hello, hello

"Hello hello, hope you're feeling fine... "  this is a song from the 80s and I can't quite remember who sang it.  I really do apologize for the hiatus - it's not that I haven't been stitching, it's more I haven't had photos to share!

And why, you may ask.. the problem is my camera!   I googled, and discovered the problem may be that my poor Canon has lost a pixel in camera mode. I can do video, I can review old photos, but I can't take any new ones!  I feel so sad about it. it's a 5 year old classic, love its looks, but sadly it won't take photos anymore.  All I see in camera mode is a black screen.  I have to check with Canon if it can still be repaired but I'm not getting my hopes up as this is a model that was sold in the U.S., not here.

On to stitchy news.. I finished my Madame La Fee quilt square and have sent it by post to the lady who will incorporate it into a quilt.  I've gone back to doing my Maria Winkler "Peaches in a bowl" and started Lizzie Kate's Christmas Spirit double flip-it to be made into a banner.. charts courtesy of my dear cousin..  no it's not Christmas Rules, which I would also love to do.. although goodness knows and as many stitchers are wont to say, I have enough to do to last me for years at the pace I am going!   lol  I won't say I have enough to last me my whole life, but I have enough at the moment in freebies alone.

So.. there's still my Whimsey and Wit Advent Alphabet waiting in the wings for me.. I don't know if I said so in my last post, but I put it aside when I discovered that I was a stitch off-count.. don't know what I will do.  Frog? Go on?  I really don't know.

And then, when I had declared a stash diet, I went and bought a Bleu de Chine chart, and some Nutcrackers charts, and a copy of the Burda International magazine (important note - with the CHARTS!) and 3 fabrics, 32, 36 and 40 ct linen (I think one of them is jobelan not linen).  And I have to confess, there are 3 ladies waiting for me to make up my mind about additional stash.. this will be IT for the year, I spent more than I ever planned (actually I spent more than I ever have on stash in my entire life!).  I hasten to add that this stash is all pre-owned, so I can live with the idea of being a spendthrift better... now to find the time to stitch all this when they finally arrive!

Work has suddenly ramped up (is there such a word) and everyday I just feel so tired after.  Part of this is some organizational changes and the fears that go with it.. I just hope and pray everyday.. hope what, pray what, I think you can guess what  :-o

So hoping that you can send some good thoughts and prayers this way..  and I send the same to you, reading this!

What I've been up to

What I've been busy with..

the little dears - nephew and niece; my brother's children who I love to bits.

this arrived in the post - stitchy goodness from Cecilia's - Blackbird Designs' Loose Feathers No. 30 and 32; Rites of Spring and Beyond My Heart.  Made it safely here from 8,000plus miles away with $3.45 postage.  First time I've tried ordering and having it mailed direct. It took 2.5 weeks with a few days at the post office where they made a notice to me to pick it up.  Not bad!  Now I know it's a mix of frugality and lack of funds that's keeping me from ordering more.  :)

I just paid $7 in gcs to a lady on the 123 message board for 2 more BBDs that make up the Mystery Sampler.  I hope she checks her mail - she never replied to my last question 5 days ago about the Peacock Pinkeep!

Herb kit from Cross My Heart which my niece and I started stitching while she was here.. she forgot to pack it with her and only remembered at the airport. She wants to use it as a cellphone pouch.  It even has beads!  The other needle has gone missing, it's the one for sewing with the blunt end. Uh oh. Must ask her if she remembers where she put it!

Nope, I have no pic to post from the Advent Alphabet.. it's gone missing; I'm sure it will turn up again soon.  Too bad, as I'd put in more stitches!  No work being done either on the Peaches WIP.

Have a lovely week, all!

Pluses and minuses

Heigh ho, another Monday.. I've heard that statistics say Monday is the most common day for heart attacks as well as the most favored day for self-destruction.  What is it about Mondays?  People say "Monday morning blues"... Why aren't Mondays viewed as the start of a beautiful week instead?

Okay okay okay... enough of that claptrap!  It's the start of another work week and that's why people hate Mondays.  I can totally relate, today.. I make an effort to go to work despite this cold I have (I'm on medication already) but it is a different type of cold in that it's mostly cough.  It sounds much worse than it is -- I'm not coughing as hard or as often (mouth covered with a hanky or tissue of course) -- as I was last Friday.  But lo and behold, here are all these people -- well, 3 actually -- afraid I'll spread the germs... I feel like a  walking germ  :(  Well if I'm still infectious then why the heck does Medical give the all-clear and let me report for work??   Sorry for that but I'm seriously annoyed.

