Linen Stitcher

(NOTE: This post edited to increase the size of the photos. Thanks for the suggestion, Barbara!)

After I posted my “Happy Hearts” finish on Tuesday, I decided to work on my Drawn Thread “12 Houses Sampler” again, which I last posted about here when it looked like this:

So on Wednesday night, I did this:

On Thursday, I did this:

On Friday, I did this:

And on Saturday, I did this:

Which means that it now looks like this:

Designer: Drawn Thread
Pattern: 12 Houses Sampler
Stitched on 35-count Northern Cross (Norden Crafts) clay linen using 1 strand over 2 threads; mostly used recommended DMC floss with a few overdyeds thrown in; random color substitutions made for personal taste and to accommodate color of my linen choice.

Finishing this up so quickly was the fun part. The not-so-fun part is that since I’ve dragged out the project for so long, I’ve lost a charm, which came with the pattern and is supposed to go where the “O” would be in the alphabet. I’ve looked everywhere and even organized my stash a bit in the process (Wow, do I ever have some wonderful patterns and fabric awaiting my attention!!), but alas and alack, I couldn’t turn it up. I think it was an unwitting victim of multiple transfers between various stitching totes and plastic storage bags.

I’ll have to find some sort of substitute eventually, but for now, I’m counting this one as DONE!

Good news: At long last, I have a finish to report!!

Designer: Birds of a Feather
Pattern: Happy Hearts Sampler
Stitched on 36-count R&R Kansas City Blend using recommended overdyed threads; used one strand over two threads for most colors, but for lighter floss colors, I used two strands over two threads so they would show up better; minor changes made to personalize the design

(NOTE: Edited this post to add a new picture. First one, which was taken at night, was too yellow. This daylight photo taken with no flash still isn’t quite accurate, but the colors are better.)

WHEW! I can’t believe that I’ve finally finished this one. I started this in January 2008 as a stitch-along with Lelia and ’Chelle. Due to a severe lack of stitching time, it took quite a while to complete, despite the fact that it was my only active project. In fact, it’s taken me two days just to find time to add the year and my initials. [sigh] But it’s done, and I’m celebrating by blogging about it.

The bad news? Allow me to explain.

Last year, for the first time in my 25+ years of stitching, I started keeping a log of my stitching projects. I recorded the name of the project, the date I started working on it, and (in most cases) the date I finished it. In fact, here’s last year’s log:

2007 Tally—

(Note the complete lack of entries after August.)

Started: 13 projects
Completed: 9 projects
Remaining: 4 WIPs, status:

• nearly finished
• abandoned
• awaiting hemstitching refresher, which I’ve recently done
• awaiting action by ne’er-do-well neighborhood contractor;
  recent sighting gives reason to hope

And here’s my 2008 log:

2008 Tally—

(Note the complete lack of entries. Period.)

Started: 1 project
Completed: 1 project

WHAT?!?! I couldn’t believe it when I saw that. I mean, I know I haven’t had any stitching time, but ONE project?? Really??

[sigh]

Guess there’s only one thing to do about that: STITCH MORE!! Fortunately, that actually seems possible . . . as long as I’m willing to continue ignoring my housecleaning duties. (And believe me, I’m willing!)

In other stitching news, I attended the National Counted Cross Stitch Show at Rockome Gardens. A lovely display of talent and a wonderful chance to spend the weekend stitching. (Can you say, “Aaaah”? I knew you could.)

I also visited my favorite cross stitch store (House of Stitches) because I HAD to spend a $50 gift certificate that my very thoughtful husband gave me recently. Picked up Sampler Girl “Hope Perches,” Elizabeth’s Garden “Carnation Sampler,” Blackbird Designs “Buttons and Pins: Reward of Merit,” Carriage House Samplings “One Sheep,” and cuts of some very nice linen (they have the best fabric there!).

