Eighth Part Done

I'm officially on the right month again for See the Stars. I finished the eighth part last week. Lots of stitching for each piece on this! I like the way it looks, though.

There's a Red Theme Here

I did more red this week, of course. Almost all of this bookmark is one shade of it or another. I'm over 30 rows in now, though, and making some progress.

A Third Dodecagon

This week, I started my third dodecagon ornament - Mojave. It's different from the other two I've done already - the smyrnas around the side are two colored instead of one.

Up on the Roof

All I've got to cross stitch on this part now is some of the rooftops. Finally, it's getting there! I've also stitched more on the right as I've had extra thread, so it should take minimally less time, at least.

Chenille Blanket

When I was traveling back and forth to Virginia a lot this summer, I crocheted this lap blanket for my husband. I didn't get around to finishing it with fringe until a couple of days ago, though. So now it's -really- finished. He picked out the color and yarn, and it's going to be put in his car for driving in the winter in the cold while the heater heats up.

Second Heart

I finished the second part of Herz Rot-Weiss yesterday, and already have the third part to do. I like these colors with the pattern; to me, it looks old and like stained glass.

Lots of One Color

This week's stitching was all in DMC 3046. It was in two different areas of the skirt and flounce, and it added some pretty big blocks to the piece.

Curves and Squares

It strikes me that this is an odd justaposition: the curves of the mandala being given to us in very strict squares. Anyway, I got done with two more parts of the chart and went on to work on the heart piece. I'll be coming back to this as it comes up in my stitchalong rotation.

Jellyfish!

This is a project called "Jelly Bellies" by Caela Conn Tyler. It was to be taught at the EGA seminar this year, but didn't make. I saw the finished piece at last year's seminar and thought it'd be a good and fun piece to do. I liked it. I didn't sign up for it at seminar, though, because it didn't fit in my schedule. So... San Bernadino chapter of ANG was doing this as a pilot class, and I ghosted. This was last spring. I started it, and ran into some trouble with the directions. I put it aside, but just now added it back into my rotation. My first working on this piece since then went swimmingly well. I felt none of the frustration I'd felt earlier.

I asked Ms. Tyler if I could blog this piece, since it was a pilot, and she said yes, so here it is! I'm hoping to work more on it today and will continue it in my rotation until it's done. I really like the look of it, and thank Ms. Tyler for her design work and her permission.

So far, I've put down gauze for waves and some Angelina fiber for the first jellyfish, then stitched over the Angelina. The base layer of the first jellyfish is done and now I need to add more on top.

Still in the Middle

Most of this week's stitching was in the middle of the compass, getting it fleshed out. The center circle is done, and I'm almost done with the east and west points.

Glazing a Window

No work on the door this week, just the upper window. Because of the way the colors are in blocks, I'm making a lot of progress across - more than it would seem by going vertically. In the next couple of weeks, I'll be able to skip over several columns because they'll be done already.

Last of this Round

Last week, I received Cathy's block in the mail for the Whatever Goes round robin. Her theme was champagne elegance, and I added some stuff in the various blank spots left. This top picture is after my work. Since I used colors close to her fabric colors, it might be hard to see.

This lower picture was taken before I did anything, so you can compare.

Another Artist Started

This looks exactly like Sargent so far because it is. It's going to start being different soon, though. This one's called Cassatt and is from the same series from Kick Back and Stitch. I made significant progress on this when I went to the ballgame on Sunday.

Nearly Egged

The second egg is soooo close to being done, and I've started the third line too. What with everything that went on this summer, I've not met my goal of getting this part done by fall, but at least I've made significant progress.

All Laddered Up

The ladder's done on band ten, and all I have to do to complete this section is the bottom border, which I've already started. After that, there are only two more bands to go. Good thing, too. I'm running out of fabric.

Return to the Stars

See the Stars came back around in my stitchalong rotation this week. There's a lot of stitching in this part, but I hope to have it done fairly soon, as there's no backstitching. Lots left to do on this project, as it's to continue for another year and a half.

