To the Queen

To the Queen by JBW Designs

Stitched 2 over 2 on 32 ct. Antique White with Recommended threads

 I've had this chart in my stash for a while.  I picked it up on sale at my LNS becasue the moment I saw it, I knew it was destined to be for my friend Kim.  I met Kim YEARS ago at work, and we ended up in facing cubes.  Since Kim has a long standing fondness for the color pink and queens, this is utterly perfect for her.

The original chart calls for a tiny crown charm, but I substituted a K for Kim instead.  I debated whether or not to use the glass (normally I'd frame it without since I wasn't using a mat) but I didn't want the charm to tarnish, so I went ahead and put the glass back in.  I gave it to her last weekend, and she LOVED it.  She's a bit of a stitcher herself, though she hasn't done it in years (she crochets more now), so she knew the work that went into it and appreciated it all the more.

And no, my framing isn't quite as wonky as it appears in the photo.  I swear I do this all the time - I never notice how weird my framing looks in the photo for an item I've already gifted until I go and write the blog post about it!

Happy 10th Wedding Anniversary!

My husband and I are celebrating our 10th wedding anniversary today.  (And tomorrow will be 10 years to the day of our engagement).  We'll be together 22 years in June, and it's been a pretty awesome ride so far.  We are not without our ups and downs, but we have learned from the difficulties to put our faith and trust in each other.

Without getting too mushy, my husband is the best man I know and I am so proud of how hard he works for us, how smart he is, how good he is with our son, and how understanding (and wise) he is with me.  Happy Anniversary, Mr. Sweet Pea!

And now a look at some of the pieces we've stitched over the years.  I will have our 10th Anniversary piece in a few days as I got a bit of a late start on it.

We stitched this piece together before our wedding.  Our wedding colors were blue and silver, and there was a running theme of stars throughout.  (Yes, it is mostly because we are Dallas Cowboys fans, though it was far less embarrassing to admit that 10 years ago than it is now.  But let's not talk about that.)

Count the Stars - Dimensions kit

We had just started stitching, so we relied on this kit from Dimensions that we modified as a wedding record.  We changed the wording to the line we used from an ee cummings poem that has special meaning to us.  When we were in college, my scientist husband (then chemistry student boyfriend) would send me ee cummings poems as love letters, something I thought was incredibly sweet).  We used line from another of his poems on our wedding invitations, "one's not half two.  It's two are halves of one:"

Several years later, I stitched this piece as a Valentine's / Anniversary piece for him (It was stitched for Valentine's Day, but I didn't end up framing it until our anniversary that year.

It's Peas in a Pod, Me and You by Sue Hillis designs.

Sadly, the last "anniversary" piece I stitched was for our fifth anniversary, you know, five years ago.  It has yet to be framed (I do HAVE the frame, I just have to convince my framer - Mr. Sweet Pea - to get it done.  Why yes, I do make him frame his own gifts.)

This is Always and Forever, by Little House Needleworks.  You can get the details here from our fifth anniversary post.  I ordered a somewhat ornate black frame for it, and it's all ready to go.  Perhaps it will get framed AND hung up sometime this year.  Won't that be exciting!  I actually have a spot on the wall all ready to go.  We have a corner area in our front hall where we've hung some old black and white family photos, including some wedding photos.  We even have a black and white wedding photo of our own hanging up, and I'd like to hang this piece along with them.

As I mentioned earlier, the 10th anniversary piece is currently in progress.  I had put it out of my mind for the longest time, and when I was at my LNS a few weeks ago, flipping through the racks, it occurred to me that MAYBE I should stitch something for our anniversary.  Nothing was really working for me, and then I spotted a chart I already owned (yay!) and was able to pick up the fabric I needed for it.  So now it's one of four (five, six....) projects on scroll frames sitting next to my stitching chair.  It's a fairly easy stitch (compared to the Sampler Cove and Long Dog pieces I am also working on), so it should be done soon.

Archiving and recording

This post has been sitting in draft format for a while.  I won't say exactly how long, but it's been a while.

I have a compulsion to organize and archive things. (There are more than a few of you out there that will relate to this)  It's always there, simmering just below the surface, but in the last few years, it's taken on greater importance. When my husband's dearly beloved 99 year old grandmother passed away a while back, my MIL and I pulled together many family photos from a variety of sources for her viewing and funeral. So many of them were unmarked and unlabeled.  Luckily, my MIL is very good with names and faces, so we were able to identify most of the people in the photos. (My FIL has been struggling to identify the photos he inherited in boxes from his parents, and having a bit harder of a time with it.)  It got me thinking about family history being lost in bits and pieces along the way, and I felt a need to do what I could to preserve it.

I keep fairly meticulous records of my own photos, especially digital ones. Everything's labeled and organized in my own files, as well as in the online digital albums I upload. Prints are marked with the date, location and participants when possible so that in 50 years, my son isn't wondering who is smiling down at his cute baby face in a photograph.

