WIPocalypse September 2017 Update

WIPocalypse is hosted by Measi's Musings

WIPocalypse is run by Melissa over at Measi's Musings and is now in it's 6th year (amazing!).  The object of the WIPocalypse is to stitch on projects that you want to complete before the end of the world! 

At the beginning of January I picked out 17 WIPocalypse projects to work on in 2017.  The full list of my 17 projects can be found on my WIPocalypse 2017 page.

Well here we go again... late as usual for my update.... 😌

12 Days of Christmas (Plum Street Samplers)

Fabric: 28ct Jobelan "Gold Digger" - Colour Cascade Fabrics
Threads: Jodyri Designs (Wuthering Heights, Sense & Sensibility, The Olde Curiousity Shoppe, Midnight Hour)

Day 9 has been started but that's all... still have 7 ladies to stitch before month end!

Halloween Happiness (Sandra Cozzolino)

Fabric: 28ct plain purple fabric
Threads: all DMC

The spooky words have been started... I stitched on this last night and finished another word and started on the "Happy" but haven't taken a photo so that might have to be for next time otherwise this post will never get done!

Christmas Eve Couriers - Comet (Nora Corbett)

Fabric: 32ct Belfast "Arabian Nights" - Stitches and Spice
Threads: as charted

Last time you saw "Comet" was back in October 2016 and he was looking a bit sad then...

and now he still looks sad but there is some progress!  The ribbon is all done now as well as the white spots on his body.  I have started adding the Caron Waterlilies to the tree and then it's onto the border and scattered snow (or should I say beads!)

This month's question is:

Which floss (or color of floss) do you absolutely adore and want to stash constantly?
Goodness me how hard is that to answer....

I love the variegated threads from Jodyri Designs and have slowly been building up a collection of them.  I also love silks.... and have recently purchased a grab bag from Silks 4 U which I am looking forward to trying out.  I have some NPI silks that I bought for my Chatelaines and they are beautiful to stitch with but so expensive to buy!  Some of the other over-dyed threads are gorgeous as well but my collection of those so far is meagre and needs to be increased dramatically!

My favourite DMC colour is hard to pick... I love the hot pinks and bright purples but then I see the gorgeous soft pinks and greens that I am stitching Queen of Peace with and I love them....  I absolutely adore seeing orange and purple together which is probably why I am drawn to Halloween designs so much 😋

So that's it for this update! The next check in is on Sunday 29th October 2017. If you want to see what everyone else has posted for September drop into Measi's blog and check out the September link up page.

Til next time, happy stitching!

Hugs xx

Gifted Gorgeousness September 2017

Doesn't the 15th of each month roll around very quickly?  I very nearly didn't have anything to post for the month... but a quick finish has saved me!!  Although it has now taken me nearly 2 weeks to post my GG finish!!

HMS Ted (Free Gift - Cross Stitcher Magazine)
Designer: Debbie Cripps
Started: 26 August 2017
Finished: 15 September 2017

Not only did I finish the stitching... but seeing as he came with his own printed card I decided to put the card together as well.  He is now all already to send when I need a quick birthday card for a nephew (maybe!)

So that's it for today - I still have to come back and do my WIPocalypse post (overdue) and my Smalls post (due on Friday).  I will also try and do an update on my September stitching as I had another new start this month which I haven't showcased yet!

Til then, have a great stitchy week... and
Happy stitching

Jo from Serendipitous Stitching hosts the Gifted Gorgeousness SAL.  The GG SAL is about stitching charts/kits or using fabrics & threads that we have received as gifts, won in giveaways or anything that is intended be a gift or giveaway prize... or anything else that you can loosely use the word "gift" for!!  If you wish to sign up for this SAL, click on link here, or the button on my sidebar and you will be re-directed to Jo's blog.

The Red & Black

Another Saturday in September and another new start.... I think I have September Start-itis!

This week's start was "Eiffel Quaker" by Jardin Privé.  I have been wanting to start this one for ages... it has seriously been burning a hole in my stash pile!

