IHSW February 2019

My doing nothing is cross stitching...... 
Image from Princess Sassy Pants website

Welcome back to my blog!  Today I am here to report on my stitching for the past weekend while I hermitted!!!  The weekend just gone was the 3rd weekend of the month which means it was International Hermit and Stitch Weekend (IHSW).  I tend to hermit and stitch most weekends but there is something wonderful about the weekend when you know that around the world other stitchers are also joining you in your craziness!!!

IHSW also coincides with Friday Off The Grid (FB group) and Friday Frolics run by our own Kitten Stitching Kaye.

Stand by for the update!

Finish #5/2019
Design: Honey Bee Keep Card
Designer: Free Design
Source: Cross Stitcher magazine issue Sept 1998
Started: 28 June 2016
Finished: 17 February 2019

Starting Point Friday 15 February 2019

Finished Sunday 17 February 2019

Design: Quaker a Halloween

Designer: Jardin Prive
Started: 1 January 2019

Fabric: 32ct Belfast "Jello Shots"
Thread: Purple silk (Silks 4 U), white DMC
Stitched 1 over 2

Starting Point Friday 15 February 2019

Finishing Point Sunday 17 February 2019

Design: 12 Days of Christmas
Designer: Maria Diaz
Source: Cross Stitch Collection December 2001
Started: 1 January 2019

28ct Evenweave (blue/grey)
Thread: DMC as charted / metallics Kreinik and PTB

Starting Point Friday 15 February 2019

Finishing Point Sunday 17 February 2019

So there you have it...

I mainly focused on my Christmas and Halloween 2019 pieces this weekend. 12 Days of Christmas is behind schedule so I am hoping to use some more time this month to catch up..

As per last month, Magical Stitches SALs/weekly challenges has played a large part of my stitching this month.  I will try and do an end of month progress post soon so that you can see all the projects that have come out of hiding for this challenge! 😼

See you next time!

Happy Stitching
Hugs xx

IHSW January 2019

Image from Princess Sassy Pants & Co

Welcome back to my blog!  Today I am here to report on my stitching for the past weekend while I hermitted!!!  The weekend just gone was the 3rd weekend of the month which means it was International Hermit and Stitch Weekend (IHSW).  I tend to hermit and stitch most weekends but there is something special when you know that around the world other stitchers are also joining you in your craziness!!!

IHSW also coincides with Friday Off The Grid (FB group) and Friday Frolics run by our own Kitten Stitching Kaye.

Stand by for the update!

Friday 18 January 2019

Finish #2/2019
Design: JOY
Designer: Rovaris
Source: Just Cross Stitch Ornament issue 2018
Started: 6 January 2019
Finished: 18 January 2019

Fabric: 32ct Raw Gold Belfast
Threads: DMC 840; red Mill Hill beads for holly on tree branch
Joydri Designs Threads as per below:
December 2016 Limited Edition"Elf" (fussy cut for the letters, green present and leaves)
"Genie of the Ring" (dress and hat on the elf, bird and 2nd present)
March 2017 Club Exclusive "Winter Frost" (snowflake and ribbon on 2nd present)

Design: Bentley Bear
Source: Free Gift - Cross Stitch Crazy Issue 138 (June 2010)
Started: 22 January 2016

Stitching Challenge Starting Point 18 January 2019

Stitching Challenge Finishing Point 18 January 2019

Saturday 19 January 2019

Design: Hocus Pocus Trilogy - Muriel
Source: Mill Hill kit
Started: 13 October 2017

Stitching Challenge Starting Point 19 January 2019

Stitching Challenge Finishing Point 19 January 2019

New Start #5/2019
Design: Forever & Ever
Design: Cottage Garden Samplings
Started: 19 January 2019

Fabric: 36ct Edinburgh "Feldspar" Picture This Plus
Threads: Weeks Dye Works as charted
Stitched 1 over 2

Stitching Challenge Finishing Point 20 January 2019

Sunday 20th January 2019

I stitched the fill in colour on the Forever and Ever "L" first up to complete my stitching challenge requirements, and then moved onto:

Design: S'Mores Bear B-Q
Designer: Tempting Tangles
Source: Just Cross Stitch October 2016
Started: 26 August 2018

Stitching Challenge Starting Point 20 January 2019

Stitching Challenge Finishing Point 20 January 2019

Fabric: 28ct Cashel Linen "Rocky Creek Canyon" Stitches & Spices
Threads: DMC, Dinky Dyes Silk "Pilbara", Classic Colour Works "Hickory Sticks"
I am stitching the silk and CCW 1 over 2 and the DMC 2 over 2 - just for something different!

