Starting Out

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sampler1

I am really enjoying this 1884 sampler. It is fun and relaxing to stitch, just as a project should be. I know it looks like I made a mistake, but I didn’t. It is kind of weird to see a sampler from the 1880s without a J, though. Usually samplers before 1800 were the ones made using the old alphabet. I’m not sure exactly why this one has omitted it, but I love older samplers and will be changing the stitcher’s name and date anyway. I’m thinking of sometime in the early 1800s, but I have to scour my family tree on ancestry.com to see who this sampler should be named after. I think she will have to have had a short name, in order for it to fit into Flora’s design!

XXX
Carrie



Finishing Time!

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biscornuneedlebook

biscornucloseupThe biscornu is now all put together, except for the buttons. I accidentally bought the wrong size, and they are too large. Grrr! I will have to wait until I get back to town to buy some new ones and return the others. I will also have to find some wool or felt to make the needlebook pages. I have the cross stitch motif finished and fringed and just need to get the book put together. I live so far away from any kind of stores, and even when I do get to town all we have is Wal-mart and a small Joann Fabrics. So I might have to wait until I go on vacation to try to find the pages for the needlebook.

I am not sure if I will make another biscornu. It was extremely hard for me to put together, and by the end my fingers were in a lot of pain. I don’t recommend it for anyone who suffers from any type of arthritis or other hand ailment. I am also not 100% happy with the edges. The directions called for using one strand of floss to whip stitch everything together, while most other instructions I have found call for two. I think if I were to make another in the future, I would stick with Aida instead of stitching on linen. My backstitches seemed to get lost in the linen, making it hard to find a stitch to sew through.

XXX
Carrie


1884 Flora Dellow Sampler

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sanqThis is the sampler that caught my eye in the current issue of Sampler & Antique Needlework Quarterly. It only contains two colors, cream and red, and is a pretty straightforward project. Something I have always wanted to do was to have a huge stash of stitched reproduction samplers, all with one of my ancestors’ names in place of the original. Each sampler would be stitched on linen, of course, and I would try to “age” it by tea dying and snipping holes in the fabric here and there. I have never had time to actually follow through with this plan, though. And I rarely find a sampler that really speaks to me. Most samplers have motifs of people, trees, birds, and crowns. I actually prefer samplers that contain only alphabets or sayings. This Flora Dellow sampler might be just the project to start on after my current project is finished. I could stitch this on a scroll frame, and at the same time be working on the petal pincushion pieces. I like having different sized projects on the go at the same time.

XXX
Carrie


Almost there!

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I am so close to finishing the second side of the biscornu! Since tomorrow is Friday, hopefully I can stay up and finish it. I think I will go ahead and put both the needlebook and biscornu together before I start on the fob. Stitching over one is not really my thing, and I don’t think I could do it right now with the dark winter days we’ve been having. Stitching should be fun, not a chore. Straining to see those tiny holes definitely sounds like a chore. So that means it will be time for a new project! Of course, The World of Cross Stitch magazine had to come in the mail yesterday, along with Sampler and Antique Needlework a few days ago. I think I need more time in each day. And a bigger house!

XXX
Carrie


A Pretty Pincushion

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jcsapril2014I’ve come across another design which I really want to stitch – this gorgeous petal pincushion from Simona Bussiglieri of Mani di Donna. It is featured on the cover of the April 2014 issue of Just Cross Stitch. The panels are stitched on 32 count Belfast linen and are then finished off with rickrack, ribbons, and buttons. There are two different panels, one for the outside and one for the inside of each petal. You stitch each panel four times, so you end up with 8 panel pieces. The inside of the pincushion is a separate, smaller chart.

The last thing I need right now is a new chart. I keep telling myself I HAVE to finish that woodland deer and my daughter’s Christmas stocking. Oh, and the Peacock Tapestry as well. And then there are those embroidered pillowcases I started so many years ago… But for the last two weeks I have kept coming back to this pretty pincushion design, itching to start on it. I guess it couldn’t hurt to gather the materials needed, just in case. It calls for only three colors of floss, but they are Weeks Dye Works and Simply Shaker Sampler Threads. I would be using the DMC alternatives, since I have an almost endless supply of those. The Belfast linen is actually dyed by Lakeside Linens, but as the normal Belfast straight from Zweigart is about $70 per yard, I think I will stick to the good old fashioned stuff. I probably have enough in my stash already (I hope!)

You should currently be able to find this issue on newsstands, as I received my subscription copy about 2 weeks ago.

XXX
Carrie


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dritzI am about 25% of the way done with the second side of the biscornu chart, and when I am done I will start on the over-one scissors fob. It dawned on me that I don’t have a nice pair of scissors to attach the fob to. The ones I use most often are a cheap plastic pair with blue handles that fold up. I believe they are by Dritz, because they look just like this photo. I think it will be time, once I get the fob stitched and made up, to treat myself to a nice pair of scissors. Maybe that can be my goal, something to look forward to in order to get through stitching a decent sized chart over one on 28 count!

XXX
Carrie