A finish and some progress.

I did manage to finish Victoria’s Quaker in January – the 31st to be exact

Terrible photo but I will take another when she is framed

 

A Mon Amie Pierre – Victoria’s Quaker
Stitched on Brown Apple Bint 32 Count linen in Needlepoint Inc Silk conversion

Started on 22 August 07 – Finished 31 January 08

And my progress on A Quaker Study:

 

Thanks you so much to everyone for your messages after the passing our gorgeous Puku – the family really appreciates it.  I am so very sad.  We are going to plant a red rose in her honour by our front door.

But to bring a smile – here is Banjo relaxing in my hammock today

He laid there in my hammock in the sun for hours today – we had to put sunscreen on his ears

For February’s finish I hope it will be the needlepoint piece I started oh so long ago

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So close….

 I am so close to finishing Victoria’s Quaker now that I think I will make the best use of my three day weekend and work on it all day tomorrow with a chance of a happy dance…I hope Carol and Kaz don’t mind that it’s not Tuesday tomorrow (Carol is done, Kaz is very close too!)  I am enjoying this project so much – it has been a really relaxing stitch.

 

This is Carriage House Samplings – A Quaker Study, my ‘train’ piece which is also a very relaxing stitch.  I tend to agree with Carol – there is just something about the Quaker pieces which is rhythmic and soothing.  I am enjoying this one also.  I am also very happy with my fabric and thread choices on this one.

 

I’ve not stitched much on Paradigm Lost this week – only a very short session, but perhaps tomorrow night I will stitch a little.  Not much progress to show after last week – but there was a bit of frogging!

Thanks everyone so much for your comments on my ‘bad feeling’.  I rang the framer again on Friday morning and he didn’t respond to me until late Friday afternoon – it wasn’t completed yet and he promises me Tuesday.  He thanked me for the extra time.  I”m still feeling very uneasy.  I have 6 other pieces to frame and I think I will just try and work in a long round trip to my former framer (that sounds funny doesn’t it) with whom I feel VERY comfortable.  She understands me and the feelings of attachment I get to my pieces.

As for the stash diet, everyone who knows me is certain that I wont be able to do it – but I am a determined little git and I have wanted new sofas for a year now and we’ve been looking and found them – I don’t want them to get away   As I’ve mentioned I will be listing a heap of stuff for sale soon and perhaps we can work something out to make sure I don’t run out of stash….again anyone who knows me understands that the likelihood of me running out of stash is about the same as me winning a Grammy – NOT LIKELY!!!

Oh and did I mention I just ordered a new car also   A brand new Ford Territory!

And exciting Australian Open Tennis…the Frenchman (Tsonga) is doing really well….I am barracking loudly for him

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Stitching Update

  

Sorry for the lack of updates last week – I was stitching though and I am making great progress on ”A Quaker Study”.  This is my train project and it’s  benefiting from long and arduous train journeys (they’re not really that bad but definitely made much better by being able to stitch!)

I am hoping for a January finish for Victoria’s Quaker.  There are three more Tuesdays left (the last one is the 29th) and if it looks like it’s close, I will keep going so I can finish in January.

Paradigm Lost is coming along nicely – I would have hoped to be able to say I’ve finished page 1 -  but as you read earlier the frog visited me and I had to restitch quite a large chunk.  Hopefully after tonight’s stitching effort I can put page 1 to bed.  The motifs on this design are lovely – quite different to others I’ve seen – I am really enjoying it.

Once VQ is done, I am going to replace her on Tuesdays with An Open Heart which has been languishing.  I want to be able to finish that During February so will give her a lot of attention during that month.  I hope to finish one UFO each month or two during 2008.

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VQ Progress and the new ‘train’ piece!

Here is my latest snapshot of my progress on Victoria’s Quaker by A Mon Amie Pierre.  Sorry the photo is a bit dark – but it’s way too hot to go outside or search out some natural light

Next is my one day’s worth of stitching progress on A Quaker Study by Carriage House Samplings.  I am using a gorgeous piece of Vintage look Cashel (I’m not sure of the provider as the shop had prepackaged it) and I am using Gloriana silk in Rosewood, Needlepoint Inc silk in Crimson Tide and Bordeaux as both of these colours feature in the Rosewood and I only had two skeins of the Gloriana!  I will try and get a better picture of the thread colours next time – but this photo shows the colour of the fabric quite well.

I must admit I like the feel of  these silks much more.

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Progress pics.

Even though I haven’t been posting – I HAVE been stitching.

I concentrated a little bit on Lettres a mon Chat (see earlier post) before Christmas so I could get it done as a gift – but I also made some progress on Victoria’s Quaker.   This picture shows the colour of the fabric quite well.  I am using Needlepoint Inc Silks and I really enjoy stitching with them.

