Sampler September Week 1

I'm doing my own version of Sampler September this year.  I believe it was started a few years ago on IG but thought I'd post about it here too.  I'm defining this for me as a sampler of my WIPs.  I've pulled 20ish WIPs and hope to give each of them a day's worth of stitching.  Most are samplers, but not all and there are several teaching pieces included.  I may not make significant progress, in fact I won't, but I do hope that it will reignite the spark for the project.  

I'm only showing after photos as adding before photos would make this too photo heavy I think.

Up first was When Thou Art Rich by HATS.  I was at a spot - an entire row of queen stitches on a linen that was a similar color to the thread - where I was mentally blocked on this one.  I picked it up and something just clicked! I finished the row of queen stitches (which was only about 25% done) and started the satin stitch row below.  I'll definitely be coming back to this one soon.

Hannah Hammond by Gigi R was up next.  I was definitely not enjoying this last time I put this one away. I can't say that I love her now but we are in a better place.   Not a bad outcome.

This is a teaching piece by Jane Timmers of Fancy Work called Liberty Little Sewing Box.  This is for a class this fall.  There will be smalls and a box from LeHays that will be finished.  Super cute.

Mary Barres came out.  Hard to see but I completed the ghost alphabet and started that bottom motif.  She's a big girl and will therefore be a long term project.

Tocatta 1 by the Drawn Thread has not been touched in YEARS.  Why?  I have no idea!  It's so close to being completed except for the hem stitching which I've never done before.  This was, I believe, the very first SAL project of my stitching guild.

I started block 10 of Autumn at Hawk Run Hollow.  The black box outline was already stitched, I do that before I put it away.  Everything else was stitched on its day of stitching which was a weekend day.  Closing in on the home stretch on this one too.

I'd call week 1 a success!  If I focused, I could realistically finish 3 of these before year end.  Will that happen?  Probably not.  That's ok though!  

I hope you're having a great week and that all your stitches are happy ones!

Sampler Mania Week 1

Before I started Stitch/Sampler Maynia, I was working on Martha Pudsey.  The photo below shows where I ended up with her.  I typically do not stitch the entire border at once but I got into a rhythm with her and just kept going.  The photo below is not good but you get the idea!

May1st was the first Friday in my Sampler Maynia and I chose to start Sally Stansfield.  See the left border, I stitched that 3 times because I can't count and because Sally decided to add an extra stitch into an otherwise consistent border.  I also had most of the vase in but the third time I started it, I decided it would be a better idea to start in a different place.  I'm stitching her on 40 count Weeks on Zweigart Straw linen with the called for AVAS.

That's it for week 1!  I hope all your stitches are happy ones!

First Stitch Maynia

I am participating in my very first Stitch Maynia.  Normally the thought of Stitch Maynia makes me get twitchy!  I couldn't work on a different project every day or start a new one every day.  I *think* I can handle 4 and since there are no rules in Stitch Maynia, this meets the criteria!

Actually it is a Sampler Maynia as I have selected to start only samplers in May and only stitch on these 4 projects during Maynia.  I first heard the term Sampler Maynia on Ellen Chester's Instagram account.   If you do not already know Ellen, she is a prolific stitcher and an amazing designer and teacher.  You'll be glad you checked her out!  I LOVE Instagram, it's my favorite social media platform by far.  You can find me there as JackiesStitches.    I'd love for you to follow me or visit me there!

Let me back up a little, the whole idea started with my friend Teresa and I deciding to start a new sampler on Friday's in May.  Or maybe she decided and I got sucked in.  Yes, I think that is what happened!  Then we realized it fit the no rules Maynia.  Jill is joining in too but I'm not sure she is starting samplers.  She set up video chat tonight to start together and see what we are working on first.  She invited some other people too so it will be fun!

Anyways, enough of me rattling along. Here is what I decided to start in no particular order.  There is a definitely GigiR theme you will notice.  All of these were also already fully kitted and just waiting their turn to be grabbed for a new start.  

