I've had quite a month!

I have some health news to share, but I'll start with some stitching since that's the purpose of my blog. On the 21st the final part of Cecilia Votta's seasonal SAL was released, and I finished it on Thanksgiving night:

I really love Cecilia's style, and it is kind of amazing to see how a fairly small color palette can be used to create such a varied scene. This is the second year I've done her SAL; this was last year's design:

Now I'm looking forward to seeing what she comes up with in the new year ahead. For now, I've been making good progress on the model, and am hoping to really get a lot done in the next few weeks.

On the personal front I'm having some health issues, which started back in the spring but which I thought were just being caused by going through menopause and being overweight. I started walking this summer, dropped about 10lbs. and felt better for a while, but around early October the symptoms came back. On October 26th I went to my provider, and things moved pretty quickly from there--I had a CT scan on 11/3 that showed a large pelvic mass, I met with a gynecological oncology surgeon on 11/8 who scheduled surgery to remove the mass and my reproductive organs and then had the surgery on 11/16. So far, the only pathology reports that have come in are the initial ones, which indicated low grade ovarian cancer; I had a follow up appointment yesterday and I had psyched myself up to get further results but then found out they didn't have them yet. It sounds like there will be chemo, but I won't be absolutely sure until the results come back, so for now I wait and worry. Thankfully the surgery itself went well and I am happy to say that I am feeling pretty normal now, and between the mass removal and the absence of solid food for several days I have lost over 15lbs in the last couple of weeks--I haven't been this weight for at least 7 or 8 years!

So, for now I will dive back into the model and try to get as much done as I can before any possible chemo starts (the doctor said it would be two more weeks before it starts if it's needed), and probably put the Christmas tree up a bit early this year. Thank goodness for stitching, which has been and continues to be a source of great comfort to me, allowing me to have control over one small corner of my universe in stressful times.

Hope everyone has a great stitchy week!

A finish!

Last week I did end up figuring out how to finish Tempting Tangles Dragon's Blood Mystery Mandala SAL before the last two parts dropped, so I'm happy to say that another SAL has been completed on (in this case, ahead) of schedule: 

This was done with Caron Waterlilies Arabian Nights (2-over-2 on 36ct linen, three skeins needed), a couple of metallics and Delica beads DB126 on a piece of linen from NicholasFlamelDesigns Egg Collection. I started this back in March, after the loss of my Gracie, and it has offered much solace in that time.

I'm now down to one remaining SAL, Cecilia Votta's seasonal piece, which has one more part that will be released 11/21. For now, I have gotten back into the model and am hoping to make some good progress. Things will probably go quiet here for a bit as I won't have much to share, unless the pieces I dropped off three months ago ever get back from my framer...

Hope everyone has a great stitchy week!

Batty!

After getting the last three charts late I finally finished Amy Bruecken Designs Batty! SAL last week, and it was worth a bit of bother because it's so cute!

The checkerboard pattern at the bases was supposed to be stitched with black and white flosses, which I switched out for a green and a variegated floss; this meant I needed to make some changes to colors in the characters' shoes (and other elements) that wouldn't have shown up with the new base colors. The fabric is one of two pieces of 32ct linen from The Fragrant Lilac Collection by NicholasFlamelDesign on Etsy; I added about four new floss colors (besides the checkerboard colors) and rearranged existing colors and am very happy with the result. I am sorely tempted to get Amy's Lucky 13 charts, but I just can't bring myself to spend $130 (13 charts at $10 each); maybe someday I'll find someone selling their used charts, or, even better, someone who would work out a trade for the Batty charts.

After that was finished I stitched part 11 of Cecilia Votta's SAL, which now has just one part remaining. There is more to the house in this part, but I'm waiting until I have the whole thing to work those areas:

Yesterday I worked on Tempting Tangles Dragon's Blood SAL part 23, which I should finish today:

Now that I'm this close to finishing I'm once again thinking about trying to use the existing parts to complete the rest. I really need to get back to the model now, so if I could spend another couple of days to finish this then I could really focus on that for a while. I'll mess around with it today and see what happens.

Hope everyone has a great stitchy week!

Just Nan slides done

Last week I finished the stitching on Christmas Secret on Monday, then did the finishing on it and Feathered Fashion on Tuesday; now all four current needle slides are complete!

