Mini stitchy rant

Have any of you stitchers out there used 28ct Monaco fabric? I think it`s 100% cotton...and I HATE it! It`s rough and scratchy, and so closely woven it makes 2 strands of DMC drag and fuzz, and twist up til every stitch has to be either railroaded or smoothed with a laying tool. I have another piece kitted for an ornie, and will be unkitting it shortly. It might be ok to work it one over one, but I don`t do much over one, so I will likely set it aside. It might make good fire starter some cold winter day...

Til next time, keep stitching ladies!

And the winner is....

The winner of the Treasures in Needlework mag with this sampler pattern in it is Colleen!


As for stitchy posting, I have been futzing (yep, stole that from Coni) with three projects, getting frustrated with each and unable to concentrate on any. I just need to get off my butt and get some pics taken, then I will post something. I try not to post personal stuff here...I figure you all have enough stress in your lives without listening to me rant on...

Til next time, keep stitching ladies!

Grateful Heart Update

Here is a pic of my progress to date. As you can see, I have made some changes to this last band. (Geeze, that pic is crooked, sorry!) I like the way it has turned out. What I don`t like is that I ran out of one of the GAST threads. The pattern said to do the double running bands in 2 strands. I thought that was odd, as it`s usually done with one strand on 32 ct, but I followed the directions and used 2. Turns out it was an error and should have used one, thus my turning up short on the dk. blue. I am so close to finishing this, I guess i`ll do everything but the double running and wait til I can get more thread. It just ticks me off...it seems every time I stitch something from Just CrossStitch magazine, they have made a mistake in the pattern or directions somewhere. I know, we are all human...but they make more than their share of mistakes. Grrrrrrrr.....

Anywho, aggravation aside, keep stitching ladies!

Everything old is new again!

I know, odd title for a stitching post, but I can`t get it out of my head now that I have thought of it. I posted about this sampler not too long after I started blogging. It is American Sampler by Sandy Orton, and was published in Treasures In Needlework magazine. I tried to find a copy for a fellow blogger, and a friend kindly mailed me her unwanted copy. In the meantime, my friend had gotten one, and to make a long story short, I have a copy of the magazine with this sampler in it, and it needs a good home. If there is anyone out there who needs the chart for this sampler, just leave your comment on this post and please make sure you leave your email in your comment. I will put the names in a hat and draw a name. I will draw the name on November 21. Please, enter your name only if you are serious about stitching this sampler, as there are a lot of stitchers out there that are really wanting this. Good luck!

I see some people are not including their e-mail in the comment. If I draw your name and don`t have the email, I will draw someone elses. Please put the email in your comment on this post.

Grateful Heart update

Grateful Heart

I have, as you can see, been working on Grateful Heart, by Sharon Cohen. I`m changing some things (bet you`re not surprised!) as I go with the help of a new toy I got recently from the Needleprint site, called Jane Greenoff's` Cross Stitch Designer. A few weeks ago on the Needleprint site Jacqueline offered a free download of a pattern snippet from an antique Scottish sampler. This was undoubtedly the same band that had inspired Sharon Cohen when she designed the large band towards the bottom of Grateful Heart. Don`t get me wrong, I love Sharons designs...but this band bothered me. It just seemed too heavy, and the arcaded band seemed like it was grabbing too much attention from the rest of the sampler.

Changes so far

As soon as I saw Jacqueline's download, I knew I wanted to change the band...lighten it up, and soften it a bit. Time will tell whether or not my changes are successful. It has been fun tinkering with it, at any rate!

I love this band!

I am kitting up supplies an ornie right now too, Autumn Stars, by BBD in the Sept/Oct issue of Just CrossStich. I have always wanted to have some Autumn designs stitched up, as it`s my fav. time of year, but so far haven`t done any. Too many projects, never enough time.

Keep stitching ladies!