Little Ballerinas framed

I stitched Little Ballerinas last year and only recently had it framed. I wanted to give it to my niece for her birthday and today I was able to do that. Her birthday's not until next week but her mum wanted to have a family get together this weekend. As I thought would happen, my niece showed a small amount of enthusiasm over it, but her mother appreciated it and said it was gorgeous. I know my niece will love it more as she gets older. I got so much pleasure stitching this and it was such a joy to give it away as a gift.

CCN - Little Ballerinas. A gift for my niece.

Chocolat

As I mentioned I'm now working on Chocolat by the French designer Creations de Chrystelle. I started this the day after I finished French Heart. It's worked one over one, so is proving a bit of a challenge for me. I must admit though it's a lovely, delicate and detailed look using this method. Once I get past the cup it shouldn't be as awkward. I'm using 32ct Vintage Country Mocha linen and it needs only five different colours of DMC threads. I stitched the border on the 25th and the rest was done on the 26th January.

Latest update on Chocolat - 26 January 2009

It's still too hot here to even think about stitching at the moment. It reached 45.1 degrees (113.18 Fahrenheit) in Melbourne today, and the high 30s where I live. And here I was complaining that we weren't getting a Summer just a short while ago. :)

Anyway, I'm off to check out some of your blogs and see what you've all been doing while I've been out of touch. Be sure to check back because I'll be posting pictures of Little Ballerinas over the weekend, plus that exclusive kit I got in the mail. Bye for now!

Back Online!!!

I'm back in touch with the world again! Yippee!!! I had the phone technicians at my home this morning and they were able to fix everything and get my phone line connected again. How relieved and excited I was. I went to work with the knowledge that I'd be able to get on the Internet tonight and get back to my blogging.

As I mentioned in my last post I was able to finish French Heart. I loved stitching this as there was plenty of different needlework techniques to keep the interest going. There was nothing too difficult as Shepherd's Bush instructions are easy to follow. The only problem I had was running out of the Old Lace thread. I seemed to have plenty of French Stucco left over so maybe the quantities were mixed up. I managed to find some more Old Lace in another kit I'd already finished and used that, so no major catastrophe.

Here's some photos of it finished.

DESIGNER ~ Shepherd's Bush

PATTERN ~ French Heart

STARTED ~ 6 January 2009

FINISHED ~ 24 January 2009

FABRIC ~ 32ct Italian Linen - Sienna

THREADS ~ Threadgatherer and Soie D'Alger Silk

EMBELLISHMENTS ~ Handmade clay shoe button and Goldenrod beads (included with kit)

I haven't been stitching my current WIP the last few days as we're going through the hottest heat wave in 100 years at the moment. Temperatures have reached over 40 degrees (104 Fahrenheit) the last few days and tomorrow's going to be no different. Even next week it's still going to be in the 30s (86 and above) all week. It's just so hot and my poor cats have no energy and they're just lying about on the floor. The air conditioner is going but gives little relief in these temperatures. We'll survive though.

In my upcoming posts I'll be able to show you my progress on Chocolat, a new exclusive kit to add to my stash, plus I've had Little Ballerinas framed for my niece. I'll be giving it to her this Saturday. The frame's nothing fancy but I'm pleased with how it's turned out.

I haven't had the time tonight, but I'll try to catch up with some blogs tomorrow night. Can't wait to see what you've all been up too!

I'm still here!

Hi all! Bet you've been wondering where I've been? It's a long story and no, I haven't had some tragic accident or anything horrible like that, so no need to worry there. I had some new fences erected last week at home and while this was being done the fencing guys have accidentally managed to cut my phone line! You could imagine the horror of it. My home phone is dead (luckily I have a mobile) and the worst of it is my Internet access is down because that also runs through my phone line. I found out today from my service provider that it may be another week before it's rectified. So here I am at my sister's place tonight, using her computer, so I could do a post on my blog to let you all know what was happening.

I'm missing my blogging and finding out what everyone is doing, so I hope you're all creating wonderful projects out there. I can happily say that I've finished French Heart. It was so enjoyable and I'm so pleased with how it's finished up. I've been taking progress photos so when I'm back online properly I'll post some pics for you to see.

I've now started on one of my French designs called 'Chocolat'. It's done using one over one which I'm amazed I'm even attempting. It's driving me up the wall in some parts but I'm persevering with it. I've been asking myself 'what were you thinking' when deciding to go with the over one, but since it's not a big piece I thought I'd rise to the challenge.

Thanks for your comments lately and I'm sorry to have stopped midway through my progress on French Heart. I was so enjoying keeping you up to date with it. I just wanted to drop by to let you know I was ok and hopefully I'll be back in a week or so. I've been suffering withdrawal symptoms with the lack of Internet access and I'm looking forward to catching up with you when I return. Have fun with what you're working on and be sure I'll be back again soon!

Happy stitching everyone and take care!

