Ornaments Given and Received

Happy New Year! 

Here is a peek at two ornaments I made last year. They are for my sons' teachers, but because the last day of school before vacation ended up being snowy and thus cancelled, the ornaments are still here at home with me. That's okay, the teachers will get their gifts when school resumes next week, and it gave me time to photograph the ornaments after the holidays, when the hectic pace had slowed and--miracle of miracles!--the sun came out for an entire day. 

 

 

Pattern by Wild Olive, originally blogged about here.

 

Pattern courtesy of Bustle & Sew

There is a story behind that bunny ornament. My oldest, who is in the third grade, adores his teacher. She has a black and white bunny who has been ill. :( My son wrote a get well letter for the bunny and gave it to his teacher (so sweet!), but that wasn't enough for his sensitive little soul. He wanted to give his teacher a Christmas ornament of a black and white bunny so, as he stated, "She can see it on her tree on Christmas Eve and think of me." (Oh! How sweet is that?) Well, as you can imagine, bunny-related items of any type are in short supply in December, and finding an ornament was impossible. So I made one. :)

How do you like the basket? I used Sublime Stitching's new Mingles floss. Fun!

Speaking of ornaments, check this out!

Julie made me an ornament! Eeeeeep! ♥ She sent me the loveliest package of goodies at Christmastime, and I was so thrilled to find this beautiful, hand stitched ornament amongst the gifts.

Even the backside is adorable!

(And here is a link to the ornament I made for Julie, in case you're interested. Does it look familiar? :) I had a hard time sitting on that secret for all those months!)

I hope 2013 is treating you well thus far. For me, it's been nice just being home with the kiddos. Oh, and I've been working on a new project. I'll be sharing details about that soon--stay tuned!

☺☺☺

Crafty Sheep's October Color Challenge

You may recall a couple posts I did in September about Crafty Sheep's Color Challenge. (If not, you can read those posts here and here.) I enjoyed the Challenge so much that I decided to participate again this month. 

Photo by Crafty Sheep

Aren't the colors for October's Color Challenge beautiful? I had fun deliberating over which pattern in my collection would be best suited for these rich pepper tones. I think I found one that really fit the bill. What do you think? :)

From the Sloth Mama's Day  pattern by Wild Olive

 

Eeep! So cute, right?!

Now, maybe I shouldn't even point this out, for perhaps you wouldn't have even noticed, but I totally squished my stitches with the iron. Oops. I generally don't need to iron my embroidery pieces after I am done with them, but this time it was necessary. And I smooshed and squished my stitches. I am not happy with myself! I should know better! Oh well. It doesn't take away from the cuteness of the piece, or the fact that I really enjoyed participating in another Color Challenge.

☺ ☺ ☺ ☺ ☺

Stitching 2011

Well, I didn't think I'd have much with which to make a mosaic, but I was surprised when I went through my pics and found more than I remembered stitching. I've blogged about much of what you see in the mosaic, but not all. Maybe you see an unfamiliar piece or two...?

Anyway, stitchy friends, I hope 2011 was as kind to you as it was to me. Thanks for being here to share it. ☺

Ballet Slippers (and a WIP)

I am almost finished with the handmade Christmas gifts. I didn't make as many as I would have liked, but oh well. There's always next year, right? :)

I made another ornament much like the last one, but this time I traced the pattern onto tracing paper instead of transferring it, as the instructions recommended. It worked well.

From the 12 (Days of Christmas) pattern set by Wild Olive

As you can see, I strayed from the instructions just a bit by adding a border to the ornament. I hadn't planned to add it, but it just needed a little something, ya know what I mean?

Anyway, I hope this little ornament reaches its destination before Christmas! Perhaps its chances would be better if I'd sent it out yesterday...or last week...luckily, it doesn't have too far to go. The recipient lives in the same state as I do.

Oh, and see that piece of embroidery under the ornament? That is for my baby niece. I made an ornament for her older sister, Z, last year, before Baby L was born. (If you click the link, be sure to scroll down the page, the pic is toward the end of the post.) It's only fair that Baby L has one, too. :)

I started the "L" embroidery last night, and I am pleased with the progress I made. That took...let's see...two episodes of Antiques Roadshow and two Christmas specials (one of which was Charlie Brown, yea!). Not too shabby. All I have left to do it fill in the "L" with satin stitches, and then stitch the whole thing into an ornament. Wish me luck getting all that done by Christmas! This week is a busy one!!

