Stamp Carving

I just realized I hadn't shown these, yet. These are three stamps I carved to use in my art this year. This is the second year that I've made a signature stamp with the year on it to use on my art and art journal. I also want to experiment with tea bag art this year and I think the world could always use a little more kindness. So I hope to get a lot of use out of these stamps. Hopefully more than I have been getting. I haven't been doing much art work recently. It's just been too busy.

Victoria Sampler Altoid Tin Topper

This is the Needles and Scissors free design by Victoria Sampler. I stitched it on vinyl fabric so I didn't do the cut outs that normally would have been done with this pattern. I also changed all the colors to use up some scraps of threads that weren't labeled. I love how it turned out. Now, I just have to empty an Altoid tin so I can put this on the top. I'm thinking about attaching it with velcro so it can easily be removed, but I'm not sure.

Gloriana Pashmina Thread

This sampler is S.Ward: A Little Rag by Kitten Stitcher and was a limited edition kit that came with the linen and the Gloriana Pashmina crimson floss. This floss was so wonderful to work with. Many people who used this kit didn't like the thread. The key, for me, to working with it was cutting the strands in half because if you worked with the full strand, it got really fuzzy. The half strands worked great and it gave such good coverage.

Like other silk threads, you also have to keep your hands soft when working with it. It does snag on dry skin, but, as long as you keep your hands moisturized, it's not a problem.

I love how soft and silky the floss feels, too. But, it slides through the linen very smoothly. It's just a wonderful thread to use.

Red Pincushions

I love the color red and pincushions. When clothes wear off, I always take off the buttons. So the white buttons with red thread on a linen heart turned out really well. The second pincushion is a thread crochet granny square on top of a small red gingham base. I sewed the two gingham squares together first and then stitched the granny square on top stretching it as I went. I love how these two pincushions turned out.

A Lovely Little Boat

I made this little boat using Ann Wood's Dear Little Boat Pattern. The cereal box I used was really stiff, almost too stiff. I used old dictionary pages that were torn up to cover the boat and some glue mixed with water to hold everything in place. It turned out really cute and was a fun project. It took me out of my comfort zone in making, but that's good, too.

Fibromyalgia Dryness Remedies

With my fibromyalgia, I've noticed a lot more dryness. Dry eyes, dry lips, dry skin everywhere. These three products are my favorities. I just found them recently and I think I'm going to be stocking up on all of them next time we are in the US. I would use the ointment every night if I wasn't afraid of running out. It's so good.

The TheraTears eye drops are the most soothing eye drops I've ever tried and I probably have about a dozen different eye drops trying to find one that worked for me. These are amazing. When I use these, I don't have to keep using them over and over. I use these once and I'm good all night or most of the day.

The Aquaphor Lip Repair was one I wasn't sure about. I hate gooey lip glosses. This one goes on like a gloss, but then it soaks in and your lips just feel moist but not gooey at all. I use this one at night. If only I could find something that worked this well for dry mouth!

The Aquaphor Healing Ointment is terrific for my hands. I would very much recommend it for stitchers and knitters. Maybe not just before you stitch, but I use it at night and wake up with hands soft enough to stitch with silk in the mornings. And, my hands don't feel greasy with it either which is another huge plus.

I'm so happy to have found these products that really make life with fibromyalgia a little better. I hope someone else finds it helpful, too.

Bee Quilt

My first hexie quilt-as-you-go block is  initials and the year. When I washed the washable marker out, the thread bled, but since the background was muslin, it turned out really pretty. It looks like a watercolor fabric now.

My second block used the Chinese double happiness character and I used a Chinese lantern fabric for the backing. I'm really happy with how this block turned out.

Stitching Red Samplers

I'm currently stitching S. Ward: A Little Rag by Shakespeare's Peddler which was sold as a limited edition kit and is no longer available. I hope to finish it this month, but I've loved working on it and using the Gloriana Pashmina thread that it came with.

