Mel's Sunday Update

Well for a while there it looked like I wouldn't make a Sunday update yet again :)

I've been far too exhausted after work and haven't done any stitching week nights for nearly a month now.  However I put in some dedicated effort this week and I do indeed have an update - YAY!!

Mariann's RR
I have *finally* gotten my bit done on Mariann's RR.  This is a beautiful project and I only wish I could have done more on it.  It will be posted out to Laura tomorrow.

BTW - Happy Birthday Laura !!!!!

Vienna Ball
Many of you on Twitter would have heard my wailing and gnashing of teeth ion the backstitching on this part.  However Part 4 is now completely finished.  I'm not entirely happy with it - and I am deeply unhappy with my individual backstitches in some places, so please don't look too closely :(  The best thing I can say is - its done.  Onto Part 5.


Present from Kay
As can seen in the pic above, I received a fantastic gift in the mail Friday!  Thank you so much Kay !!!!   Kay sent:

• a lovely beanie frog (which Mr S thinks is soooo cute)
• a luxurious pair of thermal gloves which are soooo warm!
• a gorgeous stitched bookmark - I adore the sentiment!
• two great pieces of hand dyed fabric!  I have so many ideas for those fabrics already!

Thanks so much Kay !!!!!

Mel's Sunday Update

OK so its Monday and this is actually the first one I've put up for the year - I'm a slacker :)

Finishes:
Well I've only had one finish so far this year and an almost finish. BoInk is finished a scant couple of weeks ahead of the pack and Moscow I'm waiting on replacement threads from Vervaco in Belgium.

Round Robins:
Well the International Round Robin is off to a good start this year.  Mine is now with Laura and I've just finished my part on Kay's.  Kay's was quite fun because its all speciality stitches. Not a standard cross stitch in sight!  Of course I shouldn't have tried to stitch it with a head cold .....

Chatelaine's:
Well thanks to the vagaries of International mail (and an incompetent nincompoop who actually delivers the mail)  I've only received one of my Christmas presents this week.  So Chatelaine Workshop 1 will start at some point in the future even though the actual group is now closed.

I have however started Vienna Ball.  I'm still not 100% happy with my fabric.  But I'm using it anyway.  Part One is the border and I'm less than half way through - but I've got a while to catch up, we're only on Part 4 in the group ....

Black Bloomers:
You've all seen Tracy's pastel masterpiece Bloomers?  Well Tracy has sent me a variation to stitch called Black Bloomers.  I hope to be starting this tonight.

Gifts:
Speaking of International mail, a gift Kay sent back in September 2008 arrived this week!  I had been sent here, never delivered, never found by local postal staff, eventually sent back to the UK, repackaged by Kay and posted to my new Post Box and ta da! it is here. 

I adore the stitched dragon in the frame!  This sits next to my monitor every day!  Surprisingly the chocolate was still edible (urp).  The Socks look so kewl and I adore the Devil keyring :) The cat toy squeaks as well as being filled with catnip and on an extra long elastic.  I can't wait for Trubs to wake up to try this!

After Tracy showed a computer mock-up of Black Bloomers I decided I had to stitch it.  I begged Tracy for the conversion and put in an order for the chart (and the Celtic Ice ornament kit also fell into my basket),

Tracy added the fabric, all the threads and a copy of the Twisted Heart chart to my package.  Isn't she the sweetest!



Stitching wise that's about it from me so far this year - I know I'm a slow stitcher :)  The picture at the top of the screen is a type of pigeon that I'm now getting to my feeder station.  Sorry for the blurriness of the picture its taken through a screen door and a glass door.  The little things are still fearful and fly off as soon as I poke the camera out the door.

OK time for dinner and then to prepare my clothes, resume etc for an agency interview tomorrow morning.

THANK YOU !!!

I've received some RAKs in the mail lately and I just want to say THANK YOU !!! to three lovely ladies:  Ellen, Claire and Tina.

