New Start Goodness and an Update

Well, to tell the truth and shame the devil it is a re-start of the first big Heaven and Earth chart I ever bought. The bright and beautiful Anal Nathrach. I had a lot of problems with this one and finally just put it down. Wrong fabric and the wrong stitch was definitely part of the ugliness.
Here is a pic of the chart:

I love fantasy art and this one is so super bright and cheerful it outdoes itself.
So, re-start on 18ct. aida 2 over 1. I was so going to order the kit with 25 ct. but due to recent problems with eye sight I decided 18ct was more practical. And it was a hefty amount cheaper to kit it up myself at 123Stitch. Enough so that I'm going to give the Secret Santa thing a try again this year after all. I'd thought I wouldn't be able to afford it. What a treat, but more on that later.

Mail delivery goodness:

And new start porn:

The first 101 stitches:

The setup, for now:

As you can see I am experimenting with leaving the needles on my parking. I stopped at Wally World and bought a pack of button magnets to keep them on. We will see how that works out. I'm a little nervous about them since Dean ate a pack of cigarettes one week and a watch battery the next. Expensive snacking on his part and these aren't that big and look sort of treat sized.
My stitching speed has been reduced to probably a quarter of what it was and I'm hoping this method will help pick it back up a little. I'll let you know when I know.

Meanwhile, my late night between calls project, Mini The Black, of which I am only working the black right now, is coming along nicely.

I hope everyone is enjoying their stitching as much as I am.
Happy stitching my friends.
Karen

A little of this and a little of that and a (2) new starts

I've been busy, busy, busy.
And I've barely left the house!
I've been stitching Mini Soul Mates. I really need to give this project more time. I was bad and decided to start stitching down the middle page in hopes I'd eventually get to something more interesting. Time will tell. 3 over 1 on 14 ct. aida.

Inspired by Marti, who will be stitching a chart only during the holidays, adding to it each year, I decided to start something for those late nights at work when I sometimes have 10 or 15 minutes between calls.
So, yes, a new start. My goal is to try to get 100 stitches a night in on this on the nights when I have slow times. I've been pleasantly surprised with the progress. I introduce you to Mini The Black, an RAK for my birthday from Teresa back in 2012. I had meant to start him long before now.  2 over 1 on 18 ct. aida.

I will try to remember to update you regularly, though at the moment I haven't technically kitted this up, I'm only working the black bits, of which there are a lot!
Both of these are HAED charts btw.

The other piece I started is a gift for someone so I won't be posting about it for some time to come.
In sewing news I finally got the energy up to try one of those tank top dresses. I had an almost new tank that I'd stained near the bottom and was about to toss out so I pulled out some old fabric from the stash and the elastic thread I bought to play with. It worked up in a flash and made a great maxi. I'd run take a pic for you but I'm wearing it right now. Next time I will make fewer gathers, or maybe do pleats, and it definitely needs a belt of some sort. Not the most flattering garment if you are wide around the waist, but I just threw it together to see if I could. It is uber comfy. I could live in these for the rest of my life, it feels so good. Here is a link to the blog with the tutorial I (mostly) followed. http://asmallsnippet.com/2011/09/wanna-make-dress.html

That is about everything for this time.
Happy Stitching this weekend!

One Step Forward and Two Steps Back; I won a chart!

Or that is what it feels like.
I was sure that I'd have posted 3 or 4 times since my last post on July 16, but life stepped in and slowed me to something less than a crawl.
Let me explain.
I'd had that post planned and went ahead and posted it, even though at the time I'd already had the 'injury' that was slowing me down. I thought the symptoms would pass with time and I'd get on with things.
Well, they haven't, but I am getting on with things.
I'd taken a fall in my hallway and was having some pretty nasty symptoms, I won't describe all of them, just the ones that were majorly affecting my stitching and crafting.
1. Extreme sensitivity to light. (As in, my bright stitching light)
2. Massive headache that would not go away and would only go down to a dull headache with meds.
3. The occasional bout of blurred vision that made seeing stitches and symbols impossible.
There are a host of other symptoms but I these are the ones that most affected my ability to stitch. Oh, and yes, I did finally go to the doctor after some badgering from my husband. It appears I had a concussion. I admit to being alarmed when he sent me straight to the hospital for a stat Cat Scan and then to a neurologist.
But that isn't what I'm posting about today, but merely an explanation of what happened so you can all get the idea of how things have been and so you will understand the following about coping with it.
First, meds for the headache have helped.

