Of A Monday

Three days in a row I have walked outside!  How lucky am I?

I don't have much to show today.  But such as it is:
The Quaker Bag:

The birth announcement:

Janet's SAL:

One bathroom is clean and I am about to start the other one.
February!  How did it get to be February?  I have another Stumpwork Lesson to read.  Oh, goodie!  That will motivate me to get the other bathroom done lickety split.
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Springlike Sunday

It was 41 degrees when I went walking this morning.  Wow, it felt like spring.  It is supposed to get much colder this week.  I want to remember how nice it is today.  The most dangerous part of my walk was our driveway.  It is very icy.  But by the end of today, the ice may be gone.  Yeah!

I enjoyed watching the SAG awards last night.  There usually isn't much on TV on Saturday nights.  Often I just turn the TV off.  I stitched on the Quaker Bag.  I ironed some starch into the linen and it is handling much better.  It sure is hard when charts are split up on different pages.  I got two more smaller motifs done and a good start on a third one.

I picked up the birth announcement and put in the edges of some areas.  It will be easy to fill in the coat and the boat.  His face is done.

When I look at stitching store sites, I always am reminded of things that are in my stash that I wish I could start.  Then I saw that Rebecca finished her hedgehog bag from a retreat we went to last year.  Hey, I want to work on that too.  Then I succumb to temptation and sign up for an online class, like Berries Sew Sweet.  Yes, I signed up for that one.
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Back to the Bag

I worked on the Quaker Bag and got that darn flap done.  It has a lot of stitching on it so this is a major accomplishment.

Now I have to print out some more pages of the chart.  I think I'll work on the rectangular middle since I have a good start with the blue motif done.

I walked outside this morning.  We are having an unusually warm weekend.  I will get to walk outside tomorrow too but it may be raining.  I always see lots of runners on Saturdays.

I need to get onto the next step on my casket.  I stretched the three queens. I sprayed water on the back of it and let it dry.

 It is waiting for paper to be glued on the back.  But I also have to prepare the side of the casket that it goes on.  I have to put glue on the wood and when that dries, I put glue on the paper and attach it to the casket.  That part makes me nervous.  The last step is to glue paper to paper.  Scary.

I put just a few stitches in Janet's SAL.  This is relaxing and a no pressure stitch.  I tried working without the hoop.  The fabric really isn't large enough to do that. I haven't decided if I like one ply or two ply of floss. I've tried it both ways.   I'm stitching on the small size that I printed out.  I like that Janet is showing her stitching so I have ideas on colors and stitches and how they look.  Wouldn't this be a really cool book cover when it is done?

Happy Saturday!
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My Friend Janet

I love that phrase from Monty Python, "and now for something entirely different".  That's what I did yesterday, something entirely different.  My friend Janet is offering a SAL on her blog (janetbrandt.com) of one of her drawings.  What fun!  Janet is the most creative person I know.  You should see her workroom, it is a dream come true.  I would love to spend the day with her and just make stuff.  This is the next best thing.  I downloaded the design then got out my handy-dandy freezer paper and some muslin.  I ironed the freezer paper onto the muslin and cut it to 8 1/2 inches by 11inches to fit in my printer.  Then I printed it out.  Wow, it turned out beautifully.

Then I tried it in a smaller size.

Cool.

I put it in a hoop.  On her blog Janet started with the biggest bird.  So I grab some floss that was close by and decided to give it a try.  I'm much better at cross stitch than embroidery.  But this has a folk art feel to it and whatever I do is just fine.

I thought I would try stitching a stem or two, in stem stitch of course.  Then I got brave and started a heart.  It didn't turn out quite like I imagined but it is okay.

 Then I wanted to try satin stitch.  I thought I would try it the wrong way and see what happened.  Yep, it looked sloppy.  So then I thought I would try it the right way with split stitch around the edge first and satin stitch with one thread over that.  Much better.  Then I went back and couched some thread on the first one and it looked a lot better.  I'm kind of goofing around.

I still didn't finish the flap on the Quaker Bag but I had fun.  Check out Janet's blog and give it a try.
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Third Panel

I have been surprized at the progress on this third panel of the Quaker Bag.  It is going well even though it feels like I stitch and rip on a regular basis.

I bet I could finish this flap today.  I may try to put some starch on this linen.  I want to try out my new iron and this linen is feeling pretty floppy.
Since Monica's apron is done, I should go back and work on other WIP's.  I'll have to see which one strikes my fancy.  I have the birth announcement and the Mermaid Tapestry that are languishing nearby.  Of course I'd love to start something new but I'd better not.
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Figuring Things Out

I wanted to do a little work on my casket.  I thought I would stitch up the little pin cushion that fits in this wooden base that has a secret drawer in the bottom:

I have some nice heavy duty velvet for the pin cushion.  I sewed it up and stuffed it but I didn't like how it looked on the base.

It doesn't sit down in it very well.  Then I thought maybe a mattress style pin cushion would be better.  I have an old one I made a few years ago.  I tried it to see how I liked it.

I liked it much better.  Of course it needs to be a bit longer.  I have to figure out what I want to stitch on it.
I cut off a piece of marbled paper to see about covering the secret drawer:

The piece I cut is too small.  I need it a little larger to fold over the edge.  Then another piece will fit flat in the bottom totally covering the wood.  But I needed to check to see if the box will fit after it is covered with the paper.

Yes!  It fits perfectly.  All in all I didn't accomplish anything but I know more about what I want to do.  I also need to think about how to pull the drawer out.  Ribbon loop?  Tuft of thread?
I am almost done with Monica's apron.

Yeah!  Now I need to find some linen for her skirt.  I'm not sure I have any 35 count.  I'll have to go digging.
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Windy

The wind made it cold walking outside.  But I should appreciate the fact that I was able to walk outside in January -  two days in a row!
Now I am cozy inside and ready to start stitching.  I finished a motif on the Quaker Bag and started another.

 It is great to have some progress.  I want to finish the dark pink motif and get a letter done today.
  I'd love to finish Monica's apron today.  That is my goal.
I was making a top.

 I love this material and was determined to make it into something.  I tried it on yesterday and found out that it is too small.  I'm going to have to scrap it.  I think the pattern was meant to be made with a stretchy material.  Rats.  You win some, you lose some.
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