Happy Thanksgiving wishes going out to all my U.S. family and friends. I hope it's a very special day!

November's ornament

I got started on this month's ornament right on the first of the month and put in the first few stitches. Unfortunately that's right where it stayed until this past weekend when I pulled it out once more and figured I'd better get a move on with it.

This is designed by one of my favourite designers, Little House Needleworks. I stitched it over one on a natural linen. I have the corresponding candy cane button which goes with the piece but I haven't decided if I will use it or not. I'll decide when the final finishing takes place. I love how it turned out and I have enough linen left to stitch another ornament on the fabric.

On Monday I got started on a second ornament and this one finished up very quickly in just a couple of hours.

This is from the JCS July/August 2013 ornament preview issue. It's called Peace on Earth and is designed by The Sunflower Seed. This is actually just the front of the ornament. The back is the same design with Good Will to Men stitched at the bottom. I'll be stitching that up today.

I'm in the mood for a finishing frenzy so watch out for pics of that in the coming week or two! I have several ornaments from last year that are still waiting for their final finishes.

November WIPocalypse

I'm a little tardy with my WIPocalypse post but we've had a busy weekend which left little time for posting. Finally I have some time to photograph my progress for the month and share it with you.

Many of you have been watching and commenting on my progress this month on Ghoul Tidings. Here's where I am at this point in time.

You may be able to see that the border at the top has been frogged out. Believe it or not, this is the third time that I start stitching that border! I don't know what's wrong with me lately but it's obvious that I don't know how to count! I was so disgusted the second time this happened that I have decided to put it aside until the new year and concentrate on some other projects including a possible Christmas stitch.

Mary's Sampler II SAL is coming to a close. I still have to finish part 8 which was released this past Sunday. That leaves only one more piece to the design which will be released this coming Sunday.

Some of the dye lot changes in the called for floss leave this one with some interesting shades which I'm not sure I'm happy with. Once the piece is completed I may swap out the shepherd's robe for a brighter colour and restitch a couple of the stars on the left. Let  me know what your thoughts are on this. I think that if I had had a piece of darker fabric for this design it would have looked better.

I started a Christmas ornament this month, LHN Peppermint Twist, but this is as far as I have got.

That's right, not another stitch has been put in since the last time I posted this!

I have finally picked up my Torah Stitch once more, concentrating on my borders.

I'm going to stitch this border on both sides just to the end of the text. Then I have a different border in mind for the bottom of the design.

As I mentioned, we had not just a busy weekend but a busy week prior to that. First I had a visit from my sister Laurie who lives in the U.S. I don't get nearly enough time to visit with her! These pics were taken when we met with my sons. 

I'm so proud of my sis. Over the past two years she has lost 90 lbs on WW and I think she looks fabulous! She is now a consultant for Weight Watchers. Here's a before picture to show you the difference.

Yup, that's right, she lost her weight and I gained it! As soon as this hip of mine is replaced, I'm back to trying once more. Dieting alone doesn't cut it for me. I need exercise too which I just can't do at this point with my hip so bad.

Besides my sister's visit, we had a trip home to Windsor to celebrate the 95th birthday of my MIL. Here's a photo with her three sons.

It was a great family get together and is a blessing since we never know at this age just how much longer she will be with us.

I must apologize to all of my blogging friends for my lack of commenting on your blogs any longer. I am still checking in on occasion but more and more I find that blogging is taking up just too much of my time. There is also the fact that with my hip issues I just can't sit for long periods of time nor can I stand or walk for long periods. I'm constantly changing positions. I am hoping that in the new year I can devote more time to visiting with you. I do miss chatting with you and your posts always inspire me in my stitching.

That about wraps it up for now. If you've got through all of this, I commend you! I hope to be back next week with more stitchy pics.

At a Snail's Pace

That's how I feel about my stitching lately. There's either just not enough time to pick it up or when I do, I'm so tired that very few stitches get put in. I'm just plodding along.
Yesterday was a bit better and last night while watching TV I managed to get a significant amount done on Ghoul's Tiding. Clarisse contributed the leaf to the picture. She dug it out of a display of dried leaves, berries and gourds that is sitting on an end table. I took it away from her just as I snapped the picture and it landed on my work!

This piece is moving along at a better pace now although it will slow down some since I will start my Torah stitch again this week.
I've finally decided on borders and colours  for the Torah although the colour scheme may change somewhat as I'm stitching. We have a selection of 7 DMC floss to use for our border in addition to the 310 we used for the main stitching. They have allowed the use of 223, 729, 731, 816, 917, 3750 and 3810. I'm starting with 3750 and 3810 for my side borders. The side border can only be 5 stitches wide so that there is still enough room left for attaching all the other contributing pieces. No top border is allowed but I have lots of room at the bottom of my piece for a large border or perhaps several smaller borders. I should have pictures for you by next week.

I also started a Christmas ornament on Halloween but haven't had the time to put in anymore than what you see in this pic.

This is a Little House Needleworks design, Peppermint Twist and I'm stitching it over one on a piece of unidentified linen. It's a natural linen and I believe it's a 25 ct.

While I was getting ready to upload my pictures for this post, I left my computer briefly to find my camera USB for uploading. I returned from my hunt to find someone had joined me at my workstation.

Miss Clarisse has made herself quite at home knowing that she's not allowed on the dining room table. She seems to think that just because my DH isn't here at the moment that she can get away with anything. She got down in a hurry when I put down my camera and proceeded to clap my hands and holler at her. Who does she think she is, the queen, lol? All I know is that she's been trouble today from the minute I got up. I'm off now to chase her down and retrieve one of my floss bags from her. Wish me luck!

Edited: Here's where I found Clarisse. Look at the eyes and you can tell she's got the devil in her today!

TUSAL Update

It's TUSAL time once more and here's a pic of my collection for the past month.

Lots of blacks, oranges and greens, consistent with my fall and Halloween stitching. The little owl teapot is my latest find in the clearance section of a local store. He holds enough tea for two. 
Next month's orts should have an addition of bright reds and greens to them as I prepare for my Christmas stitching. I still have one remaining Halloween design to finish up which is my PSS Ghoul Tidings. I'm giving it some much needed attention this weekend.

My youngest son posted some pics of his Halloween fun on Facebook this week. I knew he had participated in the zombie walk once more although his makeup had to be limited this year due to an allergic reaction that occurred after last year's walk. That's my zombie on the far left, lol!

|Thanks once again to Brian of Tooma Productions for his amazing photo.

I know Chris' band was performing on Halloween evening but I'm not sure if they dressed in costume or not. This was a pic that he posted of the plague mask he made himself to wear on Halloween.

As the name implies, plague masks originated during the time of the plague and were worn by doctors who attended the sick.  A common misconception at the time was that the plague was spread by birds and the wearing of this mask would in part help draw the disease away from the sufferer. The nose was filled with perfume or aromatic herbs and spices which helped reduce the stench from the corpses and infected patients. I love Chris' mask and have to ask him what materials he used to construct it. Very cool!

I should have some progress updates on my stitching for you early next week. I've already started my ornament for next month's SAL, a Christmas one, of course. I'm undecided as to whether or not I should start a larger Christmas stitch or just stick to finishing my current WIP. Right now my first priority is to clean up my stash room which also serves as my guest bedroom. My sister is arriving next week to spend several days with me. I can hardly wait!