Gifted Gorgeousness - January 2019

Image from Princess Sassy Pants & Co

Happy GG New Year! It's time to start off a brand new GG year and this year I am planning to post way more regularly than I did in 2018! Although as you will notice I am late posting this month - so I am already behind the eight-ball! I did have great intentions to post on time but alas... my plans did not come to fruition!

First up... we have a gift of fabric from stitching friend
Earlier this month I was stitching a small Christmas Ornie design on a left over scrap of fabric that was gifted to me way back when.... in fact I can even show you the original post if you want to click in the link here.  This fabric also became a part of the very first GG post I ever made... link to that post is here.

Design: "JOY"
Designer: Rovaris
Source: Just Cross Stitch Ornament issue 2018
Started: 6 January 2019

as at 15 January 2019

Next up we have a Free Design from a Designer
Link to freebie chart is below

Design: "Happy Howloween"
Designer: Brooke's Books
Source: Brooke's Books Website (link to freebie page)
Started: 14 January 2015

Stitching Challenge starting point 11 January 2019

Stitching Challenge finishing point 12 January 2019

And last but not least, a gift from a Stitching Friend
Chart was purchased using a gift certificate from Linda (Stitching with my Furbabies)

Design: Fur-ever Friends - Laurel Burch (Mill Hill Kit)
Started: 17 May 2017
Source: Mill Hill Kit

Stitching Challenge starting point 21 January 2019

Stitching Challenge finishing point 13 January 2019

I stitched on "Happy Howloween" and "Fur-ever Friends" for a couple of stitching challenges (Cross Stitch Finish Line Stitchathon and Magical School of Stitching & Literature stitching challenge).  As the challenges were in 2 different Facebook groups I was able to use the stitch totals for both challenges!  Love it when that happens 😸

That's it for my January GG update.  See you again soon.  If you want to know more about the Gifted Gorgeousness SAL pop over to Jo's blog and check out her sign up page (link is here)

Til next time, Happy Stitching! 😻

Hugs xx

Progress Reports on my WIPs

Hi there! I'm back with some updates on my WIPs that you haven't as yet seen.  I have some new starts as well but given that this post will be quite long I think I will leave them for another post!

Advent Animals - Peter Polar Bear
Designer: Brooke Nolan (Brooke's Books)
Freebie - Brooke's website
Fabric: 32ct Belfast "Moonbeam" from Stitches & Spice

Then: I started stitching on the Brooke's Books Advent Animals for the DUCJC2015 and unfortunately not a lot has been done on these cuties done since then.... (25 designs - started 3, finished 1)

Yesterday I decided that it would be a Brooke's Books Sunday and Peter Polar Bear came out to play...  I last stitched on him in April 2015 and left him looking like this!

Peter Polar Bear - April 2015

Now: After a day/evening of stitching while watching Flosstube he now looks like this:

Peter Polar Bear - Oct 2016

Nora Corbett's Christmas Couriers - Comet
Designer: Nora Corbett
Fabric: 32ct Belfast "Arabian Nights" from Stitches & Spice

Then: Comet has been getting a little bit of love over the last few weeks.  I stitched on him during the Olympics and left him looking like this:

as at August 2016

Now:

as at 26 Sept 2016

Lakeside Needlecraft / Durene Jones Fantasy SAL
Designer: Durene Jones
Fabric: 32ct Jobelan "Silver Springs" from Colour Cascades Fabrics

Pegasus is not quite finished yet....

as at 30 August 2016

But I just had to start the Wizard as soon as he came out.....

as at 28 September 2016

He is nearly done as well.... the latest design has now been released but I will try and finish these 2 before starting the next one!!

Disney's Tigger
Designer: freebie UK Cross Stitcher Magazine

Then and Now: For Stitch Maynia Colour A Day (Orange Crush) on 24th September I found a poor little WIP sitting in the box that would be perfect for this day's stitching challenge.  I started him for an ABC Challenge in 2015 and did manage to do a little bit more on him in between April 2015 and September 2016... which I had to frog before I could restart the orange stitching again!

as at 24 September 2016

Queen of Peace
Designer: Nora Corbett
Fabric: 32ct Belfast "Hole in the Sky" from Colour Cascades Fabric

Then:

Now:

Merry Christmas Grumpy Kitty
Designer: Brooke Nolan (Brooke's Books)
Freebie - Brooke's website
Fabric: 32ct Belfast  "Arabian Nights" from Stitches and Spice

Then:

as at April 2015

Now:

This was supposed to be my Sept TUSAL photo but I forgot to post it... so you are seeing it now! (And I forgot to do my Oct photo.... oh well there is always next month!)

