2nd post today …

I’ve been on a stitching roll (no pun intended), and managed to both start and finish the stitching of my needleroll for this weekend’s SAL. I stitched Summer Solstice by Eventide Designs. I changed the wording, though, to cover the summer months ‘down under’ - instead of stitching June, July, August, I recharted the wording to be Dec - Jan - Feb (after checking out the Winter Solstice chart online) I wasn’t too sure what else to put in place of the ‘American’ flag on the top band, and I quite like it anyway, so left it as it was designed. I’ve been really keen to stitch this ever since I bought the chart, so I’m thrilled to finally have it completed. I’ll wait to do the actual finishing when I have a few needlerolls to make up. Anyway, here’s the stitching piccie:

Summer Solstice by Eventide Designs
Stitched on 28ct hand-dyed dried thyme Jobelan
with the recommended threads

That also means finish number 11 off my 50 projects challenge list - only 39 left to go woohoo

Next up is to get a few more stitches into a birthday gift - now my Kreinik braid is here I need to get cracking and get it finished. Then I need to get a few more Christmas ornies stitched. Housework? … What housework??? LOL.

Happy as a pig in mud :)

It was an interesting night last night, in that I was very sleepy very early, so hit the hay just before 11pm, only to wake up again at 2am with my body thinking “that was a nice nap, time to get up now” hmmm. I got up and wandered around for half an hour before going back to bed - took me a while to get back to sleep, but eventually I dozed off and didn’t get up until 9am woohoo

Last night I managed to do some of the slowest stitching in history (for me), and still haven’t managed to get that Snowman Needleroll finished yet … but I guess it’s a bit closer to finishing than it was before, so that’s all good

Today has been a very productive day for me, although no stitching done as yet. I popped out and filled the car up with petrol (how wonderful to see it at $1.13 a litre woohoo), then went on a stitching adventure … I finally went to Centre Road in East Bentleigh to visit Amitie (downstairs - quilting) and Broderie (upstairs - embroidery), and really enjoyed it. The quilting part is quite large, with a reasonable selection of fabrics … and I’ve asked about classes there to teach me how to do applique and learn the quilting basics so I can complete my block of the month quilt I have sitting here doing nothing (complete with all the fabrics for it). Because of my shift work hours it’s really difficult to commit to a lot of classes because they’re usually spread over say 4 weeks, and I’d only end up being able to attend 2-3 of the classes. At Amitie, though, they have ‘casual’ classes each week, and you just pay for the class you attend and the instructors just help you with your queries … I’d definitely keen to do that, and it’s only 15-20 minutes drive from where I live yippee I can’t remember if I’ve posted info on my quilt yet, but this is the design I have sitting here (and yes, for a change, it’s blue!! LOL). Sorry but Blogger is being a dog again, and won’t upload piccies, so no clickable links again … if anyone knows how to make Photobucket piccies clickable, I’d love to know how! Actually, if you click here, you can see a clearer picture of it on the designer’s website

Upstairs from Amitie is Broderie - I have to admit the space is quite small (just one medium room really), but Elizabeth has a decent range of threads etc in there, and she can order in most things they don’t have. The owner is the Elizabeth that used to be at Bustle & Bows Malvern - I really liked her, and glad she’s managed to set up her own business. It was really lovely to get out there and see a new LNS, as well as picking up a couple of items I needed to finish kitting up two new gift projects. I also managed to pick up a copy of the 2005 JCS ornie issue for Mum at half price, which was fantastic … and I was very very good and didn’t walk out with anything extra, only those items I specifically needed (pearl cottons and fabric), so I’m still working within the 50 Project Challenge guidelines. Unfortunately Broderie didn’t have everything I needed, so I had to call into The Embroidery Den in Brighton on the way home, where I managed to find everything else … even the 3mm satin ribbon in the perfect shade yippee

My last trip on the way home was to Officeworks where I did some photocopying I needed to do for some working copies of charts etc, and picked up a 2007 filler for my diary. And my final purchase (yes, I FINALLY bought one, Mum) was from Autobarn … a dashboard cover for my car!! I have a Nissan Pulsar sedan, and the dashboard is the most horrendous thing I’ve ever had in a car, as it reflects the sun badly onto the window and makes it hard to see. When I first bought it I bought a piece of black felt and sat that on the dashboard to block out the reflections, but three years later the felt is well as truly dead (and brown!), and with summer here I decided it was finally time to bite the bullet … I’m so happy!!! (Actually I’ll be even happier when it arrives, ‘cos I’ve had to order it in haha.)

