Happy St. Patrick's Day!

 

March Gifted Gorgeousness

Good Morning Fellow Stitchers!  It's hard to believe March is half over with already!  Time sure marches on.  

It's time for our Gifted Gorgeousness (GG) post again!  I've had busy fingers.  If you don't know what GG is, you should head over to Jo's blog and read about this fun challenge she offers once a month.  On the 15th we share what we have been stitching (or receiving) that had "gift" associated with it.  It can be fabric, floss, or patterns or even something stitched and given to us...or something we have given to someone else.  Jo explains more about it here.  And if you want to see what everyone else has to show for our GG post, you can see what we are up to here.  

As I said, I've had busy fingers.  I stitch for two pen pals.  The first is in England...and I've been very neglectful of her lately.  I should stitch more for her, but with postal prices going up, I've been slacking off.  Anyway, I did finally stitch this for her.  I have been working on Months of the Year by LHN for her.  I finally made it to October this month, and as I type it's winging it's way to her.  Two more months, then I'll have to think of something else to stitch...haha.  

I also have a pen pal in Texas.  I think her gifts are supposed to arrive to her today, fingers crossed.  Since March has two celebrations that I choose to celebrate, I stitch two things for her this month.  First is St. David's Day, which I posted about on the 1st of March.  It's a day to celebrate my Welsh roots.  The second is St. Patrick's Day which is in a few more days.  Another day to celebrate my Irish roots.  I thought it would be fun to share my family history so I made two things for her this month.  First, the Daffodil, the second is the Shamrock.  The Daffodil was a Permin freebie, the Shamrock was a Prairie Schooler pattern from the leaflet, a Prairie Year.  They were fun and quick, I hope she likes them!  

This is what I received from her, arranged in my March bowl.  

I've been working on some Christmas ornaments, these are from JCS magazine, different years, and I consider them part of GG because I've been gifted these from my husband over the years.  First up is Peace Pin Button by Jeannette Douglas from the 2012 Christmas ornament issue.  

Next is Snowy Christmas by Needle Bling Designs from the 2021 Christmas ornament issue.

  

I saw Clare was asking for some letters for her Christmas Tree that she decorates for her church each year.  I thought I would add these two from The World of Cross Stitching magazine...I am not sure of the issue, but it had these Bluebird Alphabet patterns in there.  I couldn't resist stitching my initials...haha  Here are D and J.  I hope she doesn't mind I put my "mark" on her tree.  LOL  

As many of you know, I received a sampler pattern from DH for Christmas.  First up is Rose Ada Featherstone by Hands Across the Sea.  I've been trying to stitch at least one page a month until I can finish it.  Here is where I finished this month.

I also am stitching on this sampler, which I consider a gift because the pattern is a free SAL from 2020.  This is Friends and Family by Linen & Threads.  I have finished March's installment and added a few more initials.  One is my British Pen Pal, the other my Mother.

Last is the SAL gifted to me by the designer...this is Cottage Garden Quaker by Wiehenburg Designs.  I'm afraid it got set aside until I could catch up on the next SAL listed below.  I'll get back to it as soon as I catch up.  I have the first 4 pages finished of this one...and I'm loving stitching on it!  

I found this SAL on the Story Stitches blog and decided I just had to stitch it.  I've been waffling on fabric choice and stitch count.  I'm making this for my Daughter-in-Law and really wanted it to be something she would love.  I finally found the fabric, it's called Whisper and it is 28 count.  This is called Tale As Old As Time and Belle is my DIL's favorite Disney Princess.  I love it because it has different scenes from the movie in the different castle rooms.  I know it doesn't look like much of a castle at the moment, but it's getting there.  When I started on the 7th, I was already several months behind.  Since that day I've been able to stitch one room a day.  While I still have a lot of "frame" work to do, I'm thrilled at how much I was able to accomplish in only 9 days.  This has truly been a labor of love, and I really hope she loves it as much as I have loved stitching it for her.  

I guess that's all there is for the moment.  I've stitched more besides this but they don't fall into the category of GG.  I'll have to post again when I have the time.  Until then, I hope you are all safe, healthy, and happily stitching!  Take care...  

Happy Pi Day!

Good Morning Stitchers!

It's a beautiful day in the neighborhood today!  The sun is shining, the birds are singing, Max is firmly planted in his perch by the window watching all the animals in the backyard frolicking in the sunshine.  It's a great day to celebrate Pi day!

What is Pi day?  Well it's March 14...and the value of Pi is 3.14 and beyond...LOL  I have a pen pal in Texas....we are supposed to stitch something each month and there are themes we are given to use as ideas for our stitching.  My partner didn't want to stitch anything pi related, so I stitched something else instead (I'll post in the GG post tomorrow).  I had done a little research and found this pattern.  Being the nerdy math major I couldn't resist stitching this for myself.  This is Happy Pi Day 2019 by Geri Ambrose from her Mathysphere Etsy website.  It was stitched on 28 count sage over two and finished in a 4 inch tart pan. 

So...that's my story and I'm sticking to it!  I hope you have have a wonderful Pi Day!  And I'll see you back here tomorrow.  I have a lot to show you for GG day!!  Happy Stitching! 

