Monday, December 18, 2017

Stocking progress...and some new starts!

With Christmas day fast approaching, I'm desperately trying to find time to get in some sneaky, secret stitching....which really is not easy at all! Here's where I was last time I posted on my  Santa stocking secret stitching...


....and here's where I am now.....


There's still some hair to do along with some holly and berries to stitch and applique. I still have to embroider the name, attach the front of the stocking to the back and then make and attach the lining! All in  a week....I can see that I'll be burning the midnight oil to get this done in time and without the recipient seeing it!

So, while said person is around and I can't work on the stocking, I decided that maybe it was time to pull out this gorgeous kit that I got from my hubby a few Christmases ago......


......I absolutely love the design (and the fact that my hubby picked a cross stitch kit as a gift for me!), but I HATE stitching on black fabric.....which is why I have been putting it off for so long. Even with some white fabric on my lap so that I can see the holes in the aida, I still detest working on dark fabric......don't get me wrong, I love the finished result but I hate working with black or navy aida. So, with this in mind, I'm going to take it slow and only work on this design one night per week so that I don't end up having this project become a UFO.

So the other nights of the week (when I couldn't work on the stocking!) I have been working on this little kit...


This was one of those last minute grabs that I did in my local Wal-mart, so that I would have something to stitch when we were back in the UK for my father-in-laws funeral. As it happened, I didn't get time to stitch so have just started it. It's a cute little design with a sweet saying, which is probably too small to see on the photo, but it says 'Loved you yesterday, love you still. Always have, always will.' I wasn't too sure about buying it as I didn't love it, but it was the only one on the shelf that I would have stitched, the rest didn't appeal to me at all and I really wanted to have something to work on in the evenings while in the UK.  It was marked at $8 but when I got to the check-out it rang up as $3.50....what a deal! As you can see it's all blues, so i have a feeling that by the end of this design I'm going to be fed-up of stitching with blue threads!

I'm off to see if I can get a few stitches put in the Santa stocking before everyone else gets home from work.

Until next time....happy stitching!

Rhona

8 comments:

RJ said...

Rhona your Santa is adorable and someone is going to be very happy when they receive it. I feel the same way as you do about stitching on black...love how it looks but find it very hard to do. And lastly, I think the little chart you picked up at Walmart is really sweet I like the saying very much. My package arrived today...you were so sweet and generous. After Christmas I'm going to start it and do alittle each week. My husband gave me a good idea for the finish that I think I will be doing. Hope you and your family have lovely holidays. RJ

Justine said...

Good luck with finishing the stocking in time - I'm sure you'll do it! I love the red cardinals and I agree - little and often on black fabric.

Mii Stitch said...

The stocking is coming along nicely and great new starts on the other projects.

Irene said...

Rhona la calza รจ meravigliosa!! E bellissimi anche i nuovi progetti

Preeti said...

Good progress on stocking! The black background always look pretty but stitching on black fabric is sure not an easy task.

Daffycat said...

Your stocking looks awesome! I have a project on black fabric and find it difficult too. When it gets too annoying I have to put it away for a time. I think the best for me is putting my ott light on its side so the light shines through the holes. I was also silly and swapped the aida with evenweave making it even harder!

Katie said...

Beautiful progress on all 3 pieces.

Anonymous said...

Rhona,

My name is Monica and I live in Canada. I noticed you have been making quite a few Bucilla Felt Christmas stockings. The pictures you have posted are gorgeous. I cannot begin to imagine the time and effort that went into making them.

I have tried to start one on my own and ran into a few roadblocks. I was wondering if we could connect by email or any other suggestion you might have, in the hope that you could guide me and get me well on my way.

I hope this is not asking too much of you.

My email address is monica.cozzolino@me.com. I hope with all my heart that we can connect. Sincerely, Monica