Stitching Diva

so i decided it was time to re evaluate what i want to stitch for sure ..
not my what stash i want type list, as we know i collect stash…. weird hobby , but we all suffer from it i think
i mean my stitch before i die lists
and anyway it is fun to reflect on whether tastes have changed or whether favourites have moved on to just moderate favourites.
So starting with samplers

Samplers x 12
Tranquillity Sampler.. Martina Dey.. started and going strong
Patchwork Sampler …Houtman.. started
Cirques des Cercles…. InkCircles… started
Jane Rees… Scarlet letter… i have fab, can’t decide on silk
Second Chances aka purple sampler…. Ink Circles… kitted!! ( i know surprise)
Beatrix Potter … needleprint…. kitted….( i know another surprise)
PersonalQuaker .. Martina Dey… started ..( see i have all sorts of secrets)
New Beginnings… Abbey lane designs.. do not even have the chart…eyeroll
Garden Stars .. InkCircles… have the chart..its a start
AMAP alphabet 8 … don’t go there….
rainbow band sampler …Houtman… started collecting floss , have fab
Persanne ..   AMAP … restarting with belle soie silks at some point

HAED charts x 15
( not including ones already started.. i am such a cheat)
Leaf … fenech
 Luna  Fenech
Loves Me Not .. fenech
Littlest fairy Qs … fenech
Pink Braid Mermaid.. Cox
Curley Tailed Rosey .. Rodrigue
Harmony … Kuik ( would change if peony or red poppy charted)
BlueBerries and Cream… JBG
A chart not released yet .. JBG
Wisterious … Lisa Steinke
Marshmellow Dragon .. lisa Victoria .. unless Dragon Luck is charted
Black Pearls … Lisa Victoria
SweetPea Fae … tate ( unless tropical dream mermaid is charted)
Red Dream Angel … Sara Butcher

Indigo… fenech… yes i know it is not charted yet

 Character Creations and other charts

Birch fairy… carol Covey
Belle … Abranda Sisson
Celtic Rose …. Abranda
My Hearts Choice … Abranda
Dark Elf … Nicole Cadet
The White Lady … Nicole Cadet
Violet Wings … Nicole cadet

Lady Scarletts Secret garden  i have and am just waiting on silks from hdf
Peacock Stitching Chair    can you belive i still don’t have it!!
Blackwork Footwork Fob  1/2 stitched
Celtic Pincushion 
Elizabethan night cap pincushion
Illustrative Blackwork fantasy

you do know i could list another 100 charts right??
lol…

well if that was the weekend… not a lot happened.. lol
i stitched a fair bit but didn’t do as much as i intended, i sort of had a weird discombobulated , kept on finding myself drifting off sort of weekend.
i finally decided to work on the background in Maggie for the SAl after i finished my Tranq Mystery sampler which took way longer than it should have cos i kept changing my mind about the colours for the centre circle bit and the motif in the middle of that, i frogged 4 different colour combos and technically i am still not happy but i am not going there again
so here is my sampler to date … no new colours this time as i have used these colours before, the purple is the nosegay one from the end of the first row and the yellow is the same yellow i have used through out 

also here is the latest picture of my Lady in the Meadow QS model
the yellow is the start of her sleeve, there is a lot of yellow/mustard/greeny yellows and olives in this chart

I also completed the Model Kerry needed to the point she had requested i reach … but i can not show you a picture yet..
maybe next week or the week after or maybe the month after, not sure really…

in closing today i just want to mention 2 things.. firstly, a sad state of affairs for one of my fav australian animals, the pygmy possum, check this link ( i hope it works) … how cute is the little tacker and how sad they have diminshed to these numbers

and only Lindy will get this i believe…
Go the Saints.. Paul was stunned when i tipped them to win yesterday in the tipping comp… as i told him only a true supporter keeps the faith and tips their team… he tips against his team all the time… But i knew they could do it ( true at the start of the forth quarter my faith was wavering)

i thought about waiting till i had a pic of my progress after the wednesday QS sal of Lady in the meadow, but hey it means i have another post for tomorrow.. i might even show you my miniscule amount of the Personalised quaker chart , which i did not get personalised , butthe Attar of Roses flossies stitch up wonderfully annd i am sure it is worthy of viewing just for that… and the 36 ct magnolia linen is very pretty too.

