P Vaughan wip

I saved the green chair for the end because I like it so much, but it really is quite large.
I can't believe I haven't done any back stiching yet but now I am excited to compare the 2 pictures of before and after the back stitching.
I love stitching on 18 count aida but I am not so sure I will do another Paula Vaughan on 18 count because of the 1/4 stitches.
Have a great week of stitching!

As a man thinks in his heart, so is he. [Proverbs 23:7]

PV WIP Update

Labor Day weekend was a wonderful time with family for us but it's time to get back to some cross stitching.
I've made good progress in spite of taking a few days off for cleaning and visiting.
I haven't done any of the backstitching so the picture will really pop when I start doing that.

Today has been a quiet day of stitching and remembering.

As a man thinks in his heart, so is he. [Proverbs 23:7]

PV WIP

I started this Paula Vaughan chart on 08-20-2015.  I have always admired her designs and I cannot believe it has taken me this long to finally start stitching one.



This design is called A Cup of Tea and Thee.
It is in Paula Vaughan's booklet called Grandmother's House (Leisure Arts PV Book 66).
Below is a picture of the finished design and the cover of the booklet it is in.

As a man thinks in his heart, so is he. [Proverbs 23:7]

Nativity is still a WIP

I have finished stitching backs to all of the figures.
Now I must decide how to finish the bottoms.  One of the comments suggested using felt for the bottoms and I think I will try that first to see how it goes.
Wish me luck and have a great weekend of stitching everyone.

As a man thinks in his heart, so is he. [Proverbs 23:7]

Finishing WIP

I am trying to figure out how to finish my nativity pieces. 
So far I am attaching a back side with  the same aida fabric - sewing the 2 sides together like a biscornu finish.  DH had some washers that I am thinking would be good to put in the base to give them some weight. 
I can't decide how to put a bottom on the pieces.  They stand by themselves - the sheep on the left is not sitting on a washer and although it's pretty stable I suspect that's because it's not very tall.
I am thinking I will have to make up some kind of pattern for each base and cut it out of muslin fabric and then hand sew it to the bottom.
I also think I may have to put some fiber fill inside each piece so the washer stays at the bottom instead of moving around inside the figure.
Hand sewing is pretty slow going for me but I would like to finish these before I get excited about my next cross stitch project.

As a man thinks in his heart, so is he. [Proverbs 23:7]

Nativity Finish

I made some changes to the pattern this week.  The last wise man had a beard that called for DMC floss 3022.  As I started to stitch I thought the beard looked very green (the description for that color in the key said "brown gray, medium").  I went through my floss stash and found another skein of 3022 that didn't seem to look as green so I frogged and started using the new skein.  Ack!  it still looked a bit green so I frogged again and decided he really should have a black beard.   I changed the shepherd so he is holding the staff in front of his body instead of off to the side.  I wanted him to be shaped more like the other figures.  I think I am finished with this chart and now I must decide if they are going to be flat folds or no-sew cubes.  I have not done either kind of finish so I am mostly trying to decide what my next cross stitch project will be (so I am procrastinating on the final finishing).

As a man thinks in his heart, so is he. [Proverbs 23:7]

Nativity WIP

This week I finished the angel and started the 3 wise men.  The colors are much prettier than this photo shows.  This is turning out to be a quick project for me so I can tell it's a fun stitch.  I am going to modify the shepherds so they are not so much wider than the other figures so that may be a challenge when I get to those.
Have a wonderful stitching week.

As a man thinks in his heart, so is he. [Proverbs 23:7]

Folk Art Nativity WIP

I have started the Folk Art Nativity figures from the Cross Stitcher magazine (April 2003).
Joseph and Mary are stitched and the Angel is started.
I don't know if these will be finished as ornaments or the standing figures shown in the magazine.  I have never made a flat fold but it crossed my mind that it might work for these figures.  There is plenty more to stitch so I can ponder these options as I continue stitching.  

As a man thinks in his heart, so is he. [Proverbs 23:7]

I need help finding a chart

Can anyone tell me how I can find this chart so I can stitch an ornament for this Christmas?
Any and all clues will be very much appreciated.

As a man thinks in his heart, so is he. [Proverbs 23:7]

Finish for Bathroom

I was browsing through my stash because I could not come up with a plan for what I should stitch next.  When I read the lines at the bottom of this chart I knew I had to stitch it.  It's a bit of a family joke that whenever I am home alone the phone only rings when I am in the bathroom.
This chart is in a leaflet called Necessary Room by Rayna Designs (charts by Rae Nebraska).
I am looking for the perfect material to make this into a wall hanging.

My next project is most likely going to be Folk Art Nativity figures from the Cross Stitcher magazine (April 2003).

As a man thinks in his heart, so is he. [Proverbs 23:7]

ALTWL is Finished

It's always so exciting to put the last stitch in a project - especially when it's been such a long time since the first stitch was done.
This is stitched on white 18 count aida but for some reason this photo has turned the fabric to a light blue color.
I am so thrilled about this finish that my mind is completely blank about what my next cross stitch project will be.
I think I will catch up on my house work and enjoy the excitement of this long awaited finish before I puzzle over what to do next.

As a man thinks in his heart, so is he. [Proverbs 23:7]

Free Chart US Capitol

Here is the chart that I made to use in my Washington DC square for the America Land That We Love wip that I am working on.
As I look at the stitched square I think the capitol building could have been a little smaller to fit in the square better.  I have decided to  move on and see if it grows on me before the rest of the wip is finished.

I am not sure how or if the chart can be printed from this blog.  It's such a small chart I don't think it would take too long to draw it on some graph paper if it can't be printed directly from here.

As a man thinks in his heart, so is he. [Proverbs 23:7]