Wednesday, December 23, 2020

Plum Pudding

 Hello Friends!

Today I'm sharing my "Plum Pudding" finish by Brenda Gervais of With Thy Needle and Thread. 

This piece reeeeeeally gave me fits while finishing (I may or may not have thrown thrown the mini rolling pin) and even though I'm "okay" with the finished result, it really wasn't what I had planned.

The chart was stitched on 32 ct Vintage Country Mocha lugana using the following colors:

Classic Coloworks: Cherry Cobbler, Chopped Chives, Black Coffee, Eggshell, Antique Lace, Muddy Puddle

WDW: Lily Pad, Cocoa

Colour & Cotton: Spicy Mustard"

Once stitched, I matted it with red and white gingham and mounted it to the front of this galvanized easel. Originally, I wanted the piece to sit within the slit that's on top of the rolling pin, but the piece was too top-heavy and no matter how hard I tried, it wouldn't stay. So... I glued the flat end of the rolling pin directly to the easel and then added some bows to cover the slit. Like I said, not what I originally planned, but I'm glad its done and up in my baking-themed hutch.

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Monday, December 21, 2020

Cookies for Santa

Hello friends!

In honor of Christmas Cookie baking day that will be happening in my kitchen, I'm featuring another finish from my baking-themed hutch. This time, "Cookies for Santa" by Country Cottage Needleworks.

This piece was a relatively quick stitch because its mostly words, but I did change most, if not all of the colors. It's stitched on 32 ct Vintage Country Mocha lugana using the following colors:

Classic Colorworks: Brandied Pears, Cherry Cobbler, Caterpillar, Black Coffee

GAST: Chives, Wood Trail

DMC:  White


I matted the stitched piece with red and white gingham fabric, but before I glued it down, I ran a strip of green ribbon across the bottom to pick up some color. Then I added white cording around the edge of the stitching and made a bow with more of that same green ribbon before gluing that in the center of some flocked greenery and berry picks. The mini rolling pin is an ornament from Hobby Lobby that I removed the ribbon from, and then I just glued that directly to this galvanized tray I had bought at Hobby Lobby in their spring shop earlier this year.

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Wednesday, December 16, 2020

Christmas Rules

 Hello friends!

One of my favorite pieces I finished and put out this year HAS to be "Christmas Rules" by Lizzie Kate. 


I had stitched this piece last year but didn't have time to get it finished and displayed, so this is the first year I get to actually enjoy the Rules. 

The piece is matted on some black and red gingham fabric and edged with white cording. I knew I wanted to mount it to a fence of some kind, so my mom being the trooper she is, went flea market shopping with me all across the Phoenix area until we came home with this perfect white-washed one. 

I plan to use the fence for other pieces, so I didn't want to glue Christmas Rules directly to it, so instead I just added a loop of twine to the back of the piece that I have hung over one of the posts. I added a large buffalo check bow, a rusty jingle bell and some greenery with berries, but it seemed too plain so I threw some Christmas garland across the top and sides for some color.

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Wednesday, December 9, 2020

Farmhouse Christmas

 Hello friends!

I am absolutely thrilled to have finished the "Farmhouse Christmas" series by Little House Needleworks and have it up in one of my displays this year!


At times it felt like I would never get this all stitched and finished in time -- that border is a sneaky time sucker -- but once I saw the finish line I just couldn't seem to put it down.

The chart was stitched on 32 ct Taupe lugana using all of the called-for threads. Stitched, it measures about 13 x 13 inches. The frame is actually a picture (Let Heaven and Nature Sing) I found at Michaels in their Farmhouse section that I have in another one of my displays. 


When I realized it was the perfect fit, I ran back to Michaels to grab a second one. The color and size were too perfect to pass on!