Tomorrow I’m heading into the city to meet my pal Fraze for dinner, so I might go in earlier and have a look around. Then Thursday I’m off to Box Hill to get my hair cut/coloured … I have to decide whether to have a dark colour put back in again (I had a semi-permanent put in before Katrina came here to visit), or whether to get the blonde back again until after summer … oh decisions decisions haha. I might just have to buy some dinner to take home from there, too, from my fave Vietnamese eating place yummo

And with no further ado, I’m off to sort out my working copies to settle in for the evening … I may even get that needleroll finished tonight … maybe

Better Dratteds piccie

Thanks everyone for your lovely comments about my Dolphins Domain … I have to admit, I really out-did myself with the amount of stitching I crammed into the final couple of days - it’s amazing what sheer determination and bloody-mindedness can make you do! Mind you, the pile of dishes in the sink and general mess around here shows I really did do nothing else but stitch for every waking moment for a couple of days - and on my day off sick I literally sat down with needle in hand at about 9am and didn’t put it down again until almost midnight, and did the same thing yesterday until it was finished. And for those of you who’ve asked for it, here’s a much better photo of the Dratteds (and it’s clickable) - I think the colours are a bit more accurate too, as it was taken in front of the window with no flash this time (and with my good SLR camera).

I’d just downloaded an anti-phishing software that came with my renewal for SpyNet, and it was playing havoc with my PC, especially blogger … so today I uninstalled it and voila I have Blogger piccies again without crashing the entire system yippee!!

Last night was my first night shift (affectionately known as the Doggoes - apparently this came from the old days when night shifts were known as the ‘dogwatch’), and I really loved it - I was wide awake all night, in that I didn’t feel tired once … although tonight may be a different story, as I never sleep properly during the day (and of course yesterday I was awake almost 24 hours by the time I got to bed). Anyway, the calls were a bit quiet for a few hours, so I managed to put in a few stitches for the Needleroll SAL with Katrina et al inbetween answering queries/calls - this month I’ve chosen the Snowman Needleroll by Shepherd’s Bush, and here’s my progress to date.

As for “what now?” after the Dratteds are finished … I’m debating between a couple of choices for my newly opened focus piece slot in my rotation - high up the list is Egyptian Garden Mandala by Chatelaine, or possibly one of my TW UFO’s (English Garden Sampler or Noah’s Ark). I have to say, due to the sheer size of it, that Egyptian Garden is likely to win out. Originally I was holding off doing this so I could SAL with Carol, but we agree that she’s pretty much Chatelained-out with her stitching in that area this year, so I’ve opted to pick it back up again and get cracking on it. In fact there you go, my decision has been made … EGM is my new focus piece! Seeing as I coughed up all that money for the kit, I really should get that beauty finished!

Next up, though, is my scissor fob exchange, as the deadline is drawing ever nearer - then a small gift for someone, and a couple of Christmas ornies … if nothing else, there’s always something in the pipelines waiting to be stitched, so I’ll never have a problem running out of a project! ;P

Have a great weekend everyone

Project #2 out of 50 totally finished

This one is a bit of a cheat … the actual challenge started on 1 September, so I get to include my two needlerolls that I finished the stitching of last week. My personal criteria, though, is that I’m not allowed to include them as part of the 50 Project Challenge until they’re “finished” into needlerolls (seeing as I’d already done the stitching before I personally accepted the challenge) … and I’m pleased to say “1 down, 1 to go”. I just couldn’t get motivated in the afternoon to stitch, but rather my finishing pile screamed to me louder! I popped into Spotlight on the way back from the PO, and picked up some Christmas fabric for ornie backings - I might even get organised enough to get some finished off during the next two months