Ellen sent me a lovely cat chart.  Ellen I hope you don't mind but I'm going to forward this on a RAK to someone else.  It would languish in my stash for years and I know *just* the person who would squeal with delight as soon as she sees it :) :)

http://gothtigger.multiply.com/photos/album/69#27

Claire our lovely List Mum and one of my best friends sent me a lovely little care parcel hidden inside the current RR rotation parcel for this month.  She sent a lovely black-work butterfly chart, a beautiful Herb Goddess art-to-xstitch conversion, a very very pretty card and a diary - thank you sweetheart.

http://gothtigger.multiply.com/photos/album/69#28

Tina, otherwise known as Voldeminion also RAKed me out of the blue !!!!!  She sent me two Brittercup Charts, four GAST threads and a beautiful packet of tiny Kelmscott thread rings.  Thank you so much for the presents Voldy and the sentiment behind why you sent them.  All of these items were straight out of my various Lust Lists and will definitely be used !!!! Hopefully soon!

http://gothtigger.multiply.com/photos/album/69#29

The picture above is a beautiful present Stephen bought as a surprise for me from the chocolate factory tour last Sunday.  I think the sentiment is appropriate here.  Thanks and I love you guys too.

Mel's Sunday update - an almost finish ....

Well its been awhile since I posted a Sunday update....

All of my 2007 finishes, including all of the pieces I gave as gifts are all now listed in my finished album.

I've updated and added to my Lust List.

I spent Christmas with my Dad and New Years with my mum and will be going back to work on Tuesday. 

Christmas was quite fun this year.  I received wonderful gifts and lots of cards and threads from my stitching buddies on the BAPXS list.  I received a new microwave from my Dad, a set of really good cutlery, ovenmits and socks from mum.  Jewellery and CDs from Paul. Oh and chocolate, chocolate, more chocolate and two books on chocolate (one from mum and one from my non-stitching friend Alison).

I've been working on a new piece since New Years Eve.  Spotted Butterfly by Szulet Designs.  It was a chart mum had in her stash, and I bought enough fabric (28ct Monaco "Sky" by Dreams with Angels) for both of us to stitch this one up.  When I was at mum's I pulled out her chart, checked I had bought enough fabric for two, cut it in half and then promptly nicked the chart and some of her DMC threads and started to stitch it.

Wasn't planned - just happened.

I brought the chart home with me spent a half day scrabbling around my local Spotlight and Lincrafts stores for a spool of Kreinik #4 Very Fine Braid in 001 Silver.  Finally found one spool in dubious circumstances in Lincrafts.

The plastic casing had been opened and it looked like the thread had been unwound ... possibly some removed ?????  Anyway it was the *only* spool available so I took it to the front counter and explained the circumstances.  No reaction from the staff and no discount on the cost of the spool. I took it anyway as I wanted to finish this item before I went back to work on Tuesday.

I finished all of the cross stitching while watching the cricket yesterday and then ran out of Silver braid (used for the back-stitching) this afternoon.  So no finish yet for me.

It feels silly ordering one single spool of metallic from Karen@Dragonflydreams so I will put this one away now and get the thread delivered with my monthly fabric of the month club in February.

Tomorrow its onto  Gemstone Dragons from Dragon Dreams.  This is needed for an RR to go out so its the first priority.  Then if I have any time left in the week - I might work on my The One.

Especially as I haven't worked on it at all since last July when we started this SAL.

.... or I might have to start Peridot from FireWing Designs. This was a birthday present from Laura that thanks to the vagaries of International Mail arrived a couple of days ago ( 5 months late).

I'll see after I work on my RR ......  time to go and get some dinner now and then relax for the evening.  Tomorrow will spent washing cleaning ironing and doing everything else needed to facilitate an easy return to work the next day.

Back from the Framers

Well it was an extremely busy morning with seeing HR for my exit interview from this organisation, then getting Karen's RAK in the mail (thank you) and then finally picking up two small pieces from the framers on the way home.

