Happy Dance times 2

Finally have something to show. With some of the hottest weather in Indiana history, for the first week of summer, I've been staying indoors with the air conditioning. Hot and humid do not work for me at all. (Not to mention the hot flashes the doc says are normal at this time in my life, lol.) I have continued to work on the wall behind our four poster bed, making it look, (I hope) a bit less feminine.

First up, Moon and Stars by LHN. Wow, I really loved stitching this one. I didn't have the recommended Crescent Colours cottons so I substituted Crescent Colours Silks, the Belle Soies. Love working with these threads. I think my color choices were a pretty good match. I had to pull the DMC for general color, and then use the picture to make better variegated matches. I used the recommended fabric color and count, but I wasn't really happy with what I had. My fabric was thin, not nice and dense how I like it.

When I framed the piece, I took Diane's (LHN) idea for frame color and used white. I used a liming paint process that allowed the wood grain to show through and then polyurethaned it for a soft glow. I'm really happy at how it looks all framed up.

I finished the stitching early one evening, and had to find something else to work on. I had LHN's Thread pack of Berries so I pulled out fabric and got started on it. I got the outside borders stitched that first night, so I had the dimensions to measure for framing. Went ahead and made that frame--my first time making a frame before the project was completed--so when I was finished with it, was able to put it in the frame as soon as it was done.

I did make a few changes in this piece. I changed the door to 8 Rhodes stitches, to mimic an eight panel door, and added two chimneys to the roof. The flowers beneath the fences were done with a Smyrna stitch as were the two buds further up the flowers. Just wanted to give a bit more depth to the piece.

Next up is finishing Goodwill, another LHN Threadpack. I got that started up last night but only have the outside border and some of the green ground work done. After that is finished, I'm thinking of a Halloween scissors sheath but not sure of the designer. Or perhaps the Drawn Thread scissor pocket that's Halloweenish.

Here's what the wall looks like over our bed now. As Goodwill will frame just a tad bigger than Berries, it might look good where this tiny shelf is now. Or I can lower the tiny shelf and position the picture above it. And yes, before you ask, hubby and I used to collect Boyd's Bears plush. These bears, hares, and others reside on shelves that encircle the room high up near the ceiling.

On the non-stitching side of life, things are going a tiny bit better--if one can disregard my son's car getting vandalized for the second time in six weeks. (He thinks disgruntled old girlfriend.) Whoever it was left the driver's side of his car decorated with lots of long, deep scratches. Insurance company is NOT going to be happy. Hubby is right now stuck in Atlanta, waiting for a load that will bring him this way. Catching up on bills is going to take us longer than it ever has, thanks to the increase in fuel prices. Looks like perhaps my birthday trip to House of Stitches might have to be a lot later than next month. :(

Stitch on, dear friends, and thank you for all the lovely comments you leave. You have kept my spirits up, encouraged me to keep "keeping on".