Let’s talk About Winter

 
It’s the end February at last,  which means the end of meteorological  Winter, and hopefully some bright, sunny days to come…….......now wouldn’t that be nice!

My goal to continue working on ‘Winter’ stitching until the end of the month went well and I finished three more pieces, getting them all FFO,d as well.  

I have to say, it’s very satisfying having them done and dusted and not just sitting in a drawer, collecting dust until I decide to have a finishing day.

I had already finished stitching ‘Frosty Tiny Town’ from   

Heart in Hand and couldn’t decide how I wanted to finish it, but in the end I decided to go with a drum.

Going through my fabric box I was lucky enough to find a small piece of wool which was perfect for the top and I finished around the top edge with sequins and white ball top pins. 

Now I just need to fine a couple of nice pins for the top!

Next, I continued to stitch and finish ‘Let’s Talk About Winter’ from Hands On Design.

I mentioned that I was concerned it wouldn’t look that great on the Pearl Grey linen, because it was originally designed to be a chalkboard effect, but I’m so happy with the way came out.

The frame is from Picture Frames Express.

Then I went on to stitch the ornament from the same chart, making mine into a little (not so round, lol) pin pillow.

The final piece, using the same thread pallet, was a free chart from The Drawn Thread. 

I’ve had ‘First Snow’ sitting in my download folder for years and just never got around to stitching it, but this little chart was perfect for the threads I already had out.

Oh how I love all the little birds sitting in the branches of the tree!

Next up was my two day (25^th & 26^th) Christmas stitching on ‘Santa Claus is Coming to Town’ from Historische Stickmuster, which actually ended up being four days.

This is where it was the last time you saw it

And this is where I am now.

That's the full width now, so the only way up, but still not loving stitching on the raw linen though.

And last but not least, I did manage to sneak in one last new start.

You know I said at the end of January, I had plans for the left over thread and fabric from the Modern Folk Embroidery / Evertote /Roxy Floss Co collaboration for the Quintessential Frisian Smalls Sal, well that's what I made a start on.

In the book there were several bonus charts, so in keeping with the different shaped finishes we have already stitched and some inspiration from the Jeanette Douglass Sewing Box that I finished last year, I came up with my plan

I’ve picked  six of the charts and I’m making a pin cube, which I think will fit in with the collection perfectly.

So that’s the last of my stitching for the month.

My plans for March are very open as usual.

I’ll stitch the next panel from the 12 Days of Christmas and finish my cube and then I’ll have a look and see what spring charts I have and see what takes my fancy, because I’m still trying to stitch what I already have and it’s time to start on them.

Please understand that that’s not me saying I won’t be buying any new charts though, Lol!

Wishing you all bright, sunny and warm days,

Happy Stitching!

Sue

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 Oh no wait, I forgot, I have one last FFO to share and that is the 2025 Holiday Countdown from Modern Folk Embroidery / Evertote /Roxy Floss Co. that I finally framed.

Here’s my shelf with all of the four years of Advents and two other Modern Folk Embroidery pieces.

I decided to frame all the Holiday Countdowns the same and all the made to measure frames were from my usual place, Picture Frames Express.

That really is it this time!

Happy Stitching!

Two Turtle Doves – Bothy Threads – 12 Days of Christmas

The February square of The 12 days of Christmas from Bothy Threads is completed,  and on the second day of Christmas my truelove gave to me………

Two Turtle Doves

All of the squares in this project are full coverage, with 3,364 stitches in each one, so this kit is not for the faint hearted.

It’s so worth the effort though and the colours are simple beautiful, as well as the gold that frames each square.

Happy  Stitching!

Sue

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 12 Days of Christmas

Designed – Bothy Threads - Kit

Fabric – 14ct Zweigart Aida - White

Threads – Standard Cotton, Pearl Cotton and Gold Thread

Frosty Tiny Town – Heart in Hand

My ‘Winter’ stitching continues and I have finished stitching another of the Tiny Town series from Heart in Hand.

Given the weather we are having at the moment and all the flooding, it might have been better if I were stitching ‘Soggy, Wet Tiny Town, Lol, but this one is ‘Frosty Tiny Town.

To give the snow a bit of a sparkle, I used some Madeira Glissen Gloss with the white thread.