Not sure what my next project will be. I’ve got about a MILLION projects kitted up. Wait! I shouldn’t exaggerate like that. Make that a THOUSAND projects kitted up. I may start one of those. (I’m in the mood to do several small projects, just so I can bulk up that stitching log.) Or I may return to some old favorites. (Best candidates: Drawn Thread’s “12 Houses” or my Prairie Schooler neighborhood.)

Blogging will remain rather random as I devote more time to stitching, but you know I’ll have to stop in now and then to share my progress.

Stay tuned . . .

. . . that I finished another motif on BOAF “Happy Hearts”? I forgot how much progress I can make when I have a real live stitching day. Woo-hoo, Me!

This is the vine at the lower right:

And here’s an updated photo of the whole project:

And there’s still time for more stitching. Unbelievable!!

In my last post, I predicted that I’d be able to finish some of the motifs on BOAF “Happy Hearts,” and—HOORAY!—I did. Here’s the lineup:

The flower at the upper right.

This guy finally finished getting dressed.

This tiny heart took waaay longer than it should have.

And this cute arrow is now finished, so here’s the whole thing:

(It’s not a completed motif, but I’ve also added the vine at the lower right. Woo-hoo!)

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m off to stitch some more while there’s still time left.

I’ve managed to stitch. Here’s what I’ve done:

Finished the number line. Also finished outlining the flower/heart motif at the lower left on my second try. (Can you say “Frog?” I knew you could.) Currently working on vine at lower right.

It may not seem exciting, but having somewhat regular stitching time again is very exciting to me. I’m planning to forge ahead on “Happy Hearts” till it’s finished because I suddenly realized just how many WIPs I have (and just how many new projects I’d love to start).

Hoping to visit the old PS neighborhood by June (fingers crossed). Can’t wait to see what the neighbors have been up to since my last visit.

For now, the forecast for the long holiday weekend looks very nice. I’m predicting a 70 to 80 percent chance of stitching time with a potential accumulation of several more completed motifs on “Happy Hearts.”

[happy sigh]

Yes, it’s been so long since I blogged that I believed a reintroduction was necessary.

Hello, my name is Carol, and I used to be a stitcher. Fortunately, despite the fact that I haven’t stitched or blogged for AGES, I still remember how!! So I’m giving it another whirl . . .

First of all, I need to send out a very belated thank-you to Harmien, who managed to catch me completely off guard by sending this:

I had admired this little charm, which says “Made with love,” on one of her projects, and then, out of the blue, she sent me three to use on my very own projects. What an incredibly sweet gesture!! These arrived on a very gloomy day in March, when I was starting to doubt that I’d ever find time to stitch again. Needless to say, they really lifted my spirits. And I realized that I *had* to stitch again in the future because I couldn’t let these adorable charms go to waste!!

Thank you so very much, Harmien!! And please forgive my very, very belated blog post about this wonderful RAK.

As for stitching, I’ve barely had time. If I had to guess, I’d say I’d stitched a few hours spread over a couple of weeks, with some weeks seeing no stitching time at all. BUT once again the tide is turning, and once again, I have hope for future stitching time. (Hope springs eternal!)

When I have stitched, it’s been on this SAL (I use the term very loosely) with Lelia and ’Chelle
(Hello, ladies.How’s it going for you?):

I usually take my photos at night with bad flash photography, but I took this one during the day. While the fabric is too washed out, it does seem to be a better representation of the blue floss that I used, so pardon the widely varying colors between my last post and this one. The true color is somewhere in between.

I had to look back here to see what I had done since I last posted. During the past two months, I’ve:

—Added part of an arrow and part of a heart
—Added a bit more to the flower motif at the lower left
—Finished the alphabet
—Worked on the number line across the bottom

Since I finished the alphabet somewhere around March 9, I guess the only real progress I’ve made is on the numbers.

That’s all I have to share for now. No promises for when I’ll return to regular stitching, posting, and commenting again, but at least you know I’m still around.

P.S. I think there may be renewed hope for some PS neighborhood improvements, possibly in June. As soon as I can locate that elusive builder and set up a new schedule, I’ll let you know . . .