I matted the piece with some green fabric and then edged the stitching with white cording before gluing it directly to the barnwood frame. I added some flocked greenery to the top and made a large bow from burlap ribbon for the center. Then for the middle of the bow, I added a wooden farmhouse tag I found at Walmart (I added the small gingham bow to the top, it doesn't come that way), and then a rusty jingle bell on top of that.

And since I needed a little "something" on the bottom shelf, I quickly stitched and finished "Cut and Carry" by Hands on Design as a complimentary piece. 


It's no secret I'm a huge fan of Cathy's designs at Hands on Design, so this little chart was the perfect one to add to Farmhouse Christmas. I stitched it on the same fabric with the same threads, and even matted it with the same green fabric (I was lucky to have a scrap JUST big enough for this piece). Like Farmhouse Christmas, I added flocked greenery, a burlap bow, but this time I added a red button for the center. And then because I felt like it needed "something" more, I added another one of those mini tag ornaments to the bottom right, another tiny gingham bow, and an even tinier jingle bell.

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Tuesday, December 8, 2020

Baked Goods

Hello friends!

After two insanely crazy weeks of finishing for clients, I'm trying to take some time to finish some of my own stitches for the kitchen's Gingerbread and baking theme.

I started with "Baked Goods" by Little House Needleworks. 

I have been dying to finish a Priscilla-inspired (https://priscillas2000.blogspot.com/) vintage muffin tin for the hutch for the last two years and FINALLY got around to it!

I stitched Baked Goods on 32 ct Vintage Country Mocha in the following colors: 

Classic Colorworks: Brandied Pears, Cherry Cobbler, Caterpillar

GAST: Chives, Wood Trail

WDW: Light Khaki

DMC: White

The stitched piece is matted with red and white gingham fabric and edged in white cording to match Gingerbread Street in the shelf below it.

I bought the muffin tin at a flea market, and being that it's galvanized, all I needed was some magnets to stick it to the top. I used some pine greenery, and then made a bow for the corner, and then cut a styrofoam cherry in half for the center of it. The small spoon was an ornament from Hobby Lobby that I also magnetized to the side of the pan. SO CUTE!

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Wednesday, December 2, 2020

Here Come the Gingerbread

 Hello Friends!

I've been working on my baking/gingerbread vignettes downstairs, and was finally able to fully finish "Gingerbread Street" by Little House Needleworks on one of the shelves in the hutch.

I stitched the piece on 32 ct Vintage Country Lugana using the following threads:

Classic Colorworks: Brandied Pears, Cherry Cobbler, Hickory Sticks

GAST: Chives

DMC: White

I matted the stitched piece on red and white gingham fabric and edged the piece with white handmade cording before adding some flocked greenery, a bow and gingerbread button center. I have two small plush gingerbread ornaments leaning up against the piece. Those ornaments came from Michaels.

Gingerbread Street is displayed next to my vintage flour sifter I found at a flea market this year. I love how "grungy" it is. I added some greenery and picks, and this faux gingerbread cookie I found at Michaels this year. Super cute, easy decor item for a hutch fill-in.

My other finish was this adorable gingerbread in a Rae Dunn-inspired mug from Priscilla and Chelsea of Stitching with the Housewives. This pattern came as a freebie with their Mrs. Claus' Cookies pattern found in their Etsy shop.

The stitched piece is matted with more of that red and white gingham and mounted to a cutting board found at Hobby Lobby that I chalk-painted green. I added two bows and another gingerbread button and placed her in my tiered tray. 

I just love her!

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Monday, November 23, 2020

Goodbye Pumpkin Spice, Hello Snow!

 Hello Friends!

This weekend I worked on transitioning all of my fall decor upstairs to more winter/holiday. I started with my living room shelves which took on a woodland snowy forest theme this year which means I had to say goodbye to Pumpkin Spice....

...and hello to Snow Days! 

This pattern is by Country Cottage Needleworks. It's a popular one, so I'm sure you've all seen it. Besides color substitutions, the only changes I made were not stitching the bottom red and white gingham blocks, and I changed the "O" to red and green instead of the charted red and white. 

