So often I feel like the Red Queen (Alice in Wonderland), LOL, running as fast as I can just to stay in one place!!  Still plodding through the bookkeeping for year end... but only 3 more months to go through, so the end is in sight, (GBG)...  I doubt if I'll get it all done before we leave for England, though it shouldn't take long to finish up when we get home. 

As I think I mentioned last month, we're making a quick trip over for our granddaughter's 2nd birthday, but won't be gone long.  I'm taking my CASTLE project with me to work on, and hope to have the 'top layer' just about done by the time we get home.   I'm trying to find a stitcher to do the 'bottom layer' (the 5x7 nursery backdrop)... but I haven't finished graphing it yet - though I do have the drawing done - so if THAT'S going out before we leave on Tuesday, I need to get my bottom moving, LOL. 

But I did find some time to work on MORE designs, (GBG), because that never ends!  A NEEDLE PULLING THREAD (ANPT) sent out the themes for a couple of issues which will come out after the 3 I'm already working on!  And funnily enough, I was once again inspired by designs I already had on my drawing board, though they were on the back burner. 

The first theme was TREES, and I remembered I had started a series of FRACTAL designs for the elements (you know, EARTH, AIR, WATER, FIRE).  Earth happened to feature tree roots - though I wasn't happy with the design and ended up scrapping it and coming up with something else using branches, LOL, but still trees! 

The publisher loved the design, and wanted the whole series of four (which nicely takes care of next years designs for her!); so I now have EARTH and AIR just about ready for stitchers, WATER is over half completed, and FIRE has concept drawings, but isn't graphed yet... so I'm doing really well there, and am finally working ahead - hurrah!  I also pulled out a 'concept drawing' I had roughed out for an ALICE IN WONDERLAND tribute (working on this probably inspired the red queen quote at the top, LOL).  I finalized the drawing, selected fonts and reference pics etc., and laid it out with a set of NINE charms that will be available in a treasure pack for this design. 

I may include some motifs to insert in lieu of the charms, but the treasures are what started the whole design idea in the first place, LOL.  I have THREE designs I need to get charted and out to model stitchers, to complete this years line up... one is WONDERLAND, another is a cute set of elf ornaments my girlfriend has been looking forward to since I told her about them 2 years ago, LOL, and the last is a conversion of Shelley McVittie's artwork HOMECOMING - and I already have a stitcher waiting for this one, so I have to get moving on these. 

Seems like there's hardly any time for actual stitching these days (sigh), but I guess new designs also count as being 'from my needle' to yours!  Hoping I have more fun stuff to share next month... happy stitching!