Dragon in Progress

Posted on March 24, 2013 by Heather

Well, that week went by quickly! I sure didn’t mean to disappear for so long, but somehow the days just got away from me. Luckily, I was able to put in some time on Canvaswork Dragon by Jennifer Aikman-Smith of Dragon Dreams.

Canvaswork Dragon - WIP

Canvaswork Dragon – WIP

I am having loads of fun trying different fibres and stitches. I even stitched part of the spine and ripped it out because I didn’t like it (if you look closely at the bottom of the spine you can see it). For some reason that makes me feel like a “real” needleworker. 😉

The fibres I’ve used so far are Watercolour for the head (Moss) and background (Hint of Mint); Gold Rush (black) for the eye and nose; Fyreworks (F10) for the tooth and claw; Vineyard Silk (Mirror) for the chest scales; and Arctic Rays (white) for the eye ridge.

canvasworkdragon-wip2

Close-up of some stitches

Unfortunately, I’ve run out of the Moss Watercolors, so I’m not able to finish the wing. But at least I was able to finish the head, so if I end up with a slightly different dyelot it won’t look so bad.

I’ve still got lots of areas to play with, and I do have most of my fibres picked out. I’m going to be changing some of the suggested stitches though. The booklet Jennifer provided has lots of extra stitches, and there are all those stitch dictionaries sitting on my bookshelf too.

Ornament SAL New

Don’t forget, this Wednesday is check in day for the Ornament SAL. I’ll also be posting some details about the really cool giveaway that I will be hosting starting on April 1st.

5 Comments | Posted in Canvaswork | Tagged , ,

Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

Posted on March 17, 2013 by Heather

We all Irish today, especially those of us who actually are Irish! 😉

harp

Comments Off on Happy St. Patrick’s Day! | Posted in Site News |

Finishing Stuff – Very Scary Bell Pull

Posted on March 16, 2013 by Heather

More finishing from the beginning of the week! This is Very Scary by Lizzie*Kate, which I finished in October 2012. I don’t think I made too many changes to it, other than not stitching the weird cat, and replacing it with a tombstone button from JABC.

Very Scary Bell Pull

Very Scary Bell Pull

It is actually sewn straight, but the fabric just distorted so easily. I really don’t like to say bad things about products that I know are made with care, but I will never again intentional stitch something on this brand of fabric. I’ll only be stitching on fabrics from dyers who use Zweigart as their base.

Very Scary Tombstone

Very Scary Tombstone

This will be stored away until October, but since I was in the mood to sew and finish things (and avoid knitting my sock for Sock Madness) this week seemed like a good time to tackle it. 😉

7 Comments | Posted in Cross Stitch | Tagged , ,

Finishing Stuff – A Bag

Posted on March 15, 2013 by Heather

Earlier this week (when I should have been knitting my sock) I decided it would be a good time to finish up some cross stitch projects that have been languishing for a while. My first victim was Witch Shoes by CherryWood Designs Studio, which I stitched in October 2010!

Witch Shoes Drawstring Bag

Witch Shoes Drawstring Bag

The fabric is two fat quarters that I found in my stash, which I did not buy with this project in mind. They were even filed in the wrong drawer, with my Asian-inspired fabrics. So, it is pure luck I found them just when I was thinking about finishing up this piece.

Interior fabric

Interior fabric

The pattern is from another free Craftsy class–Bag Making Basics: Drawstring Bag and Bucket Bag. (I made the bucket bag too, for the little man using Cars fabric, but it didn’t turn out too great. I have trouble sewing circles… You can check out a picture of it on my Twitter feed.)

Any guesses what this bag will be for? Sock knitting, of course! 😉

Also, with Google Reader being shut down in July, I’m on the search for a good RSS reader. Right now I’m checking out Bloglovin. You can follow my blog with Bloglovin. (Is anyone else getting annoyed with how Google is shutting down all kinds of services? It makes me not want to use their products for fear of them all disappearing.)

3 Comments | Posted in Sewing | Tagged ,

Looking for RSS – Bloglovin

Posted on March 14, 2013 by Heather

Google Reader is being shut down this summer, which means there are a lot of people scrambling for a new RSS reader. Today, I’m trying out Bloglovin. In order to claim my blog on there I need to do this:

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

4 Comments | Posted in Site News |

Sock Madness – Round 1

Posted on March 14, 2013 by Heather

The socks are done!!

Sockdogler

Sockdolager

I cast on the evening of March 6th, and finished up the Kitchener stitch on the second toe at about 7:30 this morning.

The pattern is Sockdolager, and will eventually be available for free on Ravelry. The yarn is Mary Maxim Bamboo Soft Stripes in colourway Tropical Garden. And, really, if you look at it, doesn’t it really look like beautiful tropical flowers?

Chubby legs and happy socks

Chubby legs and happy socks

The pattern is great, and very well written. I love that the designer didn’t use the same increase throughout the whole sock, but rather changed them depending on what made sense where it was used. For example, she used a m1 in the row after a purl row, but used a kll (aka a La-Link) when the previous rows where stockinette. That is very nice attention to detail.

The heel was something new to me: a modified Fleegle Heel. (The original directions for the regular Fleegle Heel can be found here.) It is a bit unwieldy to knit since you end up with 60+ stitches for the sole at one point, but on the plus side you don’t have to pick up stitches for the gusset.

I managed to get the stripes to match perfectly until I got to the heels, and then this happened:

Too much green!!! Argh!

Too much green!!! Argh!

There was clearly a dyeing error. And that means that the stripes on the foot are off by a couple of rows. And it also means that the toe of one sock is completely pink, while the other sock ends with the purple and white stripe. 🙁

Anyway, I’m on to round 2 of Sock Madness, which should start in a week or so. From here on out it is knitting at top speed. Wish me luck!

2 Comments | Posted in Knitting | Tagged , ,

More Santa

Posted on March 13, 2013 by Heather

With spring slowly creeping up on us, it is a bit hard to keep in the Christmas mood. But needs must, and I am really motivated to get Santa’s Journey done in time for Christmas.

Santa's Journey, designed by Dimensions (WIP)

Santa’s Journey, designed by Dimensions (WIP)

Slowly by surely his jacket and sack are making an appearance. I am so glad I finished up his face. Now he can stare at me from my stitching table and guilt me into working on him. 😉

I also wanted to mention that I was wrong when I said in an early post that he was a new start for 2013. I forgot that I did stitch just a wee bit on him in the last few days of 2012 so that he would be a WIP for this year. Terrible, aren’t I? It doesn’t really matter, other than in a tricking myself sort of a way. I didn’t want to do any big starts this year as a way of reminding myself that I don’t need to buy more stash. (Mill Hill ornaments, of which I have piles that I want to stitch this year, get a free pass. I have to admit though, I’m not impressed with the spring collection. I think there is only one, or maybe two, I would like to buy.)

Sock Madness is going well. Thank you to everyone who has offered words of encouragement or asked about my progress. I’ve been posting pictures occasionally on my Twitter feed. If you’d like to follow me on Twitter, please check out the link over to the right.

5 Comments | Posted in Cross Stitch | Tagged , ,