Helenes Crafty Things

New blog

2007-01-12T10:28:00.000+01:00

Im starting a new blog at wordpress http://hcrafts.wordpress.com/ - Helene's crafts. I may not have much to show but I like wordpress a lot better than blogger. I hope to see you there!

I'm back!

2006-12-16T13:48:00.000+01:00

Well a little at least. Now I am starting to adapt to working and not arriving home until after 5 pm every day and has even started stitching a little bit! But when I wanted to take a pic to show you the camera needed new batteries - so nothing today :-(.

I decided to start something totally new that night I decided I wanted to stitch. And the one piece I chose was the new Ring O' Roses from Papillon Creations. I haven't finished much more than almost all the middle ring and the ring of roses around it yet - but hope to get more done during the christmas leave. But I was a little naughty when I bought that chart - I also got the Year's End from Papillon too - and that one is really tempting me!

Hope to be able to update again soon and if not I wish you all merry and happy days during the celebrations in front of us!

Work!

2006-10-10T19:06:00.000+02:00

I have started to work now and my time and my energi is soo much lesser now than when not working so I guess it will take some time to adjust and get used to just having a few short hours a week for myself. But I am so happy that I have gotten a job!

My guess is that it will be some time before I have made anything worth showing!

Weekly SBQ

2006-09-22T08:30:00.000+02:00

This week’s SBQ was suggested by Elisabeth and is:
How many pieces have you stitched? Out of these, how many have been for you? How many have had specialty stitches or other techniques besides cross stitch?

How many I have stitches... I have no idea but I would say between 40 and 60 and about 10-15 has been made for other friends and family. I really enjoy stitching on larger designs and then Im also good at not finishing them until several years have past.
I love speciality stitches so many of those have included that but mostly the last 2 years and then not so many have been finished...

Some more preserving

2006-09-18T09:31:00.000+02:00

I have just picked our first grapes from our own vine! They are not big as bought grapes but very sweet and juicy - lovely!

And I have picked off the last apples from our young apple-tree and made mashed apples of them last evening. We dont eat a lot of it so this will last us through the winter - we mostly use it for applecake and sometimes as a complement to meat and potatoes. I really like this time of the year when I can preserve and take care of some of our needs for the winter. And I really like that the things I make dont have any strange and maybe not healthy ingredients like the ones you buy in the store. Only thing added is sugar and preservatives.

A half finish and flowers

2006-09-17T10:54:00.000+02:00

First of all I have finished my first sock in about 10 years - havent knitted socks since the girls were really young! It was fun and fits great and I just love that self-striping yarn.

Then I have been really busy this week with all kind of things - a work intervjue - but I didnt get it ;-(, some meetings, I even started go to a work-out class (and that took its toll on me - havent done that since the age of 17 I think - and that is MANY years ago!) and lots of small things with the girls - and all this means very little stitching, knitting and sewing.

But yesterday I managed to go out in the woods twice! One time each with the 2 oldest DD. And we carried home a lot of chanterelles to put in the freezer, parasol mushrooms for drying and using in sauce during winter and a lot of cep to dry too. We also picked wild-apples and rowanberries to make rowanberry jelly - that is just soooo deliciuos to eat with any kind of meat. And also some lingonberry to make lingonberry preserve of to serve with meatballs, meatloaf or my favorite - potato cakes with bacon and lingonberry! Om really getting hungry now!

Im also going to show you pics of my Wax plants! First one out is a ordinary one that I got for christmas last year and that didnt want to live at all - it died out to just a couple of leaves left but I managed to save it and now it looks like this - great that is - it even has a bud. You can also see what I see from my bedroom window - a lot of lavendula that smells great.

There is also see my newly bought Hoya loherii that seems to adapt well. I also got a Hoya bilobata but that is just a tiny cutting in a plastic bag right now :-)

And lastly the Wax plant I bought last autumn as just a little tiny cutting with 2 leafs. It is a Hoya incurvula and has grow amazingly much during summer

Door-quilt part 1

2006-09-08T10:39:00.000+02:00

I have started sewing and stitching on my door-quilt and so far so good! I think I will try t fill it from the top down and am right now stitching on the empty spot you see and hopefully will get it done today.

Otherwise I have spent some time knitting in front of the tv but havent gotten too far so you will have to wait a day or two for some progress pics of those.

This weekend will be pretty lonely as my DH and the youngest and oldest DD are away much of it on orienteering competitions and for my youngest its very exciting as she's in 3rd place in this regions youth-league for her age!

But I think I will take the bus on Sunday to a kind of "gardeners plant sale" where anyone can sale off what they have too much of from their gardens as well as professional gardeners sell their plants. I usually end up with bringing home to much LOL! Every year for the last two years I have bought a Hoya-cutting and I hope the Hoya society is there this year too. They are really lovely I think and grow so well in our bedroom window.

Been a bad blogger lately :-(

2006-09-06T09:04:00.000+02:00

But on the upside I have some to show and tell you about. First it is a quilt top I finished this weekend and it will be a christmas gift to my oldest DD that just loves turquoise blue. I am calling it Desert roses because its rose fabris and sandcolors and that special turquoise I think of as native american.

Then I have knitted a cap for my DH to wear under his bike helmet as he has some areas that really needs it LOL. Not a good pattern to follow but I managed to make it to fit him and it is going to keep him warm. It will soon be time to use it when he bikes away in the morning - he already has stared to wear gloves! No frost yet but Im sure it lurks around the corner...

Yesterday I bought and started a pair of socks for me in the same yarn as it was very nice to stitch with. I have feet that gets cold very fast and turns into ice-cubes (and my DH doesnt like them for some reasons LOL) so a pair of part wool socks will be good for me!