On the plus side.. I've managed to start a new square in the Advent Alphabet - F, for fireplace!  What an achievement as I didn't even know when I would be touching that piece again!  But that Prairie Schooler angel ornament did the trick and I am quite back into the groove. I did the angel's hands and mouth so now she looks more like the Just Cross Stitch ornament 2011 pic.   I'd even be happily absent a day just so I could do more stitching, except I have an errand to do for my mom tomorrow.. so I'm off to work again later (oh my gosh is it really Later already????)

Another plus is my nephew and niece are here - that is, I think they arrived today.  They're staying with their maternal relatives for half their vacation and the other half with us - only it's not our turn yet.  No message yet from either of them, or from my SIL to my mom.  Hopefully they're here and safe.

I sound cranky -- I am! I don't like Mondays.  Picture update to come later this morning of the PLUS side to the Monday (Whoa.. I even sound cranky about something positive!)  LOL

Stitchy progress!

Hi, just checking in! I've been wanting to post for the last 3 days but have been foiled by the pc not recognizing the camera USB... bummer!  But thank God (really!) that it's fixed and I can now post what I've been stitching!

So here it is, a UFO from years and years ago in all its unwashed, not pristine glory:

and now:

Despite being the proud owner of a DMC floss card with actual samples, I still could not match up the floss I used back then!  Honestly!  It's enough to make you tear your hair out! I also found out that the conversions I used back then were a bit off -- I was doing it by picture only! Back then I don't think I could have found the Anchor to DMC equivalents online (or maybe I didn't think to search online --google them).. so I was a bit off!  But anyway, I love the pattern, so cheerful! It is from the Buurda International "Prettiest Flower Motifs in Cross Stitch" 1993 vol.1.  I'll finish this soon, I promise, and have it framed!  I suppose I will have to stitch the other three just so there is a companion piece or two!

And made a start on the Peaches chart by Maria Winkler:

and here's what it's supposed to look like some day soon!

I've stitched the rounded curve of the peach in the middle center; I can just see it! Well, it's coming along, though not as fast as I want it!

This is the companion piece to the Plums one that hangs in our breakfast nook.  I wonder if I should have washed the Aida first so the fold lines would've disappeared.. I can still do it I suppose.. I forgot to ask!  I know that a lot of the 123 ladies like rolling their pieces to store and don't fold them!  Here I am unique once again..  lol

I have yet to cut the fabric for the Shepherd's Bush chart (chicken...!) and aside from this Peach-y chart my mom wants me to stitch the Quaker heart freebie from The Workbasket!  It would be a really quick stitch I think!  I also want to start the EMS 2012 Sampler - one step at a time, I guess!  Cut all fabric first!

I'll end with a photo of one of my nieces - a cousin's daughter - she's been a frequent visitor these days and is such a ham!  She even had me digging out my old needlepoint so I could teach her to "sew"!  It was a bit difficult as she couldn't get the hang of what she was supposed to do - stab the needle in, and from the same side, stab out.. she kept going straight to the other side, not sewing through the cloth! lol  She's all of 5 years old.. and makes me think of how much I miss my nephew and niece!

Well, that's all for the moment.. hope to post again in 2 days' time or less, and with a finish or two!  And then it's back to Whimsey and Wit Alphabet Advent!

Race before 2012!

Hello!  Here we are, with a little less than 6 hours left til the New Year 2012.  In Singapore, the day after Christmas (Boxing Day they call it, a remnant of their colonial British past), decorations for the Chinese New Year were being put up right alongside the Christmas decor which were most likely on the way down, I suppose.  They say that the next year 2012 is the Year of the Dragon (honestly would not have known that if I hadn't been there: the lead up to that will come in our local papers maybe a week or 2 weeks to Chinese New Year, which I reckon will be towards the end of January 2012.. no firm date overheard).   They say it will be a better year.  We can only hope!

See the Christmas decor on Orchard (poor shot taken from a taxi cab as we were crossing Orchard; my timing was off)

As of now I am rushing this Day 4 doll square, work on which you may recall came to a standstill after I lost the whole skein of green 501 floss.  Pretty lame, but there it is.  My friend Joysze has been yearning to see a finish (sorry Joysze! and I forgot to sign up for IHSW!)  For the past week I have been sporadically stitching on it; I've been unable to because I was spending time with the apples of my eyes (there are 2 apples, don't you know) my nephew and niece.  Christmas was a bit of an anticlimax, with family matters spoiling all things Christmas.  

