Cheryl's September Spooky Words Ornament

shake, rattle and roll aren't usually spooky words ... but once you apply them to a skeleton, they take on a new meaning and there you have it!

shake them bones!

rattle them bones!

and heads will roll! 

The pattern is Shake, Rattle 'n Roll by Pam Lewis and Susan Rohm of Praiseworthy Stitches.  Featured in Just Cross Stitch magazine in the October 2015 issue.

I stitched this pattern on a wee piece of 32 ct. tea stained fabric of unknown origin.  2over2 for the skeleton & border, and 1over1 for the text - using both magnifying glasses and a hand held magnifying lens (where did I put my good eyes?)

I'm not sure how I will finish it, just yet ... but stay tuned for further developments.

Happy Spooky Stitching!

Noni's September Spooky Words

Eek!! Spooky Words.... wow what a great theme for September.

I had this one planned right from the start of the year!  Even though I knew exactly what I was going to stitch for September I did also have a look at some other "spooky" word designs just in case... after all we can never have too many spooky charts in our stash!!

So what did I stitch for September's theme?  Well, it just had to be Lizzie Kate's "Eek!"

"Eek!" - Lizzie Kate

This chart/kit is a Limited Edition Kit and was given to me a couple of years ago.  It included the fabric, beads and buttons but not the threads, so I stitched it with DMC threads which is why it does look slightly different to the model piece in the chart pack photo.

See you next month!

Happy Spooky Stitching

September - Spooky Words.

I can drive a stick!

Lizzie ★ Kate

★

May - Anne S

A quick one today to catch up on May's theme of pumpkins ...

"Eek" freebie by Lizzie*Kate

Stitched on 32ct Thunderstorm Belfast linen

with recommended GAST threads

August & September - Anne S

I've been in a stitching wasteland since April so I have a lot of catching up to do - the Hallowe'en SAL is helping to get me back into stitching again. My choices for the two months have been as follows:

For September:

"Eek Boo Hiss" by Lizzie*Kate (the Boo part)

Stitched on 32ct Thunderstorm Belfast linen

with a mix of GAST, DMC and Carrie's Creations threads

For August:

"Boo To You" by The Prairie Schooler

Stitched on 30ct Guacemole Weeks Dye Works linen

with recommended DMC threads 

Jo's September Ornament

Like Rita I wasn't sure I would easily be able to find something for this month's theme but as I looked through my issues of JCS I realised there were loads of designs I liked!  Which is probably why I chose this as one of the themes in the first place.

I found a nice design which said Hubble Bubble Toil and Trouble which reminded me of another chart I owned.  When I found that one it was too large for an ornie but in with it was this one which was the perfect size stitched over one.  I do love my over one stitching.

This is the debut design from 2009 by Tammy who has a blog called Witchy Stitches.  It's not easy to see if she has many other designs because there's no page for her own stuff.  But there is a sweet Wynter Witch.

Anyway, I stitched this one using the recommended DMC conversion except for the lettering and mug which I subbed 3799 for plain black.  I thought it was closer to the Gentle Art thread the model stitcher used.  Because I stitched the design over one I was able to cheat on the border and stitch it over two which saved so much time hahaha.  I also added some little starry stitches around the word "hex" just because I wanted to.

I'm not sure whether to scrapbook this with the others or frame it and put it next to the kettle to drop a hint to my family!

************************************

Advance notice of a giveaway.  Kaye has kindly offered to sponsor a giveaway next month.  There will be a number of ways to enter, one of which will involve making a post for your October themed ornie.  So make sure you have one!  The theme is Ghosts, most suitable for Hallowe'en month.

Rita's September Spooky Words

As I was starting to think about what to stitch for this theme, I was thinking it might be difficult to find something.  The difficulty turned out to be narrowing down all the possibilities to just one.

I chose to stitch part of a bigger design found in the JCS 2014 Halloween special issue:

The lighting is poor for the photo...it isn't even dawn yet.  It's stitched with black DMC on antique white linen.

B is for Brimstone, Bats and Brooms - Revisited

When we first started this blog I made a series of posts beginning with each letter of the alphabet starting with A.  Unfortunately, they ground to a halt after L.  So in honour of The Alphabet Club hosted by Chiara I have decided to resurrect the original posts and link up each month with the rest of the Alphabet Club posters.  To learn more about this SAL follow the Alphabet Club link to Chiara's blog.

And B is for Bargello Brimstone from A Dark Alphabet designed by Julie and Becky's Note of Friendship blog.

Bargello has a variety of names; Irish Stitch, Flame Stitch and Florentine to name but three more.  Careful counting is required when using this stitch!

Onto bats.  So why are bats associated with Hallowe'en?  

"Bats have long been associated with Halloween but the connection is by far less ominous than some would suspect. In Halloween's ancient origins people would gather together around giant bonfires to ward off evil spirits. Attracted to the warmth and bright light of these fires were many small flying insects; natural food for hungry bats.  People saw the bats flickering in and out of the firelight during the festivals and they became a feature of Halloween lore.

The link between the bat and Halloween became strengthened with the discovery of the Vampire Bat in the 17th century.  Tales of bats that drank blood had circulated throughout Europe for centuries before but it wasn't till the Spanish exploration of Central and South America that there was physical proof.  It was a natural association for a dark holiday, a creature that lapse the life blood of its prey in the dark of night."

Haunted Bay

There are some great batty designs around, here a couple I found online:

Tantes Zolder - Bats in the Round

White Willow Stitching - Tribal Bat

Freebie from Oakhaven Designs

And moving swiftly onto Brooms or Besoms.  Why are brooms so closely connected to witches?  I suppose a broom is something everyone had in their home, on its own it wouldn't attract attention or suspicion.  It is also an easy piece of evidence for the Witchfinder to use against the local wisewoman.

Besom is another word for a traditionally made broom with a bundle of twigs attached to a sturdy pole, as a result the besom is round rather than flat.  The besom is often used in Wiccan and other Pagan traditions as it represents both genders.  The pole is male and the twigs are female.  You often find brooms used in marriages ceremonies, either in addition to a religious or legal ceremony or in place of when the two people could not marry legally.

In parts of Wales, a broom could be placed at an angle across a doorway.  The groom would jump over followed by his bride.  If the broom stayed where it was the marriage was on, if it fell down the marriage was then called off!  You may have heard the term "living over the brush" meaning living together without being married.  This is where it come from.

Barbara Ana Designs - Halloween (The Moon Laughs)

Sue Hillis Designs - Drive Stick

And to finish, here is an image which popped up on Google when I asked Why do witches ride brooms - 

Ancient Light

Noni's August Black Cat

Oops... a day late posting for August!  But, surprise surprise... I do have a black cat to show you!!

While I had always planned to stitch the Black Cat from the Sneak Peek Halloween design for this month, it didn't stop me looking at all of the other beautiful black cat designs that are out there in the big wide stitching world....

So without further ado... here he is:  Black Cat (Sneak Peek Halloween - designed by The Trilogy).

"Black Cat"
Sneak Peek - Halloween
Designer: The Trilogy

Another square finished on this cute design... next up will be the "ghost" square for October.... just in time for Halloween!

Happy spooky stitching..... see you all soon....