Eiffel Quaker - Jardin Prive
123 Stitch image

So on Saturday I decided to start it... now originally my plan for this piece was all about Coco Chanel. I am a Chanel girl, perfume wise anyway (Coco is my perfume!!), so I thought that I could use a variation on a theme for the Eiffel Quaker. Subtle but glamorous!  I picked out the perfect fabric - Pink Champagne by Colour Cascade Fabrics - opal with pink and grey mottling...

web image

I was channeling the little Pink Coco Chanel suit for this one - so the plan was to use Jodyri Designs threads of the pink and grey/black variety especially the one called "Parisian Chic".

But... someone decided to put a spanner in the wheels of my plan!

Hubby came into the craft room while I was pulling the threads and getting ready to kit up and asked what I was doing... I showed him and he was like no.... wrong fabric, wrong threads! 😒

What the... NO.. right fabric, right threads!!

He then disappeared and come back with my V&A Marie Antoinette cushion and said Versailles!  So we got out the book we bought when we went to Versailles a couple of years ago and drooled over all the opulence of that most glorious place for some inspiration.... (note: I should add that we are both addicted to the TV series Versailles!)

Image from Chateau De Versailles website

Into the fabric stash I went... luckily I had a piece of antique ivory linen (32ct) that would work... then we started to do the thread picking.

Of course hubby then said "No, wait! I have a better idea!...what about using the Les Miserables song "Red & Black" as inspiration".  Yes, that could work!

Ok.... now for the purists amongst us the Eiffel Tower wasn't built til 1889 and Les Mis is set between 1815 & 1832... but there is a hint of romance throughout the Les Mis story and romance is synonymous with Paris and the Eiffel Tower! And, the Eiffel Tower was built to celebrate the 100th Anniversary of the French Revolution... So we are drawing a slightly long bow with this one...

Anyway enough rabbit trails... on with the story...
So now we have gone from glamorous and chic, to opulence and over-indulgence and then to a story about poverty, romance and the French spirit!

I decided to keep the fabric the same - plain and simple background... but it was out with the floss box again - Jodyri Designs were put back into their box as they are too highly variegated for this new idea.... DMC black came out of the box... then I remembered that I had a WDW Liberty left over from stitching the L*K Paw Prints design.... bright red!

So the red and the black are sorted.... what next...
How about some blue for the third colour and some white for accents - blue, white and red to signify the French Tricolour flag maybe?

The WDW Sky is a nice light to medium blue variation - not too dark, and then B5200 for the white accents for some extra brightness.  I did think about a darker blue but I didn't want the blue and black to be too similar.

I am still thinking of adding a tiny bit of gold here and there for the opulence and glamour of Paris but that's a long way off yet!  For the time being my little bit of glamour is the pink glitzy poodle needle minder!  I do have an Eiffel Tower needle minder on another project which I will find and add to this one next time.... always good to try and be matchy matchy!! 😏

I managed to get a good start on the first motif over the weekend.

I am loving the look of this so far.... It is going to be hard to not pick this up again tonight and continue on with the first motif!  Maybe I might adjust my rotation slightly for this week so that I can finish that motif!

So that's 2 starts for September so far.... there are 3 more weekends to come and I have at least one more start planned so I may be back next Monday again!

I must remember to take some progress photo's of my other WIPs as well.... oh well... that's for another day!

Til next time. happy stitching!
Hugs xx

It's September and there is a new start!

Image from Princess Sassy Pants pinterest page

September is here... how quick is this year going by?  I can't believe that we are now in the last quarter of the year!

The bonus for us in the Southern Hemisphere is that September means Spring is on it's way and I am so hanging out for some nice warm sunny weather!  I swear to you I think I must be solar powered as I don't do so well in Winter!!  I really do need the sun to give me the energy and spark to get through the day! 😺

Anyway enough rambling.... I thought that I would show you my September new start.  It is a really sweet Little House Needleworks design with pumpkins! So not very Spring like but there was a reason for starting it!

A couple of weeks or so ago I stumbled across a post on the CCN/LHN FB group about a potential SAL for the northern hemisphere Autumn months which I thought would be a great excuse for a new start!  Vonna (The Twisted Stitcher) started up a separate group for the SAL and showed some potential designs that would fall into the category and low and behold I had one in my stash - which meant that I just had to join the SAL!

