Saturday

I meant to tell you I got the glasses I ordered. They came last Sunday and I was able to work on the 40 count silk gauze.  I can finally see it better with the glasses.  I thought I was going to get a mix of 3.5 and 4.00 strengths but it turned out that I got 4 pairs that were all 3.5. But that was the size I was looking for so that's fine. DH asks why I got four pairs. Well, that is was how they came, as a set of four. They also looked like a pair I used to use and weren't too heavy. He should know that I am always losing track of my glasses. It is so frustrating when I can't find the glasses I'm looking for.

Yes, there are only three pairs pictured since I couldn't find the fourth pair.
I tried ordering the beads and a couple of other things for the Dancing Lady from Michael's.  They had and option to have them delivered so I tried that. I ordered them after 9 p.m. last night and the package was delivered by Door Dash before 10:00 a.m. this morning. Cool. The cost was worth it. So I should get busy embroidering!
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Start #5

My favorite ornament from Larissa Holland's 12 days of Christmas is the dancing lady.


So I gathered up my wool felt and sorted out the colors needed. As you can see, I messed up the printing on the Sulky and printed the pattern over my mistake.  I didn't want to waste a whole sheet of Sulky as there are only ten in a package.

The pattern calls for two sizes of beads.  I'm not sure I have the right beads, I'll have to go digging in my craft supplies. I guess I can order them online if I need to.

We have had a ton of rain here. I had a chance to talk to a dear friend yesterday and it sure lifted my spirits.
Have a happy Friday!
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Start #4

I bought this kit from the French Needle.

It is from Lorna Bateman,  I have a couple of other kits from her that I have yet to stitch.  I was a little disappointed with the kit.  It did not have the design printed on the fabric.  No threads were included. Well, that is not true. these threads were in the kit:

 Luckily I had ordered some of her threads a while back.

So I lightly traced the watering can and some insects around it.

I haven't threaded up a needle yet. This should be a pretty quick project as it is a small tape measure cover. 
A while ago I started this kit:

But this is as far as I got. I wish the instructions were much more detailed.

An experienced stitcher should be able to handle this.
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Start #3

The third start I made was the scissors case to the Susan O'Connor Versailles chatelaine. It matches with the pin disc I made.  This time the boullion roses and gold leaves look so much nicer and more even.  It is amazing what a little practice will do in he quality of a person's stitching.

I am much happier with how it is looking. And since I have stitched the design once already, I know I can actually do it. Even if I have to redo a few things!
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Start #2

I finally started the Peacock!

 I had to take another Jenny Adin-Christie project I had started a while back out of my hoop to put the peacock in the hoop.  This is what was in the hoop:

Then this is what is there now.  Luckily the first step is easy, just attaching two felt pieces to the tail.

I always worry too much about every little thing.  So I'm trying to control that. It doesn't have to be perfect (although I would like it to be perfect!). Now I am putting satin stitch around each little scallop. This is going to be so gorgeous! But I am going to take my time and do it right.
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Startitis

I have finished several projects lately and now it's time for my own personal Stitch Maynia!  I started (or restarted) four projects.
I was looking for a new BAP (big ass project). I really enjoyed stitching the Darlene O'Steen  Strawberry Sampler and wanted a new BAP to work on. I wanted a large project that was not too hard to stitch. I decided on another Darleen O'Steen sampler called The Queen's Sampler.

At this year's Needlework market in Nashville I had House of Stitches get Linda Vinson's stitch guide for it.

I ordered the original pattern and threads from Traditional Stitches before the pandemic. I had about the first two and a half rows done before I stuck it away for a while. 

I am ready for the grapes row.

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A Finish

The Colly Bird is all done except for a hanging loop.  I need to go digging for a good string or ribbon.  I am getting antsy to make some new starts!  Like the peacock!

Happy Saturday!
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Putting the Pieces Together

I've been putting the pieces of the Colly Bird together.  I think I can finish him (her?) up today. It is turning out better than the heart but then I am not doing the embroidery freehand this time.

I took out the chain stitch that was around the edge.  I wasn't quite done and I couldn't find the floss color I was using, So I took it out. It is all finished except for a hanging loop of some kind. A ribbon hanger would be easiest. Easier than making cording.
So this is where I am on Colly Bird.

I think I would like to make the dancing lady next.
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Sucker

I spend too much time looking at FaceBook. I was tempted by an ad on FaceBook to buy some magnifiers as I am trying to work on silk gauze and having a hard time seeing it and thus making many mistakes. So I ordered a pair.  They took longer than expected to arrive.  It was expected to be 8-15 days but was 3 weeks already. I even emailed the company to ask where they were.  The company said they were stuck in customs! From China! I should have known. I probably wouldn't have ordered them if had known they were coming from China in a pandemic. Well, they finally came and I wore gloves to wipe them down with Lysol. 
Another reason I ordered them was they came with 5 different strengths. 

