Shout out to Faye (aka, Carolina Stitcher)

Well it has been far too long since I've posted here.  February ended up not being the best month for me, and March sure did seem to "come in like a lion" rearing his angry jaws.   But, now we're into double digits here already, and it's time I got out of this funky mood and back to my stitching!

First I really want to give a HUGE shout-out to Faye, whom many of you know as Carolina Stitcher from her wonderful blog.  If you haven't seen her blog, I encourage you to take a look!  (Better have some handkerchiefs ready, cause I promise you'll be drooling over her gorgeous finishing work!!)  

Here's a shot of the first project from Colonial Gathering Club.  This was suggested to be finished as a "Colonial Candle Pocket" by the designer, Plum Street Samplings.  However, I really knew I would probably not use it to carry candles, so I asked Faye if there might be a way to finish it as a pin keep. 

Well, she sure did not disappoint!   I absolutely love how she finished this for me - including a little pin all antiqued and rusted holding a little scrap of fabric.  I told Faye I think it's just too nice to risk keeping it next to my stitching spot where my Wheaten Terrier might mistake it as a TOY!  (He's not the gentlest of creatures when he has anything filled with stuffing in his teeth!)  So, for now, I have it sitting on a wall unit across from my stitching spot where I can see it and it's out of the grasp of Seamus.  

                                                 

And wait until you see Faye's work on the Little House sheep series! Or her Prairie Schooler Santa collection!  Honestly, her work speaks for itself, but I wanted to draw your attention to her blog in case you might have missed it before.  And if you happen to have any pieces that need finishing, you may just want to contact Faye yourself.  (Still can't believe I was actually toying with the idea of finishing this piece on my own - sans sewing machine or any finishing experience!) 

                             

Here's my latest "mini finish" of "A is for Anchor" by The Prairie Schooler.  I say "mini finish" because I now only need to stitch up B to Z to complete this project!  LOL!  I'm using DMC floss (one ply) on 36 count Fabric Flair Ivory evenweave for this project.  And tomorrow it's on to "B is for Blackbird" along with Jan and her group stitching this project over in Tasmania!  To give you an idea of the task ahead, take a look at the fabric I still need to fill! (Gulp) Time to get it back on the Q-snaps so I can pretend it's not that much stitching left.  ;-)  Happy Stitching! 

A GIVEAWAY, a Small SAL finish, and stitching By the Bay

Well here it is February, and I'm already slacking off on my promise to keep this blog updated more often.

First up, I've reached 200 followers, and I believe I promised A GIVEAWAY when I had ANOTHER HUNDRED PEOPLE join up as followers!   Since I've somewhat named 2014 as "The Year of the Sampler" I thought it would be appropriate to give away a beautiful sampler chart (plus a hand dyed linen and the flosses needed).

THE GIVEAWAY! WINNER ANNOUNCED FRIDAY, FEB 7th

This is C Street Samplerworks "I Sigh Not For Beauty" which was designed by Ruth Ann Russell and "inspired by late 18th Century samplers from the Boston, Massachusetts area."  It has all the things I love in a sampler design - a grand house, trees, floral border, and several birds perched here and there -- I think I even spy two butterflies.   (I apologize for this lousy photo.)

WHAT YOU'LL WIN:  the complete, brand-spanking-new chart; a 1/4 yard cut of 32 count Apple Brown Bindy hand dyed linen by R&R Reproductions; and the DMC flosses needed to stitch this.  I must confess (before I have a disgruntled giveaway winner on my hands) I didn't have three of the colors of DMC used in the model, BUT I dug my way through the boxes of STASH and was able to find some pretty close matches and all are full, unused skeins.  Yippee!  All you'll need to supply are a needle and scissors, and some lucky soul will be on their way to happy sampler stitchin' ! 

HOW TO ENTER - leave a response to this blog post BEFORE 1:00 AM Friday morning, (EST). 

Tell me YOUR plans for your 2014 stitching. You don't need to list specific goals, but tell me about a project(s) you hope to finish or start this year, or maybe a new technique you'd like to learn, or maybe a retreat you plan to attend - anything goes, really, AS LONG AS IT'S RELATED TO STITCHING. 

 I'll give each valid entry/response a number and pick one at random from a Shaker Box, and announce the winner on FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 7th. 

As for me and my stitching, I did finish a "small" for the "2014 Small SAL" I signed up for (tap logo on left side for link.) I'm posting the pic several days late, but I did actually get the stitching on this finished before January ended. This is "A Colonial Candle Pouch" - the first project sent to those stitchers participating in the Colonial Gatherings Club via Dyeing to Stitch, the R&R Reproductions' blog. It was designed by Plum Street Samplers.  I haven't done the "finishing" on it yet -- I don't own a sewing machine - but I'll figure out something.  (Those Colonial stitchers didn't have sewing machines anyway, right?)

 Col. Gatherings "Candle Pouch" by Plum Street Samplers

Keeping true to my Sampler of the Year theme, I've been working on Cornelia Vanderveer by Scarlet Letter as well as Snooty Parrots by Barbara Ana.  (I'll post pics of them next time.)  I'm having a little By the Bay SAL with my friend Kathy, which we started a couple of weeks ago.  This is where I left off on By the Bay's "Tidal River."  It's a fun project filled with the blues and greens I love plus lots of little details to bring the bayside scene to life.  The fabric is 32 count Blue Dynasty and DMC threads. 

 I'm working on this between other projects, cuz that's just the way I roll! Ha ha ha.   Until next time - good luck on the giveaway, and happy stitching! 

DON'T you wish you were HERE - hanging in a hammock, and sipping a Margarita? 

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