Tuesday, October 28, 2008

Glimpses of Christmas, Part 2

Hey there, Stitchy Peeps!

So, after I wrapped up last night's post, I got busy stitching again and made this:

star

star, outside :)
star detail

(Pattern by Wild Olive.)

I ♥ crayon tinting. I need to get myself of big ol' box of Crayolas. Most of my kiddos' crayons are the washable kind, so while I have a gazillion crayons in my house, only 16 of them are suitable to use for tinting linens. Oh darn, gotta go shopping for art supplies. ;)

All righty, I will be back again soon with more stitchy goodness. Until then...

Happy Stitching!

Monday, October 27, 2008

Glimpses of Christmas

Hey there, Stitchy Peeps!

I whipped up a little something tonight. I don't know about you, but I think it is pretty darn adorable. :)

cute-cute-cute

in the q-snap

details

This adorable pattern is by the talented Mollie Johanson of Wild Olive. If you have not checked out Mollie's blog yet, I highly suggest you get over there right now. You will NOT be disappointed!

So, this was my first attempt at crayon tinting...not too shabby, eh? This was much easier than I thought, and I really love the results. I actually colored this guy while I was on the phone...including setting the crayon with the iron...that's how easy this process is. Pimp Stitch has an awesome tutorial that I found to be very helpful.

This is just a little glimpse of what I have been working on. I am still in the beginning stages of most of my projects, but man-oh-man are they coming along nicely so far! I am super stoked about the way this cute little ornament turned out, and can't wait to be able to show you what else I am working on. I will be back soon with pictures, I promise! Until then...

Happy Stitching!

Friday, October 24, 2008

No Longer a WIP

Hey there, Stitchy Peeps!

Here it is, my WIP from the other day:

plant your seeds...

sweet flowers...

this is supposed to be turquoise...

chillin'...

(Pattern by Annie Oakleaves.)

So, I am kinda annoyed about the way the color turned out in the pictures. The blue is really a bright turquoise, though it doesn't look like it. I took about a hundred (no joke) different shots of this in different light, using various camera settings, but nothing I did made a difference. Every pic turned out the same: the larger flower looked royal blue. I even tried tweaking things in Picasa, but it didn't help. I guess that's a sign that I should get Photoshop, lol. Oh well. That last picture is the truest to the actual color.

Yawn. I am a Sleepy Sleeperson right now. But there's still work to be done before I go to bed tonight. I purchased some really cute Christmas patterns today that I can't wait to get started on. You are gonna flip when you see these! I will be back soon with some yummy pics. Until then...

Happy Stitching!

(PS...If you left me a comment on my last post, be sure to check back...I answered your questions in the comment area. :) But I hit the 'publish comment' button when I meant to hit 'preview', so please ignore the errors.)

♥-♥-♥

Tuesday, October 21, 2008

My Latest WIP

Hey there, Stitchy Peeps!

Thank you for the well-wishes, my lovely bloggy friends! I am happy to report that I am feeling much better. :) Tired, but not ill. I haven't done as much stitching as I usually do as a result of my aforementioned tiredness, but here is a little sneak peek of my latest project:

wip

(Pattern by Annie Oakleaves.)

I worked on this the other night while watching Pretty in Pink. Do you love that movie, or what? Does anyone else disagree with her decision in the end? Ugh. I can't talk about it. It makes me too upset. ;)

Anywho...

If my sleepiness doesn't take over, I will be working on (and hopefully finishing) this project tonight. Maybe I will watch The Parent Trap. And no, not the new Lindsay Lohan version. I am talkin' about the old school, totally awesome Hayley Mills version. (The good version!)

So, stay tuned for pictures of a soon-to-be-finished piece of embroidery. Hopefully I can deliver that to you very soon. Until then...

Happy Stitching!

Saturday, October 18, 2008

Hedgies

Hey there, Stitchy Peeps!

I have been a little under the weather lately. Don't know if it's a cold or my sinuses, but I feel pretty icky. That, coupled with 6-day work weeks, means very little time for stitching. Boo. :P

BUT--I still have a little something to share with you!

hedgies outside :)

hedgies

lil bow

(Pattern by Annie Oakleaves.)

That's all I have today, my friends. I have new things just waiting to be started, so hopefully I will kick this nasty cold-sinus-whatever thing soon and be back to my usual self. Until then...

Happy Stitching!

Sunday, October 12, 2008

Outside the Box

Hey there, Stitchy Peeps!