I've been borrowing old photos from my ILs and scanning them in as high resolution TIFF files for preservation, touch up and reprinting, and burning the files to CD as well as uploading them online. I've been making sure to have my ILs identify as many people as they can as well.  And we've also been printing and framing some of these photos so that they become part of our daily lives, and more importantly, part of our son's daily life.  We are lucky to have wedding photos of my husband's maternal grandparents and my maternal grandparents.  Both couples were married during the Depression, and the photos are a treasure.  We also have a variety of framed photos of the important people in our lives hanging on our walls so that in some small way, they are always with us.

In the spirit of this archiving and organizing, I've been combing through my own needlework photos, making sure I have designers, pattern names, dates, etc. We have photos of almost every single piece we've ever stitched and it's not entirely impossible to remember the basic details just by looking at the photos. I've had long stretches where I've only finished a piece or two, and my husband tends to take on major projects that take a year or more to complete, so I'm not looking at hundreds of pieces. But I have noticed that my pre-blog record keeping has been spotty. I didn't pay as much attention to designers or fabric or threads or things of that nature as I do now.  However, most of my pre-blog stitching came from kits, so it's not hard to track that information down.  I store everything, including the leftover kit threads, in plastic page protectors in 3-ring binders.  My charts are divided between binders and underbed storage boxes, usually by likelihood that I will stitch it again.  (I do have several charts I've stitched more than once with variations, usually smaller ones for birth records).  Once I started blogging and participating in the stitching community, I started branching out, experimenting and modifying charts for my own needs, changing colors, fabrics, etc.  Having that record in my blog posts has been helpful.

Anyway, I have instituted a way of identifying stitched pieces, at least the framed ones, and providing a bit of archival information down the road. I've started making up labels and sticking them on the back of the frame.

For gifts, this is in addition to a handwritten note. If the backing is black or another dark color, I write a short note to the recipient with a gold or silver scrapbooking marker. And if it's a paper backed piece, I write a note on a sticker and attach it to the back of the piece.  (And if you'd like to see the front of this particular piece, it's here)

What do you do to archive and record your stitching and/or crafting for yourself?  Do you keep a blog or journal?  Photos?  Do you prefer handwritten or digital records?  Do you do anything special to sign your work?

Gift for a baby girl

Gabrielle Rose by La D Da
Stitched 2 over 2 on 32 ct. Antique White
Name intentionally blurred for privacy

Here's another piece that I finally finished up and framed, and delivered.

Kelly is the daughter of a childhood friend of mine and I wanted to make something special for her nursery. Since the parents didn't go with a specific theme for her room, I chose this piece from my stash.  It's pretty and feminine without being overly girly and I think it will be something pretty for her room for a long time to come.

I used the recommended colors for the piece, but left out the initials in the corners, and changed the wording on the banner to Kelly's last name.  In hindsight, I might have used a lighter color thread for her name, since the grey does seem to blend in, but I like the subtleness of the grey.

You may remember the piece I stitched up for Kelly's brother Ryan.  They went with a jungle theme, so I stitched Safari Birth Sampler by Mary Stickley for The Coleshill Collection.  Since the furniture in the nursery remained the same, I ordered a similar frame for both pieces.

Birth Record for a Baby Girl

Way back in June, I showed you the ornament I stitched up for a new family member, and I am now getting around to posting her birth record.

Inspirational Scripture - Faith (with thread) by Little House Needleworks
Stitched 2 over 2 on 28 ct. Sandcastle with included thread
Modified for personal use

Once again, I modified a chart to suit my needs because I couldn't really find a birth record chart that worked for what I wanted.  I took out the wording that was in place and charted in my own.  I ended up extending the flower stem to accommodate all the birth information, but I love how it turned out.  

If the parents choose a theme for the nursery, I like to match or coordinate as closely as possible, and this was the bedding they picked for their baby girl:

CoCaLo Baby Mia Rose

I've had the piece finished for a while (oh, maybe since December of last year), but framing is another story, especially with a stitched border in the piece.  Getting the border lined up and straight before framing isn't hard, but it is tedious and time consuming, and not my husband's favorite job, so sometimes it does take a little convincing.  I also had a small hiccup with this piece by not starting it where I should have.  Somehow I managed to mess up centering the piece and by the time I figured it out, I was too far into stitching it to rip it all out.  The piece still fit on the fabric, but there wasn't quite enough room to securely wrap the edge around the mounting board.

After some discussion, I took the piece to my LNS to ask for the owner's advice as she also offers framing services.  She suggested stitching a piece of muslin on the short edge, since the seam would be hidden by the matting and no one would be the wiser.  One, two, three - she stitched a spare piece of fabric on and we were ready to go.  (On a side note, this above and beyond type of customer service is one of the many reasons I continue to shop there.  Please patronize small businesses, especially niche businesses like LNSes, whenever you can, or we risk losing them all together.)

Now that the edge wrapped around the mounting board, it was much easier to frame.  Getting a decent photo with the glass was another issue, though, but this one did come out.  Finally, I was able to send this, the butterfly ornament, and the other Bride's Tree Ornaments we still owed the parents from their wedding (4 years ago) off to the family where they were greatly appreciated and able to be enjoyed for years to come.  I love it when a plan comes together.