I got some glorious stash from Dinky dyes the other day i ordered silkies in their sale.. i must say if you like strong vibrant colours i really think you should consider some Colourstreams Poppy silken threads … it is the most gorgeous varigated red and until you have seen the silken threads you do not know how truly beautiful they are , their sheen and twist are wonderful the chart pic shows it a bit better.. think i need to check out Monet next
I came a cross a new australian artist the other day , i have some aceo’s coming.. i was playing on etsy as i do sometimes, and as i always say , thanky goodness mostof the soap and hand dyed wool sellers will not post over seas.. it saves me a LOT of money, anyway i digress a word of warning it is not my usual style, but there is something about her work that makes me feel good.. anyway i got three aceo’s and then she told me to choose a mandala card of my choice..  and i discovered some australian ones.. so be warned OS girls , some of you might end up with australian mandala cards at some point
Serpent Mandala  i bought Fishing, Sea Maid and Owl and Pussy cat ( of course) and then chose the ocean mandala as my pressie…
I am having a terrible time deciding what to stitch for the fairy day SAL…
initially i thought Love Notes or Maggie, but then i really would like to do some more on pale Rose… OR i thought sneaking in more time on Sugar would be really cool.. i would love to fifnish her this year as part of the whole 1 year SAL…
and then of course there is the temptation of new starts…

Vicky sent me a lovely sneak peak of a fairy face she is stitching for the RR… and that got me wanting to start Keeper of Secrets again…. she is so pale and delicious…. and just looking at the charts.. also i can not believe there are no wips of Littlest fairy i could not link Keeper of secrets.. she is MIA on the website.. i emailled bob to let him know…

enough of my prattle

i am starting to worry..
everyone keeps emailing me and asking me if i am ok ..
honest i am.. i just don’t have much to say right now either here, or on the BB and i feel silly emailling people and saying… well nothing really
it is too cold to hang out in the room with the computer too much.. we do have a new heater in here but it stinks so i don’t like turning it on ( i know it will improve it needs to run for a few days but the smell bothers me so ….. i have no solution)
So anyway i am stitching more.. i think..

or frogging more if yesterday is anything to go by.. you have no idea how @#$&#$ i was by the end of yesterday.. i got a real block about the big motif i stitched on my tranq sampler and not one bit of it is stitched once.. i frogged every part of it at least once, some parts 4 times, and at 10 last night i frogged half of it again… i was so grumpy this morning, but i knew i had to fix it al before stitching anything else this week..

there is still a mini error in the pink motif i found whilst fighting with the blue motif… it can stay there until i stitch the next row of pages…
the blue is actually from the velvet midnight series, the pink is one of the phlox colours

if you want to see a bigger picture.. here is the LINK 

next we have Sugar Magnolia
i only got about 4 hours on her as i was away for most of the SAL…
i did some of her hair around her neck/jaw line

and finally i started Lady in a Meadow QS model for wednsday SAL .. i snuck a picture in the sal thread but only a few people saw it .. when i sent them there so here is my pathetic start..lol

she is done on 28 ct jobelan as per michele’s request

for any southern hemisphere girls … needle little love is a new ons open in singapore… one she has a 20% off sale until the end of the month, but two the singapore dollar is weaker than the AUD and a lot weaker than the USd.. and she has some AMAP charts etc..
i have been chatting to her via email and the new belle soie colours are due by the end of the week hopefully anyway i suggest you check it out!
charts i like atm..