I also will start a scarf for my youngest DD in a minute as its a christmas gift and then can only be knitted on when shes at school. Im sure she will love it as it goes in soft pink tones and is going to be fluffy! Very easy too.

I also have another project going right now and that is a 20"*67" wallquilt made for our beedroom doormirror that will show memorable things like the childrens birthdates, our engagement- and weddingedates, a lot of fillingblocks and then some blocks that have meaning for us - like cats, lavender, flowers, and more I hope to think of.

If you have any more suggestions please tell me as Im running out of ideas! The theme is Love, Home and Family.

This weeks SBQ

2006-08-31T08:52:00.000+02:00

This week’s SBQ was suggested by Carolyn and is:
How do you share your finished pieces with others? Do you frame them, scan and/or photograph them, or do you have another method that you would like to share?

I mostly take photos of my finishes before framing -mostly because I usually not cant afford framing :-( and if I do otherwise like a pillow or something else I take a photo after its finished also, it could be some timespan between stitching finish and total finish LOL

Cars!

2006-08-30T10:55:00.000+02:00

It was great visiting Dad and my siblings. I just have to say it is a very large amount of cars they can park at a local airport!! More than I can walk and look at! And as addition to that it was a just as large area with flea market, much of it car related! Puuuuh!

Anyway I wanted to show you my fathers nice car, even though it isnt antique they let us in - maybe because its very nice and we dont have many of those
nice looking Cadillacs over here.

And then we have the car my DH would trade me in for if he got the chance LOL.
A VW!!
But it have to be a old one with split front window! Actually I think they are very nice too but my dream car is a old Citrôen - but didnt get a good pic of one :-(

Weekly SBQ and more

2006-08-25T15:30:00.000+02:00

This weeks SBQ was suggested by Anna M. and is:
What do you keep your WIPs and other stitching supplies in when traveling?

I keep all my things in a rectangular basket I inherited after my grandmother and there I have all bits and pieces I could possibly need while stitching - like extra needles, scissor, counting needles, heartburn tablets, painkillers, lipbalm and sometimes candy (no chocolate though :-( ), my walkman phone and headset :-) . Most of it lies in a bourse I have made with an needlepillow inside.
I would say that it is very useful and perfectly for me! I can even put a picnic blanket on top of it for outdoor stitching :-) loking at kids or DH doing something else, mostly waiting while they orienteer!

Tomorrow we will go visit my father and siblings that lives 2,5 hours away from us and together go to a antique car show (which will bring my middle DD to heaven I guess LOL) so maybe you will see some carpics on monday. I will bring my knitting there too as I have problems with my foot again and will not be able to walk as much as the others. Just hope its not raining!

Weekly SBQ and more

2006-08-17T12:01:00.000+02:00

Ami asks us:
Do you have an organizational system for your fabric? If so, what is it? If not, what do you store your fabric in?

I store my uncut fabrics and larger pieces in a box labeled "tyg" as you can see here, and cut pieces lie in a unorganised heap around it :-) . In the box I separate 28 ct and 32 ct but otherwise I just keep them in a standing position so I easily can "leaf" through them.

And Anna wants to know:
How do people store their fabric, especially those small but potentially usable pieces? Do they sort by count? How do they label it or otherwise know what each piece is?

My small pieces I just throw in a drawer and use without a though of exactly what color and count they are ;-), often the pieces my DD use comes from that drawer too. Smaller scraps I mostly use for ornaments and small pillows and things like that so it really doesnt matter much WHAT exact color they are as long as the thread looks good on it!

I also have a finish to show you - its not stitching as I have had a really rough time with my back and it seems like I use it not the right way when I stitch :-(. It is a knitted scarf to my sister for christmas - I know it is a bit early but its done now.

I also have a lazy and cute photo to show you! When we visited MIL lake house a afternoon this week we spent much time on the landing stage even though it wasnt that warm and got some company! My kids reads on the landing stage and close to were I sat and knitted we got company of a mallard family - mother and 6 children and they thought it was good to sleep 1 m from my feet! Could have something to do with that my kids feed them thorough too! I took the photo with my new photo cellphone, a Sony Ericsson W800 and thinks it turned out totally ok!

2 in 1 SBQ

2006-08-11T10:14:00.000+02:00

Last week’s question as suggested by Carol:
Do you have a favorite needlework tool that you like to work with? What is it and why do you like using it?

Well I guess that would be my thread counter that I cant live without for counting my way long stretches and for marking the upper corner when I start stitching. Otherwise I dont think I use any other than the necessary needle, thread and fabric!

This week’s SBQ was suggested by Ami and is:
For those of you who use hand or over-dyed floss, how do you store it?

I store all my floss (except extras) on bobbins that I then store in toolboxes that in their turn are stored in my stitching cupboard that my DH transformed to fitting for me. It works really well and keeps things tidy and believe me I need that!! Just look!

Otherwise life does get in the way for all my stitching plans. My fingers hurt and even if I have stitched a bit it isn any more than a few stitches at a time. And I havent found much books at the library that keeps my interest long enought to read to the end (bad me) so I feel very bored right now and dont know what to do... :-(
I WANT TO STITCH!

Watermelon and Pear

2006-08-02T10:08:00.000+02:00

I have just made the last stitches on both the pillows during the cool time of the morning and now it is starting to heat up again. But I am so pleased with how they finished up and I even bought myself a new "basket" to display them in yesterday.

I have finished with the piecing of the third A quilters journey but the camera wouldnt cooperate when I wanted to take the pic so that will have to wait until I stitched it also - but Im happy with how it looks.

