Brummie Blogger

Finished!

That has got to be the quickest that I've ever finished a cross stitch project! Obviously doing a stitch-a-long with a friend who stitches quickly is the way to go :)

Tree finished her Coffee Menu a few days ago and it looks gorgeous. You can see it here. I didn't have too much left to do on mine and seeing that one all completed pushed me to stop messing about on the computer - my biggest time waster - and get mine finished.

I really, really like doing Little House Needleworks designs. The colours look so rich together and it's just a joy to stitch. I love this one and will be looking out for a suitable frame for it now.

I finished it last night and I've just worked out that it took just three weeks from start to finish, if you don't count the prep. It's taken me longer than that to do much smaller designs before now so I'm feeling incredibly pleased with myself at the moment.

This morning I put a few stitches in to the poor neglected Winnie the Pooh calendar while we were watching the F1 Grand Prix, but I was having so much trouble getting used to the Aida after the lovely linen of Coffee Menu that I had to keep frogging it. I put it away again in the end and prepped a new project instead. It's a SAL from the same designer as Tree of Stitches, Abi Gurden, and is for the members of the Stitch Specialists group. You can see a picture of it here.

It's called The Great Escape and is currently on the third installment so I need to catch up. I've got my fabric hemmed and pressed now. The three lots of instructions and all three charts are printed and I've got a selection of threads to choose from. I just need to take a deep breath and practise the first stitch before starting on the actual piece as it's one that I haven't done before. I've got a couple of weeks to play with this, and other projects, and then I start another SAL with Tree.

Wonder if that one will get done in record time too?

Coffee Menu and some buttons

After seeing how far along Tree is with her Coffee Menu I thought I'd better get a move on so I had a stitching day yesterday and have done a bit more this morning. The housework can wait, eh? I'm quite pleased with where I've got to as I now have all of the bottom section done and just need to do the nice picture at the top with the Coffee banner above it. That looks a lovely bit to stitch so I'm looking forward to that part.

As you can see, I did chart up Flat White in the end and I'm happy with how it looks. It just didn't seem right to leave out something that I like as much as a latte or Cappuccino.

 In between stitching I've been doing a little shopping. I got the fabric for another project from Sew and So but needed quite a bit of thread so I went to The Patchwork Rabbit for that as her prices are very competitive for Crescent Colours and Gentle Arts. You really can't fault her speed either. I ordered at 3.30 in the afternoon and my parcel popped through the letterbox just 19 hours later.

I then had a little email conversation with her as there was something that I wanted for another project. (Yes, yet another one.) I suspected she might have it or be able to get it but it wasn't on her website. That was yesterday. Today the item in question, which is the button pack that I need for this chart, is sitting on my desk, courtesy of Karla at The Patchwork Rabbit. Can't beat that for customer service.

Aren't my buttons pretty?

Tree also has the Wildflower chart. I may have nudged her towards it slightly. We think we'll probably make it our next SAL once we've finished Coffee Menu. And made some progress on Tree of Stitches and the new one, I expect. I should really do a bit more on Winnie the Pooh and poor neglected Mr. Hamilton too but I'm having so much fun with the Stitch-A-Longs that it's difficult to know what to stitch next.

I need more hours in the day.

No Flat White?

I've been stitching away on Coffee Menu and I've been loving it. Like the previous LHN designs that I've done, it's a joy to work on. I love using the Crescent Colours and Gentle Arts threads too.

Usually I like to start at the  top left but I was so keen to get cracking on this that I didn't want to take the time to work out where the top corner was. So once I'd found the centre of the fabric, I just started there and stitched the menu. Now I'm working from the bottom up on the borders and will do the top last.

You might notice that there's a bit of a gap between the bottom menu item and the spoon. I should have stitched Irish Cream in there but I've never had an Irish Cream coffee and as I don't like the stuff I doubt that I ever will. What I do like sometimes, as a change from a latte or cappuccino is a flat white. There's no flat white on the design. So, I'm giving serious consideration to seeing if I can chart up Flat White and fitting it into that space. In the meantime, I'm carrying on with the rest as I could be thinking about it for a while.

This is what it looks like at the moment.