These are such sweet little pieces, stitched 1-over-1 on 32ct linen. Feathered Fashion is shown on the chart cover with one of Nan's Charm Garden Pins that is just so perfect for the design that I had to try to find one; luckily, I found a stitcher who was willing to part with hers, so it is now ensconced in the needle tin:

Once these were finished I stitched up a little freebie from Durene Jones while I waited for the last three charts in Amy Bruecken's A Little Batty SAL:

I have to say that I was a bit irked with The Silver Needle when it came to getting the Batty charts; I pre-ordered them in the spring, then sent a question about which threads were used so I could pull them from stash--they thought I wanted to add the floss to the order and that made them send the first two charts late. The second set was mailed in a timely manner, but the last three should have been sent almost three weeks ago. I had emailed an inquiry and she said they would go out around 9/25. No charge on my card over a week later so I sent another inquiry and was told they were waiting for them to come in (which was strange because the first person had said they were in the shop and would go out within a day or two). Another week and still no charge so I sent a third email, and this time the reply said that my card had been declined and they tried to call but I didn't have an answering machine. That really ticked me off because 1) my card showed no declined transaction (so they must have typed the number in incorrectly, 2) I do have an answering machine and 3) if they couldn't leave a message, why didn't they send an email (especially as my second inquiry was after the supposed declined card)? Sorry, bit of a rant there but the whole thing really bugged me!

Anyway, the charts finally arrived this weekend, so I'm going to stitch them and try to get this piece done by the end of the week; here it is as of last night:

In other stitchy news I am very excited to say that I will be attending a Mirabilia retreat in Charlotte, NC in October 2023. I know it's a long time away, but it's been six years now since I've spent a night away from home for something fun so I am really looking forward to it!

And in other Mirabilia news there was a new release on the 15th; it's a bit different from her usual style and I really love it and am looking forward to stitching it. It's called Portrait Queen, and here's a photo of it (not stitched by me) along with the original art (always fun to get a glimpse into Nora's process):

Hope everyone has a great stitchy week!

Still on a Just Nan kick

I was pretty busy with house and yard work last week, so I didn't have as much stitching time as usual, but I did manage to finish the stitching on Feathered Fashion:

I'm thinking this would be fun to stitch again using different colors for the birds, maybe red and/or green and then finish it into a Christmas ornament--but that's a project for the future, since I have more than enough to work on now! 

Once that was done I stitched part 22 of Dragon's Blood Mandala, which now only has three more parts remaining:

Since those pieces took me into Saturday evening, I decided to stitch the final Just Nan needle slide sampler before I go back to the model; I can probably get this done tonight (after more yard work today):

I'll have to see if the finishing bug bites again and I can get these last two slide samplers completed--I'd say there's a good chance because I can already feel my OCD kicking in with the need to have all four done... :D

Hope everyone has a great stitchy week! 

Just Nan needle slides

Just Nan recently released a new needle slide and needle sampler set called Haunted Woods, and this past weekend I decided to take some time to stitch it. I started it late Friday afternoon and finished the stitching Saturday evening; I wasn't going to do the finishing yet, but Sunday I decided to just bite the bullet and get it done and I'm very happy that I made myself do it. Here are the finished photos of the front and back of the little sampler:

Back in 2017 I stitched Keep a Little Secret (which was probably the last time I did any finishing before this!), so I now have two of the four sets completed:

By the time I finished putting it together there wasn't really enough time to pull the model back out, so I made a small start on one of the remaining designs, Feathered Fashion:

The only thing more fun than stitching over-1 on 32ct fabric is stitching over-1 on 32ct opalescent fabric! This is what the other two samplers/slides look like:

I have some cleaning and yard work to do over the next few days, so I'll probably keep this out for now and try to get the stitching done in a couple of evenings; then Thursday the next part of Dragon's Blood will be released and I'll get that done before getting back to the model--that's the current plan anyway...

Hope everyone has a great stitchy week!

Almost broke my dog

So it turns out my string of "breaks" wasn't quite over, as last Wednesday my Murphy decided to chew through the cord on my (lit) lamp and electrocute himself! I came in from my walk and found a big mess on the floor (since he lost control of his bodily functions), and only after I cleaned it up and tried to put a new bulb in the lamp did I realize that the cord was chewed through and that was why the lamp wasn't working. A few hours and $200 later we were back home from the emergency animal hospital with a pain reliever for his tongue and instructions to monitor his breathing for the next two days, as the shock can cause fluid to build up in his lungs. I'm very happy to say that he has been fine, and I'm so grateful that he made it through relatively unscathed--it could have been so much worse!