Mini Mandala II - C
Designer: Chatelaine Designs

Then:

as at June 2016

Now:

as at September 2016

So that's it for the WIPs for now!  Lots of stitching has been done recently... but not a lot of blog posting so this post is a little bit picture heavy... sorry...

I'll come back and show you my new starts another day - with a little bit of luck some of them might even be finishes by then!

Til next time, happy stitching
Hugs xx

Katie Kitty (Finish #12)

Another Finished Stitching Piece Happy Dance is happening..... plus it's Friday... another great reason for a Happy Dance!!  Tonight I am going to try and remember to take a picture of my Friday Night Frolicking before I start stitching.... 

But for now... I am back to show you my latest finish for 2016!

Remember way back in 2015 I started stitching on the Brooke's Books Advent Animals for the DUCJC2015 and then I picked it up again during the A-Z Challenge... well... I unfortunately I haven't touched them since then.... so the other day I decided to try and get at least one finished in March..

The last time that you saw Katie Kitty on 13th April 2015 she looked like this.... not a lot happening at all!!

However.... she is now finished and smiling....  Isn't she so cute?

Finish #12

I am stitching a number of these Advent Animals on the same piece of fabric - 32ct Belfast "Moonbeam" from Stitches & Spice.   Unfortunately neither photo shows how pretty light blue fabric is.... it looks grey and dark in the photos... Funny how different colours can look in photos!

As I mentioned earlier... tonight is Friday Night Frockling.. and tomorrow is Alphabet Club! So if I can get myself organised you should get another post or two show up in your blog feed over the weekend!

I am slowly catching up on emails and blog reading... Til then have a wonderful Friday night and a fantastic weekend!


Take care and happy stitching

Hugs xx

Stitching Update.... Happy Howloween!

Who's ready for a stitching update?  So far I have been sticking to the weekly rotation and over the last week I have been beavering away on "Happy Howloween".

Last time I showed you this WIP was back in April when I was doing the A-Z Blog Challenge.  I originally started stitching this crazy little design back in January and with a bit of luck the next time I pick this one up it will be a finish!

So how much have I stitched on it since the last update?

April pic below:

June WIP update pic:

Not bad, huh?  Spending a whole week on a WIP is certainly helping these projects move along at a cracking pace rather than the snail's pace that they were doing!

For those that might be interested and haven't seen my previous post - "Happy Howloween" is a freebie design from Brooke Nolan and you can find the design on Brooke's website - the link to the freebie page is here.

That's it for today....

Til next time, happy stitching!

#realstitchersdontsteal

P - Peter Polar Bear

18th April "P" Post

"Peter Polar Bear"

Saturday has finally arrived.... today is Saturday 18th April and posting Day 16 of the "Blogging from A to Z April 2015 Challenge".

Today is "P" - "Peter Polar Bear"

Polar Bear: The polar bear is a very large carnivorous bear whose native range lies largely within the Arctic Circle, encompassing the Arctic Ocean, its surrounding seas and surrounding land masses.

Peter: Peter is a common masculine given name. It is derived, via Latin "petra", from the Greek word πέτρος (petros) meaning "stone" or "rock"

I currently have three "P" designs on the go... and I had originally planned to stitch on Nora Corbett's "Prancer".... but with a rather sore left shoulder and total exhaustion bearing down on me last night, I decided to get out "Peter Polar Bear" instead and put a few stitches in to him.

This design is, as you may already have guessed from his name, another one of the Advent Animals from Brooke Nolan.

When I last stitched on "Peter Polar Bear" he looked like this:

I only managed a small number of stitches last night before I had to go and find my pillow.... but he does now look like this:

That's it for "Peter Polar Bear"... he will be back again soon!

Thank you everyone for your thoughts and comments about my shoulder injection.  The injection went well, wasn't too painful but as it was done while I was in the CT scanner I had to stay absolutely still.... and that was the worse bit - do you know  much your nose can itch when you can't move a muscle!!  Fingers crossed I will have an unfrozen shoulder in a few days!

I will be back tomorrow for my TUSAL post... see you then!



Til then.... Happy Stitching and Happy Blogging!
Hugs xx

N - New Year's Magic

16th April "N" Post

"New Year's Magic!"

It's Thursday 16th April and posting Day 14 of the "Blogging from A to Z April 2015 Challenge".

Today is "N" - "New Year's Magic"

New Year: the time of the year at which a new calendar comes out and hangs on the wall and we all make these wonderful resolutions!

Magic: everyone needs a little bit of magic!

