SBQ: Family Heirlooms
Posted by Cyn | Filed under Family, Needlework, SBQ
And another Stitching Blogger Question of the week, which should leave me all caught up:
At one time, I thought so. My mother has a Tigerlily piece I did for her, and my father has a big Marine Corps Emblem that hangs in his office. Unfortunately, the first piece I ever framed and gave to them suffered smoke damage, and I haven’t been able to get it completely clean yet. They haven’t expressed any interest in having it back, either. Mom stuck another piece I did and gave to her in a drawer, and forgot that I’d done it at all.
Some of the pieces I did for my first husband’s family, like a baby sampler and a nice serving tray, may get passed on. Maybe. They may have gotten rid of them because of the association with an ex-spouse. Who knows?
Tags: Bloom Where You Are Planted, cross stitch, Debra Designs, heirlooms, Janet Powers, Marine Corps Emblem, Spring Bouquet, Tigerlily
SBQ: Blended Threads
Posted by Cyn | Filed under Needlework, SBQ
And another Stitching Blogger Question:
I can’t remember the last time I did a piece that used blended threads. Obviously, I haven’t gotten around to stitching anything by Teresa Wentzler 😉
When I’ve had to use them, I just blend them as the need arises. I keep most of my threads (DMC, definitely) on plastic bobbins, so when I start a project I gather all the colors required and put them on a metal ring. As I cut a length, I wind whatever I didn’t use back on the bobbin for later use, to avoid waste.
Tags: blended needles, blended threads, cross stitch, SBQ
SBQ: Most Complicated Piece?
Posted by Cyn | Filed under Needlework, SBQ
I’m behind on the Stitching Bloqqer Questions, so I’ll do them for the next few days.
What is the most complicated piece you’ve ever completed?
I’m trying to figure out how to judge how complicated someone else would judge a piece to be. Size? Different types of stitches? Embellishments?
For sheer cussedness, though it was worth it, I’d have to say that the Elemental Cosmos piece designed by Witches Stitches probably takes the cake. It didn’t use blended needles or special fibers or stitches, but there were lots of little sections of “three stitches this color, four of that color, one stitch of another” and so on. I had to do a lot of frogging, too, before I figured out some of the tricks of working on black fabric. It’s beautiful, though!
Mélange from Calico Crossroads was the first piece I did that really used a lot of different stitches. I enjoyed it greatly.
Tags: Calico Crossroads, Elemental Cosmos, Melange, SBQ, Witches Stitches
Graphics. Gah!
Posted by Cyn | Filed under Art, Geekery, Needlework
There are times when being graphic-impaired really does annoy me.
I’m finally moving forward with porting the Heartsong Handicrafts site to WordPress. It shouldn’t be a big deal. I’ve done the same many times before with other sites.
Unfortunately, I don’t have a logo. I mean, I have a simple logo, but it isn’t very good. It doesn’t sing, that’s for sure. I just want a nice, simple logo that isn’t terribly busy, but that doesn’t look (like the first attempt) as if I made it from clip-art and standard fonts. My utter and complete lack of drawing ability is a serious handicap in this endeavor.
I did sorta customize a WP theme to match the crappy logo, but that part is easy. The harder part is having something to give the site visual interest, and that doesn’t exist right now.
On the other hand, the cross-stitch patterns themselves involve graphics, so I don’t want things to get too busy. It’s a balancing act.
I may have to throw myself on Katie’s mercy, or something. She’s pretty busy, though, and prefers to draw whatever she feels like drawing rather than creating something to suit a particular theme.
Tags: cross stitch, Design, graphics, Heartsong Handicrafts, logo, themes, wordpress
SBQ: Essential Needlework Gear
Posted by Cyn | Filed under Needlework, SBQ
Yay! Another Stitching Bloggers’ Question:
What items do you consider essential to your needlework that you keep
in your stitching bag
The pattern, fabric and ring of floss cards for my current project, the scroll bars or QSnaps or hoop or whatever I’m using (I seldom stitch in hand), and a long silver chain on which I wear my scissors and needle case. If I’m working with metallics, I also keep—whoops, what’s the name of it? That tiny blue cube of stuff that makes metallics so much more manageable? I’m not using metallics at the moment, so there’s none in my bag, but I guess I should go look up the name of it.