 

I also started Paradigm Lost (Long Dog) as part of the Snowbirds SAL.  Funny thing is I’m not really a snowbird as it’s summer here in Aus – but I can dream.  I’ve never actually seen snow.  I’m using Cafe Au Lait 34 count Heritage Linen and Vicki Claytons’ OMG Red 1153 premium silk which was a lovely gift from my good friend Marg (who STILL doesn’t have a blog).  This is a wonderful design to stitch and VERY hard to put down when you start!  The linen is gorgeous in the hand too.  I’m not really sure about the VC silk though – I am finding it’s fluffing, knotting and tangling quite easily.  I am going to try slightly shorter lengths and see if that helps.

 

On the down side, I have to do quite a bit of frogging on The Workbasket’s Faith, Hope, Love.  I have to frog all the progress i had made on the “Love” section as I missed out an entire column!    Not to worry – I will get that done today and I hope to make this one my last finish for 2007. 

I am hoping that VQ follows in January!

I am really pleased with what I have accomplished this year craft wise.  I’ve made a lot of jewelry and other things for gifts and they’ve all been well received. 

It’s been a good stitching year!

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Can Somebody Please Tell Me Where November Went?

Last time I looked it was November.

Now I wake up and my birthday and Christmas have passed and we are heading fast into a new year!

Good news – I got a great new job and I start 2nd January.  It’s still in the city though so the train trips are not finished for the time being.  It’s a much better job, more responsibility, more opportunity for growth and just a better atmosphere.  I will miss some of the people at my old job – that is always the way, but I am sure I will settle quickly into my new role.

I am managing to stitch quite a bit on the train so that is a bonus.  I managed to complete Lettres a mon Chat in time for it to be a Christmas gift.  I really enjoyed stitching this and I will stitch it again for myself.  I used 32 count Bay Rum evenweave (Silkweaver I think), NN 153 Razzle Dazzle Red and Black DMC.

In other stitchy news, I started Paradigm Lost.  I am using VC premium Silk in OMG Red on 34 count  Heritage Linen in Cafe au Lait - I am happy with this choice.  I did make a bit of a boo boo though – I started the stitching in the top left corner, but I had my fabric around the wrong way – I counted and measured and re-counted and re-measured though and I will have enough fabric this way around too!  Phew!

Victoria’s Quaker got a little stitching on Christmas Night (it was after all Tuesday)  I was hoping to get this finished this year but now I am pushing for a January 2008 completion – my first perhaps!

I also made a heap of jewelry for Christmas gifts but forgot photos – I will have to get some and post at a later date

   

The Kitties had a great Christmas too!

Cara fell in love with the tyres on the Little Princesses’ new bike! She rubbed herself against the rubber for a good half an hour I think.  I think she just liked the roughness of it!  Was very funny to watch here – she was enraptured with it!

Banjo (remember he is a teenage boy!) decided it was fun to try and unwrap what took me hours to wrap and also thought that the glass of milk left for Santa was just too much temptation!

  

Both kitties were very well behaved around the tree and mostly spent a lot of time napping underneath it.  We didnt’ lose any ornaments at all. 

Puku also had a great Christmas and here is a pic of her enjoying one of her gifts    You can see that as it gets warmer down-under, she loses great chunks of the last of her winter fur.  We’re getting a large bag full of hair from her every couple of days when we brush her!  She doesn’t like it much!

Too everyone in blogland, I hope you enjoyed a wonderful Christmas day filled with love and laughter.  I also wish for everyone a tremendous 2008 that is filled with every joy you desire.

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Pictures and Posting

Victoria’s Quaker is coming along nicely – I just love this peacock (who originally I thought may have been a turkey!)  I can’t wait to finish him this week.  I am also hoping some more NPI 935 arrives tomorrow so I can finish off the large motif…I don’t really like it when I have to leave a motif unfinished.  Silly really?

I just have a little bit of backstitch to do on the “Hope” section of this one.  Doesn’t it look great?  I am really enjoying this one too – it’s easy to stitch on the train (and YES I do check my bag very carefully before I get off the train these days!)

I apologise for the awful piccies – but you get the idea

I’m stitching and making gifts today

I spent the better part of this morning getting hte feeds in my bloglines down to a much more respectable…….ZERO!  Yay me!  It was hovering around 300.  I feel so much better to have finally caught up on what everyone has been up to.  I’m sorry I didn’t leave comments on every post but the work I’ve seen has been amazing and I congratulate everyone. 

I trust all my American friends have had a great Thanksgiving weekend too!

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A Long Overdue Update

I’ve been flat out, working, being mum, partner, manager, commuter, painter and decorator, cricket supporter, grocery shopper, chef, laundry maid, etc, etc, etc…

I have more than 300 unread posts in my blog reader and a host of unanswered emails for which I apologise profusely! 