This is what I did recently. You like?

winter bird

winter bird outside :)

(Pattern by Annie Oakleaves.)

When it comes to stitching, I seldom think 'outside the box'. I tend to stick with traditional colors. Of course, there are exceptions and every so often I get super creative and do something like this rainbow buggy. Not exactly what you'd find in nature, but not that off-the-wall. ;) So I found myself sort of surprised when the floss toss I did for this Winter Bird yielded these results: PINK and BLUE. Pink and blue? A pink bird that isn't a flamingo?

(I am loving it.)

I think I may have been inspired by the Christmas decorating magazines that line the shelves of my local supermarket. While there are many glossy, beautiful photos of homes decked out in traditional schemes of red and green, there are also many non-traditional color combinations that I find myself drawn to. I've always loved using all-blue lights on the tree or in a nativity scene...and I have a fuzzy yet persistent childhood memory of my great-grandmother's home at Christmas, decked out in all-blue lights and decorations.

It's hard to tell, especially in the second picture, but the little guy is tinted pink. I shouldn't really say tinted, however; he is simply filled in with a colored pencil. It's very subtle, but I thought he needed a little something, and filling him in with stitches just wasn't an option. I didn't want to compete against the wing & tail, or the details in the hat & scarf. So once again, it was colored pencils to the rescue. :)

Winter Bird has put me in the mood to do some Christmas stitching...I will have to peruse my collection of patterns for Christmas-y and wintry things. Hopefully I will be back soon with some seasonal stitching to share with you. Until then...

Happy Stitching!

Friday, October 10, 2008

Cute Little Deer

Hey there, Stitchy Peeps!

So, Annie Oakleaves recently released some new patterns. I fell in love with these deer instantly and knew I just had to stitch 'em ASAP:

love you deerly

Pretty cute, huh?

I am putting the finishing touches on a sweet little birdie from this set of patterns, and I will be showing it to you soon...and I have lots of other cute things prepared for stitching. Be on the lookout in the upcoming weeks for more cuteness. :)

Until then...

Happy Stitching!

(PS For those who asked...The beautiful piece that Amanda made me hangs in my office/future studio. Everyone who has seen it thinks it's awesome.)

:):):)

Wednesday, October 8, 2008

Swap Love from Panda

Hey there, stitchy peeps!

Ok, so I recently mentioned that I am involved in a swap with my friend Amanda...Are you ready to see what she sent me??

Prepare yourselves for awesomeness!

awesomeness

guilty

(That reads,"Stitchy Stitcherson Guilty of Beautiful Embroidery")

Check out the detail:

flower power

golden flowing locks

flower power 2

Check out all the french knots in these next two pics:

necklace

glorious french knots

Amanda signed her work:

siggie sig

(I kinda-sorta totally and completely forgot to sign mine. Whoopsies.)

Isn't this just amazing? Amanda created this work of art just for me! I feel so loved. :) :) And she spoiled me rotten, too, with tons of extras and goodies, including fabulous teas and tea treats, the most magnificent smelling soap on the planet, stitching supplies, notecards, and more. Much more! Believe me when I say she SPOILED me! :)

Well, that's it for now, my fellow stitchers. I've got more to share with ya, but it's gonna have to wait for another time. I have to get back to my stitching! But I really wanted to share with you the amazing piece of embroidered art that Amanda made for me. She's super talented!! I will be back soon...but until then...

Happy Stitching!

Wednesday, October 1, 2008

Happy October!

Now that it's October, the kiddos can officially wear the brand-spankin'-new Halloween shirts I embroidered for them:

modelin' the t-shirt

modelin' the ghostie

(Both these patterns are courtesy of Annie Oakleaves.)

I am so excited that it's Autumn! And that the weather finally feels like Fall. Finally. I decorated the house for Halloween today while my older son was at preschool, and the look on his face when he got home and saw the house was priceless. I remember how exciting it was when I was a little girl to return home from school to find that my mother had put Halloween decorations up in the windows. Does anyone remember those old-school paper cutouts? Do they even make those anymore?? Everything today is plastic. Which holds up better, but it's just not the same. Oh, 1980's, how I miss you!! :)

Anywho...

I hope this first day of my favorite month is treating you well! I will back soon with lots of cool stuff to share...I have been working hard on a swap with my friend Amanda (who doesn't write a blog, but totally should so she can show off her mad stitching skills, don'tcha agree??), and I can't wait to show you pics! Until then...

Happy Stitching!