One Stitch At A Thyme

Today's SBQ was suggested by Carol and is:

Do you have any good internet links to tutorials for your favorite
finishing techniques that you would like to share?

The permalink to this post is:
http://blondelibrarian.net/stitching/archives/2006/12/sbq-finishing/

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Alas no, I don't have the time now-a-days to go looking. But I would be very interested in what others have posted in their blogs.

Finished part two Friday night while watching the extended version of “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone” on TV. I only made a slight change in the chart. The DMC B5200 (bright white) seemed to disappear on the fiddler’s light fabric so I outlined it with one strand of DMC 169 (light pewter). [Click on the picture for a bigger, clearer image]



If anyone is interested in chatting, EZBoard's Aion NeedleCrafts has a Le Marquoir Stitchalong forum.

I’ll be working on “Pegasus and Butterflies” until part 3 shows up on Annick’s webpage on Saturday hopefully in the next couple of weeks.

Now that I’m working full time again, and standing on bare cement floors for 7 hours, I’m rather exhausted by the time I get home. I only have an hour free to stitch before it’s time for bed at 9pm. So progress on all my WiPs will be a bit on the slow side from now on.

That’s all for weeks blog blurb.

Today's SBQ was suggested by Renée and is:

How do you secure your thread when you begin a new one?
Specifically, do you or have you ever used a waste knot?

The permalink to this post is:
http://blondelibrarian.net/stitching/archives/2006/11/to-knot-or-not/

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Yes, I’ve used a waste knot. But only for crewel type embroidery using wool fibers. When stitching using 1 strand of floss on 1 over 1 stitching I just catch the "tail" within a few stitches on the backside. The method I use most with 2 strands of solid colored floss is the loop method. I find it’s the best method for conserving floss and keeping the back of my projects tidy. Again, for variegated colors of 2 or more strands I catch the "tail" within a few stitches on the backside.

Get out the wet noodle and slap me silly. I’ve gone and started another project. Even after I swore on my considerable stack of bobbin floss boxes that I wouldn’t start another one. I couldn’t help myself, the temptation was too great. First, it’s a free on-line multi part mystery chart. Second, it’s totally in French and I can’t read a single word. Hence the challenge – well some what of a challenge, Google does make a lame attempt at translating.

Anyway, it’s called Le Marquoir - Il était une fois ( Le Marquoir - Once Upon A Time... ) and is designed by Annick Abrial. It’s a 16 part mystery, the link to the chart page is in my side-bar Wips section if you want to join in.

And here is part 1 finished with the beginning of part 2 started.



Good news on the Job front !!!

Manufacturing Services called me today at 10AM. They want me to work Tuesday and Wednesday this week. Work will be on a week-to-week basis until they get up and moving again with work orders. They wanted me to come in for half-a-day today but I had to decline. Being up to 3AM stitching and waking up at 9:30AM with aching eyes and less then 6 hours sleep doesn’t work for being coordinated on the job.

Anyway, that’s all for today’s blog blurb.

Today's SBQ was suggested by Renée and is:

Do you stitch Christmas ornaments? If so, how many do you stitch
each year and for whom? If not, why not?

The permalink to this post is:
http://blondelibrarian.net/stitching/archives/2006/11/tis-the-season/

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Does it count if you started a set but never finished them? Back in March 2004 Teresa Wentzler came out with “The Twelve Days of Christmas”. I enthusiastically started and managed to complete 5 of the 12. Mind you this was stitching over 1 on 28ct linen and I became – well I can’t say board, but the strain on my eyes was making me tired. So there it sits in my WiP pile [see side-bar link] grumbling that I’ve neglected it. {LOL}

Does a Crochet Tree Ball count? Back in 1986 I was into crocheting and tried my hand at an ornament. Just one mind you, just to prove to myself that I could actually do it.



Xmas Ornament 1986

I managed another 5% on this project, but I just can’t work on it anymore. Every time I look at it I get depressed knowing that my sister badmouthed me behind my back. So I’m putting it away for a month or two and working on one of my other WiPs.

Well after reading everyone's answer to the SBQ's floss set collecting; I'm wondering if I have a slight compulsion about collecting certain floss brands. {LOL} And is it a good or a bad thing? I seem to have inherited my mom's pack-rat gene. Only this one has it's priorities with floss, fabric, charts, kits, and certain fantasy/sci-fi books. {Grin}

Today's SBQ was suggested by Me! and is:

How many different brands of "complete" embroidery floss sets do you own? How do you keep track of it? (i.e., spread sheet program, index cards, palm pilot, etc.)

