Friday Flowers: Raindrops

Raindrops on roses...


on hydrangeas...


on anemones...


on fuchsias....


These are a few of my favorite things!

Happy Friday... and I hope you have
a stitch-filled weekend!

Rainy Day Blues

Katie has the rainy day blues......


'cuz she hates the raindrops getting on her coat,
hates that we can't go out and play fetch,
hates that I'm happily stitching away and can't be bothered,
and especially hates that the squirrels won't come out and play.

Sigh.
What's a dog to do but sleep, and dream,
and wait for sunny days again...

Just a Little Nuts

I'm a big fan of PRAIRIE SCHOOLER designs. I love just about every single design they've published, and as you might guess, have quite a few of their patterns. (I'm guessing you have a lot of them, too!)

Recently, I needed a small portable project to take in my project bag. I chose the latest fall series from PRAIRIE SCHOOLER, called "Fall Fields".


And per my love of all things miniature, I decided to work them on lt. caramel 24 ct. Congress Cloth so they would fit in the lovely little frames I have with small 2" x 2" openings. Here's the first one I've finished - the squirrel:


As you might have noticed by comparing with the leaflet above, the original pattern is rectangular in size, but my frame opening was square. So I thought I'd slightly enlarge the stitched area by adding more nuts in the lower left corner, to make it more squareish in appearance. I also added a simple backstitched outline around the image, to take up more of the frame space and give it a faux matted look.

Now that I have the squirrel done, I've started on the pheasant. These little designs are so fast and easy to work up, I'll probably do most (if not all) of them this fall. And I was pleasantly surprised to see that it only took two afternoons to finish the squirrel and also start on the pheasant.

And no, I'm not stitching these in full cross stitches. I prefer to use half cross stitches (or Tent or Basketweave Stitches) with 2 ply of DMC floss when I work on the finer 24 ct. Congress Cloth. It works up much faster than regular cross stitch, and I especially enjoy the quick results.

I really can't wait to get more of these little gems stitched... I'm definitely planning on having a turkey for Thanksgiving!

In Your Stash: variegated threads

While re-organizing my stash of threads last week, I got to thinking about the various types of variegated threads I consider crucial to have on hand.

My first choice to always have on hand is green variegated threads, because they are sooooo handy for creating complex and dappled greenery, such as bushes, trees, grass, and leaves.


Monochromatic or more mixed in colors, greens are invaluable for creating the illusion of depth in a canvas. It's really a very simple "shortcut" to creating a sophisticated look in your project. Here's a variegated tree from one of my house designs, to show you what I mean:


Another necessary variegated thread color is brown - or rather all sorts of browns and greys and rusts. Why change thread colors for individual bricks in a walkway or chimney when you can let the variegated thread do the color changing for you? (Hey, save your concentration for those really challenging projects, and let the thread do the color-changing work when you are stitching lots of tedious bricks or stones or shingles.)


Here's a walkway done with variegated browns and greys just like stones:


Oooooohhhh, and here's another MUST HAVE color: yellow!


You know...for all those glowing windows inside your houses... whether you use bright yellows or softer oranges, they really add a cheerful and cozy look to a stitched house. Don't you agree?


And how about all those Santas you stitch every year? Have you tried a variegated red for your santa's coat? And there are soooo many different reds - bright, dark, victorian, dull - it all depends on the look and feel you want your santa to convey...


And then there are variegated oranges you'll need for all those pumpkins you stitch.... and purples for witches cloaks.... and pinks for little girls' dresses..... blues for skies..... whites for santas beards.... You see how variegated threads can change your stitching life?!

So, next time you're in your Local Stitchery Store, take a look at all the variegated thread, and maybe grab a skein or two or three or more just to have in your stash.... (Trust me, you'll find a use for them sometime, somehow, somewhere -- I promise...)

Friday Flowers: A Golden Glow

I've pulled a bouquet of flowers that have a special golden glow, in celebration of the arrival of Autumn..... Enjoy!

My Organizational Crusade Continues

These buddies are two of my frame weights. I made them from little stuffed animals I had laying around. I cut them open, emptied their tummies of poly beads and refilled them with buckshot (bought in WalMart's hunting and fishing department.) They make me smile every time I look at them and use them. Cute, huh?

They're watching me with wrapt attention, because I was dancing around, and patting myself on the back for cleverly creating another stitching corner in my tiny house. It was supposed to be part of the kitchen area, but because it was too small for a full dining table, it was really just a catch-all space. I had an AHA! moment one day, and decided to turn it into another stitching area. Again, I placed a few of my 4'x6' metal grids against the wall, so now I can hang and rearrange various and sundry WIP projects and other neato stitchy stuff. Here it is:


And here's my current "meditation canvas" - the one I stare at to think about what threads and stitches to use on it:


Whew. After my heady organizational whirlwind this weekend, I'm pooped (and more than a little stiff). I think I need to sit down and do a bit of stitching. .(I think I deserve it, don't you?)

Katie and I will just sit quietly and watch the squirrels outside rearranging their nut stash yet again.


Ta ta for now. Gotta go stitch something....

This is Sooooo Your Fault! (continued)

As the squirrels outside are racing around stashing their nuts, I'm inside my house, too wired to sit calmly and stitch. Instead, I'm on an ORGANIZATION MISSION and I've decided to rearrange more of my threads. Hey, why not tackle the metallic thread mess next?

I have a lot of Rainbow Gallery metallics that I use constantly in my designs. They are on loose binder rings, which are convenient, but when they're all tangled up in a drawer they're not fun to wrestle with and I curse a lot when I pull them out of their plastic drawers. Sooooo, I decided to untangle them and hang them up instead. Brilliant! (Oooohh...they're really pretty to look at, aren't they?)


And here's what they're hanging on:


I took a few of the 2'x6' grid panels I have (the ones I assembled for my booths at the shows I used to attend) and set them up in my tiny office. I spent the rest of the afternoon happily rearranging threads on my new thread display. I'm now one happy (and well organized) designer. Woo Hoo!

[ASIDE TO CONI J.: I place the blame for my manic organizational frenzy squarely on your shoulders, you stitchy diva, you.... You and your matching wood hangers for your canvases...and your baskets of seasonal projects.... and all your twirly thread holders. IT'S. ALL. YOUR. FAULT... totally. I mean it. ahem....]


As for me, I'm off to the store to get more metal rings to organize more of my threads. Hey, who knew this thread organizing could be soooo addicting!