Enough shop talk. On to the stitchy talk. Here's a little pic of my progress on Shores Block 2. Just a couple of fish and the remainder of the eel, and this baby's finished. That seaweed took me a long time. I was trying to watch movies while stitching it, and I had to divide my attention appropriately. Also entertaining me during stitching time has The Help on cd. What a great book! I stitched at a much faster pace while listening to it.
When you're stitching something untamed like that seaweed, do you pick out paths to follow? I do! Is it just me? I pick out paths that will make my stitching more efficient (kind of like working my way through a maze), so I'll have fewer stops and starts and shorter carried threads. Could this be that crazy OCD issue I've written about before? Or is it my feeble mind trying to find something extra to work on? Or is it my brain trying to free me from all the other things I have to think about? Hard to say.
Wanna see a couple of planned projects? Below is a picture of the supplies I've gathered to stitch Reed's Stocking by Shepherd's Bush.
To understand why I'm starting it, you'll have to hear a little story. My 25-year-old daughter, Nikki, sneakily (so like her mother) got married this summer (sigh ... I think 30 is a good age to get married, and yes, I realize that this isn't about me.). So I have a son-in-law (oh, my gosh!) who needs a pretty Christmas stocking like the rest of the family. Being a stitchy kind of mother-in-law (Geez, Louise, I'm a mother-in-law), I'll be getting that stocking done ASAP. All of those other projects will have to take a giant step back to let the stocking cut into line. Ready for the good news? Nikki will be having a baby at the end of March (huge gasp)! I know! Then I'll get to stitch a grandbaby stocking ... when not holding that baby, of course. I'm from a family of confirmed baby nuts. We love, love, love babies. It's nice to have something big to look forward to.
Something else I'd like to start is Sarah Esh. It's an OOP reproduction sampler that I was lucky enough to find on Kathy Barrick Dieter's (Carriage House Samplings) Etsy site. It's been on my list of have-to-haves for a long time, and I'm very excited about (eventually) stitching it. In the picture below is my conversion from DMC to Gumnuts Stars (my favorite fiber ... so far) and one Silk 'n Colors that Stars didn't have a close match for. I think the fibers will work out well, but I'm gonna have to have a little fabric spa time in the kitchen to work one of my stash fabrics into a suitably splotchy state. The Lambswool in the pic just isn't vintage enough for me.
It's time for this post to end. It started two hours ago, but my slow-as-a-snail computer needed a restart a while back, and I got sidetracked. Hope you're all having a good week. Thanks so much to you who visit and comment. Comments are like getting little letters from people who understand what's been written.
Make some fun.
20 comments:
Wow!! Lots of good news! Great progress on Shores. And congrats to Nikki on getting hitched and the pregnancy and you for your soon to be grandma status!
Oh wow, lots of congratulations flying your way! BIG news! Wishing everyone the best. :D
Your conversion looks gorgeous to me - what wonderful colors. Aren't Kathy's patterns fabulous?! :D Oh, and your SOHRH block looks great. I often try to pick paths, too, but that's a fairly new outlook for me. OCD, indeed. ;)
YEAH! Congratulations on your Nikki's pregnancy! I love your Shores progress and yes, I find a pathway too for things like that seaweed.
I stitched that stocking for one of my boys and just love it.
Love your threads for your new stitch. Really pretty.
Wow - where to begin! First off congratulations on becoming a MIL! And to boot - a soon to be grandmother! How exciting is that! You must be absolutely thrilled to death! Congratulations to everyone! And woo-hoo on Shores. Didn't that block go fairly quickly? I'm like you and try to always find the path of least resistance. I'm glad that someone else stitches that way. I know that I suffer a little OCD, but at the same time I like to stitch as fast as I can!
Like the projects that you have lined up too. I've got Sarah Esch in my lineup too - it's such a great pattern - but I don't know when I'll get to it.
Congratulations again on everything!!