Stellar is by Patti of Moonflower Designs and is in my finished album.

Cat Lover was a present stitched by my mum and is in my presents album.

RAKed again

This time by Karen !!!!!

Karen sent me some of the new DMC Variations threads, and a pattern to use them on, *and* the other threads required to finish the pattern!

Pics in my RAKs album.

Thank you so much Karen!!!!  I haven't seen these in our stores yet so this is a real treasure! Thank you !!!!!

And doesn't she wrap well !!! Not a single piece of sticky tape in sight !!!!!

RAKed by Anita and Chele !!!!

Ooooh more pressies - I feel so pampered and honoured right now!  Thank you Anita and Chele!

Anita sent me three small pieces of fabric:
Silkweaver 32ct Classics Periwinkle Mist 9x13
R&R Reproductions 28ct Wintergreen 8x10
Silkweaver 28ct Classics Dark Tan 9x13

Chele sent me three charts:
Cat's Whiskers Peacock Stitching Chair
Dimples Designs chart Wee Beasties Part 3
Dimples Designs chart Wee Beasties Part 4

The Peacock Stitching Chair - is all kitted up !!!  Fabric, floss, templates, the works !!!!!  Oh I have to stitch this now and hope someone (Sisu?) can be bribed to actually construct the chair for me !!!!!!

Now where's that Time Spinner - I have to learn to stitch faster !!!!!!

I am soo honoured in my friends - thank you sooo much for the presents ladies !!!!!

What better friend can you have !!!!

Claire sent me a RAK today with charts called Believe, Cherish and The Phoenix.

What more appropriate sentiments could you get to say "good luck my friend on the new job, I know you'll do well" ???

Thank you so much Claire! So so so very much !!!!

{Oh and thanks for the hint to add the Dracolair charts to my Lust List}

Hugs
Mel.

Mel's Sunday Update

I have the flu and I have a migraine and I'm shaking with a fever and I feel awful so I'll keep this brief before my head explodes ...

I have loaded pics of Teegs lovely RAK of book, card and floss in my RAKS album.  I adore the personalised signing and the book is fabulous.  If you haven't read this series yet - you must !!!

I've also loaded a WIP pic of the Party Cat I've been working on.  Its in its own album.

  Debbie so kindly RAKed me with this one, and seeing my good news a little while ago, I thought a simple bright boldly coloured stitch was the way to go.   As you know I still had the flu (which is *why* I'm stitching it on cardboard Aida - well that's *my* story). I then lost power and telephone for a while, so I was dark and cold for another six nights.  I can't stitch by torchlight when its too cold to feel my fingers.  So most of this progress was done in the past few days.  And of course getting caught out in the rain again in the past few days (and getting soaked to the skin) and losing my electricity again last night (it came back on around lunchtime today) means that the flu/cold has come back with a vengeance.  I'm shortly having some dinner and going straight to bed. 

I've been RAKed !!!!!! Twice !!!!!

The first time was earlier this week when I received a lovely piece of 28ct Ivory Wichelt linen from Claire !!!!! Its so yum and I'm hoping its large enough to do Di Jourdan's Thriller on it. This is a SAL Claire and I plan on doing later in the year.

The second RAK came in a package from Tracy. In amongst the expected contents of the package was a copy of her latest chart "This Heart of Mine". A post-it note attached says:

"Hi Mel, This is a RAK gift from someone who wanted to remain nameless, but none-the-less wanted you to have a great day."

WOW!!! I'm blown away !!!! Whoever you are, please own up so I know who to thank! I suspect this RAK was from a multiply blogster or a member of BAPXS - or both! This whole group of people is truly wonderful!

I LOVE YOU ALL !!!!

I got a pressie !!!

I got a box in the mail today .....

 

Can't wait until I get home to open it ....

 

Its from England ...........

 

<doing a Snoopy Dance around the library>