Dreary and a bit weary on a Slow Sunday Stitching...

 Hello - well the weather is certainly dreary today.... cold, gray and a bit of flurries... not the kind of day that infuses me with energy... and along with that, the unsettled feeling  about what the  future will bring has made me quite weary... sorry to be a downer... 

I'm having trouble focusing on just one project ...and I find myself working on projects that aren't really vital at the moment and ignoring projects I really should attend to... big sigh...I've bounced here and there and back to next to here... I do  have my snowmen decor out and it is nice to look at... I'll show some pics further down...

I did finish something... this pair of scrappy socks...

mindless knitting ... I've got 3 shawls in various stages sitting in bags next to my comfy chair... perhaps I'll work on one of them next...

As for sewing... well I haven't gone down in my studio for 2 weeks... there a several projects which only need a hour or two and several other projects I'd like to start... perhaps something will call to me this week... 

On the cross stitch front I've done 2 little pieces... this snowman head from one of those little cards Prairie Schooler put out...

used called for DMC on 32ct opalescent linen I dyed... he's only 2" tall...

And this little angel... she's from the new chart Love Notes by With Thy Needle & Thread..

changed some of the threads because I couldn't find the called for DMC in my messy craft room and stitched her cheeks in Scotch Stitch ( just a satin stitch on the diagonal)... again 32 ct linen I dyed... this is just a tiny scrap but then she's tiny too... only about 2" tall...I may do a small tier tray display for Valentine's Day... 

Here's a pic of the pattern... I may stitch another one of the designs... I just took the little angel from the Love Stamp chart... 

I got my pattern at Kittenstitcher.com but it looks like it is out of stock at the moment... I'm sure she'll get more in. 

And last Sunday I went looking for  a chart in my stash... I don't even remember which one now... but I came upon this chart and this linen and this thread and well I had to put some stitches in...

It is soooo hard to capture the color of this piece... think Jakey Brown from Classic Colorworks... I'm pretty sure I used Rit Wine dye... the thread is Gentle Arts Vintage Lace... a rosy, pinky shade... this is so much fun to stitch on... the holes are easy to see, the thread glides through, the pattern is easy to follow... and it is 28ct... I haven't stitches on 28 ct for eons...  it has been very hard to put this down...

The pattern is Quaker Samplings from With My Needle by Ellen Chester... now I've had this a loooong time...  the copyright date is 2006, so it has been maturing for  a while.. glad I released it from its plastic bin...

And I worked on the needlepoint stocking... not going to show a picture because even after 6 hours I don't feel like I made a lot of progress... a bunch of ornaments were completed but they take a lot of time... each one has a minimum of 3 different threads... so lots of threading and re-threading... part of me says just concentrate on one project... but I am not listening to that little voice... at least not right now...

As for decorating here are a couple of pictures... first that new for me white shelf unit...

I LOVE all the bits and pieces here, but I'd like to add some cross stitch to this display.. perhaps the 2 PS Santas I've stitched... gotta get them FFO'd...

Now the Snowman cookie jar is one my younger son found for me in a flea market type store... it is gorgeous an I think the largest one I have... I love all the little animals form the bird on his shoulder to the squirrel on his side... on the bottom is says Tracy Porter  "Jolly Ol' Snowy"  exclusively for Target 2003... I found another one online... asking waaaay more than what Nick paid... 

on the other end is a sign I purchased from Walmart at Christmas... it is suppose to be outdoor stake kinda sign... I loved the style of the snowman... kinda vintage 50's... and the snowman head snow globe came from the gift shop at Cracker Barrel in 2019... gosh I miss going there... always found cute decor pieces... 

below I made a little ice skating rink with a mirror from Hobby Lobby and those little Russ Berrie Snowmen... I think these originally came from Hallmark, but I might be wrong... I  bought them on ebay ... I was surprised that they were primarily yellow... you know I LOVE YELLOW so that was a bonus... I was just looking for skating figurines and was surprised to find skating snowmen... I thought I paid too much for them... I got 9 figures... but after looking around on the web I think I did okay... there are several people selling just one or two of these little guys for half I what I paid for the lot... 

The bottom shelves...

