A Slow Sunday Stitching where plans change...

Well today is certainly a prettier day than yesterday... we had our 2nd snow fall of the week and it didn't amount to much...the streets and sidewalks were warm so it mainly stuck to the  grass and the rooftops but the way the local weather guys hyped it you would have thought it was the end of the world.  Forecast is for more Spring-like weather and I hope they are correct this time...Opening Day for my beloved and beleaguered Cincinnati Reds is Thursday...and one of my favorite garden outlets opens on Thursday too...I was there last year on the first day and it was fun... so many pretty plants and they sent me a $10 coupon...can't let that go to waste.

So I had plans last Sunday for how I thought all my home projects would play out...but plans change. Dan the handyman did get all my new blinds installed and I'm very happy with them. They do all the things blinds are suppose to do which the old blinds  didn't...like go up and down!  The installation was a brute of a  job...turns out all the window openings in my house have a metal framing behind the incredibly hard wall finish... the walls of my home aren't drywall or plaster ...they are a material that is like concrete...but it isn't concrete. I've heard it call glassrock and to hang a picture requires a drill ...using a hammer and a nail just gives you a missing chunk of wall and a mess. Dan had to drill a ton of new holes for the blinds which took hours but they look great. That job took all day Monday.

He returned on Tuesday to tackle the baker's rack (you can see it here)  I was so looking forward to having in my living room...and as he got it half way assembled I had a sinking feeling that it wasn't going to work... it did fit in the space where I wanted  it to go...but it was big... really BIG... overwhelming the room BIG... not the look I wanted. Soooo.... I had Dan and my son wrestle it to the basement and  stuffed it into the storage room. Good thing I cleaned out that room a bit about a month ago...I'll need to find another home for it eventually. I still love the rack but it isn't right for my house.

With this set back I decided a trip to Hobby Lobby was in order. That is where I had gotten the smaller shelf unit I had in the living room. Perhaps they would have something not too much taller (the other baker's rack seemed Amazonian) and a bit wider. I thought I had seen some other racks and sure enough they had something that fit the bill... and instead of being dark it is a rustic turquoise... added bonus of color!

My new display...

A tiny bit taller and about 10" wider...more room for displays!!!

Top...

A chorus line of egg cups with feet!!

A little more cross stitch added and a bouquet of mini-daffodils...

I'm very happy with this new addition... it is larger but doesn't over power the room.. and for $100 not a bad deal.

Now on the cross stitch front I worked a bit more on my In Santa Claus Land and thought about starting the Halloween  piece but then the mailman delivered some happy mail and my plans changed...again.

This chart by With Thy Needle & Thread caught my eye...

This is called Needle & Thread and look closely ...I love the pincushion and spools of thread perched on her ample hips...LOL. I love the chart but the colors are a bit subdued for me. I formulated a plan to paint some linen (32 ct) to stitch her on... a turquoise blue background with some olive-y green grass to stand on...and this is how it turned out...

I had to begin with the words at the bottom of the piece... I wanted to be certain they would show up and I wanted them to be more visible than in the chart photo...and they are. And an added bonus to using this fabric is I won't have to stitch all that solid grass... win win win!!!

I am so entranced with this piece I worked on it for hours yesterday and here is where I stand...

The tops of the  spools of thread mark how wide the piece will be...I'm waiting on the Valdani floss for the thread ..and look how wide her skirt will be... I plan on stitching the skirt in Crescent Colors Queen Bee...my favorite golden yellow... that will also pump up the color in this piece. I have a thread order into 123Stitch... hope it comes quickly.

My plan now...and it could change ...as has been seen last week...is for a summer display of prim ladies. This Needle and Thread piece will be an anchor along with this other one by WTN&T...

This one is called Good Deeds...and my plan for her is to be stitched a yellow linen with some tangerine accents. I also plan to pick threads for that basket of flowers she's holding to actually contrast with her dress.  These charts are a departure for me from doing samplers... and I'm really enjoying it... I have a new enthusiasm for my stitching ... can't wait every day to pick up my needle.

And I even stitched a little prim piece last week to add to this prim lady idea...

This is a selection from the pattern Tansy-Yarrow-Rue by Pineberry Lane...here's what the full chart looks like...

I want this to be a small pillow/pin keep and I may stitch the plant pieces too. Again I love the prim look but not so much the prim colors. I brighten up her dress and her hair and the flowers.  The little robin and the confetti spots are my additions too.  I got this chart as a digital download from PatternMart.com....  instant gratification!!

I can hardly believe that next week is Easter... this year has flown by so far... I just want some days to stay home and stitch and sew and knit...preferably sitting on my new enclosed porch...but temps above freezing would be nice, along with blinds for all those windows. The blinds are on order...hopefully in 2 weeks Dan can come back and install them. Oh I have plans...we'll just have to see how they pan out.

I'll be linking up with Kathy's Quilts today and after a quick trip to the grocery store I'll be making meatballs for dinner tonight and maybe sneak in a bit more stitching... that would be the makings of a great Sunday. Hope yours is a good one too!

happy stitching-
carol fun