The cats the cold the colors

What's happening?  Looks like another polar blast in the east and we're freezing again, but not much snow here.  I'm about halfway with my painting and wanted to show you a few things.  But before I forget, I mentioned about using jute knots for cat toys - found something better. 

 

 They shredded the jute so I used leather laces and knotted them.  The hockey rink is singing!  Even old man Bud who never played before is wearing himself out.  Because of the cold, I made a makeshift litter box for them because Mark wanted to keep them in, and they used it!  Progress!!  Bud will NOT allow me near him for fear of being put outside so he is camping out in the corner under the chair. 

 Here's the Studio Taupe color that I had Home Depot mix for me in an eggshell enamel.  The close up door on the right is the old color. I don't like a lot of sheen and this has just enough, plus being enamel, it's a very hard finish making for easy cleaning.  It's a taupe that's not pinkish, slightly on the green side, not real light, and not dark.  Just love it.  I'm thinking of stenciling in this foyer.  Now for the big question - am I going to use this over the other darker custom color in the new room?  That decision needs to be made today since it's the next to be painted and that will start late today.

 After my whining about whether or not to dye the Amsterdam Blue a little darker, I did. My home made black walnut stain is kept in the fridge and while sneaking some Genoa salami, I spotted the container.  I'm good.  Take a look at how close this is to the original.  The Amsterdam was just fine the way it was and I took a chance staining it, but it was an impulse and thank goodness it worked out.  This was after three 30 second dips.  I pulled the colors and will be changing one group.  See that long middle leaf starting at the fold?  It's the same as the background colors so I will change the greens to bluish teal.  Still no word from the owner and she may have sold this piece since she is an antique dealer.  After seeing wallets stitched by a reader (whose work I will show in a future post), I realized that the background teal is not linen, it's stitches.  I'll use the linen!  Of course it would be stunning entirely in thread, but I also like to see linen with the texture of the raised areas created by the floss.  That's my story and I'm sticking to it. I started a few stitches and I think this should be done on 40 count, but I'll continue and see if detail is possible on 32 while attempting to keep it small.

See the streak on the printed copy?  Remember my new HP printer and how disappointed I was?  This happens for no reason and at any time and wastes a lot of my ink and paper when making labels.  I need to contact tech service again and demand a replacement.  Enough is enough.

A note to Marie-France.  I'm sorry!  I can't enter you as a follower because you are no-reply.  I do not have your email or Google account and need it to do so.  Please email me by clicking on the link at the top right column.

 

Back to painting!

Enjoy the day and stay safe - thanks for visiting.

  

 

If you like the box.....

you can win the box.  Period. 

You can trust me. 

 

Since this was such an easy fit for a label, and I think most of you liked this design, I decided this would be the offer for reaching 800 followers.  Although it looks like linen, it's not.  This is a paper stock label - a print of the piece I just completed - not the actual stitched piece.  The little box on top is mine, not part of the offer.  The box is 6" high and 6" round paper mache.  If you prefer the smaller 4" oval - it's your choice.

 Leave your name on this post only and Random.org will draw a winner on Thursday 1/23 at 8 pm EST or later if I forget.  I'm not putting it on a separate page because I won't be posting again until then.  The paint cans are calling my name.

 

Thanks for visiting!!

 

 

Finish

Good day.  Hope all is well.  Ed was here this morning and now I have 10 doors to paint, nail holes to patch, and the final coat on all the trim, baseboard, and crown.  I chose Sherwin Williams Studio Taupe for the foyer. Love it.  I'll be busy!  But I wanted to show you Two Horses finished.  I changed the top of the design and used DMC 221, 355, and GAST Mulberry for the flowers.  DMC 469 was changed to 3363 and 936 changed to 3362.  Horses were done in 3031.  No matter how I snap this, the linen weave is distorted in the photo.

 Frame?  No.  Possibly an envelope that is laced in the back with a flap.  Until then, it is the perfect size on 35 count for the standard 6" round paper mache box.  I will probably do the design on the teal linen when my arthritic hand is no longer stiff from painting.  I haven't decided if I will chart it first or just wing it.  I contacted the owner of the original and never received a reply of any kind.

