Wool Applique, a Cross Stitch FFO, and Miss Emma, Too!!!

 

I saw this wool applique kit on two floss tube episodes, and even though I have a number of pieces that I have yet to finish, I ordered “Festive Fall Simply Square” from Buttermilk Basin. [Warning : Do not visit the Buttermilk Basin website lest you fall down the wool applique rabbit hole. The site is packed with irresistible kits.]  Anyway, back to this piece. It was smaller than I imagined it would be, but it was quick to stitch and it looks cute on the top of my tiered tray. It comes with a little stand on which I will be able to display other tiny  pieces.

Continuing the wool applique theme for a moment. The kits and projects from Buttermlk Basin are   simple to stitch, and as I already suggested, way too cute. They come with clear instructions, and there are  a number of tutorials on Youtube which woulds show you how to get started. Anyone would find the kits from Buttermilk Basin and other wool applique shops enjoyable and satisfying to stitch. They are a world apart, however, from the designs and projects created by Sue Spargo which call for a variety of specialty stitches and a wide range of threads/yarns. I enjoy both types of wool applique, but the Sue Spargo version calls for far more time and effort, and I might add cost.

I had purchased the kit with beautiful wool, threads, and embellishments for Sue Spargo’s Squash Squad last August, but only completed four of the nine blocks. I am determined to work on that project and get it completed.

Speaking of completed pieces, here is the “September Cottage” from Country Cottage Needleworks. I usually display the monthly cottages on a metal easel, but not this time. I had purchased this red blackboard with apple last year at Michaels figuring it would eventually come in handy to display a piece of cross stitch and so it has. :-) I love how it turned out! In my next post, I will show you another FFO cross stitch piece of pumpkin picking cuteness that I also FFO’d today.

Now, it wouldn’t be a blog post from me lately without an obligatory bee photo so here is one taken yesterday.

Finally, my sweet Emma went to the groomers on Tuesday. I couldn’t decide which photo to post, so here are all three. :-()

Enjoy the rest of the weekend. As a New England Patriots Buccaneers fan, I’ll have another Sunday of back to back games to watch which means plenty of time for stitching. Brady, Gronk, and the Buccaneers are playing the New England Patriots in Foxboro next Sunday and that should prove to be really something!!!

Stay safe and have a great week.

A Stitching Update

 Happy Friday! I  hope you have had a good week. Today I thought that I would give an update on what I have been stitching.

Quilting - Nothing, nada . . . I'm thinking that now that the weather is turning a bit cooler my quilting mojo may return. Heavens knows I have enough pieces in process. 

Cross Stitching - That I am happy to report is going along just fine. I am now able to wish you a "appy Halloween."

I have decided that I don't enjoy using a hoop on this larger piece, so I am stitching in hand as I do with my small pieces. Clips are used to roll up the completed section while I gentle hold the section to be stitched in my other hand. Two more hats, a black cat, a couple of spiders and a few back stitched words and I am good to go. :-) Just check out those high heeled boots! Now that's styling!

The pattern info is here and you may click on the image to get a larger size.  By the way, those magnetic cross stitch line keepers are the best thing since sliced bread! You slip one on your chart, and you slide it down after completing a row making it super easy to keep track of your stitches. They are available from the Fat Quarter Shop.

 

Earlier this week I received the chart for the much anticipated "Coming to America . . . The Women of the Mayflower."  Cross stitchers across the country are working on this piece in honor of the Pilgrims' Landing in 1620. The pattern and kit have been wildly popular, but they are still available at The Silver Needle online shop. 

I only purchased the chart not the fabric and thread and do not intend to start it until the new year. Let me show you what came in the box.

Besides the chart, there is a little pilgrim girl needle minder, a bonus harvest themed chart, a booklet about William Bradford, a piece of fabric which features images of his writing,  a thread ring, a corner gauge, and a label to place on the finished framed piece. Very cool!!!

 

 

Guess what? The mailman just this minute delivered another package with this little chart; it's Clare O'Hare by Lizzie Kate. It will be a small stand up piece, and as you can see, Clare comes with her hat, basket, gardening tools, and carrots. Those who know me are nodding their heads and saying, "Yup, that has her name all over it." Don't get me wrong; I think the reproduction samplers are positively lovely, but this girl in the words of Cindy Lauper . . . "just wants to have fun."  This will be a spring project.

