Well, what HAVEN'T I been working on this month, LOL?  I have the WATER FRACTAL for A NEEDLE PULLING THREAD almost half done (that one's on black fabric - thank goodness for my magnifier light!!).

To keep pace with my Hardanger SAL group, I'm stitching a THIRD Owl box... this one is on grey Hardanger fabric, with one of DMC's overdyed pearl cottons - a gorgeous dark blue and purple thread!  I made the actual owl purple to match... 

To keep pace with my Cross-Stitch SAL groups (all 6 of them), I've chosen one of the options (sage green swirls, with lovely butterfly treasures).  I'll probably stitch all 6 eventually, and release them as charts... but not until my groups are done with them - so next year at least! 

Oh yes, there's ANOTHER piece for ANPT, which I thought I had finished, until I went to frame it (sigh)...

It's a tree, and the roots spell the word GROWTH... but when I framed it I decided the top of the tree needed to be larger, so I have to unframe it, remove some treasures, and add some stitching to thicken out the top 'growth', LOL.  I'm stitching it with a gren overdyed floss... Here's a PEEK at the roots...

One of my favorite designs is going to be available next month, a pair of 3D standing Gnomes - one stitching, and one knitting - I gave you a peek at last September ... but I have a friend who wants to stitch them for Christmas gifts, so I'm making a couple different size options for her. 

The originals stand 7" tall when complete, and I've shortened the body to 6", and am going to do it once more (to 5"), so she'll be able to make a grouping of varying heights, LOL. 

Of course, I'm also working on new designs, so keep checking in to hear what's new!  Till next month...

Well I got the cross-stitch SAL (stitch-a-long) up and running... or at least the webpage is set up and stitchers are starting to register, LOL, and the first Unit will be sent out (via email) on March 15th.  I got a little carried away (wink), and ended up designing SIX boxes - 5 the same size (5x7), then one that had to be larger (6x8) because it's a TEA BOX, which will hold 4 stacks of teabags when assembled! So basically this month has been organizing (I'm good at spread sheets, GBG), and making up kits. 

I've also been working on my bookkeeping, as I'm woefully behind and my DH wants to get to taxes in the next month or so!  I've verified up to the end of June, run all my statements etc., so I'm getting there... I just got sidetracked with not one but TWO stitch-alongs, LOL.

I did get a few things finished - one being a concept drawing for an extra design for A NEEDLE PULLING THREAD.  This became necessary because we ran into a licensing issue on the spectacular Louis Armstrong piece I was working on... (sigh).  Since it had both a picture of Mr. Armstrong AND a line from Wonderful World, I would have had to pay licensing to about 5-6 people, as apparently several people hold the rights to the song (!), not sure how that works, but with all those fingers in the pie, we wouldn't have made any money on the design.  So now it just gets to hang in my house and be appreciated by visitors! 

Of course that meant I didn't have a design in Issue 54 - the first issue since the magazine came out that I don't have a design in (sniff sniff)... I do still have an ad on page 85, LOL, so I still have a presence, but I was sad not to be able to contribute to the issue... so I'm doing TWO pieces for Issue 55, to make up for it, LOL.  I'm stitching the WATER FRACTAL myself, and with all the other demands on my time over the next month, I may have to send the extra design off to someone else to stitch. 

That's another thing I have to put some effort into - finding some new model stitchers!  Many of my current stitchers are getting older, or having health issues etc.  While there are lots of people still stitching, finding time to stitch for someone else can be a challenge.  If you know anyone who would like to learn what is involved in becoming a model stitcher, have them contact me and I'll give them some details. 

Well, that's pretty much how my month has gone - oh we did get some book news, Bill has been offered a short-term contract with a company he used to work with, and he can work from home, which is good, as we still can't travel, thanx to Covid.  That will make him happer (to be busy), and both of us happier with more money coming in!!

Till next month...

Well, HAPPY NEW YEAR... a bit late, LOL.  Quite a busy month for a January... I put out an inquiry email to see if anyone was interested in a SAL (StitchALong) Hardanger needlework box, and my goodness, what a good response I got!  We currently have 27 ladies involved in this project, so I spent quite a bit of time organizing this and getting kits assembled. 

Now I've asked if there's any interest in a cross-stitch SAL... DN have to be a box, but there seems to be quie a bit of interest in doing a box, so we'll see!  The ideas swirling around in my head may end up being THREE SAL's!!  I have some HOME GNOMES I was doing for a teaching project, which didn't get picked up - apparently it was really close, LOL, they could only pick 12 teachers, and I made the top 15 (wink).