Had an unexpected trip yesterday to a new-to-me LNS, which was very welcome. Not only did I buy some new patterns (I know, I know, I didn’t need them!), but I also managed to locate that elusive missing color for my BOAF “Happy Hearts Sampler” that I’m stitching with Lelia and ’Chelle.

I was so ecstatic that I turned today into a long overdue Stitching Day. Here’s where I started:

I had finished adding the rest of the red lines since I last posted, but somehow it wasn’t exciting enough to blog about.

But today’s progress? Now that’s worth getting excited about:

Disclaimer: The top photo was taken in the daylight, while the bottom one relied on existing artificial light. While the second one is a bit “off,” I decided to go ahead and post, rather than waiting till next weekend to get a better shot.

OK, now where was I? Oh, yes. My progress.

I had started working on the large flower motif at the lower left until I happened upon the missing blue that I needed. Then I shamelessly abandoned that motif in favor of test-driving my new blue. Well, the test drive turned into a long cruise.

I stitched the saying “Busy hands make happy hearts,” which I’ve decided is true as long as we’re talking about stitching and not about doing laundry. I also finished off the left side of the heart flower motif at the upper left, and then I went to town on the alphabet and managed to finish all of the uppercase letters.

Whew!

It was a much needed respite from work (though I still squeezed in a little work this weekend, too; just not as much). Now, any suggestions for getting a much needed respite from laundry??

Well, the soap opera in the neighborhood continues.

When the people bought the red house at Lot 3 of this development, they seemed like such an agreeable family. But then there was the window incident, and nothing has been the same since.

As you might recall (though it’s been a long time, so I would understand perfectly if you had forgotten), the most recent issue has been a fight with the neighborhood association over the height of the gate. At first, the homeowners bowed to the wishes of the association and tore out the gate. But then, without warning, they did an about-face and insisted that the fencing contractor revert to the original plans. And just to make it a little bit more difficult to take the gate out, they went ahead and did some landscaping:

Fence design and landscaping: Prairie Schooler, Book 84

Doesn’t that gate look just fine? I really don’t understand now what all the fuss was about. . . .

Now it turns out that these homeowners had overrun their budget in a pretty serious way. First, they had the original gate partially installed, then they made the contractor remove it and custom-design a new gate, then they started battling it out with the neighborhood association, all the while having the contractor re-install the original gate.

As you might imagine, there have been fines levied, due to the violation of the neighborhood policy on fence—well, gate—heights, so in light of all that, there was no way they could afford a professional landscaper (not to mention that I think the landscaper that originally began working with the neighborhood developer is on an extended vacation to Aruba), so these homeowners went for the old DIY approach.

The vines filled in first, and all looked promising. But then the flowers bloomed and—WHAT!!??! The flowers were PINK!! I shouldn’t tell you this, but the homeowners absolutely HATED it. They had hand-picked this variety (pun definitely intended!) but then found it to be rather garish next to the beautiful sunflowers that belonged to the Lot 2 homeowners. (If you ask me, I think the Lot 3 homeowners are actually angling to make it look as though those beautiful sunflowers are theirs!)

So they started over, which took a fair amount of time, considering that they live Plant Hardiness Zone 5, where the last freeze date is still a couple of months away. In fact, I’m not quite sure how they accomplished it, but with some perseverance and a whole lot of luck, the flowering vine now looks like this:

Yep, it’s the same flower, just in a different color. But don’t these look so much better against the sunflowers and the trim of the Lot 3 house? Not to mention, don’t the blue blooms really look nice with the color of the Lot 2 house next door? I really hate all these dramatics, but I have to say, I think they made the right decision this time.

By the way, the architect special-ordered some new plans that are under consideration for the neighborhood design. In fact, they just arrived, so in future updates on the neighborhood, you might see something from this:

Or, perhaps, this:

Or even this:

Yep, I’d say the homeowners at Lot 3 aren’t the only ones who’ve overrun their budget lately!