Now if that is not enough to keep me busy, the Squash Squad wool applique project with Sue Spargo starts today!!!!  I have prep work to do this weekend before the fancy stitching begins on Monday. It will be a nine week stitch project.

 

One last thing . . . I went for my quick biweekly trip to the supermarket this morning as I needed milk as I go though at least a half gallon each week. Since the cartons were dated far ahead, I picked up three. I''m wondering . . . do you think my neighbors would mind if I just kept a cow in my backyard???  It would be  so much easier. 

One really last thing . . . I can not mention cows without leaving you with this from Ogden Nash.

 

The cow is of the bovine ilk;

One end is moo, the other milk.

 

I would recite funny poems to my eighth graders at the drop of a hat. .  . Ogeden Nash was a favorite.

 

Have a wonderful weekend. Stay safe. Have hope and for everyone's sake please wear your mask. :-)

Twas a Puzzlement

Yes, twas a puzzlement . . .  how was my neighbor completing the jigsaw puzzles that I was loaning him so quickly??? And then I received photographic evidence that shows he had been getting help!!! Dewey is clearly examining each piece and honing in on just the one needed. . . Not only is Dewey a friendly, pretty cat, he is obviously quite intelligent.

My jigsaw puzzle board is set up on my sunporch, but I have not been doing much. Partly, it is the cool, rainy weather and partly, an inability to concentrate. I have a 500 piece "Marble" puzzle that I was not having much luck with so I quit and boxed it up. Maybe Dewey and my neighbor will be up for the challenge.

Every evening I work on the Sue Spargo's "90 Day Toned Down Circle Sampler." As you will see, I am using my own palette which is not toned down. :-) Look at my gorgeous stash of #8 perle cotton. Who knew that it would come in so handy?

Here's my piece showing some finished circles. By the way, each circle is only one inch, and each day Sue Spargo posts that day's circle. She uses stitches that I have never even heard of and a short video to show how the stitch is done. (Note: Lefties can find videos on how to complete various stitches on Ariane Zurcher's youtube channel, On the Other Hand.

 Here are my completed circles so far. I'm not unlike this little snail when it comes to my stitching. It is only supposed to take about forty--five minutes to an hour to stitch each day's circle, but not in my case. First, I watch Sue's video on Instagram, then review her book, Creative Stitching, and then decide which color circle I will stitch and which colors of thread I will use. This sometimes takes me a couple of hours. . . a true snail's pace. Some circles are easier than others, and I do find that I am getting a bit quicker. Most important of all, I am enjoying the process and am finding it a comfort in these troubled times.

 

I can not thank Sue Spargo enough for hosting this ninety day gift to stitchers everywhere.


Mask tip: As I write this post, I am watching a live video presentation on asthma and covid-19 hosted by Medic Alert. The presenter, the head of the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America, Dr. Kenneth Mendez,  thoroughly answered a wide range of questions, and offered this tip regarding protective face masks. Shine a flashlight through the mask, if the light shines through strongly, add another layer when masking masks. Batiks, having a tighter weave, work better than regular fabric.

*** If you are making a mask for someone with asthma, the recommendation is to add an extra layer. (Being asthmatic myself, let me tell you that sometimes it is tough enough breathing through the regular masks. Having said that, I will be making a couple of new masks with the extra layers. My doctor suggested washing and drying a white t-shirt and then cutting two layers from that fabric to sandwich inside the cloth masks that I am making.)

I wish you peace. Stay safe. Stay creative. Stay strong. Have hope. We will get through this.

Stay safe. Stay strong.

Hi Everyone. How are you doing today?

The drawbridge of my castle has been cranked up for what is it . . . three weeks??? I am not going anywhere. My, how the time has flown s-l-o-w-l-y by  . . :-)

In my area on the South Shore and perhaps in your area as well, folks are putting hearts on their doors and in their windows in support of all those in every walk of life who are working to help us. I wanted to create a quilt to support and encourage us all during these difficult days. I've been thinking of a design and started working on it Wednesday afternoon and finished it last night. (It measures 20x22.)

