Hello Everyone!
How are you? The temps are slowly warming here still. Thank goodness (our electric bill arrived yesterday - ugh!). When I came downstairs this morning I discovered that Fletch had turned off ALL the heat last night. That's the first time in months we have not even had the downstairs bathroom heat on. Woo-Hoo!
And yesterday I managed to get out for a walk on the River Trail in Valley Forge. First time in weeks. No pictures - it was an empty trail but for myself (which is the way I like it). There was a lot of Spring birdsong, but I didn't see any birds other than a few ducks on the water. I saw one girl with a dog on my way back, and that was it!
Well my friends, I have a finish for you! Summer Iris by Blackbird Designs was finished (the stitching part) on Saturday.
I'm not sure what count fabric this is, but the piece is roughly 4x5. I used one strand of Weeks Dye threads over two linen threads. The design called for the year to be stitched on the left and a single initial of the stitcher on the right. Instead, I stitched Iris on the left, the date on the right and my initials (very pale on purpose) also on the right. And...drumroll...I actually finished this into a little pin pillow yesterday!
I went through my fabrics and found this pretty embroidered fabric to back the cushion.
The pin pillow now resides in the dough bowl I have that is filled with little pieces.
A new piece has already been started! It is The Kindness Sampler by Birds of a Feather. Kindness is appropriate ANY time, but I thought Kindness would be particularly appropriate during "these times." Here is a picture of the overall design.
The sticker in the upper right corner tells me that I paid $7 for this design. The other day I looked on line just for kicks. The design is out of print, but you can get it used for $12 or you can find it on eBay for $72! That's just plain crazy.
Anyway, I picked out some linen (40 count Light Examiner) and the called for Weeks Dye threads and made a small start on it yesterday afternoon.
So far, so good. But let me tell you, 40 count is tiny! I'm definitely using my magnification headband when I stitch on this.
Time for me to pour another cup of coffee and try to get my day started! I hope you all have a good one.
Summer Iris is so adorable! I love the idea of a pin pillow. All my little stacked animal pieces are supposed to be pillows but I haven't made one of them yet. I've got one pig stack left to finish and then I might think to start working on them.
ReplyDeleteYour Iris is such a lovely piece and I'm glad you made it into a pin pillow (even though it's far too nice to stick pins into). Congratulations on a great finish! Your new piece is wonderful; I'll look forward to seeing Kindness on Tuesdays!
ReplyDeletePretty finish. I love the fabric you chose for the back, and what a lovely and appropriate way to commemorate Iris's arrival.
ReplyDeleteGreat job on the Iris piece and the finishing. I’m eager to see your progress on Kindness.
ReplyDeleteIt's blue sky and warm (well winter warm - 5 C) outside and I'm dying to get out there, but I'm stuck at my desk working. Going to sneak out at lunch and check on my pussywillows though
ReplyDeleteLovely finish! I don't feel like I'm finishing much lately. To be honest, 2025 is already flying by!