Despite planning to finishing all of my Tiny Towns in the same way, so I can switch them out on the board from Paisleys and Polka Dots , I’m not sure about this one. 

It’s painted a creamy colour not white, so I don’t think 'Frosty' would look right, so I’m debating whether to ffo it as a drum instead.  I love the way it looks on the cover photo, so we shall have to see.

In the meantime, I’ve started another winter stitch on the same piece for fabric, using the same threads as before.

 It’s going to look totally different from the original because it should have been a chalkboard effect.

This is ‘Chalktalk – Let’s Talk Winter’ from Hands On design.

Happy Stitching!

Sue

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Chart – Frosty Tiny Town

Designer – Heart in Hand

Fabric – 36ct Mystery Linen - Grey

Threads -  Classic Colorworks, Weeks Dye Works & DMC with some substitutes

 

 

Chart –  Chalktalk - Let’s Talk Winter

Designer – Hands On Design

Fabric – 36ct Mystery Linen - Grey

Threads -  Classic Colorworks, Weeks Dye Works (My colour conversion)

Part 2 - ‘Hindeloopen Strawberry – ‘Quintessential Frisian Smalls’ Sal

 The final part of the sal is FFO’d  and if I’m honest, I did find this piece a little challenging in the finishing of it.

I want to give a shout out to  Jacob, Caroline and Kerri, for this collaboration between Modern Folk Embroidery, Evertote,  and Roxy Floss Co, and say a big thank you for the five wonderful projects that we started stitching back in August last year.

Here’s a quick reminder.

In August we started with the Peacock Pin Pillow

September we stitched a Scissor Fob

In October we started the first of three items that were a little more tricky to finish, starting with a Biscornu.

November was the Hindeloopen Pinwheel

And finally, after a break in December for the Christmas Countdown, we stitched the Hindeloopen Strawberry in January, bringing the collection to an end.

I've also managed to sneek in one last new start before the end of the month and because I've decided to still stitch 'Winter' during February, I made a start on 'Frosty Tiny Town' from Heart in Hand.

I'm trying to stitch from stash as much as I can this year, so I found a piece of 36ct Grey mystery linen and pulled as many of the called for threads that had, but still had to make a few substitutions which are listed below.

Happy Stitching!

Sue

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Quintessential Frisian Smalls Sal

Designed – Modern Folk Embroidery

Fabric – 36ct Linen -   Porcelain – Roxy Floss Co/Evertote

Threads – Roxy Floss Co – Falu Red (hand-overdyed cotton)

Frosty Tiny Town

Designed - Heart in Hand

Fabric - 36ct Grey mystery linen

Threads - Called for Weeks Dye Works & Classic Colorworks

Substitutes - CCW - Classic Colorworks,   WDW - Weeks Dye Works, RFC - Roxy Floss Co.

CCW Chesapeake Bay to RFC Slate

CCW Eves Leaves to CCW Weeping Willow

CCW Thundercloud to CCW Barrel Cactus

WDW Hunter to WDW Blue Spruce

WDW Sun Dried to CCW Cherry Cobbler

‘Hindeloopen Strawberry

 This is the final piece of the  ‘Quintessential Frisian Smalls’ Sal, from Modern Folk Embroidery and I’ve just put in the final stitches.

Next up will be the finishing of this unusual shaped strawberry. 

I still have a few Christmas projects on the go but feel like I’m done with Christmas stitching despite wanting to have them finished this year.

My plans going forward already include stitching one of the ‘12 Days of Christmas’ panels each month, but as for the other projects I think the way forward is going to be stitching on them on the 25^th and 26^th  of each month as some stitchers' do, instead of being monogamous with them.

So with that in mind I spent the last two days stitching on ‘Santa Claus is Coming to Town’ from Historische Stickmuster.  This is where I was.

I've  added the roof to the fourth house, part of the church,  most of the Christmas tree and started a couple of the snowflakes.

Happy Stitching!

Sue

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Quintessential Frisian Smalls Sal – Biscornu

Designed – Hindeloopen Strawberry’

Fabric – 36ct Linen -   Porcelain – Roxy Floss Co/Evertote

Threads – Roxy Floss Co – Falu Red (hand-overdyed cotton)

 

Santa Claus is Coming to Town

Designed – Historische Stickmuster

Fabric – 32ct unbleached Linen

Threads – Soie d’Alge silks

 

A Partridge in a Pear Tree – Bothy Threads – 12 Days of Christmas

Normally at this time of year I’d be finishing the first of my 12 in 26 Christmas ornaments, but this year I’ve decided to do something slightly different.

