A Gentleman's Samplings

My work life and personal life have been keeping me very busy over the past several weeks. So much so that I have been neglecting my blogging friends and hobby. I hopefully will get with the program to keep this blog more updated (even if it is just a post to say “HI”). I am going to be heading back to Tasmania at the end of the week so thought it would be best to go ahead and get an update posted for all of my blogging friends on what I have been up to in the stitching realm of my life. First up – Jane (my new best friend) In my previous post I showed progress on Jane Atkinson by Scarlet Letter. I was working away on the top portion of the flower border and started to get close to the left hand side of the linen. Fears of not having the linen big enough started going through my mind. I tend to measure to make sure that I will have at least 2 inches of extra linen around my project for framing purposes. I also tend to measure my linen and chart at least twice before I start just to...

I have been doing a lot of traveling over the past couple of months so have not had a lot of time to update the blog. Family, work and life in general seem to take up most of my time lately. I am blessed to have such a wonderful family and friends that put up with me being out of pocket for a week or two at a time. But in today’s economic environment I am truly blessed to have a job that I enjoy and which allows me to see places that I would never get around to seeing if I had to do it on my own. As posted in a previous blog, I am currently managing a project for a company located in Devonport, Tasmania Australia.  It is one of the most awe inspiring places that I have ever been and the people are some of the most generous and friendly that you will ever meet.  Over half of the island is a temperate rainforest which is so thick that it blocks out the sun. Some of the most scenic mountains and beaches are also within easy reach. You can also travel from the northern most par...

Thank you to all of my followers for your kind comments on my Aeltie Claes 1673 by Essamplaire. It is a fun piece. I was able to complete all of the regular cross stitch of the bands on the left hand side.  I am starting work on the part of the design with the running stitch.  I really think I will change this to be a four-sided  stitch since it will make it look a little bit more “lacy”.  The running stitch that it calls for does not show up very well with the white silk thread. So will need to see what will work best.  My latest finish is Rhoda Hastings 1863. I was able to finish her on this trip. As stated in a previous post she is stitched on 40-ct using Hand Dyed Fibers. I have also been working on the Celtic Sampler – Wallace by Needle’s Prayse.  I am stitiching it on 40-count linen using the specified NPI fibers. This one has been a lot of fun so far. There is no cross stitch in the whole piece.  I have been switching b...

First I want to apologize to all my friends and followers for not posting in over two weeks.  Life and work have gotten in the way of keeping everyone up to date on any finishes and works in progress. As mentioned in my profile, I am a software consultant for a company based in Dallas, Texas. One of the  the projects that I am currently working on has me traveling to Stockholm, Sweden about once a month. I have not been traveling since December of last year so it has been a nice break. Here are a couple of pictures from one of my favorite cities -- Stockholm (excuse the quality - just have my camera phone this trip). These are taken by the Royal Palace looking east and west at a couple of the any bridges of Stockholm. The one to the right is the overflow from the lake into the bay (see all the chunks of ice from the frozen lake!). The one to the left show a portion of the Royal Palace, the National Museum, and some buildings located on the island of Skeppsholmen. Th...

I finally finished Shakespeares Peddler's Sarah Woodham. The colors in this are really nice. I got a little tired of the border but it is one of those things that you can stitch and not really have to reference the pattern all the time.  Next up on my list of items to finish is Samplers and Such's Rhoda Hastings 1863 .  I am a little over half way done with this sampler.  I really like all of the little motifs and the saying: "Go Like your heavenly father feed the poor  carry comfort to the sick mans door pity the widow be the orphans friend and if you cannot give then freely lend".     This sampler was started last year on 40-ct Lakeside Linen Pearled Barley using HDF threads.

A number of visitor's to the blog wanted to see a progress picture of my latest project -- Shakespeare's Peddler Sarah Woodham. So without further delay, here is my progress using the recommended threads on 40-ct light exampler.  I started the project in early December after completing the Jenny Bean Halloween Sampler. The picture looks a little dark.  Once finished I will take a picture using better lighting.  Still trying to get use to taking pictures of my projects. I was able to get the honeysuckle (at least that is what I think the flowers are) vine completed last night.  So now just need to work on the flowers themselves.  That should go fairly quickly since they are not full flowers and only two colors. Need to force myself to do some more of the verse.  I am doing in with half crosses (or tent) since it is over one.  On the 40-ct fabric they looked a little bulky. I also changed the color of the large trees on the left and r...

A fellow blogger wanted me to post some pictures of some of my older finishes. So Michelle this is for you: "I Sigh Not For  Beauty" by Ruth Ann Russell Sampler & Antique Needlework Quarterly #24 Fall 2001 Completed in 2002 My wife really liked this one so I stitched her name and date in the sampler. "American Sampler" by Sandy Orton Treasures in Needlework Spring 1993 Completed in 1993 "Provence Sampler" by Butternut Road Stitched on 28-ct linen over 1 using Caron Watercolors Camaflouge Completed 1999 Will post some more over the next few days as I get some pictures taken.  Really need to practice on my photography.