Scissors Crosspatch Finish

I received an email today from Loris with a picture of her stitched version of the Scissors Crosspatch Chart and she kindly said I could post it here. I just love seeing the stitched pieces and seeing the choices for fabrics and flosses! You can see this and her other beautiful stitching in her Webshots albums - http://community.webshots.com/user/loris42 . Thanks again, Loris, for taking the time to stitch my chart and for sharing your picture!

Smaller Octagon Snowflake Fob Finish

Fabienne has kindly sent me a picture of the small snowflake fob she stitched and finished! She has more pictures on her blog - please check them out and take a look around her blog while you are there. It can be found here or http://faby.over-blog.fr/. I think it turned out wonderfully - I love her thread choices, the sparkle really brings it to life! Thanks so much, Fabienne, for sharing your finish!

Needlework Set - Part 4 - Needlecase

Still no Internet at home so another quick post from work. I have no idea how long it will take to get my phone, cable and Internet back but I know it takes a backseat to restoring electricity to 600,000 homes and businesses statewide, not to mention digging out from under all the broken tree limbs and whole trees that are down. It really does look like a war zone right now but they are working on it. Now they are predicting snow for the weekend (only 3 or 4 inches, so they say) but at least that's better than all the ice and freezing rain.

Needlework Set - Part 3 - Biscornu

Stork Scissors Biscornu Side 1 pdf


Stork Scissors Biscornu Side 2 pdf

My apologies for the quality of the chart - seems my printer is running out of ink - I may have to rescan and post if anyone has trouble with it. Let me know!

***Edited*** Pdf files have been uploaded for the charts.

Needlework Set - Part 2 - Stork Scissors Fob

We are in the midst of a bad ice storm here in Oklahoma and my Internet at home is down for who knows how long, so I am staying after work to post this - so it will be short!

Gingerbread Man Finish

Lee sent me a photo of the ornie she made from the Gingerbread Man Scissors Fob chart. She did a beautiful job on it! Thanks, Lee! You can get the details of the threads she used on her blog here.

Free Charts You Don't Want to Miss

If you've been here before, you may have noticed I have a new header on my blog now. Isn't it wonderful!?! I just love it and it was such a nice surprise from Barbara Ana! If you have visited the CyberStitchers free charts website you probably know Barbara's name already because she has lots of cute free charts there. I just love her charts because they are fresh designs with lots of bright colors, just begging to be stitched! Along with the charts she offers there, she has begun to sell some charts as well. I hope everyone will take the time to check her website here and see what she has. I think she is one of the most talented designers to come along and I think she will be a big success. I love free charts, but I know that lots of designers need the income from sales to be able to continue to design new projects for us, and I am a firm believer in supporting them. I have often bought charts I like, knowing full well, I will never have the time to stitch them all, but I do it to help keep designers designing. Do I just have money to burn? Absolutely not! But I think it's important to support the needlework designing industry - there is room for all - professionals and hobbyists (like me) alike. The worst thing about Barbara Ana Designs? Deciding which one to stitch first! Check it out!

Needlework Set - Part 1 - Scissors Case

Today's chart is for a scissors case. I think 16ct or 32ct over two threads will probably work best. There will be matching scissors fob and needlecase charts (maybe a biscornu as well?) over the next few days. The small dotted line is not stitched it is just to show the fold line for the flap and the larger dashed line is just to show the point that the flap will overlap to on the front.

Cross Stitch, Coffee & Cats

I've charted the cat, cup and needle in case you can't find buttons or charms for them.

Smaller Octagon Snowflake Fob

Here is the smaller version of the Snowflake Fob - it should work better for 14ct to 16ct or 28ct to 32ct over 2 threads.

Pictures from Aury

Aury sent pictures yesterday of two of my charts (here and here) stitched up and finished and I'm very happy to post them here! Thanks, Aury! Please check out her blog - she has lots of cute charts and is starting a new series of seasons charts, starting with a snowflake. http://aurytm.blogspot.com/ She and some of her friends have established a Spanish blog to show completed projects stitched from freebie charts found on the Internet - don't miss it! You can find it here or http://bordandofreebies.blogspot.com/.

Stork Scissors Square

 

Stork Scissors Square pdf 

This is another of my favorite charts. I've used these same motifs for several projects. I thought this would make a nice top for a wood sewing box or something along those lines. I've used these same motifs for a stitching set which I'll post later on.

Snowman Scissors Fob

Snowman Mug Insert

Another of the "lost" charts. This was designed as an insert for the plastic mugs you can find in the hobbies and crafts stores. He would make a great scissors fob also by using part of the design - I'll try to rechart him that way also.

Gingerbread Treasure Bag

Another of the "lost" charts designed several years ago. It was stitched up on white opalescent lugana and made into a drawstring bag to hold a small gift.

Gingerbread Man Scissors Fob

Cold weather and fresh baked cookies go hand in hand! I designed this fob several years ago but never got him stitched up - he is one of the "lost" charts recently found in an obscure folder on my computer.

Octagon Snowflake Fob

After a really warm fall we finally got a cold snap to remind us it really is late November after all. So time to move on to winter themes for awhile. First up is a snowflake fob. I would suggest using 18ct or 36ct over 2 threads for this or it will be a little big for a scissors fob. I plan to make a smaller version of it in the next day or two.

