ram jam!

after my crab salad disaster, i switched gears back to the nativity club with the newest canvas, the ram. 

i tent stitched all the turquoise, purple, yellow and gold around the blanket, and added french knots in the center triangle. 

i can already tell this little guy is going to go quick! what a cutie!

well that went differently as planned...

don't you hate it when you have a set plan, and then it gets bamboozled? ugh. cut to me monday night...

so there i was working on "crab salad" by princess and me. the stitch guide calls for nova for the crab, so i did as i was told like a good girl and used the called-for thread, and started basketweaving the back legs a la the stitch guide. 5 curse words later, i moved on to the top right claw in diagonal roumanian. 

5 more curse words later...

i ripped it all out. 

yes. ripped every fiber from that damn canvas and called it a night.

i hate to admit defeat...but i just don't have the patience to try and tame the devil fiber le nova thread. i wasn't crazy about the color anyways, and will visit my lns soon to choose a new fiber of my liking. 

i still love this little canvas, and while my affair with nova was short and sweet...i will not give up the good fight!

onward and upward!

a weekend finish!

meet my newest nativity finish...

joseph

i just love love LOVE him!

once i got the hang of the robe stitch, i flew through the rest of him and finished up the background sunday morning! here's my progress from friday night...

since i'm just about caught up with this club, i've given myself permission to work on another small canvas simultaneously SHOCK! GASP! me? work on 2 projects at the same time? 

check back to see what i pulled out of le stash!

getting the hang of it!

i finally feel like i'm finally getting the hang of this stitch for joseph's robe! not sure what tripped me up so much, but once i got into a groove, it seemed to fly by. 

i'm really liking the cool effect it has, even in one color. you'll notice i also started from the bottom right corner and moved my way up instead of starting at the top. since there is going to be considerable compensation at the top as the space gets smaller, i'm glad i made the decision to start in the corner. 

hoping to finish at least the robe this weekend...but with a forecast of rain, who knows how far i'll go?

have a great stitchy weekend!

stitching joseph's robe

sorry i don't have an updated picture of my progress on joseph...i had to run out of the house in a flash to catch the streetcar! last night found me starting on joseph's blue robe after i inhaled a spinach artichoke wrap. the stitch guide calls for the oriental stitch in neon rays...easy, right?

WRONG

for some reason i just could not get into my stitchy groove. unlike the above diagram, the stitch guide calls for 4 satin stitches in between the milanese triangles. the other difficulty is that it is all stitched in the same thread (normally oriental is stitched in two different colors). 

i found myself counting, counting, then counting some more...and then second guessing myself because i thought it looked weird. after an hour or so, it finally started to take shape and i feel like my mind is starting to remember the stitch pattern.

do you ever have that problem with remembering more complicated stitch patterns? i find myself constantly consulting the diagram before i make a move with the needle...because the looming threat of having to rip everything out is in the back of my mind!

am i just being neurotic? i'm hoping that as i cover more canvas and as the stitch comes alive, i'll be able to relax...

moving right along...

progress on joseph started sunday night where i managed to complete his face and facial hair...

mustache is padded satin and the beard is done in double leviathan, which took a while to get the hang of, but i love the effect! both are stitched with bella lusso wool, which i lurve!

i'm running into some stitch guide complications, as it doesn't specify how many strands/plies to use on threads...so i'm just winging it and seeing what works. 

has anyone else dealt with this? just hoping i don't royally screw anything up!

another nativity finish!

it's like i said...this club is like crack! i just can't stop!

