Sunday, November 12, 2017

A little bit of French Christmas...

Boy am I tired... it finally got cold enough to kill the zinnias and lantana in my garden so I went outside today and did some garden clean-up. I filled up two of the big paper garden waste bags ... it never seems like there is that much dead stuff till you start pulling it up. I was going to wait till later in the week... I thought for sure when I was watching the weather gal last night there was a 60 degree day on like Friday or Saturday but I didn't see that on my phone weather app so I attacked stuff today while it was a balmy 50 degrees... yes that is balmy when yesterday was in the 30s.

So now I've got my butt planted firmly in my stitching chair... I should work on my secret Christmas stitching but I may put a few more stitches in this first...



This is the Tournicoton J'Arrive... here's a pic of the full chart...



I have two more reindeer and the snowmen to stitch along with the moon and the scattered stars. It has stitched up pretty quickly once I deciphered the stitch key... the several of the colors used more than one symbol as sometime the stitch is just a regular cross stitch and sometimes it is a decorative stitch. 

Not sure you can see it but if you click on the pic and make it bigger it should show ...there are Smyrna crosses in the sleigh and the hooves are satin stitches and the reindeer's nose is a Rhodes mound.  There also suppose to be beads on the sleigh... but I decided they were too much work and left them off.




The chart calls for more decorative stitches but I've not sure they are worth the time... the effect is very minimal. Also the chart called for stitching over one thread the eye of the reindeer and Santa's face and hands... not gonna happen. I did regular cross stitches and then did the eyes as French knots.. this did eliminate Santa's eyebrows and I don't see that as any great loss,

I'm using the DMC equivalents of the called for  over dyed  flosses. Also I have an issue in that ALL the reindeer are charted with red noses... EXCUSE ME...only Rudolph has a red nose and he will be my lead reindeer...  not messing with tradition here...LOL

I'm stitching this on a 32 ct linen that I painted ... it is a nice clear blue with a bit of aqua in it.  The finished piece should be about 8" square... I'm sure I'll find a place to display it this year. I need to get my Christmas gift stitching done so I can do more Christmas stuff for me. I got a couple of Lizzie Kate patterns and another Barbara Ana I'd love to do before the holidays are over. I've already seen several people post on IG that  they are decorating for Christmas... I'm not ready to go there yet... the weekend after Thanksgiving will be plenty of time for me. When you have a chance check out Priscilla's blog... you can see it here... her house is a Christmas extravaganza... she starts decorating the day after Halloween and when you see everything she displays you can see why... as I remember she puts up a dozen trees and a spectacular Christmas village.

So I'm going to settle in and thread up my needle...not making dinner tonight... my son and daughter-in-law are coming back from a wedding in Chicago and won't get in till late. I'm thinking something nice and easy for dinner ... a sandwich and a cup of soup. 

Hope your week has some stitching time in it... I have plans to stitch and maybe work on some quilt blocks... I haven't turned on my sewing machine in over a week...need to get back to it.

I'll link up with Kathy's Quilts today and Super Mom - No Cape on Monday.

happy stitching-
carol fun





11 comments:

  1. You have made good progress on your Christmas piece. I really like the fabric you painted for it.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Sweet start and a cute piece--does put you in the holiday mood doesn't it??? May I ask where you purchase your patterns-do you have a shop locally or do you order them from someplace???
    Also I loved the long abc sampler one you did for Fall--and noticed online they have a quilty/stitchy one--but that is all--so it this a new series?? Am looking for some good projects for next year--so thanks for your help--
    enjoy the moments, di

    ReplyDelete
  3. What a cute Christmasy project. It is so cheerful. I'm with you! I never start on Christmas decorating until after Thanksgiving. I put just Fall things up after Halloween and I enjoy the season and don't want to rush in the next. Of course, I have no where near the things that Priscilla has. One big tree is more than enough for me. That and a few Santas scattered around the house.I pulled out annuals too. I almost filled up our yard waste container. No room for the leaves that my DH was getting up!!

    ReplyDelete
  4. What a fun project! Those last two reindeer will be done in no time!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Adorable Christmas piece and....you're getting really good at the fabric painting!

    ReplyDelete
  6. This is such a sweet pattern...I have a thing about santas in cross stitch. So many adorable patterns around. I'm with you- love a night when I can get something easy for supper and relax and stitch.

    ReplyDelete
  7. French Christmas is delightful. I don't blame you for skipping some of the decorative stitches. While they are fun to do sometimes, the don't show up enough to make the extra effort. Enjoy the stitching!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Tournicoton J'Arrive is great - the exuberance of the reindeer brings a smile to my face.

    ReplyDelete
  9. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for stopping by. I really enjoy reading your comments. They make my day!
If Google won't let you leave a comment feel free to email me at cfunliu@aol.com