An original, commissioned design

A few weeks before Christmas, a friend and I were chatting and she mentioned she'd love to have a "Subversive Cross-stitch" type piece made for her boss and asked if I could design something around a phrase he likes to use. I said sure, no problem!

She wanted the piece to look obviously cross stitched, so I stitched it on Aida fabric and stuck to a very simple DMC color palette. I added the sheep for a little bit of interest / kitsch / reference to his theory that most people are sheep.

The verdict? HE LOVED IT! He thought it was absolutely hilarious and says it makes him laugh every time he looks at it.

And yes, my framing is much better than it appears in the photo. It was straight in the frame, and that's glare on the glass, not a wrinkle in the fabric.

A sentimental gift

Remember Me by My Big Toe Designs
Stitched 2 over 2 on 32 ct. Fog
With Crescent Colors Blacksmith Blue and Raspberry Parfait
Accented with antique buttons

I spotted this design early in 2011, after my husband's beloved grandmother passed away just days after her 99th birthday. I knew it was something we had to stitch in her honor for his mom. He agreed, and I picked up the chart and threads. I originally wanted to do it in two shades of pink (Grandma's favorite color) but he thought it would be too much pink and chose a darker blue accented by pink.

I picked this raspberry shade of pink for a particular reason. Right after Grandma passed away, I sent out an email to the extended family and cousins to let them know what happened and what the funeral arrangements were. (I stay in regular touch with most of the cousins via email and Facebook and it was my way of helping my MIL, who was feeling overwhelmed at the time.) As the response emails started coming back, I noticed a consistent theme in what people were saying they'd most remember about Grandma - her welcoming kitchen and delicious food, specifically her homemade raspberry jelly. My husband has mentioned this himself numerous times, and it seems he's not the only one it had an impact on. It's a little thing, but I am very sentimental like that, and I think my husband appreciated it as well.

What is obvious in the piece are the antique buttons used in place of some of the specialty stitches. I've mentioned the button collection we inherited from Grandma before, and these are some of the buttons from that collection. Just before he framed it, Mr. Sweet Pea picked out some of his favorites and stitched them onto the piece.

This is another American Frame, with a twist, as it's not the original frame I selected. Right after I placed the order, I got an email saying there was a mistake on the website and the frame I ordered was not in stock. Ugh. I hate it when that happens, but I went back to the drawing board and picked another frame. As it turns out, I like this one better than the first one I chose, and it works beautifully with the furniture in my IL's dining room, where it now hangs. I should also mention that Mr. Sweet Pea used acrylic on this piece (which is why you can see the glare) and some clear spacers to leave enough clearance for the raised buttons.

My MIL absolutely loved the piece and was deeply touched by the time and care her son put into stitching and framing the piece. She says she walks by it every day and it makes her smile to see it.

Mama needs a new pair of shoes

Well, *I* don't actually need a new pair of shoes, and I'm not really a high heel kind of girl. At 5'10", I already tower over a lot of people. Plus, I have a terrible time walking in them - I never really learned how. And although I can appreciate a beautiful shoe, sadly, when you wear a size 10, it's hard to find really cute shoes. Instead, I live vicariously though two of my friends who are confirmed "shoe-a-holics" and absolutely adore shoes. (And can walk in ridiculously high heels)

This first one is for one of my closest friends. We've known each other since I was 8 and she was 3, and she loves, loves, loves shoes. When she was moving to her apartment, her dad was helping and as shoe box after shoe box appeared, he started to wonder out loud just how many pairs of shoes one person needed. For that matter, how many pairs of *black* shoes? All explanations of flats, heels, casual, dress, and seasonal shoes went out the window - a foreign language to a man who owned sneakers, black dress shoes, brown dress shoes and winter boots.

But back to my friend. For as long as I can remember, blue has been her favorite color. She wasn't digging the pink when I showed her the original chart, and I assured her it didn't have to be pink at all. This is what I came up with:

The Shoe Shopper by JBW Designs
Stitched on 32 ct. Antique White with
WDW Americana (dark blue) and Morris Blue (light blue)

I am so excited with how it came out, and how COOL is that frame? I loved it so much I ordered it for another piece I want to frame up for my husband. I like the black on black detailing - it makes the frame a little more special without being over the top.

The frame came from American Frame, and I must say, I HIGHLY recommend them. Their service was excellent, the shipping was FREE and you can preview what your pieces will look like online by uploading a photo.

They will even send you samples of mat board and frame pieces ahead of time, though you are limited to five total samples before ordering. You can order additional samples when you place an order. I do have a teeny tiny complaint that if you want a complete set of mat samples at once, you do have to purchase them. Another framing company I use will send you a complete set for free, but it's not the same brand of mat. (These are Crescent mats) I figure there must be tons of scraps from mats they cut - surely they can send out free sample sets, but the savings on shipping makes up for it. I ended up not matting this piece anyway, but I do suggest (strongly) that if you are ordering mat online to order from an actual sample, NOT from your monitor color. The color on your monitor can give you the general idea, but when you're trying to match colors, an actual sample is the way to go.