Coping:
At first I didn't stitch at all, then I started a needlepoint kit I had in the stash (bigger holes and little counting).
But it wasn't satisfying. I need my stitch therapy!
1. I've learned to adjust my stitching light in such a way that I find it bearable for short periods of time.
2. Use the Nook or Kindle, with EZPDF reader. I can highlight the symbol I'm stitching so I don't forget which one I was stitching if I have a flaring head pain or headache, or have to stop a moment for blurred vision.
3. Use the same ezPDF reader to view my symbols enlarged when said problems make it difficult to see them on my floss key or chart.
4. Shortly I will be adding an enlarged version of the symbols to my floss bags for each project. Just have to get my handy dandy printer hooked up. (First have to find the hand dandy power cord. lol).
5. Stitch only one project for a little while so I don't feel so overwhelmed.
6. Accept that my already slow stitching is going to be even slower.
7. Minimize distractions during stitching time. Dogs, movies, music etc.
8. Don't travel or cross country stitch, a head ache just makes me that much more likely to make an error.
9. When having blurred vision only work on something like 14 ct. The one project I chose above is 14 ct. aida, 3 over 1. Mini Soul Mates.
10. Count it as many times as I deem necessary if I'm just feeling like maybe I didn't count right the first time.
So far these are my solutions. Suggestions are extremely welcome. I am not looking to re-invent the wheel here.
And the chart I won? Jo did a little contest on her anniversary and I was lucky enough to win! I was able to have my pick of a HAED chart and chose mini The Ghost. I love that chart, and it isn't huge so it should be do-able, even if I am slow. Here is the link and a picture. Mini The Ghost .

Isn't she divine?

Until next time, Happy Stitching Everyone.

And Sew On, and sew on, and sew on

As everyday life goes along with all of its little joys and struggles I've rediscovered the simple pleasure and relief from stress I get simply from stitching. Sometimes lately I have a little too much on my mind, and end up having to frog, but even that is a comforting part of stitching, familiar after all these years.
Recently I've put some time into two projects. The first is mostly blue stitches, but yay, now I am having different shades of blue. I am talking about All Dogs Go To Heaven, from Heaven and Earth Designs.
The last time you saw it:

And as it is now:

See those red threads? I had lost count and grabbed some floss to put in a  temporary grid. I'll pull them back out pretty quickly and try to find something else to grid with now that I will no longer use the quilting pen.

Second up is one I haven't worked in a little while. I finished the first page of I Am Half Sick of Shadows, a Golden Kite pattern. This was my third restart and I can't think why I put it down. I am missing a few colors now but am enjoying it again.
Before:

And After:

  

 

So not a huge amount of progress, but a pleasure to be stitching on her none the less. I have picked up a few of the colors I need and have a only a few more to get, hopefully soon, but I'm not sure when it will be.

Just for the fun of comparison, both of these are being stitched on 14 ct. aida. The first is traditional 2 strands over one, the second is 3 strands over.



Until next time, happy stitching my friends.

