Belated Birthday Gift

Slowly but surely, I'm stitching again. Another project completed last Friday... One that's about four months overdue. I started stitching this with my good friend Dede's birthday in mind. April has long past! Still deciding if I should give it to her as a very belated birthday present or an early Christmas gift. LOL!

Design: Devoted to Laurie (Freebie)

Designer: Passione Ricamo

Fabric: 28 count Silkweaver Solo Lugana

Fibers: DMC & Hand Dyed Fibers Silk

I love the verse in this design. True friends are indeed blessings in life.

As usual, I personalized the design by swapping the DMC floss for the monochrome flowers with Hand Dyed Fibers' Crushed Berry - leftover floss from my last project. I think it lend more depth and flow to the entire piece.

As usual, confetti stitches are a pain but the result are usually worth it. If only I'd remember that next time I encounter them again. *Grin*

Winter Time

Living in a tropical country, it's so hot and humid here that even with the frequent heavy downpours (which don't help once they stop), one would gladly welcome any relief from the weather. Even when it comes in the form of stitching. Maybe that's why I've been so partial to winter theme designs lately, especially when it comes to round robins. Remember the Winter Cat square I stitched just recently for Renée? Well, here are two more:

Design: Winter Lady

Designer: Passione Ricamo

Fabric: 28 count Polstitches Hand Dyed Evenweave

Fibers: DMC

The recipient of this Passione Ricamo RR is a secret. Let's just say she's a wonderful lady that more than deserves this RR which 9 stitchers from all over the world will be stitching for her. Since I'm 99.9% sure that she doesn't read my blog, I don't mind revealing my square here. As I'm the first to stitch on it, there's really no point showing the whole piece with 8 other empty squares.

Then there's Dawn's Seasonal Snowmen RR.

Design: Winter Snowman

Designer: Stoney Creek

Fabric: 28 count White Evenweave

Fibers: DMC

The whole piece is adorable, isn't it?

Dawn's Seasonal Snowmen RR

Stitching this cheerful snowman does indeed help in fighting the supressing heat. Quick and easy design that I totally enjoy.

It has taken me a while after joining the Let's Stitch blog host by Becky SC to face what I've been ignoring all this time... my ever growing pile of stash and WiPs. Finally, I managed to summon up the courage to compile my WiPs and To-Do Lists. Like I mention in that post, if you happen to see a particular project in my lists that you're stitching or will be stitching, please let me know. I'd love to do an actual SAL with you.

To take it a step further, I've also joined in the Friday Stitch-A-Thon on 3rd October. I chose to stitch my neglected Queen of the Needle. I know, I know. I have older WiPs that are screaming for my attention but as QotN is already on my Q-Snaps, I predicted that would save me time and I could get more stitching done. Here's my progress during the 6 hour Stitch-A-Thon:

I managed to finish stitching Band 10 and I've got bunnies now in my kingdom. How cute are they? Finally, I'm done with the most challenging back stitch words I've ever encountered in my life!

As usual, I couldn't resist adding my own touches to a design. I love the effect of the silk chenille sheep so much that I ended up using it on the bunnies' tails too.

I think I'll stick with QotN for this week's challenge which is to *direct quote* 'stitch on any "sampler" type design you may have as a WIP'. Thus, you can count on more updates on it again soon.

*Edited to add* Chiloe, Dawn's RR is a Stoney creek design taken from Book 381. Hope that helps.

2008 First Happy Dance

Wow, did I just post a few of days ago? I find it hard to believe that I'm posting again so soon. Then again, remember I said I'll have a finish soon? Well, I kept my word and I can't wait to share my first happy dance of 2008 with all of you. A little late, I know, considering that it's almost May - halfway through 2008. Anyway, here it is... drumroll... ^.^

Design: Blond Beauty Cameo
Designer: Passione Ricamo
Fabric: 28 count Silkweaver's Wildberry Sparkle Reflections Lugana
Fibers: DMC & Rainbow Gallery Treasure Braid Petite
Beads: Mill Hill Beads

Did I leave anything out? If so, feel free to ask. Thank you so much for all your compliments on my "L". Carol R, I didn't use the recommended floss or fabric. There wasn't any given. The designer did however suggest Vikki Clayton's hand dyed silk and since I like the blue and red on the sample piece, I decided to stick with that but with a twist of my own - variegated floss. I picked the fabric not only because I thought it would look nicer than just plain white but I wanted to give it an "aged" look. I'm very pleased with the result so far :)

Stash and More Stash!

