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Saturday, October 13, 2012

Sailing Along

Hello everyone!  At long last, we're finally getting a glimmer of cooler weather to come here in the Sunshine State.  Ruby and Molly have been enjoying it thoroughly.


As you can see, Aussies have a very thick, shaggy coat, a lot like Collies do.  It makes playing in the back yard on summer days hot. buggy and messy for all involved.  Needless to say, when the first breath of cooler, dryer air blows in during October, these girls are overjoyed and more than a little rambunctious!

October has also brought a lot of employment changes for me as well.   Thank goodness, I'm now back at work full time.  Income issues aside though, my biggest fear in returning to a real job was that I would lose all my quality time for stitching.  So far, I've managed to keep my priorities in order!.  Let me show you what I mean.  Here's progress as of this morning on Atocha....


I've loved every stitch of this so far, even those that I've pulled out more than once. 



This little ship is my favorite motif to date.  I had my doubts the sails would have enough contrast on the linen. along with reservations the reddish brown tone I chose for the ships was going to work with all the blues and greens of the sea life.  But now that the first ship is launched, I'm tickled to pieces with it.

Then there are the sea creatures ...


And this little dude was a joy!  He looks exactly like the crabs we find at the Canaveral National Shore.


Last off , there's the manatee.  How Florida is he?



You're probably wondering what those two skeins of gray floss are doing beside him.  Well, I've never been quite satisfied with that orangish brown shade I worked him in. When you spot manatee  floating along in the Gulf Stream, they're just not the shade of sweet potatoes!  So he's coming out and will be reborn in the darker, more natural gray.  There's going to be a big whale at the center bottom so I'm guessing this color change will pull it all together in the long run.


A finish on Sarah Seifer - or what will probably be all I'm willing to put in - has also been reached!  Here she is...


Sarah may still end up  inside the lid of one of my cool wooden cigar boxes, but when Jim mentioned getting her framed, I had to reconsider.  If we do this, I probably would want to finish her all the way with the border from the original design  So my dilemma is "Do I turn her into a really cool cigar box?"  or "Do I put in the time and expense of turning her into a real piece of art?"  What would you do?

Anyway, I'm in a very good place these days - things seem to be sailing along smoothly on all fronts.  Hope this finds you in calm seas too!  Thanks for stopping by...I love your comments...

9 comments:

Nicola said...

I think your colour choices work very well with the linen.

Jackie's Stitches said...

I'm sure you'll come up with what works best for Sarah Seifer. It's a beautiful piece! As is the other project you're working on - love the colors and everything works very well with the linen.

Margaret said...

Very nice about the job! I hope you're liking working full time again. It's good you still have time for stitching too. That would be my worry too. Love your piece!!! Gorgeous! I think the manatee is fun in that color, but I know you're right -- manatees are grey. lol! Been to Florida and seen them quite a bit. Love your Sarah Seifer finish! I'm not sure what I would do -- I do love the idea of the cool box. But it would be a beautiful framed piece too. Stitch it twice? lol!

Catherine said...

Cute pups! Our pup is not a hot weather dog, and now that it is cooler, he is very frisky! Love your stitches!! The manatee will look great in grey, even though it is a fun color now. Love your finish as well ~ if it was mine, I'd frame it as is. Love it!

marly said...

What sweet pooches!! They look like happy girls. My computer isn't showing the picture of Sarah so I'll check back later. Your colors on the other are spectacular!

Lois said...

Atocha is coming along so nicely! I do think Sarah will be lovely in that cigar box so my thoughts are to do it in the cigar box and down the line you can always stitch her again and get her framed! I can well imagine the dogs are enjoying the cooler weather - great pic of them. Lastly (but not least!), great news about the job!

Poussy Stitches My Love said...

OH I love your stitching, abd beautiful dogs !

bisous de FRANCE

Carol said...

Your dogs do, indeed, look happier with the cooler whether, Mary. My brother had two dogs very similar looking to your Aussies :)

Glad your return to full time work is still allowing some stitching time. The Atocha piece is charming and the finish of Sarah is so pretty...I would probably frame mine, but either way will look great!

Enjoy your weekd :)

Keeper of the Crowes said...

So glad to hear that you're back at work full time!!! Your samplers are fabulous. Really love your color palette.
Linda