Dydd Gwyl Dewi Hapus

Hello fellow stitchers!  If you're wondering what the crazy title of this blog post is, it says Happy St. David's Day in Welsh.  I recently did a DNA test and though I already knew I was of Welsh descent, it has now been confirmed.  I have Welsh and Irish and English blood running through my veins...along with some Native American and some other things.  In other words, I'm a mutt...LOL but on March 1st, I'll claim my Welsh ancestry and wish you all a Happy St. David's Day!  To celebrate, I stitched a Daffodil which is a symbol of St. David (that and the leek, but I have no clue what they look like...lol)  I stitched this little Permin freebie in honor of the day.  So......Happy St. David's Day to all the other Welsh folk out there!  Happy Stitching! 

Pardon me while I Happy Dance!

I've been participating in the annual "I love to stitch" challenge on the Cross Stitch and Hand Embroidery Group on Facebook.  I've been bouncing around with things all month but mainly working on Blackwork Iris and Kingfisher by Lesley Teare.  I have had this in my stash forever, and finally decided to go ahead and stitch it up.  I'm thrilled to say, I finished it today! Yay!!  Not only are the colors pleasing to me, but all those different stitches where such fun to do.  I love this challenge, as we challenge ourselves to stitch at least 30 minutes a day, then post before and after pictures for the day.  It gave me the push I need to finish this WIP.    

I also challenged myself to start two new projects yesterday for twos day.  I thought it was fun since 2-22-22 fell on a Tuesday...so I started Pi Day 2019 by Geri Ambrose and October by Little House Needleworks.  Here's a little picture of those starts.  Hopefully I will have finished pictures soon!  

I hope everyone is safe and healthy wherever you are...Happy Stitching! 

February Gifted Gorgeousness

Hi fellow stitchers!  Here it is...time for gifted gorgeousness again.  If you haven't heard of this challenge, it's where we showcase stitching that was gifted to us, created to gift to someone else, or stitched with gifted materials.  If you want the official rules, you can head on over to Jo's blog Serendipitous Stitching and click on the Gifted Gorgeousness tag at the top.  I can't thank Jo enough, it helps to keep me focused, to showcase things folks have given me, and makes blogging fun.  If you want to join in the fun, it's never to late to sigh up!

I've had a busy month!  I stitch for my pen pal each month, and this was a tough one to give away.  I have a bunch of tea cups I've found at antique stores and thrift stores, and when I find a small pattern I think will fit, I look for a cup with those colors.  These matched pretty well, I thought.  This was a free pattern stitched on 32 count over two then finished into a tea cup pin cushion.  I'm convinced I need to make one for me now....if only I had another cup like this one...haha.   She recieved it on Valentine's Day...and texted me to say she loved it!

Here is my gift from her.  

I usually include anything stitched from Just Cross Stitch magazine in my Gifted Gorgeousness posts because my husband has gifted all the CD's and magazine subscriptions.  First up is The Nutcracker Dancers from the 2021 JCS Ornament issue.

Next is Christmas Tree from the 2013 JCS Ornament issue.

Last is the Friendly Snowman from the 2021 JCS Ornament issue.

I also stitched this freebie from TT Designs.  Part of one of the challenges I'm working on this year was Christmas movie themed.  This month was Die Hard.  Ugh...I really struggled with this one, but I was following a Christmas SAL by TT Designs and the letter I was devoted to Die Hard.  I left off the vulgar language....and this is what I was left with.  It's the closest I could come up with.  

I joined the EGA this year...and recently discovered they have a SAL each month, choosing a design we all stitch.  This month was a freebie from The Drawn Thread.  All You Need Is Love.  I really enjoyed stitching this one!  I substituted DMC for the recommended Gloriana.  I loved all the specialty stitches in this one!

I was gifted this pattern from Wiehenburg Designs called Cottage Garden SAL.  You can sign up for this on the Wiehenburg site...but I'm stitching on ahead looking for any mistakes and such.  I'm nearly finished with Page 4.

For my birthday, DH gifted me with this exclusive from Hobby House Needleworks.  This is Rose Ada Featherstone  I'm hoping to finish a page a month until it's finished.  I was able to finish page two this month.  I love working on the 46 over two!!  And I also love how well it's working up.  

I guess that's all for this month....I hope everyone is safe and healthy...Happy Stitching!       

But wait....there's more!

I've been having an attack of startitis....LOL  I've been talking with some folks from the Friendly Stitchers group, and some of us have decided to do a SAL of the Linen & Threads 2020 Family and Friends Sampler SAL.  I have had the material and the threads for quite some time, I just couldn't get my act together.  My head just hasn't been in the right place for a while now...go figure.  Anyway, I finally decided enough was enough waffling.  I was contemplating changing colors and then decided I really liked what I had originally planned.  So....here is the sampler...I'm stitching on 32 count Espresso over one using Gloriana Cinnabar.  

I wasn't sure after the first few stitches, but as I moved along I really started to enjoy the way it looks.  I've added a few initials...VG is my maternal Grandmother, the one who started me stitching in the first place.  DJ is me, of course, P is our family name, AP is our precious Aubrey, and HP is her Mom.  I hope to teach Aubrey to stitch when she is old enough, and already HP is stitching.  She made something for her sister, and realized how relaxing it is.  I hope she is able to find time soon, I think she misses it.  But little ones keep us  busy!  

I've been able to add a little more to Cottage Garden and I love how this one is coming along.  I'll soon have a finish of page 4...so exciting.  I'll be working on some ornaments next, hopefully they won't take long to work up...so I'll see you back here in a bit!  

I hope all who were in the path of that enormous storm that dumped snow, ice, and all sorts of craziness are safe and warm.  We only had some rain, and when the temperatures dropped, the puddles turned to ice.  I feel very fortunate, and hope others faired as well as we did.  While the weather is wild, I hope you find time to stitch.  Take care and Happy Stitching!