Our freezer broke down this weekend and I am eagerly waiting now for the call that says that a new fridge and freezer has arrived so I can get them soon. It will be wonderful. Our old ones came with the house when we bought that one and are from when the house was built - 36 years ago!! I must say that they built things of good quality back then! Wonder if my new one will last that long?

During the afternoon I felt like stitching a hedgehog after I just fed the one we have coming visiting us now and then and because I think they are cute. The only chart I had with a hedgehog was a freebie from The Workbasket - Quaker Hedgehog and I choose to stitch it on 16 ct raspberry aida with Needle Necessities 169 Tumbleweed. As always not the greatest pic - the colors are a little washed out, especially the NN, it should be grey, soft pink and soft green! A very lovely and delicate color combination. This is how it should look!

I am thinking about using this thread in A simpler life that I bought earlier but am not sure about what color of fabric that will go with it - any ideas for me?

Journey of a Quilter

2006-08-01T10:25:00.000+02:00

Late last night I finished the stitching on Journey of a Quilter part 1 (my 2nd square) from Leanne's House. Today Im going to sew tohe pieces together for square 3 and maybe if I get the time also finish up some of my smaller projects into pillows or something like that - I havent really made up my mind yet. You'll see tomorrow hopefully.

This weeks SBQ

2006-07-30T16:06:00.000+02:00

Many of us have a few pairs of embroidery scissors and some even have a “collection”. How many pairs of scissors do you have? Feel free to share a photo of your favorite pair or pairs with us!

I have only one pair of scissors - a stork that I bought for many years ago but is still as new in sharpness and color! Very good quality as well as the only ones offered at our stores here in Sweden. Im a little bit sad about that as I really would need another pair to keep in my grab-on-the-go bag. As it is now I forget it sometimes.

The fob I have made myself of the remains from a jewelly set I made for me about a year ago and it has great sentimental value for me as the heart in the end is from my paternal grandmother who is the one that started me in the world of crafting and that I felt very close to her when I was young.

Some answers

2006-07-26T10:55:00.000+02:00

Kim ~ I will rest my fingers! I didnt stitch more than a few stitches yesterday and as its as warm or even warmer today I doubt I will stitch much today either... :-(

Mary Kathryn ~ Simple Little Quaker are stitched on 32 ct Rock-A-Bye Lugana from Silkweaver and I am stitching it 1 over 2 with Needle Necessities 101 - Desdemonas Violets as 2 threads felt too thick and clumsy.
And Pear is stitched on a piece of 28 ct Lugana (I think) tea-dyed by myself.

Simple Little Quaker WIP

2006-07-25T10:20:00.000+02:00

Have worked some more on the SLQ

- I find 32 ct a little to fiddly to work on when my fingers hurt, and that they do almost all the time now.

We have a heat wave again here with temperatures around 30 degrees Celsius and no wind :-(. Its now 9.30 and outside it 29.6 and inside almost the same - if I can guess this afternoon will be unbearably hot. How I wished we had AC now!

But yesterday was a wonderful "cool" day wit around 25 degrees Celsius all day and a fresh breeze after the rain (only a little though) and thunder we had the evening before. I could spend all day sitting outside and stitching (well when not housework needed to be done).

The promised pics

2006-07-22T10:48:00.000+02:00

Here comes the pics I promised last night!

First Pear from Little House needleworks

And then my new start Simple Little Quaker from Papillon Creations

New start!

2006-07-22T00:13:00.000+02:00

Well I had a real itch to start something new today. Could be that I only slept a few hours tonight and during those sleeptless nights together with Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor in "The Taming of the Shrew" (one of my favorite movies by the way!) I finished Pear by Little House Needleworks at about 2.20 am this morning!!!

The finish of all this talk is that I decided to start a new "smallish" one. Its Simple Little Quaker from Papillon Creations on 32 ct Rock-A-Bye Lugana from Silkweaver and I am stitching it 1 over 2 with Needle Necessities Desdemonas Violets as 2 threads felt too thick and clumsy.

Pics of both will follow tomorrow after the camera batteries are loaded again.

This weeks SBQ

2006-07-21T10:39:00.000+02:00

This week’s SBQ as suggested by Cathy:
When you get a project professionally framed do you get glass inserted into the frame? Why or why not?

Well, I only have one professionally framed piece and that one I was given by my MIL and that does not have glass. And I cant see that it has changed anything in the 15+ years I have had it in my livingroom. Only dust it a little once in a while and its as good as new! So based on that I wouldnt put glass over my stitching if I ever can afford to frame them professionally. I also like seeing the stitching clearly and I never put them up where the sun shines directly in them.

You can just imagine how many projects I have in my drawer of finished pieces as Im not very good at framing myself too - but I try hard to be better!

Summer is in the air...

2006-07-20T11:37:00.000+02:00

... in more ways than one!
We have been living in MIL summer house the week that has past and that has been gourgeous! It lies right next to a lake and has a great landing stage that we have been spending much of our days on - and of course in the water! It has been warm but not that very hot that we had before so it has just been perfect!

Now over to my stitching - I have gotten a good deed done sitting on that landing stage. First off is Summer is in the air from Brittercup Designs. Started July 15 and finished the July 16.

And then I have a tree to show in the Tree of Life. Now Im going to finish that vertical flower row and then continue with the bands to the left. Not the greatest pic regarding color - it should be a light sand and the floss is two colors of wine red.

SBQ and Tree of Life

2006-07-12T21:14:00.000+02:00

Today's SBQ was suggested by Carol (http://carolsxsblog.blogspot.com/)
and is:

Since you started blogging, have you noticed any difference in your
stitching habits? Tell us about them.