I did my finishing while watching another DVD rental - Marilyn Hotchkiss Ballroom Dancing & Charm School … it was a pretty good ‘chick flick’, and perfect for my equivalent of a Sunday afternoon (yeah, I know it’s only Friday, but it was the end of my personal weekend as I’m back to work again, hence my Sunday). Today was an interesting day, as I just wasn’t in the mood to be back there again - not helped by the fact that Sandra that I work with told me I looked awfully pale this morning hmmm Oh well, at least I survived the day in one piece

Not sure what I’ll do tonight - I managed to get a couple of hours stitching into Dolphins Domain (aka The Dratteds) last night, which I have to admit I really enjoyed, even though it took me much longer to stitch than normal. I won’t bother posting a progress piccie until I’ve stitched a bit more on them. Once I’ve finished my 10 hours rotation I’ll get my current RR piece stitched, then I need to work on my final exchange for a while - the scissor fob exchange on the Robin’s Nest BB. Then in the New Year I’m committed to another Quaker RR with some close online buddies, so I won’t be taking on any other stitching commitments while that’s underway.

Rightio, off to get dinner cracking, then the dishes, then kitting up a new small project for a gift … the Dratteds can wait a day or so

Needleroll SAL

Even though I worked all weekend, on Friday and today I was on a 6am shift, so got home early enough in the afternoon to get some decent stitching in (especially tonight) … I thought I’d get one Shepherd’s Bush needleroll finished (”Thisbe’s Needleroll”), but I ended up taking a Lorri Birmingham one into work as well (”A Stitcher’s Needleroll”), and managed to finish them both tonight - yippee!! As per usual, there was an error on the LB chart, and because I was distracted by calls etc, didn’t pick it up until it was all finished! I can’t be bothered unpicking it, so it will remain as it is … if anyone else is thinking of stitching this, check the chart, as the very top band only had one space below it and the first border, whereas the bottom band has two … I have decided I absolutely detest LB kits for that exact reason - I’ve stitched 3 different ones now, and every single one has had a major error … mutter mutter mutter. I’ll do the actual finishing another day.

Only 3 more days to go, and life will be back to normal here at home, as Mum will have headed back over the oceans where she’ll be staying until February, then I have the pleasure of her company again probably for another six weeks. I’ve told her I’m going to start charging her rent, as she’s here 1/4 of the year hahaha. I love having her here, though, and it’s really no hassle It means at the end of next week I can catch up with blog reading again without feeling guilty and self-conscious … I can’t wait to see what I’ve been missing out on!

Rightio, that’s all for me tonight - just a quick post for the needleroll SAL piccies

Needleroll exchange

Just a quick post before I head to work, as my needleroll exchange (on the Robin’s Nest BB) has been received by Nicki … as soon as I received Nicki’s name, I decided I now had two redwork exchanges to do, as I know Nicki loves red And I also knew I wanted to have something about cats on it … after trawling my stitching stash, and a couple of online freebies, I sat down at the computer and cranked open the XS designing software, and came up with the following needleroll.

It’s a combination of loads of different bits and pieces - the top band came from a Just Nan chart “A Summer’s Day”, the little fish bone skeletons I designed myself, and just used a row of herringbone stitches next. The band above and below the cat band is from the “Peace needleroll ornament” by Jeannette Douglas Designs. The blackwork cats are from Just Nan’s “Catnip Tea”, the blackwork fishies are from an online freebie by Kristine Herber, and the row of watery waves are from “Summer at the Ocean” needleroll by Jeannette Douglas Designs. I’d worked 4 different versions online before I finally decided on this final one, and I was really really pleased with the result - and I’m glad to hear Nicki likes it It was stitched on 32ct Maritime by Lakeside Linens.

Not much to post about …

… but I finally managed to get 3 needlerolls in their finished stages - I started at just after 10pm tonight, and definitely need to get some sleep now! One of these will be winging their way across the oceans tomorrow … a very VERY belated gift I had meant to send an entire month ago - geez, I’m just shocking at the moment with a head like a sieve!! My sincere apologies, mystery recipient, but I hope you still like it!