So they are one option... a needlework box that can be customized with a design on the lid is a second opton... and a Christmas box is the third option..

I have also started stitching the model for my fav of the 4 FRACTAL inspired designs I'm doing for ANPT (A Needle Pulling Thread)... I'm stitching WATER, represented by a colorful coral spiral.  FIRE is also out being stitched by one of my wonderful model stitchers, while EARTH is already at ANPT waiting to go in Issue 55, and AIR is also done (even though it's the last one in the series), going in Issue 58. 

Am I working on anything else?  I think I'll be doing the SAL's along with my groups - I'm doing a dark grey box this time, with red variegated floss for the filling stitches and a PINWHEEL Dorset Button decoration on the front flap, with a red/white/grey overdyed floss for other filling stitches - quite stunning colors really.  By stitching along with the group, I can remind myself of how I want things done, and tips I need to pass along (wink). 

But since I have all these ideas swirling around in my brain, I better go do some designing, LOL ... talk to you next month!

"We wish you a Merry Christmas, We wish you a Merry Christmas, We wish you a Merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year!" 

Can you believe Christmas is only a week away - yikes!  Most of this month has been taken up with preparations for the holidays... We set up the tree before our December Open House, and put out my big Nutcracker who guards the bottom of the stairs... and the gnome in the garden has on his festive hat and collar, LOL.  I did up all the Christmas cards nice and early - I used up some old ones I still had on hand, then used my new X's & Oh's CHRISTMAS CARDS for the rest.  I love how they came out, and I'll try to remind you about them in October (2021) in case you want to order some for yourself - I meant to do it this year, and just lost track of everything... I blame it on Covid brain, (GBG). 

I also dug out the gifts I'd bought throughout the year, and we bought presents for those we didn't have yet.  They were all wrapped and in the mail and most of them have arrived safely - I think we're waiting to hear about one more... We were able to go see Bill's mom (in Kingston) and have lunch with a couple of his many siblings... Mom G is being very careful and not going out much, and the boys are being very careful not to visit her often or all at once.  We'll miss the huge gathering at her house (almost 50 people last year!!), but look forward to getting together in the summer (fingers, toes and eyes crossed we're allowed to get together by then).  I also got my homemade buns done - took a dozen for each of the folks at lunch, and still have some in the freezer for the 25th. 

But it hasn't all been fun - MY mom fell and dislocated her shoulder (she decided to rearrange the furniture after my dad went to bed one night, and tripped over a carpet she had folded back out of her way!!).  It was a very bad dislocation, and she'll be out of action for at least 6 weeks, so a lot of our time has been spent driving them to appointments and doing errands for them, since she can't drive and dad can't see well enough to either.  I even had time to take dad Christmas shopping while mom was in physio, so he's done now too, LOL. 

Since I was over there so much anyway, I got the new vinyl floor laid in their bathroom and laundry room, so their bathroom renovation is pretty much complete.  Bill came over and helped move the freezer / washer / dryer and put in new  baseboards, oh and he also had to shorten the door just a hair so it didn't drag, and those finishes really made a difference! 

Of course I'm still working (wink).  I've had a few people come out to shop, or order by phone, and in the evenings I'm busy working on the second version of the OWL HARDANGER BOX for EAC Seminar 2022.  Still haven't heard if I've been picked to teach, but it's a really nice box, so I wanted to get the adjustments made - and make notes, LOL, while it's all fresh in my mind! 

Unfortunately, I had TWO projects I thought would be ready and I could use one for December and one for January, and one isn't done, and the other seems to be lost in the mail (sigh).  If it DN show up soon, I'll have to have it re-stitched. Of course it's my fault the other project isn't done, as I have to finish stitching the second sparkly purse... I have the gold one stitched, now I'm working on the silver - but I got tied up with the OWL BOX and didn't work on it (thinking the OTHER project was on it's way home).  Ah well...

In the meantime, I whipped up an adorable little 4x6 design to release as a Little Leaflet.  It sez :"RELAX, you're on (picture of flip flops) TIME!"  I'm doing my flip flops blue, and using an overdyed floss for the larger lettering, but I think I may include other color options, for those who want green, or yellow, or pink flip flops!  This should stitch up fairly quickly, so I'm off to work on that - have a great holiday and enjoy your Christmas no matter where you are, or who you're with!  Make some hot cocoa (spike it with Baileys, yum), put on your favorite Christmas movie, and enjoy! 

MERRY CHRISTMAS!