WIP - Historic Countries Mystery

Dinky Dyes floss with Stitches n Spice fabric and one spool of Kreinik metallic gold.

As presented in the Gift of Stitching digital magazine
http://www.thegiftofstitching.com/mysteryinfo.php

Mel's Monday Update

Did no stitching on the train last week,  I tried, I had a small confetti-type piece I wanted to do, but my enthusiasm waned far too quickly !!!  I ended up reading for most of the week.  Tales of a Reading Commuter doesn't have the same ring to it.

At home (read most of Saturday and Sunday morning) I completed Part 1 of Chatelaine's Anniversary Castle Sampler (minus the beads).

My maths for working out the border were actually correct.  Its just that it turned out I had worked the maths for the inner-corner of the border and then started the outer corner of the border at that point, so the whole thing was too far to the right and too low down the fabric by 10 stitches. (The width of the larger corner block).

I did a kinda fix on the horizontal (unpicked the corner, added in one more brick and moved the corner block to the left of that) but by the time I got to the bottom of the vertical side, I couldn't be bothered and left it as is :)

I really like these Rhodes stitches and I love the Waterlillies colour used int he border too. I used three threads for the Rhodes stitches to make them stand out more - give them more of a textural change.

I haven't included any beads yet. I'll leave them until the end. I learned my lesson on Mystery IX.

Storm damage - Ten weeks later

Well its been ten weeks since the storms that created so much havoc both in the whole area and to me personally.

The phone was re-connected in five days.  The electricity came back in seven days.  The road down the front was cleared away in five days, the actual trees themselves were removed and taken for wood chipping or firewood three weeks later.

In the intervening seven weeks nothing has happened in the back yard.  In fact the insurance assessor only came out earlier this week.  As it is simply external damage, it was low priority - people who couldn't live in their homes were highest priority and well with so much damage up the coast, it took them 10 weeks to get to my landlady's claim.

She still doesn't know if they will cover much of the work.  Removing the tree and replacing any tiles on the roof will indeed be fixed.

Apparently her insurance company does not cover storm damage to grounds or external structures (like walls, fences, gates etc).  Apparently because the storm created sooo much havoc in such a large area, they made a decision to offer home owners a one-off payment towards this type of damage.  My landlady doesn't yet know what amount that will be or how much of the removal and rebuild work that will cover.

Nor will the insurance company cover any extra damage done during the wait for the assessor.  For example if there is any water damage in the ceiling (from water coming in from the broken tiles because of the tree) it will not be covered.

WIP - Anniversary Castle Sampler

Anniversary Castle Sampler
Chatelaine Designs
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/chatelaineonlineclass-seventeen/

Online Class July 2007-June 2008

Chatelaine Designs
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/chatelaineonlineclass-seventeen/

Online Class July 2007 - June 2008

Tales of a Stitching Commuter - Part the fourth

Monday morning - I learned that I cannot stitch on 32ct opalescent linen on the train - its just too hard on the eyes.

Monday afternoon - I discovered that Monday mornings are a unique occurrence during the week and are not indicative of what can be done at any other time

Tuesday morning - I discovered that Monday mornings are not unique, and they are in fact indicative of mornings in general ...

Wednesday morning I discovered that if you lose your second-last needle on a crowded train there is no way you can move to search for it.  Putting your hand down between your legs and under your bottom to see if it is still on the seat garners strange looks from those around you and leers from unsavoury looking men! 

Wednesday afternoon I discovered that I can frog stitches on 32ct opalescent linen.  I discovered I can do it without losing my last needle.  I discovered I can frog most of the stitches I put in this week without crying on the train.

Thursday morning I discovered that if you party too hard on Wednesday night for your birthday then you wont feel like going in to work.  No train today!

