Thursday night stitching

Once a week, usually Thursdays, I meet with my stitching buddies to stitch the evening away. We are an eclectic group of people who all share a love of stitching. I love these ladies and we have lived through a lot with each other. I worked on the CHS alphabets outlining more black boxes this week. I want to get back to some of my other WIP's as I have many calling my name. One I would really like to get back to is ATS. I got bogged down in the cloud and just never picked it back up. I need to work it into the rotation. There are also 2 others I would like to get stitching..one is Hedgehog sampler by Sheepish Designs and the other I cannot remember the name of but here is a picture of it.

No great progress pictures to post. The dog is sitting on my lap (this dog has never understood that a hundred pound is not a lap dog). I am working on CHS Alphabet. I am still trying to decide what color I am going to replace bittersweet with in the bottom section of each block. Plus the flowers in the border the color need to be decided. So many choices....I am loving stitching on this. I hope to get some more done on this tonight. If you have any suggestions about the colors you have used on the flowers or the fill in for the bottom I am open to suggestions.

So much to stitch, so little time

There are so many designs I want to stitch and it frustrates me when I get too many things started and not enough finished. I have been working on WIPs from prior years and now have added a couple of new starts. I still want to finish all my WIP's at some point and tend to stitch them on how loud they talk to me at the time. Currently CHS alphabets has been calling the loudest although I hear others say they would like to see the light of day as well.. particularly As they Sinned. I really enjoy stitching on it. I think it will become my Sunday afternoon stitching project when I get something finished I am currently working on. I am going to work on my Alphabets today as I have wanted to have that on the wall for a long time and I am seeing progress on that as I go. The other design I would really like to finish soon is Where my Heart Blooms by Blackbird Designs. I made a huge mistake on it and had to take one whole side out so that tends to make me put it back in the basket. Plus I want to start Sail Away by Shepherd's Bush. I have included pics of Sail Away as I sorted the threads for it in preparation for starting a stitch a long with a group of stitchers and Elizabeth Foster sampler that I have wanted to start for a long time and my small start on Mary Wigham sampler done on 45 ct buttercream and Belle Soie silks (Attic conversion).
I almost forgot to tell that Plum Street samplers is having a give away on her blog but even better she has a freebie there

Not much stitching going on

I have been on jury duty for two weeks starting our third on Monday. While I have made some progress on CHS alphabets not much else has gotten done. I am looking forward to starting a new stitch along with a group of ladies for Shepherd's Bush Sail Away. I bought it quite a while ago because it made me think of my son leaving for college.  I think it will be fun to do it as a stitch-a-long. I finally got a chart of the Plantation sampler in the mail today. I was so excited. I had seen several different versions stitched and am looking forward to getting that done as well. I have spent most of this year working on older WIP's so it is fun to contemplate some new starts. My new scroll rods came in the mail today as well from Cozy Cottage. I am so looking forward to having them

Another day of jury duty got another block of CHS Alphabet sampler outlined and last night I was able to get the top row halfway done on my class piece. The intent was to get home early today and get back to work on it but it just didn't happen that way. Two quick errands and I hope to settle down with it to show some progress to be able to post a picture. 

Lazy Sunday afternoon

Finally, I can sit and get to stitching. I have gotten all my problems solved with gathering supplies to start my EGA 17th Century band sampler class from Nan Euler and am focusing the afternoon on that. I tried to work on it yesterday in the car as we drove to our hiking spots but roads were too rough. I have got the basting finished as recommended and sorting out the colors of silks I want to use. Now I can actually start stitching. The way this class starts you start with a whitework section so first the satin stitch and then cutwork. I must admit I have the hardest time cutting my fabric, once I get started it is okay but that first cut I agonize over. I hope to get the first part of this done today and then I really need to settle in on it. I love the way the class is done and have learned so much just from reading the project book. Will post a picture when I have something to show.

Enjoy your Sunday.

Saturday hiking

A beautiful Alaskan day called to us to do a couple of short hikes, pup in tow. Our pup is a chocolate lab so I am not sure who was towing who but we enjoyed a few hours in the sun. This is why you can stand the winters. Fireweed, the beaver pond, the waterfall, the path...mostly uphill. The first picture is an update of CHS alphabet sampler. 

Stitching time

Since starting back to work full time last year my stitching time has really suffered. I still carry it with me wherever I go and this week it finally worked in my favor. I got called for jury duty so during the breaks and delays I have been stitching on Carriage House Samplings Alphabet Sampler. Unknown linen from stash with GAST. I will not fill the bottom section of each block with bittersweet as that color is not a favorite of mine. I have not decided what I will use for the flowers on the vine yet either. I am working on the boxes and the vine and will do the fill in of the boxes at home as it is easier to work at the courthouse with few color changes as I am not allowed to bring in scissors. The picture is where I started.

A new beginning

Love to read others blogs so I thought I would try to start my own. Not sure how often or how long this will last but thought I would try it. I love to cross stitch.  I particularly love samplers and just took a recent finish, Beatrix Potter by Needleprint to the local frame shop to get framed along with a late anniversary sampler for my in laws' 50th wedding anniversary which was last year. Better late than never could be the absolute watch word for me for the last several years of my life. I will show you pics of the two I took to be framed and then the framed pieces when they come back.