You can find the Monogram for Hand Embroidery: Letter L pattern here.

I've done a lot of cross stitching this year, and it was nice to sit down with some hand embroidery for a change. I love cross stitch (love love love it!), but it's slow-going. It's nice to sit down for a few hours and see some real progress occur. (All you cross stitchers know what I mean!!)

Well, my friends, I hope your holiday season has been merry and bright! ♥




~~~Linking up with:~~~

Wild Olive

Coffee

I made an ornament for a friend, using this pattern and these instructions*.

How is your holiday season so far? Are you working on any handmade gifts? 

*I used a Sulky iron-on transfer pen instead of stitching through tracing paper.

(By the way, Sulky needs to make a fine tip iron-on transfer pen. Seriously.)




~~~Linking up with:~~~

The Shabby Nest
Wild Olive

Pink Ice Cream

One of my nieces is turning two soon, and the theme of her birthday party is Ice Cream Parlor. I deemed it necessary to make something special to go along with the theme.

Pattern from Ice Cream Socializers by Wild Olive

I used one of my favorite techniques, crayon tinting, on this project. I really can't express how much I love crayon tinting! It supplies a lot of color with minimal effort--which is great for when I'm running short on time.

After I was done with the embroidery, I pulled out my sewing machine and transformed this ice cream cone into a little stuffie. It's not the best example of sewing, but in my defense, I hadn't sewn anything that wasn't shaped like a square or rectangle since I was in the 8th grade. (We're talking over 20 years, people! That was a long time ago!)

I sure hope my niece likes it! I don't know why she wouldn't, though...it's pretty darn cute, if I do say so myself. :) And besides, what little girl wouldn't love her own ice cream cone stuffie? :) :)

The Ornaments

Hey there, Stitchy Peeps!

As I mentioned before, I made Christmas ornaments this year for my family. A couple of the ornaments actually morphed into pillows, 'cause I thought it'd be fun to make pillows. :)

There was a lot of sewing involved:






I'm not so great at sewing, but I am learning. I don't like to do complicated things, like measuring and using a pattern. ;)



Cute, right? I just can't get enough of Mollie's patterns.





The backs:







I loooooooooove this one:



It's mostly satin stitched, which wasn't at all tedious like I thought it would be.

And here is the biggest thing I made, a pillow for my owl-loving sister in law:





That's all for now, my lovelies. I will be back next year with more stitchy goodness. Until then...

Happy Stitching!

Beads of Salt

Hey there, Stitchy Peeps!

I am making ornaments for each member of my immediate family this year. Here's the latest one. As you can see, it's a work in progress.


(Pattern from Dough by Wild Olive) 

I need to add the rest of the beads (I used these Mill Hill frosted glass beads), but that won't take long. Then it's just a matter of sewing this cute little pretzel into an ornament. 

Speaking of beads, don't they make the cutest little bits of salt? 



I attached them the way I do when I attach beads to a cross-stitch piece: bring the floss (two strands) up from under the fabric, thread the bead on the floss and go down through the fabric like I am making a half-stitch (the bead is now lying flat against the fabric), and then come back up and secure the bead by splitting the two threads, placing one strand on either side of the bead, and going back down through the fabric like I am completing an X. Sorry if that's confusing. I guess writing instructions/tutorials isn't really my forte. Anywho, for this piece, the second stitch probably isn't necessary since it won't be handled much, but I like the added security it gives. Those suckers ain't goin' nowhere. 

Well, that's all for now, my lovelies. I have been putting off my schoolwork in order to stitch, but with finals coming up I don't think that's very wise. I hope to be back soon, though (the term is almost over, yippee!), so stay tuned for more stitchy goodness. Until then...

Happy Stitching! 

Giveaway at Wild Olive!

Go here to Mollie's blog, and enter to win this tea towel I made:



Good luck!

