Shoppin' for Stitchin'

I had such a great time today with my friends Rosemary (her blog is here) and Kayla (a blogger-in-waiting).  We went to The Stitching Post, a great needlework shop in Catonsville, MD.  First, let me tell you that Kayla lives in Colorado, and she only gets to the Washington, DC area about once each year.  She told us she purposely booked a later flight, so we'd have a few hours to go to The Stitching Post!  Of course, we couldn't disappoint her, so off we went.  After we shopped, the ladies at the store let us use their back room where they have a work table, and we sat and stitched and chatted our little heads off.  Then, we grabbed a bite to eat before Kayla had to run off to catch her flight back home. 

Here are the new patterns I bought today:


"Baroque" by Ink Circles
I purchased 40 ct. Linen evenweave fabric and hand-dyed silk floss to stitch this gorgeous pattern, which has my name written all over it!



"The Library" by Little House Needleworks
I purchased 36 ct. tan linen fabric to stitch this pattern. 



"Berry Time" designed by Heritage Crafts from the paintings of Valerie Pfeiffer
I love Valerie Pfeiffer!  I'll hang it as a companion to the other two floofy birdie designs I have from this artist.  ("A Chorus Line" is featured at the top of my blog, and "Sitting Pretty" is a WIP.)

Stitching Forever" by Lizzie Kate
As far as projects go, this one is a bit whimsy for me, but it sums up my attitude pretty well!   Thanks, Rosemary, for pointing this one out!

So!  Now I have a nice stash of new items to stitch.  Ahhhhh.  A day well spent!

Happy Stitching!

Marilyn

April 2012 IHSW 2

So, I stitched a bit this weekend.  Finished 3 more motifs on my Sarabande sampler.  I'm really getting into this one again, after a bit of a hiaitus to work on smaller projects.  Now, with my progress this weekend, I'm really excited about working steadily on this to see it finished and framed on my bedroom wall.

Hijinks, my very curious kitty, spent several hours this weekend snoozing  quietly between my legs while I stitched.  I found that amazing, since she is generally into EVERYTHING!  Well, she decided to live up to her name tonight!

Happy Stitching!

Marilyn

April 2012 IHSW

I decided to join a stitch-along sort of group called the International Hermit and Stitching Weekend (IHSW) this weekend.  Check it out!  http://joysze.blogspot.com/

I'm working on a large, French-style sampler called Sarabande, from Long Dog Samplers.  I didn't like the colorway that was originally charted, so I changed the six original colors to varied shades of purple/lavender and teal/turquoise.  The lightest lavender floss I chose is a metallic floss, and I found a beautiful white evenweave fabric with filaments of metallic lavender and turquoise threads running through it.  I think the end result will be very striking.

Here's a picture of the original charted project, as well as my work in progress (WIP), with a close-up of the section I'm currently stitching.

Sarabande sampler, originally charted in shades of gray, brown, rust, and black.  A bit somber for my tastes.

 Overall work so far.

Where I am now.

Happy Stitching!

Marilyn

New Beginnings

Well, sorta kinda under protest, I am starting a blog for my needlework.  My dear friend and fellow stitchaholic has been trying for a couple years to get me to blog about my stitching.  Finally, I relent!

I've been stitching for nearly 35 years - mostly cross stitch, with a bit of crewel embroidery, blackwork, and occasionally dabbling in other embroidery styles and specialty stitches over the years.

I love a challenge, and I enjoy complicated cross-stitch patterns.  But, I still like getting a small, simple project done, because a completed project is so satisfying.

So, feel free to stop by my blog anytime, as I'll be updating photos about my WIPs and other news.

Happy Stitching!

Marilyn