The biggest difference I can see myself is that I feel more inclined and inspired to finish what I start! And that is really positive. I like showing you what I have done and love even more to look at everyone elses finishes and starts and new stash and much more... I get very inspired to add to my stash when looking around - for good and bad!

Now over to my WIP of Tree of Life
I have gotten a good bit more done and am now up to 43% or 11 204 stitches! And it looks better and better each time I stitch on it.

Tree of Life

2006-07-08T08:33:00.000+02:00

Well here you can see Tree of Life a little more than a third done. Only one more band left before the corner block now - but I think I will continue in to the middle and lastly stitch the alphabet/corner block bit.

Unfortunately I'm not able to stitch much each day when it is this heat as we have now in Sweden - almost 30 degrees Celsius every day now it seems like. We were promised rain last afternoon/night but guess how much it came? Just a few drops - the ground didnt even get wet!

Now im going to whine: I dont like this heat - my joints hurt and my fingers and feet swell. I get cranky and burnt by the sun even if I'm only in the shade. Rant over!

SBQ and more..

2006-07-07T08:43:00.000+02:00

Today's SBQ was suggested by Vash(http://seasidestitcher.blogspot.com) and is: What is the biggest mishap you have had with your stitching material(i.e. spillages)?

I sit here and think and think - but I cant seem to find any mishaps. But on the other hand I think all my UFOs are a big vastage with both time and material - but still they are UFOs because I just cant face to stitch on them again and so they will remain!

On another note I have almost a third done on Tree of Life - 32 % today so tomorrow I will take a pic and hopefully have crossed that milestone! And may I tell you it looks soo good!

2 WIPs

2006-07-02T09:30:00.000+02:00

Today I'm showing you the 2 wips I have going.

Tree of Life

Sampler Game Board

But I have been bad too. I got a newsletter yesterday from Papillon Creations and when I visited her homepage http://www.premiumorange.com/papillon-creations/welcome_frame.htm I saw A Simpler Life and just fell ower the edge!!! And as it was expo price I just couldnt pass the chance, could I? And you know what - I couldnt go to sleep last night because I was thinking on what fabric I had that would look good with this on...

Im really, really tempted to add one more into my basket (my kind of rotation - I have all I stitch on with me almost all the time and can pick up what I feel like for the moment, and change my mind too!). Am I crazy or what!!

Cafe visit

2006-06-30T10:30:00.000+02:00

Remember that I said I would take pics of the next time we visited the Adelsnäs Café that we went to after the school ended. Well yesterday we went there again for a nice cup of coffee and carrot cake.

You can see me a little bit behind my BIL (in green) my DH took the photo.

The café is in a really old house that lies in the fruit garden (you can see the cherries in the background), you can even get a blanket if you want to have a picnic somewere in the garden!

SBQ question of the week

2006-06-30T09:42:00.000+02:00

What do you do with your charts once you've stitched them? Do you keep them or dispose of them? If you keep them, do you organize them in away that is different from the way you keep your unstitched charts?

I ´dont save the charts after I stitch them, but the way I dispose them is different, trade, sell or use in contest for example. I only stitch from working copies so my charts are in "as new" condition even afterwards (mostly if not any of my cats finds it and walk right over it with dirty paws LOL)

Sampler Game Board start

2006-06-28T21:38:00.000+02:00

Well as I have really trouble keeping me from starting Sampler Game Board I am giving in to that urge and will stitch on that one and Tree of Life parallel and maybe also throw in a small one now and then.

I have a piece of 16 ct Silkweaver Expressions Cinnamon Roll that I have tea-dyed to get a little bit less "orangey" in the tone and think it got good afterwards, but I love your comments on the floss toss too...

Watermelon

2006-06-26T20:00:00.000+02:00

Well I couldnt keep my hands off the Watermelon kit! Soooo - it is finished now! It was a quick and fun stitch to do and the Persimmon color is really lovely and looks as tasty as I could eat it!

I am not sure how I will finish this one, as I really want it up soon in my livingroom. Maybe a little pillow waiting for the other fruits or a standup or ?? Any ideas for me?

Stash Today!

2006-06-26T12:21:00.000+02:00

Yay! I got stash in the mail today!

First of all I got the tuck pillow I won from Jana. It is sooo summery and lovely!

Secondly I got a package from Down Sunshine Lane with Brittercup Designs - Britty Kitties V, 2 Cresent Colours Threads and the Little House Needleworks/Cresent Colours Thread Pack - Watermelon.

Tomorrow I will show you a updated pic of Tree of Life - haven't gotten much stitched on it due to the wait on threads but now I have some so I can stitch again. But I do want to stitch Watermelons - what shall I do???

Happy Midsummer!

2006-06-24T10:02:00.000+02:00

Yesterday it was midsummer here and we celebrated it a little with my BIL and MIL. We BBQ and ate a lot of strawberries! And went to a midsummer celebration just a little bit from our home. Heres some pics!
First one is my DD Jeanette with the flowers she arranged for our dinner table. A lot of birchleaves and some roses and other flowers.

Second one is all of us (except DD2 that takes the pic) eating the white chocolate and strawberry cake we had for the picnic at the celebration.

And the third one is the dances round the midsummer pole. But this year none of us participated. My DD think they are too old for that kind of things! But they did pick seven flowers before going to bed and slept on them during the night - and all of them dreamt about a boy! So I guess that means they all will get married some time!

CBQ

2006-06-22T10:08:00.000+02:00

Have you ever used a magnifying glass while stitching? If so, did you find it helpful?