For a relatively inexpensive price, the quality of these frames is excellent - very sturdy and well made, and impeccably packed. All my pieces were neatly and securely packed in the box - not a scratch, dent or ding. You can also order acrylic and backer board, and they offer an acid free foam core CUT TO SIZE for each frame. YAY!!! You have no idea how happy this made my husband (my chief framer and often disgusted with my cutting jobs).

And I did say PAIR of shoes. This is a second version of the same piece, for another shoe-a-holic friend, done in colors to match her apartment.

Stitched on 32 ct. Vintage Buttercream with
WDW Straw (tan), Crescent Colors Cupid (red) and GAST Dark Chocolate (brown)

She was absolutely thrilled when she got it, even if it was almost a year after I told her I wanted to stitch something for her. To be fair, it had been STITCHED since about March, but it sat around waiting to be framed. With the free labor I get, I can't be too demanding when it comes to getting things without a specific deadline framed.

Wow, I am on a ROLL!!! And there's still more to come. At this rate, I should surpass my posts total from 2011 by the end of February 2012. Or not, especially if Pinterest gets involved. Which it very well might.

Remember my first finish of 2011?

The one that's going to be my first post of 2012? The one I gave you a little sneak peek at WAY back when? Here it is all framed up.

Pot Luck by Ink Circles
Stitched 2 over 2 on 32 ct. Vintage Examplar
with Carrie's Creations Silk Thread in Double Fudge Brownie

I am so thrilled with how this came out, and my friend Julie absolutely loved it. I was able to give it to her in person right before Christmas. I love that - a lot of the gifts I make are sent in the mail. And yes, it WAS sitting around that long waiting to be framed.

She was so excited about it and couldn't wait to hang it in her office. She had chosen the pattern and given me a list of colors she liked from several thread lines. She picked a few in the Carrie's Creations collection that were combined into one thread, the Double Fudge Brownie.

The thread was lovely to stitch with and the color variations are beautiful, much prettier than they are in this photo (the sneak peek is a more accurate representation). It's been difficult to get a good photo this winter, compounded by the fact that I am usually trying to take photos at the last minute before I pack it up and send it off (or take it with me). And the framing is courtesy of my husband and American Frame - I can't say enough good things about either of them!

You'll be seeing this pattern again. I have it kitted up in an olive green silk thread, also from Carrie's, for our house. But don't hold your breath - it's going to be a while. Years, even. But I do have a few more projects to show you - they're in the queue, photos and all, just waiting for me to write a little post about them and get them online. Wish me luck!

My first commissioned piece

Blackbird Designs - I Thee Wed
stitched on 32 ct. Mushroom Lugana
with recommended threads

My beloved cousin Kerri was the maid of honor in her friend's wedding, and asked me if I would stitch something for her to give as a gift. After a few emails back and forth about what her friend might like, I sent her a few suggestions and this was the one she picked. She liked how it tied into the wedding colors of pink and green and thought it would look beautiful in her friend's house.

So this is the very first piece I stitched on commission, for just the price of materials and not my time. (I didn't mind doing it - stitching is my sanity as I am sure you can all relate to). All in all, not a bad gift for about $50, and yes, I had my husband frame it.

Once again, I must highly recommend American Frame. Beautiful frames, pre-cut acid free mounting board, and free shipping when you spend more than $50 (if you frame several pieces, it's not hard to get to $50). Plus they will send you up to five samples of frames and/or mat board before you even order.

We tried something new this time with spacers. Normally, I frame without glass or acrylic, but my cousin asked if we could put something over the stitching to keep it cleaner. Since we were framing without a mat, I did a little reading on the site and found the spacers. They come in long sticks that are easy to cut and fit into the frame, and worked like a charm to provide an air space between the acrylic (most online places will not sell and ship glass) and the stitching itself. Now that we know how well it works, I'll definitely be doing it again for a few pieces I plan on hanging in our kitchen. They won't be right near the sink or stove, but I'd like to give them that extra layer of protection anyway.

I do have several other pieces awaiting the framing process, so hopefully I'll be able to show them soon.

I've got sunshine on a cloudy day...

Or rather, my lovely mother in law does.

My Sunshine by La D Da

Stitched over 2 on 32 ct. Lakeside Vintage Light Examplar
with Crescent Colors Black Coffee, Manor Red, Queen Bee and Pewter

Last year, I saw this design floating around the blogosphere and knew immediately that it was something we had to do for my mother-in-law. I remember my grandfather singing this song for me when I was very young, but it's a song my husband's mom sings to her three grandchildren all the time. This was perfect for her, and my husband stitched it for her for a Christmas gift. (Yes, I am just now getting around to posting a photo)

My job was to figure out how to frame it. Sometimes when I see a pattern, I have an instant vision of how to display it and this was one of those instances. I lucked out - stitched on 32 ct. fabric, this design fits perfectly into a pre-made 8x10 frame. However, finding an 8x10 frame with two matching smaller frames that we liked *and* that worked with the design proved to be a challenge. I hunted through several stores to find something that worked - not an easy task when your constant companion is an active 13 month old boy! He's a good kid, but he only has so much patience, and there's only so much room in the picture frame aisle. You need eyes in the back of your head to keep on a curious little one so he's not grabbing things off the shelf!

