Country Garden Stitchery

This Christmas we received some handmade pillows with our last name initial on them done in a neat chenille technique. I'd never seen this done before and think it looks great. I love to get handmade things for Christmas. I gave several handmade things for gifts this Christmas. Baskets from Etsy, pens and pottery from our local artists. My husband and kids gave me a lap table for Christmas so I can work while watching TV (lately I've been watching retro TV and love the show Kojak :) I can draw using this and do my needlework. It has a nice cushion underneath it too. This is a project I've been working on using one of the linen towels I bought on Etsy. I will use it as a basket liner probably. I will ink some of these and have them available in my Etsy store soon after the new year holiday. I've been setting up my Zazzle store for the last few weeks and decided to order some products to see the quality and printing clarity on some of my designs. My order arrived yeste...

I found these lovely linen napkins on Etsy a couple weeks ago while on a shopping spree. I wanted to buy lots of handmade gifts this year and found some nice things on Etsy and at our local craft fair. I plan on embroidering some type of spring design on these. They have a lovely lacy appearing edge on them too. I may decide to put some in my shop with the design inked on them ready to embroider. I went to the fabric store on Saturday because I was inspired to do some French themed patterns for 2011 using some grey fabrics. I found a bunch of French General fabrics and they are one of my favorite designers of fabric. I had a great time and came home with a stack of fat quarters to work with. This is my color scheme for my next dress form embroidery pattern. Completely different color scheme than I usually work with so I'm excited about it. Stepping out of my comfort zone for 2011... well a little, I still like my flowers.

I decided to do a free pattern for Wichelt for 2011 and my month is January so this is what I designed. A New Year wreath. I wanted wintery peaceful colors to reign in the new year. Visit the Wichelt Imports site and you can get it in January, www.wichelt.com Christmas shopping last weekend I found these two little journals. Since I have a blue theme in this post I wanted to post them. The owls are so cute. I haven't decided which one to give to my daughter and I just had to have both of them. On the inside is paper decorated with patterns and dots and flowers and such. Fun. Last weekend we had our annual Fine Art and Fine Craft show here in Fallon. It is held every year at the old post office that the city has fixed up and rents out. It has great windows, heavy ornamental wood features, and other neat things old buildings have. It was a great show and I found this stocking one of the crafters upcycled from a quilt. Small pentagon shaped pieces put together s...

I've been putting some little Christmas designs on towels. I bought these organic towels off Etsy and they are lovely, but difficult to see through, so I just have to draw my design on it without a pattern. I've been using DMC flosses since they are colorfast and the colors won't run. I'm really enjoying this little project. The towels will also work well for basket liners so I am going to make a few with spring designs. I got a set of ten towels so will sell some and keep some. I have another style of towel I will be working on next. Those are lovely linen with a lacy edge. They are more of a table napkin size but would also work well for a basket liner or display on the hutch.

Since there is snow on the ground now and it will be near zero this week I found myself thinking of spring and decided to paint some apple blossoms and a clear robin's egg blue sky. It was fun for a bit as I imagined myself among the sweet fragrance in the warm weather; but I'm not ready for it yet. I am looking forward to the holidays and maybe some snow shoeing... This is my priscilla gown embroidery pattern. Lots of French knots - or you could use beads - and red roses. All stitched in hand dyed silk. I love silk floss. I bought some crisp white linen towels off ebay a few months ago to embroider. This was a fun project so I decided to hunt down some other towels to try and hand embroider. I found some on Etsy the other day and ordered two different kinds. They are from eco-friendly sellers so they are made of all natural fibers (very important :) and I am really looking forward to getting them. I'll show you soon.

This little pumpkin square pattern was in the October 2010 Create and Decorate issue and I stitched mine with Gentle Art Sampler Wool flosses. It was the first time I used the wool flosses and they were really fun to work with. Gail Mumford stitched the design her own way on a dish cloth using varigated wool and a half cross stitch. I thought it was really neat and wanted to post it. Our local art group, Sagebrush Sisters, is getting ready for our annual Christmas Fair in December. We decided to make grapevine wreaths to sell. I decided to do a natural wreath - I did add a few little golden colored bells and raffia- but otherwise it's all natural. It was a really fun project. I'll display it for a while in my house before the fair.

Another sewing day. Woke up before the sun this morning inspired and this is what I worked on today. I like to be able to create versaile patterns to make many different things. Ornaments, bookmarks and such. I like little things. I traced just portions of the patterns to make ornaments and dressed them up with lace and ribbon. These work up really fast. I like that too. And a little row of gifts. This picture shows the great red shade of the "Cherry Wine" hand dyed floss from The Gentle Art. Their floss is great. And this is my son Aaron (on the left) after he won 4th place in the state cross country race in Las Vegas on Saturday. Very proud and happy for him and I had to share it with you. :)

I really like French needlework and that inspired this trio of Christmas Box cross stitch ornaments. Lots of swirls and curls and all in one color. That can be relaxing in itself, stitching with one color. I added a little gold filament and a few gold beads for accent and sparkle. After finishing the blue Christmas tree I realized the backing was in the shape of a Christmas tree light bulb. Did you notice that? For the other ornament I used a floss called "Dickens Christmas" so I gave it the title, "An Ornament for Charles".