I need to take pictures of the rest of my displays but every time I think to do it the light isn't good... either too bright or too dark... maybe this week I'll get the motivation to coincide with good lighting... maybe...

So no big plans for the week except to get my hair cut and colored... calling for a measurable snowfall ...we really haven't had anything but flurries so far this season which has been fine with me... I just wish we had more sunny days... I can take the cold but I HATE the gray days... not making me feel energetic.. so I think I'll sit here in my comfy chair and maybe take a nap and then when I wake up I'll grab something to stitch... already had breakfast with the family... so the rest of the day is quiet... maybe binge watch some youtube stuff... and read a some blogs over on Kathy's Quilts after I link up there... always interesting...

Hope you have a good week ahead...

happy stitching-

carol fun 

Not thinking too deeply on a Slow Sunday Stitching...

 Hello - another week has passed and as the Chinese saying goes "may you live in interesting times" ... ummm... maybe I'd prefer less interesting at this moment... did you know that this is an English translation of a Chinese curse?  Makes more sense that way, doesn't it?

Anyway, I've been hunkered down  ... got all the Christmas stuff put away... was proud of myself for organizing it more this year, deer in one box, Santas is another box, pink stuff all together, rather than my usual tactic of cramming things willy-nilly into my beloved plastic bins (and if you've been reading this blog for any length of time you know I LOVE plastic bins... and there is no need to think about that too deeply).  Wrapped the Christmas tree back up in the big plastic bag and returned it to the storage room under the steps... feels good to have that done...and after a brief respite from that mess, I dragged out the snowmen... and made an even bigger mess...OMG... I have sooooooooo many snowmen... lots and lots of beady little eyes watching me... and that's another thing I don't want to think about too deeply...LOL... I had a hard time getting into setting up my displays... I know to start with the biggest items, in this case the 7 cookie jars and the 3 large pieces of snowman cross stitch... I try not to put things in the same place every year, but some things will only fit in one place... and this year I had the extra display space of that new white shelf unit in the living room...I'm happy with how it is looking but I'm going to wait to show it to you till next week as I'm waiting on an impulse ebay purchase... more snowmen... I know you are shocked... LOL... but they looked so cute and I wasn't even searching for snowmen, I was looking for ice skaters... I want an ice skating pond scene... I bought a round mirror at HL... and what do you know,  I found ice skating SNOWMEN... OMG... they are a retired set of little figurines that came from Hallmark, as I understand... and do you miss Hallmark stores with nice gift and decor departments?  There use to be a great one in a strip mall that was on my way to pick up my kids from school... I would stop in almost every week and I have some wonderful pieces that I bought there... sorry another tangent... 

So where was I??  Oh yeah, my snowmen bins sat open with stuff piled on the chairs and the sofa and the floor for a couple of days till motivation arrived ... when I finally got my butt in gear it took several  hours but I got everything settled in... by my count I have 8 display areas in my little home... and yes I probably have jumped the shark... but that's another thing we aren't going to think too deeply about...oh I do LOVE my snowmen and I like that in putting up these displays, I will not touch them for 7 or 8 weeks... by March I can't stand them anymore and will be chomping at the bit to get my Spring stuff out... and I just checked ... Easter is April 4... already looking forward to it...

I will show a couple of pictures  of snowman decor today and then I'll have some for next week... in the meantime I'll share my crafty endeavors of the past 7 days...

Got a sock done...

nice and scrappy... I was going for a green sock with a bit of purple but it got more purple-y as it went along. and yes for some reason in this pic the purple is reading black... ugh... I had planned on grey heels but when I got to that point there wasn't any gray going on, so I used some purple yarn, which probably accounts for it reading as a purple sock... hmmm...another thing I don't want to think too deeply about... looking forward to the 2nd sock as I don't know how it will look... I divided up little 10 -15 gram balls of Opal sock yarn and you can never be sure that the colors will repeat when you divide them... my favorite parts are the little dotty parts... another hmmm... dotty... polka dots... I believe this is where thinking gets me in trouble... another tangent... when my youngest son was in high school he had this terrific guidance counselor... my son, being autistic, had many many challenges to deal with and this man was always helpful to the extreme... after our first meeting, I remarked how supportive he was being and he told me that he was thrilled to help a parent that gave a damn about their kid... he dealt with too many parents who just didn't...anyway, he let my son eat lunch in his quiet little office every day instead of having to deal with the 3 ring circus that was the cafeteria... we would talk on a regular basis about what could be done to help my son navigate high school, and a lot of our conversations would start with my saying "I think..." and he would tell me..."there you go thinking again, that will only get you into trouble"... and he was right a lot of the time... so that could be the basis for my not thinking too deeply about stuff... which is causing me to think deeply about not thinking deeply ... and now I'm going to take a deep breath and let it go.....