No I have never used a magnifying glass or anything like that. I wear glasses all the time so I hope that will be enough for many years to come.

Spot of Coffee

2006-06-19T11:27:00.000+02:00

I have just finished Spot of Coffee for a friends birthday later this year - now only to find a nice frame and get my DH to frame it for me - and that usually takes time...

2006-06-17T10:05:00.000+02:00

Yesterday morning it was the last day of school for my kids. First a nice celebration around the schools flagpole with the national anthem and some kid performances, then the walk in orderly forms to church - with flags and all nice dressed kids its lovely. In church then some more performances, some sommer hymns and as a finish off the kids leaving school to go to the next level (6th grade/13 yod) including my daughter all was called to the front and recieved a rose and a personal letter from their teacher.

After all that was over we went to a local cafeteria as we always do to celebrate summer leave! This time we choose the newopened one (we only have one more here and that one is usually PACKED with people celebrating). The one we went to had about 5 families drinking coffee and eating cakes in an old cherrygarden beloning to Lord Adelswärd. Heres a photo of my kids outside the gates after we had coffee a little bit to the left (enjoyed it so much so I forgot to take a pic there but Im sure we will go there more times this summer and then I promise to take a pic.

The afternoon we spent at a beach as it was VERY warm - and then I finished the stitching on Morning Berries! So here it is - just lovely! And when we got home I picked out all I need for Spot of Coffee that I will stitch for a friends birthday later this year.

SBQ

2006-06-15T12:24:00.000+02:00

Today's SBQ was suggested by Angela(http://patternnutspalace.blogspot.com/) and is:

How many cross stitch books do you own and how often do you use them?

I have seven books and most of them I haven't used at all or just a little - but they are great to look in and get inspired!
The ones I have are:
* Quilting with a difference - it only deals with freehand stitching and a lot of different stitches and that is fun to try out!
* Summer Louise Truswell's Ultimate Big Book - used mainly for inspiration
* The Romance of Paula Vaughan - never stitched anything from it as the colored charts "frightens" me
* Le Couleurs de Corinne Valette - never stitched anything from it but have thought about it many times
* Sweet & Simple Country Cross-Stitch by Lori Gardner - has started a piece for my DD but she changed her mind and I didnt have anyone else to stitch it for so it lies nicely folded in my UFO-box in wait for another little girl
* Donna Kooler's 555 Cross-Stitch Designs for the Young at heart - this one I got for my kids and they have stitched several of the motifs from it
* Donna Kooler's 555 Christmas Cross-Stitch Designs - has used it a little for cardmaking

More MB

2006-06-14T09:37:00.000+02:00

Am halfway finished with this one too, they really are nice stitches and I love GAST and Crescent Colours thread!

Morning Berries

2006-06-13T08:14:00.000+02:00

Well, I decided to start Morning Berries from Little House Needleworks as I really like that one - and it lay first in my chart folder :-). I got a good start last night watching CSI NY and made a tree! Made a counting mistake on the lover leaves but as it still is symmetrical I didnt bother to restitch it. Can you see it?

Finish!

2006-06-12T16:32:00.000+02:00

Just finished Ladybugs and Bumblebees. Has been working hard on it in the shade today LOL. Now the large question is what to stitch on next. A new small start or continue with Taj Mahal (Martina Webers) - or both?

It is a really hot day today too - so hot that I think I will melt away...

Ladybugs and Bumblebees

2006-06-12T08:30:00.000+02:00

When I couldn't work more on Tree of Life I picked up Ladybugs and Bumblebees again and have made a fair amount of progress on that one. It really is a nice one and it looks much nicer IRL - but isnt it always like that. How careful you take your pics they never fully show the colors of the stitches!

Tree of Life

2006-06-11T16:24:00.000+02:00

This is the work of one skein of each color and a total of 4350 stitches. That is as much I can do until I have bought more of those colors tomorrow.

Tree of Life start

2006-06-10T09:42:00.000+02:00

Thursday evening I started stitching on Tree of Life and so far I am really enjoying myself on that one. It goes rather quick and I think its calming to only have two colors to think about.

The weather here is outstanding right now. We have 20 degress Celsius in the shade at 8 a´clock in the morning today, a clear blue sky with just a tiny bit of white clouds. Sat outside and had my breakfast and read the paper - lovely.

This weeks SBQ

2006-06-08T13:20:00.000+02:00

The first part comes from Vash who is requesting pictures of the back of your stitching are you brave enough to give this one a shot?

Yes, I would be that brave - if only my camera would cooperate!! Will put up a pic when it does.

The second part comes from Singular Stitches, and she is asking for "a pictorial tour of [the] special place that you go to create your wonderful stitched creations."

Well, lets see if I can find some in my computer. But actually I am not that very fuzzy about where to stitch. If I only have my basket with all my stuff in and somewhere soft to put my buttom on I can stitch. But I have favorite places when I am home.

My terrace place is really wonderful to sit at when its warm enough outside (like now) and my livingroom corner when I watch tv - or listen too if its not that interesting.

This and that

2006-06-08T11:55:00.000+02:00

First a new WIP pic of Ladybugs and bumblebees, not much stitched on it as I only do it while wathing tv - and that I dont do much when its warm outside.

Then I can tellyou that I dont like to stitch with dms linen thread at all! They just fray and I get fibers all over me, do not lay as I want them and I sneeze of them... just isnt how I want it to go. So as I made a good progress of the Quilt sampler I feel very unreluctant to restart it - right now at least.

