Thursday, January 30, 2014

TUSAL Post #2

*Cues music* Look at my jar, isn't it neat? Wouldn't you think my ...cross stitching's... uhhh...complete?
 
 
 
 
Little Mermaid music aside, here is my TUSAL post #2 for my ORT jar. It's got plenty of green in it, and I started adding in some of the other colors from my other WIPs. There's a lot of gray in there right now from my Birch Tree Birds Kit. My jar is turning out so cute, haha. I tote it around everywhere in the house while I stitch.
 
 
Hopefully I'll start posting more regularly after this weekend. I'm in the home stretch of a pile of college applications and paperwork. But after that, I'm free!

Saturday, January 11, 2014

Needles and Niceties








Today, I got to visit Needles and Niceties in Upland, California. I've never actually been to a needlework specialty shop, so I was extremely excited to go to one for the first time, especially because I had found one so close to my house.

When I got in there, one of the owners, Robert, asked me if he could help me with anything. I asked him if he could help me get some of the materials for my Tall Flowers Just Nan pattern. I handed him the pattern and he looked it over. He studied it pretty intently for a little bit and then asked me, "Where did you get this?" and I told him how my teacher had a bunch of patterns she hadn't wanted and told me I could take my pick. He grinned and replied, "This came from our shop years ago. See?" he pointed at the little price tag in the corner. "That's my handwriting. But the funny thing is, I don't remember who I sold this one to. And it's a pretty hard pattern to find. This is amazing. Can I show my wife?" He went and showed his wife and then came back and helped me find my materials.

There were so many amazing patterns and accessories and kits I wanted to buy. I wish I had more money. I ended up buying all the floss for Tall Flowers and the cloth, too.

The owners were so nice, they helped me find everything, pointed out some sales to me, and made some small talk. I will definitely be going back there to try to buy some more patterns and kits. It's a really great store. If you live in California, you should check it out!

Monday, January 6, 2014

Turtle Trot SAL


Look at me, trying to bite off more than I can chew. I really want to cross stitch more this year, so I think that joining a stitch along will be good motivation. I decided to join BAP Attack's Turtle Trot. So, without further ado, here are the pieces I am going to get a move on this year.

 
Colour Pop Sampler from Cross Stitcher Magazine

 
Mariner's Light

 
Sleeping Angel by Just Nan

 
Peacock Majesty by Just Nan

 
Tall Flowers by Just Nan

 
Birch Tree Birds

 
Peace on Earth

 
Tiger Chilling; the black-on-black stitching is hard to see in the photo

 
Poppy Pair, which I am almost done with

 
The Kiss of the Sun

 
This Legend of Korra Pattern I designed

 
Merry Christmas Sampler from Cross Stitcher Magazine
 
There is one more piece I am planning on doing. I am designing a pattern to make into either a wall hanging or a pillow for my friend. The pattern will feature characters from the hit anime, Attack on Titan. However, I only recently learned about the exact characters and order she wanted everything in, so the pattern is not designed yet. This work is a lot to do, and I know I will never finish it all by the end of the year, but I hope that this stitch along will help me get a lot more starts and finishes than last year.
 
Lots of love and good luck to everyone participating in this SAL!

Wednesday, January 1, 2014

HAPPY NEW YEAR ORT JAR #1


I am reviving this blog! I decided that the best way to encourage myself to stitch more would be to join itsdaffycat's TUSAL. So, this is the first ORT of the year, courtesy of my horrible phone camera. The threads are from my Dimensions kit that my sister got for me (Poppy Pair) The stitching on that is coming along quite nicely. I've got all the flowers done, now I need to do the leaves and stems, so there should be a lot of green in there next time.

Some of my stitching projects for this year:

Poppy Pair (Dimensions Kit)
Tiger Chilling (Dimensions Kit)
Mariner's Light (Dimensions Kit)
Colour Pop Sampler (Cross Stitcher Magazine)
Attack on Titan Character Banner (My Own Pattern)
Legend of Korra Character Banner (My Own Pattern)

I'll try my very best to keep on track and keep stitching. A lot of big things happening for me this year. Graduation, 18th birthday, college, and plenty more. Here's to 2014!