Design: Morning Has Broken
Designer: Mari Richards
Source: Cross Stitch Collection
Started: 17 May 2018

Stitching Challenge Starting Point 20 January 2019

Stitching Challenge Finishing Point 20 January 2019

So there you have it... lots of stitching variety for the weekend.. This variety was lead mainly by the stitching challenge in the Magical School of Stitching & Literature as I had to stitch 200+ stitches for 5 separate tasks (Classes) plus I decided to do an extra task and watch the first movie while I stitched... So with some fenangling I managed to get all the stitches done by bedtime on Sunday!!

Now I am off to find something else to stitch for my Mira SAL and another Magical Stitching challenge.  I certainly have plenty of Mira's to choose from.... 😼

See you next time!

Happy Stitching
Hugs xx

IHSW April 2018

Look at this... I have finally remembered to post about my IHSW stitching! Wonders will never cease!

Friday 20th April 2018 - Friday Frolics
For my Friday Frolics I decided to pull out one of my many Little House Needleworks WIPs!  I didn't manage to get a lot done but progress is progress!  I originally started this design for the Jane Austen Reading and Stitching FB group SAL.  The first part of the SAL was related to "Sense and Sensibility"... hence the strange starting point! I now plan to add the author names before deciding which part to stitch next.

"The Bookshelf" - Little House Needleworks
Fabric: 28ct Opal Lugana "Gaia" - Under The Sea Fabrics
Threads: DMC as charted

Saturday 21st April 2018
Saturday saw me looking for something that had metallics or beads for the Coffee Stitcher SAL over on the Stitch Maynia FB group.  On this occasion I managed to find a WIP that I could focus on for 2 stitching sessions of the challenge. (Sat - Metallics/Beads and Sun - Speciality Stitches)

"Debi's Roses" - Chatelaine/Martina Rosenberg
Fabric: 32ct Belfast "Garden of Eden" - Colour Cascade Fabrics
Threads: DMC as charted; substitute PTB26 for Kreinik Gold
(Very old free design from Martina)

Saturday I managed to finish most of the DMC cross stitching, and then on Sunday, once I did the last of the cross stitch, I moved onto the gold back stitching, and the gold Algerian eyelets!  My plan for Sunday was to do the eyelets and start beading but after doing one side I had just about had enough..  I managed to get a bit more done and then called it quits!  This one will have to come out another day for finishing!

Sunday 22nd April 2018
So after my golden eyelets experience, I decided it was time for something different... so I started a new Christmas inspired design... the weather was cold and damp on Sunday, and after a night of heavy rain, thunder and lightning on Saturday night, my thoughts are being pushed in the direction of  winter...  (yuck!)

New Start
Holly-Word Art - Ursula Michael
Source: World of Cross Stitching (issue 223?)
Fabric: 28ct Opal Brittney "Woollen Mittens" Jodyri Designs (Nov 2016 Ltd Edition)
Threads: DMC as charted

This design is my choice for the Stitch Maynia April Tour de Designers SAL as the designer this month is Ursula Michael.  I haven't stitched one of these style of charts before so I am really pleased with how quickly it appears to be stitching up!

So that was my stitching weekend!  Hope you all had a great stitchy weekend too!

Til next time, happy stitching
Hugs x

Happy Friday!

It's Friday! If you're stitching today/tonight don't forget to post on the Kitten Stitching and the Friday Frolics blog!  I always forget so this is a reminder to me to do a post over the weekend! 😉

And guess what... it's also the 3rd Friday of the month so that means it is time to hermit and stitch all weekend - don't forget to post all about your stitching fun on Monday, or you can post all weekend on Facebook - link to the FB group is here.

Sorry... I have no stitching pics to show today... just thought I'd do a fly by public service announcement post!!

See you later.... and happy hermitting!

Til next time, happy stitching
Hugs xx

IHSW October 2016

International Hermit & Stitch Weekend (IHSW).... 

held on the third weekend (Fri - Sun) of every month

hosted by Joyce (Random Ramblings).

Back again.... this time I am here to show you what else I stitched on over the weekend for the October IHSW.

I always keep forgetting to post my weekend stitching these days (bad blogger!!) but today I have remembered!

So here we go....

Friday night's stitching you have already seen but here's a recap:

Merry Christmas (2015)
From the Heart ~ NeedleArt by Wendy
Just Cross Stitch Christmas 2015 issue

Saturday was another new start...