Anyway, here is what is new over at Casa Whimsey and Wit (my WIP is now a "casa" where things happen.. or don't! lol):

I'm not being very ambitious, I just want the green dress and the red piping done and the word "dolly" in green sewn out before 2012 comes.  The red piping will be courtesy of DMC metallics 321 -- apparently there is no such thing as DMC 5270 anymore...  paid a quick visit to the local needlestore - such nice staff!  the store is smaller than it used to be but the two young ladies manning it said it was only temporary - let's hope so! I bought 4 DMC Amorsolo patterns (I have the Tinikling already, so that makes 5th) - there are 8, but I don't like the other three -- all yellows and browns, and the "Banga" one and the fishing one and the girl bathing which I really don't feel drawn to as subjects for stitching.  Are they for me?  No, they're for my dear cousin who's visiting - it's been 5 years since her last visit and she's here with her family to celebrate her mom's 80th.   I must say, though, that I'm inclined to buy the patterns for myself... but given my rate of finishing they might turn out UFOs or NFOs!  Still.. would be nice to have them in case I'm ever crazy  inspired enough to stitch them.  I like Tinikling, and the Girl with Mangoes.   My cousin, on the other hand, is someone who will likely stitch them, and finish!

These paintings portray early 20th century scenes from the countryside.  Sadly these scenes are very rare now as what used to be countryside and rice fields are now real estate developments!

On to more inspiring things... stash!  Magazines count as stash, don't they?

A lot of magazines my cousin sent to me.  These aren't half of it yet.  She even sent charts, and boy can she keep them neat and really new looking.  She made up a kit for me for one of them and that's going to be the second, no third item I'm stitching for 2012.  First will be a Happy New Year small for a card ( I already apologized for not being able to send it off before Christmas!), then the Flower scene "Flowery Meadow" from Burda, and then the kit.  Um, I should say I have not kitted up for the Flowery Meadow just yet.  Threads are in Anchor. I don't mind Anchor, but at the point where I started stitching there seemed to be more DMC, so I have more DMC than Anchor.  

I have a confession to make.  I visited Spotlight at Plaza Singapura, and they were having a huge sale til January 5th, and I didn't buy anything except a pack of Mill Hill beads that were on sale at SG$1.  There was also Kreinik at SG2, and 2 shades of green Marlitt at SG3.. and packs of Aida and evenweave with accompanying leaflets/charts by Semco at SG5.. even red Aida 16ct.. and I didn't buy!!  At that time I was congratulating myself on my restraint but now... it just seems abysmally dumb of me not to have bought!!!  :((

 And another thing... I FORGOT to bring my stitched ornaments to my nephew and niece!  So they're here, languishing in my box.  Well, I have decided to find a way to "finish" them into respectable ornaments and not just little bits of stitched stuff, so my mom or I can bring them next time.   Oh well.  

Okay.. I better get cracking if I'm to finish Day 4!

A brighter, happier, all around better New Year to all my stitchy friends!   A peaceful, prosperous New Year!

bell!

I've finished bell!  and I did some stitching on the angel, whose shade of blue I can't figure out. Comparing it with my DMC floss card, it looks like it could be 3752.. I don't know, cause the floss I picked didn't have its number! haha ha... I don't unpick my floss and wind them on those thingies, that's why.. and I guess that's not a good move.

Next to do, either the angel (1) or the musical note (12 - if I don't get frustrated with working with metallics.. the whole note is metallic!).  Why not 3?  It's the candy cane and it needs B5200 (or whatever white shade that is).  Why not 11?  It's the sheep, and ditto, it's mostly ecru! Not to mention I think I'll have to order Rainbow Gallery's Wisper 88 and 89 -  and good luck with that over here... I'm 99% sure, no make that 100% sure that no one sells that in this part of the world..  Wisper 88 for Santa's beard, and 89 for the sheep's wool.   I'm saving all the white stitching for last.

