Oh, the places I've been. . . .

http://bighugelabs.com/flickr/map.php

I thought this was so cool that I decided to put one on my blog. Most of the states I've visited were seen from the cab of a truck. Some of the states I've actually lived in: Tennessee, Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, New Jersey, New Mexico, Nevada and Illinois. The rest I've either rode through, or driven through, or just stopped to visit. I couldn't figure a way to put in Canada, but I've been there many times. The Detroit area is just a bridge away from Canada. My hubby and I have picked up munition casings in Red Lion, PA, and delivered those munitions to a military base in Iowa; cabinet frames to Talladega, Alabama; window frames to North Carolina. We've watched the ships being loaded in Norfold, VA while our trailer was being unloaded. In Wisconsin, we watched a truck and trailer pull on to a ramp and be elevated so that the wood chips were dumped out the trailer door. (yes, it was totally upright.) And we drove through a bug storm before we got there. (I think we were going past a cranberry bog!) The most remarkable thing I've seen, was going up a mountain in Virginia, heading towards Norfolk. The mountain almost always has fog near the top so there are tiny lights in the road, set right where the lane lines are. At night, it is the MOST gorgeous sight in the world.

Thanks for stopping by and going with me down memory lane. Back to my stitching. Have a great weekend everyone.

LHN Progress: two projects

First up is Morning Berries. I really adore this piece, it's so calming to work on. I think it's the fabric, 28 Natural Pearl. It's really dense and holds the stitches quite nicely. This is coming along, slower than I had imagined but it's nearly done. Tonight or tomorrow should see it completed. I'm not really happy with all the silk choices that I made, the rabbits don't show up real well, and the urn with the vine isn't quite the correct color, but it has a soft look that I do like. But, the reason it isn't quite done yet? I started another project.

Quilting, by LHN. It came in the mail on Monday and I just had to start it. First, I was only going to do the top row of the border, then the sides. I just couldn't put it down and ended up doing all of the one color, Joshua Tree, that was in the border. So, I'm thinking an hour for Quilting and the rest of the time trying to get Morning Berries finished up would work. After that, I can finish up this small piece and on to another project. Maybe their new projects will be out by then, the Neighborhood piece is really cute. Have you seen it?

It is odd, working with the cottons first and then the silks. I'm using two strands on both pieces, but the way they lay, and feel, and the look of the pieces are so different.

Happy stitching all of you, thanks for stopping by. I have to make this post a short one because we have storms going by, and have already lost power three times. Looks like I might be stitching by candlelight tonight. Already have several candles lit, just in case.

A Small Start and an Even Smaller Finish

Here is my small start. It's Morning Berries by LHN, and it is indeed a very small start. I'm working this on the recommended fabric, 28 count Natural Pearl Linen by Zweigart. I'm really loving the look of this linen and it's wonderful to work on. I am not using the recommended threads. I have substituted Belle Soie silk for the Crescent Colours overdyes. Of course, the substitution isn't a perfect one. For example, the berries are supposed to be done in Blue Moon, a lovely periwinkle, sort of lavender blue color, and I just couldn't find the perfect blue to use. Instead, I used Spring Violets, a more lavender color. I'm also using: Icing, Tumbleweed, Cinnamon Stick, Lily Pad, and Sandy Beach. Some are very good matches, some not quite so good. But I'm happy with how it's turning out. I've stitched the entire border, though it doesn't show in the picture, and have a pretty good start on the top part. I did realize something important when I started stitching the berries at the top; the Belle Soie made the stitches look soft and full, while the Crescent Colours overdyed cottons look crisp and full. I wanted the soft look for this lovely piece. Oh, and if you look very closely, you can see that I'm frogging the row beneath the bunnies because I blended two "v's" into one large one right at the beginning. So, that's what I'm doing tonight, reworking that row.
Next up is my small finish. And it is truly small. This is a piece that is going to Laura, for our Smalls RR. It is Drawn Thread's Holiday Halloween and I used the silks that came with the kit. This was the second time I've stitched this, so I was lucky to have enough thread. The big change is that I stitched this one over one, and it came out really small. I didn't have enough black to work the words so I used the dark olive green. The little buttons that came with the kit were just too big for this tiny piece so I worked tiny spider web rosettes in the corners instead. And just how small is this piece?
This small. I don't think it even measures 3 inches square. I love the detail which seems to show up more on the over one than the regular stitching. Had a great time working those spiderwebs. So, what do you think? Laura wanted Halloween, and I think this is small enough for a scissor fob, or ornament, right?

On the home front, the truck is back on the road, my house is clean again, and I really miss my dh. That's always the problem of having him home for long periods of time. I get so used to him being here, even when he annoys me, that it's twice as hard when he leaves again. And to those inquiring minds who want to know, YES, I did help him with taking out the radiator, and putting the new one back in. (Oh, and that baby weighed like 300 pounds!)I took him up to the truck parts store to pick up special anti-freeze. And I cooked for him. Can you imagine, the man wanted three square meals every day! Big departure from being home alone, and grabbing whatever is available. He's planning on working the weekend through, and won't be home until next Wednesday night so keep a watch for me--I'll be wandering through all of your blogs, trying to keep busy.

Until next time, happy stitching and I hope you all keep cool.

Small Finish and New Stash

First, a small finish. This is Thread Gathering, by Little House Needleworks. It was a limited edition kit, that came with the threads, Crescent Colors Cotton overdyes and a lovely Kelmscott thread keep, made from Mother of Pearl. I stitched it on the recommended fabric, 32 count Natural Raw Linen. The border seemed to take forever to stitch--but then I figured out how many stitches were in it, over a thousand, and that made perfect sense. It was a real joy to watch the colors change, especially the Old Blue Jeans color. I really love the simplicity of the piece and it will be framed and hung over my guest room/stash room/sewing room door. Quite fitting, don't you think?

Next up is NEW stash. I received two packages in the mail yesterday. From House of Stitches in LaPorte, IN, some new fabrics. Pictured is the largest piece, a Lakeside Linen called Tundra, in 32 count, which is my favorite count to work on. What isn't pictured is a small piece of 28 count Linen in Clay, which I'm using for a piece in our Smalls RR and that I started last night. I'm doing a Drawn Thread Witch, from Holiday Halloween. Linda from House of Stitches is the greatest to order from. There have been times when I order one day and have it the next day. Of course, she's only two hours away so shipping time is short, but Linda and her gals are the greatest around. And their store is a stitchers dream. The rest of my order was from the Froggy Stitcher . I ordered a chart which was out of stock but on sale, Thread hoops from Kelmscott (really lovely) and three skeins of Crescent colors cotton overdyes in Black Bird, Blacksmith Blue and River Rocks. Those last are for an upcoming project I have planned. Karen was really great to deal with and got my order out right away.

So, there you have it. A finish and some new stash. I've not gotten a lot of stitching done the last few days because hubby is home again, working on the truck. I think I'm going to name this truck TROUBLE since its been causing problems all year. This time the radiator blew out, to the tune of $745. The new one was delivered this morning. Oh, and of course, with him needing to be outside working on the repairs, we have a thunder storm arriving any time.

Until next post, Happy Stitching and may your finishes be many.