A Gentleman's Samplings

Hello to all my fellow stitchers, followers, and friends -- I cannot believe that it has been over a month since my last post. Seems that time has gotten away from me once again. My goal for April was to start and finish Frances Eden, Unfortunately, I was not able to reach that goal mainly due to business travel and enjoying the great weather that we have been having in North Texas. I have been spending a lot of my spare time working on out flower and herb gardens. I was hoping to get some raised vegetables beds in place this year but looks like that will have to wait until the fall. I was able to get a lot done though on Frances Eden 1809 from Handwork Samplers. 1809 Frances Eden by Handwork Worked on 40-ct Examplar Lakeside Linen using HDF silks I really like the colors in this one but do not like having to do the same motif twice in the same colors. I did get a little bit bored so to shake things up a little bit I picked back up Elizabeth Sheffield from Scarlet L...

My new start for April is the 1809 Frances Eden by Handwork. The colors on this are really bright and a lot of fun. 1809 Frances Eden by Handwork Worked on 40-ct Examplar Lakeside Linen using HDF silks I nearly have the house completed with the exception of some adornments on the roof. I hope to make better progress this weekend and show another progress picture next week. Thanks to all for the comments on my posts and finishes. They are most appreciated.

Hello fellow stitching friends. I meet my goal for March - to finish City Stitcher's Adam and Eve..  Last stitches put in around 10:30pm CST on 31 March.  I was determined to get this one done. This was a fun and quick stitch.  Not as large as some of the samplers that I have worked on in the past months. Adam and Eve by City Stitcher Worked on 40-ct Examplar Lakeside Linen with HDF silks I am now working on Francis Eden by Handwork. It was hard to resist this one after seeing the finish by Margaret  and the start by Nicole . These two ladies are big enablers. I am currently in the middle of traveling to Tasmania, Australia so you will have to wait for a progress picture. I did start this in the lower left hand corner. Hard to resist that house with the angels on it.  I will post a picture once I make a little bit more process. Have a great weekend.

Spring has finally arrived in North Central Texas with some great weather. That along with the end of Daylight Savings Time allows for more time to spend outdoors getting the flower beds and the rest of the yard in order.  The sampler guild which I belong to hosted Stacy Nash of Stacy Nash Primitives on the 12th and 13th of March.  I did not preregister for this class because I did not know if I was going to be in town or not. Luckily my scheduled worked out and with a little bit of arm twisting from Michelle , I was able to get a kit from someone who was not going to be able to attend.  I got the stitching done fairly quickly on both the drum and needle roll. On the first day of the class we learned how to assemble the drum and age it with a walnut dye. We also learned how to create a strawberry to accent the top. On the second day we learned how to assemble the needle roll.  With a little help from my table partner Betty, I was able to lea...

As promised in my last blog entry, here is a picture of my finished  Jane Atkinson . Jane Atkinson by Scarlet Letter 40-ct Doeskin Lakeside Linen using DMC I really liked working on this one with all of the colors but the over one saying was a bugger to get completed on the 40-ct linen that was very tightly woven.  I also finished James Wilson (a reproduction by the Haslemere Educational Museum). This was a very quick and fun stich. James Wilson by Haslemere Educational Museum 40-ct Claypot Lakeside Linen using HDF silks A closeup of the top center motif. The leaves are done with a satin stitch as is the flower band underneath the tree. A closeup of the bottom right corner with James' signature block. I am still working my the counted canves piece (Oh My Stars by Needle Delights). I have not really worked on this one a lot since my last update. This is a really fun piece also but big. There will end up being 225 of those little 12x12 blocks in ...

Hello everyone. Again I have been delayed in posting new starts and finishes to the my blog. I finally finished Jane Atkinson last month.  The over one was a bear to get done on the 40-count Lakeside. Unfortunatley I was not able to take a picture of her before I left on a business trip back to Tasmania.  Once I return to the states next week I will post a picture. At the end of January I started the James Wilson Sampler which is in the Haslemere Educational Museum . The Needleprint blog mentioned this sampler back in November of last year and she also mentions it again in her post on 15 Feb 2011. This sampler is on the Needleprint blog and it really spoke to me since I am a male needlework enthusiast.  Here is a photo of the original: And my progress: The chart calls for DMC which I have convert to  Vicki Claytons Hand-Dyed fibers .  The tree at the top center of the sampler is done in DMC 712 (Ecru/Off White) and is very hard ...

Happy New Year Everyone - I cannot believe that it has been over a month since my last post. Time sure flies when you are having fun - or getting older. I have been spending some time contemplating my stitiching goals for 2011. After speaking with some fellow stitchers, I believe that I will spend this year finishing some of my WIPS.  I would really like to get some samplers done instead of just having them started.  I will post the list on my blog once I have narrowed it down. I am nearly done with Jane Atkinson.  I ended up finishing all of the stitching but left most of the over one saying incomplete.  That was a mistake.  So I have been rotating it in out with a couple of other projects.  I only have about 2 more lines of the saying to complete so I am commited to getting this done by the end of the month and I will show a picture as soon as it is complete. I have been wanting to do try my hand at some counted canvas work sincae the middle part of...