But we did manage to stumble across a frame at Bed Bath & Beyond, and lo and behold, there were matching 4x6 frames as well. Not only did they work with the design, but they were perfect for my ILs house. Score!

I ordered up prints of our son and his two cousins. The original plan was to do four total smaller frames - one for each of the three grandchildren and an extra one for any additional grandchild, but the 8x10 frame ended up looking much better with just the two frames, so we decided to put our son on one side and my BIL's children on the other. If any additional grandchildren enter the picture, it's easy enough to change out the photos.

The gift was a HUGE hit with my in-laws, especially my MIL, who cried. (good tears, not bad ones) She was so touched that we found a pattern for the song, and she absolutely loved the framing idea. The set now hangs at the top of their stairs so they can see it every day.

Dreaming of Tuscany

Dreaming of Tuscany by Dimensions
Stitched on 18 ct. Aida with included threads
Finished 2005 - Framed 2011

This is another of my husband's pieces, again from back when we first started stitched and stitched primarily kits. Neither of us are Italian or have any Italian heritage, and while I've been to Italy, I haven't been to Tuscany. Still, we both really like this piece. We both love a good bottle of wine, so that counts, right? (And I love Northern Italian food)

I framed this one as well, but used a black wooden frame with an open back (small metal clips hold the artwork in place). Since there's more room in the frame, I was able to use the glass also with the mat board and the needlework, and not have to worry about squeezing in a backing board. When we're ready to hang this one, my husband uses double stick framing tape and brown framing paper to seal off the back of the piece. (The framing tape and paper are available at any quality art supply store).

I wanted to be able to cover this one with glass because I plan on hanging it in our kitchen. We have a small section of wall between our basement door and the doorway to the dining room that this will be perfect in.

But I'm also holding off on hanging it up until my husband finishes the piece he's currently stitching on: Tuscan Greeting by Dimensions, seen here


When I was preparing to write this post, I went looking for a link to the first piece. I like to include a link whenever possible because I've had people email me asking where they can find the piece for themselves. And I know I always appreciate a link on someone else's blog when I see a chart I really like. It's nice to know where to be able to find it. Anyway, when I went looking for the link, I saw this piece in the "You May Also Like" section and decided, yes, I really do like that one. The next time I was in a craft store, I picked it up (it is available at chain stores like Michael's and AC Moore), and now my husband is working on this piece. We already have a large enough unfinished pile, but I already have the frame and mat for this one ready to go. As soon as it's done, we'll get it framed and both pieces up on the wall.

I've made a small dent in our FUFO drawer, but there's still several other pieces I'd like to get finished and framed our our walls. The problem is that I like to have an overall plan in mind before I start framing, so I can make sure the pieces I want to hang together look like they belong together. They don't have to be matchy-matchy, but I do like them to coordinate. I've learned to be a little more patient with things and hold off until we've decided what we want to do. Yes, sometimes I get a little antsy and would like to display more of our work, but in the end, it ends up being worth it to plan ahead.

I know how this looks...

Safe Passage by Bucilla

Stitched on 14 ct. Aida with included threads

I know what you're thinking.

These people are nuts. How much lighthouse stuff can two people possibly collect?

Would you believe me if I said, "Not that much, actually?" Or at least it's not blindingly obvious the second you walk in our door.

Sure, if you poke around long enough or dig through the stash under the guest bed, or visit us at Christmas and happen to notice that a good 30% of our ornaments are lighthouses or of a nautical theme, you might come to the conclusion that we have a *interest* in lighthouses (to be polite about it). But I've worked hard at not covering every available surface with lighthouse stuff, and we limit ourselves to things we're really in love with, which cuts down on the impulse purchases. Just because something is a lighthouse, has a lighthouse on it or is somewhat reminiscent of a lighthouse doesn't mean we need to own it. (We won't talk about the camera bag that I HAD TO HAVE because it was covered in lighthouses. Or the fact that it wasn't actually a camera bag, but rather a canvas purse. And yes, I did retire it in favor of an actual plain black padded camera bag).

For the most part, our displays of lighthouses are restrained and spread out around the house. Except in Little Dude's room, where there's a concentration of photos of lighthouses from around the world. Nevermind that. He LIKES them. And he's going to like this piece too, because that's where it's going. Yeah, that's right. It's another lighthouse on our walls. (also, he's not even two years old, so it's not like he gets a say in how his room is decorated)

It's also another of my husband's earlier pieces that I dug out and framed - easy pickins as the 5x7 standard size is a quick one to do up. You may be noticing a trend in black frames - I am, too. I hope I don't find it necessary to scale that back, and I hope I still love how it looks years from now because we have a LOT of black frames in our house. Eh, black is always in style.

Another piece escapes the FUFO drawer!

A little while ago, I mentioned a drawer full of finished unfinished pieces / objects - FUFOs, as I've heard them called and it got me thinking about actually DOING something with them. Yes, many things I've stitched have been finished and given as gifts, but there are still many more languishing in a drawer in our guest room.

