In my face

Well pelt me with M&M peanuts.  Why didn't I think of this sooner?  Instead of adding another aid to the supplies already surrounding me, why not use what's right in front of my face?

I stitched a piece of quilt batting to the arm of the magnifier to test, and voila!  It can hold all my shorts and singles without adding to the clutter, even when I raise the arm.  I will replace this with fabric trimmed thick felt to look a little nicer.

And once I sew a fabric bag to match, it will replace the plastic one now holding my glasses hanging from the arm's base.  But what would be even better is a huswife.  A few pockets for aids and tools, a perfect place to display and use such a project.  A few styles to think about ---

Nan Lewis Threadwork Primitives impeccable sewing.















Or add stitched pockets like this from Needlework Press (Eliza Tuck huswife)

Primitive and fabulous from Pam Gill (Primitives Past).



















Handy, functional, less clutter.  If I order a Brightech for another room, this idea should work for it also.  I'm excited about a useful huswife on display.  Not all ideas come to fruition, but I'd like to give this one a good effort!

Now for those M&Ms.

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Motif a day

Making progress.

A stag with a pink tail, short leg, and clubhoof

A plant without a top

 Precariously balanced flowers

 A nicely done floral

And the group in harmony with the green polka dot dog.

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A little hole in a little drop

Mark suggested I get off my pity pot and have him drive me to the needlework shop in Boardman.  I filled my head with Toppik powder and decided to go.  And it wasn't Tuesday which is when I usually stop there, forgetting that the shop is closed.  She had a nice variety of charts and smalls, some reproductions, even HATS.  Saw many designers completely new to me, and this embroidery pattern caught my eye.  Isn't this sweet?  Sending My Love from Crabapple Hill Studio.  Not cross stitch but such a lovely project.  Other sayings are included for the banner... Remember Me, Hugs and Kisses, Friendship, and Thinking of You.

The owner is very nice and very helpful.  Unfortunately, a good customer was choosing colors and linens and I had to wait 40 minutes to pay for a few items.  She politely told me she only had one more project to choose.  I browsed while waiting to pay for my mini poms and found the thread drops.

  I was going to order the ones I showed you on Etsy with the extra hole but hadn't as yet.  This brand is sturdy but no lines for notes and no extra hole.  When I came home I searched for the hole punch and the drops soon became what I preferred.   That extra hole will hold the extra strands or any used threads without having to disturb the large knot.  One packet was punched, the others won't be until I see how it works.  I don't know why it wouldn't!! 

I recently saw two floss tube videos that show how to make your own in the first (with great ideas for material), and how to wrap your floss in the second (another great idea for storing).  And again, she pulls one thread at a time which boggles my mind.  I have trouble separating one strand from the six without being knotted around a hole!  But it works.  She is Cross My Stitches.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ce_S8bk4M6o
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zyd0UkeKYmI

It's raining and gloomy today so I should be able to drive myself to the doc.  But my sweet hubs likes to chauffeur me.

Hope your day has some sunshine. 
But if it hurts your eyes, gloom is good too!!
As long as we have light.

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Motif a day

My eyes were burning and terrible, my lips cracked and hurt, I had to keep removing fallen hairs from my work.  A really depressing day, but I continued on and completed the motif of the bottom right corner and can now see the finished length. From the excess fabric, I calculated incorrectly, or never bothered to trim the linen.  Either way, not nearly as large as I expected.  When pattern is repeated, I usually don't check the chart often, and I'm lucky I did for this one since the three sections are all slightly different.

Hope your week starts well and ends even better.

Thanks for visiting.

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Narly Marly

Good grief.  My floche came in, without instructions.  I truly believe anyone who is beginning, suffering, or recovering from menopause, needs written instructions.  For everything.

I just assumed the arrow on the label shows the direction to pull as I do with floss.  Fugetaboutit.  I had no idea that this soft and easily shredded thread needed to be handled differently, gently, frustrating careful.

Here, from Mary Corbet's Needle 'n Thread, is the correct way to handle this thread.
https://www.needlenthread.com/2016/10/how-to-tame-a-big-hank-of-floche.html

It seems I always end up at this site, and I'm very grateful that she offers so much information and help.  Unfortunately, I searched for help only after the disaster.  After cutting it in half in an attempt to release the nest, the results were too long.  I need to shorten, half again would not work, and will lose even more of the hank.  I carefully tried to save the nest, but frustration took over and I reached for the lighter.  The same one that set many snarky projects to flame.  Mark stopped me and took over, then suggested scissors.

 Will there ever be a next time?  Not sure.  I haven't stitched with it, bought it mainly for Santa's beard and other Christmas designs to achieve better coverage.  Just like silk, it was snagging on my rough hands, and I'm not sure I like the feel of it.  But when stitching, it may be wonderful to use.  We'll see.  If I like it and want to order other colors, I will certainly get the smaller portion and not the narly hank.  The other #20 and #25 are in the usual skeins and feel more like standard DMC.


I always know when Petey is on the deck.

Hope your day is narly free!!

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Controlling tension

Hi everyone.  My latest motif (floral vase) was a lot easier than the others and I was able to use my favorite method for controlling tension.  My threads usually do not lay smoothly, evenly, properly, add tension irregularities and I create a wonky stitch.  It's me.  No one checks my samplers, no friends have any interest, so studying my work is never done.  And it doesn't matter to me or I would put forth an effort to better my stitches.  The only time they look fairly even in tension and placement is when using this method for blocks.  I've mentioned it before, and will again, because I am always pleased with the result.

For houses and larger blocks I use the sewing method horizontally for the first half of the stitch, completely filling in the area before crossing.  The second half of the stitch is done vertically, which creates (for me) as even a stitch as I will ever produce.  The right side is the first half, and left side is completed.

For this vase, I added a line of blue creating a rim simply because it looked odd to me without it.  The two rows in the rim were done my usual way, completing one row at a time.  You can see the ditch between them even though I was deliberately being careful with my tension.  The body of the vase appears to have a more defined stitch rather than a row of floss squished together.  The sewing method is what I use most, but if I completed one stitch at a time, that definition may be there.  But I like the quicker sewing method, hence, wonky stitches.

In order to make the sewing motion easier, I turn it upside down for every other row to work bottom to top.

Because I am all the way to the right edge, I needed the spool huggers to hold the excess linen.

And my finished block of stitches look pretty even without an obvious horizontal pattern,  I also used this method on the first set of leaves on the left since I could compare the result to the others.  Hmm.  Better, no??

Anyway, not sure if I will complete this side of the sampler to the bottom or move elsewhere or take a break.  I have not been feeling right, BP is high, HR is high, hot flashes galore, and high anxiety.  Much of that is because of the continuing hair loss, dramatic to say the least.  But I am seeing the doc Tuesday for a chat.

Hope your weekend goes well!!

Thanks for visiting.

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