 Moving on... I did a bit of cross stitching... from Prairie Schooler No. 151 called Santas & Snowmen...

32 ct opalescent linen dyed with Rit dye... I think Evening blue... I love that the sparkly bits stay sparkly even if you dye the linen...

And this freebie from Liz Matthews by way of Country Sampler in Spring Green WI... if you subscribe to their email you can get it...

I just did this small part of the chart... 36 ct linen and I used the Sulky 12 wt thread 4014... it is one of the Blendables... I wanted to play with this... I did try it on 32 ct and didn't like the coverage... this is better, but I want to try it on 40 ct too... 

And I stitched a bit more on WTN&T Heart & Hand ... I'm not enjoying the over one legs on those sheep... most of mine look to be a bit crippled... poor sheep...

Excuse the wrinkles... I want to get this done and get back to the WTN&T Needleworker's Sampler... and I stitched a measly one more ornament on the Christmas stocking... will try to try and give it a bit more attention this coming week... no progress on the Christmas quilt I showed last week... I did sew 2 new toppers for my shelf units... the one in the living room and the one on the porch... only got one quilted... again... tune in next week and hopefully they will be completed... 

So I've been having bad thoughts about deep cleaning my house... I try to push them out of my mind by sitting down and stitching... and I'm wondering how much it  would cost to have someone come in and deep clean the bath room and the kitchen... hmmm... my son and DIL had someone come in and take care of their 3 bathrooms... need to look into that... my house isn't filthy... I do tidy up a bit each day ... okay a bit each week... but since I've been spending more time inside I see things I didn't see before... baseboards, some cobwebs, dusty fan blade... need to push these dirty thoughts out of my head...again, something I shouldn't think too deeply about... am I right?  I expect to see your heads nodding up and down ...up and down...

Well, lets circle back around to some decor, shall we? And I'm going to start downstairs in my sewing studio... I now have 2 places to decorate there and I like it...makes the space even more cheery...IMHO

This is that little yellow cabinet that use to be in the living room... I hung an Debbie Mumm quilt I made years and years ago... this snowman cookie jar was a present from my youngest son who found it at a flea market... he was so proud of himself for finding a gift he knew I'd love... just a touch of cross stitch... this is entitled  Star Shaped Snowman by Teresa Kogut ... you can see it here. 

And this small display has my Lizzie Kate Winter Alphabet  and that sparkly snowman head I got a year or so ago at Michaels on markdown... I like the retro look..

I found that as I put out my decor I wish I had a bit more winter stitching...and believe it or not (and I do) I could use a few more bottle brush type trees... I have what seems like a small forest of them but I kept thinking I wish I had another one here or there... this year I didn't buy a single bottle brush tree (okay maybe I did buy a pink one and some white ones, but no green ones) cause I thought I had enough...next year I'll pick up a few more... I use them for Christmas and for Winter so they see a lot of use... and they make me happy!   

So I'll link up with Kathy's Quilts today... and I'll say my prayers and keep my fingers crossed that the coming weeks aren't as eventful as the last one... between politics and the pandemic and the almost continual gray skies here in SW Ohio I had a hard time keeping a positive attitude ... I did find that fudge helped my mental state, but did nothing for my expanding waistline... but I can only deal with one thing at a time. Hope things are well with all of you... 

happy stitching-

carol fun 

Looking a bit backwards and forward on a Slow Stitching Sunday...

Happy New Year... I wish you all the best in 2021... Soooooo... how did you spend the first day of this year?  I was able to do all the  things I wanted to do... I do NOT do resolutions... I do engage in all the activities I enjoy on January 1 as a harbinger of what I want to do the rest of the year... 

