BIG Finish!

Just wanted to share my Moroccan sampler. It is framed and already hanging on the wall! The frame is a little rustic and has a simple carved pattern that I thought suited the piece well.

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I Could Stare at This One All Day!

You might remember that I was a little apprehensive about choosing and mapping out the colors on this piece since it was charted as a monochromatic one. Well, after a few minor adjustments as I went along, it is finished and I love it! Don't have any idea when I'll get around to framing it but when I do I'll have to rearrange the 35-40 samplers in my living room/dining room to find just the right place to hang it.

It is an original design by Ute Scheer, Studio of Historical Samplers,  inspired by photos of Moroccan samplers in a book of samplers from the V&A museum. I stitched mine on 40 count cream linen using Splendor silk floss. The finished design is 11" x 23.5" (17.9cm x 59.7cm)

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Almost Ready for Something New!

The end is near! No, not Armageddon, the end of the Moroccan sampler.

And of course, the closer it gets to completion the more excited I get about my next project. I finally picked my colors for the Star Sampler SAL from Periphaeria.

I found this hand dyed gold fabric in my stash which, unfortunately, I cannot identify other than the stitch count - 40 cnt. I chose Kelp Waterlilies from The Caron Collection and a deep brown Splendor from Rainbow Galleries. 

I've also decided to start "Cotillion" by Papillon. Since the fabric called for is not available I had to go on a search. I chose "Phantom"  (36 count) by PictureThisPlus and I also got the Dinky Dyes overdyed silk floss (as called for in the design) from PTP. Fantastic service, by the way!

I'm also in the midst of working on version three of "Catrina's Christmas" by Keslyn. My stitch group finally started the class and I decided to stitch the piece along with them, just so I wouldn't forget anything pertinent about the process.  I wrote up about three pages of notes to go along with it. Surely I won't lead them astray with all that guidance. But you never know! I'll have some pics soon.

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Gotta Love Great Service

I almost waited too long to order my frame for The Yellow Rose Sampler! But thanks to email and the amazing service from Tamara and Bob at The Stitches in Time on-line shop I am ready to wrap this baby and give it to Mom! They went out of their way to get it to me quickly since they are at the Celebration of Needlework show in New Hampshire this weekend, but knew I wanted it for Mother's Day. Big thank you to them.

 

So I'm back to working on the Moroccan sampler. It's been a little slow this week, but I'm still making progress and still loving it. 

I've been busy making laying tools for an order from the on-line needlework show a couple of week ago. Tracey at Threaded Needle Designs distributes my beaded needlework tools and she's kind enough to show them when she does the show. This is just one of the ones I have listed in my Etsy shop. If you love pretty stitching tools, check it out. All my scissor fobs are one of a kind and lots of them have counting pins and/or laying tools to match. And I love to do custom sets too. Just ask!

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Do I or Don't I? Hmm...

I tend to get really involved in certain sporting events on TV. In fact, my husband warns the pups every fall when college basketball season starts because I tend to yell a lot at the Wolfpack (NCSU). And frankly, I can't even watch the State/Carolina game if I hope to keep my blood pressure in a safe range. The Masters, believe it or not, is another one that gets me all riled up. I'm a big Phil Mickelson fan, but I also love the underdog, so the difficulty of the course and the amazing shots that all of those guys manage to pull of just impresses the heck out of me.

So the dilemma during these events, is whether or not to risk massive frogging if I choose to stitch while watching. I usually risk it because I can't stand to watch TV without something to do. And since Phil's chances of making such a huge comeback today are about as good as a snowball's chance in hell, I'm going for it. Here's where I left off last night when I couldn't focus any longer.

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What a Wonderful Life!

You can't hate having another birthday when something like this shows up in your mailbox! I am so blessed to have so many wonderful friends. My friend, Laura, stitched this glorious sampler by Darlene O'Steen (NeedlesPrayse) for my birthday.  It's "The Flower Sampler" done on 40 count linen. Click on it to get a closer look at the amazing stitching.



As you can see, I've been working on my Moroccan sampler. In fact, I haven't posted in over a week because I can't stop stitching long enough to take a picture! I just love watching this piece grow. I will confess to a little frogging, but not enough to make me crazy. So I can't tell you when I'll move on to something else.

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It's Starting to Come Together

So I've been a little anxious about how all these fabulous colors would come together and now I'm starting to get a picture. For such traditionally styled motifs I thought these bright colors might be a little contemporary. And I suppose if I wasn't aware of the Moroccan connection it might not be as attractive to me as it is. But, I love it!  It's not going to take nearly as long as I thought it would, if I keep going at this rate. I just can't stop.

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Can I See a Show of Hands?

Anyone who has ever become so caught up in a piece of needlework that they fell prey to the dreaded "just one more stitch" syndrome will know exactly what I'm going through right now. I am loving this Moroccan sampler. I'm so excited about seeing the colors bring the motifs alive and can't wait to get to the next one!

The assymetrical second motif bothers me a little right now, but as soon as I fill in around it I'll be okay. I keep leaning to the side when I look at it like it's going to expand out to the right and become more balanced.

The sad thing is that at some point I'll have to put it down and work on some birthday presents and other obligatory stitching. It's 22 inches long, so you know I'm not going to finish it without taking a break...or am I? hmmm?

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This is Gonna be FUN!

 Well, after some research and great advice from a reader, I have chosen my colors for the Moroccan sampler and started stitching. It's very slow going, but quite easy. The wine color doesn't show up very well, in the photo, but it's a beautiful deep color that I hope will balance the piece nicely.

Because the sampler is so large and I'm a control freak, I printed out this black and white picture and tried to map out which colors I'll use where. It's a little hard to visualize, but hey, after decades of following the directions, it's time I stepped outside the box...maybe even off the cliff! LOL 

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Ready to Move On!

I just love it when a sampler seems to almost stitch itself! "Hetty Child 1842" by Brenda Keyes is DONE!

Hetty Child went so quickly, I'm ready to indulge myself in a BIG project now. So I've chosen a Moroccan sampler by Ute Scheer-Studio for Historical Samplers,  inspired by a photo from a Victoria & Albert Museum catalog. The model was stitched on 35 count natural linen in a cream floss (finished size 11" x 24"). I'll probably do something similar although when I think of Morocco, I think brilliant color. So I think I'll do a little research and see if I can come up with something culturally representative.

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