If you’ve visited my blog in the past—whether regularly, occasionally, now and then, or barely ever—you’ve probably “heard” me whining since early fall about my complete lack of stitching time. C’mon, admit it. I’ve been pretty tiresome in that regard. In fact, if it weren’t for my complaints about nonexistent stitching time, I wouldn’t have posted anything at all these past six months.

Well, it’s safe to start visiting my blog again, and there might actually be some new progress to share, because MY STITCHING TIME HAS RETURNED!!!

[OK, I'm going to need a big "Woo-hoo" from the crowd for that announcement.]

Yep, after approximately six months of little to no stitching time, I am extremely and deliriously happy to report that I have officially returned to regular stitching.

Of course, I couldn’t let a momentous occasion such as this pass without marking it in a grand fashion, so I bought this:

Now, I’m guess that many of you recognize this particular beauty from the recent reports on the Nashville market, but if not, you’re looking at Blackbird Designs newest book, “Thank You, Sarah Tobias.” I have to say, this is the first time I’ve ever had (repeat: HAD!!!) to order a new pattern immediately upon its release. And I wasn’t disappointed. Let’s just say that, upon receipt, my stitching to-do list immediately grew much longer . . .

OK, so when I finished drooling over this book, I actually found some time to put needle to fabric (with thread attached, of course), and made some progress on my BOAF “Happy Hearts” stitchalong that I’m doing with Lelia and Chelle. I had added the heart motif, since I last blogged about it in mid-January:

But then I got really busy and added a bunch of stuff. See?

Now you might notice the rather haphazard appearance of this project, which certainly wasn’t intentional. For various reasons, I’ve had to skip over some parts, but I promise I go back and finish them eventually. For now, it just looks like I’m really clipping along, though, doesn’t it?

[sigh] I love stitching! . . .

I decided to take a walk in the neighborhood recently, and to my surprise, look what I found:

One lone little birdhouse. Nary a bird in sight, but it was a new “house,” nonetheless. Now, given that the builders had been at a total standstill for months, I wasn’t very hopeful, but I ventured back a few days later anyway, and you won’t believe what I saw. Oh, but first, a quick recap:

Back in November, our local fencing contractor was having a bit of trouble with the homeowners in the red house over a gate that was too large for the fence. (I originally posted about it here.)

It seemed obvious at the time that the gate was huge, so I expected the homeowner to just accept the recommendation of the fencing contractor and install a custom-designed gate scaled to the proper size. In fact, plans for the new gate were drawn up almost immediately, so it should have been installed in a snap. But not in this neighborhood . . .

Suddenly, the homeowners had a change of heart.

Personally, I suspect that these particular homeowners may still have been harboring some disappointment over the builder’s failure to install their downstairs windows. (Remember that little incident?)

Or, I suppose, it could have been a general discontent with a lack of progress overall by the developer for this neighborhood. Whatever it was, the homeowners decided that they weren’t going to just “go along” anymore. In fact, they insisted that the original gate was just fine and they wanted it to be reinstalled.

They felt so strongly about the whole matter that they decided to challenge the decision of the homeowners’ association to prohibit the original gate, especially since this particular homeowners’ association is rather disorganized and subject to change the regulations at a moment’s notice.

Whatever the case, the dispute is ongoing, and the gate has yet to be installed.

In an effort to avoid getting involved, the fencing contractor continued to install the rest of the fence minus the gate. Check out that progress:

But with the decision about the gate still up in the air, I think the fencers were were looking to keep their workers busy, so they decided to move ahead on their next job. Given how long the whole incident has been going on, the next house should have been built and ready for fencing, right?

Nope, wrong.

But did that stop our industrious fencers? Well, see for yourself:

Even though there was no house, they went ahead and installed the fence anyway. Evidently, the builders were shamed into doing some work, too, and before long, they had installed this floating roof.

Yes, you read that right: a floating roof.

I’m pretty sure THAT won’t cut it with the homeowners’ association, but maybe the president of the association will be distracted just long enough to let the fencing contractors get that gate reinstalled over at the red house.

Only time will tell.