"mary"

here was my progress as of friday night...i originally stitched her white dress in the ivory ribbon floss leftover from the first king. but the color just wasn't white enough. it was then that i actually found the correct white silk lame braid that the stitch guide called for!!! so i had to frog it and re-stitch (ugh) but now i'm so pleased with the finished product! 

i may or may not have started on the next canvas...

can you guess who it is?

it's like crack!

i am officially addicted to this club! 

this is mary...halfway done. i am so looking forward to a relaxing weekend of stitching!


what's your weekend looking like?

i'm on a roll!

happy valentine's day! to help kick off this holiday, i present to you...

the first nativity finish!

this is the first wiseman, and i absolutely love him! the stitch guide was so easy to read, and because of the small size, the stitching flew by!

i'm already half-way through the next canvas...maybe another weekend finish?

happy mardi gras!

we are enjoying the last day of carnival season in our beloved city! back tomorrow with major updates!

mail time!

look at this cute little guy that came in the mail this week!

now that i've started the first canvas, i can already tell it's going to be hard to put these down!

enjoy your weekend! it's going to be a fun one here in n'awlins! i've got a BIG finish coming in the mail...can't wait to show you!

a sweet finish, and a long awaited new start!

it's a little bittersweet to announce this finish...

it went by so fast! 

mini-stocking by susan roberts

i loved every second of this quick stitch. each area was so small that there was no time to get bored! my absolute favorite part is, of course, little cricket in the center! 

 

notice the difference between how it started and how it ended! i love having the opportunity to make a canvas personalized just for you! i made sure to define cricket's little nub, and stitched the fur in slanted gobelin with gumnut tulips. since she is a blue merle australian shepherd, i combined 1 strand of grey and 1 strand of blue to give it a subtle tint. the dog bone button came from JABC. i love it!

if you follow me on instagram you'll remember the above picture that i uploaded. after mulling it over, i ripped out the memory thread bow and went with a real ribbon. i'm a sucker for ribbon bows!

and for my new (and long awaited) start, the first king from the princess and me nativity club!

i managed to stitch his face, and the top part of the head-dress last night while i watched the first few episodes of "house of cards" on netflix. if you're a fan of david fincher (the social network, girl with the dragon tattoo) you will LOVE this show! 

that's it for me! counting down to the weekend so we can go catch some beads!

just a little nub...

oh i am so in love with this mini-stocking, it's quickly becoming one of my most favorite projects!

i made serious progress this weekend and will finish it up this week

after a very successful thread run (and a quick pep talk from diana) i got back to finishing up the bottom of the sock. my flat iron was getting some serious neon rays action! i stitched the orange and purple triangles with a satin stitch in alternating directions to give it some depth. then i played around with the purple/yellow section and created a fun pattern based on how it was painted. i experimented and did a simple straight stitch but love the cool effect! next up was the royal blue scotch stitch. i just love the color combination with the emerald green!

the dark green block with "ho ho ho ho" was stitched in horizontal cashmere in splendor to match the very bottom of the sock. then i beaded the letters.

so as of last night, i finished up the background for the shining star of this piece. i did diagonal mosaic in leftover vineyard silk from this project. i bought a fabric pen from michael's to cover up the doggy tail since my little girl only has a little nub! i'm so pleased with how well it covered!

don't fret about the doggy bone showing through...i've got some cute plans for it! so all i have left is stitching cricket's fur, and adding the dog bone!

i just can't say it enough...i love this canvas!

tnna market love

have you made your wish-list of purchases from winter market? i'm really trying to be good and work my way through my stash, but it doesn't hurt to window shop...does it?

i love the melissa shirley valentines banners! the colors are so sweet and cheery that i would want to leave them up all year round!

this painted pony angel is magnificent! the fleur de lis motif really speaks to me and i could see so many opportunities for fun stitches!

the kathy schenkel tiny nativity is too cute! hoping this could be a new potential club for 2014...but only if i make myself finish the nativities from this year's clubs!

i am IN LOVE with these kelly clark stocking cuffs! i'm secretly hoping that a full stocking comes out of this line because it's got my name all over it! (ok, ok technically it will have someone else's name at the top...but i love it!)

ok, can we talk about how obsessed i am with these kelly clark hats?!?! i die. if i break my word and purchase anything from market...it's going to be these! 

as if i need another item to stitch for my make-believe future children, my heart was all-a-flutter with the new &more "baby dreaming" canvases. they're so classic and clean and make my heart happy. 

what are your favorites from market?