The Ann offer

 Greetings!

I've been working on A Little Dutch, certainly not my preferred style, but I was drawn to her from the start.  True, this piece is not a wise choice given my distractions and frustrations right now.  And I'm not in love with this sampler as I am with all of Gigi R works, yet here it is.  No answers.

  The method I chose to sub smyrna for eyelet is working great.  Not tedious, the sewing method can be used, quick, and not one misplaced poke!

A wonderful chart helps tremendously.  I can clearly see the print and the symbol as it sits on my stand and the enlarged legend I made easily shows the color at a glance.  What a difference.

On to Ann Stone.  Keep in mind this is very old, hand drawn, and not the colors of my finish.  If you would like Ann, leave your initials or email in comments or email me directly.  Still haven't found a decent program so I will log into google and get mail there so none are spammed out.  I can do that, right?

samplersandsantas@gmail.com

Will draw a name Tuesday 1/17 at 8pm.

Have a good day!

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Smyrna. The city?

 No.  The stitch.  The one I chose in place of eyelet.  Much quicker, same appearance, but not easier for me.  I never got past the A on Mary Ann after four attempts.  Continually went off one linen thread, very difficult for me to go over four in one leap.  If the first poke was bottom left over two to center, then top right over two to center, I would have the four thread boundary and the rest would cross over that center, hiding it.  Sounds like a plan.  Some other time Mary Ann.  Don't even want to elaborate on the latest blow to the sister situation.  No patience.

On top of that, I started the Pilocarpine and my drug sensitive old body is palping fast, hot as hell, and head is pounding.  Lowest dose but cutting in half now until my body adjusts.  More frustration is not welcome.  Smyrna the city is more enticing by the hour.

So what will I work on?  This.  Seriously?

Why the hell?  I do not like frequent color changes (27 of them),  do not like script lettering (there it is), do not like light linen (required to show thread), and there is eyelet.  Am I deliberately torturing myself?  Or pretending I'm someone else to escape?  Bizarro world of stitching?  Makes no sense, but I plan to choose between Vellum and Latte and give it a go.

I enlarged the legend to see the 27 symbols better, cut/glued/highlighted to a smaller and easy to display reference.

Sunday will post the Ann Stone chart giveaway.

Enjoy your weekend folks!

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Next

 I've read that a sampler should be started and finished in the month of January.  But my mushy mind can't remember what this superstition claims or its catchy term.   With my current stress level,  not taking any chances so I'm on board.

Mary Ann Bradbury is another old hand printed chart from R&R.  Small and very easy, few colors, a little gem.  Charted for flower thread, I pulled DMC of my choice.

Elizabeth Moor is a chart I've shown before, still love, still hesitating to attempt.  Does that make me a "sluggard"?  I love her message!

The first letter of each word is over two, the rest over one.  If I plan to stitch only two words every few days, maybe I could tolerate.  Also hand printed which makes it more difficult.

 Another day at Carole's today, called UPMC health choice provider and was told if we don't receive a return call by Friday afternoon, try again next week.  I would like to file a formal complaint, but where?  With who?  Spoke with their main office in Pittsburgh three times.  She went from a lively, upbeat, healthy (for her condition) woman, now despondent, greatly stressed, lacking care she needs and was promised by this provider.  Another 60 day process to once again apply for assistance requiring 5 years of paperwork, would offer no immediate help or guarantee return to the same facility.  I needed half of an ativan to sleep last night, only two left! 

I never explained the "background" issue which adds another dimension to the story, and won't.  I complain and vent too much as it is.

 I plan to offer Ann's chart as a giftaway this weekend.

Stay safe and well!

Thanks for the visit.

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Boom

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Beam me up Scotty

What the heck?  Am I in outer space?

Thank goodness this is 30 count which is not very difficult when removing over one.  I have never had so many removals and errors in such a small area.

I adjusted the first major error by adding the date that was to be stitched at the end, to the beginning.  Counted incorrectly, removed and stitched twice.  The original had just 96 on the second line, you can see the extra wording I added. 

Then it was time to stitch inside the box.  Distraction is my only excuse for failure to differentiate over one from my usual two threads.  The bottom date was too high and September ran into it, out damned date.  Then I didn't account for changing the weird s to S in Stone after I had already centered it.  Out damned name.  On the plus side, September didn't need removed.  I will use it as a guide for above and below.  Sure I will.

Spending more time today searching online and phone calls.  We need to purchase a full size hospital bed and mattress, the 36" wide they sent does not allow her to roll to each side when dressing.  She spent an hour on call (she initiated) with UPMC for answers.  Looking into changing to another home health provider.  I need to speak with them again today.  Care.com (private pay) takes your credit card and charges it monthly (for using their service) whether you receive/pay for care or not. Visiting Angels does no light housekeeping, toileting, incontinence care. These services are to be provided for her in exchange for saving gov't over 12 grand a month in nursing home costs.  No.  She has no intention to return even after saying she misses the best hotel she's ever stayed at.  

I am trying to focus on finishing Ann and will do that in a day or two.  Asked my PCP again for an rx of pilocarpine for worsening sjogren's.  She finally agreed on two month supply until I see the new doctor.  I hope it helps and my drug sensitive body doesn't have a reaction.

 

No snow! Thankful for that.

Have a good day folks.

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Hearts lined up

 Finally.

I sat down this morning and finished the hearts.  The last few days have been horrible and I see no end in sight, Ann was not picked up for a few days.  I need to finish her, accomplish something.

The over one in the center box will be closely counted and aligned so as not to have another fiasco.  This sampler for some reason whether with tablet or camera, is very hard to portray in a photo.  That blue section fades and clarity is a problem.  The thread was to be 3023 but I chose the blue because of the chart's photo.  The dividing band above it was charted for blue, and I chose another which I now regret.  The bottom section in the photo looks much darker than the called for threads. 

These old R&R Reproduction charts are hand drawn, none have a good or clear photo, but they are really nice offerings of more primitive/simple/marking samplers.  Should I pick up one of the big girls waiting in the basket?  Will I have trouble adjusting to 36 again after this 30 count?  Would a beautiful floral border that can test my resolve be a good idea?  Maybe.  I will need to shut down and focus solely on those stitches, a good thing, but it could go the other way too!!  Finish Ann first and do a load of laundry.  I'll need more big girl panties in my drawer.

Have a great Sunday.

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