 I also have been making masks but ran out of some necessary items which I have ordered and which hopefully should be arriving later today.

I have been using batik fabric since it is closely woven. My batik stash has gone down a bit, but that will just be a happy incentive to buy more fabric from local quilt shops when this nightmare is over. Quilters always joke about how much fabric we all have; who knew that we had such amazing foresight? Both our skills and our fabric are in demand! A friend texted me a while ago to tell me that her friend who is a nurse appreciated the masks which I had made and, yes, she could use more for some of her nurse friends. It makes me feel wonderful knowing I am helping in some small way.

So, what else am I working on? Well, the borders which need to go on a quilt top that I mentioned last month are still patiently waiting. There is a large embellishment project that is coming along nicely spread out on my dining room table along with many other things. My spring themed wool applique piece takes up my time while watching TV at night. I received the next Sue Spargo BOM Lite package the other day and will prep it later. Speaking of Sue Spargo, she is running a 90-day project "Toned-Down Circle Sampler"on Instagram and on her Facebook page. Each day she shows a new stitched circle. The circles are only one inch. (Mine will be a wee bit larger as I will be using the bottom of an Aurifil thread spool as my template.) The best part??? Ariane Zurcher will be posting short stitch videos on her YouTube channel "On the Other Hand." Lefties please note: she show how to do the stitches for you, too! You might also enjoy following her blog, Where Art & Life Meet. I'll be prepping some wool circles for that project tonight. Afterall, why work on just one project when you can juggle four or five???????????

Quilter will never run out . . .

Don't worry; quilters would know better than to actually do this and clog up their pipes, but we might have a few old tissue paper patterns which would do in a pinch :-)

 Hang in there. We will all be part of history.

This & That Thursday

Hello Everyone . . . How are you doing today?

I did not post yesterday as it was a 3-D day: dreary, damp, dismal. Not much was accomplished in this castle, and that is perfectly okay. I truly believe that we need to be kind to ourselves and not put any pressure on us to accomplish things. I did make three masks, but I felt a need to do some hand stitching. The wool applique piece that I wrote about in an earlier post arrived in the mail, and it was just the ticket.

I have become a complete Sue Spargo convert. Previously, I would have lightly fused each wool piece down, but not any more. Sue Spargo has you whip stitch each piece before going back and adding any embroidery or embellishment. She believes that fusing pieces down with an iron will flatten things.  This new piece was not a Sue Spargo kit, but I am incorporating what I am learning in her mini BOM. I've said it before and I will repeat it again  . . . there is no better way to relieve stress than to do some wool applique. Actually, I spent a few hours stitching yesterday. :-)

Today, I would like to share a blog that I follow, Pentreath & Hall Inspiration which is written by a designer who often shares lush photos from the British Isles. He is a fine writer and an excellent photographer. I'm mentioning it here since his post today deals with the coronavirus in London and is well worth reading. I'm adding his blog to my blog list.

[Note: if you do not see a blog list in a column on the right it is because you are following by email. That's great! But, if you scroll down to the very bottom of the email that you receive, you will see something like "View in Browser" or "Web Version." Click on either and you will be taken to the whole page. It contains some of my favorite blog links, my contact information, and a few other things. It will also allow you to scroll through previous posts, locate something I wrote about before, or leave a comment on a post which I would enjoy reading. :-)]

Today, Ricky Tims gave a demonstration of how to do a convergence wallhanging. You may find it on The Quilt Show on Youtube, on Alex Anderson's Facebook page, or on Ricky Tims' Facebook page. Tomorrow I may just give it a try!

Anne R., another Crosstown Quilter, sent me a photo of the pretty new stitch pillow that she made.

You may find the tutorial info at this previous post.  While there, check out Anna's (from the Woolie Mammoth blog) Youtube channel, and if you have fallen down the cross stitch rabbit hole, you might enjoy her "Floss Tube Stitch Roadies" channel. Now, one should never say never, but I am 99.9999999 percent sure that I will not go down the cross stitch rabbit hole. It's beautiful to see, but it is not my thing!

Back to Anne R. who sent along this meme which totally cracked me up!!!

Stay safe, stay creative, and try to smile when you can.