Tea Towel Finished! Believe it, or not!

I decided to leave my counted crosstitch projects for awhile so that I could actually FINISH a project.

I stamped up several towels and finished this towel in one evening. I added green accents as the person who'll be getting it has a green kitchen. I will be adding words, but that will come after I've finished the other two towels in this set.

It's great to have something done for once!



Thanks for stopping by today.

Shores, Cobblestone, and "Interesting" Photos

 

The pattern above is The Shores of Hawk Run Hollow by Carriage House Samplings. I love the colors, and how the various motifs fit together so well. I've seen this one stitched up in photos, but never in person. Isn't it gorgeous?

I have been working a bit on my sampler this week, and I'll have to post an update soon. I am pulling a tiny bit of the cobblestone details and flowers from this piece I stitched way back when:



I'm placing those elements around the Tudor style house.

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I am a complete nerd, and I check from time to time to see which photos on our Flickr account are 'most popular' with people who view the photos. In case you want to see a few, here are the most popular ones according to how 'interesting' they are to other Flickr members. I guess the 'interesting' factor is based on views, comments, and how many people call it a favorite of theirs on Flickr. Much to my husband's dismay the most popular photos are all photos of needlework. The first non-needlework popular one is the tenth most 'interesting' photo, and it's a photo of one of our cats!

This photo is the #1 most 'interesting' one I've posted on Flickr. It's a photo of an apron my brother and his wife bought for our mom while touring Russia and the Baltic States. Isn't it fascinating how it's all stitched up in chain stitches?



The next most popular photo is this one:



I stitched that shirt back when I was a teenager, and this is a close-up of the shirt's cuff. I sure wish it fit me now! Although I think at this age I would look very weird wearing it....I would look "teenile". I love that word--teenager combined with senile.

Here's the next photo:



It's a freebie that took me years to stitch. I got it from the DMC corporation, and the designer is Stoney Creek. I am sad to admit that I still don't have it framed. I started it in 1987, I believe, and finished it in 2002 or so. It's one of my last 'Aida' pieces that was started before my plunge into evenweave fabrics.

The next most 'interesting' photo we posted is this one:




I stitched this pillowcase set for my sister-in-law. I really had fun with them, and I loved using DMC's variation threads here and there.

Finally, our fifth most popular photo according to the "interestingness" factor on Flickr is this one:



I only have to finish the bottom portion, then I'm done! It's Mirabilia's Summer Queen. I haven't worked on it in over 18 months. Perhaps I should put the Sampler away, and finish this one. What would you do?

Thanks for stopping by today.

Tea Towel

I am so elated that it's November. I just hope it continues to cool off with each passing day. It was supposed to be in the high eighties yesterday, but as I walked around outside at work it felt much hotter than that, and the sun was exceptionally bright.

Today I wanted to show a towel I embroidered over a year ago, but I never posted it here. It is one of three tea towels that were begun by my mom, but she decided I would like to finish them more than she would. I have so many embroidery patterns just waiting to be stamped on tea towels, pillowcases, and dresser scarves for stitching but I never seem to get to started on anything new.


Here it is:




I did two other similar ones for two other days of the week, but I neglected to photograph them. In the past year I've used them quite often so I don't think at this point they're worthy of any sort of display.

I have a ton of work to do this weekend for my job. Perhaps I'll find an hour or two to work on my sampler.

Thanks for stopping by here today!

Old Dresser Scarf -Stamped Embroidery

Thanks for your supportive comments regarding my dad and his health. I appreciate it a lot. It's been a very hard time, but it's great to have the love of family and friends during a time like this.

I decided to share a photo of a dresser scarf I crosstitched for my parents' upstairs antique room awhile ago. I used 'antique' colors, or at least I considered them to be old-fashioned. Here it is:


I also wanted to show you the birds that have been enjoying the finch feeder we hung in May. It's amazing how many birds have come to our yard because of this feeder.



I have stitched a bit this past week, and I'll share a progress photo soon. I finished the 8th house in my sampler, and have just two left to do. After that I'll add the garden elements and some sort of border.

Take care!

Embroidered Pillowcase Happy Dance

I'm happy to say that I finished one of the two pillowcases I've been working on in the evenings throughout the past month or so. Well, I thought it was finished but after I put the photos on Flickr I noticed that I need to complete one of the flower stems! It will only take me a few minutes, so for that reason I'm still posting this as a finished project.

I don't know what I am going to do with this set of pillowcases, except for keep it for a future gift for a family member. My mother-in-law bought these for me already stamped and ready to stitch. She has been gone now for 13 years, so that tells you how long they sat stamped and ready to go in my stash drawer!

I used regular DMC thread, variegated thread, and color variations thread. I liked the color variation type a lot as it changes color more often.

Here's a full view of the design:




Here's a few detail shots. I took some more that better show the color variations thread, but the photos turned out too shadowed.





Today is the last day of vacation before students arrive tomorrow! Time to get to the details I have left before that important time.

More VOS (Very Old Stitching)

I'm so glad I hung onto this shirt. I embroidered it way back when I was in high school. I have finally mastered more camera skills, so now I can share some photos.Back in March I showed some other VOS here, if you care to take a peek at that.

Above you can see the front view of the shirt. I should have used a brighter yellow for the herringbone stitch down the front, but I'm sure that was the only yellow I had available to use.

Here's that herringbone stitch:




Here is a picture of the sleeve's cuff:

I really like how the sleeve's cuff turned out on this shirt.

Finally, here's the cottage at the end of the rainbow:

Someday I'll have to embroider another one of these shirts. Will I have the nerve to ever actually wear it? That's another subject completely.

Wonderful Chain Stitches

I've been meaning to share these photos for a long time, but now that I can post them so much more easily it's finally getting done!

These are pictures of a beautiful chain-stitched apron that my mom is wearing. She received it from my brother and his wife after their vacation in Russia. I wish the photo were shot closer up so you could truly see the intricacy of the chain stitching.

Isn't it beautiful?

Some VOS (Very Old Stitching)

I came upon these photos of some shorts I embroidered back in 1975, right after I learned how to embroider. Amazing that I still have these shorts, isn't it? I sure can't fit in them anymore. I remember how hard it was to stitch through the thick denim, especially with the french knots and satin stitches! Did you ever embroider on denim jeans, shorts, or perhaps on that old chambray shirt? Ahhh, the 70s. Was it really 30 years ago?