Slow Stitching

 I am so enjoying this slow stitching time. I continue to have 3 projects going. They aren’t in constant rotation since 2 of the projects are stitch along style where a small portion of the design is given weekly. The majority of my time is going into the Oh Canada Sampler designed by Victoria Samplers. I’ve made good progress on it this past week, although the satin stitch stars gave me some headaches and had to be ripped out numerous times before I got the spacing correct. Now that it is figured out the stars are going quickly. This piece just might be done by this time next week. The stars are row 13 out of 15. I have two more samplers here with fabrics and threads ready to start once this one is finished. 

My second project is also from the Victoria Sampler folks. It’s a free stitch along for a monthly calendar representation. A section of each monthly design is released weekly on Fridays.

And then there is a weekly stitch along put out by the Peppermint Purple website. Each week presents a new square or rectangle with blackwork geometric designs. These are released every Wednesday. I haven’t done this week’s yet. They are relatively quick and easy to do.

I picked up the frames for my finished pieces yesterday. I watched a youtube video on how to lace the finished stitcheries in order to get them stretched and centred onto the backing boards. Now all I need is to get the loose threads trimmed from the backs and I can get started on that. I have to finish the beading on the Family sampler before I can frame it though. Maybe I should get those beads sewn on today. Then when the the mood and the courage strike, I can get it framed.

I’m going to link up to Kathy’s Slow Sunday Stitching.

Slow Stitching all week long

 My machine sewing supplies continue to be all packed away waiting for the move that is happening in the next couple of months. So in the meantime, I slow stitch by hand. And that is a good thing because it is soothing and relaxing. It just might get warm enough today to actually take my stitching outside into the sun..... I hope.

I have finished the Victoria Samplers Family Sampler. We went and picked out frames for it last week. I’m hoping they will be in this week and then I can get it stretched and framed so it can count as fully finished. Here’s a close up showing the finished pulled thread work at the bottom. I have never done anything like this before, so it was a bit of a challenge. But I like learning new things so it was fun too.

I’ve done some more work on the monthly sampler that Victoria Sampler is doing. The fourth part for March was released on Friday and I’m hoping to get that done today.

And then because I’ve had a couple of finishes in the past couple of weeks, I treated myself to a new start. This is also from the Victoria Sampler people. Considering I started this last Wednesday, it is going quickly. It a piece celebrating Canada. 

It has the cutest goose in the row I’m currently doing. This is row 7 out of 15 so almost halfway done this one. I am hoping that in our new place I will have a wall somewhere dedicated to this kind of needle work. 

I’m linking up to Kathy’s Slow Sunday Stitching.

Slow Stitching

 I continue to do exclusively hand work these days. My sewing machines and most of my fabrics are all packed away waiting to be moved to wherever it is that we end up. The search for a house that is suitable for all of us for an affordable price up in the very expensive region of Muskoka continues. There was one that was really good for the inside area, but the outside was too small. Very small narrow driveway with no parking allowed on the street, so that one got nixed. I’m confident something will come up. In the meantime, I continue to do cross stitch projects that will get framed and hung on the walls of wherever we end up.

I finished part 5 of the Mandala Millefiori from Peppermint Purple. Part 6 will be released on Monday. It will go in the bottom right of the piece. 

I joined the Peppermint Purple Facebook page because there was talk of a year long sew along which I was curious about. Dangerous, I know. Well once I saw it, I had to join in. There is a new square or rectangle released every Wednesday. I spent yesterday doing the first 9. It is such an enjoyable process. Almost like instant gratification for stitchers. The are choices for different borders to go around the whole thing. I have one of them that I really like but I’ll wait for a while and get more of the squares done before I make a decision.

And then there is the wonderful Family Sampler from Victoria Samplers. It is such a fun and challenging project to do. Every row has new and different stitches. I have a hard time putting it down. Here’s this week’s progress. And a picture of the whole thing so far. I had to set it aside for a bit while I did some thinking. The next row of text on the pattern shows the names of the families, so it would be my maiden name and my married name. However, I don’t have fond memories at all of my childhood, so I don’t particularly want that name front and centre all the time. Plus I wanted it to be a bit more generic for if it eventually gets passed down to other family members. So instead I did some searching in the scriptures for a verse that speaks to family and the Lord’s blessings. I found a perfect reflection of that in Psalm 103:17-18. So that scripture reference is going to go in the place of the names. This is so close to being finished. I will work on it today.

I’m linking up to Kathy’s Slow Sunday Stitching.