2021 - A good stitching year

Hello friends and fellow stitchers,

Thank you so much for your kind comments on my last post. It had been so long since I had posted anything that I was sure there would be no one visiting here so I was pleasantly surprised to meet up with friends old and new.

I’ve a bit more progress on my Winter Rose Manor but not really enough to show yet.

Instead, I’ve decided to put up pictures of some 2021 stitching. I had two major finishes in 2021 so it must have been a good stitching year.

The first is A Saviour’s Praise by Shakespeare’s Peddler. I stitched this on 36 ct linen using all the called for threads one strand over two.

I didn’t want to stitch the fictitious name of Emma Seabrooke so I substituted my own wording instead.

I really loved stitching this sampler and missed working on it once it was done.

The other big piece is a design by The Scarlet Letter. Margaret Gibson 1839.

This was a WIP for many years til I finally decided to make that push and finish her.

The piece is stitched n 36 ct linen using the DMC conversion that was included with the chart.

I think the colours are beautiful and it just goes to show you really don’t have to have the fancy floss or silks to stitch something beautiful.

I think you can click on any of the pictures to enlarge them.

,I have one other smaller sampler to share today and this one is by The Scarlett House Little Deeds Sampler. I stitched this one on 35 ct natural linen using mostly the called for threads one strand over two.

and now for some sewing. In my last post I showed a zippered pouch and I’ve just finished making another one. The pattern is by Sotak Handmade and the name of the pattern is the Lola Pouch. You can purchase the pattern as a pdf from her website.

It’s such a great pattern that I want to make more. For this one I used some Tilda fabrics although the striped base and lining fabrics are just oddments from stash.

I did quilt as you go and quite enjoyed trying out something new to me.

So I think that is about it for now. I hope to be back soon!

Happy crafting,

Margaret

Back to Blogger - maybe……..

Well, it has been a long, long time! About six years in fact since I posted anything to this blog.

I, along with so many others, defected to Instagram and I have to sayI loved it for the  first few years.

Recently though I’ve become more and more disenchanted with the bombardment of ads and reels none of which are what I’m really interested to see.

So here I am with the idea of resurrecting my blog. Just as a place to record my makes and, hopefully, visit some of the blogs I used to enjoy that are still active.

Trouble is I’m just so rusty and have just about forgotten everything I ever knew about posting!

So my plan is to keep this post short just while I get back into the swing of it.

So what have I finished of late and what am I working on?

I’m currently working on Winter Rose Manor by Brenda Gervais of With Thy Needle and Thread.

In the first picture you can also see the project bag I sewed up from the fabric panel that Brenda offered

I’m really enjoying this project.

One other thing I finished recently is a zippered pouch using a little cross stitch called Socks on the Line from October House Fiber Arts. This was a fun stitch but I almost ruined it with the rookie error of getting the red thread wet when pressing. It’s not too bad but I’ll be more careful in future 

Finally a pair of shortie socks from the Rose City Roller pattern which is free on Ravelry.

So I think that is all for now just til I see if this posts OK.

A few things I've been working on

Hi everyone,
In spite of my good intentions to be a better blogger I haven't had time to post for a while.
It's just that time of year where there is so much to do in the garden but I'm here now with a few pictures of what I've been working on recently.
I'm happy to have a small finish. This is a design by Plum Street Samplers Serial Bowl Collection which I intend to finish as a pillow once I can get to my sewing machine.
I stitched this piece on a piece of 40 ct unknown linen using Classic Colorworks overdyed threads. The small section of over one stitching was a nightmare to do on the 40ct - never again!



Next up some small progress on my Just Nan Needle in a Garden. This is a UFO from way back when and I haven't done as much as I would have liked but any progress is better than nothing right?



I have another finish. This is Spring from a set of four seasonal design kits by Elizabeth's Designs. Everything was included in the kit - linen, charms and overdyed threads. I've been stitching these with Brigitte who also has these kits in her stash and we are now making some progress on the summer one which I will show when it is finished.



Another SAL I'm doing with Brigitte is Houses of Hawk Run Hollow. I started this when the design first came out so it's another ancient WIP.
Here is the progress I've made on the block I'm currently working on.



This is stitched on Pearled Barley linen using the Vikki Clayton silk conversion.

I've been doing some crochet on a little blanket for the next grandbaby which is due early August.



and finally a gorgeous little wall hanging that was made for me by my friend Sheila in Spain



So I think that is all I have for today. I'm way behind in reading and commenting on blogs but hope to catch up in the next day or two.
I hope you are all enjoying your stitching and other crafts. Thanks as always for visiting.
Margaret

Revisiting the UFO's and a Prairie Schooler Finish

Hi everyone,

I'm happy to have a finish to share.
This is The Birdhouse Sampler by the Prairie Schooler. It's in the Garden Samplers book #45 which is now OOP.
It is stitched using the recommended DMC threads on 32ct linen and I'm very happy with the way it turned out



Following on from my last post I have continued to dive into deep stash to revisit my shameful pile of UFO's.

Once upon a time I started Celtic Banner by Butternut Road. This thing is 42 inches long and I really don't know what I was thinking at the time although it must have been all of thirteen years or more.
Anyway I pulled it out to look at and decided that I could crop this to just the alphabet and the Celtic border. I have only the bottom border to do so this will be worked on at some point in the near future and hopefully finished.



I no longer remember what linen this is but I used some of it for the Birdhouse Sampler that I showed in the first picture.