And for all of you reading this - if things dont look the way I want them to look I no longer want to stitch on them and they are sentenced to eternal UFO status!! In this cas I think I will frog it all out and restart with some nice thread instead as I really like that sampler

Soo - that leads to what to stitch on instead. I want something simple, it must be from my stash and dont have to much color changes as I stitch almost all outside during summer. Actually I have a plan - no not really that very much thought out. Just the design I had in (very close) second place after Quilt sampler. You want to know what it is??

Ok, here it comes - Tree of life from Lanarte
I have just tea-dyed a white piece of Lanarte-weave (thats what they call it at my LNS at least - some kind of cotton evenweave) and have decided to use Anchor in my favorite color 970 as the light one and 972 as the darker one. The fabric is right now drying outside so you will have to wait to see that - Im pleased with it in wet condition!

The pic is a approximate of how it will look. I plan on doing it as a combined wedding and christening sampler as my DH and I got married and christened our first daughter at the same time 14 years ago.

New start

2006-06-02T14:44:00.000+02:00

I have decided to make a new start as I really enjoyed stitching the Quaker Game Board so have been roaming my stash this morning and trying to figure out what I have that really speaks to me at the moment. And I decided to start 19th Century Quilt Sampler of Linda Myers. But as I have real problems with sticking to a pattern I have decided to convert it to linen thread as I have just got those in the mail. Will just pick colors when I start a motif and then stitch on - thats how I think I will do it right now at least.

2006-06-02T08:55:00.000+02:00

Today's SBQ was suggested by Carol and is: Do you collect charts by one particular designer, yet have neverstitched anything by that designer? If so, which designer and why do you collect the charts but have not yet stitched any of them?

No, I dont think I can say that I collect charts. I buy the ones I want to stitch (but do need at least another lifetime to get through all LOL) but changes my mind and taste sometimes too that lead to that I dont stitch the ones I thought I wanted soooo bad to stitch some time ago...

If I would collect charts that maybe would be Little House Needleworks ones as I really like most of them and have intention to stitch them. But that wouldnt count for this SBQ as I have finished one and am halfway through the next...

Ladybugs and bumblebees

2006-05-30T08:00:00.000+02:00

Started Ladybugs and bumblebees right after it was released but didnt do many stitches at all before it turned into a WIP, but now I have picked it up again as I really like this designs. It is also really quick to stitch and with lovely colors - my DD just adores the pink ones :-).

Mothers Day

2006-05-28T15:05:00.000+02:00

It started out as a great sunny day but now it is pouring down rain :-( ! At least we could have our coffee outside on our terrace. The cake had my DDs made this morning and I got lovely nice smelling roses and some other flowers. I got some homemade cards too. And I didnt have to do the washing up after the baking either :-) !
Some more pics from my garden:

Two of my Aquilegias - I just love them! They are soo delicate and charming.
And my white lilacs are just starting to bloom on the frontcorner.
Then a little pic of my DDs today - squealing in the sun

And last but not least my terrace stitching and coffee corner. I just love to sit there when the weather allows and stitch the hours away and hearing the birds sing and looking out in the garden...

Its finished

2006-05-26T20:54:00.000+02:00

I have just taken the last stitches on Quaker Game Board!!! My first large finish this year!! And it looks sooooo pretty too! Colors on the pic arn't that good but you get the idea... I hope. And the year is wrong too - didnt think about that the camera had been without batteries over the day... oh well better luck next time maybe.

Stitching Blogs Question

2006-05-25T09:11:00.000+02:00

What is your favorite specialty stitch? Which one is your least favorite? Why?

Well I know definitly what my least favorite is - thats the bullion knot. I just cant get it to look as I want, mine looks like a tread bundle and nothing at all like those cute, nice roses one can see sometimes...
And my favorite one - I dont know as I really like doing speciality stitches and there are many that I like doing - rhodes, rice, spiderweb - I can go on in a very long row - but I wont! I will end it wit just saying that I like speciality stitches and I love the texture they bring into a project!

Quaker Game Board again

2006-05-23T10:25:00.000+02:00

Starts to see the finish line now - and have gotten a good amount done since last pic. Other than that not much has happened here.

Has a visit to the employment office today but hasn't much hope of that being useful. Work for my education isn't available right now :-(

Started a quite large Crazy Quilt project as I have lots of scraps of different sizes and shapes but am not sure if I will go further with it or just see it as a tryout - haven't done that before. But it actually goes rather smoothly - for now at least... knock on wood.

This and that

2006-05-19T09:46:00.000+02:00

Thank you so much Julie for the lovely kit I won in the Tranquil Stitches lottery. It will be a pleasure to stitch.

I have also bought two magazines that I got in the mail yesterday - Cross Stitcher and The World of Cross Stitching (those two are my favorites if I buy magazines) but unfortunately there wasn't much I think I will stitch this time so I have them up for trade if anyones interested.

I also got in the mail yesterday the five new DMC threads I bought out of curiosity - they look nice and seems to be useful. The colors on my pic arn't doing them justice though as they are much clearer IRL - could be that it is very cloudy here and it isn't easy to take good pics then

2006-05-19T09:31:00.000+02:00

Lately, it seems that many stitching bloggers have experienced a lossof their stitching mojo. Have you ever lost your stitching mojo? Ifso, how did you get it back and how long did it take?
Well I actually dont think much of it when I looses the 'mojo'. I have done it many times during my life as a stitcher. I started to stitch when I was about 7-8 years and it seems like I lost my 'mojo' every time I started a new grade or turned into a new lifepath.