Caution: Picture Heavy Post

I've been a bad, bad girl. Why? I've barely been stitching but instead... well, rather than trying to explain, I'll let the pictures do the talking instead. This is what I've accumulated since my last post:

Q Snaps 13" x 13" & 17" x 17"
Antique White Belfast Linen 27" x 36"
Opalescent Antique White Cashel Linen 18" x 27"
Tacky Bob
2 Pairs of Gingher Scissors
DMC 2 in 1 Thread & Yarn Cutter
Stoney Creek (Lanarte) - Spring Ride

Scissors & Thread Cutter Up Close

Rainbow Gallery Petite Treasure Braid PB 66, PB05 & PB10 (x2)

Silkweaver Wandering Ivy 32ct Opalescent Jazlyn 18" x 26"

And last but not least, what I wanted to show off most of all:

Vikki Clayton Hand Dyed Fibers - Papillon Creations "Love With A Capital L" Silk Packet

I chose the colours Flag II for the Letter L, Examplar BlueBerry Soup for the primary colour and Examplar Ox Blood for the secondary colour. This will be my first time stitching with silk and I'm so excited. The fibers are so vibrant in real life and lovely to touch. To give you a better idea, here's a couple more pictures of the silks up close:

Examplar Blue Berry Soup, Flag II & Examplar Ox Blood in Premium Floss

Flag II

Aren't they lovely? I've decided to stitch it on Zweigart's Vintage Country Mocha (marbled) Belfast linen to give it an aged look. What do you think?

HDF Silk on Zweigart's Vintage Country Mocha (marbled) Belfast linen

This is what Love With A Capital L will look like when it's completed:

Papillon Creations - Love With A Capital L

After all that S.E.X., I'll really should concentrate on my stitching. However, my needle has not been completely idle all this time. I've made some progress on "A Lazy Afternoon".My friend will be moving into her new place sometime this month so I had better start working on it more and stop getting distracted. I completely blame my lack of attention on this:

Yes, it's another Passione Ricamo design. Found in the March issue of The Gift of Stitching Magazine it's Blond Beauty Cameo by Laura Lattuada. I completely fell in love with her when I saw her and immediately think she'll look perfect on this piece of fabric I've had for the longest time. It's 28 count Silkweaver's Wildberry Sparkle Reflections lugana. I've been diligently working on her. I named her Elizabeth because she reminds me of the heroine in "Almost Heaven" by my favourite author, Judith Mcnaught with her green eyes and blond hair. Hopefully she'll be finished this weekend so I can concentrate on "A Lazy Afternoon" again. Who knows, I just might have my first 2008 Happy Dance sooner than I expected.

1 HD, 2 WIPs

Happy New Year, all! May all your hopes and dreams come true this year. I've never been big on new year resolutions but I guess the one resolution I should make is to keep this blog updated. It's been two months since I've last written. Not good. Then again, I don't have a lot to show for those two absent months. In fact, this is the only finish I have to show so ladies and gentlemen, come celebrate a very belated Happy Dance with me.

This is "Crafty Cat" by Margaret Sherry. Finished him about 2 months ago. The original design was stitched with Anchor threads but I used DMC threads instead, which are also provided in the chart but I think the cream colour for his face is too dark. Oh well, he's still cute, isn't he? Getting all tangled up in that mess. However, I'm pretty certain if I had a cat and it did that to my stitchy stuff, cute is definitely gonna be the furthest thing from my mind. Hehe...

As for what I'm working on at the moment, here they are:

"Chorus Line" by Valerie Pfeiffer is stitched on 28 count cream lugana. This is the first time I'm stitching her designs even though I've seen them around for a while now. I really like her birds. They're so fluffy. Unfortunately, after I was done stitching on this bird, another project caught my attention and I've been working on that since.