Some of those pieces were stitched by my husband. Technically, I'm not allowed to discuss his stitching, but I am going to ignore that "rule" because I'm quite proud of him. While most stitchers I know are women, there is a handful of men that stitch and my husband happens to be one of them. He does amazing work, and has patience for things I don't, such as massive projects. I might have even said before that he was the one that started us stitching as a way to curb our nighttime snacking habits. He figured we should do something to occupy our hands that wasn't conducive to snacking as well, and stitching fit the bill. We were living in an apartment at the time, and stitching didn't take up a whole lot of room. We started out with pre-packaged kits from places like AC Moore and Michaels, then discovered our LNS, The Strawberry Sampler, where we graduated to charts, overdyed threads, linens and evenweaves.

Since my husband will NEVER start a blog of his own, I'd like to showcase a few of his pieces on my blog. This is one of the first pieces he stitched, and here's a shocker for you - it's a lighthouse!

Nautical Light by Creative Accents (Dimensions)
Stitched on 14 ct. Aida with included threads
Finished 2002 - Framed 2011

The project was in a kit in a standard 5x7 size, making it quite easy to frame with an 8x10 frame and 5x7 mat. This one will be going on display on our living room bookshelves.

I should have taken a picture of the back of the piece, but didn't. I will say it's amazing how far we've both come with technique, especially carrying threads over the back of the fabric. See the whale and the ship off the stitched coastline? Mr. Sweet Pea used one long thread to stitch all of them, carrying the thread across the back. Yikes! We'd never do that now, especially on linen or evenweave. Fortunately, the thread did not show through the Aida fabric, so I let it go.

I did, however, restitch the outlining on the lighthouse. Originally, the outlining on the lighthouse was done with long, somewhat loose threads (Even on the package photo, the outlining is done like this and at the time, we didn't know any better.) But when I went to pull it out for framing, those long threads drove me NUTS and I had to pull them out and restitch the backstitching over single threads. It looks so much nicer, I think.

I should also confess at this point that we were not as careful with the fabrics as we are now. In fact, there might have been some *gasp* masking tape residue on the edges of the piece as we used regular old masking tape to prevent fraying. (I'll give you a minute to pick yourself up off the floor). And before you call the stitching police on me, we're much better now. Most pieces we stitch now are on custom cut pieces of fabric from my new LNS (is it still new after 2 years?) Just Crossstitch in Lederach, where Carolyn serges the edges. On fabric I cut myself, I use a fabric fray check and pinking sheers which works out fine.

But back to atoning for my previous sins. On one hand, the fabric under where the masking tape had been was clean. On the other, that stripe of clean, bright fabric around the edge made me realize how dirty the rest of the fabric was, even though I had washed the piece in cold water and Ivory dish soap before putting it away. I wanted to make sure the piece was as clean as possible before I framed it, but I had concerns about the red dye running. After a bit of google searching, however, I found that many stitchers agreed OxiClean was safe enough to use on stitching and could remove most stains, so off to the grocery store I went for a tub of OxiClean.

Lucky for me, it worked just fine, and I had no bleeding of the red dye. (YAY!) I was quite nervous but it all turned out in the end. The stains were gone and the piece looked much better.

I have a few more pieces from my husband that I will be posting in the future, and I'm hoping to rescue even more FUFOs from the drawer.

Finally Framed!!!

I thought maybe you all deserved a break from all those ornaments! Let's take a little trip down memory lane and a dive into the finished AND framed pile (pitifully small, I know.) I like to show *finished* finished pieces on the blog, but someday I will embarrass myself and post a photo of my finished unfinished pieces. Maybe several photos. Maybe a lot of photos. I have a whole drawer full of pieces patiently waiting to be finished for some form of display.

The Path by Dimensions (kit)
Stitched on 14 ct. Aida with included threads

I don't even know when I actually finished this piece - probably back in 2003-2004 when I first started stitching, and it's been languishing in a drawer ever since. It was one of the first pieces I purchased, a Dimensions kit, and I think it may still actually be available in craft stores. I admit, I almost never look at the Dimensions kits any more. Not much changes with them anyway and they're all sold with some kind of Aida cloth, which I rarely stitch on. (There's one small chart I stitch for the occasional birth record that I like using Aida cloth for a chunkier look).

While we're on the subject of confessions, I will confess that I probably ordered the frame and the mat 2-3 years ago as well, and they sat in the drawer on top of the finished piece. I have no idea why it took so long to get around to framing it, but once I pulled it out and said, "THIS TIME I MEAN IT!!!" (for the fourth or fifth time), the whole thing got framed in about 30 minutes.

You can't tell from the photo - my husband's patient framing saved me - but the stitching is completely off centered. There's an inch or so of fabric on one side, and three on the other. I don't know how it happened, but somehow I started stitching off center and by the time I realized it, I wasn't about to rip out everything and start over. I had already been planning on framing the piece, so I figured I'd just fudge things a little when I got to the framing. Lucky for me, it worked out.

This piece is intended for a friend of mine, one I've known since kindergarten. She lives in Virginia now, so we don't get to see each other as often as we'd like. In fact, it's been about a year and a half now since we've seen each other. Now that we both have children (hers are school age), it complicates travel even more, but I still think the sentiment holds true for us. It's just that sometimes, that path means picking up the phone more often than seeing each other in person.