The permalink to this post is:
http://blondelibrarian.net/stitching/archives/2006/11/about-floss/

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This question popped into my head when I posted one of my “To Love and Cherish” updates. I just happened to get a little S.E.X. in the mail over the weekend, and it got me to wondering just how many others out there on the SBQ list had this need ( or maybe compulsion ? ) to collect complete sets of their favorite fibers.

Well here's my answer in a nice little table format:

I’ve come to rely heavily on Microsoft’s Excel spread sheet program, to keep all my lists and counts up to date. Since I also have an additional 2 file folder boxes of various skein counts of DMC cotton floss, pearl cotton, rayon, metallic, tatting & crochet thread. Along with a few spools of Krenik, a few extra skeins of Anchor and J. & P. Coats. That goes for my 2 boxes of fabric as well.

Somehow it doesn’t surprise me that my own sister would badmouth me behind by back. I overheard her today proclaiming that I was useless and lazy. That if I really wanted a job I’d have one by now. She also seems to think that my back injury is all in my head and that going to a chiropractor is a waste of time and money. With dear old dad chiming in with agreement. For someone who use to puck in the toilet with accompanying migraine headaches I have one hell of an imagination.

How could she be so cruel after all that I’ve done for her. She has no idea how hard it can be to get a job when you don’t own a car. Hell she’s never had to worry about where her next paycheck came from, not with the cozy government job she’s got.

I’m having some serious doubts about making this wedding announcement stitchery for her with that back stabbing attitude. I’m beginning to think she doesn’t deserve all the hard work and time I’m putting in on this stitchery project.

Today's SBQ was suggested by Lee ( http://lakestitcher.blogspot.com/ ) and is:

How did you decide on the title of your stitching blog? Was it random, or does it have a special meaning to you or about you?

The permalink to this post is:
http://blondelibrarian.net/stitching/archives/2006/11/whats-in-a-name/

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Well that’s easy enough to answer. It’s simply a variant of my website title “A Stitch In Thyme”. “One Stitch at a Thyme” simply conveys the path I take. Slow but steady.

The sentiment behind the title is - I’d like to think, at this moment in time. I will create something that will be enjoyed and will hopefully last for future generations to admire. As well as, letting others wonder about the person behind this created work of art.

Well I finally managed to take a picture of my progress. I’ve got at least 2 weeks worth of work done and I’m guessing I completed roughly 10%. Which brings me up to a total of 30%.


I’m going to take a break from stitching for the rest of the week. 1) Because I’m starting to feel burn out and 2) I’ll be bobbing 28 skeins that came in the mail on Saturday the 28th. I’ve finally found an on-line needlework shop that carries J & P Coats embroidery floss and I plan to buy 2 full sets of 142. One to be carded and the other left as skeins in a floss-away bag.


WAHOO SATURDAY S. E. X. !!!!!
I haven’t seen this brand of floss since the late 1960’s when I first taught myself embroidery ( with a little help from grandma ) . In fact I’ve got a Ziploc freezer baggie full of old J&P Coats that I had as a kid along with some I inherited from my grandma. I guess I should really get around and get it sorted, cleaned, and put on bobbins along with the new dye lot.

You know, that would make a good question for the SBQ - How many brands do you own.

Well that’s all for this blog blurb.

Today's SBQ was suggested by Carol ( http://www.carolsxsblog.blogspot.com/ ) and is:

If you were to come across a sampler chart that caught your eye and appealed to you. Would you, or would you not, stitch it if it had a morbid or "creepy" saying on it? If not, why?

The permalink to this post is:
http://blondelibrarian.net/stitching/archives/2006/10/sbq-halloween-edition/

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Why YES indeed I would! In fact I plan to use a shortened version of
“Houses of Hawk Run Hollow” by Carriage House Samplings (one of Carol’s WiPs).

In a self-designed sampler sometime in the future. Mine however will only carry the following lines from the poem - slightly altered:

“When I am dead and laid in grave & all my bones are rotten: When this you see: Remember me tho I was quite forgotten.”

I haven’t decided if it’s going to be a band sampler, spot sampler, or a combination of both. I recently purchased a book on sampler symbolism and since I’ve never designed a sampler before; this should be interesting. But it’s not going to happen for quite a while. I have far too many “iron’s in the fire” as it were, with all these WiPs to deal with at the moment.

Today's SBQ was suggested by Vash ( "http://seasidestitcher.blogspot.com/" ) and is:

Which way do you stitch, i.e. do you stitch /// followed by \\\ on top, or the other way around \\\ followed by ///? Are you left- or right-handed and do you think that this affects the way that you stitch?