Friday morning I discovered that if you lose your last needle within a few minutes of getting on the train, its empty enough that you can get down on your hands and knees and search the seat and floor of the carriage for your needle.  I discovered you *never* want to look that closely at the floor and down the side of a train seat.  {shudder}  Never doing that again!  Discovered that I really need something more tangible than a mental note to remind me to pack extra needles. Discovered I really liked closing my eyes and listening to my talking book for the rest of that train ride.   They were my last John James size 26 needles too!

Friday morning bus addendum.  After I arrive at Central Station in the middle of Sydney, I then catch a bus out to my workplace.  Other people from my work catch the same bus every morning.  When you sit down on the bus and then jump back up again as if stung by a bee, fish around in the seat of your pants and jacket and discover the needle you lost on the train was lodged first in your jacket and then in your posterior, your workmates find this hilarious.  So hilarious that by the time 9:30am rolls around everybody on your floor at work is looking at you and grinning.  Not many in sympathy either!

Friday afternoon I discovered that sitting back, leaving the needle and stitching project in its bag and closing my eyes while listening to my talking book, is the best way to finish off a week!

Grumpy Addendum - Feel free to skip over and not read this bit:
Saturday morning at home I tried again and still got absolutely nowhere.  One of the most frustrating parts about this whole week is that I was using one of the new DMC Variations threads and every time I frogged a stitch the threads broke.  If I used threads that were my usual long length they broke before I got to the end of the thread.  Between the frogs and the threads just breaking on me, I've used up an entire skein with about 50 stitches to show for it.  Now as these DMC variations are three times as expensive as normal DMC I am one very unhappy camper !!!!  This project has gone into abeyance and I'll try it again later with a different brand of thread and when I'm home - maybe as a weekend project until I get through the first quarter hassles ..... but I'm not touching for months until I've forgotten how frustrating this week was and I'm tossing away my DMC variations threads!  I refuse to use such shoddy materials !!!!!

I did no other stitching this week - so no update pics!  I did however receive lots and lots of goodies for birthday which you can see here.

Blog pic today is Paul and Trubby showing that they really *can* get along !!!!!!

Tales of a Stitching Commuter - Part the Third

This week's email is a tale of woe concerning our heroine getting what she wished for (only to find out it wasn't what she really wanted) ... yes my dears, my life was a walking fable one afternoon this week!

One afternoon on on the way home from work, I was carrying a large box, chock full of birthday goodies (I assume - I mean hey are wrapped in birthday wrapping paper).  So there's me with my backpack and my box and my coat squished into a tiny train seat and down sat next to me a larger man who was very expansive.  My feelings of being squished almost turned into out and out claustrophobia.  So no stitching for me that afternoon - or so I beleived.

Three stops later the gentleman got off the train!  YAY!!  Quick as a flash I hauled up my backpack and got out my zip-lock of stitching goodness (aka the chart floss needle scissors and WIP of Paty Cat).

I hadn't even opened the zip-lock when a lady sat next to me.  Quicker than a flash (because she was quicker than me) she got out her wool and started knitting away, elbows flailing about like some strange cross between the Chicken Dance and the Hokey Pokey.

I sighed inwardly and started to put my stitching away.  The lady looked across and, still knitting, asked me if that was counted cross stitch.

In the three weeks I have been stitching while commuting not one single other passenger has shown even the slightest interest at glancing at what I was doing - and now here finally was a fellow passenger actually asking me !!!!! 

With the delight of chatting with a fellow crafter I showed her my work in progress and the cover picture and she was suitably impressed with comments such as "ah wonderful. So colourful"

Followed by "of course I don't know how anyone stands doing for any length of time!" and there my fantasy ended.  I spent the rest of the trip crowded into the corner by this lady and her flashing elbows telling me all about her knitting, and her family and how her daughters weren't grateful for her knitted scarves and what a drag the train trip was ..... for the rest of the 90 minute trip.  Even when the train started to empty, she did not move.  She did not change her diatribe.  I was trapped. Trapped by my own fantasies and wishes that I had a fellow crafts person on the train to talk with.

