Stitching and Quilting

Hope everyone is having a great July.  It's been really rainy here, so I've been stitching away, although I really don't need an excuse to stitch!  Here's what's been happening.

Debbie Forney's Ho Ho Ho

I'm calling this a mini-finish (I have two more panels to stitch on this project).  It was my challenge project for my ANG chapter, due last month.  I knew that I wouldn't finish the whole project, but wanted to finish this panel so that I would have some momentum going forward.

As readers of this blog may remember, each June members of my chapter have the option of submitting three unfinished projects.  Their fellow members vote on which project that they want to see finished by the following June.  The larger the project and the less stitching that's completed is usually, but not always, the determining factor.  The project is disqualified if it's the size of an ornament, or more than 50 percent finished.   I submitted Ho Ho Ho for consideration again this year because I'm not even close to halfway done with it but, alas, it was not chosen.

Once everyone eyeballed this painted canvas from a design by Charley Harper (Rainforest Birds), poor Ho Ho Ho became Ho Ho NO.  The fact that I haven't taken a stitch on Rainforest Birds yet may have played a minor role as well, but everyone just seemed captivated by this one.  So Ho Ho Ho will be going on a long (hopefully not permanent) hiatus.

I finished this little July pillow from Little Dove Designs.

After I attached the fluffy chenille on the edge of the pillow,

I thought it looked like fur trim,
which is a little strange for July!

I'm making good progress on Jolly Robin.

There are a lot of color changes, but no confetti stitches.

He has been unexpectedly fun to stitch!

My kitchen has had light gray walls for about a decade.

(When I like something, I usually don't tire of it quickly.)

But it was time for something new,

so I chose my favorite color: orange.

The floor tiles have gray in them,

so I decided to quilt myself a little tablecloth
to go with the new color scheme.

I even had the Carrots piece,
on the wall to the left, reframed.

The old frame was red, and it wasn't working.

Then I had some fabric left over,
so I went all matchy-matchy with my bowl cozies.

(My old ones were red.)

I think my sewing machine (and I) need a long rest!

I've also been making progress on a couple of

long-standing UFO's.

I hope to be able to show you
a finish on at least one of them soon.

That's it from here.

Thanks for stopping by.

Even More Exciting News...

...Ladybug and Daisy, my blackwork project, is finished...

...and framed...

Here are a couple of close-ups...

The cross-hatching on the petals drove me bonkers.

It was "random" but charted, so I kept having

to look back and forth from the chart to the piece.

I would have gladly paid someone to do it for me,

if I could have found any takers.

I'm elated that this is done!

Here is another framed finish...

Kathy Barrick's Good Intentions

I seem to go a while without any finishes,

then I have a bunch all at once.

Let's get to the pillow parade...

A monthly from Heart in Hand's Square Dance

Bent Creek's Flag of Stars

The trim is not cording, but a braid.

Lizzie-Kate's Buzz from their Spring Smalls leaftlet.

I stitched this a couple of months ago,

and just got around to finishing it.

Here's what I'm working on now...

This is the July monthly from the

Little Dove's Year chart.

This chubby fellow is from Bothy Threads.

The chart is called Jolly Robin.

Here is my start.

It's going to look like a blob for a while.

This is my ANG challenge piece,

due next Saturday.  😄

I got quite a bit done
since the last time I posted.

My revised goal is to at least get

the panel on the right completed.
As I was stitching it,

I discovered that this piece

is not quite as easy as it looks.

But I probably could have completed it

if I had picked it up before last month.

I had all year to do it.

When you're as old as I am
you should stitch what calls out to you,
which is what I've been doing.
Hence, the DNF on my challenge piece.

Well, that's it from here.

Hope your June is going splendidly.

Thanks for dropping by.