I’m stitching the 12 panel ’12 Days of Christmas’, from Bothy Threads, working one of the panels each month, instead of making an ornament.

So this was my first new start of the year and my first finished.

On the first day of Christmas my truelove gave to me………

A Partridge in a Pear Tree

Each panel is full coverage with beautiful Gold threads that highlight the numbers and frame.  There also looks like it has lots of back stitch too, but in fact it couching, which gives a much smoother outline.

I’ve created the  hash tag    #12in2612daysofchristmassal  over on my Instagram (idratherbestitchin) if your also stitching a 12 days of Christmas, so pleased come and join me.  I'd love to see which ones you're all stitching on.   

Happy  Stitching!

Sue

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12 Days of Christmas

Designed – Bothy Threads - Kit

Fabric – 14ct Zweigart Aida - White

Threads – Standard Cotton, Pearl Cotton and Gold Thread

Happy New Year - Looking Forward to a New Year of Stitching!

 Are we all ready for a 2026 pack full with fabric, threads and lots and lots of new, exciting charts?

I know many stitchers' seem to have a detailed plan for the year ahead and most years I’m the same to a certain extent, but for some reason, this year I’ve no idea what I want to do.

I have one or two fully kitted projects ready to go and several that have either fabric or thread as well as quite a lot of charts waiting too, so I suppose I should concentrate on getting some of those done, rather than buying more.

I think that's the way I'll go but don't hold me to that because having said that, I’ll be poised over my lap top come February, ready to order this years’ Holiday Countdown from Evertote, but that just has to be done, doesn’t it!

I’ve started the New Year still stitching ‘Christmas’.

‘Santa Claus is Coming to Town’ from Historische Stickmuster was my Christmas Day new start.

I’ve made some good progress on it since then but it’s not been plain sailing. I don’t know if it’s the Aida fabric that I’ve already said I didn’t like stitching on, or the silk threads, but I had to frog on this so many times.

My first new start of the new year is still 'Christmas' and will be what I am stitching in place of the 12 in26 Christmas Ornament Sal for this year.

My 7 foot Christmas tree is already full and there’s no room in my small ground floor flat for another one, so I don't really have anywhere else to hang more ornaments.

I still wanted to take part in the sal in some way though, because I enjoyed stitching a small piece each month, so I decided that I would stitch Bothy Threads ’12 Days of Christmas’ instead.

 stitching one of the 12 panels each month.  

My hash tag will be 12 in 26 not a Christmas ornament sal, Lol! (#12in26notachristmasornamentsal ) Please feel free to join  me over on Instagram(idratherbestitchin) if you feel the urge.

So, on the first day of Christmas my truelove gave to me………

A Partridge in a Pear Tree

My final new start this month was definitely unplanned.

I unexpectedly had to go away for a few days and needed something I could take with me and be able to stitch on the 3hour train journey. 

As you know I usually prefer to stitch on linen but I’m not able to do that without my light and magnifier.

Fortunately I had the ‘Coffee Shoppe', kit from Dimensions, which is stitched on 14ct Aida.

As it turned out I stitched more in my hotel room than I did on the train, but I still made a good start

There’s just one other project that I’ve stitched on so far this month, and that is the ‘Hindeloopen Strawberry’ from the ‘Quintessential Frisian Smalls’ Sal, which is getting close to a finish.

Happy Stitching!

Sue

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Santa Claus is Coming to Town

Designed – Historische Stickmuster

Fabric – 32ct unbleached Linen

Threads – Soie d’Alge silks

 

12 Days of Christmas

Designed – Bothy Threads - Kit

Fabric – 14ct Zweigart Aida - White

Threads – Standard Cotton, Pearl Cotton and Gold Thread

Coffee Shoppe

Designed – Dimensions - Kit

Fabric – 14ct Zweigart Aida - White

Threads – Standard Cotton

Quintessential Frisian Smalls Sal – Biscornu

Designed – Hindeloopen Strawberry’

Fabric – 36ct Linen -   Porcelain – Roxy Floss Co/Evertote

Threads – Roxy Floss Co – Falu Red (hand-overdyed cotton)