Enjoy the weekend and stay safe.
I'll leave you with a snapshot of the brats looking like little angels.


Thanks for visiting!

 

 

 

Stitching update

Hello people!  Two Horses is now two horses.

I mentioned that I was not pleased with the coverage using one thread on this 35 count, but something else wasn't right.  The other areas were covered just fine which didn't make sense.  It seemed inconsistent.  I now know why.

Take a look at the upper leg area.  This leg was done with one strand.  The same strand.  And look at the color!  Some areas of the first horse look reddish and others really dark yet I was using the same skein.  Well here's where the reddish came from. Can you believe this?  I have two skeins of 3031, each different, and two of 3799, each different.  They aren't from my old stash either.  I'm really getting tired of having to keep only one skein of each color in my floss bags because of their inconsistency and now I can't count on a single strand being the same throughout.  I like variegated floss but not when I expect a solid color or when it's hit and miss.  I understand that dye lots are hard to be exact, but it's getting to the point where I'm losing faith in DMC.  Also notice that there are some stitches in the horse's rear that have a thicker strand.  So I guess it wasn't my imagination.  And it wasn't my fault which is the good news.  It's not going to matter since this is a really primitive looking piece, but someone doing a fine sampler would be upset.  When working two strands as I've always done, these discrepancies wouldn't be seen so I have to wonder if this is isolated or just not noticed before.  Could also be because I used the sewing method on the leg instead of completing the full stitch, which is why it caught my eye.

That's my bitch for today.

Here's my husband's bitch - remember all the trim board painting and waiting for Ed to install?  He called.  He can be here tomorrow.  Unfortunately, I'm already tired of the color.  My husband claims I've been looking at these boards for two months - why change them now!  Because I've been looking at these boards for two months, that's why. So another trip to the paint department and I need to repaint all the crown moulding when I get back.  I certainly don't want to paint it after it's nailed especially since the drywall is freshly painted.  Touching up the nail patches is all I'll have to do.  And of course, the baseboard, and doorway trim.  And the doors.  Two windows.  Question is, how long will I be happy with the new color?   And I thought I was doing really good with decisions in 2014.  Technically, this IS a decision.  I decided I don't like the color.  So there.

 

Thanks for visiting!

 

 

 

 

 

Petite I am not

Greetings!  Did you have a nice weekend?  Weather wise we are fine here.  Weight wise, not so good.  I've been watching and doing my 1 mile DVD program, sometimes twice a day, and obviously my miles per pound need to be stepped up quite a bit.  I know it's one of the best things you can do for yourself, but I hate it.  Watching a skinny instructor go faster and faster while talking without taking a breath is not fun either.  I don't expect to get to that point but joining more than two words without that gasping sound would be nice.

I purchased two packs of John James petite needles when I visited the shop and find that my fat fingers and deformed joints have a hard time stitching with them.  I purchased the 24s because they looked so fine and I thought they would be comparable to my 26s.  Nope.  Maybe the shorter length made them look thinner.  I threw out my 28s because I stitch mostly on 30 and 32 with two threads and they seem to stick and shred in that smaller eye.  She told me that my new 40 count would be better with 28 so I have them once again, and she recommended Bohin for working with silks because the eye is very smooth.  I'm using a 26 now and I like it.  The needle's eye seems to be different and I know I brought this up before in a post.  A longer narrower eye makes me think it's a thinner needle and I need to look at the shaft instead of the eye.  Here's my old DMC and Loving Touch (my favorite with the fatter eye - no longer made), Bohin, John James, and Lance. 

 

The Lance needle was included with my Wyndham Needleworks order and you can see it is slightly shorter than the others.  As you know, Wyndham is now PAWS, a non-profit cat/kitten rescue shelter.  Here's what their website says about Lance (12 pack for $4)...

 Lance Needles  -
This size 26 needle is more like a 27 - it's shorter than a regular tapestry needle but has a longer, slightly wider eye, making it easy to thread. The blunt point tapers to a finer end right at the tip -- not quite sharp, but with a bit of a point which makes their needles especially good for stitching on finer counts of linen and for stitching "over one". The ladies at R&R Reproductions recommend it as their favorite!