Hannah Hammond 1845 by GigiR with a silk conversion from The Attic Needlework in Mesa, AZ on 40 count Lakeside Linen in Vintage Light Examplar.

Red Deer Sampler by GigiR using the called for overdyed cottons on Lakeside Linen 36 count Cedar Plank.  I have a piece of 40 count I'd rather use but I think the margins would be tight.

Jane Southward by GigiR using a silk conversion from The Attic Needlework on 40 count Lakeside Linen in Vintage Sand Dune.

Sally Stansfield using the called for AVAS on 40 count Weeks on Zweigart Straw.

I'm still undecided as to which one I will start tonight but am leaning towards one for a very specific reason.    Let's see what happens tonight!

Are you participating in Stitch Maynia?  I'd love to hear your plan for the month.

Wishing you many happy stitches!

Mary Clayton

Mary Clayton is finished!  I'm not even sure I blogged about starting this one.  I started it on March 24 and finished it April 13th.  I SO enjoyed every single stitch!  Privately I call this my Pandemic Project and will always think of this time when I look at her.  Each stitch brought me comfort.

Do you do that as well?  Have specific memories that go with specific projects?  This is my second one that has such strong thoughts/feelings attached to it.  The first one is Pennsylvania Alphabet that I blogged about HERE.

Back to Mary Clayton!  She is petite - finishing up at just about 9x10" on my linen.  The linen I used was 40 count Silkweaver in the Precious Metals color way.  I LOVE this linen.  I used the called for AVAS silks, which I also love!

Mary Clayton from Hands Across the Seas Samplers

40 count Silkweaver linen in Precious Metals

Called for AVAS

I hope your stitching is providing you comfort during this time and that your family is well.  Wishing you all happy stitches!

Elizabeth Atkinson

Hello friends!  I hope you all are safe and well.  We are settling into our new routines.  I've been working from home for a while but the bank I work for has transitioned 95% of our workforce of a couple of hundred thousand to work from home.  My husband is also working from home as he his a licensed clinical social worker for our local school system.

In the past couple of weeks, I've finished Elizabeth Atkinson 1829 from Hands Across the Seas Samplers.  She is a fun stitch and isn't huge.  There is quite a bit of over 1 and a little bit of Algerian Eyelet.  I particularly love the border on her and that vase of flowers in the center bottom.

I stitched this on 46 count Golden Oats from Silkweaver.  I really liked the linen.  I used the called for 100.3 from Au ver a Soie.  I LOVED this thread!

I almost immediately sent this out to Total Framing and have selected a frame via text message and hope to have her back home soon.  I also sent along another piece to be framed too.

Hoping that you are finding calm in the storm and that all your stitches are happy ones!

Summer is Here!

Happy June!  Where has the year gone?!  The past couple of months, I've been busy but still have had time to do some of the things I love.

I pull out Ann Dale from deep hibernation and have stitched this bottom row on it.  I've also done a lot of border work (and re-work) which isn't shown here.  Ann is a lovely sampler - a BIG girl but so worth the time!

I also immediately ordered Elizabeth Atkinson from Sassy Jacks Stitchery as they had kits at a very affordable price with silks.  I chose the 46 count linen (SilkWeaver Golden Oats) option with the 100/3 you see on the spools below.  LOVE the colors in this one!

I started it too!  At first the 46 count was slow going but it has gotten much better!  I'm using a 28 needle and it feels a little big so I might need to go to something else(any suggestions?).  The colors in Elizabeth are fantastic.  The 100/3 is used as it comes off the spool and I'm enjoying not having to strand or put the remaining strands back away.  The little things!  I think this one is going to go fast because I'm so in love with it!  

I've also felt the desire to sew a little bit.  All of my WIPs are on the more complicated/fiddly side so in an effort to flame that desire, I'm sewing charm squares together.  So far, it's been soothing and mindless and all the things you need when you haven't sewn in ages.

