Sunday, July 31, 2011

Tree of Stitches by Abi Gurden
Here's my progress on the Tree of Stitches through Part 14.  Only one part left to go!  There's a cute owl in the middle and a little rabbit on the ground and those parts will be released on August 5th.  As I've said before, this has been a wonderful design to stitch and the people on the Stitch Specialists Yahoo Group have made some amazing variations to this tree.  The fabric and thread choice has been left up to the stitcher and some people have done multi-colors, blossom trees, a whole host of colors, and they all look beautiful.

The fabric in this picture looks a little strange in color!  If you go down through my blog you will see a picture I scanned that shows the color better.  It's actually sky color, a very subtle hand dye.  I purchased it from the Blended Needle quite a few years ago and thought it would be perfect for the tree, it's 32 count.  However, if I were to stitch this design again (and I may just do that!) I'd choose 28 count fabric because that allows for a wider variety of threads to choose from, particularly #8 Perle which was a little thick for the specialty stitches on this count fabric.

If you're interested in joining in with the fun and being part of the Yahoo Group it's not too late!  Just follow the link down the left hand side of this blog. Abi's designs are wonderful and she has another great one in the works that will be released to the group in the coming weeks.

Wednesday, July 27, 2011

Finished!

Bring out the brass band I've actually finished something!  This is Scherzo by Whispered by the Wind.  It was my "in between" project and was such a joy to stitch.  I used #844 Mandarin Bamboo floss from Rainbow Gallery on Confederate Grey Cashel.

I will now get on and work on the next part of The Tree of Stitches, part 14 has been released.  Only two more parts to go after this one, what a pleasure this has been to stitch as well.  Our Yahoo Group has grown to over 230 members as more and more people hear about this design.  Follow the link on the left hand side of this blog if you're interested in joining in with us.  I should get Part 14 finished tonight and then I'll post a picture.