Right after midnight, cause I'm always up that late... I cast on a new pair of scrappy socks... 

something easy and mindless because while I am a night owl I recognize my limitations at that hour...

Then I slept late... oh that is glorious... I love sleeping in... and the older I get the less often that happens ... then I picked up the new Christmas stocking project I have this year for my DIL and did about 1.5 ornaments... I did the turquoise one an part of of the multi-color one to its upper left...

it is a very pretty stocking ... by my count (and this is a ballpark count) there are:

                    16 candles 

                    22 big ornaments

                    46 ball ornaments

                    60 little gold balls... I think it is part of a garland but don't think I'll be stitching the detail

My plan is to do a little every day ... hope I can stick with that... right now it is at that stage where the canvas is stiff and you have to wrestle with it... ugh... I'm happier when it gets more malleable but that takes time.

Then I went downstairs into my sewing studio.. I made a small bag that's a gift so I can't show it yet... and I worked on that Christmas quilt I showed last week... here's how it looks now...

yep... I unsewed what I had an came up with this layout... a 15 patch block alternated with a plain rectangle and the a 9 patch for sashing ... the plan is for 10 blocks across and 9 down... that would make it about 66" wide and 70" long... think I'll add a border only on the top and bottom... and I should be able to have this one done pretty soon and have a Christmas quilt pre-made for this Christmas... 

After that I went out and picked up a carryout order for dinner... I LOVE eating out... I can cook, I'm just tired of cooking and for 2 people it is easier a lot of times to eat out... we can still eat inside in Ohio but I try to be careful... so I'm doing more carryout and less inside dining... that said the Mediterranean salad with chicken kabobs from Taziiki's is excellent... and so is their whipped feta  with honey appetizer ... 

After dinner I settled in and started a new cross stitch sampler... and no I didn't get the one I was working on finished so there is no issue with dating it 2021 (I hope that this year is one I won't regret remembering...)

This is Needleworker's Sampler by With Thy Needle & Thread... 32 ct fabric I painted with Rit dye, using the called for flosses so far... I'm really liking this one ... an easy stitch... that border is really wonky... you have to pay attention and count each hill and valley but if you made a mistake it would be easy to fudge... 

I did make progress on Heart & Hand... 

very close to being done... ran out of Mulberry for the berries but found another skein in another project... it is good to have stash, isn't it?

And I also did some online shopping... picked out a couple of things at KittenStitcher as I got a gift card for a Christmas present... she's not open till tomorrow but my cart is ready to go, so when she turns her payments back on I can order....

And I bought some dahlia tubers and some flower seeds... already thinking of next Spring and Summer... I know you should wish your life away... and Lord knows how much life I have left... I hope a lot, but my family history is not encouraging... my parents both died in their late 40's/early 50s'... my only sibling was early 60's ... I hope I take after my Grandmother's who both lived into their 80s... but lets drop that topic and think about dinner plate dahlias and cosmos and zinnias and I've been looking at cannas and caladiums...  I have high hopes for all the daffodils and alliums I planted... last Spring they were such a welcome sight... even my neighbors commented on how it brightened their spirits... hey yellow is  HAPPY HAPPY color!!

Sooooo it was a great day for me... I could repeat it over and over and over again for the next 365 with no issues... however I know other obligations will arise... such is life....

And I did a little looking back on 2020... I do try to keep track of how many quilting/stitching/sewing/knitting projects I do... however this year I somehow lost the list with the knitting on it, but I don't think there was a lot.. some socks and couple of shawls... but I did do 18 quilts...now at least half of those were already in the works before 2020, but done is done... and I've decided the 3 that are still waiting to be bound won't be counted in 2021... I'm moving on... As for cross stitch I did 24 pieces...most smaller... and some that were finished in 2020 were also started in previous years... I've gotten more cross stitch done in the past but the needlepoint stocking took up a LOT of time... by my notes I started it in late January and finished in late September... now there was a month or two that I didn't touch it at all, but stockings are definitely a long term project... 