Autumn Harvest - Plaid Pumpkin
Mill Hill Kit

I was debating whether to hold this one over for the Smalls post at the end of the month, but if I did I would have nothing to show now because Saturday's start was a Sunday finish!!

Sunday's stitching was a finish on the Plaid Pumpkin

Autumn Harvest - Plaid Pumpkin
Mill Hill Kit

Not a great pic... I now just need to "finish" finish this one which I might try and get done by the end of the month (hopefully!)  This is my very first Mill Hill kit finish... and I absolutely love it! I have two more started (Scottie Dog you have seen, the other one is below) and have become addicted to buying them on 1-2-3 Stitch website! Danger Will Robinson!!

So that was Sunday afternoon... after tea on Sunday night I went back to my little Christmas Bunny card (which I haven't shown you before).  I am stitching this one for the Christmas Ornie Blog as the theme is presents/toys.

Before pic:
Christmas Bunny Card - freebie from UK Needlecraft magazine (1990 something....)
Started 8 October 2016

before Sunday night stitching

After pic:

after Sunday night stitching

Bit more progress last night on this one.... completed all the red and white in her dress, stitched her feet and the white tail, as well as the white in the present and on her hand (not that you can really see that white at the moment!)

So that was my IHSW stitching for this month.  I'm not sure if Joyce is going to do a second one next weekend.... we shall have to wait and see!

New Starts:

Now while I am here I might as well show you my new starts that I have on the go at the moment...

Rubber Ducky - Mill Hill Kit
Started 15 September 2016

Dog House Sampler - Little House Needleworks
Started 26 September 2016

If You Don't Believe - Sue Hillis
Started 28 September 2016

Endless Knot II - Ink Circles
Started 1 October 2016

I do have a couple of finishes to show but I am going to save them for the Smalls Post at the end of the month - just to keep you all in suspense a bit longer!!

So that's it - think I am relatively up to date with all the pics of what I have been stitching lately.  Lots of new starts, couple of finishes and numerous WIPs to tackle!  Oh well... you can't say I'm not trying hard enough!! :o)

Til next time, happy stitching
Hugs xx

Gifted Gorgeousness SAL 2016; IHSW Pt1; Stitch Maynia

Hello!  I'm back.... This post is a real Heinz variety post... it is a mix of Stitch Maynia, IHSW and Gifted Gorgeousness...

Stitch Maynia Update:

First up I will show you the last of my Stitch Maynia starts (Starts 10 - 15)

Day 10 - "Joyful World SAL - March" (Snowflower Diaries)

Day 11 - "Joyful World SAL - April" (Snowflower Diaries)

Day 12 - Christmas Card Freebie (Cross Stitch Crazy magazine)

Day 13 - Christmas Card Freebie (Cross Stitch Crazy magazine)

Day 14 - "Snow Story - Cold Hands" (Lizzie Kate)

Stitched on 32ct Belfast
"Into the Blue" from Stitches and Spice
Threads: Weeks Dye Works

Day 15 - Floral Bookmark - Cross Stitch Crazy Freebie

Designer: Kate Knight

So that's it... Stitch Maynia (my version....) is over for 2016 and I think I did pretty well in the end.  I managed to get some starts happening on some of the WIPs / SAL's that I am working on as well as starting a couple of small things that I will try and finish off in between WIP stitching over the next couple of months - which means I should be well on my way to starting and finishing 31 pieces before the end of the year :o)

Gifted Gorgeousness Stitching:

Now.... onto my GG update!  I have to say that this month I have very little offerings to show you :o(

I didn't stitch on any of my pieces that form the traditional part of my GG stitching... but I have a plan.... and I can tell you that the Kate Knight bookmark above is actually for my Mum as part of her birthday present.  So as I said... slim offerings this month but I at least I did have something to show you!

IHSW Part 1 Update:
Yes... that's right - Part 1!  Joysze organised for last weekend to be the first part of IHSW for May... the coming weekend is Part 2 (and is the weekend that is normally when it would be IHSW!).

My stitching on Friday, Saturday and Sunday you can see above!  I also did stitch on my Trick or Treat spider but forgot to take a photo of him after my Sunday stitching.  (He is nearly finished so I will just wait now til he is done)

So overall part 1 of May's IHSW went quite well!  I finally managed to start the Lizzie Kate "Snow Story" that I have been itching to start for months... even with all that white!!

So that's it for this update... told you it was a Heinz post :o)

Til next time, 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 the button below or the button on my sidebar and you will be re-directed to Jo's blog.