You never know, it could be the doll (4) or the Holy Family (13)!

ps. the little distortion is the fabric, there's a fold in that area!

good morning!

thanks, everyone, for sticking by me through this Advent Alphabet project.  i know it's looking a bit raggedy and honestly while it's fun sewing on the linen, it's taking a lot out of me -- the counting and the finding where to start a stitch on the linen!  i only  hope it will look a lot better when it's washed.. whenever that will be  lol

anyway Joysze has just gently reminded me that i haven't posted any pic yet.. so i'm here to tell you that i can't!  LOL  foiled by my camera, i took a shot of my WIP and the battery just died so i'll have to wait for it to charge up again.

on the bright side, i was so excited to finish the square that i started on another one immediately. HA!  how's that for progress?  3 3/4s squares down, 20 more to go! haha ha.. it's a Christmas countdown!  anyway, just to keep me going i am posting a pic of what it's supposed to end up looking like..

and another, closer up (i finished Day 2, the little bell, first row, second column)

the other half:

you can just see the faint pencil marks on the side where my nephew (or niece) decided it was a nice sheet of paper for drawing on..  :)

and in other news, yippee! i found a working copy of the chart i lost (actually it was a magazine and i lost ALL the charts, i mean of all things, the magazine had all the pics and in the middle was stapled the charts, just ONE huge page all folded up!)  i'm lucky i decided to make a working copy - although that's probably how i lost the whole charts page anyway.. from detaching it from the magazine!!  Burda International for those interested.. let me show you the pic of the piece:

okay, with these flowery goodies i must go...  it's my brother's 33rd anniversary of his Day of Re-birth and i have to go to work early so i can leave early for mass!

Missing! and some NEW stuff (etc) - edited

Missing my stitching mojo - despite the best of intentions I seem to have lost it these past 2 weeks!  Where's it gone?  Despite the best of intentions, I seem to be stuck on the angel - yes, the angel with the DMC metallic thread!  There's a nice, silvery effect to it - a bit icy looking!  My thread lengths are little more than 6 inches and yet I can't seem to sew more than a few stitches before the DMC metallic slips off.. Why?

Should I be using a needle with a bigger hole?  I think I have either a 24 or 26 DMC embroidery needle.    Anyway I have promised my Mom I will persevere.  So after this, I am off to read (yet again) some tips on sewing on linen and using metallic thread. Some stitching MUST be done tonight!

And here's the Cosmic Handmade Angel freebie pattern that got done (or semi-done, anyway)  In case you didn't notice, lately the stitching's "all about smalls":

This little baby is heading to my dear SIL - once it's all done, that is.  No wings, and no blonde streaks yet in her hair!  I found a cute little angel in the JCS magazine and I'm making that too - the Prairie Schooler angel!

And of course, that brings me to my latest dearest possession, the 2011 JCS Christmas Ornament magazine - yippee!  My dearest cousin sent it to me! (Note:  I should add that I'm in Asia, so it's not the easiest thing to find.. there's less and less cross stitching magazines available!)   She also sent me a little cookbook "Recipes for a Cure", a special cookbook with some cross stitch patterns, compiled by Attic Needlework (oh, it's a LNS in Arizona!) and proceeds go to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation.  Because I'm a survivor too!  Not the same type of c, but c nonetheless.  Why is it when you've had it, they never say "c-free", just "in remission"?  I hope it never comes back!

Anyway, posting some pictures of the goodies:

sorry about the light, I lost no time in covering it with plastic to protect it, so that's the reflection shining off it!  In the cookbook, I especially liked Blue Ribbon Design's "Hope" ornament, so that's on the To-do list too.  There's a lot more I'd like to sew, but those 2 will be first!

The recipes are very do-able and sound really delicious - as in "on your hips" delicious.. however they do use a lot of canned soup,  canned vegetables, etc.. so in making them it would be a good idea to watch the fat and the sodium and get low-fat and low-salt stuff!

Just got off the phone with my dearest nephew - he was excitedly telling me about his graduation party - his first real 'dance' with kids his age... too cute!  I am so happy that he's excited about it and that he had fun!  Next year he goes to high school! Where did the time go? His dad would be so proud.

If you saw the back of the Whimsey and Whit advent alphabet pattern, you would see some crayon drawings - mementos of my dearest nephew!  I can hear awwww in the background!

Anyway, that's it for now..  I hope to post again by Sunday and show some progress on that angel, and some new starts!  Til then, God bless everyone!

Oh, and here's another photo.. hoping it inspires me:

At last! a few pics

Good morning!  Long weekend mode here..read a bit (Caleb Carr's "The Italian Secretary" - should have paid attention to the reviews!  His previous books were way better), cooked a bit (a seafood tomato cream sauce), went to mass,  prayed very hard last night and somehow got heard, so now I can post a few overdue pics!