I shall endeavor to keep better track of what I finish this year... I've got some forms prepped and ready to go!! I have lots of things I want to do and I know I won't get them all done but I will be happy with whatever does get finished... I have some quilt blocks that I'd like to get sewn into tops... much smaller tops than I had planned when I started the blocks, but finished is better than languishing in the plastic bins, right???... and for cross stitch I have a couple of samplers calling my name and I think I should stick with small pieces where seasonal stuff is concerned... my displays are pretty full and it is getting hard to wedge in larger seasonal pieces... and I have wall space for samplers... so that's a win... and I found a couple of UFO samplers... maybe I could finish one of them... hope springs eternal... as for knitting it will again be socks and shawls... easy stuff... and the stocking needs to be completed by the end of September... that will be the 6th one I've done in my lifetime, and I consider it quite the achievement... if I had known 35 years ago what I know now, I would never have selected 24" long stockings on 16 count...sheesh.. why didn't I just do nice cuffs... so much less stitching, but they are beautiful and my kids do appreciate them... they'll be my legacy... 

So I hope that 2021 brings you lots of time to engage in all  the crafty projects that you love to do... it is NOT a resolution but it I shall try to try and stay off of the internet a bit more... I get sucked into political blogs and crafty stuff and Instagram... OMG... I LOVE and HATE Instagram... I find so much cool stuff on IG but it takes up so much time... I can scroll mindlessly for hours... not productive...  so I shall re-affirm by mantra to always try to try... but I never define exactly what  it is that I'm trying... keep it vague and no one can pin anything on you... LOL... kinda like "experts" who keep changing their tune and moving the goalposts ... and you know what I mean...

I'll link up with Kathy's Quilts today... she always has a wonderful collection of blogs to peruse ... Wishing you a happy and healthy 2021... may we put 2020 in the rear view mirror as quickly as possible... 

happy stitching-

carol fun 

Ruminating on a Slow Stitching Sunday...

 Hello - I know I said I'd be back last week to post pics of my recent Christmas quilt finishes, but... the week just got away from me... and then we did Christmas Eve and Christmas morning and I totally lost track of what day of the week it was (thank goodness my phone tells me the day and the date...sheesh)... So I'm here now and I do have pics of the quilts and I have some thoughts about my tentative crafty plans for 2021... which I figured I should talk about this Sunday since by next Sunday it will be 2021 and I will again not know exactly what day of the week it is unless I look at my phone... and hey where is my phone??? Oh there is it... stuck in the cushion of my chair... big sigh... I misplace it several times a day... and it doesn't do me any good to call my phone because I always have it on silent... so unless I'm close enough to hear it vibrate I'm out of luck... oh well

So here are pictures of the 4 Christmas quilts I finished for this holiday...now the first two I started last year and early this year... 

This is Meet in the Middle... a free pattern you can see here... now it was jelly roll friendly but I made it with a layer cake because there were a lot of directional fabrics in the Basic Grey Kringle & Klaus collection I used and I didn't want my ornaments or my Santa's laying on their sides... so I just cut everything into 2.5 x 10" strips and it worked fine... 

and here's a close up of the quilting from Quilting by David... 

I picked a panto with ornaments which I thought echoed the fabrics... and it washed up nice and crinkly!

Next is Snowfall with another Basic Grey Christmas collection... this one a well aged one called Fruitcake..

This one used charm packs and the pattern is from the book Charm School... I had David use a snowflake panto on this one...

Next up is this one using another well aged layer cake... this one is called Very Merry from Sandy Gervais ...

The pattern is Piece of Cake 3 from Thimbleblossoms...you can see it here... I'll be making this quilt again... easy construction and it shows off the fabrics nicely... 

And last but not least a scrappy quilt ... I started with wanting to use up the border and other fabrics I had from the Heather Ross Sugarplum collection... I added in a bunch of other Christmas fabrics from my stash and I'm very happy with how it came together...

Now these are different pictures of these quilts from what I posted on Instagram... but if you want to see more you can find them here... 