Redlining

Stitching this has been easy lately. It's mostly been one color all the way across - red. I'll be coming out of it soon, but in the meantime, I'm making pretty good progress.

Light Skirt

More progress on the skirt this week. Light colors, this time.

It Looks Dark

You have to zoom in on this picture to see the progress on the second line, as it's rather dark. On the other hand, it's pretty easy to see I'm almost done with the top line. I'll finish it next time I work on this.

It's a Snowflake

I completed the first part of Tam's Mystery, which she's named "As the Snow Falls" and it's the verry middle. Looks like a snowflake to me. I'll start on the second part after I finish part eight of See the Stars and my next installment of Kaleidoscope Mandala. My hope is to have it done for Christmas.

Bye Bye Maryland

Well, it doesn't look like Maryland anymore, but I'm making some pretty good progress. I do a needleful of floss a day on it. It's all just cross stitch and is getting pretty speedy because I'm about to enter pretty much an all red zone, all the same color.

Whatever Goes Around...

This is Lori's block from the Whatever Goes round robin. It has one more person after me, so I couldn't fill in all the rest of the areas. The top picture is of it before I worked on it.

This picture of the whole block after my work.

And here is a detail shot of what I did. I added some ladybugs and a large flower. I also added a piece of the lace I bought in Bulgaria and a nice trim I found in my stash. I hope she likes it.

One Heart Done

I got the first part of my heart stitchalong done. There are a -lot- of hearts in it, though, and I've got to rotate through all the other stitchalongs before getting to part two. I do like the way the colors look, though.

Over Halfway

This hadn't been going very quickly lately, but it seems to have picked up again. It's obvious I'm over halfway now and the major long horizontal lines are behind me.

Fireside Stitchery

If you look at Monday's post, you'll see that I ran out of a couple of threads while working on Sargent. The kit was from Fireside Stitchery, and I did not contact them about the problem. I was away, it was a travel project, I picked up some extra while out at a couple of shops. So imagine my surprise when I got an email yesterday from Maria DeSimone, the owner of Fireside Stitchery. She apologized for the thread shortage and wrote nicely about this blog. She also offered me a discount on my next purchase to help with the problem of having had to buy more thread.

I have ordered several times from Fireside Stitchery and found them very helpful, but I didn't imagine this! Thank you, Maria.

Cycling Off

Yup, another finish this week! I completed Bibendum. My husband's really happy with how he looks, and already has started the framing process. He's got the board to lace it on and order its mats. That makes me feel good.

Yet Another Stitchalong

This is the fourth of four stitchalongs I've started with Marquoir. It's called "As the Snow Falls" and is by Tam of Tam's Creations. We're to stitch a segment every week. I am, of course, already behind. She suggested white on blue for snow, but me being me, I changed it. I'm using a light lemon variegated from Hand Dyed Fibers and a Silkweavers solo. I think it looks pretty good.

Another Workshop Done

I've been working more on the workshop and decided to finish it too this week (see a theme here?). I've been feeling like I needed to make more progress, so I've been finishing up my smaller things. I always feel a need to get things done with the coming of autumn.

Anyway, I learned something from this project - that I could manipulate rice stitches in different ways; they don't have to all be square and one or two colors. I like the way this turned out, too. I'll be starting on workshop three some time soon.

Small, But Finished

Last week I finished this piece - Sargent from Kick Back and Stitch. It was my travel project, and only took about six weeks for me to do, solely when I was away from home. I like the colors and the way it turned out, which is a good thing, since there are several more in the series in my stash. My only complaint was that the kit from Fireside Stitchery skimped on a couple of the threads and I had to go out and buy more.

Looks Like Maryland

The shape looks like Maryland to me this week, with the trailing down area on the right. I'm sure it'll change by next week. There's a lot to go with this, but I'm surprised by how much progress I'm making. I think it's because there are large blocks of the same color.

Four More Buildings

Four buildings complete this week. Yay! I was able to complete the two with the detached tops and the two flanking the center building. Fewer and fewer left to do. I also got a lot less stitching done this past week than usual. I was in the car driving at least three days and there's a project I've been working on that I'm unable to show you at this time. It's taken a lot of my remaining stitching time. It should be done in a week or so, though.