I really like the green and purple theme. I've been making these runners made with wide pieces that sew up in no time and have quite a collection now. I like to display them on my hutch and change them with the seasons; this one looks like it would be good for January to me. Hope the picture doesn't affect your equilibrium :) I tried to capture the whole runner to show you. I finished my lavender houses cross stitch last night. It is the first design where I've used lazy daisy stitches. I love to do lazy daisies and French knots. I think they add a lot to a design. This design uses some of The Gentle Art's new colors - well fairly new to me - Moonlit Path, Victorian Lace and Crystal Lake. I love their names too. Really inspiring. and my newest adventure is an embroidered gown using hand dyed silks. Lots of billowing roses and other fairy dust or baby's breath type flowers sprinkled here and there. I think I may frame this one. I'll show you in a bit...

Really been in the mood to sew lately. That is a good thing - I went for quite a while without the inspiration and I was beginning to wonder. A different combination of red fabrics and an oriental botanical with red and pink blossoms in it for a change in the mix. The pink in the blossoms picks up the pink in the cross stitch design nicely. I initially had this design in a frame and decided it would look good as a big fluffy pillow. Some designs are only suited for frames, others are more versatile. Same with this little design called "Blue Daisies". I initially had it in a frame and pictured it in a tote. I like how it turned out. I like all the blue with a little lavender and green.

This is one of my favorite fabrics I've come across in a long time. Reminds me of the Adam's family. The black cats are so cute and the different characters. I tried to place the characters so it seemed they were looking at you from different places, peeking eyes everywhere. I put a little embroidered black pumpkin at the top too, on pink. I really liked the small bits of pink in the fabric too. I decided to finish my Christmas embroidery patterns I stitched last year. I had some bright colors of fabric that matched the colors in the hand dyed floss. Not the usual Christmas colors, but I thought it worked just fine. A little different. The batik fabric really picked up the orange, pink, red and gold in the floss. It is starting to cool down a lot outside and it makes me want to surround myself in colorful fabrics and make things.

The weather is a lot cooler, we've had some rain and I feel like sitting on the couch with my cross stitch project and a good podcast or movie, maybe both. I am almost finished with my letter C from Mirabilia. I am happy with how it is turning out since I decided to use Weeks Dye Works flosses rather than the Crescent Colors show in the pattern. I thought the colors matched pretty well. This is my first fairy project and I am excited to put her in my bedroom. I have a few other Mirabilia patterns to choose from, but I think I'd like to begin the Ashley's Roses. I love this one. I think it is because she has a "country girl" feel about her and I've always lived in the country. I also really like pink. I was browsing on Amazon the other day for a couple books and happened upon Gail Levine and David Christiana's new fairy book. I love the illustrations and the stories are very cute. I have all three now and am anxious to read this one. Ho...

I'm getting closer to being ready to release my Christmas design for this year. It is called "Snowgirls" and I sewed the design into a runner today. I used French General fabrics, they have beautiful fabrics and I love the feel, drape and color combinations. I used 3" wide strips in four different coordinating fabrics. I am looking forward to using it this Christmas. "Snowgirls" uses Weeks Dye Works flosses and a little Kreinik blending filament for Christmas sparkle, some soft white beads from Wichelt and a few French knots that compliment the cross stitches. This will be released to Norden Crafts in October and you will be able to get it from your local needlework shop! This is a little ornament I made from my new design called "White Flower Bouquet". It is stitched with the lovely soft colors from The Gentle Art. These are fun and quick designs and look nice displayed as an ornament all the time. This design is available as a PDF file in my Et...

My new little design has a bouquet of white flowers with porcelain pink french knot flower sprays. I like adding different stitches with the cross stitch design. It adds interest and texture. It is called, "White Flower Bouquet" and will be in my Etsy store soon. I bought an Autumn bouquet that has all the lovely colors of the changing season. My garden is tired and the asters haven't bloomed yet so in the interim I will have these. Our local art group got together and made grapevine wreaths to decorate for the Christmas season. I think I will decorate mine with all natural things. I will use some dried roses, add a few pinecones, some empty milkweed pods and any other interesting things I find in my travels.

I think this little lady likes her job as a scarecrow in the pumpkin patch. She's got a nice dress on and a flowery hat. Colorful pumpkins surround her and she likes to watch the leaves twirl and flutter around her. She probably even smiles at the crows when the land. My zinnias are really blooming now that the heat has calmed down about ten degrees. New blooms every day, big clusters of flowers in my planters on the front porch near our bistro table and chairs. That has been my favorite place to sit lately in the evenings. I haven't read this book but was inspired to go see the movie yesterday; thought it was a great way to travel while sitting in a chair. I really liked the movie and learned a lot from it (especially that I'd love to visit Italy). I really learned that the struggles people face from time to time can be helped with calm instrospection and meditation; even in your own home in a special place, it just takes some inner work and time. I think...

Yesterday I noticed my neighbor had two bright orange pumpkins displayed on her porch and I was inspired and really wanted some myself! Instead I decided to stitch one and make a little pincushion ornament. It really isn't a pincushion, but acts like one. It is more of a needlekeeper I guess. I also wanted to use it as an ornament for autumn to be able to hang it on a cabinet knob somewhere. I like to be able to move it around and display it in different places. I put gold colored wool on the back to put the pins and needles into. I used a scallop edge rotary cutter for the edges of the wool and sewed it on using a coordinating variegated sewing thread. I am glad autumn is almost here.