May - Green Things

Halloween Spot Motif Shoe
Designed by Barbara Syburg and Suzanne Shead of Prairie Moon
Just Cross Stitch Halloween Collection Fall 2011 (Though I have this pattern in at least one other JCS publication)

Jo's March Finish - Pumpkins

Pumpkins is always a popular theme for this blog and there are some great designs out there.

Here is my Pumpkin Patch:

It is part of a larger design by Just Nan called Counting Bats.  I love all the crazy faces on each of the pumpkins!  The beads in the bottom border are striped orange beads and I've just noticed the end one is wonky.  Have to fix that!

Here is the whole piece so far:

I don't think I've shown you the framed Thine is The Trick and The Treat I collected from my framers the other day?   

Close-up of one corner to show the frame:

This was actually finished last April but I've only just been able to afford to get it framed professionally with my Christmas vouchers.  Here's the post where I talked about my Happy Dance.

A Giant Happy Dance for me!

This isn't my April Ornie but it would make a good choice.

It's actually part of a much larger design I have been stitching since 2012 (gulp!).

To be fair, I didn't stitch much in 2012, 2013 or 2014.  I really started to focus on it in December 2014 and since then I have stitched a minimum of one strand of thread per evening.  This is a great way to make steady progress on a larger design.  Especially monochromes because you don't need to constantly change colour.  You just keep the chart, the fabric and a skein of thread in one bag and pick it up each evening. Or morning.  Or lunchbreak.  Whatever suits!

Prairie Moon - Thine is the Trick and the Treat

Stitched on 40 count hand-dyed evenweave using two strands of DMC 310

With my witchy thread holder (available from Primitive Hare)

And with my cone of DMC 310 (available from Crafty Kitten and other places too)

Jo's January Ornament

I must confess that this is just an extract from a larger piece!  I have been taking part in the DUCJC 2015 in memory of SoCal Debbie who was a member of this blog.  Sadly, Debbie passed away very suddenly last year and is greatly missed by many of us who were never lucky enough to meet her in person.

A long term project I have been stitching on is Prairie Moon's Thine is the Trick and the Treat.  As luck would have it I had a witch to stitch on it this month.  Here she is:

And here is the current progress picture of the whole thing:

It is stitched on 40 count hand-dyed linen using 2 strands of DMC 310.  The coverage is wonderful.  For some of the fractionals I am only using 1 strand because they seemed a little bulky with two.

The fabric was a gift from my friend Karen so I don't know the name or the dyer.

I usually stitch one length of thread each evening while the Small Boy is in the bath.  Slow and steady progress will see this completed this year and hopefully framed in time for Hallowe'en.

  

Lili's May Ornament

Hi!!
My monster ornament!

Model from Praire Moon - Trick or Treat (part of the model).

Stitched on Permin Linen, 40 count Sandstone.
With DMC floss.

(my blog here)

Thanks for the sweets comments on my April ornament!
 

Happy stitching,

Lili