Still deep stash diving I pulled out my Houses of Hawk Run Hollow by Carriage House Samplings. This is almost at the halfway point and I'm happy to be stitching on it again in a weekly SAL with Brigitte
This is stitched on 36ct linen using the Vikki Clayton silk conversion



I'm happy to say that the mystery from my last blog post is solved. The design is Needle in a Garden by Just Nan. It's such a pretty design I have no idea why I stopped working on it but the plan is to finish it. I ordered the chart again from Sew and So and I already had the Scarecrow charm.
Threads are just DMC and there are lots of specialty stitches to hold my interest.



You should be able to click on any of the pictures for a better view if you wish.

Finally Nancy of the Victorian Motto Sampler Shoppe
has another of her amazing giveaways going on for 10 20yd skeins of her newest colour floss. There is still time to enter.

So that's it for this time. Thanks for your continued visits to my blog and for your lovely comments.
Happy stitching!
Margaret

Deep Stash Diving

Hi everyone,
First of all a big thank you for the kind words and welcome back. I really didn't expect anyone to leave a comment as it had been so long so it was a lovely suprise to hear from so many old friends.
So, as promised, this time there is some stitching content. In fact, it's all stitching content as now that I've found my stitching mojo again I can think of little else.
I have two finishes to share. First is a little pillow from a Shepherds Bush kit that friend Angela gifted me one time when she visited us in Spain. Angela doesn't have a blog but she does beautiful stitching and you can see her work in her Picturetrail album which is linked in the sidebar of this blog.

This is Flock of Pins by Shepherds Bush stitched on 32ct linen with the silk threads provided in the kit

I think it should be possible to click on any of the pictures to enlarge if you wish to

My next finish is Home of a Needleworker by Little House Needleworks. This had been on my want to stitch list forever and once I got going on it I stitched it in just under two weeks which is something of a record for me.
Fabric is 32ct cream evenweave using mostly the threads that were called for in the chart

I've been pulling out a lot of projects that were started a long time ago. I've managed to do some stitching on Sunflower Bell Pull by the Drawn Thread. I would like to frame this piece rather than finish as a bell pull so will omit the v shaped stitching at the very bottom of the chart

and finally a very ancient UFO that I pulled out while deep stash diving. I wouldn't like to say how long ago I started this and now I don't even know what design it was so I'm hoping that one of you might be able to tell me.
I'm pretty sure it is a design by the Prairie Schooler but I've been on their website and various Pinterest sites devoted to PS designs and I cannot see anything that resembles this. I would really like to be able to finish what I started but I don't have the chart and have a feeling that it must be one of the OOP ones.

So that is all I have for now. The aim with the blog this time around is to try to do little and often posts. Let's see how well I do at this.
As always thanks for visiting my blog. I am almost caught up with replies to those of you that left such nice comments last time.
Happy stitching!
Margaret

How long?

Wow! Has it really been so long since I posted to my blog.
Since my last entry I have moved back to UK from Spain first into a rented apartment for six months and then into our own house last August.
It's been busy but I've still managed to craft. However it has been mostly about knitting, crochet and sewing.
I've taken up my needle and thread again after a long break and will post something stitchy related soon.
Meanwhile this is my latest sewing finish.

Here is how it looks on the inside with a zippered pocket

and with the little fabric I had left I sqeezed out a zippered pouch

So it's not much of a post but a small start. I hope to be back with some finished stitching soon.
If there is anyone still reading here thanks for visiting :)
Margaret

Finished in September

Hi everyone,
Oh dear, I'm just getting worse and worse at updating this blog. Sometimes I think it is time to let it go as my heart doesn't seem to be in it any more but I do have some things to share so I'll just quickly load up the pictures.
Most of what I've been doing recently has been either sewing or knitting.
I made this bag from Anni Downs book The Simple Life



The main body of the bag is made using Essex Linen and the prints are Noteworthy by Sweetwater



Another little bag I made for some of my smaller knitting projects. This was made using a free pattern from the All People Quilt website they call them grab bags but I thought this style of bag was called a Japanese Knot Bag. Whatever the name it is a very useful bag and the pattern is one I will make more of.
There is plenty of room inside as shown here with my latest sock knitting project.



I made a Tilda sewing doll

Do you see the beautiful hand painted sewing machine brooch she is holding? This was specially made for me by my friend Yvonne in Australia.
Yvonne does the most beautiful hand painted buttons and brooches which she sells in her Etsy shop here She also has a blog where you can see many gorgeous examples of her work in her blog header

Another project I finished recently is this Atkinsons Designs Classmate

I decided to do a bit of a fusion of designs using one of Lynette Andersons along with a selection of her fabrics



Back view



inside lots of pockets made of see through plastic so you can see what you need at a glance



I also made a cute little travel sewing kit from a pattern I found on Craftsy. It is a paid for pattern called Go and Sew that you can find here



The fabrics are by Rosalie Quinlan and they seemed to be begging to be made into a little four patch pincushion to go with the pouch



Here it is open with the handy built in needle case



I'm afraid I have no finished cross stitch. There are so many finishes all waiting in a pile to be turned into something but who knows when that will ever happen.

Finally a few pictures taken recently





and I think that's it. I can't believe that we are already at the end of September. This year has gone way too fast for me and I suspect the next three months will go yet faster. I hope everyone reading here is well and enjoying the various crafts that you do.
Thanks as always for visiting.

Margaret