Gone Stitching Scissors Fob

A quick to stitch scissors fob, easily adapted to whatever color scheme you like. I love needlework tools (especially scissors!) and love charts that depict them.

Fern Frond Chart

I've been looking for a fern frond to stitch for my living room to go with some framed prints. I haven't come across what I wanted so I finally charted one myself. I picked up a piece of Waterlilies Jobelan and some Belle Soie silk in Creme de Menthe to stitch it with. I'm anxious to get started on this one - maybe after I finish posting a couple of charts tonight!

New Charts Coming Up!

I'm hoping to get several charts posted tonight and tomorrow. Some are brand new and some are older ones I've been trying to find for awhile. I knew I had saved them off of my old computer but tracking them down wasn't easy. The disadvantage to having three hard drives in one computer is there are lots of nooks and crannies for files to hide in! I hope there will be enough variety in the charts that everyone can find at least one they like. Of course, new charts mean new stash needs to be stocked - which I did earlier today. I picked up some fabrics and silks to try out, so now I need to get busy stitchin'!

If anyone stitches any of the charts and wants to share a picture of it here, I would love to post it. I have added my email address to my profile just in case.

Scissors Addiction and Scissors Crosspatch Chart

Confession time. I've been much more interested in scissor-collecting than stitching or designing lately. However, it is getting more and more difficult to find scissors I don't already have so I guess that will have to go on the back burner for awhile. So today's chart is a combination of recent interests - scissors, cross stitch, designing and monochromes. I never was very interested in monochromes in the past because I love color - lots of color! But lately, I've become quite fascinated with the complex simplicity of the designs, if that makes any sense. To convey the beauty of the picture without using color for detail and shading is amazing to me. And, of course, with all the beautiful threads and fabrics available today, there is plenty of opportunity to incorporate color and still maintain the monochrome simplicity. I am quite pleased with this chart which is surprising because I'm my own worst critic. I just finished the chart this morning so it hasn't been stitched yet - I hope to start it this evening when I get back home. The words are "scissors" in seven languages and I'm sure I'm not the only stitcher out there that loves and collects embroidery scissors.

Acorns and Leaves Scissors Fob

Click on image for larger view.

Swirly Autumn

©2007

Another fall chart - I haven't stitched this one up yet but I will probably use over-dyed flosses when I do. Feel free to experiment with different colors - I sometimes use colors in my charting software to give me the onscreen look I want which doesn't always translate into the best color choices for the actual stitching, so if you don't like the color - change it!

Scarecrow Stand-Up

©2007 xstitchhappy.blogspot.com

I had fun with this chart - using a variety of fibers and stitched on linen burlap over two. I used turkey work for the "straw" hair, hands and feet and the little tufts of "straw' sticking out through his clothing. One of these days he'll be a "real" stand-up guy!

Falling Leaves Chart

Falling Leaves was designed several years ago

for a local stitch shop monthly kit. It was stitched

on linen banding that had a gold border woven in.

I designed it as a bell pull or banner and I used

Weeks Dye Works overdyed flosses for mine.

If I figure out where I put it, I'll post a picture of it!

©2007 xstitchhappy.blogspot.com

Fall and Football Chart

Already the end of September!!!! I'm not sure how it got here so quick! The hummingbirds have moved on and we have had just a hint of fall weather here and there, although it's still in the 80s and 90s most days. Cooler temperatures are on the way though which means the lovely fall weather will soon be upon us. I'll be posting several charts over the next few days, including the football chart I forgot to post last month. I haven't stitched it up yet (I'm not much of a football fan - baseball is for me!) but I've seen charms at Hobby Lobby that would work nicely in the open squares. Some of the charts I have stitched and finished, some have been stitched but not finished (One is supposed to be a stand-up if I ever drag out the sewing machine to put it together!), and some have been designed but not stitched. If anyone stitches any of them up, I would love to see photos, if you would like to share them.

I also want to thank all the visitors to my blog that have left encouraging comments for me! It means more to me than I ever thought it would and has moved me to begin to leave comments for others on their blogs to encourage them as well. Pay it Forward!


©2007 xstitchhappy.blogspot.com

Hummingbird Hoedown

Click on images for larger views

Summer is winding down and the hummingbirds are extremely busy preparing to migrate. They are always fun to watch but especially so at this time of year. They get in quite a frenzy at the feeders right now. They are my favorite part of summer which is not my favorite season. (I'm opposed to anything that makes me sweat!) I wanted to make something special for my new friend Heather, so I polished up this design I had been working on and stitched it with fabric and floss that would match her favorite scissors. I waited to post it until after she received it so it wouldn't spoil the surprise.

Maria Scissors Fob

Maria Scissors Fob and variations


Click on images for larger views
Here is the chart I used for the front of my Maria Scissors' fob plus a slightly different version that I did after I stitched mine up. The other chart is the same colors but a floral pattern instead.

The dog days of summer are here, vacation is past and school is getting ready to start. Maybe I will be more consistent with posting - I always mean well, but I seem to get sidetracked onto other things alot. It is definitely time to get charting and stitching again!