And here she is, "The Romantic Stitcher" by non other than Laura G. Lattuada of Passione Ricamo. The fabric is Zweigart's Vintage Country Cream (Marbled) 32 count linen. It's been a while since I've picked up something this big so completing her will definitely take me a while. However, I'm having so much fun stitching on her it hardly matters. Her face is stitched over one, a first for me, and I must say I really like the effect thus the extra work is worth it. Just don't expect me to work on her arms and hands anytime soon. ^.^

My First RR!

Yes! Ladies and Gentlemen, after four months since it left home, here I present to you the first RR of mine to return home - my 4 Seasons Postcards Round Robin. This one made its rounds in hot, sunny Malaysia and didn't venture overseas which is probably why it came back first. I'm sure that by now, you'll be familiar with the designer - Laura G. Lattuada of Passione Ricamo. Many thanks to Aida who stitched spring, Margaret who stitched Summer and Rozita who stitched Autumn. Winter, is of course stitched by me. I just noticed that coincidentally, the names are in alphabetical order from spring to winter. Pretty cool eh? It is stitched on 28 count cream lugana.

Next, as promised earlier, here's a picture of Roz's 4 Seasons Postcards RR. Hers is stitched on cashel linen... I'm guessing the colour is khaki and I appologize in advance if I'm wrong. So what do you think? One theme, two types of fabrics, two varied arrangements. The results are pretty different, don't ya think? Which one's prettier? Just kidding! You don't need to answer that. LOL!

And finally, I can now show off the square I stitched for Aida whose's RR theme is "Home Sweet Home" She had requested that we keep what we stitched a secret for she wanted to be surprised. As she has received her RR today too, here's what I stitched: my first Lizzie Kate - Home is Where We Share... This is what happens when I'm given free reign of my colour choices. I can tell you I didn't follow ANY of the recommended DMC colours nor the overdyed threads. Instead, I opted to use vareigated threads. I too changed the colour of the windows which were supposed to be a darkish colour to yellow for I think the house looks more welcoming and cheerful this way as opposed to the forbidden look the house has with dark windows. The charm that's supposed to be above the door has also been replaced by a stitched heart.

Aida, Margaret and Roz, it's been an honour being able to participate in this RR with you all. I look forward to joining another RR with all of you again in the near future.

Passione Ricamo Autumn

I stitched two more Passione Ricamo freebies... this time of an Autumn theme. It was just plain coincidence since this here is the only choice available for Rozita's round robin. It was the last square before the RR goes back home to mummy. For those of you who're too late in downloading it, the series is being published again in The World of Cross Stitching magazine. Spring and Summer Postcard is already out in issue 111 and issue 112 respectively. Autumn and Winter Postcard will each be printed in issue 116 and issue 117.

I know Roz can't wait to see the whole piece but since her RR theme is the same as mine, I won't post a picture of it until I have my RR back. That way, when I post both pictures together, you all can compare how different both our round robins look stitched on different fabrics with a different arrangement. Coincidentally, she stitched Autumn on mine as well and now I understand what she meant when she said that the occasional confetti stitches were killing her. The end result is beautiful though, don't you agree?

Anyway, after I posted the Topiaries as my picture answer for the SBQ, with a splurt of enthusiasm and speed, I picked it up again and started stitching frantically. Within two days, I had completed the Autumn Topiary. Makes me wonder why I had not done that sooner.

Now here's the finish piece... the first piece I've done this year that I can claim as being completely mine - something that I've stitched all for myself. The luxury and satisfaction that comes from that is incomparable. I've personalised it by adding these words that I wrote at the top:

For everything in Life, there's a Reason
Just as there's Beauty in every Season

I thought it fits in nicely and it stands to remind me, whenever I look at it that no matter what happens in life, God's work is always involved and that instead of complaining or blaming someone, I should try to look for the silver lining in the situation. Now, if only saying is as easy as actually doing...

Stitching Blogger's Question: SBQ Picture Day

This week's SBQ which I've finally gotten around to answering is a two parter requesting pictures:

The first request comes from Vash who is requesting pictures of the back of your stitching… are you brave enough to give this one a shot?