The final twist in the gut was her parting comments "well I usually catch a later train, but I might leave work earlier more often and catch this one with you - you are a good listener!".   Obviously she didn't hear the sound of my heart sinking into my boots.

For the next few days, as I am a craven coward, I studiously avoided that particular carriage on the train ....

I haven't seen her again ..... yet .....

In other stitching news, regardless of the above mentioned tale of woe, I did indeed manage to get all of the cross stitching completed on Party Cat.  Now just to try next week to see if I can use my Q-Snaps on the train and try the backstitching and contemplate whether or not to do the surrounding colourful squiggles .....

Also it took all week (in fact its the only at home stitching I've done since I statrted the commute) but this morning I finally completed 15 hours on Mariann's RR.  Pics in my RR folder.

And of course as mentioned earlier in the week - my models for Hanky Pysanky are on their way back to Tracy.  I can't wait to see pics of the entire piece completed and in the other colourway !!!!

Hope everyone else had a productive week ...... I spent last night watching Die Hard 4.0 and then consuming some Chcolate Buzz Martinis .... see what you get for subscribing to certain xstitch lists ......

Birthday presents

These are the presents I received from Hilary :)


* a small piece of 32ct Antique White Belfast linen
* a small piece of Miracle Mint 28ct Cashel linen
* 18x26" piece of Wandering Ivy 32ct Lugana from Silkweaver
* 26x36" piece of Twilight 28ct opalescent Lugana from Silkweaver - its HUGE !!!!!!
* Crabapple dragon chart by Generations Cross Stitch
* Strawberry dragon chart by Generations cross stitch
* all finished with a lovely card with a gorgeous kitty cat on the front and the message inside reads: "Hi Gothtigger, Just something that is part RAK and part birthday gift :) The Dragon".

Presents I've received for my Birthday August 2007.

Mel's Sunday Update

Well I'm finally getting the hang of my new job and a handle on stitching on the train - unfortunately I've not yet completely adjusted my body to the new going to bed earlier time.  I can do the wake up at oh god o'clock - I just can't seem to get to sleep early enough so by Friday I'm in serious sleep deprivation mode :)

In stitching news, I finished off the ornament for Tracy.  This is ready for pics to be displayed and the model job posted to her as soon as she gives me the A-OK.

I also did nine hours on a RR for Mariann.  I wont bother posting pics until I've completed the whole 15 hours.

I did about three hours in total on Party Cat on the train this week.  Pic shown here !

I also received my kit for Chatelaine Anniversary Castle Sampler from ECC in the mail today.  I plan to spend this week finishing Mariann's RR so it can be posted off - then the remainder of the week on Faïence.  Next week on Archway for The One, and the week after starting the Anniversary Castle Sampler.

So I'm kinda back into the swing of stitching with the new routines :)

Tales of a Commuting Stitcher: Part the Second

Things I have learned so far:

• If the weather warms up and you decide to take a lighter jacket, instead of the woollen overcoat, remember to change your scissors to the new jacket.
• When you are on the train without scissors, make sure you have large blocks of colours so you can use up an entire thread at a time
• When you start on a different section of the chart to get to big blocks of colour, and you finally get them to intersect with your existing stitching - don't be surprised to find frogs visit.
• When unpicking the older work because of a case of frogs, don't forget to check that there may be a problem with your newer section of stitching too
• Be even less surprised to notice that there are mistakes in both sections
• Glaring at fellow passengers does not help the situation
• Glaring at fellow passengers does keep the seat next to you free
• It is an unwritten rule that every train must have a nutter on board
• Glaring at your fellow passengers because of a case of frogs makes you the nutter
• Having tails on the back of your stitching (because you do not have scissors to trim them) attracts more frogs as you spend more time avoiding tangles than on correct stitching
• Contemplating missing your stop and getting off at the next one so as to give you enough time to complete frogging is not a good idea
• Its even less of a good idea when your stop is actually the end of the line
• Sometimes its OK to put your stitching down and pick up a book instead