I did keep a seam ripper in the bag, but I don’t have a safe case for my current ripper, so I’m afraid to do that.
Lately, I also keep a small magnifier/light that hangs around my neck in the bag. It doesn’t work so well, though, so I should probably just take it out.
I really need to replace my bag. It’s falling apart, and the zipper is stubborn. It’s been incredibly good for a freebie bag, though! It lasted about ten years.
I’ve lusted after a nice standing or lap frame for years—one of the good, sturdy ones, with attachments for a lamp and a magnifier and chart holder and a place to put your fibers and such. Some even come with cup holders! The nice ones are trés expensive, though. I don’t want to bother with the flimsy ones, as I think they’d be more frustrating than helpful.
Tags: cross stitch, gear, needle case, scissors
SBQ: Print it out or stitch from screen?
Posted by Cyn | Filed under Needlework, SBQ
This week’s Stitching Bloggers’ Question is:
I don’t remember actually stitching any of the many patterns I’ve downloaded. Theoretically, though, I’m sure I’d print them out, and probably put the printout in a clear page protector. I like to keep my current pattern in my stitching bag, and the monitor just isn’t a good fit 🙂
I lost most of the patterns I’d collected online over the years when my laptop died, unfortunately. I think maybe I should print them out after downloading them, and put them in a notebook kept with the rest of my patterns. That way I’d be more likely to remember them when I’m looking for an idea, too.
(I’m glad to see the SBQ back. I didn’t get a message from the list last week, and maybe not the week before.)
Tags: patterns, printing, viewing
Another One Down
Posted by Cyn | Filed under College, Health, Needlework, Reading
I finished up week 3 of the semester, which means that we’re almost at the halfway point. I really, really want to get done with both classes this semester. I’ve had to drop the management class twice in the past, and I’m tired of it!
The humanities class isn’t that bad, other than the “My Country Right or Wrong” crowd. Someone pulled out the old, “If you don’t like it you should just move” nonsense yesterday. I wish I’d had a way to place a bet on how long it would take for that to happen, as I figured it was about time.
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Tags: busyness, Joan Friedlander, Laura Lippman, Rosalind Joffe
SBQ: What do you do with completed patterns?
Posted by Cyn | Filed under Blogging, Needlework, SBQ
This week’s question is the first of some recycled questions. It was first asked back in 2005, and I don’t think I even knew about SBQ then, so I doubt that I’ve answered it before.
After you stitch a pattern or kit, what do you do with it?
I’ve done so few kits that they hardly count. I think I have just about every pattern I’ve ever stitch, though. I wish I had photos of all the items I’ve stitched from those patterns! I guess hanging on to the pattern is a memoir, of sorts, as I’m very unlikely to stitch most things more than once.
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Tags: beauty, brother-in-law, Design, framing, kits, patterns, projects, Stitching
SBQ: Stitching weaknesses?
Posted by Cyn | Filed under Needlework, SBQ
I’m supposed to go telling my weaknesses, in public?
Well, I guess I’ve already exposed them, considering the lists on my site. I adore “different” patterns. If it jumps out from all the cutesy crap, I want it. Celtic knotwork is another one. I haven’t seen too many good pagan designs, so when I do, I pay attention.
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Tags: Celtic, Dexter, Dresden Files, hand-dyed floss, Nease's Needlework, pagan, SBQ
Gone Already?
Posted by Cyn | Filed under Blogging, College, Fun, Geekery, Health, Home, Needlework, Reading, RPGs
Wow. This has been a very short week. I’m sure it doesn’t feel that way to my poor Sam, but it does to me. That’s what happens when you sleep through most of it, I suppose. I’ve avoided acknowledging the possibility that Katie AND I have mono, but I have the same symptoms she does, and neither of us are getting any better.
My dreams are increasingly weird. I have to think that I’ve slept so much that my brain is done with ordinary processing, so now it’s dredging up All That Weird Shit. Increased hypnagogic episodes, oh joy. I hate those!
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Tags: bicycling, bikes, comedy, Movies, ordinary processing, sleep, The Big Lebowski, video