Needless to say I didn't get much stitching done for a couple of days, but by Saturday I was able to get caught up on two current SALs. This is part 10 of Cecilia Votta's seasonal SAL:

Part 21 of Tempting Tangles Dragon's Blood Mandala was nice and small:

The next charts in the Amy Bruecken SAL probably won't get here until the end of this week at the earliest, so for now I'll continue with the Mirabilia model, which is starting to take shape nicely now.

Hope everyone has a great stitchy week!

Gearing up for more SAL parts

Last week I finished up Heart in Hand's Halloween Tiny Town and Halloween Frill, adding the Frill to the Town:

This is probably my favorite Tiny Town so far, though someday I might stitch it again with some more colors added in. I was hoping to get this sent to the finisher to be made into a drum, along with Blooming Tiny Town, but apparently this is her big Christmas-finishing season so she said to get in touch with her in November--kind of bummed about that.

Once that was done I stitched part 20 of Dragon's Blood Mandala:

I was planning to use the top row of the chart to finish the bottom row but my time is probably better spent on the model for now, so I'll just continue to stitch each of the last five parts as they are released.

In preparation for the release of the final three charts in the Amy Bruecken A Little Batty SAL I spent a day stitching the bottom checkerboard base, so I'm ready as soon as the charts arrive:

I've spent a few days on the model now, and plan to continue with that until later this week, when there will be another part of the Cecilia Votta SAL released on Wednesday, Dragon's Blood on Thursday and A Little Batty probably either late this week or sometime next week.

I did see in a newsletter yesterday that a model I stitched for Rosewood Manor last year is going to be released soon, called Dreaming of Poppies:

Hope everyone has a great stitchy week!

Only a small "break" last week

I'm very happy that the part I bought on eBay did the trick and my car window is operational again--yay! And only one minor breakdown last week when a light fixture broke; after going to all three big hardware stores here in town and not finding a replacement I found one online and a couple of days later all was well again--for now! I'm at five now, so if things go in threes I'm still due for one more...

Last Tuesday I finished up the HOD Costume Party SAL, which turned out to be a very cute design:

This also came with four little costumed characters to be stitched on perforated paper, but those will have to wait for now, and I have no idea when I'll get around to doing the finishing on this--when I do maybe I'll do the Cookie Exchange finishing as well!

I intended to get back to the model after this was finished, with a day or two to get caught up with the Dragon's Blood SAL but then Heart in Hand's Halloween Tiny Town arrived in the mail Tuesday evening and I couldn't resist starting it. I've been working on it since last Wednesday, and didn't even get to the Dragon's Blood release yet because I love this one so much. I was thinking of adding some purple floss to the design, but decided to stitch it on purple fabric instead and I'm really liking the combination; here it is as of last night:

Cecilia designed a complimentary Halloween Frill that could be stitched alone or added to the town, so of course I had to get that as well and started that part last night. The chart called for Onyx for the windowpanes but the model shows Snowball so I asked Cecilia about it, and she said she changed from Onyx to Snowball but forgot to change the chart. Since the house is already white, I decided I liked the black windowpanes better to add a bit more visual interest. I'm hoping to get this done this week, as well as Dragon's Blood, then get back to work (for sure this time!).

Hope everyone has a great stitchy week!

When things start breaking...

...they go in waves--I can now add a laptop and a car power window regulator and motor to the list of casualties. My wonderful husband got me a new laptop for my birthday, so that was an easy fix (aside from the two days spent making sure I had all my files either on a flash drive or my new laptop!), but the car window problem not so much; the car is 32 years old now, and the car place couldn't find a replacement part so I ended up having to buy one from a seller on eBay--not the most confidence-inspiring situation! The part came last week and I have an appointment set for tomorrow for the shop to install it, so fingers crossed it actually works.

Things almost always go well in the craft room, though, where I've been working on Hands on Design Costume Party SAL; the third and final part dropped this morning so I'm hoping to get it stitched up today. Here are the first two parts, released on 9/1 and 9/3:

I bought the suggested fabric for this, but I had this piece of Silkweaver's Halloween Haunting on Wexford linen that went really well with the colors so I decided to use it instead. The finishing instructions will be released in a couple of days, but as I still haven't done the finishing on the HOD Cookie Exchange that came out at the end of last year I'm thinking it will be a while before I get around to finishing this one!

In between the parts of this SAL I've been working on Nora's Rogue Dragon, which now has a face:

I'm going to put this away for now, as I plan to spend at least the next two weeks on the model--well, except for maybe a day to stitch part 20 of the Dragon's Blood Mandala when it comes out this Thursday; I finished part 19 last week:

I hope those who celebrate it are having a relaxing Labor Day long weekend, and to everyone a great stitchy week!