One Color At a Time

It's the beginning of 'The Season' so things are getting a little hectic around here.  Any of you who live in a vacation or resort area know what I mean.  Even though the weather is still a little spotty, folks seem determined to go to the beach.  I drove into town on Monday and noticed the difference immediately.  Traffic is way up.  Then I went to the grocery and wanted to pull my hair out!  Way too many people already. 

As usual, I didn't get any stitching done while visiting my mom this weekend.  But I'm learning.  I only took one project with me instead of my entire stitching bag.  So after four days of stitching celibacy and a stressful Monday, I was ready to park myself on the couch with my stitching. 

It's been a couple of weeks since I showed you any progress on the two pieces in my so-called rotation.  The plan was to work on each piece for a week and then switch, but I'm am somehow compelled to keep working until I come to, what I consider, a good stopping point.  Now give me some credit because normally that 'good stopping point' is when the project is done.  In this case, I finished the red portion of Le Jardin de Plaisir, so I decided it was time to switch projects. (Just to be contrary, I did a couple of tiny motifs in the black before I packed it away.)

I just love the center arrangement of flowers, even without the black parts done.Janet Carsels continues to be a fun stitch with a variety of alphabet styles and only a few colors involved.

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New Starts, New Finishes, More New Starts

Wow! Time flies between projects.  Actually, I've fill the evenings with some little goodies from The Sweetheart Tree.  But I just don't think to post them because they only take two or three days each to stitch.  These little needlerolls have lots of specialty stitches and, except for the annoying little backstitch vines, they are fun to do.  Unfortunately, I didn't do a very good job photographing the white-on-white stuff, but you get the idea.

 

 

I'm starting a Long Dog Sampler SAL on March 1st.  My project is not a typical LD piece, but I find it very intriguing.  "Le Jardin de Plaisir" is more of a geometric/knot garden type design and I love the original colorway of red, black and gray.  I'm stitching it on 38 count Italian linen (thanks, Laura!) with Splendor silk.

And once again, I'm going to try to work on more than one project in rotation.  Otherwise, I'll finish the SAL piece in the first month.  I have some Scarlet Letter pieces almost kitted and I'll just have to close my eyes and pick one once all the silks arrive.  I ran in from waiting by the mailbox just to post this.  It's kind of cold out there at night, but I'm very anxious for this package to arrive.

Plus, I have been very busy in the 'bead cave'.  It's been a big month for scissor fobs.  Every time I think I'm catching up, I need to make more.  It's a great problem to have except my fingers are too cold to play with the beads for long periods of time.  I'll really be happy to see Spring!  From elegant...

to funky...

there's lots to choose from.  I just hope I don't need more counting pins for this Long Dog SAL piece.

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Ta-Da!

"Pigalle" is done!  Woohoo! 

Now all I have to do is frame it.  I have two mouldings in stock that I like. What do you think?  I'm leaning towards the narrow one.  I'll have to cut down the frame, but that's not a problem.  I haven't done any framing in a quite a while.  I'd like to get this one done quickly so that I can loan it to Donna at Angelwing Needlearts for a shop model.  My version is so different from the cover model that hopefully it will encourage others to be brave and not worry about the cross-stitch police.

Speaking of my version...I stitched it on 40 count Tundra from Lakeside Linens, using 1 strand of floss over 2 fabric threads.  One skein of each was sufficient, except for the navy DMC.  I used two+ skeins!  So make sure you have enough of whatever you decide to use.  And remember that if you choose to stitch it on a larger count that you will probably want to use 2 strands and your stitches will be larger so you will need significantly more floss. These are the color changes that I made.

GAST Antique Rose --> GAST Hyacinth

GAST Briar Rose -->  GAST Red Plum

GAST Gold Leaf  --> GAST Avacado

GAST Wood Rose -->  WDW Dutch Iris

GAST Fragrant Cloves --> GAST Briar Rose

GAST Woodsmoke -->  GAST Walnut

GAST Raven --> DMC 939 Dark Navy **

Remember that most of these hand-dyed fibers can have significant dye lot differences, so play around with them and make changes if you aren't satisfied with the way they blend. That's what I had to do.

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I Love the Playoffs!

During the NFL playoffs you can pretty much depend on some good games which translates to lots of stitching time. Each game this weekend involves a team I like (or love...Go Colts!) so I'm making massive progress.

Yesterday was Pigalle day. When I compare the pics from Thursday, it doesn't look like I've done as much as I thought, until you look closely at all the little individual stitches added for detail. I'm really happy with my color choices, finally. It may not have the same visual effect as the originals, but I love the cool blue tones so much more. And that's what counts right? Plus I'm having so much fun. Obligatory stitching or stitching on a deadline can diminish the enjoyment of the process sometimes, even if you like what you are stitching. So I'm especially happy to be working on two projects that I really love and am stitching just for that reason.

Speaking of two projects...today is SoHRH day. As soon as I do something productive like Swiffer up Lester hair (man, that dog sheds!), I'm spending the afternoon watching the Vikings smash the Cowboys. The evening will hopefully bring the Chargers beating the Jets. If you're a fan of either Dallas or NY, don't send me hate mail. Us old farts have to stick together and Bret (at 40 yrs. old) is amazing. And Philip Rivers is a NCSU alum. Say no more.

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It Pays to have lots of WIPs

Rule No. 68: Always have a WIP for backup. (See Rule No. 67)

I was making great progress on "Pigalle" until I came to a spot where the Black Raspberry Jam GAST was called for. It looks very blah and I will once again be making some adjustments. Hence, the implementation of Rule No. 68.

Now, most of you know I'm a one-project-at-a-time girl and working on multiple projects makes my brain hurts. Well, either all of you right-brained stitchers with big piles of WIPs are sending those brain waves my way or menopause is really screwing me up. It occurred to me a couple of years ago that my unusual bouts of indecision might be hormonally induced, but now I'm convinced.

Anyway... I have put "Pigalle" down until I can come up with an acceptable substitute for Black Raspberry Jam. I've been working on SoHRH the last couple of nights and have made reasonable strides forward. And my brain is not taxed by all that creative stuff like color blending, contrast, etc. This is one of those things that makes you appreciate those geniuses that designs needlework. It's a lot of hard work.

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