And with these quilts complete I thought I'd play in my sewing room and somehow I started another Christmas quilt... my thought process is that I'll be ahead for next year... that is if I stick with it... but there is always a possibility (actually a very STRONG possibility)   that it will end up in a plastic bin before I truly finish it... I'm already having second thoughts about it... here's a pic of what I've done so far... 

the pattern is Jelly Roll Dash, it is a lovely pattern, and you can see it here...  now the pattern is written to be strip pieced but I'm not fond of that method because my strips get wonky and there is too much repetition of fabric placement... I like things all mixed up (kinda like my life.. but that's another story...LOL) so I'm sewing individual squares together... and yes it it going to take about 4 times longer this way... but then I'm not thrilled with how it is looking...  I like mixed up... but... this is looking too mixed up to me... I think I'm going to unsew what I have and just do simpler blocks... like a nine patch or maybe a rectangular block that is pieced and alternated with a solid block... hmmmm....oh I LOVE the fabric ... it is the Oh Deer collection by Urban Chiks... along with some leftovers from their Christmas collection of 2 years ago... here's the Oh Deer collection 

I love these fabrics because you have YELLOW Christmas fabric... I even found yardage of the yellow print with the deer and I ordered it for the border... ruminating here ... and this is going to be re-worked... and that's ok..

And I did some cross stitching last week... I was in a holiday mood so I started (are we seeing a pattern here... I am such a GOOD starter... we will not discuss finishing at this time)... a Christmas piece from Prairie Schooler book No. 63 called Christmas Samplers... you can see it here...

I needed some simple stitching... all DMC and a mystery piece of 32 ct linen from my stash... it is a nice warm tan... I didn't feel the need to paint or dye it as not much of it will show when the whole piece is complete... 

But I put it down yesterday and picked back up my Heart & Hand sampler from With Thy Needle & Thread...

I LOVE this sampler... I LOVE that berry filled vine and the white flowers and the birds and the big house and the lady gardening... I'm using the called for flosses and the fabric is 32 ct I dyed with Rit dye... I think I might be able to finish this by the end of the year... and if I can I am not going to put the last stitch in till 2021 because I will NOT date anything 2020 ...ok I did date one piece 2020 but it was a tombstone for Halloween... I can't think of any year I want more to be behind us and I don't want to be reminded of it by my stitching.. there will be plenty of other reminders ... so I that's the plan...

And then there is the rumination of what to work on in 2020... I like to start a cross stitch piece on New Year's Day and I like to do a bit of sewing and a bit of knitting and I want to eat something very tasty... my philosophy is you need to do things on New Year's Day that you want to repeat as much as possible the rest of the year... get things off to a real good start... and the Lord knows we need a nice good start for 2021!!

Sooooo... what to start... I have a couple of samplers I want to do that are already kitted up... but this sampler is also calling my name... it was the Linens & Threads Mystery Sampler for 2020... now I never like to do a mystery piece until I can see enough of it to be sure I want to join... and I didn't find this one till about October... and I love what I see... here's a link to the project and it is free...and this is a finished version that I LOVE...

And you can see more versions here at the hashtag #linenandthreadssampler2020.... so many wonderful color combos... I think this is my favorite ... lots of people did it on 40 ct... but I'm not fond of stitching on 40 ct... I'd rather do 32 ct ... and I think I could dye a piece of linen similar to the picture... and it will be LARGE ...15.25" square... and I do like the idea of a light color thread on a darker linen... but 2 threads of a light color on 32 ct is sometimes sloppy looking... soooooo I purchased some 12 wt Sulky ... I want to play with it and see if I like that coverage... so I'm ruminating on that... and the fact that they have another mystery sampler for 2021 and darn it sounded interesting too... "Our 2021 mystery sampler is inspired by the Mexican and Spanish pottery tradition from Talavera de la Reina, in Spain"... oooohh... I went and looked at the pottery and it is very colorful... more temptation....

And I have this project teed up for 2020 too... another needlepoint stocking... this one is for my daughter in law...

I did get to the needlepoint shop last week and picked up a bunch of fibers for all the ornaments and I got green wool for the tree and I ordered a bunch of skeins of a minty green for the background... so I should probably put a few stitches in it on New Year's Day...

And I'm ruminating on starting a new knitting project... I think I'll go with a new pair of scrappy socks... something easy... 