In personal news, my youngest son moved to Tallahassee 2 years ago and he moved back to Jacksonville Memorial Day weekend.  He's so happy to be back and we're happy that he's back in town too!  He lives about 15 minutes away and that makes this momma's heart happy!

I'm already ready for summer to be over.  Here in NE Florida we've already had record setting heat, 100 degree days, and one large fire that closed I-95 both ways.  The humidity is off the chart and I'm in full on hibernation mode!   

I'll be back soon with more to share.  In the meantime, I hope all your stitches are happy ones!

Other Things

Here are a couple of other things I've been working on while I was away.  I started When Thou Art Rich by Hands Across the Sea Smplers.  I had the good fortune of seeing the antique while I was at Sassy Jacks in January 2018.  Such a beautiful sampler.  I've LOVED stitching what I have stitched so far.  The next row, however, is a row of queen stitches and I'm honestly not sure how I'm going to get through that.  The queen stitches are over 4 on 40 count and are the light yellow so not a good thread color to really see what you are doing.  I know I'll get through it at some point and hopefully I'll grow as a queen stitcher because there are other rows of queen stitches in this sampler!  

I found a very bad photo of the antique.  It was sitting in a window where the light was coming from the rear.

I've also been working on Curly Witch from a class with our EGA chapter in 2018.  I've really enjoyed this so far.  It's the first time I've stitched a plaid and I'm happy with how it came out.  I've got a fair amount of work left to do but I'm sure I'll get it finished at some point.

Things with my stash got to the point where I couldn't find anything.  I had kits bagged up but they weren't labeled so what good did that do?    Also my charts were in a drawer which meant it was a pain to find anything.  So I pulled much of it out of the closet and got to work.  The charts are now alphabetized in magazine holders (you can see them in the background) and my kits are in more similar sized bags and are labeled.

Here are the labels I'm using.  I can reuse them easily.  I also bought the binder rings from Amazon very inexpensively.  I feel better about being able to find things now.  Still lots of work to do in there but being able to find most of what I need is a real improvement!  It seems like any stash needs constant maintenance!

Remember my dilemma on my last post with the Shutter Green dye lot?  A reader sent me her older dye lot of Shutter Green along with a Victorian Motto Sampler thread that she felt was a good match. Here are my two Shutter Greens along with the ones she sent.  Can you tell which is which?  I don't have her permission to say who it was but THANK YOU!!!

I hope all your stitches are happy ones!

Meeting a Stitching Idol

Last weekend I had the good fortune to visit Sassy Jacks Stitchery in Weaverville, NC to hear a lecture from a stitching idol - Nicola Parkman of Hands Across the Sea Samplers.  It was absolutely awesome to hear Nicola speak about the samplers in her collection and about the samplers that she has reproduced through Hands Across the Sea Samplers.  Nicola was just as I imagined.  Gorgeous, smart, funny, and an absolute treasure trove of information.  Her joy at learning more about the girls who stitched the samplers is so obvious.  This was a chance of a lifetime!

I'm on the left in the photo below and Teresa (Girl With Needles) is in the middle.  Teresa and I  are longtime friends and traveled together.  To the right is Chris of Tot Hill Farm Stitches blog is to the right.  This was my first time to meet her but she too was so very sweet!  

Nicola  brought with her several original samplers that HATS has reproduced.  When Thou Art Rich is below.  There is a glare in the photo that really does not enable the true beauty of this sampler to show.  I have this one ready to go and have been seriously thinking of starting it soon.

Jane Vaughan 1724 is on the left.  The sampler on the right is one Nicola is working on now that is being stitched reversibly.  She even had to carefully check to ensure she was showing the front.  

 

Nicola and I

We also got to see what is being released at Market.  Our class project is inspired by one of the new releases (shown below) and for that one, we were able to purchase the chart early.   The project was designed around the freehand stitching in this sampler.

Our day ended with tea.  Truly a delightful day!  

SaveSave