Hey Doris, I just picked up " The Help" book yesterday at the library . It had been on hold forever and now it's my turn. The CD sounds like a better idea as I could stitch at the same time. As usual love, love .love your stitching . Congrats on Nikki's news. Can hardly wait to see what you will stitch for your new little grandbaby! I know you have had some challenges at the new school . thinking of you:)
CONGRATULATIONS!!!! That is such great news. Both your DD's marriage and the baby! I bet you can't wait to hold that little baby!
Well, grandma...grandma? grandmother? mimi? nana? granny? gram?...Anyway, congratulations and all that. Those stockings go pretty quickly, when you focus on them.
I like your comment about comments too.
Oh I definitely pick out paths to follow on something like that coral! It's the only way to go! lol! I don't see how you could have watched something and stitched that at the same time -- the coral would take my full attention! :D Congratulations on the wedding and the future grandchild! How exciting! I see a lot of stockings in your future. :D I want to stitch Sarah Esh someday too. I'm looking forward to seeing yours and being inspired.
Congrats on soon being a grandmother!!! OOOOH, girl.
Your block stitching is beautiful. Yeppers, that seaweed would have drove me nuts to stitch but it looks great!
The darker evenings are more time to stitch for me. But my hubbie and I noticed our evening walks will have to get earlier and earlier.
Jennifer
Woo Hoo, you! Such happy news! I am assuming that you were married in the womb and then had your lovely daughter while in pre-school?
Congratulations!
P.S. Love the threads!
Doris, Congratulations!! You are going to be adding the title "grandmother" along with "mother-in-law." What an exciting time for you all. Love, love, love Reed's stocking. It was the first stocking that I made and I stitched it for my son.
Block 2 looks great! You are way ahead of me. I am still on the seaweed, but I haven't picked it up in some time. I do the path thing too. :) Love listening to books while stitching. Wasn't The Help just great?
Glad to hear that school year is going a little better.
Hope you have a great weekend!
Well wow! Huge congrats on the grandbaby, now that's exciting news.
I do the path thing too when I am stitching wandering things. Love your Shores and the conversion for Sarah Esh!
Yes, Doris, I definitely pick and chart the most efficient paths to stitch. Love the progress of Shores. Congratulations, grandmama to be!
Hugs,
I most always will pick the path of easy when doing things like the seaweed...funny,I am on the seweed part of block 2 right now myself and that is what I am doing...I am doing a block a month so you will probably pass me!~! Although you have additions to the family that I have not gotton to yet....Wow!~ congrats!~~ Big time!
Well, congratulations on the wonderful news, Granny Doris! How did that sound?
I loved listening to The Help as well. Such a great story and the audio version is so well executed!
Have fun with all your stitchy projects!
Congrats on the wedding and especially on the grandbaby on the way -- how exciting!
I also plot a path when I'm stitching something convoluted like your seaweed....and sometimes when I'm not. I don't think it's OCD; it's just efficiency!
Congratulations on the happy news. Being a MIL and becoming a grandma in a couple of months - what do you want more, lol.
I always try to pick a path in my stitching. This way it's easier for me to get such things like corals, weeds or twigs stitched without frogging. BTW, nice progress on the Shores block.
The stocking will be fun to stitch like all the SB stockings.
Wow!! What good news, congratulations on the new SIL and becoming a grandmother next year. Woo hoo!
Great progress on Shores. I mentally figure out which way to stitch is most efficient, too. Isn't "The Help" amazing? My only problem is that it ended. What a fabulous book, and I think the readers did an incredible job.
Love the kitted up soon to be WIPs. Sarah Esh was a fun stitch. I think they look like little cavemen A&E. LOL I have to do a SB stocking for my niece. I hate using perle cotton. Oh, the things you do for love!
Gosh! Doris, you have so much going on..and so much joy! It's wonderful to be a grandmother. So happy for you.
Shores looks good...I try to take little "bites" out of something like that seaweed. I get lost if I don't and then froggy doodle comes a visitin'.
Love your plans for the CHS design. Your chosen colors are great! Hugs, Deb
Wow! Congrats to Nikki...so many exciting things happening! And congrats to the grandma-to-be too!!!
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