 

So maybe if you'd like to try these and you can't reach PAWS, you can check with Dyeing to Stitch.  I Googled Lance needles and got zip.

As for 40 count - I did it!  Never imagined I could.  I can't go as fast with the sewing method of stitching as with a lower count, but I can see it (with reading magnifiers) and think I will give it a try.  The Amsterdam blue will be my fabric for the second horse stitch.  I may test a small piece to see if I could slightly darken it, but I'm afraid of losing the slight touch of teal.  The more I mess around with trying to dye or continuing to search, I'll lose interest.  Really, I think this color is as close as I can get to the original.  Size wise, The 32 count would be about 9.5" wide, and if I want a scalloped wall bag, that would be fine. 

 Making it into a wallet or needle case, the 40 would be needed.  I love the look of cases but I don't like part of the stitching being hidden by a fold or roll.  That's why I did my sampler sack instead of the one featured in SANQ.  I took down the link to purchase the chart.  It never fails.  The tag and box designs that I like, no one buys.  Same with this sack.  I love it.  Very few others did!  It could be framed instead, but it just didn't hit the mark with you guys.  That made me question whether anything else I do would be good enough to sell.  I designed it for me, I like long thin marking samplers.  Speaking of thin, that ain't happening unless I get moving.  I'm off to huff and puff!!

Hope you're having a splendid day.

Thanks for visiting!

 

A horse of a different color

Hello people.  Hope all is well and you'll have a splendid weekend.  I'm getting pounded by rains, half my yard is under water, and wet cats are tearing up my back room chasing a piece of jute.

Here's one side finished with a color change of the green from 936 to 3362 and I stitched a wonky flower on the top right instead of having it cut off as charted.

My trip to the needlework shop yielded a piece of 40 count (my first), her last piece of Copper Penny, Belfast Amsterdam Blue, and 4 packs of needles.  My first petites.  I was hoping for a 35 count in the blue/teal but looking through her samples, we didn't see a blue that was "it".  The thread colors on the Amsterdam make you go OOHHHH and the colors on the true blues were more EH.  I don't know how else to explain it. 

The fabric looks very blue online but is slightly teal and my piece matched DMC 3768 almost perfectly.  What do I do?  Over one would not be a fun stitch for me and on 32 it may be too small.  She had a piece of a similar color in 28 count but I didn't think at the time that it may be an option for over one.  I need to work out a stitch count and see what size the finish will be. 

This one is without a flash.  My original mystery linen, also 32, is on the left and the Amsterdam is on the right.  My old mystery piece is a little more blue but it may be same, just a different dye lot from 20 years ago. 

 

As you know, my mind doesn't work as efficiently as in the years of tight jawlines and estrogen.  Do I finish this started piece now?  Start charting the blue instead?   Use this chart as the basis and wing it with the florals as I stitch?  Decision time.  I'm running out to do a few errands and will think about it when I return.

 

In case you're looking for a cheap cat toy, consider this.  Missy broke the rush seat she is always on and chewed off a piece to play with.  So considerate.  The others joined in and it was a free for all.  When I saw their excitement over it, which looked like a mouse tail, I cut a few pieces of jute and tied them together.  They LOVE it.  It's like a hockey rink in there now.

 

I'll be browsing online shops for other teals in 35 count tonight...........wait a minute.  Am I not the mad dyer?  Why can't I attempt to create the color on the count I want?  I could practice on scraps and maybe even end up on 40!  I have gold and green, need to buy the blue, and I'll be cooking up a color this weekend.  If it doesn't work, I have Amsterdam.

I see that I have some new followers.  Hiya.  Welcome!  And thank you. You guys put me over 800 and my blogaversary is coming up in February.  Giveaway!!  I need to keep a journal of things I've offered.  I tore everything apart looking for that cardinal when I was decorating for Christmas.  It finally dawned on me last week that I don't have it!  That wasn't the first time I've wasted good cuss words searching for something I gave away.  Any ideas for this next one?

 

Thanks for visiting!