably consumed enough to fill ...
half a dozen Olympic swimming pools. 

7.  Most days, I stitch for ...
two to three hours.

8.My second passion is antiquing and I have a collection of ...
 antique pin cushions, my favorite of which is an adorable turtle on its back, made from unglazed pottery, with glass eyes and a faded gold velvet underbelly.

9.  I love taking classes, but
rarely finish the projects, though I am making a stab at doing so now that I am retired.

Winners

Package 1: Laura
Package 2: Rita

I'll be e-mailing later on today/

Hermitting Weekend Proess

I continued work on Harvest Blooms and am closing in on a finish.  Though I spent most of Sunday binge watching Mr. Selfridge, I did manage to finish most of the gold leaf in the flowers.  I still have the pecan and dark chocolate to stitch.  After that, it's just two stars and some confetti.  I will have to decide whether to rip out the brown shadow on the pumpkin and replace it with the cranberry, as charted.  Probably will. It irks me that I misread the symbols but I am not sure I'll like the cranberry any better.  Maybe pecan or terra cotta.  I'll have to do a floss toss.

It's Been Awhile

... since I've had a giveaway. so here goes.

First, I m offering a package of 5 JCS issues: Christmas 2015 and February, April, June and August 2016.  Though I don't have a use for them, I know there's a fan base out there.

Second, a package of Halloween/Autumn charts: 

Hands to Work Designs Harvest Blooms

two from Homespun Elegance Country Spirits series: Birds and Bees, Seasons Retreats

La-D-Da Something Wicked

Fanci That Fall Friend

CEC The Pumpkin Conspiracy

Just leave a post noting which package you prefer, 1 or 2, and an e-mail address.  I'll draw the winners on the 27th.

JCS/SANQ Revisited

Back on April 19th, I wrote a post about how poorly JCS was keeping its pledge to include SANQ quality charts and articles.  Since that time, I have received the last issue of the arbitrarily substituted JCS subscription and have had my cynicism confirmed.

Even by JCS standards, the August issue is fluff.  The majority of the designs are so simple they represent the stitching equivalent of a beach read.

The issue also lowers the percentage of SANQ like articles  and charts considerably.

SANQ-type charts  Total: 4:
 February - June: 3

August: 1 very disappointing entry, pretty much scraping the bottom of the barrel/

SANQ-type articles Total: 1

February - June: 1

August: 0         

Contemporary/conventional charts [landscapes/ florals, samplers] Total: 26
 February- June: 23

August: 3

Trendy or seasonal charts Total:31
 February - June: 13 

August: 18 [includes the 10 ornamemt Christmas preview]

Hardanger Total:  4
 February - June: 3

August:1

Redwork or other specialty embroidery charts Total: 3
 February - June: 3 

August 0
    

Primitive Total: 2
 February - June: 1

August: 1  
Juvenile themed charts Total: 7
February - June: 5 

August: 2

Articles about designers, new products, etc. Total: 7

February - June: 5

August: 2

To recalculate: from my POV, only 5% of the charts and 12% of the articles are of interest.  

So the publishers, in failing to keep their commitment, have done little more than give the lie to the very title of the magazine, JUST Cross Stitch.  It might as well be called Slapdash Pastiche  Vaguely Resembling A Magazine.

But on a more positive note: my subscription having played out, this will be the last of my JCS/SANQ rants.

Two Finishes and a WIP

Here is the long overdue photo of Witches Hollow ...

And one of the recently finished CEC Pumpkin Conspiracy ...

And, finally, one of my current WIP, Hands To Work Design's Harvest Blooms.

I Have Returned

It's been a little over two months since my last post.  I am afraid I allowed some chronic health issues to  send me spiraling into an agoraphobic lethargy of TV binge watching. computer solitaire  and hermit stitching.  But I have taken myself in hand and am determined to resume a more normal routine.  

The title of this post reflects some of the binge watching: my husband watched the entire Victory At Sea documentary while I sat and stitched in the same room.  I was amazed at how jingoistic we were back in the early 50s.  Granted, I was a mere toddler at the time and needn't take personal responsibility for the rabid triumphalism of the cultural climate, but it was still something of a shock to see and hear How very over-the-top things were in my own lifetime.  Anyway, the phrase is a quote  from Douglas MacArthur, who pretty much embodied that culture. 

But I did keep stitching.

First, I finished up the remaining bands of Witches Hollow.    I'll take a proper outdoor photo of the full piece later on today and post it tomorrow.  For now I'll just show the finished bands.

This was a great project, loads of fun to stitch with a great variety of motifs.  So many fascinating little details.

Next, I began work on Hands To Work Designs Harvest Blooms on 40 count raw linen.  I used the recommended WDW and GAST fibers with one exception: I used WDW Mascara instead of GAST Old Black Crow.I did make a mistake on the pumpkin bottom right as brown rather than cranberry.  I'll be leaving the error alone for the present to sre if I can live with it but I suspect I'll be frogging it out in the end.  Rather  annoying really, since I have anchored some of the orange threads under the brown.

And when my eyes became too tired ti work on 40 count, I switched Cross-Eyed Cricket's The Pumpkin Conspiracy on 28 count Lakeside Linen's Buttercream.   I substituted over dyed cottons for the recommended DMC and Silkn Colors, using WDW Bark, Beehive, Cantaloupe, Chartreuse, Chestnut, Chrysanthemum, Cocoa, Cognac, Gold, Kudzu, Lemonade,  Onyx, Schneckly, Sea Foam, Teal Frost, and GAST Bright Leaf, Dried Thyme, Raspberry Parfait, Royal Purple, Tropical Ocean and Zinnia.  I've managed to get quite far along on this piece.  The smaller thread count is so much kinder on the eyes,

And, finally, since I was craving a finish, I stitched u[ this quick little project.  It is the June 2016 JCS Christmas ornament The Strawberry Scissor Fob Ornament  1 [Tree].   I used up a bit of Carrie's Creations Raspberry floss that I had in hand, it was just enough,  A nice bit of serendipity.






It hasn't been all idleness and vacant TV binging but neither has it been a truly productive two months.  But I hope for better in the future.