Like when I had my children - those years I didnt stitch much more than their samplers - on the other hand, in retrospect, I can see why, 3 of the same sampler in 4 years! Nowadays when life just 'tuffs' on I seem to loose my 'mojo' every now and then but just for a little bit of time - like a month or so and then it comes buk in full speed. But I dont worry about it and just wait it out and do other crafts in the meantime.

Just remembered those...

2006-05-18T11:25:00.000+02:00

cute and fun eggs - lets just hope it is something nice in it too...

My Garden

2006-05-18T10:15:00.000+02:00

Today I just walked around my garden and took some pics of what are flowering - not much yet but it will be!
First there is our Cherry tree that blooms very well this year - just hope we can get some before the magpies eats them...

Then there is my lovely Primulas that I got from my MIL and she in turn has inherited those from her mothers garden. I planted these this autumn and I think they bloom fantastic to be the first year

Then we have my two different colored Auriculas that I just love, the yellow one I have had for several years now but the other one is the first year.

Then there is my Aquilegia halfsquare (with some other flowers too, like the Primula's, a light pink Lavendula and some other flowers I dont recall their names for now. Not much floweing yet but just wait a few weeks...

And then last a update of the Quaker Game Board

- it hasn't got as much attention as I would have liked but a lot of progress none the less. It really is a pure joy stitching on this!

Stitching Blogger ?

2006-05-17T13:15:00.000+02:00

When you stitch from a kit and use the supplied floss do you have leftovers? If so, how much and what do you do with them? If not, do you usually have just enough or do you have to dig into your stash to finish?

I usually have much leftovers and I save them - can't throw floss away :-). And I save them with the chart and other leftovers (beads etc) and if I trade it all leftovers goes with it too.

More Game Board

2006-05-13T10:56:00.000+02:00

Have been working almost all my spare time on the Game Board (not to much that I would like though) and have been making steady progress and are very pleased with how it looks - its not all all as faded out as in the photo. Otherwise not much has happened here I Im not going to mention that I managed to get a thin wooden stick made for grilling in my finger yeasterday when I tryed to put mushrooms on it - aoch. Am I a little bit clumsy or what...

Quaker Game Board

2006-05-09T11:03:00.000+02:00

Just nu håller jag mest på att brodera - det är det som fungerar bäst att göra på altanen.

Just nu är det Qaker Game Board från Papillon Creations som jag håller på med. Började sy i fredags och tycker det börjar arta sig riktigt bra! Ändra dock på en del och har plockat ihop färger som jag har hemma - struntar totalt i Bullion knots för de kan jag inte få till snyggt! Får hitta på nåt annat att ha i de rutorna...

Cross stitch is what I am doing much right now as I really like sitting outside on my terrace and just stitching on...

Right now it is the Qaker Game Board från Papillon Creations I am working on. Started May 5 and thinks I am mowing along quite well. Im using colors I had at home and am NOT doing the bullion knots as I just cant get them to look good - any ideas what to use instead?

Toppen klar

2006-04-09T14:52:00.000+02:00

Min Log Cabin blir betydligt mindre än beräknat för huvudtyget är slut :-( - undrar hur jag har räknat... Nu är toppen iaf klar så "liten" som den blev 120*120 cm men ska också sätta på bård/bårder, vet inte hur än bara. Har ni några förslag så var snäll och berätta för mig! Vet inte heller hur jag ska kvilta den men det blir en senare fråga eftersom jag inte har vadd hemma och inte heller några kronor till det just nu :-(

Mera gjort idag

2006-04-08T18:34:00.000+02:00

Har nu sytt 6 st av fyra-rutorna till mitt Log Cabin och har ordentligt ont i ryggen nu (borde ha slutat innan de var klara men det är ju så kul att få färdigt nåt) så nu blir det inget mer maskinsytt idag :-( . Fortsätter med den andra sortens rutor i morgon.

Kanske syr lite på min väska framför tv:n om det inte är för spännande på CSI och Law & Order - perfekt tv-kväll enligt mig :-) - sen är det sovdags!

Dagsläget för Sofies hav

2006-04-08T13:54:00.000+02:00

Alla lysmaskar är på plats och är applicerade på plats!!! Äntligen - vilken tid det tar att snurra runt maskarna... Har även börjat markera ut kviltmönstret men det kommer att ta sin tid tror jag så det kommer vi att hjälpas åt med lite i taget under påsklovet - tur att jag har snälla och hjälpsamma barn.

Nu ska jag ägna mig lite åt mina Log Cabin rutor (se nedan) och se om jag kan göra några fler - det tar ju lite tid då det är smala remsor och många små bitar som ska sys dit på varje - men vackert blir det! Lägger upp en bild senare får vi se hur mycket jag hunnit...

Journey of a quilt 1

2006-04-04T11:15:00.000+02:00

Jag har precis gjort klart del 2 av Journey of a Quilt från Leanne´s House (Australien) och ska nu börja med del 1. Själva syendet på maskin tar inte så lång tid så det är jag nog klar med i em men broderandet tar tid men blir såååå härligt när det är klart (det tog ca 2 veckor med den här men har å andra sidan inte suttit så långa stunder i taget)! Se själva!!

Första UFOt klart!!

2006-03-31T12:59:00.000+02:00

Gjorde klart mina soff-rosor nu på morgonen - nåväl jag hade bara 1 sida kvar att sy på kantremsan så det var snabbt gjort. Ska inviga den i soffan ikväll. Nu ska jag nog ägna mig åt att få min väska klar - min gamla trogna i läder håller på att falla i sina beståndsdelar och mer därtill så jag behöver verkligen en ny så snart som möjligt + att det alltid är kul med nåt nytt!

Kameran har inte haft batterier...

