October Goals

I want to do some seasonal stitching before getting caught up in the Christmas stuff, so these are my goals for October:

Finishing - If The Broom Fits - Lizzie*Kate

Finishing - Pig Fridge Magnet Freebie Kit

Finishing - July Needleroll - The Victoria Sampler

Finishing - Groundhog Day - Bent Creek

Stitching - Acorn Scissor Case - Lizzie*Kate

Stitching - October Sampler Accent - Periwinkle Promises

Stitching - Pot Pourri Sachets - DMC

Stitching - September Sampler Accent - Periwinkle Promises

UFO - Bee Treat - The Trilogy

UFO - Country Mice - Needlecraft Magazine

UFO - Moonshadow Sampler - Shepherd's Bush

UFO - Pumpkin Flower Sampler - Bent Creek

UFO - Schoolhouse Needleroll - Shepherd's Bush

WIP to finish - Pastoral Sampler - Helen Philipps

WIP to finish - Sampler Bookmark - Needlecraft Magic

WIP to finish - Strawberry - Needleworks by Sue Hawkins

WIP to finish - Potted Flowers - The Bold Sheep

There's quite a lot there, but I'm confident I'll get them all done, as long as I don't get sidetracked!

September Goals Review

Times flies! As it's the last day of the month, I ought to check in on my progress for the month:

Finishing - Baa - The Bold Sheep - not done - the fabric I thought I had that would do for this project is nowhere to be found, and as I'm on the stash wagon, I'm not buying anything!

Finishing - Bless The Blooms - Sanman Originals - not done - I'm not sure I want to make this piece into a wall hanging any longer, but neither am I sure I want to make it into a needleroll. I'm going to ponder a little longer, I think!

Finishing - Bless This House - Cathy Bussi - done - made into a card for a friend who is moving home shortly.

Finishing - Bumble Bee Needleroll - Lorri Birmingham Designs - done.

Finishing - Celtic Stones - Textile Heritage - done - made into a birthday card for my dad.

Miscellaneous - List Kits and UFOs - done - and what a list of shame the UFO one is! :o)

Stitching - Sewing - Penelope - done - and finished into a mini pillow too!

Stitching - Shep - Anchor - not done - may not do at all. Kit has gone back into stash while I ponder!

Stitching - Spring Needleroll - Lorri Birmingham Designs - done - and finished into a needleroll too!

Stitching - Strawberry - Needleworks by Sue Hawkins - a good start has been made on this, but I'm having trouble with one of the specialty stitch blocks.

Stitching- Strawberry Pincushion - Historic Needlework Guild - done - and finished into a pincushion.

UFO - The White House - Rowandean - not done - instructions have gone AWOL.

UFO - Wild Rose - Needleworks by Sue Hawkins - done.

I'm happy with my achievements, especially as I've completed a number of things that weren't on the goals list at all:

Finishing - I Will Finish This Project - Jo Verso = Stitching Bag

Finishing - Home Is Where The Heart Is - Donna Kooler = Ornament

Finishing - Harvest Time - Elizabeth's Designs = Mini Pillow

Finishing - Welcome Knocker - Bent Creek = Bell Pull

Finishing - Boo - Bent Creek = Tuck Pouch

Finishing - Sewing - Penelope = Mini Pillow

Finishing - The Rabbit - Bent Creek = Mini Pillow

Finishing - Love Candlewick Heart - NMI = Mini Pillow

Finishing - Bumble Bee - Penelope = Mini Pillow

Finishing - Saturday's Sampler - Lavender Wings = Bell Pull

Finishing - Primitive Primroses - Ewe & Eye & Friends = Bell Pull

UFO - Pink Rose Freebie Kit

UFO - Pig Fridge Magnet Freebie Kit

UFO - The Rabbit - Bent Creek

Whew! Some of the finishing projects go back more years than I care to remember - they pre-date both my current home and current relationship - and we've been together nearly six years!

The Rabbit - Bent Creek

This was a joy to stitch - even the swirls weren't as difficult as they looked! There is a mistake in the upper body of the rabbit, but unless you peer very closely at the chart and compare it to the finished piece, you can't tell!

The expression on the rabbit's face reminds me of my guinea pigs :o)

This was another eBay purchase, and the kit came complete with a mini pillow and buttons for finishing, so that's what I used, and I'm very pleased with the result:



The carrot buttons are so cute, and each one is different!