Red samplers are something I'd like to collect. The elaborate ones are beautiful, but I find myself most drawn to the simpler pieces such as marking samplers. My favorite color is red so perhaps that is where my love of these pieces comes from, but just looking at the red monochromatic stitching sends a little surge of joy through me.

Six Red Alphabets by NeedleWork Press is another pattern I own that I would love to stitch sooner rather than later. I want to experiment with stitching it on osnaburg fabric and adding some button loops to hang it from to add to a bookshelf.

Fanny Griswold by Pineberry Lane is another sweet little marking sampler I'm itching to stitch.

Kathy Barrick's French Samplers pattern has been retired but she still has some in her Etsy shop. They are sweet little snippets that would be wonderful framed with an old doily and some antique buttons.

Simply Red, Plus by Homespun Elegance is another simple piece that is just beautiful.

Ann Womack 1838 is another piece by Shakespeare's Peddler that I would love to stitch, but I'd have to do it on a larger count than the called for 40 count linen. I wonder how big it would be on 28 count? It would be beautiful as a large wall hanging.

Quaker Sampling III by With My Needle is a Quaker design stitched in red. So lovely!

Harriat Brown Redwork Sampler Pinkeep by Stacy Nash was a new market release and I think it's so sweet. I'd love to stitch this.

And, has anyone seen Blackbird Design's Ooh La La and not fallen in love with it?

I've also had the pattern for the Red and White Pincushion by WorksbyABC but haven't stitched it yet although I do have the fabric I want to use and I think I'm just going to use DMC with it. Not a sampler, but a beautiful red and white piece nonetheless.

I think I need to make a red and white quilt or two...or three. Just to get all the red and white together.

A Teeny Tiny Biscornu Pincushion

No travel kit would be complete without a pincushion. I decided I wanted to try a tiny biscornu style out, but I couldn't find a pattern I liked. So I made my own pattern. Here's the pattern if you'd like to make your own. You can stitch the whole thing twice, but for my bottom piece, I just stitched the 5 inner squares. If you stitch one, I'd love to see it on Instagram under #lovelybiscornu

Mini Ort Catcher for Travel Kit

I save my orts (thread bits) to put in Christmas ornaments, but they are harder to hold onto when I'm out and about. I knew I wanted a little ort catcher for my travel kit so I cut a square of wool felt with my pinking shears a little smaller than where I wanted it to go.

Next, I cut 2 pieces of fabric and a piece of thin batting a little bigger (maybe 1/2" bigger on each side) than the felt square and sewed them together right sides together leaving a space to turn them right side out. I then sewed around the edge. Also, I sewed around the edge about a 1/2" from the edge all the way around.

I folded the corners together and made a few stitches to hold them together to create a small tray. Lastly, I sewed the felt down to the center of the fabric tray.

Now, I have a cute little thread collector for my travel kit that I can empty out when we get back home and it will keep my orts from spilling out everywhere whenever I open the box!

Stitching on the Go

I carry some form of needlework with me wherever I go. I stitch while standing in line or while on the bus, train, subway, or plane. I stitch at restaurants while waiting for food. I'll stitch anywhere. But, get stuck by pins and needles when I put my hand in my bag is no fun so I wanted a small plastic box to keep my stitching supplies and maybe even a little stitching in.

In China, people travel with very small bags. When my husband and I go on school trips, we don't want to have a huge amount of luggage with us so we pack as light as possible which means keeping my stitching to a small amount. School trips also involve train or plane travel which means at least an hour wait time each way, plus the actual travel time, plus an hour or so out to the main campus from where we live in addition to more time on buses or waiting at various locations along the way. A three or four day trip can mean 10 or more hours of stitching time easily. I need something to work on.

I had this small, plastic box that I thought would be great to hold everything I needed for cross-stitch, embroidery, some English paper piecing, and some crochet or knitting. (Crochet hooks or knitting needles, but not yarn.) I am not a monogamous stitcher. I get bored easily so I need some variety. I also wanted to be able to finish a few projects.