Yup, apparently I'm brave enough. The "Seasonal Topiaries" which now is sadly no longer a downloadable freebie from Passione Ricamo was supposed to be a SAL on the EMS Board but I got waylaid by RRs. I think I'm very behind now but I'll manage to complete it - somehow... someday...

The second request comes from Singular Stitches, and she is asking for “a pictorial tour of [the] special place that you go to create your wonderful stitched creations.”

Here it is, the place where I do 99.9% of my stitching - in my room in front of the computer. That is why for those of you who know me, I'm online almost all the time. You can see my sewing machine at the far end. I also have a lovely view of my fish tank while I'm stitching.

Representing Me?

Yup, you've read correctly. This pattern is representing me in Teresa's round robin. Originally, dragons/unicorns were her theme but she changed her mind and gave us the freedom to stitch any pattern as long as it reflects our personality and likes. Then how exactly did I end up stitching this?

Well, flowers were the first to enter my mind so I thought I'd stick with that. I love flowers and I think they're one of life's greatest pleasure. Next, I wanted a design that the lovely lavender of the fabric would not only complement but enhance as well. I decided that a design with plenty of bright, sunny yellow would achieve that effect nicely. Roses, which are my favourite flowers briefly crossed my mind as the flowers to stitch but romantic wasn't exactly what I was aiming for. I finally settled on Mimosa by Passione Ricamo for I think it looks sweet and cheerful and if you visit my blog often, you'll know that Laura's one of my favourite designers.

And if you're curious as to what the RR looks like now, here it is, in all its glory. The dragon was stitched by Teresa and the house and hearts by Melissa. It'll be heading to Monica next in USA. Wonder what she'll add to it. This is probably the most unique RR I've ever had the honour to stitch.

Lemonade, Anyone?

At least to me, it looks like a lemon tree which automatically brings to mind my favourite drink - lemonade. Mmm... just thinking of it makes my mouth water. The summer topiary is aptly named given its bright colours which represents the season perfectly. Looking at it, I can imagine long hot days with me under the shade in a deck chair beside the pool sipping a tall, cold glass of... lemonade. For some reason, I seem to be craving for lemonade tonight. I wonder why ^_~ Definitely getting myself a big cup of lemonade tomorrow when I go magazine hunting in the mall again.

Anyway, this took me four days to complete. Could've taken me less time but I was going slow and easy on it. Now all I've got left is the autumn topiary but I think I'll leave that for another month or so. Feel like stitching something else now though I've not yet decided on my next project. Am eager to work on the couple of round robins I'm expecting but since it's already the weekend, I'll have to wait until next week for the postman. I just might start a new project... Will keep you all posted. Off to ponder some more on what to stitch next...

Round Robins Update

Ok, finally I have something more to show. Here are some updates on a couple of round robins that I'm currently in. This Winter Postcard by Passione Ricamo is stitched for my "Seasonal Postcards" round robin with the Malaysian Stitchers group. It is due to be sent out on 22nd March so I'm glad I've got it done and ready to be mailed out. There are four of us in this round robin - Aida, Margaret, Rozita and me. Sadly, this postcard series is no longer available as a downloadable freebie but the good news is that it will be published in The World of Cross Stitching magazine sometime this year so keep your eyes peeled for it.

Next is this adorable cat in "Purr-suit" of a bird by Margaret Sherry. After much pondering, debating and proscrastinating, I managed to make up my mind and stitched this design for Wendy's "Funny Cats" round robin. There are minimal floss blending required for this pattern which is great for me to practice with as it is my first experience with that. Since it's a Heritage Stitchcrafts' design which is famous for its squashed stitches, having to poke in between the Aida blocks is somewhat difficult but I got used to it after a while.

There was six of us at first but unfortunately, Cindy had to pull out because she has Carpal Tunnel, causing her hand to go numb which in turns, affects her stitching. Thus, the remaining five are Charity, Lene, Sherryn, Wendy and of course, me. It's scheduled to be sent out on 15 April so I'm rather early with this round robin but considering that I've had it for a long, long time now (more than a month, aiks!) it's way past time I finish stitching it. Wendy, here's what your RR looks like at this stage. Hope you like it!