An angel appears

Here's my latest progress after I got some stitching in yesterday.

French Heart - 18 January 2009

I'm gradually getting there bit by bit. The angel has made an appearance, along with some roses, flowers, and a few smaller borders. There's so many interesting sections for the eye to feast upon with this design.

I've changed the template of my blog AGAIN! Don't know how long I'll keep this one. I guess until something better comes along. :)

Thanks for dropping by, and I hope you've enjoyed the stay. You're welcome anytime!

New stash to show

As mentioned in my last post I received some new stash in the mail the other day. It was my order from The Silver Needle's New Year's Eve sale.

Most things arrived, with the odd item out of stock which I'll have to try to order next time. Mum wanted me to get some things for her as well. Here's a pic of our order...

Silver Needle NYE Order - arrived 15 January 2009

From that, this is what I got...

BENT CREEK ~ Big Zipper Kit #7 Enjoy

SHEPHERD'S BUSH ~ Queen Sheep and Glad Tidings Kits

HILLSIDE SAMPLINGS ~ Folk Art Hornbook Kit

SHEPHERD'S BUSH ~ Jolly Green Jute Bag Kit

LITTLE HOUSE NEEDLEWORKS ~ Faith Threadpack

COUNTRY COTTAGE NEEDLEWORKS ~ Sweet Treats #3, 4, 5, & 6 Threadpacks

I also got the Kelmscott Love Scissors which I've seen a number of people have, and think they're cute. I missed out on the SB Glad Tidings Fob Kit and Bent Creek Big Zipper #6 Kit (The Tire Swing). These I'll try to get again next time.

The Folk Art Hornbook I've wanted for ages, so I'm happy to have finally got it. I've now got all series in the CCN Sweet Treats. Just need some fabric for that one which I haven't decided what colour yet. And I can't do an order without including at least one SB item. :) They are still my favourite designers and I adore their kits. Queen Sheep is so cute that I couldn't resist adding it to my stash. Glad Tidings is one of their new Christmas kits, and Jolly is a pre-made jute bag kit which you just stitch the design on the front.

I'm laughing at some of your comments lately where I seem to be recruiting a few new Shepherd's Bush fans. I should be getting commission from them! Honestly though, I'm just so happy to let people know how wonderful their things are. I do love their new 2009 Scissor Fob. This you have to order direct from SB. Might just have to do an order with them one day!

Hope you've enjoyed seeing what new things I've added to my stash. I know it's exciting to see what you all get. Hope you have a great weekend and keep stitching those adorable projects.

A rose by name

I'm still going strong with French Heart and loving it. Last night I did a little more including over one with the word 'rose'. Other stitches done were Padded Scotch Stitch underneath, and to the left another border in a Hen's Foot stitch. I'm really enjoying all the different stitches in this design. Some I have done before and others are new to me.

French Heart - 15 January 2009

I think Shepherd's Bush kits are fantastic as they include everything needed to complete the design. No hunting around shops or the Internet to find the right thread or fabric required, it's all ready to go. They also include the cutest thread card to hold all the threads for the pattern your working on. It's only made of thin cardboard but it has printed on top a motif with their popular designs - moon, stars, flower, sheep, and heart. Underneath this is their name and to finish it off it's cut into the shape of a heart. There's usually ample holes for all your thread colours, and somehow makes your kit feel complete. Even their smaller kits include this thread card. The only thing that changes with each kit is the colour of the motif on the card.

Shepherd's Bush Thread Card - included with every kit

Just thought I'd entice your appetite a little and let you know that I have received some new stash in the mail. I'll let you hang on for my next post to find out what I got!

I promised to show you...

...my latest pictures of where I got up to with French Heart last night.

French Heart - 13 January 2009

I worked on what they call the 'house' area. Simple stitching with only cross and back stitching required. The only other feature was a Satin Stitch below the house. There's some more beading to be placed. One in the centre of the flower in the house, and others on the flower vine at the bottom. Below this, where the space is, the shoe button will eventually be placed.

This design has certainly been a bit more challenging but not what I would call difficult. I'm far from there yet but I'm looking forward to seeing it finished. Not that I've had enough of it though, as I'm enjoying working on it. I'm just eager to see the end result. Myself, along with you all, will just have to be patient. :)

A warm glow

No new progress to show as I didn't work on French Heart last night. What I did do was take some photos of my current progress in the late afternoon glow before the sun went down. I think it's a nice look with the warm light.


I got some more stitching in tonight though, hence the late post, but will take some photos tomorrow and show you then. Stay tuned!

Latest progress

Just a quick post tonight to show you where I got to on French Heart last night. No one over one to do which was good!

French Heart - 11 January 2009

The border on the right is called Hungarian, and the one at the top is Triplet. Both very easy to do. There's yellow beads to go on the purple bud vine but I will wait til last to put those on as I stitch with a hoop.

Hungarian and Triplet stitching

I may have a break from stitching tonight. We'll see...