Take a nap Rachel

 Sleep with the frogs.  Like a temperamental child, you have charmed, delighted, soothed, energized, and then slowly became uncooperative, moody, and difficult.  You've won.  Throwing in the floss.  If you were much smaller, less detailed, and my lighter had butane, poof baby.  Poof.  So sleep well my beauty.  I will not allow you to frustrate me enough to abandon my needle.

Mary Bell, Bluebird out my Window, and Jean Donaldson 1826 will all have fabric pulled today.  Jean will be last since she has a fricking border with color changes and I need a simple project right now.  Anxious to see this 8.5 x 13.5 on 40 count sampler whose details are hard to see in the photo.  Something tells me the unique elements and motifs will not only be enjoyable, but stunning.

Have a good one!

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Got rice?

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Boom part two.

Finally.  After two major changes and two major frogging sessions, boom.  Done.  The first time, narrowed the lower case letters to one space between instead of the two I originally stitched.  It didn't look proper compared to the tighter letter placement above it.  That change was a real improvement.  

The next frog removed the second row.  Rachel's God save America was in this section and I thought using her words would be a better option than my numeric section, so ... adios.  Her words were done in black since that was the original color, and it helped balance the black in the corners.  Using capital letters required removal of the single row of dark green completing the outline of the center section.  Removing the bottom blue row and inserting the green again is not necessary. 

Hope to finish that left corner and find a cow.  And I can say that I will not do another that has this much over one.  The two corners would be my limit, but the revamped section plus the beast, bird, and berries are weighing on my mind.

  I always read and study sampler charts/instructions when first received, but Rachel was many years ago and I failed to repeat.  Just like failing to recognize the rice stitch areas, but I would have caught that had the chart showed them differently. 

No sun on the snow but the glare coming in the windows is very very disturbing and I am having more difficulty with my eyes today.  But this evening, I will work on that fricking corner.

And if your medication, supplies, various items on trains never arrive .....

Have a good one.

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A plan

The lowercase alphabet beneath the larger is over one, done in black.  Na-uh.  So what can I do?  I tried only God save America over two but there was too much space above and below.   I ended with just lowercase over two stretched to a second row, numeric over two.

Charted and ready to go.  Since black was charted for this area, and it would work well with the few words in the corners done with it, I decided not to use it.  You thought I was going to say the opposite!  I have a good reason.   Over two, those threads would be dramatic and not as delicate as over one.  But since they were charted in one color, I plan to follow that, maybe 3012. 

Got snow?

NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!

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Boom.

 The black stitches are such a mess compared to the 610, will need a few tweaks.  This area took SO long that I'm contemplating changes to the other lettered areas.  I haven't yet found a bovine to fit, wondering if I attempt the tent stitch beast a third time and need to remove, if the linen will suffer irreparably.  But I must say, viewing the entire piece, those corners of tiny stitching are very attractive.

Looking at the border outline, 36 doesn't offer as much coverage as I expected.  Can I handle 40?  With the Dazor, yes, but my new linen is mostly 36.  Good enough.

Snow isn't here yet, but it will be shortly.  Crap.

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I get by with a little help from my friends

From comments, I'm not the only one disappointed in DMC 310.  I have quite a few Sullivan skeins, but no black.  As for silk, I know nothing of the brands, thickness, shine, plies, so would be ordering blind.  Switching to 610 is working nicely.  

But the biggest help was from a reader that emailed .... get this ... my own diagram and instructions for over one stitching.  I have been looking for it!!  It was a post from January 2020 and since I don't label, could not find it.  She wasn't sure which online site she saved it from and said it has helped her.  Imagine my delight when her thoughtful email gave me exactly what I was searching for.  More goosebumps?

The intersection's top linen thread will either be vertical or horizontal, which determines the direction of #2 to #3, preventing the floss from slip sliding away.  So much easier for me, and working out swell.  I will continue as long as I can manage regarding my eyesight.  

https://samplers-and-santas.blogspot.com/2020/01/over-one-epiphany.html

Hope your weekend is safe.

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