Faith Hope Love by the workbasket
Margaret Beemsterboer’s sampler of Motifs from Needleprint

and chart i own chipping away at my brain this week is the Beatrix Potter sampler i that arrived.. ( 5 days form europe so fast.. what is Australia posts excuse??) see earlier post for link of the chart

Mum arrived back safe and sound from Fiji.. she had a wonderful time and is in love with scuba diving a somewhat extreme sport in tassie with cold water and sharks etc.. but we do have underwater kelp forests/leafy seadragons /sea dragons/sea horses etc … but apparently way warmer and clearer in Fiji..lol.. she said the whole island smelt of flowers and sandelwood… and was very intoxicating ..

funniest thing .. she got so drunk drinking a cocktail .. that she sent me a text message and does not remember doing so.. in it it said.. am drinking a cocktail.. arms are too heavy to lift it up…. lol
the island is covered in orchids too apparently… thats a nice image i have in my head..

so anyway.. stop making me worry everyone!!!!

the chocolate fairy is a lovely creature, she comes in many forms..

she managed to morph into a Victorian ( as in the state not the era) fairy and send me caramel and nougat bars from Haigh ( she also doubled as the silk fairy that time and sent silks…which was a bit cheeky) and then today she morphed into a Queensland Fairy snd sent me dark choc caramels.. from you guessed it Haigh… the chocolate fairy has excellent taste btw… and a block of emergency chocolate…
so thankyou precious chocolate fairy ( fairies) i really appreciate how well you all look after me! I also have more jelly belly’s now so i am set for the winter !

I know i owe pictures.. i owe my Sugar Magnolia wip update after the SAl and i started lady in the meadow… but apathy has grabbed me again and i can’t sem to remember to carry them in to the scanner.. hopeless i know

I think it is the CC sal this weekend i have lost count of weekends..

I will be sttiching my CC model.. i hope some others join me

and my trip to launceston…

 So whilst i was away , Kerry released 4 new charts.. i knew she would tease me like that..lol
she has a lovely new SPML with a real fairytale feel to it Presentation
then there is a sweet Nicole Cadet… Manners are Everything ( know a few people who need this chart lol)
a Lovely Christy Babrick chart ( you should check out all her art) Cycle of EnchantmentVI
and a new Kort Kramer a handsome Kestrel Optomistic

i think the Christy Babrick one is my fav of those .. and i am serious check out her website, she has some gorgeous art epilogue  or Art wanted 
this is one of my favs… Scattering the Stars and THIS Nature

I didn’t have a lot of success stitching at my mums place i just could not get comfortable… i truly can not believe i ever stitched without my chair and lowery stand.. i got about 1/3 of m tranq sampler done and that was it for about 6 hours stitching.. not at all happy about that i must say
The boys had a great day.. Mossy could not stop smiling ( big effort on our part as he he is a serious little soul) they ate yummy food, road on model trains, had pony rides, bought art supplies ( they both love drawing ) hadd a big walk in the bush with the dog, and had lots of cuddles .. so a successful day all round

There will be no knitting from me until summer.. i tried knitting in the car and my chilblians were so bad from the friction of the wool… which was super soft, that i eneded up with a row of blood blisters on my pointer finger… not good.. so all wool will be packed away until my hands warm up again… maybe October ..lol
Vicki Clayton has released the most delicious coloured silks in recent days.. two almost black purples  Exampler Black Iris  and Winterberry 1435 and some amazing pinks i love my attar of roses pinks which arrived last week, but i think the Rose Quartz series is pretty awesome too i knowi will be ordering at least 2 of each skein , then roaming around trying to find the ideal sampler… a thought.. scary i know… wonder how the second chance sampler.. aka Purple sampler from ink circles would look in that series…. though i am sure there will be a lot more samplers released before i ever start. I also think there is a place in my tranq sampler for some of the Pink Pearls
martina Dey released a heart based Quaker sampler In Love with Quakers.. AND she is having a sale from july 1 to 8th on all samplers over 20 euros also if you go to the news page she has a new heart band sampler freebie, it is a mega file so takes a while to down load but tis worth it IMO
finally one of my favourite artists Michele Lee Phelan and a dear cyber friend has over hauled her Art of Faery website.. she has decided to do prints of all her ACEO’s and OSWOA style art work and use the site for that…

of course i spent money , can’t help myself i bought a LE print of Gothic Moon… what i would give to stitch her!! and prints of two of my all time favs.. Claimed by the Dragon and The cat…
i will be buying The White , The damsel Fly, Lady of the Waters, The Drakven, Bridgid’s fairytale, Morrighan, Portrait of a Faery Queen definately in the coming months to add to my collection…
yes i am a big fan.. it is so cool that my two most fav artists are Australian….
i am off to see if i can find some chocolate hidden in a cupboard..