I'm a bit torn at the moment as I really want to carry on with this but I've also got another project that I'm starting. Maybe I'll just do a few stitches in the new project tomorrow and then carry on with Coffee Menu after that...

Coffee Menu

I've had this chart in my stash for a few months and have gradually collected the fabric and threads needed to work it. I wasn't going to start it for a while as I have four WIPs at the moment but after a virtual shopping session with Tree a couple of weeks ago, we decided that we should do some SALs and this is going to be our first one. I'm quite happy to pop a couple of my others on hold and flit between this and the remaining two so I've finished prepping this and it's ready to go.

 

It's by Little House Needleworks and it uses mainly DMC threads but there are also some Crescent Colours and Gentle Arts, which I love using so I'm looking forward to playing with those. I also have some really pretty fabric for it in 28 ct. I'll be making a start later today and there'll be plenty of updates so I can compare notes with Tree.

Framing The Bookshelf

I wanted to get The Bookshelf framed and hanging on a wall as I really love this piece but getting cross stitch framed is rather expensive as the stretching can be rather time consuming. The last project that I had framed cost around £50 and that was ten years ago so I wasn't optimistic about getting this slightly larger stitch done any time soon. Then I came across something at the NEC show that made it look possible to do it myself so I've been gradually acquiring all the necessary bits and have been taking photos along the way - as you do.

Here's the results. Firstly the materials. There's a lovely shop in a local shopping centre that sells framed prints and also frames and mounts. I took The Bookcase in to find a frame for it and the very helpful chap in there found this for me after trying loads of other frames.

 
Just the right size and colour and the print inside could be disposed of. And at half price, I wasn't going to complain. The problem came with finding a mount the right size and colour but as he offered a custom mount service it wasn't too big of a problem. £4 to make me a mount that was going to be perfect.

This is the gizmo that I got at the NEC. It looks much like a carpet gripper. It fits onto the backboard of the frame and you just stretch the fabric over it, which then is gripped by the little pegs. There was an offer if you bought two boxes and as I had a demo, and was let loose with the demo myself to see how easy it was, I went for it. There's loads in there so I assumed that if it was as easy to use once I got it home, I could frame many projects with it.

 
The first step was to attach the Grip-n-Frame all around the back board of the picture frame, cutting to size so it fitted neatly. This was very easy to do.

 
Next I cut to size some batting and attached it with double sided tape. This was to cushion the stitching and make it sit nice and evenly.

 
The next step was to stretch the fabric onto the Grip-n-frame. I had a think about the best way to do this so that it would be centred. I didn't want to have to keep adjusting it as the fabric I'd used was a linen and was fairly delicate. I decided that the best thing to do was to measure from the sides of the design and work out where the fabric should be gripped and mark it with my gridding pen.

 
This worked out brilliantly. I laid it over the board so that the marks were lined up with the gripper and then gently started stretching the fabric onto the pegs. I made sure that I kept to the lines all the way around and just had a slight bit of trouble with the very last corner where it was a bit tight. Other than that it was fine. I put the mount over it and saw one place where it needed a very slight adjustment, which took a second or two but it really couldn't have been easier. I think if I hadn't have thought to draw the lines it might have been a different story so I'm rather glad I took the time to do the preparation first.

Once I was happy that it was as even and level as it could be, I fastened down the back with masking tape. Yes, I know. Shock, horror. Not archival. Strictly speaking it should be laced but this only has to last for my lifetime. I'm quite sure no-one is going to want it after I've gone so masking tape will do very nicely. And it's much faster than fiddly lacing.

 
And you're the only ones that will know anyway, because after I'd done that - I popped it into the frame, on top of the glass and mount, and covered it all up with brown paper and paper tape so it looked all lovely and neat.

 
You might be able to tell from this photo that the frame wasn't actually deep enough. The wee metal bits that hold it all in place are just about doing their job but it's a close thing. So, I have learnt from this to buy deeper frames in future and have in fact found some nice ones in Hobbycraft, where you can buy the frames, mounts and backs/glass all separately. This one will do though. It will hold, and it has all been finished off properly at the back so that'll help the metal bits to hang on too. I just need to add hooks and wire so I can hang it and then it's going up on the wall. Would you like to see the front? I had the devil of a job getting a decent photo. Another thing I've learnt is that this frame did not come with non-reflective glass. This photo isn't bad, but it's a bit skewed. It was the only way I could get a photo without myself in it too, I'm afraid.