Jungle Baby Birth Record

Jungle Baby by Imaginating
Stitched over 2 on 32 ct. Antique White
with recommended DMC Floss
(name intentionally blurred for privacy)

Believe it or not, I started this piece just before the baby was born, and was working on it while we were down the shore on vacation and his mom was in labor with him. Andrew, or Drew as he is better known, took his own sweet time getting here. It's a good thing he's such a cutie - his mom was in labor for almost two days!

The piece wasn't finished when I got to meet Drew for the first time, but he did get it the day before his six month birthday. (Go me! Usually it takes me a little longer.) We had a lunch date with Drew and his mom the other day, and I handed over the completed piece, as well as his ornament, coming in the next post. Drew seemed to like it, and his mom loved it. She couldn't wait to get it home and put it in his nursery.

My son is 8 months older than Drew, and the difference those eight months make is incredible! I remember holding Drew for the first time a few months ago, looking over at Nick and thinking, "There's no way my Nick was this tiny!" And in a few months, Drew's mom will look at another baby and think the same exact thing. As all you moms know, these little ones grow CRAZY FAST. Drew's a little older now than the last time I saw him, and he's such a cutie. He's got the most adorable chubby little cheeks and big, bright, cheery eyes. So cute!

I'm so pleased with how this came out. I think it's going to look great in Drew's jungle themed nursery (jungle themes seem to be very popular these days). And yes, it is framed in a standard 8x10 frame from the craft store. I've been leaving the glass out for pieces that won't be hung in a high traffic area or somewhere they'll be exposed to things like grease. Since this is going in a baby's nursery, I don't think I'll need to worry about the piece getting too dirty.

It's a jungle out there, baby!

So apparently jungle themes are pretty popular for nurseries these days. Given the outrageous price of bedding and accessories, I can see the attraction in picking a gender neutral theme that would be good for more than one child.

I am currently working on my third jungle themed birth record, Jungle Babies. I started it in June while on vacation and the relative simplicity of the pattern brought back a lot of my stitching joy, which had taken a beating with a recent Stoney Creek Lighthouse. Don't get me wrong - the lighthouse is utterly amazing (I'll show you in another post), but it showed me that I am not a Stoney Creek type stitcher.

Back to the birth record. Here is is before I started the backstitching, which is in progress now.

Cute, isn't it? It's a gift for a friend's little boy. In fact, I happened to be sitting down the shore, stitching away, while she was hundreds of miles away in labor for a day and a half with the little guy. So far, I have 3 of the 4 animals backstitched, and I need to get moving so I can finish it up. I try to backstitch at least 1-2 lengths of thread a day, but it's hard when there's a couple other projects I'm also working on, one of which involves a variegated thread that is really something to see. (I know. I am teasing you.)

And these are the other two jungle themed pieces I've stitched over the last few years.

This is from a Janlynn kit called On Safari, and was the first time I stitched with floss on plastic canvas. I love the way it came out, but again, the backstitching was tough. The piece was originally intended to be a collage-like photo frame, but I printed the birth info on vellum and framed it behind the stitched piece, with a photo of the recipient in the middle. If you are interested in this piece, I have it listed on my For Sale or Trade blog.


This was another jungle themed piece I stitched, Safari Birth Sampler by Mary Stickley for The Coleshill Collection. As you can see, the recipient of this one just turned 2, and it's still hanging in his room. It's simpler than the other jungle piece I stitched, and I really enjoyed stitching this one. I substituted the fabric (the chart came kitted with Aida fabric and probably Anchor thread, as I ordered it from England)

Once again, I had to play around with the chart to fit in everything I wanted to get on there. (You can see how it's originally charted here). Since it was a relatively quick stitch, easy to personalize and very cute for jungle themes, this one will be remaining in my stash for a while. But if you'd like to order your own, I'd recommend Sew and So from the UK if they still carry the piece.

Housewarming gift for a friend

I Do by Bent Creek
Stitched 2 over 2 on Cream Sienna Linen

with recommended threads

I just got word that the package arrived, so I can share this with you. This is something I stitched up for my friend and her husband, who just finished building their home in Ohio. They've moved around a bit during their marriage, from PA to Montana, to New York to Ohio, but this is the first time they've moved AND built the house and the process was more than a little stressful. I wanted to send something pretty for them to hang in the new place, and this seemed to fit the bill.

It's the second time I've stitched this piece - I also did it as a wedding gift for another friend - and it won't be the last. It's a fairly quick stitch and frames up nicely. Last time I stitched it though, a regular 8x10 frame and a 5x7 mat worked fine. This time, however, the 5x7 mat didn't work quite as well, perhaps because of a difference in the fabrics I used. They were both 32 ct, though, so who knows? Anyway, the mat didn't look quite as nice, so I came up with what I thought was an INGENIOUS solution - ordering a custom cut mat to fit in an 8x10 frame that I had already purchased.