And I can't help but ruminate on what 2021 might bring... I don't know if we'll have another lockdown here in Ohio...(but it was the reason I went to the needlepoint store last week as I'm pretty sure a needlepoint store is the definition of non-essential/sigh) ... I have plenty to keep me busy, but then I had plenty to keep me busy last time but I didn't get a lot done... I wonder if we had another round would I be more focused... but focus is a big problem now... I waste too much time on the internet reading stuff and not getting anything done... I've been trying to ignore the news/politics as that is a deep deep rabbit hole that leaves me feeling  anxious and ticked off...I'm trying to avoid that and it isn't easy... my current strategy is to watch youtube and flosstube videos while stitching or knitting... at least I'm getting a little accomplished. 

Soooo... I don't make New Year's resolutions and any plans I made are extremely flexible... but there are definitely projects I want to do...now if I can spend less time endlessly scrolling through IG that would be a step in the right direction... I can't totally give up IG as I get the best ideas for new projects there ... it is like looking a new magazine every time... and remember magazines?  I LOVED magazines... LOL

I'll link up with Kathy's Quilts today... I hope that you all had a nice Christmas and that we will all have a much better 2021... 

happy stitching-

carol fun 

Christmas Decor 2020... on a Slow Stitching Sunday...

 Hello - where did December go to???  I just don't understand how time goes so fast and so slow simultaneously, but it sure seems to do it... I was patting myself on the back for getting my Christmas decor up early (for me ) this year... first week of December... but it wasn't "finished'  every space I arranged still needed a little of this or a little of that and it has taken me all month to finish up... and I think I'm done... I want to be done... I want to sit and look at my displays and stitch on a Christmas piece that won't be finished for this year and try to find a bit of peace in this crazy year... that's my goal for the week... we shall see how it turns out... but you aren't here for my introspective ramblings, you'd like to see some pretty Christmas stuff, right??  Okay... here goes...

HO HO HO ... Santa is gracing the wall again this year... I added some garlands around the top as I liked how that looked on my Halloween quilt... 

and the tier tray is a nice collection of Santas .. a couple of my now getting to be vintage needlepoint Santas and a cross stitch one that I never can decide if he's a Santa or an elf... 

Moving around the room we have the TV stand... I crammed a lot in here... a stack of Santas, and small pack of pixies, a flock of deer and mine and Nick's needlepoint stockings...

And speaking of stockings, Elliott's came back from the finisher and I'm very happy with it...

It is hanging on the mantle at his house waiting for Santa to stuff it will goodies... and as a side note I've already purchased a stocking for his Mama ... it will be my BIG project for 2021... then the whole family will have stockings... 

Continuing to circle the room... the shelf unit... lots of stuff from previous years ... 

I like the nativity scene at the top... I have a good view of it from my stitching chair... 

I have picked up a new Santa head or two... that collection is definitely growing and I like the trees growing out of their heads... I want some candy cans to put in that biggest one but keep forgetting to pick some up at the store..

And this is a new addition to the cross stitch... its from With Thy Needle & Thread entitled " The Most Wonderful Time of the Year"... and now I have Andy Williams singing in my head...LOL

I'm quite proud of myself for this finish... it was a super quick stitch ... I think it only took about 4 days and it is the first time I've inserted pompom trim into the seam... boy the flanges on pompom trim are tiny... had to find my zipper foot to get it sewn in... but it came out exactly like I wanted ... a rather flat pillow ...not puffy... and instead of using interfacing on the back of the stitching and the lining I used fusible fleece.. I had it sitting on my cutting table from a previous project... it gives it a nice bit of loft ... I'll be using it again in my finishing...

And a bit more of the shelf unit... I can see that I've got a turquoise/red theme going with my Christmas stitching... and I like it... it works for me...

A look at my Christmas tree... on the small side but it's best attribute is that again this year it made a successful trip up and down the stairs to the storage room fully decorated... all I did was plug it in and straighten a few of the bubble lights and it was good to go... the chairs are sporting dueling Basic Grey Christmas collection quilts... and I made another one this year... still need pictures...

And I have a new spot to decorate in the living room... I took the little yellow cabinet to the basement (and I still need to finish decorating it... will try to post more pictures tomorrow too).. and I moved in this shelf unit... I like that it is open and you can see what is on the lower shelves... and it is a little longer so there is more space for more STUFF... and you know how I LOVE MY STUFF!!   LOL

The shelf unit came from Amazon and I replaced the knobs with those turquoise ceramic ones I picked up at Hobby Lobby... I like the pop of color... stayed with a red/white/yellow theme here ... added one new piece of cross stitch...