I use the same frame for all of my cross stitch pieces in this display, so I finished this piece as a mounted flat and used washers and magnets. The stitching is matted with this really pretty green fabric I found as a remnant in Joann's and edged with some red cording I made. I sprayed some greenery with snow spray, and then put a buffalo check in the center. I love this piece so much!

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Thursday, November 19, 2020

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas

Hello Friends!

As I continue the transition from fall to Christmas decor, I finished up these three holiday stitches this week.

I stitched up Hometown Holidays - Tree Lot by Little House Needleworks and finished it as this mounted frame piece. The frame had an old, weathered look and feel to it which was perfect! 

I stitched the chart on 32 ct Vintage Country Mocha Lugana using the following colors: 

Classic Colorworks: Brandied Pears, Cherry Cobbler, Steamed Brocolli, Black Coffee

DMC: 3371, White

The piece is matted with some red and black buffalo check fabric I found at Hobby Lobby, edged with some green handmade cording, and jazzed up with some flocked greenery and a green bow.

The next piece was the December monthly cottage by Classic Colorworks which I finished as a wall hanging on this gray-washed board I found at Michaels. It's matted with coordinginating fabric, edged in handmade cording, and has a bow with a wreath center.

The last piece I finished was Silent Night. This pattern can be found in Chalkboard Ornaments, Christmas Collection Part 3 by Hands on Design. The pattern is charted for black fabric, but I decided to stitch it on a remnant 32 ct Vintage Country Mocha Lugana I had left over from Tree Lot. The colors I used were DMC 3051, 816, 3781 and white. 

The stitched piece was finished as a mounted ornament on black and white check fabric, edged with trim and completed with a bow.

A few of my favorite client finishes from the week:

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Monday, November 9, 2020

Well-Rounded Winter

 

Hello Friends!

This morning I fully finished one of the Perennial Pinwheels from Hands on Design's "Well-Rounded" winter charts. I had originally planned to stitch and finish this particular pattern in a tart, but when I found this box at Hobby Lobby, I changed up my plan and finished it as a Christmas tree planter.

The box was found in the wedding section and it came already whitewashed. All I had to do was mat the stitched piece with some wintery homespun fabric and mount it to the front. I used some flocked greenery to jazz up the top, and then made a bow out of some jute ribbon. Then I just added the holly button for some color.

This set of charts by Hands on Designs offers you three different patterns for each season and gives you so many options! Definitely a great pattern to have in your stash!

I also knocked out these really cute wood tag ornaments featuring charts from Madame Chantilly's "Christmas Stamps". These quick stitches were just small fancy flats using red and white gingham fabric, mounted to the front of whitewashed wood tag ornaments. 


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Saturday, October 24, 2020

Snowman Joy

Hello Friends!

The Christmas stitching has officially begun and I've already managed to fully finish some pieces.

My two "larger" pieces for this week were both charts from Cherry Hill Stitchery. The first was "Merry Christmas" that I finished in a frame with some red and black buffalo plaid fabric. I added some handmade cording to the sides and then attached some flocked greenery and a bow I made with matching buffalo plaid ribbon from Hobby Lobby. 

The second piece, also by Cherry Hill Stitchery, is "Joy." The model was stitched on white fabric, but I switched it to black for the chalkboard look.

I bought the chalkboard frame at Michaels and sanded all the edges to rough it up a bit. The stitched piece is matted with black and white buffalo check fabric and edged with some red handmade cording. I glued both pieces to the front of the frame and then just made a small bow with a snowflake center to compliment the piece. It's a really cute, quick stitch!

I finished up some cute ornaments this week, too!

"Barnyard Christmas"complimentary piece by Prairie Schooler that came in one of their mini card sets. 

"Ding Ding" is another complimentary piece by Prairie Schooler that came in one of their mini card sets.

"Merry Little Stitches" by Pineberry Lane


....and some client finishes....








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