"New Year's Magic" is a design probably best stitched at the end of the year - but I saw this lovely fairy and decided to stitch her during my Crazy January Challenge.  At the risk of repeating myself.... this one is a Brooke Nolan design... link to her freebie page is here

The last time I showed her on my blog she looked like this:

Now she looks like this:

She is starting to taking shape now...  I know that she looks a bit weird at the moment, but I am missing a couple of thread colours so I have had to stitch around those spots for now! (My husband can't believe that I don't have every available thread when he looks at what I do have!!)

That's it for today's post... tomorrow is Friday!  I am so hanging out for Friday....

Also, don't forget this weekend is IHSW (International Hermit and Stitch Weekend).  Joysze is taking sign ups now, so head over to Joysze's blog, say hi and sign up for a weekend of indulging in our favourite past time!



Til then.... Happy Stitching and Happy Blogging!
Hugs xx

M - Mary Mouse

15th April "M" Post

"Mary Mouse"

It's Wednesday 15th April and posting Day 13 of the "Blogging from A to Z April 2015 Challenge".  Today marks the half way point in the 26 days of the A to Z challenge!

Today is "M" - "Mary Mouse"

Mary: a lovely name for a very sweet mouse

Mouse: is a small mammal belonging to the order of rodents, characteristically having a pointed snout, small rounded ears, a body-length scaly tail and a high breeding rate.

I told you I would be back with another Advent Animal from Brooke Nolan (Brooke's Books)

This one is "Mary Mouse".  Perfect choice for "M" day!  "Mary Mouse" is being stitched on the same piece of fabric as "Katie Kitty" and she is the third in the series of 25 Animals.

When I last stitched on her back in January I left her looking like this:

On Monday night while watching the first episode of Series 5 of "Game of Thrones" I managed to finish the bottom white border and started on her shoes and legs.

Loving her big green shoes!  Hopefully Little Miss Mary Mouse will soon have two legs to show off to you - but for now she goes back into the WIP basket!

That's it for today's rather late post... I will be back shortly with my GG update, and then back again tomorrow with my "N" post!



Til then.... Happy Stitching and Happy Blogging!
Hugs xx

K - Katie Kitty

13th April "K" Post

"Katie Kitty"

It's Monday 13th April which means it is posting Day 11 of the "Blogging from A to Z April 2015 Challenge".  Can you believe another Monday has dawned?  Not my most favourite day of the week!

Today is "K" - "Katie Kitty"

Katie: Katie is an English feminine name. It is a pet form of Katherine, Kate, Caitlin, Kathleen and their related forms

Kitty: a cute and fluffy four-legged friend, and a name I may call my cat.... 

You may have noticed that I am currently stitching a number of freebies that have been designed by the wonderful and whimsical Brooke Nolan of Brooke's Books Publishing.  Today's post is also showcasing a Brooke Nolan freebie design.

During my Crazy January stitching challenge, I decided to start stitching on the 25 Advent Animals series that Brooke is currently designing.  A new animal is released each month on her website and she has so far designed about half of the 25!  The link is here if you are interested in stitching these designs as well.

This is where I got to with stitching "Katie Kitty" at the end of the January challenge:

"Katie Kitty" now has a little bit more colour in her jacket....

I am stitching a number of these Advent Animals on the same piece of fabric - 32ct Belfast "Moonbeam" from Stitches & Spice.   Unfortunately taking photos in dull light doesn't really show the pretty light blue of the fabric off very well!

I do plan to stitch a couple more of the Advent Animals during the A-Z challenge - so stay tuned for more whimsy and cuteness!



Til then.... Happy Stitching and Happy Blogging!
Hugs xx

H - Happy Howloween

9th April "H" Post

"Happy Howloween"

Welcome to 9th April and posting Day 8 of the "Blogging from A to Z April 2015 Challenge".   Goodness this is one way to make the month fly by!!

Today is "H" - "Happy Howloween"

Happy: feeling or showing pleasure or contentment

Howloween: a play on words.... Halloween as spoken by cats and dogs!!

I love this design - it so cute!  This is yet again another freebie from Brooke Nolan (Brooke's Books Publishing) - link to the freebies page is here

I last stitched on the cute puppy back in February and I left him looking like this.... sad little fellow with only 2 legs and no body....

Those cheeky fellows came out of hiding again last night and now they look like this:

At least now the puppy/cat has the beginnings of a body!  The fabric colour looks different again... the first photo is taken in daylight and is a lot closer to the real colour than the washed out colour in the second picture...

So that is "H" covered off .. (did you notice that my title had two "H"'s?)...

Tomorrow is "I" Day and this the first letter so far that I have really had to do some planning for as I have no WIP's starting with "I"....  I guess it will be a surprise for everyone including myself as to what turns up tomorrow :o)

Til next time.... Happy Stitching and Happy Blogging!
Hugs xx