I had to do a little fuzzy math and work out the measurements so the mat would still fit in the 8x10 frame. I obsess about this part, measuring and remeasuring, making my husband measure it, then going back and remeasuring a day or two later. Don't ask. I know it's noticeable in the picture but you can't really tell in person that the mat has slightly different dimensions on the sides and top. If you weren't looking for it, you'd never know, and if you did happen to notice it, you'd have the good manners not to say anything about it. :-)

Next time I stitch it though, I am totally going to do this. (Scroll down to see the ornament Joan made for her daughter and new husband)

Love is Little... and so is the amount of my blog posts

I know, I know. It's been AGES since I've posted anything and it may seem as if I have abandoned not only blogging but stitching as well. Surprisingly, I have been able to stitch, though not as much as I used to. After all, there is a teeny tiny little person that demands a whole lot of attention these days.

I am also working on what is probably the most time consuming stitching project I've ever taken on - a Stoney Creek lighthouse for Kathy. It's on the tedious side - which has convinced me to delete every single Stoney Creek pattern from my wish list. The finished result is gorgeous - wait till you see how Kathy's piece is turning out! - but I think this is a once in a lifetime experience for me.

On the more productive side, I did finish stitching and framing a gift for a friend. She got pregnant shortly after I did, so our pregnancies overlapped and we had great fun sharing stories, helpful hints and birthing stories. Her son was born in January, and I had been looking for a piece to stitch for his room. His parents didn't pick a particular theme, but focused instead on earthy shades of brown and green. Now, it may be my personal bias, but I do think this is going to look just perfect hanging in his room...

Love is Little by La D Da

Stitched over 2 on 35 ct. WDW Beige

with recommended GAST threads

I am utterly thrilled with how it came out. As soon as I saw the pattern on someone's blog, I thought it would make a wonderful piece for a baby or child's room, and filed it away. When my friend told me her color scheme for the room, and that they weren't leaning towards a theme, I knew this was the perfect piece for them. I did make my own little modifications here and there - adding in the name and birth date (GAST Dark Chocolate), and changing the little bird from the recommended gold to GAST Blueberry. You know, the Bluebird of Happiness? I did change the fabric from what was called for - I didn't like the more reddish tone with the GAST converstion, so I went with the Weeks. It was absolutely lovely to stitch on.

My husband did the framing for me - he has so much more patience for it than I do. I ordered a custom frame from http://www.pictureframes.com/ and picked up foam core that I cut to size (apparently I also need a lesson on how to cut that correctly. LOL). DH did all the stretching, pinning, adjusting, repinning, readjusting and cursing. But in the end, it was well worth it. I think the frame sets it off beautifully, and Picture Frames does really excellent work. And did I mention you can upload scans or photos of your pieces and play around with different frames and mats? I would, however, recommend ordering a set of free mat samples before ordering custom cut mats - sometimes the color on screen can differ greatly from the actual mat color.

But WAIT!! There's more!

Art Deco Frame by Julia Lucas Designs (JCS 2005 Ornament Issue)

Stitched on plastic canvas with DMC thread and pearle cotton

I also like to give a Christmas ornament as a gift for a new baby and this may well become my standard ornament gift. It whipped up in almost no time, and it's so easy to personalize. The photograph was taken by an amazingly talented photographer - Ashley Gigliotti. I designed the back of the ornament myself, adapting from the design. The original instructions called for pasting the completed frame on cardboard, but I wanted to make it more of a pocket so that both sides could be used for display.

I used Word to design the birth information, then printed it on linen paper. I sized the photo to fit in the frame and had that printed through Snapfish. Then I used a self sealing laminating pouch from Staples to ensure neither side would get damaged. It was a little fiddly to put it together, but well worth it, and a tiny bit of hot glue worked wonders for keeping things in place.

(FYI: The website is not on the actual photograph I used for the ornament - it's in this photo to protect Ashley's copyright)

This is one of several versions of the ornament I've stitched so far. These are the perfect thing to stitch in the car - I have no trouble finding the holes, and if I have one already stitched, I have no need to carry the pattern around with me - I just stitch from the finished one. You can fit three whole ornaments (front and back) on one sheet of canvas, and the personalization possibilities are endless. You'll be seeing several more of these as I complete them.

Finally framed!

Safari Birth Sampler by Mary Stickley for The Coleshill Collection

Stitched with included threads over 2 on 28 ct. Antique White evenweave

Finally this piece is FRAMED!! It's been finished since last September and has been languishing in a drawer, waiting to be framed. I've even had the frame since last fall, and for some reason, it just took forever to get around to actually framing the piece (or rather, getting DH to frame it). I rodered the frame from American Frame this time, and was quite pleased with the price, quality and service from them.

DH did a great job framing - he has much more patience for this sort of thing and will fiddle with it until everything lines up correctly. Usually I frame with sticky board (horror of horrors, I know) but we went with mat board and stainless steel pins this time. I noticed there was much less frustration (and cursing) on DH's part as he framed this piece, so maybe that's the way to go from now on.

This was a gift for a childhood friend whose son, as you can see, is over a year old. (I even thought about trying to get it done for his 1st birthday in August, but being pregnant myself really put a crimp in my plans!) DH got it in the mail Friday, and I got an email from my friend yesterday that it's already been received!