2006-03-29T10:36:00.000+02:00

så nu kommer det en megauppdatering!
Börjar med min väska som jag fortsatt på - har nu börjat handkvilta den och kommit ca halvvägs.

Har även fortsatt på min Log Cabin Sampler och är nu klar med 4 rutor och har även sytt ihop dem - var så väldigt nyfiken på hur de skulle se ut tillsammans och jag är jättenöjd - fast inte med fotofärgerna, de är inte särkilt lika men ni ser iaf mönstret!

Jeanette och jag gjorde klar hennes pennskrin - eller mer en liten väska som hon är nöjd med då hon äntligen får plats med pennvässaren också!

Sist men inte minst ett färdigt arbete också! En av katterna från Quiltemagasinet är klar och ska snart byta hem till min bästa väns där jag tror den kommer att trivas alldeles utmärkt.

Duk till brorsan..

2006-03-12T09:05:00.000+01:00

... gjorde jag i går, han fyller år snart - 30 mars. Blev inte superduper i sömmarna men är helnöjd med tygvalet och för en gångs skull blev kanten så jag är nöjd med den :-). Alla vet ju att jag är nybörjare :-). Annars hjälpte jag mest Jeanette med att göra ett lite större pennskrin än det hon har.

Tvättat och strukit en hel del idag...

2006-03-10T13:40:00.000+01:00

... för jag har beställt mycket tyger. 2 st restpaket och lite kaffetyger som jag ska sy åtminstone en duk till min bror av, troligen också till mig själv. Brorsan fyller snart år så den får jag sätta lite fart med, ska nog göra den i helgen. Tygerna kan ni se här, inte jättebra bild men iaf.

Har också fått tag på en hel del bättre begagnade skjortor så nu kan jag fortsätta med min skjortblues som är tänkt att bli ett nytt draperi till hallen. Har också ägnat mig åt att skära isär skjortorna idag och stryka dem prydliga! Här kan du se vilka skjorttyger det blev till slut samt de tre neutrala tygerna som jag håller på och väljer mellan än så länge. Hur den är tänkt att bli kan du se här http://quiltville.com/smokeymtstars.shtml

Soffrosorna...

2006-03-06T15:36:00.000+01:00

...är nästan klar. Har precis kviltat klart den och ska nu bara renskära och sy på kanten. Är skapligt nöjd med den och det bästa är nog att den är precis lagom att mysa under framför tvn. Jag fryser så mycket om kvällarna under vintern så det är inte riktigt klokt egentligen. Koala verkar iaf också gilla pläden :-), hon har lagt sig på den direkt varje gång jag lagt ut den på golvet eller sängen för att jobba på den - lite märkligt är det tycker jag - eller ochså är hon en linslus!
Fick nya numret av Populat Patchwork idag och det är ju både bra och dåligt, bra för att man får ny inspiration och sämre för att det finns en stor risk att WIP-högen blir ännu större!

Lysmaskar i mängder...

2006-03-05T11:58:00.000+01:00

...gjorde Sofie och jag till hennes överkast som nu är ihopsytt i tre delar och en del av lysmaskarna är fastvliesade, har ochså hunnit sy dit fyra av dem ordentligt.

Började också min första frihandskviltning på mina "soffrosor" i går kväll (tycker ju inte melodifestivalen är så rolig, desto roligare hade jag vid maskinen :-). Blev inte jättebra men den är ju ett övningsobjekt innan jag ger mig på "Sofies hav" och jag ska "bara" ha den över mina frusna ben och fötter. Det positiva är iaf att det gick bättre och bättre hela tiden :-)

Fortsatte med gårdagens "jobb"

2006-03-02T20:24:00.000+01:00

Under dagen idag har jag fortsatt med köksgardinen och är nu klar till 60% måste göra lite till remsor imorgon och sen kan jag göra klar den. Har ju så stort köksfönster så det går åt rejäla doningar (å andra sidan ska jag vara glad över att det inte var till vardagsrummet som har 6m fönster).
När jag tröttnat på att sy smala sömmar fortsatte jag med Sofies överkast och har nu sytt ihop de 10 remsorna och strukit alltihop ordentligt.
Hittade även ett litet ägg på ett BB som verkar lite kul - får se vad det blir om en dryg månad...
Nu ska jag sätta mig och brodera en liten stund innan det är sovdags efter Medium.

2006-03-01T18:13:00.000+01:00

Har precis blivit klar med de sista rutorna till Sofies hav (överkast) och hon har bestämt hur de ska placeras. Så här blev resultatet!

När vi ändå hade kameran ute tog vi lite andra kort också.

2 rapporter av min köksbargello är klara, måste bara göra ca 8-9 rapporter till. Tror att jag ska avsluta den med en "tallriksbård" nertill då den blir lite kort annars och ett av tygerna räcker inte då.

Håller också på att sy på två andra saker för hand, just nu iaf. Det är en bonad med årstidskransar

och en vårbonad med en fågelholk på från Quilters Online Resources

Håller även på med ett indianmotiv i korstygn som jag tänkt komplettera med 3 mindre liknande broderier senare. Tycker om att ha mycket att hålla på med och att variera mig med - eller är det bara att jag inte kan bestämma mig!! Vet inte men roligt att handarbeta är det iaf!

Startpunkt

2006-03-01T11:33:00.000+01:00

Hej på er som läser!!
Ska i min blog försöka skildra vad jag håller på och handarbetar på åtminstone några gånger i veckan har jag tänkt - i bild och text.
Jag som skriver här bor någonstans i Sverige och håller mest på med korstygn och lappteknik - gärna i kombination!
Hör gärna av dig om det är något du undrar över.