Design Details

Fabric: 32 count linen, Iced Cappuccino
Threads: DMC stranded cotton
Designer: Bent Creek
Kit Details: The Rabbit, Bent Creek (now out of print)
Stitch Count: 43H x 74V as charted
Stitches Used: Cross Stitch, Long Stitch, Satin Stitch
Threads Used: DMC 3799, 611, 612, 3021, 3768, 3051, 3052. Cross stitch in two strands.
Embellishments: Gold plated charms - 1 x star.
Modifications Made: Long stitches on patch and tail stitched in two strands, not one.

Sewing - Penelope

I know I said I was planning to finish this as a pincushion, but I loved the fabric so much I though it would be a shame to only have a small border ... so I made a mini pillow (it's about 9"/22cm) square.

I bought the fabric years ago in Hobbycraft - it's a Mary Engelbreit print, and it was on sale for something like £4 a metre, which seems well worth it now!

The backing fabric is black felt, which helps give some structure to the piece. I've made a teeny matching pin cushion too.

Love - NMI

This was a kit I bought on a whim from eBay, as I'd never tried candlewicking before. I'm not sure I would try it again, as it appears to be French knots worked in coton a broder on calico - so it's a bit of a struggle to pull threads through, and repetitive too!

This has been languishing in my "to make up" pile for several years, so I finally made it into a little padded heart. I think the original instructions called for lace to go round the edges, but as you've already gathered, I'm not the girly frou frou type, so I used some plain-ish braid to hide the little marks left by the transfer round the edges.

Saturday's Sampler - Lavender Wings

This was stitched as a Round Robin on the (now defunct/imploded) Yahoo group "Round Robin Crazy". It was stitched in the DMC conversions given on the chart, which is why it looks quite a bit different to the model on the chart.

Stitched in 2005, this hasn't languished as long as some pieces in my "to be finished" box! I made this into a bell pull by backing it with glazed cotton in cream, which had been given more body by ironing on some lightweight interfacing. Initially, I made this sandwich up wrongly, so I had to do a little unpicking - fortunately, I was stitching by hand (as I always do) so it wasn't as tough as unpicking machine stitching!

I gave the final piece a press, and even from the wrong side, managed to damage the button - it softened and "fell off" the stitching - fortunately, it was repairable, but I will be ultra cautious next time!

Having done all the work, I'm not sure where to hang this, as it doesn't really fit in with decor in the living room or bedroom - it might end up in the hall, which due to its small size and many doors, has some narrow spaces just crying out for bell pulls!

Primitive Primroses - Ewe & Eye & Friends

I acquired this from a trade on the (now defunct) Chartswappers Yahoo Group - I got quite a surprise when the chart arrived with the UFO! I loved the colours, so actually finished this piece rather speedily. However, that was back in 2003 and since then, it's sat in my box of finished pieces awaiting making up.

I chose to make it into a bell pull, as custom framing is so expensive, and thin, narrow frames are hard to find off the shelf. There was enough of the linen to basically fold and stitch to the finished shape, although I had to make the back seam off centre as the stitching wasn't quite centred on the fabric. I used threads pulled from the edges to sew up the seams - this means that my stitching is practically invisible, which is a huge advantage!

SBQ

As asked on Stitched With Love and Cat Hair:

Would you ever stitch one of your BAPs a second time? (This does not include starting over because of mistakes, bad fabric, etc., rather stitching something from the first stitch for a second time.)

I don't really stitch very big projects, and I can't conceive that I would stitch them twice if I did! However, I'm going to be stitching another version of the wedding sampler I made for my sister (although in a different colourway) at her request - for her sister-in-law. And I have a large blackwork sampler my best friend always admires, and one day I will stitch her a version too ... she deserves it after nearly twenty years of love and support!

Celtic Stones - Textile Heritage

This looks really nice as a card, so I don't think I'm going to frame this either! I think I will save it for my dad for his birthday next year!

Bumble Bee - Penelope

I changed my mind about framing this, and made it into a mini pillow with some of the lovely bee print fabric that's been sitting my stash! I hate cutting into a new piece of fabric, but really, what's the point in having it if I don't use it? This was finished as part of my finishing frenzy yesterday - I sat and stuffed it watching The Remains of the Day on DVD :o)