 
The mount is a lovely chocolate brown, which you can't tell from the photo, and it does look rather good with the colours in the design. I'm really pleased with how my first attempt at framing turned out and I reckon it cost under £20 for all the bits.
Right, what can I frame next...

 

The Bookshelf is finished

You have no idea how excited I am that this piece is finished. I absolutely love it. I'm think it's probably one of the loveliest designs I've ever come across. The colours are gorgeous and it was a joy to stitch - simple enough to make it an easy one but with enough detail to make it interesting. And it's about books. What more could I possibly want? I have to find a framer so I can get it up on the wall so I can see it all the time.

Here it is in all its finished glory. As mentioned previously, the list of authors has been altered slightly to personalise it, with the kind permission of the designer.

I'm going to make a start on Starry Night with Tardis next but I also want to rescue my other two WIPs from obscurity at some point and also to start one of the other LHN projects that I have kitted up. I have four ready to go, one book themed and three coffee. 

I'm hoping to go to the sewing show at the NEC at the end of the month too, so who knows what'll come home with me from there. In the meantime though, I think I'll just sit and look at my lovely Bookcase for a while longer.  
 

Feb's Friday Night Sew-in

 
That was fun! I stitched away quite happily all evening and into the night to the sounds of VH1s 80s shuffle on the TV. Oh how I mocked the hairstyles. And how I cringed at the the thought of some of the hairstyles that I had myself, but we won't go there, eh? Some of that music brought back memories though.

But the stitching - I just about managed what I set out to do, in between the mocking and the reminiscing. I now have Little Women completed and have the first teeny bit done on The Secret Garden. It's only the trunk and branches of a tree but it's a start. I shall do a bit more today between loads of laundry.

 
I really enjoyed my Friday night Sew-in. I'll be looking out for the next one. In the meantime, I'm going to go and have a nose at what some of the other participants were doing.

The Bookshelf update #3

I've been doing bits to The Bookshelf in between prepping Starry Night and I've now finished the Sense and Sensibility section.

 
One down, three to go. Next is Little Women and I plan to work on that tonight. I've noticed that Tree has mentioned something called a Friday Night Sew-in several times over the past few months and as it's on the Treehouse blog again today I've just investigated it further. I like the idea so I'm joining in. Any excuse to curl up with my stitching.

Tonight I'm going to see if I can finish Little Women and perhaps make a start on The Secret Garden.

The Bookshelf update #2

I'm about halfway down this project now and I'm absolutely loving it. The colours are a joy to work with, as is the fabric. I'm really pleased with the bit that I've just completed which was the area that I've adapted to change some of the authors to my own favourites. My original post showing how it would look if I hadn't tinkered with it can be found here.

 
I've just started on the pictures depicting the individual books, which is a part that I've been looking forward to as it means that I get to use some of the other colours. Nice as the browns and greens are - the blues look awfully pretty too.

First one to be done will be Sense and Sensibility. I'll probably post an update after each of the four books as I think it's going to go quite quickly now, providing I don't get sidetracked by any more projects.

Caffe Latte is finished

I am so pleased with how this has turned out. It was really satisfying to stitch and it looks lovely, if I do say so myself. The fabric has given it a sort of antiquey look which seems to fit the modern design. And it's a finish. My second one of the year. I, am very happy indeed.

 
I've now gone back to stitching the My Little Heart SAL as it's now December and it needs to be finished before the end of the month. Yes it does. I have put my foot down. There's only a bit of border, December's design and some French knots or beads to add. Then I can carry on with some more interesting stuff. Like Venice Street and The Bookshelf. And possibly the Pooh calendar which seems to be less interesting of late, but never mind.

Of course, this all depends on whether the temperature in the house rises enough for me to be able to hold a needle as it currently feels somewhere around freezing. It's apparently -3 outside which is actually nice and toasty compared to the -10 I faced on the way to work this morning, but quite frankly I'd rather go back to Florida for the winter. I'm just not designed for these temperatures. My bones are shivering. P'raps I'll go and put on another jumper to go with the two I'm already wearing. Brrr. Roll on the summer. Please?