Needleroll SAL weekend (updated)

I have to admit that I’ve only been stitching my chosen needleroll since about 10pm last night, but I’ve been stitching all day today, and managed to almost finish the entire thing … I’ve just hit the wall a bit now, so taking a break, and unsure whether I’ll get it finished tonight. I’m stitching Summer at the Ocean by Jeannette Douglas Designs - I’ve been itching to stitch this design ever since I first saw it about 12 months ago … and I can finally say I’ve reached that goal … well, “almost” reached that goal anyway! I just have to do the over-one words (my favourite … NOT!), the rest of the ’ship’s wheels’ band, followed by all the beading. My favourite bands are the swirly ’shells’ (3rd band down), and the pinwheels - it’s been fun stitching something that’s not XS for a change

Tomorrow I’ll make a start on the Lavender Rose Sewing Case, as well as doing some work on Vash’s RR … and I need to get to the Post Office, as I haven’t cleared my mail for nearly two weeks now (we went out there on Saturday morning, but it turns out they’re not open on Saturdays anymore, and I’d left my PO Box key at home … what a blonde!!). I have a couple of things to get in the post tomorrow, so that’ll be something else we can tick off the to-do list for the week

(Update …) I decided to go back to my needleroll after a short break, and managed to put the final stitches into it tonight. I might even get around to actually “finishing” some soon … maybe Anyway, here’s the final version of the stitching before being finished into an actual needleroll.

Summer at the Ocean
by Jeannette Douglas Designs
Stitched on 32ct Blue Ice hand-dyed linen by Country Stitch

Finally able to post a piccie :) (updated)

It appears from the SBEBB that Paula has received her Melanie’s Exchange I stitched for her, so I can post a piccie. I have to admit, I really really struggled with the choice for this one … I was originally going to stitch a pinkeep for Paula, and had the design all mapped out, then Jo beat me to it by stitching a pinkeep for the Spring exchange (which was beautiful!), so it was back to the drawing board again (but at least I got to keep the mock run one, which you’ve now seen!) … in the end I decided on a needleroll, and the design is a collaboration I made from various design sources - there are bands from Just Nan’s Evening Star, Dragonfly Stitches freebie needleroll (for the blackwork ‘flowers’ and other bands), Indigo Rose online freebie for the Rhodes hearts, as well as another freebie online chart for inspiration for the beaded bands. The only thing is that I struggled to find some narrow ribbon to match for it, and ended up using something that I had on hand … and I wished I’d waited to check out a few more stores before posting - but it looks OK. Here’s a photo of the actual stitching, and the finished needleroll. I tried stitching our names inside the back ‘flowers’, but it’s very teeny tiny LOL. I really enjoyed stitching it

I should also have another photo to share a bit later on today - I’m in the middle of stitching The Sweetheart Tree Strawberry needleroll, for our weekend needleroll SAL … I started it last night, and slept in this morning so missed the charity walk (oops! - mind you, it turns out we were all doing it ‘on our own’ so it probably doesn’t matter - the money is still being donated anyway) … so I’ve been sitting up in bed catching up on taped TV programmes from during the week and doing a bit more stitching. I was originally going to start a Shepherd’s Bush one, but I needed to stitch some calico to the sides as the fabric is quite small, and I can’t stitch in hand … the Strawberry fob was the only one basted up and ready to go It also means that I’m now inadvertently copying Katrina, as that’s the needleroll she’s planning on stitching too It’s really pretty so far - the colours are lovely … the DMC 816 is such a rich red, it’s gorgeous! I’m about 2/3 finished, so should be able to post a piccie by the end of the day

I should be stitching my fob for the scissor fob exchange on StitchNZ, but I just wanted to take some ‘time out’ from commitment stitching and stitching something else - and the needleroll SAL is the perfect thing to a quick “me” stitch

(Update before day’s end) And here’s the final piccie for today - the finished stitching of my strawberry needleroll … which also means I met the 24 hour challenge on the FGBB as well yippee! Leaves me tomorrow free for working out my scissor fob yay