Sunday, May 10, 2020

Stitching A-Long...


This week I began a new project that should see me through the rest of the calendar year.  Linen & Threads hosts an annual Mystery Sampler Stitch-A-Long, and while I think it might have been sometime in March when I first became aware that they hosted these annual SALs,  I just recently decided to jump in on the one for this year. 

It was about mid-April when I made that decision, and with COVID-19 affecting things, it took over 3 weeks for materials to arrive.  Once fabric and floss arrived early this week, I pretty quickly sat myself down and started on it.  And this weekend, four month's behind schedule, I finished January's part of the pattern:


When completed, the whole design will measure just under 10 inches square.  
Somewhere around half the size of the original that is stitched 2 over 2.


I'm stitching this with DMC floss (815 colorway) 1 over 1, on 25-ct Lugana in Antique White.  It's a bit of a stretch for these eyes of mine, but with a bright light I'm able to do it!  I'm also finding that a sharp needle is easier to use with this fabric than a less sharp petite needle I'd been using and growing very fond of on other recent projects.  When I cross stitched in the 80's I, personally didn't know about any other cross stitch fabric than Aida, and had no clue that there were a variety of needles to stitch with.  Always something new to learn!

I'm hoping ,with some intense periods of stitching for a few weeks, I can get caught up and maybe by early-mid June I'll be on track to be ready and waiting for each new reveal over the last six months of 2020.  I'm thinking of this as something of a commemorative piece to represent our year of COVID, so if this takes me until there's a vaccine to finish it (and it could), I guess that will be fitting, too.

And lastly, I completely forgot last week that I had finished another small Christmas stitch:



This will go into my collection of smalls that will one day be sewn into little pillows.  That's my thought at the moment, anyway...





25 comments:

  1. Becki, your projects are just lovely! 💖

    ReplyDelete
  2. Oh my....25 count? I struggle with 18! It will be quite lovely though. Your finish project will make a sweet little pillow.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yeah... 25 count Lugana is probably my limit. I also ordered some 22 count hardanger and it looks like it might be a bit easier. I ordered it as an option for this project, but in the end, the Lugana won out.

      Delete
  3. Oh this is an exciting new project from you and I think it’ll be a beautiful commemorative piece for this crazy year. It already looks so pretty. The cute house with the picket fence is very sweet.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, Liz! I'm really looking forward to watching this mystery sampler take shape.

      Delete
  4. It's going to be beautiful! Joanna of Stitching the High Notes podcast is stitching a Folklore SAL in blue fabric with white floss. It's a similar style and both are so pretty....I am tempted but not crazy! LOL! Stitch Maynia is crazy enough for me now....maybe later! LOL! Yours is so pretty with the red floss. I have come to love Lugana better than Aida I think. I love your little Christmas stitch. It is precious! Enjoy your nap!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oooh... I just looked up Joanna and see what she's stitching. That is a beauiful sampler. And what a calm and soothing voice she has. Adding her to my subscription list! I had a great nap. I must have needed it as I laid down on the couch and didn't move for nearly 2 hours! Of course, now it's 1:14 a.m. so I probably didn't do myself any favors...

      Delete
  5. It is never too late to start a new CAL, KAL, or SAL. Your beginning is lovely. I laughed about you slipping in a nap. I slipped in a 4 hour nap today. Still have a headache but at least I know it is not because of lack of sleep!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I sure hope that headache flees soon, Mary Anne! Thanks for stopping by!

      Delete
  6. What fun to have a project like that! Love the red stitching! I'll hang around and wait until it's all finished. :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It feels fun. I hope it doesn't start to feel like a chore as the year goes on. I was undecided between making it all blue, or all red so I ordered enough floss in each color to go either way. In the end, for some reason I decided I liked the red. I'll have to find something else to use all my blue floss on. Maybe a different sampler!

      Delete
  7. Wow! That is going to be amazing. I can't seem to get that one over one down. I want to maybe one day:)
    Your Christmas stitch is adorable and will make a cute pillow. Vonna at the Twisted Stitcher has really good tutorials for lots of finishes.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, Sandy. Yes, I think I'm going to be sitting at the computer with my laptop sitting beside me as I follow someone showing how to finish these small cross stitch projects into pillows. I get the basic concept, but the fun little finishes will escape me if I try to do it on my own - at least the first time. :)

      Delete
  8. Great projects Becki! I'm anxious to see how they progress. btw - might I make a wee suggestion? Red embroidery floss is notorious for bleeding so could you test a wee bit of it before you go much further? It would be heartbreaking if it bled after all your hard work!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you for that warning. Even though DMC floss is supposed to be colorfast, I wondered about it and before stitching I did do a little test (wetting and soaping a cut bit of floss and then squishing it and rubbing it into the fabric (or some other white fabric, I'm not remembering that detail). There was no bleeding at all. Would this be adequate? I was a bit nervous about it. Now, you make me think, maybe I'll stitch up a bit purely for the sake of soaking just as I might when I finished the whole project and then soak that thing in hotter soapier water than I'd ever subject my finished piece to. I don't want to regret a year's worth of stitching, that's for sure.

      Delete
    2. I think what you've done should be enough Becki, but even so I would be tempted to go the extra step just to be 100% sure. It would be heartbreaking to have it bleed after all your hard work.

      Delete
  9. So pretty Becki! The red on white is so stunning! I am amazed at how tiny those stitches are. Have fun catching up on this project. I am looking forward to seeing the pattern emerge on your project.

    ReplyDelete
  10. How neat to stitch a design that's slowly revealed. I bought a club design of The Frosted Pumpkin Stitchery yesterday since it has to do with the Lunar New Year. I won't participate though. I need to finish other things.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I hope so. I'm also hoping there are no motifs that I dislike. That is the danger of stitching a mystery. ;^)

      Delete
  11. Your sampler got on to a great start, Becki. I adore mysteries.
    Amalia
    xo

    ReplyDelete