Wednesday, June 30, 2010

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

19 comments:

  1. Beautiful finish!

    What a nice RAK gift you received. Love the stash! Can't wait to see how you are planning on laying them all out!

    Have a good 4th!

    brendastitching.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete
  2. Love the finish. Will you frame this one? What a cute penny mat.. I was at Elegant Stitch yesterday looking at the wool and thought about buying some to make one of these but then my clear mind said " like when will you have time" LOL So I bought some silk floss instead.

    I am still on the waiting list for Hatchis a Dogs Tale at Netflix, hopefully soon it looks like a great movie.

    Well I hope your week sails by ointo a nice weekend.
    Take Care

    ReplyDelete
  3. You are so blessed! What beautiful stash gifts. Your sampler is lovely and I can't wait to see your squirrel!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Darling finish, Edgar and lovely gift! Of course, what's not to love about any stash having to do with BBD?

    ReplyDelete
  5. Your stitching is great as always! Plus more fun with a RAK and stash too. Your movie reviews are always so fun to read!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Absolutely LOVE the finish...and a new start all in one night?? You make my head spin!
    How sweet of Sweet Sue!
    YAY for faster internet. We lived in a little farm house where there was no cell phone reception and only dial-up. It was the longest 2 years of my life.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Edgar, love your Red Alphabet Sampler finish--you stitched it up so quickly!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Edgar, love your Red Alphabet finish and new start. One of my favorite fabric colors is Flax. It's a very versatile neutral. New stash looks great too!! Happy stitching

    ReplyDelete
  9. Love your Red Alphabet finish and your new start too! Nice RAK -- haven't heard of this silk slub. You'll have to let us know how it is to work on. Nice stash too!

    ReplyDelete
  10. What a sweet little finish! I just love it.

    Great start on the new one as well.

    ReplyDelete
  11. What a sweet, FAST finish!! The one-color designs can be striking in their simplicity. I love your RAK (a sweet sender to a sweet receiver!) and the stash - too heavenly!!! :)
    Enjoy your lon week-end; hope it's absolutely lovely!!!

    ReplyDelete
  12. Love your finish. I've always enjoyed Sheepish Designs. Flax is truly one of my favorite fabrics. Great stash.

    ReplyDelete
  13. You are so lucky to receive such wonderful gift! What a very beautiful gift.

    ReplyDelete
  14. That is a gorgeous piece of fabric from Vonna. Red Alphabet turned out very pretty too. How are you finishing it? Can't wait to see your squirrel sampler! :)

    ReplyDelete
  15. Love your finish!!! Can't wait to see the Female Worth design progress.

    What a nice gift, I think it screams for a sampler :-). Love the new stash too, I am doing the BBD house on one piece of linen, they are so much fun to stitch.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Beautiful finish. Everybody seems to be a much faster stitcher than me. I am still working on the same projects I started this year !!
    Oh, I watched Hachi and, my goodness, I cried so very hard during the movie, but the worse thing is that I continued to cry for days every time I thought of it !! What an absolutely beautiful story.

    ReplyDelete
  17. Edgar, I Love It! Did I hear "acorns"? Be still my heart, lol! :D

    The weather is beautiful and cool, yet I still look forward to Autumn a bit. ;) Love that season's stitching. :D

    ReplyDelete
  18. My niece--the dog lover--has the book about Hachi. Every time I read it to her, the dude has to finish because I am crying too much to continue. I know! The bitch, she is such a softy!

    ReplyDelete
  19. love the red alpha...and the penny mat is very cute. You do good work! The other day your cherry coffee cake looked absolutely yummy! Your stash enhancement is one of my fav books - gotta love anything BBD!

    ReplyDelete

“In every end, there is also a beginning.”

 Gentle Friends, I finished the sampler last night and here's a snaperooo... Village Square Sampler from Samplers Remembered   1/8 - 3/2...