One Stitch At A Thyme

I hope everyone had a hassle free Thanksgiving yesterday, I did. The family (me, mom, dad, sister – kids & husband + mother in-law) all went out to Old Country Buffet for dinner.

On the stitching front I finally manage to finish part 5 of “Il était une fois”. After much debate I decided to go back and frog out the french knots for parts 1 and 4. French knots on 18ct aida looked really suck-y so I replaced them with Mill Hill petite seed beads #42012 Royal Plum. I think it gives the project just that little bit of “Bling” that was missing. That and no more making french knots with a single strand of thread….YEA!!!



Anyway, I’m starting to get bored with this so it’s time to move on to the next project on my WiPs list. That being Camelot Sampler. I just now took a look at my website and I can’t believe it; but it’s been 2 years this month since I worked on it last. Looks like I need to put some serious work into getting that over-1 section of the jousting scene finished. It’s either that or I finish the twisted rope border around the top half of the chart. Hummmm….. decisions, decisions…..

In other news: I went and got myself a very early christmas present. A black Zune 30 gig digital media player with docking port. I was a little over whelmed by it at first trying to figure out the computer software interface. But once I figured out how to rip my audio books and set them up in a play list under the music folder I was a happy camper. That’s what I plan to use it for mostly, that and maybe two dozen of my favorite music albums. It also has folders for pictures, videos, and an FM radio. It also has a built-in wireless connection to link up to other Zune devices, but since I’m a little paranoid about viruses I turned that feature off. I don’t like the idea of riding on the transit bus and suddenly getting a pop-up message from a stranger in the vicinity.

Well that’s it for this blog blurb……

Well I finally managed to finish part 4 after many weeks of delay, plodding along, and being called back to work, just for a week. I discovered that Aion NeedleCrafts message board is now gone. So I’ve signed up on a different message board called “A Crafty Natter” in the hopes that I can generate interest in this stitch-along mystery. Well a week and a half went by and only 2 other people said they’d look at the chart, so I guess that’s a bust there. O well, guess I’ll just plod along by myself then.

Here's what it looks like so far....

Remember to click on the pictures for bigger images.

And now to catch up with the Stitching Blogger's Questions......

SBQ - November 8, 2007

This week's SBQ was suggested by Renée and is:

When you have to frog out stitches, do you reuse that thread or do you
start over with a new strand?

The permalink to this post is:
http://blog.blondelibrarian.net/archives/2007/11/sbq-recycling/

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You know I could have sworn I answered this same question before in the SBQ. But I can’t seem to find it in my blog archives. So…

It depends on how much I have to frog and what condition the floss is in once I have pulled out the stitches. Also if I find it immediately or if it’s found a section later. It also depends on if it’s back stitching or regular 2-strand stitching. If I don’t have to frog more than half a dozen stitches or so, I just trim the ends, re-thread my needle, and continue on unless the floss is too short or too frayed. If, on the other hand, it’s back stitching I’ll usually just snip it out and start over with new thread. If metallic thread is involved it’s a definite snip it out and start over with new thread.



SBQ - October 31, 2007

Today's SBQ was suggested by Ternezia and is:

If you were a cross stitch designer, what would your design style be?

The permalink to this post is:
http://blog.blondelibrarian.net/archives/2007/10/sbq-designing/

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Wow, tough call there. I’ve always loved Teresa Wentzler’s designs so Fantasy/Mythical would one, another would be a combo of Pagan/Wiccan/Celtic design styles. Celtic knot work has always fascinated me.




SBQ - October 24, 2007

This week's SBQ was suggested by Renée and is:

Do you railroad?

The permalink to this post is:
http://blog.blondelibrarian.net/archives/2007/10/sbq-working-on-the-railroad/

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YES! In fact I was doing it long before I knew that was the official technical term for it.




SBQ - October 17, 2007

This week's SBQ was suggested by Jennifer and is:

What proportion of your stitching is for your own personal use versus
gifts?

The permalink to this post is:
http://blog.blondelibrarian.net/archives/2007/10/sbq-gift-giving/

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For the last 15 years or so it seems I’ve been doing, for the most part, projects for family members. But as of this year I’m putting my foot down and “Just saying NO!”. I have to start thinking about myself for once, and sometimes I got the feeling that my stitching was more or less expected and not appreciated for the work and time I put in on it. So from now on I stitch just for me!

This week's SBQ was suggested by Ternezia and is:

What for you means to achieve mastery as a stitcher?

The permalink to this post is:
http://blog.blondelibrarian.net/archives/2007/10/sbq-master-and-queenie/

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I guess for me, it would be to set myself a series of goals and achieve them. Some of those goals being…

* To finish Camelot Sampler by Teresa Wentzler, and get on with stitching all the designs I’ve collected of hers.
* To rein in my fear of cutting fabric so I could attempt my hand at hardanger.
* To discover as yet untried techniques of needlework and see if they’re to my liking.
* To stitch a design I created for myself, but have yet to see if it’s marketable.
And the biggest goal – to get my list of Works In Progress stitched and completed !!!!

Name: Needle Guardian Needlebook
Type: Counted Cross Stitch
Finished Chart Size: approx. 4" x 5.75" (10.16cm x 14.61cm)
Designer/Publisher: Teresa Wentzler - © 2007 TW Designworks / PatternsOnLine

Started: August 14, 2007
Finished: October 7, 2007

As usual my skill with a camera is less than average and the pictures are slightly out of focus.




I tried to take pictures up close of the Kreinik metallic braid and beads as they kind of get lost on top of the stitching for the head and tail.




I haven’t decided as yet how I’m going to finish it. I’m not just going to fringe the edges. Maybe a checkbook type of flat fold with either a bead or ribbon closure. I did a Google search on needlebook finishing techniques and found a few ideas to get me started. Anyway, it will be awhile before I get that part of the project done. But when I do don’t worry I’ll be posting it to the blog.

Rotational Stitching: Well I’m back in my stitching groove, now that I’ve actually finished something. So it’s back to my side bar WiPs and I’ll be pulling out the French Mystery “Once Upon A Time”. Of the 16 parts Annick has posted up through 11 and so far I’ve only done up through part 3 so I really need to get moving. It’s free if anyone’s interested in stitching it – check it out!!

Today's SBQ was suggested by Jennifer and is:

What are your favorite online stitching supply sources?

The permalink to this post is:
http://blog.blondelibrarian.net/archives/2007/10/sbq-sources/

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NeedleworkShoppe which is a division of Herrschners, I shop at whenever DMC has a new line of floss fibers coming out. I’m impatient and can’t wait the 6 months it takes to see them in at my local Michaels store.

Patterns Online I use to get the latest Teresa Wentzler patterns. I was so glade she found this place for her designs until she’s found herself an on-demand printer so she can start publishing on her own again.

Being that money's a bit tight nowadays I like to keep my shopping down to four on-line shops. The first three are in the US and the fourth is in the UK.

Paw Prints Cross Stitch is good when you want to get your hands on new stuff from designer shows from the east coast. The same can be said for One - Two - Three Stitch! for shows on the west coast.

For fabric I go to Nordic Needle it’s nice in that they carry all the major fabric manufactures and quite a few specialty fabrics as well.

When I was collecting designs by Maria Van Scharrenburg I shopped at Sew and So I’ve never had any hassles with over seas card payments and the turnaround time for shipping is one week. For speed you can’t beat that! If it wasn’t for the ungodly high exchange rate I’d buy from them more often.