More of the same

Believe me, I am working on this as much as I have time for. It may not appear to have changed much since the last post. I've finished the gigantic carnations and some of the area around them. The motifs are spaced close together, and there are a lot of them. When it's finished, it will be a full-bodied sampler. If you are even thinking about doing this one, I'd say go for it. I absolutely love it, and I'm sure it's going to be an all-time favorite stitch of mine.

If my repetitive progress report has you bored, check this out. You'll never believe who came by for a visit this weekend. Like I said on my other blog, I'm kind of creeped out because we've heard of attacks on small dogs. Can you imagine how awful that would be?

A big house, a small house, and a giant vase

Here's another week's worth of Rebecca Robinson. The small house was a much faster stitch, than the giant one, of course. The more I accomplish, the more unusual this sampler becomes. So many of the motifs are out of proportion with each other. I think that's what gives it it's charm. The large vase will hold some pretty big carnation looking type flowers. For some reason, the color of the linen doesn't show up accurately. The vintage Buttercream from Lakeside is a yummy soft butter color. The deeper hues of the thread really look nice on it.

I also need to add that I incorrectly said that it was all done in over two cross stitch. The two little birds next to the boy are over one.

Rebecca Robinson and a wall

As promised, here is my progress on Rebecca Robinson. Ohhhh, I'm so in love with this sampler. I know, I know, I'm repeating myself from my last post, but the more I stitch, the more I love it. The quirky little motifs are a little peculiar looking, but quick to do. I'm thinking of changing some of the colors. There's a whole lotta dark green going on and some of the called for colors don't have enough variance. Poor Rebecca probably just used what she had on hand.

My friend, Alice has asked me to show the wall where I hung Sarah Hartley. I've shown this wall in progress before, but I'm constantly rearranging it. We have a TV in the middle, and the next two photos show the samplers on either side. Yes, I know that some are hung low. I'm using all available space, lol. I also know that some look a bit crooked. It's a never ending battle to keep them hanging straight.

Enjoy your holiday weekend! As always, I appreciate your comments. Thanks a million.

Framing Day

It's Monday, so that means multiple loads of laundry. In between doing that, I managed to frame Sarah Hartley. I had a harder time than usual choosing the frame. I can usually zero right in on something. I can't be more pleased at how it turned out though. The molding is mottled in various colors. For added interest, I chose to have a coppery colored fillet inserted in the frame. It is so not my usual style, but it really compliments the deer. I took a close up, so maybe that will give a better view.

I finished Margaret a few days ago. For this one, I went with a simple cherry wood frame. I thought it looked the best with all of the pinks in the border.

The newest sampler, Rebecca Robinson, is hard for me to put down. I am so in love with this one, especially now that the giant house is done. I'll post a picture in a day or so.

A Very Big House

In addition to starting A Friendship Sampler, I've also started Rebecca Robinson. I have a special fondness for this type of schoolgirl sampler. I like the fact that it is also from Pennsylvania. My family settled in PA., after migrating from Germany. As you can see, I'm done with the very big house house in the middle. I'm not a huge fan of all the filling in that was required, but I love the way it looks. After using mostly pale colors in my last couple of projects, it's wonderful to be using the deep golds, greens, and blue. There's not much linen left bare on this sampler, but I'm using 40ct. vintage Buttercream from Lakeside. It's a yummy color, and I think the silks will compliment it nicely. It's all straight cross-stitch, no over one or specialty stitches. As big as it is, I'm happy for that. The stitch count is 330 wide by 250 high.

The best part is that it already has a home on a wall. For once, I know exactly where I'm going to put it. It's going to hang over my headboard in the master bedroom.

I've been trying to find inspiration to paint some new needle case sets. I'm a moody artist, and sometimes, the mood just escapes me. I wish I could just sit down and the ideas would appear out of thin air. Hopefully, I'll get back to it soon.

Thanks for the wonderful comments about Sarah and Margaret. I appreciate them all. It's seems that a lot of you are being afflicted by the contagious "Startitis" disease. I've had it myself. Let's blame it on the heat and the long days of summer.

Dog days of summer

Just look at these two lazy girls curled up on my bed. When they are worn out from chasing the beloved spitty ball, you can find them here. Ruby is on the left, and she looks none too happy to have her nap interrupted. That's Scarlett on the right.

Sarah Hartley 1827

by Historic Stitches

45ct. vintage Sand Dune by Lakeside

NPI, Inc. silks

Margaret Simcock

by The Sampler Company

40ct. cream Newcastle linen which I aged with Ritz Liquid Dye

Boy, am I glad to have these two finished. I've started A Friendship Sampler by Plum Street Samplers. Not enough progress to show yet, but it's very sweet. Believe it or not, I'm even enjoying the border. I'm fighting the urge to rummage through my stash for something else to work on, now that I'm a rotation stitcher, lol. I have found that it's nice to switch back and forth between a couple, so I may start Rebecca Robinson by The Scarlet Letter, or Do Unto Others by With Humble Heart. Decisions, decisions...

Down to the wire

All that's left is the verse for Margaret Simcock. I'm so glad to be almost done with her. Now, I need to finish Sarah Hartley. In the meantime, I've started A Friendship Sampler by Plum Street Samplers. I am getting dangerously close to having a rotation, lol. That is something I've always resisted against. I usually finish something before allowing myself a new start. I'm finding myself totally without willpower lately. Earlier today, I was thinking about the days, many, many years ago, when my "stash" consisted of the fabric I was currently using, a half full plastic box of DMC, and maybe a chart or two waiting in the wings. My how things have changed!

Here's a new needle case set going on Etsy.

By the way, if you made my muffins, let me know how you liked them. There are a lot of rhubarb lovers out there. To those of you who haven't tried it yet, what are you waiting for? Suzanne, your comment about the two women fighting over rhubarb at the market just cracked me up. I wasn't there, I swear.