The permalink to this post is: "http://blondelibrarian.net/stitching/archives/2006/10/which-way/"

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I taught myself how to embroider and cross stitch when I was in my early teens. Back then, I was all over the place when it came to counted cross stitch. My stitches went in both directions on the pieces I stitched and looked very amateurish.

Much, much later in life when I picked up the needle again I purchased books on needlework stitches and counted cross stitch kits with detailed instructions and diagrams. And in all of them it showed the left /// leg then right \\\ leg method. I’d always assumed that, that was the official method for cross stitch.

Well I have tried both techniques. Left /// leg then right \\\ leg, and the opposite, right \\\ leg then left /// leg. I prefer the first – Left /// leg then right \\\ leg. I guess it’s because I’m right handed and stitching the opposite way always felt awkward.

As far as affecting the way I stitch, yes I think it does. In as much as I keep my left hand under my work, and my right hand above. I tried it the other way round and found that I couldn’t hold my needle steady and kept dropping it instead of pushing it through the fabric.

Also depending on if I’m doing a solid area or confetti stitching, I’ll do a whole row of left //// legs then return on the same row for the right \\\ legs. Confetti stitching for me means one complete stitch at a time.

I’ve noticed that the last dozen or so blog entries have been nothing but whining about my job and now lack there of. Well I’m putting a stop to that with this entry. This is suppose to be a blog about my needlework, not my problems. So I shall move my whining to a new blog and get back to writing about my needlework.

I’ve tried to stick to a rotational schedule in the past and I will return to it as soon as I get this time sensitive project done. I swear on my stack of numerous bobbin floss boxes – I will NOT start another needlework project until I get at least 5 of my 10 WiPs finished.

Now on to the new Work In Progress page, side bar link and percentage bar.

This is the 10th project in my bulging WiPs pile. A wedding present for my sister which unfortunately didn’t get started soon enough and has now become either a Christmas present for 2006, or a one year anniversary present for June 2007. The kit is called “To Love and Cherish” by Sandy Orton. I have all the copyright information on it’s WiP webpage.

Anyway here is a progress picture I took earlier today of “To Love and Cherish”. I’m guessing that it’s roughly 20% complete. I’ve always liked Sandy Orton’s designs, so much so that if I ever get married I’d probably stitch this same design for myself.



Well that’s it for this Blog Blurb. Hopefully in a couple of weeks I’ll have substantial progress to post.

Called manufacturing services today, and again they blew me off saying no work this month. They’re obviously not going to call me back so I told Cheryl that I was coming in sometime after lunch to pick up my organizer and fan from the stock room.

Well this means the odds of getting Maryann’s wedding stitchery done for Christmas just went up 100%

Update 3:00pm: When I went over today at 1:30pm to pick up my stuff I finally got the truth out of Cheryl. The truth being that the earliest they might call me back to work, if they decide to that is, is the end of January or February. Can you believe that they were going to let me hang in limbo for 6 months!!! I wish they had enough guts to tell me at the beginning of September, then I could have at least started looking for work. Trouble is I’m going to have the same problem as last year. Businesses want you to work holiday hours and I don’t have a car. Meaning no one will hire me.

Just another typical UNLUCKY FRIDAY the 13th.

Called today, and again Cheryl says no work. Only this time it’s - maybe until the middle of October. I’ll try calling again on October 13 and if they push the date forward on me again I’ll have no choice but to go to work and pick up my organizer and fan and start to look for work some where else.

Called Tuesday the 5th and there was no work for the week. Called again today, and Cheryl says no work at all until the first of October. Trouble is I can’t quit, I need to build up my resume with a current full time work status.

Looks like Maryann’s wedding stitchery will be getting that much closer to completion. That and a lot of other odds n’ ends that I need to work on, believe me I’ll have plenty to keep me busy for the next 3 weeks.

The electronic scales are finally back. Yea! But with the sporadic delivery of electronic parts my work days have been very slim. As I mentioned before I was off Aug. 24, 25, & 28. Well I didn’t fair much better the next week. I only worked 29, 30, 31, & Sept. 1st with labor day being today and no work I was also told Friday, by Cheryl, to stay home on the 5th ,tomorrow, and call in at 10 am to see if I’d be working this week at all.

I have a feeling my temp job is coming to an end.

I started work on Monday and it was as if I never left those 2 1/2 weeks. No electronic scales yet. I only got to work 3 days and now I’m off again for 3. Cheryl, the office secretary, has a stack of kits for me to process but their having problems with the new electronic parts distributor and orders haven’t been coming in, in a timely manner. So my work schedule is probably going to be very sketchy for the next few weeks. I told Cheryl I didn’t mind as long as they kept calling me back.

