Smalls SAL 2018 - January

Welcome to my first Smalls SAL post for 2018. If you've not heard of this SAL, follow my link  to the sign up post at Stitching Lotus. It's a great motivation to get some small stitching projects completed and we would love to have you join us!

My first small of the year is a sweet little design by Teresa Murgida of Primitive Acorns and it's called Wild Mistletoe. You would think I'd be tired of stitching Christmas ornaments at this point but I often prefer to do them throughout the year when there is not as much pressure to get them completed in a certain time frame. This particular design is one which I think I will leave out all winter, once it's finished that is. It will be a pillow finish for my bowl displays.

The fabric I used is by Dames of the Needle and the colour is Sweeny Red. I just love it and already have another larger design in mind for the remainder.

Hope to see you next month! 

September Smalls and a new framed stitch

September's small stitch is in recognition of Canada's upcoming Thanksgiving which takes place in just 12 short days.
Gobble is a sweet little turkey designed by Jenny Hoffman of Country Rustic Primitives. 

I haven't had the time yet to finish this into a little pinkeep but I did one other finish done shortly after posting it for last month's smalls.

Wild Chamomile was designed by Teresa Murgida of Primitive Acorns and was stitched as a gift for my friend Nan Lewis of Threadwork Primitives.

  
The little dragonfly charm which I added to this I found in Muskoka this summer at a local pewter shop. I wish now that I'd picked up a few more of these!

The next pic is not a small but is a finish which I completed in 2014. Blackbird Designs Acorn Hill has sat waiting in my pile of finished stitches until I found just the right frame to complement it. After antique hunting on my vacation this summer I found a wood frame which I'm told is called a Victorian criss cross frame. After bringing it home I realized which piece might work in it. My framer told me that it took a bit of work getting it right because it turns out the frame is not straight. I would never know that though looking at his handiwork. Sorry about the lack of light. This overcast day has not helped with my picture taking!

I'll be back soon with a post of my visit to Notforgotten Farm. I'm fighting a cold right now and just don't have the energy to get it all organized. Hopefully I'll feel better by the weekend. I have another stitching event to attend in Kingston!

August Smalls and a Muskoka visit

I'm ahead of the game this month with two small finishes. Both involve flowers since I have very few summer smalls to display around the house. The first is designed by Teresa Murgida of Primitive Acorns and is called Wild Camomille. I love the bee in this one!

The second finish is designed by Esub Rosa and is simply called Summer Pincushion.

This will be a pincushion once I get a finishing day underway.

 I haven't had much time for anything other than the smalls this month. I will post a progess report on my larger WIP at the end of the week. Hopefully I'll have added to them by then. Vacation has taken up most of my time this month. We visited our beloved Muskoka region for the first time in two years. We didn't book our usual cottage because it's on an island and we weren't sure how well I'd be able to get in and out of the boat with my new knee and hip. However the new joints performed admirably and we hope to return to the island next year. Instead we booked a cottage in the Torrance region on Lake Muskoka.
Here a just a few pics of our lakeside visit.

 The view from the dock

 Our rental

 A lovely wooden launch

 Muskoka sunset

 A dinner cruise aboard SS Segwun

 Port Carling - hub of the 3 big lakes

 One of the many boathouses seen on the lake

Dockside stitching

 The Segwun steamship entering the narrows on Lake Muskoka

 The Segwun is the longest operating steamship in North America

 There's a seat by the lake just waiting for you!

See you all soon!

June Smalls

Summer is here and already June is nearing its end. I can't believe how quickly time passes!
July 1 is Canada Day and I'm sadly lacking in small finishes to celebrate this occasion. So with that in mind I stitched a new small and completed the final finishing on two previously stitched pieces. My new piece is a freebie that was offered by Nan Lewis of Threadwork Primitives on the Prim Stitchers Society Facebook group. 

The remaining smalls were all stitched in the last year with the exception of one which was done back in 2012. I finally dug them out of my finished pile and set to work to complete the final finishing. Here are the results:

 Where Liberty Dwells by e-SubRosa

Threadwork Primitives My Work

 Lizzie Kate Land That I Love

Not Forgotten Farms June freebie

and 

Primitive Acorns Flower Pinkeep

These have kept me busy enough this month but I'm happy to see that my pile of finishes is dwindling. 

We've had some lovely repeat visitors to our yard this June. The Cedar Waxwings have returned and have kept us entertained daily as they clean the berries from the neighbour's tree.

 

Unfortunately, one of these beautiful birds tried to fly through our front picture window and didn't make it. I looked out the window when I heard the thud and sadly saw the mate sitting beside the body, keening. It was so sad to see. It was quite some time before he/she left.

It's a lovely summer day here and I'm off for a boat ride shortly. I hope that you enjoy your day wherever you may be!

December WIPocalypse

I can't believe it but the year is almost over. This is the last WIPocalypse report for 2014. December is in full swing now with very little time for stitching.The above picture was taken less than an hour ago and signals the end of daylight for today. The day was mild although overcast and I'm not sure that we're going to see that full moon tonight. 

I don't have a lot of stitching to report since last month. I've completed a couple of smalls and started a larger project. My small finishes include Teresa Murgida's Keep Christ in Christmas and Jenny Hoffman's Ornaments for Christmas. Neither has its final finishing complete yet.

My new start and larger project is Plum Street Samplers Promised Lamb. I'm stitching this one on 35 ct WDW Confederate Grey. Not much to show yet but hopefully I'll have made much more progress by the new year.

I have a couple of other smalls that I want to start before Christmas but I'm not sure how much time I'll have.

This week my local village craft group got together as usual but we gathered for a potluck first. It's a Christmas lunch but our hearts were heavy this year since just days before one of the group passed away.

 Joyce was a breast cancer survivor of 13 years but just one month ago her cancer returned. I was shocked when I heard she was gone so fast. She was an amazing woman who loved crafting and loved sharing and teaching it to others. She had cross stitched many years ago but she loved quilting and knitting. She shared this love with so many children both at the campsite in summer and at her winter home in the south. When once asked how many children she had she replied, "As many as 100!". Rest in peace Joyce. We'll miss your ruddy cheeks and that precious smile.

We decided that our lunch would be a tribute to Joyce so we had a toast in her honour and then continued with our regular get together. I'm the only cross stitcher in the group. A lot of the ladies love to quilt, crochet and knit. Here's a small sampling of their current projects.

Beate with her crocheted German Christmas curtain

Lois' beautiful afghan

Monique putting together her sweater

Andrée's lacy ribbon scarf

Helen modelling her mitten

Virly's baby sweater

Virly is the lady on the left in the above picture. She's the oldest member of our group. I don't remember her exact age but I do know that she is over 90. She is not sewing and quilting as much now that she's moved into a retirement residence but here is a pic of the bag she completed last summer. Love those purples!

 So our lunch on Wednesday was the second of three potlucks I'm participating in this week. The final one will take place tomorrow night following my husband's choir concert. For each of these I've taken the same thing - pumpkin butterscotch gingerbread trifle. 

  It's been a big hit and I'm sure it will go over well tomorrow as well. Yummy!!

Enjoy your weekend and I'll be back with another post soon.