Two Anns and a Jane

What fun it's been to see the choices being made for this great stitch along!  As soon as I saw Nicola's posting about it, I knew it was something I'd just have to do.  There have been several SL charts in my stash for a long time, with vague plans for doing at least one of them .....someday.....!!  But I think this is finally the push I've needed to make a commitment.

Krista, it looks as though you and I can be partners, because I have also decided that I'll be starting Ann Grimshaw just as soon as I have a few other little projects tidied up.

I also wasn't feeling the black and wanted a subtle variegated blue.  Turns out, I've been hoarding a skein of Silk n' Colors with the intriguing name of Finnegan's Fog for years, just waiting for the perfect opportunity to use it.  This is most definitely it.  Seems to me there's a big piece of vintage 40 count in the linen box with no specific purpose that ought to just suit this perfectly. 

At the risk of waaaaayyyy over-committing myself, I've also decided to at least make a start at some point on Jane Atkinson.

Yesterday's rummage through the stash boxes wasn't quite so productive for this one though.  It would break my heart to stitch it in anything other than silk. But after a quick scan of what was called for, I saw I only had 3 or the 26 shades of Au Ver A Soie on hand. Once all the silk has been acquired, I'll get going on this wild beauty too.

I'm so looking forward to reading more about each other's choices!

Thanksgiving Birds

Happy Thanksgiving to all!  I've been up since 5:00 am this morning.  Not cooking, but savoring the time and making plans. Being up so early, I was able to head out for my usual morning walk shortly after sun up. 

One thing is for certain about life in Florida, you never know when you'll have an unexpected encounter with wildlife.  It was such a thrill to be trekking along the usual path, only to be surprised by a gaggle of sand hill cranes stalking along behind me.  A speedy dash to the car, a short sprint home, quick, grab the camera! and repeat in reverse back to the park and along the walking path..  Of course, they were long gone by the time I got back, probably laughing at me all the way out.  Oh well, as my photographer husband always says, some things in life are meant to be experienced, not captured.  Today I should be thankful to have this bit of wisdom.  But mostly I'm just happy that in spite of missing the cranes, the dash to capture them forced an extra lap and a speedier pace into the usual morning walk.

And even more in keeping with the day, I found a few more unexpected birds in my stitching closet, just in time for sharing. 

I stitched these guys years ago, probably even before my Shepherd's Bush days.  Note the huge klostern this dude is worked on.  That should date him a little?

This fellow was found along with the ravaged Prairie Schooler Santas I'm trying to refurbish.  Please ignore the blob of craft glue on his tail.  Well, I've already said finishing isn't my strong suit, but even I have enough sense to know better than that now!  Maybe a good New Year's resolution for me will be to improve my skills in that area.  Either that, or just to quit trying and hand them off to a finisher.

So last off, I thought I'd share a quick update on progress with Atocha.  Here's where I am, though further changes are going to happen.

I'm having so much fun with this, but have decided that a few things have to go.  Jim pointed out that there would never be a sperm whale cruising around in the Gulf of Mexico.  Of course, he didn't mention it until after the big guy was finished.  Same thing with the little seal floating under the manatee.  So as soon as the smaller stuff on the left side is in place, I'm going to make that whale into a pair of swordfish, which  I think I can pull off by adapting the dolphin design.  As for the seal, he's going to mutate into a stingray.in the same soft brown as the ships.  When all that is the way I like it, I'm going to give it a rest before putting in the big ship in the middle.  Back in September when I started this, I promised myself  I'd go back to Jean Rattray (remember her?)with enough time to finish her before the end of the year.   The clock is ticking and poor Jean still lingers on...

Our Thanksgiving celebration happened last weekend so that Jim could have some time in Illinois with his elderly parents today.  I'm thinking of them and having fun with  Halley and the dogs this morning.  I'm grateful for all the richness in my life and the time to appreciate it.  Here's wishing that for you too!

And They Sinned, Framed At Last!

Good morning everyone!  I'm so happy and excited to share the big news - my And They Sinned is finally framed and displayed!!

My birthday was a few weekends ago.  Jim asked if there was anything special I would like as a gift and the words "I want to do some framing!" flew out of my mouth so fast I didn't have a moment to even think about anything else.  Since ATS was at the top of my finished pile, that's what we decided to take in to the frame shop.

We've had many of Jim's photographs framed at this shop before but this was the first time I'd taken any of my stitching into them.  The lady there said it was by far the biggest piece of needlework she'd ever had the opportunity to frame.  Wait til she sees my Sarah Tatum!

You can see in this detail how perfect the frame molding is for the piece. It's rustic looking, but not too weathered.  And I love how the scrolly detail on the outer edge mirrors the vine around the borders of the stitching.  The subtle gold band on the inner edge just adds a little polish, don't you think?

 

I knew we'd have to wait for two weeks while the work was being done. But when I headed off to the office yesterday morning, I had to make myself stop from getting my hopes up that there would be a call from the framer when I got back home.  Little did I know, she's actually finished it earlier in the week and had been in touch with Jim already.  So when I did get back from work, it was already home and hung in its place of honor at the end of the hallway.  What a thrill!  It was the perfect birthday gift from start to finish.

 

Anyway, thanks so much for taking a look at my long in process masterpiece,  What is it about seeing your stitching finally framed and displayed that makes you want to stitch with even more diligence?  All I know is that withe the long Thanksgiving weekend approaching, my needle will be flying!  I hope each of you has the chance to spend the day with the people and things you are most thankful for.

Repurposing Santa

Good Sunday morning to everyone and happy November!  Hard to believe, isn't it?  I was delighted and thrilled early this morning to be be awakened by the distinct, eery hooting of a great horned owl somewhere out in the oak trees of our swamp.  While I'm sure they're  there all year long, it's only during the fall and winter that we seem to hear them calling in the early mornings.  To me it's a sure sign that the seasons have changed at last.

Now, on to stitching news, something I hope I can figure out in time for the upcoming holidays.

While rumbling around in my stitching closet this summer, I came across a bag of old Prairie Schooler things I'd stitched so long ago I didn't have the slightest clue about how to turn them into finished ornaments.

The best I could come up with at the time was to simply seam them together with a piece of synthetic felt, stuff them with a little polyfill and tie on a ribbon.  What was I thinking??

This abuse wasn't limited to just Santa....

As Christmases came and went I dutifully stitched a new Santa.

But never figured out a better way to give him the finish he deserved.

As ny stitching tastes moved more to samplers and larger projects, I eventually stopped the annual Santa mauling and relegated these poor guys to the back of the closet.  There they stayed, shabby as ever, for more years than I'm willing to own up to.

But then I started following all your amazing blogs and got a glimpse of all the clever things being done with Prairie Schooler Santas.  So when I found the bag o' Santas in the stash closet this summer, I spent a very sad afternoon carefully trying to trim the cheesy felt backing off of them without ruining the stitching completely.  The raggedy edges you see on all these are the end result.  To prevent any further fraying - these guys are all on 18 count jobelan, and you know what that's like - I stablized the stitching with some iron-on interfacing.  But now I'm stymied.  What to do with them?

You can see, like in the one above, that there's next to nothing beside the edges of the stitching. Obviously, finishing has never been my forte - that's why I'm in a constant state of awe when I see how wonderfully some of you can whip your smalls into little finished gems.   

Does anyone have a thought as to refinishing these little beauties with the little- to- no borders that are left?  Suggestions, ideas, prayers......all will be welcome!
..

As always, thanks for stopping by and for steering other bloggers this way.  Maybe there's hope for these guys yet!