…. thought some of you might be interested…
the gaps are the beads, but i have done all i can do so I spose it counts as a finish.. and for the record, 2×2 on 40 ct linen ( cos i am crazy)

if you want to see a bigger picture you can go to this link… the scan is not great when i get back from launceston i will try again
I am going to launceston to house siit for the weekend..

my mum ran away!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! My Aunty Doreen won a all expenses paid five star resort 7 day holiday in Fiji by making one phone call to a Great Outdoors competition …and being my darling Aunty Doreen she decided mum could be the second person.. Mum has always been the rock in the family of 7 brothers and sisters even though she is the second youngest, everyone goes to her for dispute settlements , when they are sick ( as do my cousins) relationship problems etcetcetc.. and as time has gone on they have all started slowly returning the favour as mum is a widow on an invalids pension and no savings ( my dad was not a good person) so she is off on her trip of a lifetime and she was very excited before she left.. i paid her ticket to melbourne , my sister paid the ticket back,, and we have been showering her with money and assorted “necessities” .. she had a night in melbourne with Aunty D and they went out to dinner ( my shout) and then to Menopause the Musical,….. she texted me and said she was dancing on the stage… sigh ..thats my mum ,
so i am off to nab my nephews for a day tomorrow and go spoil them rotten..

in other news i tracked down a copy of my favorite needle print chart and it is on its way , it is not one of the ackworth ones it is the Beatrix Potter Quaker you need to scroll down towards the bottom… luckily the companion does not interest me.. i just really like this one.. i also like the M quertier a bit below it maybe one day i will add that to the collection
i was a bit hesitant ordering from a site i know little about, but i know gigi from numerous BB’s and she seems adorable so i decided it would be ok, and it has taken 10 days to the postage stage, but that is fine.. they needed to find out how much it cost to post to tasmania.. strangely they did not have a lot of customers from here..lol
i have lots of other cool links but i need to finish packing so i had better stop..

oh i forgot to say after my next rotation in Kerry’s model i will be starting
Lady in the Meadow QS as my next model , and this will be for Michele’s office she is already kitted and the colours are amazing looks like a forest floor in autumn, or the notofagus in autumn at crater lake which is near Cradle mountain.. anyway i have never stitched a palette like it before

sorry meant to post scarf pictures yesterday and got waylaid by mischief makers talking all things AMAP and such like..

more about that later…
anyways here is the scarf i knitted for paul’s work colleague as a farewell to her..
it is knitted with The Knittery 4ply wool cashmere blend in the Reds using a cool lace pattern supplied by Lindy.

My Attar of Roses collection arrived from vicky and they look gorgeous with the magnolia 36 ct so my quaker chart is sorted… not that i will stitch on it much but i am still happy i have it organised if you like rosey pinks you will love that range, sorry i can’t show you how they look together as i can’t scan skeins of floss successfully.. i tried.
my big excitement over the last few days is that the new colours for the Belle Soie silks came out and they are stunning sorry the only pictures i have of them at the moment are very small but you will get the idea. the ones getting me excited are Grape Juice, Rosebud, Blue lagoon, rouge, cranberry and moss  but especially Grape Juice
and be warned… seems the AMAP alpha 8 ground swell has started and i may well be swept up in it.. negotiations of the greatest intensity and enabling of the highst level has been taking place.. with one person even secretly stitching until i outed her… i may well out her here yet and show everyone her beautiful stitching and colour work…

Happy Birthday precious..

toi go with the skelly ecard i sent you i found a bouncing demon emote..

i promise there will be real pressies as well as cyber pressies…

i have pictures onf my scarf watch this space later

……… yep hit the 10 pages mark which 2 full rows of pages in my tranq sampler
no new colours added this week, just finishing off other colours i suspect
as before there is a little picture for here and then a link to a big picture

Tranquillity sampler the Big Pic