Little Aqua Ipod

Hey there, Stitchy Peeps!

Every year, I get a new ornament for the Christmas tree. This year, I decided to be thrifty and use what I have on hand to make one. I've yet to actually sew this into an ornament, but I decided to share it with you anyway:

 

Eeeeeeeeeee! So cute, right? I am in love with this little aqua ipod.



This little music note is just too cute:



  Earbuds!



I crayon tinted this cute little aqua ipod, and I love the way it looks. The earbud wires are done with DMC's Jewel Effects floss. (No. E3849 in case anyone wants to know.)



He's just a little guy, as you can tell by this next pic, so it shouldn't take me too long to sew him into an ornament.



I have a few different fabrics in mind. I don't know yet which one/ones I will use. 



This adorable pattern is by my friend Mollie of Wild Olive. As those of you who've been reading this blog for a while know, I adore Mollie's patterns and have done quite a few of them. (Just click on the "Wild Olive" tag in the label cloud in the sidebar to see 'em all, or go to my "Wild Olive Goodness" set on flickr.) So when Mollie asked me take part in her first ever blog party, I was ecstatic! There will lots of goodies, including a little something I made to be given away to one lucky reader. Here's a little peek at it:



Be sure to visit Mollie's blog this Friday for lots of fun AND for a chance to win something made by me. :)

Well, that's it for now, my darlings. I will be back soon with more stitchy goodness. Until then...

Happy Stitching!

PS Happy Thanksgiving!

A Slight Departure from the Norm

Hey there, Stitchy Peeps!

So, I did a little stitchy project last night, and it's an ever-so-slight departure from my normal stuff. I tend to stitch on plain fabric, usually muslin. I enjoy the way things look when stitched on patterned fabric (like this little slice of cuteness, for example), but I just haven't been able to find the right pattern & fabric combo...until now.

Take a look at what I stitched last night:



(Restless Violet, courtesy of Wild Olive.)

I am SO in love with this little violet! I call her Shy Violet (yes, sometimes I give my projects names, so what??) because of the way she's almost hidden in the pansy print of the fabric. I've never done anything like this, and I love the way it turned out. Shy Violet worked up quickly, too. Quick and cute, win-win! :)

Here she is chillin' on my desk:



And here is a close-up shot of her sweet little face:



And here she is, looking sideways toward the window. It was sunny today, and Shy Violet was enjoying the view.



Ok, I made that last part up. Despite the fact that I have given her a name, I am well aware of the fact that Shy Violet is an inanimate object and is incapable of seeing things, such as a nice view out of a window on a lovely morning in May. ;)

Well, that's all for now, my lovelies! I will be back soon with more stitchy goodness. I'm excited about the next project I have in the works and can't wait to share the details with you. Until then...

Happy Stitching!

My Stitchy Story

Hey there, Stitchy Peeps!

So, yours truly was asked by the talented Mollie to write a guest post on her blog, Wild Olive. I was more than happy to oblige. :) Be sure to check it out!

And since I don't like to post without at least one picture, here's a couple from the vaults. It's just close-ups of floss, but..it's all good, right? 'Cause floss is awesome. Yup.





Well, that's all for now, darlings. I hope to be back soon with something fun to show ya...but first I have to finish some homework. Yup, homework. I've decided to go back to college. That doesn't leave much time for stitching, but it doesn't mean I won't try to work on stuff when time allows it. So stay tuned, I will have some stitchy goodness to share eventually! Until then...

Happy Stitching!

Teeny Tiny Undies

Hey there, Stitchy Peeps!

This post is just a quick one to show you a little something I whipped up right before I stitched the Easter Egg Sampler. And I do mean that literally. I finished this teeny little project and started the egg sampler in one fell swoop. :)

Ok, here it is:


('Underwear' by Wild Olive.)

These are some really small undies, people!



Well, I am sorry that I don't have more to say right now, but even if I did I wouldn't have the time! I have tons of non-stitchy (boo) things to do...though I am still working on that swap project I mentioned a bajillion years ago, so stay tuned for pics of that. (It's pretty darn cute, if I do say so myself!) Until then...

Happy Stitching!