Maryann’s needlework got some good progress on it, at least 1 1/2 weeks worth.

Until next time……

I got a phone call from Cheryl at lunch. They want me back at work on the 21st of August. YEA!!! Down-side it’s only for 3 weeks, but there is a chance they could get more orders in and thus I get to work longer. So this coming weekend it’s off to buy new shoes and more socks. Funny I start work again and get my last paycheck both on the same day.

Well it’s only been two days and here I am pissing and moaning again, and with good reason - I was laid-off work today. Arlene dropped the bomb shell around 2:15 pm her words were not “we’re laying you off” but “we have to let you go”. A big difference in meaning. One is we’ll hire you back in the future the other means start looking for employment elsewhere because we’re done with you.

I did have a few works with Mike (the owner) as I was heading out the front door. He did say he wanted me back and I said thanks and that I hoped I’d see him in 2 – 3 weeks.

Well at least now I can get to work stitching on Maryann’s wedding announcement. Who knows maybe I’ll get a fair bit done. At least I’ll have a shot at getting it to her for Christmas. Now if I can just get over this bout of depression.

Life at work is having it’s ups and downs for the last 3 weeks. I still don’t have an electronic scale yet and probably won’t have it fixed and returned until almost the end of August. That and the work orders have been running a bit thin. Last Wednesday I was told to stay home because there wasn’t anything for me to do. Thankfully it was just the one day and I’ve decided to pace myself to make the work last. Besides they really can’t complain how slow I work considering I have to count _EVERYTHING_ out by hand now.

Here’s hoping that next month things all-around get better. And with that thought I’ll end this blog entry.

Every weekend I tell myself I’m going to go to bed early and sleep in late the next day and it never happens. Case in point, here I sit typing my blog entry on a Saturday night and I should be in bed catching up on my sleep from last week. Anyway….

I’ve done little to no stitching since I’ve started working. I’m too tired when I get home and the weekends are filled with other things like grocery shopping and laundry. I tape all of my shows I use to watch through the week and watch them on the Saturday now. Most are on at 9:00pm or later and I have to be in bed by then if I’m going to get any rest.

I’ve started watching the 2005 version of Doctor Who on the Sci-Fi channel and I’m head-over-heels for Christopher Eccleston and he’s only 42 yrs old this last February. I love everything about him his quirky looks, sense of humor, his acting ability. I wonder if he’s married or single? I’ve bought myself a region-free DVD player so I can order the complete first season from Amazon.co.uk in PAL format and will be able to see it with nothing cut out like we get for the US airings.

Well, I really must end this so I can get to bed. I still need to make mom a mother’s day card for tomorrow, which I will end up doing tomorrow. Goodnight all.

I've been too tired to sit down and write this weekend, so I'll drop a few lines now. I'm getting use to standing on my feet; I've finally found a combination of shoe inserts that keep my heels from aching for the most part. The heat back in the store rooms are starting to get a bit warm and stuffy so a bought myself a battery powered fan to set on my work cart. That and a plastic desk organizer to keep the cart less cluttered. I don't know what's going to happen when I run out of kit orders to fill. Maybe go back to stuffing boards for a week or two, if my hand can hold out.

That's all for now.....

Well on Monday the 17th I told Arlene about my right hand stiffing up to the point where I was slowing down stuff boards and that I’d like to work to the end of the week. Instead of letting me go she wanted to know if I’d like to try working in the stock room, pulling parts for kits. She said, like assembly work it would only be on a temp basis. I said sure I’ll give it a try; little did I know it meant I’d be standing on my feet for 7 hours a day. Still it’s better than having shooting pains in both my hands. Anyway it’s a job and she didn’t just get rid of me; so now I’m a stockroom assistant.

Dennis is my new boss and he’s a real hoot. He‘s a real easy going guy, basically let’s me alone and doesn’t nag about how long it takes me to pull parts. Basically all I have to remember is how to fill out paper work, use the weighing machine, keep track of my counts, and what’s left over in the bins. He doesn’t even mind if I sneak a few minutes sitting down in a chair while I count out certain parts.

Maryann’s stitchery: I’ve been so tired and achy ever since I started work 2 months ago that I haven’t been able to stitch on her wedding present. I really need to try and work on it over the weekend so she at least gets it by Christmas if not on her wedding in June.

The fingers on my left hand are all swollen and numb. Soaked them in Epson salts for 30minutes and now their not so painful. Good news, my sinus infection is almost gone. Just the occasional cough and drippy nose. I still suck on cough drops all day long to keep my throat from drying out. That nasty crap called ABZOL (circuit board cleaner) gives me a headache when ever they open the de-greasing vat.