This is from the No. 25 Prairie Schooler chart "Up on the Housetops"... I've had it in my stash a long time ... copyright 1989...  I made the house a bit more yellow than the called for floss and found that little white trim in my stash... a organdy bow and some little jingle bells in the corner... oh I also used the fusible fleece in this one too ... 

And now for the porch... you may remember  I was lusting after a what I thought was a fluffy white kinda 50's tinsel wreath at Joanns... and I bought it...

as you can see when I hung it up on the  storm door it has a definite pink glow... but that's okay because the porch display has a definite pink vibe..

and I think the pink goes well with the lime-y green and turquoise... I finally finished the Lizzie Kate Christmas ABCs that I started probably 2 years ago... it takes a longer to stitch those words than you would think... I don't think that any 2 of the "e"s are the same design... 

and I'm glad I snagged that pink deer at Target back before Thanksgiving... if you've been shopping you know how picked over every place is ... it was definitely not a year to waffle on a purchase... buy it when you see it... and I think that is going to be the case going forward for a while... 

So I do have a bit more decor but I haven't taken any pictures yet ... I'll try to post something in a day or two... I have 2 displays of gingerbread guys...one in my kitchen and one downstairs in my sewing room and a reindeer vignette down there too... and I've gotten four Christmas quilts done this year... 2 I did late last year and early 2020 and two I did in November 2020... I put the binding on the last one last night... need to pop it into the washer... and maybe I can get some outdoor glamour shots today... it is cloudy which is good for pictures and my neighbor's decorative porch railing is newly painted...however there is an issue there...

I am quite sad to say that my neighbor Jane, passed away a couple of weeks ago... she was a very sweet lady and I miss her... Jane never married and has no extended family in the US, just 2 nephews in Canada... they did come down and look at the stuff in her house but turned it all over to a local attorney to dispose of ... and her house went up for sale on late Thursday... it has been quite a stream of potential buyers... in one hour I saw 3 showings and I wasn't even trying to be nosy... it has been listed as pending since Friday night but I've seen at least 3 more showings since then and I haven't been sitting by the window watching, I just catch a glimpse of the activity when I look out my kitchen window... Jane told me I was always welcome to use the porch railing to take quilt pictures... I hope the new neighbors will be as accommodating ...

And a bit of rambling... this Christmas just isn't the same, is it?  I understand the need for masks but when you can't see people's entire faces you can't tell if they're smiling ...and I don't think they are... I don't feel the same upbeat energy you usually get this time of the year... and I do think it is going to be a long cold winter ... not sure if our governor will lockdown things again.. I hope not... I feel so bad for all the little businesses that are hurting ... just how does the powers that be think these people are going to survive?  I do think that if those that called for lockdowns weren't getting paid, they would have a different take on the situation...  just my opinion... 

So I'll link up with Kathy's Quilts today and try to post some pictures tomorrow of quilts and other displays... I'm almost done with my Christmas shopping...just need a couple of stocking stuffers and I want to get my gifts wrapped today (that is get out my fabric Christmas bags and stuff them in... LOL)... and I think I'll have a bit of a year end wrap up in a week... I'm surprised at how many quilts I finished this year... now a bunch were started in previous years but this was the year I got them quilted and bound (ok not all of them are bound.. but I'm getting there)... didn't do as much cross stitch as Elliott's stocking took a lot of time and there was that totally unfocused lockdown part of the year... I started several cross stitch projects and finished none of them... and lately I've wandered off into the realm of reproduction samplers... somehow 3 different reproduction charts have come through my mail slot... and 3 makes a collection, right??  I've got a very strong urge to do samplers this upcoming year...  I found this one ... Linens and Threads Mystery Sampler 2020... a gorgeous gigantic Quaker piece ... it is free and you can see it here. And there are several started samplers in my UFO box...so many many things I want to stitch... big sigh... 

Okay so if I don't see you before the end of the week... MERRY CHRISTMAS!!! and lets pray that 2021 is not  a continuation of the dumpster fire  of 2020...

happy stitching-

carol fun