Little House and Country Cottage Needleworks Autumnal Stitch-A-Long
FB group - link is here
Starts: 1 September 2017
Ends: 1 November 2017

My new start for this SAL is Little House Needleworks "Pumpkins 4 Sale"

image from 123 Stitch

I did have to purchase the Classic Colourworks threads but everything else is from stash....

Pumpkins 4 Sale - Little House Needleworks
Fabric: 28ct Jobelan "Silver Springs" Colour Cascade Fabrics
Threads: as per chart - DMC, Classic Colourworks (Crescent Colours)
Started: 1 September 2017 (start #52/2017)

I continued to stitch on my pumpkin on Saturday and almost managed to finish the first one!

This piece will be my Friday night stitching WIP for September... it would be nice to have a finish at the end of the month but I won't hold my breath!

So that's my latest new start... I have a couple more planned for September so stay tuned!

Til next time, happy Spring or Autumn Stitching
Stitchy hugs xx

August Smalls Update

The Smalls SAL is hosted by Stitching Lotus

It's time for a catch up on my Smalls stitching for the month of August.  I only managed one complete finish for the month.... very disappointing effort! 😢😞

Free Gift - Cross Stitcher Magazine (Issue June 2000)
Designer: Angela Poole

"Beside the Sea"
Started: 5 January 2016
Finished: 8 August 2017

I love the little buttons that were included in the kit... I very nearly didn't sew them onto this little small as I thought I could use them for something else... but they do just finish off the design. Now I just have to decide how to frame it.... I am thinking something like a beach theme frame with a distressed paint look... but that's for another day!

To see everyone else's Smalls posts for August pop over to Heather's blog and check out the link up post. 

Next Month – The next Smalls SAL check-in will take place on Friday, 29th September 2017.

Til next time, happy stitching!
Hugs xx

August WIPocalypse Update

WIPocalypse is hosted by Measi's Musings

WIPocalypse is run by Melissa over at Measi's Musings and is now in it's 6th year (amazing!).  The object of the WIPocalypse is to stitch on projects that you want to complete before the end of the world! 

At the beginning of January I picked out 17 WIPocalypse projects to work on in 2017.  The full list of my 17 projects can be found on my WIPocalypse 2017 page.

12 Days of Christmas (Plum Street Samplers)

Fabric: 28ct Jobelan "Gold Digger" - Colour Cascade Fabrics
Threads: Jodyri Designs (Wuthering Heights, Sense & Sensibility, The Olde Curiousity Shoppe, Midnight Hour)

July 2017:

August 2017:
The target for August was to finish Day 8 - well... guess what! I managed to finish it last night (that's the good thing about posting late I can show you a finished block!)

Halloween Happiness (Sandra Cozzolino)

Fabric: 28ct plain purple fabric

Threads: all DMC

July 2017:

August 2017:
Finished the creepy "L" tree in August.
Working on the creepy "H" tree... didn't quite get this finished in the month of August.. but it will be done by the end of this week!

Deer & Grapes Mystery Sampler (Jean Farish)
Fabric: 32ct Lugana "Autumn Glade" - Stitches and Spice

Continued to stitch on the deer during August...

July:

August:

Question of the Month: How do you get yourself out of a stitching drought?

A stitching drought (or a missing stitching bug) is something that I haven't experienced for quite some time.... luckily!  I do sometimes have the odd day when I can't decided what to stitch from my many WIPs - on those days I will look for something that is either close to a finish or something that might be related to a SAL challenge that I want to get ticked off the list.  Or if that fails... a new start also gets the stitching juices flowing again!! 😃

Next posting date: September 24, 2017
Topic for next time: Which floss (or color of floss) do you absolutely adore and want to stash constantly?

So there you go.... a little bit of an update on my stitching throughout the month of August.

If you want to see what everyone else has posted this month, drop into Measi's blog and check out the August link up page and if you're on Facebook, remember to also check out the Facebook Group for updates as well.

Thanks for dropping by... til next time, happy stitching
Lots of stitchy hugs xx