No fabric from Paw Prints yet. I’ll give them until the 14th and then email them. I really need to get started on that wedding project. Because with my sore hands I’ll only be able to sew on it on the weekends.

By the time I get home at 5:30pm I’m too tired to write anything in my blog. But if I don’t force myself to write something now I never will. It's hard to type with one hand. Because my left thumb is swollen from stuffing circuit boards for 8 hours. Looks like my stitching is going to be put on hold for a long while, until my hands get use to repetitive work.

Manufacturing services called me around 10am today wanting to know if I’d be interested in a full-time temp job stuffing circuit boards with possible soldering later on. You remember them. I took a soldering test back in October 2005 and never got a word back from them.

They want me to start on Monday the 20th from 8:00am – 4:30pm. They never did mention how long the job was for – what can I say I need the money. So I’ll work it for as long as it lasts.

Now all I need to do is get a 10 ticket bus pass and new time schedules.

Ta Da !!!!!

Finally finished it today around 5pm. I didn’t cut the foam core right and it was a tight fit to get it in the frame. Although it’s hard to see the names and dates are in purple. The bells have been embellished with gold metallic thread, and the heart is a button that was turned into a charm.

Finally finished the 50th anniversary sampler for my parents tonight. Now all I have to do is try to figure out how to turn a heart button into a charm. I’ll worry about that tomorrow along with setting up a finished project page on my website.

Wedding Stitchery: I got around and ordered a 20” x 20” piece of Jubilee antique white evenweave from Paw Prints Sunday on-line. They were off at some trade show over the weekend so it will probably be a few days before they get their e-mail orders caught up and I get a paypal invoice. Hopefully I’ll be able to start on Maryann’s project by March 1st. This will be my first time using this fabric, I hope it has a nice feel to it.

Got a chance to check out “Stitch N’ Bug” today. It’s basically a ‘hole in the wall’ quilters shop. They’ve decided to carve out a niche in the shop to provided Aida fabric, thread, beads, some XS leaflets, etc. The owner said she’s doing it because her daughters are into counted cross stitch. Plus the fact that “Count n’ Stitch” is closed and there’s no other competition. I won’t bother to go back in a couple of weeks when she said it would be setup. She doesn’t come across as very knowable about XS supplies. I think I’ll just stick to ordering my stash from “Paw Prints” on line needle shop.

Which reminds me, I got an automated bill from them. Part 8 of the Berlin Woolwork Sampler is now available. Suppose I should check the webpage for any new corrections.


Added some new stuff to the side bar. Yahoo avatar, JavaScript percentage bars, & Blinkie buttons. I decided to keep the lighthouse background pictures.

I’m not going to put up a wip page and progress bar for the anniversary sampler, it’s too small a project. I do however need to get my butt in gear and get it finished tomorrow.

I found out Sandy's Fabric & Sewing doesn’t have or take orders for counted cross stitch fabric. I also found another shop listed in the phone book called “stitch n bug” sounds like a little hole in the wall as the lady who answered the phone said she had trouble getting x-stitch fabric. Maybe I can get Donn to drive me to Kennewick to check it out. In any case I can always order fabric from an on-line shop.

Still trying to get the anniversary sampler finished.

Mom informed me yesterday that Maryann’s changed her wedding from October to June ’06. Which means now I have both projects that need to be finished and Camelot Sampler will again be left in the closet for another 4 months.

The 50th anniversary sampler is coming along, give it another week and I should have it finished. Which is good because I need to get started on Maryann’s project. Hopefully I can convince Donn to take me to Sandy's Fabric & Sewing to order the fabric today after my chiropractor appointment.

That's all for now......

Was started on January 22nd and will be stitched for my parents 50th anniversary. I found it in the April 2000 issue of The Cross Stitcher Magazine. It’s a photo album cover that I’m converting to just a framed picture. I’ll be adding a gold heart charm that’s been converted from a button. The chart isn’t very big, roughly 5” by 7” when it’s finished. So it should only take me at most 2 weeks to get it finished and framed. Then I really must put in some work on Camelot Sampler before I get started on Maryann’s wedding announcement.

Finished my stitching project for Mark & Nina in record time – 58 days! I finished “Our Days” on January 8th with 3 full weeks to spare. I had the stitchery washed, & laced by Tuesday. Purchased an off the shelf frame w/glass and had a double mat cut on Thursday. I waited until Saturday to put it all together, take a picture, and wrap it up.



I’m really quite happy with it, although the digital photo is slightly out of focus. [ sigh ]