I love my Gels glasses that I get at Stitchville but I wanted a 3.5 and they don't come that high. The magnifiers do come with a 3.5. So I put them together and tried them out.

The lens was great for seeing the silk gauze.  I could see it very clearly. but the rubber covered metal nose thing was down right painful.
I will call this a learning experience.  So what to do? I googled 3.5 reading glasses and found some and ordered them. By the way, they are way cheaper than the ones from China.
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Ta-Dah!

I finished-finished my Susan O'Connor project!  Here is the front:

Here is the edge:  My coral stitch sucks.  It's a simple stitch but my brain just couldn't get it right.  The knots are more like twists but I kept going and you can't tell much with the pins in.

 The back is a nice smooth satin.

It turned out better than I thought it would!

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Colly Bird

I started and felt ornament and it is looking much better than my heart which,by the way, isn't put together yet.

I'm almost done with the embroidery.  Then I have to soak away the Solvy.
I may not be able to post tomorrow due to a doctor's appointment. 
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Progress!

I decided to tackle the cross hatching on the Susan O'Connor project.  I was not happy with one of the bands.  It was awful. Uneven, not the right angle, too close together.

  So I took it out (for the second time!). I have to find a strategy that works for me.  I tried the tiger tape two ways but still wasn't satisfied on how it turned out.  So I turned my work so the lines were straight vertically and could just aim to make parallel lines.  Things went better.

Then there was one more element to add, daisies.

Guess what?  I'm done stitching.  I wasn't sure I could do this. I started out with a blank piece of satin and did all of this embroidery. It is not perfect by any stretch but I'm proud of trying and getting it to a point where it looks okay.  It was a practice for the needlebook and scissors holder in the set. 

Now to finish!

I cut it out. I need a three inch circle shape. Won't this be nice all done?

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Jane Nicholas Kit

My BFF gave me this Jane Nicholas kit. It sat around for a while until I decided to tackle it.  I had to buy Jane's book with the directions in it. I had some other Jane Nicholas kits that I needed the book for as well. I was happy with how it turned out and I learned a lot.

I did a name tag kit from her too.

  I started a mirror kit that I should get back to. I only have the grapes at the top done.

I have her butterfly book and I like to try one of those as well.

I was hoping to go to Beating Around the Bush and take a class from her.  Not this year!

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Friday

Today is Friday, that's about all I know. Not much going on. I read through the directions for  Jenny Adin-Christie's Peacock. It is a beautiful project. Now I have to free up a hoop to use.
So since I don't have anything to show today, I'll show a Italy tour project.  I was delighted to learn some reticello techniques when I was on the Needlework Tours and Cruises Bellamisimo tour.  We had a two day class and this is what we made. We got the opportunity to buy linen in Italy as well as some books on reticello.  I'd like to try another project. 

 Inside:

Doing this project enabled me to finish a sampler that had a band of reticello on it (or at least fake it).

This is the before the reticello class:

After the reticello class:

This sampler is offered in the Thistle Threads Whitework class.

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Felt Heart

I got my Sulky Solvy stuff in the mail so I could try it out. I took the  pattern pages for

the Twelve Days of Christmas and copied them onto the Sulky Solvy sheet using my printer/copier.

After the Sulky is printed you select the pattern piece you want, cut it out and remove the backing paper.

It is sticky on the back and you stick it to the felt.
 It worked great, no problem. I like that you embroider right on the design lines. You cut away the extra Sulky. It is then soaked in warm water for a couple of minutes. The Sulky rinses away. if it isn't all rinsed away, it dries stiff and is sticky when wet and you can rinse it again.

Now to evaluate. I don't necessarily like the colors of flosses I chose. My embroidery is not great. But I think that is partly because 3 and 4 strands of floss are used. The outside chain stitch is just one strand of silk. The green heart is still wet so the white floss I used appears gray. I think I should use a sharper needle. For a first try, it is okay.
I will stitch it together and stuff it.
I haven't started the peacock yet as I want to read through the directions and I don't want to make any mistakes! I am also almost finished stitching another project that I cannot show according to the designer wishes.
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Poppy Needlebook

When I was on the Needlework Tours and Cruises Bellisimo tour of Italy our assistant tour guide was Jennifer Bennet of Jennifer Bee Embroidery in Australia. (https://www.jenniferbee.net/about)
  She was using a needlebook she designed and it was very nice.

  The pages were all printed with a design and then you embroider a little part of the design on each page.

I ordered the Poppy Needlebook Kit.  She has several different ones and I'd like to do those too but right now it is hard to get stuff from Austrailia not to mention that I should finish the one I have,  I started on the cover.

 That was a mistake as that requires the most embroidery. I should have started on an easier page. This kit looks like a nightmare to put together.  Three cards of threads, ribbon and wool.

 I need to get some momentum going. This was one of the candidates to work on next.
After the peacock.
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