Here is the original Whimsey and Wit chart, complete with my nephew's drawings on the sides.. it was No. 207 of the print run, I guess (see lower left).  I think at some point it got wet, so Baby Jesus (Day 9) has a little splotch on him... the chart has a cute stamped mark that says "Sisters in Stitching" at the bottom.  I wonder what happened to Lori? I picked her name up from page 2 where it says you can email if you have any questions about the finishing..  I have a little problem with my fabric because of the grids.. I don't have enough fabric left to fold over for a dowel on top!

And here's the other chart I was looking for.. found!

And that's all folks!  I took a picture of my little ornament and of my recent sewing but the USB connection's acting up again.. it doesn't recognize my camera!

Ah well, will try again later. I'm planning to bake Cinnamon Rolls and Double Chocolate Chip cookies.   Happy stitching, all!

Three Day Weekend !!!

Happy happy day - Saturday work but Sunday-Monday and Tuesday off. Yippee!  This is a tradition inherited from the Mexicans I think - celebration of All Saints and All Souls' Day.  Officially it's All-Souls' we're supposed to be celebrating and I don't know when we started with All Saints.  Maybe because the thinking is, the beloved dead are in the company of the Saints (or are saints themselves).  Whichever it is it's a day of remembrance for our beloved departed. Remembrance of them always makes me teary eyed - two brothers, my dad - all so young when they passed! Cousins and aunts and uncles, and of course grandparents (unfortunately gone on both sides though they lived to good ages, to their 80s).

Today was just lazing around and channel surfing and got caught up on 3 episodes of Modern Family - always good for a laugh/some light relief however previous season seems funnier somehow.  Could not quite decide whether to watch something scary like Sleepy Hollow (by the reviews not as scary as the other offerings like Ring and Ring 2, maybe on the level of 'the Walking Dead' which looked like an 80s movie to me).   Decided that what I really want to watch is the Looney Tunes Halloween Specials with Daffy Duck and Sylvester and Porky Pig - no I'm sure it's NOT Porky Pig -  and Tweety.. loved the one where they ended up in Duckula's Castle... not sure if it's actually the episode , will look it up in Amazon in a bit!

Finally got started on the angel - stitching with DMC (a pale blue) and DMC Special Effects silver metallic thread.  It looks pretty; the threads together give off an "icy" effect  but man is it hard to stitch with!  Same problem as the Kreinik gold, the metallic ribbon and the nylon thread separate at some point!  Thought my floss length was reasonably short but I've gone to 8" and still having problems.  Ho hum.  But the nice thing is, got started again on the Whimsey and Wit so that's a good thing!

Will give my camera one last try tomorrow with it USB cord and if that doesn't work, will use another one.. but by hook or by crook am posting pics tomorrow!

a little finish

Celebrate!  Dance of Joy!  I finished a little freebie from Prairie Schooler "Deck the Halls", another Christmas tree!  This is another one for my niece, so she has a choice of Christmas trees.  The little girl always surprises me.  I thought she'd want an angel ornament, but no, she wants a Christmas tree! I'm a little freaked out that Christmas is less than two months away... Anyway I stitched the July freebie from PS, and here's how it's supposed to look (from the site): 

 

Now, if my USB connection was working I could show you my take on it! A little "original and my version" comparison as it were..  I used a lighter colored floss for the candle "flame" and the color  practically blended in with my fabric, an Aida 16ct.  DMC 676 instead of 677.. I should look at what I pick up more carefully!  I've done that with other things, too, not just floss!  Even a tin of ice cream!  You can imagine how dismayed I was when I got home lol..  Cookies n Cream instead of Coffee Crumble!

I'm now doing the Guardian Angel, another freebie, from Cosmic Handmade, and it's a cute 'contemporary' angel.  This one's for my sister-in-law.  I also saw other cute angels (in a more traditional design) from Told in a Garden.  As you can guess, my own projects are not getting much love right now, because I'm so fascinated with all the freebies!  But as soon as I'm done with the Guardian Angel, I'm doing the Angel from Day 1 of my Whimsey and Wit Advent Alphabet!  That's 'cause I finally have some silver thread for the angel - DMC, not Kreinik.  My gold thread, ah blending filament, is Kreinik, from many years ago.  I bought a whole bunch of different colored ones from that little (and little-known, alas) store in Mile Long because I really wanted to do a set of Russian angels that were in an issue of Cross Stitch and Country Crafts.  Some things never change, lol.  I will be looking through my magazines for that issue - I think that was in the early 90s, before 1993.  I'll post a pic soon, maybe use another camera..