Stitching and a Movie: Serenity

If you've known me for very long then you know I am a Josh Whedon fan. I've loved almost everything he has done, so it shouldn't be any surprise that I'm reviewing Serenity.
Believe it or not I've only seen this movie once before.
Serenity: **
Stitching rating, even having seen it once before is only**. In my backwards rating system this makes it a good movie to watch, but not so great for stitching to. I looked up from my stitching, a lot.
If you were a fan of the series Firefly you won't be disappointed in this movie. Since I don't want to give up any of the plot in case you haven't seen it I'll just say that I found the movie satisfying in tying up loose ends, if a little sad in places, for those familiar with the series. All of your old favorite characters are there.
I stitched on Dragon of The Clouds, which I started a little while back and put aside, so there is no before picture, just an after.
Dragon of the Clouds:

I must have gotten used to these specialty threads because the gold Kreinik didn't bother me one bit. The black fabric is getting more difficult to see year by year but is still a pleasure. Please excuse the dog hairs, I hadn't rolled it yet when I took the picture and my stitching companion is blowing fur at the moment, thanks in part to our late start to summer here.

It has been nearly 2 weeks since I watched the movie, so I'm a bit behind on my posting. I'll have a post of my other stitching up soon.

Until then, a quote from one of the Firefly episodes.

"Harken: Seems odd you'd name your ship after a battle you were on the wrong side of.
Mal: May have been the losing side. Still not convinced it was the wrong one."

Shiny!

Minimal Stitching

But at least it is something!
Here is an update on All Dog's Go To Heaven from Heaven and Earth Designs.

Yep, more blue. Not the most exciting thing to look at, but hey, my blue is growing.

Warning: See that quilting pen I was  gridding with? One of my kits I used that on last year has suddenly had those lines re-appear! I will never use it again. You can see that piece before it was washed and the lines gone, on the Finishes tab for 2013. I'm going to wash it again in a few minutes and hope for the best. I was really upset about this since I've used it before with no problems.

And second up is progress on Mini Cheshire Cat. It is also a Heaven and Earth design. It was RAK'd to me over a year ago and I am enjoying the black and white so much, even though you can't tell a thing yet since I haven't gotten very far. I remember my absolute delight when I put down QS Dragon Soul one day and realized I had stitched a thumb. I couldn't even tell until I was done stitching for the day and was seeing it from a distance.
Anywho:

It doesn't look like much progress, but then I've had very little time for stitching so I'm pretty pleased.

I am finally beginning to get caught up on my blog reading. It is so much fun reading about what others are doing and really inspiring to see all the pics. There are a number of blogs I visit that aren't listed on the sidebar yet and I really need to take the time to get them on there. Hopefully that will be soon.

I am hoping to get some quality stitching time in tonight. I have an actual night off! So I am going to get some housework done and then we will see.

Happy Stitching!

Stitching And A Movie: Devils' Knot

I have watched this and 2 documentaries. I'll let you know about the documentaries another time.
I finished my mini quilt and put some time into All dogs go to heaven.

Devils' Knot:

Stitchability *****

That isn't necessarily a good thing.
I won't rehash the details of the crime, there is plenty of information available out there. I was really looking forward to seeing this but:
This was a boring movie, so a high stitchability rate. It would seem impossible to make a boring movie about the crime of murdering 3 small boys, a satanic cult scare and 3 teenage boys being accused of the crime, but somehow it was done
This happened just across the river in West Memphis, so there has always been a lot of interest in this crime locally. The scenery was really good in the movie, in fact the whole movie was beautiful.
Reese Witherspoon did a great job as the mother of one of the murdered children. She even managed to nail the accent. Colin Firth was believable as well, as an investigator working pro-bono for the West Memphis Three, as the accused boys became known.
 Overall, no new ground is covered here. The movie totally failed to capture the drama, the intensity or the atmosphere of the time and events. James Hamrick was never able to quite capture the quiet intensity of the real life Damien Echols.
I can't recommend it unless you are interested in the case and/or have some time to stitch and just want something to listen to as you stitch.
All Dogs Go To Heaven Before:

And after:

I've done a few more stitches on it since then.

My picture of the Irish Chain cross stitch won't load for some reason. I'll try again later or take another picture.

Until then, Happy Stitching!