A Finish, a Start, a Gift and some Stash

GR&DF we have reached the high point of the week - with a great slide to the weekend - since I took Friday off - only one more day and then 4 glorious days off - woo hoo!!!

Last night I finished off the little sampler I had been working on - here is a crooked snap -

Sheepish Designs - "Red Alphabet" - 105th Exemplary - stitched on 32ct Flax using WDW Brick - 1 over 2.

This little piece is a really sweet and fast stitch - odd in that there is no big "z."

I also started another little sampler - here is a not so crooked snap of the little progress from last night -

This little piece is just too cute - from Of Female Worth - called "The Absent Minded Squirrel" - I am stitching him up on the same 32ct Flax (it was a pretty big piece) and I like how the floss looks on it - using my own conversion from the recommended WDW/DMC. I am stitching this 2 over 2. I am really drawn to this piece because of the border - a vine of acorns - that stitches up really quickly.

The mail was super nice to me yesterday - bringing this sweet RAK -

...a wonderfully wrapped package is sitting on the great penny mat - another RAK - from dear Vonna - and inside was this....

... a simply gorgeous piece of silk slub - from Andover Fabrics - in a color called Desert Sand - so soft - so decadent - now what to stitch on its lovely surface????? Thank you so much dear Sue!!! This here stitching group are sure nice - can't say it enough!!!

The mail also brought some stash...

The number 5 AotH from BBD - some floss I was missing for stitching up the BBD stockings and a piece of linen that is to replace a piece I was less that enthusiastic about for the stockings. Almost to the 1/2 way point with the AotH chart release - I can't wait to see them all together and will wait to stitch them up after they are all in my hot little hands. I have an idea marinating over how I want to stitch them as a single piece.... but that will probably change.

There were a couple of flicks last night I wanted to mention - but before I do that I wanted to fill in a little about yesterdays film - "The Shanghai Gesture" was Gene Tireney's first film - hence her less than stellar performance - she is simply lovely throughout the film but her acting had not smoothed out to what she could do - I wished I had known that info before I saw the film - I would have been a little less critical about her.

The first film up from last night is "Hachi: a Dogs Tale" - 2009 - starring Richard Gere, Joan Allen and Jason Alexander. This wonderful film is a short and beautiful piece about loyalty and the connection of a dog and human. The story is based on a true story from Japan of the 1920's about a real dog. The movie moved the action to a small town in I think Connecticut set in the 1990's. If you get to see the film on DVD be sure to watch the special features - they talk about how the film was made and about the real Hachi. I can't recommend this film highly enough - I was a snivelling mess at the end, but it was a dog movie - and I am sucker for the hounds!!

The second film was a newish release from Criterion - "Night Train to Munich" - 1940 - starring Margaret Lockwood, Rex Harrison and Paul Henreid. The story revolves around the Nazi expansion into Czechoslovakia and trying to induce an important scientist to work for them. He escapes to England. To get at him the Nazi's incarcerate his daughter in a concentration camp. She escapes with who she thinks is another prisoner, but is he? They make it to England and she is reunited with her father - but the German's aren't going to let go of either of them.... kidnapping both father a daughter back to the Fatherland - it them becomes imperative that the British get them back.... this is a great spy movie with a lot of twists and exciting moments - in the style of Hitchcock and done with many of the same actors from "The Lady Vanishes" - 1938 - (another superior spy film) - I would highly recommend both films.

There you go sports fans - another post from yours truly!! Thanks you for stopping by do come again. Just a mention - we upgraded last night at home to uber fast Internet from uber slow dial up - so I might just be posting on some weekends - now doesn't the strike terror in the hearts of the insane!! :)

Take care,
edgar

A Frame, a Start and a Conversion - or - Quaker, Quaker, Sampler

GR&DF what super comments - I do thank you all for them!!! I am such a nut for the Quaker pieces - it doesn't matter if they are reproductions or the newer versions using Quakery bits and pieces. It seems that the Quaker fad has sort of run its course and not as many pieces are being released as they were a year or so ago - but I stocked up and have plenty of Quaker stash to keep me busy.

Last night I dug out a BBD - LF piece I did back in 07 to frame up. I picked up the frame this weekend and think it goes very well with the piece. Here is a snap -


I have seen this stitched up by many stitchers - It is "Quaker Garden" a Loose Feathers piece, I used the recommended floss and linen - at the time I would have never thought of choosing anything else but what was called for - such sacrilege!! It was also this piece that started me on my love of the stitched Quaker. Here is another snap of it hanging in the stairway -


It fit perfectly in this odd triangular space and sort of finished off the other stitched pieces I have cascading down the wall - yes, that is my knee in the lower right corner.

I was also at the point between pieces that I really do not like. I like just sitting down and picking up a WIP - but one has to start a piece to have a WIP to stitch on. I started in on a chart that is on a loan to me called "Red Alphabet" by Sheepish Designs. It will be a quick piece to stitch but I think very pretty. Here is my pitiful little start snap....


I am using WDW "Brick" - the model on the package shows it worked in a silk, but I already have 3 skeins of the "Brick" and so I chose to go for that from the stash as that was the conversion suggested from SD. I am stitching it on a piece of linen from LL called "Flax" - 32ct.

A while back I had an email about my process in converting from what is recommended to other fibers and so I think I will take the opportunity here to show exactly how I do it. Not that this is the best way but it is my way. Here is a snap -

This is what I did last night - a conversion for "The Garden Path" - I usually put down some white paper and then get together the called for floss - in this case it is DMC - then I haul out the silk or the over dyed or what ever kind of floss stash I want to stitch the piece in question and just get to going through it all until I hit on either colours that are close to the DMC's or colours I like that sort of coordinate with together. Here is everything - the DMC with my conversions of the different silks I will use. Now I need to get at the linen stash a pick something from there.

There you go sports fans. Thank you again for stopping by and for the kind words!! Do come again.

Take care,
edgar