Stash wise I’ve managed to find the last three issues of Sampler and Antique Needlework Quarterly that I needed to complete my set and that has made me one happy woman!  This magazine is one of the best – I just love every issue!

That said I’ve done a bit of stitching.  Victoria’s Quaker is coming along nicely although I’ve almost run out of the dark red (Needlepoint Inc Gothic Red – the darkest one).  I am almost down to the big motif that Carol says seemed to take a long time.  The top of that motif is around half way I think.  This is the only stitching that I am making a real effort to do during the week – tired or not I spend ‘some’ time with VQ each Tuesday!  That swan is a finished bird this week if nothing else!

I’ve done a little more on The Workbasket Faith Hope and Love – this is so much fun to stitch and I think it’s looking great in plain old black DMC.  Sometimes the simpler things….

My M Designs Initials are almost done – I need to frog a bit of a train-travelling-boo-boo but I should have those done this week and will wait to post a picture till then.

I’ve managed to complete a biscornu for an exchange so you can’t see that until it’s received by its recipient…perhaps next week.  I tried something different with this one and I’m not ‘quite’ sure if it was successful or not – I look forward to your comments on that one!

Rosemarkie has been given a little attention…but so I can get the M Designs piece finished quickly I’ve been taking that on the train this past week – Rosemarkie will be back traveling with me when that is done!

It’s a four day weekend here this weekend and while I’ve been busy the first two days, the next two are filled with stitching, stitching and more stitching – I am looking forward to it!

Oh and my knitting (shawl and Irish Hiking Scarf) are both coming along nicely – I did knit at cricket but then it started to rain and I had to stop!  Bugger!

Had a quick visit from Mel today with Niamh and Finn (gorgeous kiddies) and I was also lucky enough to see Anne before she toddles off to that place a little north of here (Sydney – ppppfffft!) and finally I got to meet Sharon   Always nice to meet in person!  I’ve not had a ‘bad’ meeting yet!

I had a lovely visit with Marg yesterday and saw her completed French Alphabet Sampler – absolutely stunning!  Marg is the queen of BAPs and her next is Long Dog’s Moulin Rouge in black silk – lovingly referred to as Moulin Noir

The carpet is not in yet so no piccies of the almost finished living area yet!  We did however take delivery of the BEST red rug ever – it’s a lovely long shag-pile rug in a dark red colour and it’s wonderful under foot!  Banjo has taken ownership and is guarding it like nothing else! 

Thanks for all the nice compliments on our choice of colour scheme – I can say that Mother of Mine (MoM) isn’t quite as complimentary!  Hmmmmm.

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Victoria’s Quaker

Here is last night’s progress on Victoria’s Quaker which I am stitching along with Carol and Karen.  (I started a little later!) 

I love all the little motifs on this one. I’m looking forward to the little dog near the stitcher’s knee next time

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Progress Pictures

Today is “An Open Heart” Day so there will be a progress picture of that one tomorrow.

Last week was a bit all over the show due to my hospital visit, however here are last week’s progress pictures.  I didn’t get to stitch on An Open Heart or the needlepoint piece last week.

Saturday is Faith Hope Love (the Workbasket) day.   

 

Monday is “M” Designs…that “W” is coming along nicely.

 

Victoria’s Quaker (A Mon Amie Pierre) after 3 Tuesdays.  This is such a fun stitch.  This shot shows the fabric colour quite well, but not the thread colours *sigh*

 

And because I’ve not posted a picture of Puku in ages….
here she is just begging for her belly to be rubbed

I’ve not started stitching today yet.  I had a lovely visit with Marg and Alison.  Alison bought some of the gorgeous mailart she has received and Marg showed off a gorgeous red and cream blanket that she has made as  a gift for a friend!  Marg is also close to finishing her French Alphabet Sampler too – it’s stunning!

Those keeping tabs on my knitting – I am just starting the third ball on my candle flame shawl…

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Rotation Day 3 – Victoria’s Quaker

I started this yesterday as part of a SAL with Carol and Karen and other than the fact that I forgot “G” comes after “F” (can we all spell “FROG”?) I did ok.  I’m a little behind, but I will try and catch up by stitching for a little longer next Tuesday as I will need to relax a ‘bit’ before I go to hospital on Wednesday.

I am using Needlepoint Inc silks (except for the black which is Madeira) and the colours are very much darker than Carol’s or Karen’s.  However, I like the look of it on the R&R Reproductions 32 count linen – Apple Brown. It looks very aged.

I love Madeira silks, they have very dense coverage, but if you’re not used to using them – be warned they are only 4 ply, and 5m in each pack – so you will need to make sure you get enough. 

Today is An Open Heart day.  Funny – I am kinda looking forward to it…weird isn’t it.

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