Another Stitchalong Start

Marquoir has a lot going on these days, and here's a part of it. It's called Herz Rot-Weiss, but as you can see, I changed the colors. This is the first of many sections, and I'm halfway through it. Silkweaver solo fabric and Vikki Clayton's silks. I like the way they look together. Anyway, it's in my rotation now and I'll be keeping up with it as well as I can.

Cobi's Block Goes Home

I was the last person to work on Cobi W.'s Autumn Round Robin block, and I finished it up this week. I added a leaf on the top left, a buddha charm in the middle, and two seams - both beaded to one extent or another. This top picture is before my work, and the bottom one is after.

A Carrier Cover

Here is a baby carrier cover I made from a couple of balls of cotton yarn (Bahzar) by Alize I bought in Bulgaria. I love the bright, popping colors. It's for a colleague of my husband's who's having a baby in the next week or so...

Back to the Stucco

This week, it was cream and white for the upper window and peaches for the stucco. Got some done, and I'm progressing pretty well, considering.

My First Kumihimo

For the past two Saturdays, Pocono Mountain EGA has been having a kumihimo workshop. This is my sampler braid after the first week. I went home and finished it the next day.

The technique is pretty easy to get a handle on, but it can get confusing making sure you're doing the right pattern for what you want. I'll be using the technique to make custom trim for ornaments and such, so expect to see some more eventually.

Something New-ish

This is from Kick Back and Stitch and called Sargent. I've had it as my travel/takealong project since mid-July, when I went to Grandfather Mountain Highland Games. This picture was taken at the beginning of August, but I've just now gotten around to posting it. I'll be doing a series of these - Fireside Stitchery is offering them as a wreath project, but I won't be doing the wreath. Anyway, I really like all the bright colors. Stitching is easy, and the project's so small I'm not using stretcher bars.

The Right Colors

I don't know what happened this week, but the color came out near perfect on the picture. It's really this color. I started on another color on the second line and finished the second color on the top line. It's progressing, and I really like the colors. This Tentakulum fiber is really nice to work with, too.

Zentangle Done

I finished Zentangle this week! The colors are all ones I normally wouldn't pick. I got them in grab bags from Hand Dyed Fibers, and decided to use them on this project. I think it worked. I learned how much I rely on overlapping areas on multi-page charts with this project -there were none until the last couple of parts. I know it's to be framed, but I don't know how it's going to be framed yet.

Second Line Done

I got the second connector between eggs done this week. It means I'll be doing only the second egg until I can start the third connector. Things are definitely progressing.

A HAED Start

I was gifted several Heaven and Earth Designs charts during their sale a couple of weeks ago. This was one of them - Oriental Courage. It's my second posting on it, but I couldn't resist the title. Anyway, I'm working on it daily and it's making a lot of progress. It's one of their bookmarks (storykeeps), and is supposed to be three by twelve inches. So far, I've got almost half an inch complete. I would be parking threads, but since the colors are all reds and so close, I was unable to track which was which.

A Darker Shade of Brown

This week's work was mainly dark brown lowlights in various folds of the skirt. It extended the skirt down quite a way more.

Edging Along

Parts four and five of the kaleidoscope mandala are done; I finished them before starting the last part of Zentangle. I like the way the colors are looking and it's not a hard stitch. I won't be getting back with part six, though, until I'm done with the next part of See the Star and the first parts of Red and White Heart and Tam's Christmas Mystery. Lots of stitching going on in Marquoir.

On the Last Part

Yay, I started the last part of Zentangle! This means I'll have one of my Marquoir stitchalong pieces done. It's a good thing because two more started this month... now on to stitch and finish this.

Nearly Round

The back wheel is nearly complete. I was debating this last week on whether to just finish, but decided not to. I'm getting close to that point, though.

Crossing the Sides

I completed the second part this week and continued on with the third. There's still a lot of work to do, even though I'm on the last part. Lots of rice stitches left to do, along with the filigree on the four major sides.