March IHSW

 

IHSW or International Hermit and Stitch Weekend always starts on the third Friday of the month.  It's a chance to lock yourself away and focus on your stitching for the weekend.  You can take part on your blog or via the Facebook page - IHSW on Facebook.

This year I am attempting International Hermit and Blackwork.  I do love blackwork and have a couple of projects I want to try fit in to my rotation without being on the WIPGO Board.

My main blackwork piece is the Halloween Blackwork from The Steady Thread.  It went from here:

to here:

stitched on 32 count tea-dyed linen

(the fabric is very bleached out in this photo, the "before" is more accurate)

This is the part I worked on over the weekend:

Lots of lovely green leaves, perfect for Spring!

On Sunday morning I continued with this year's Temperatue SAL.  Just a very simple column of colour for each day.  Charting the lows for the night time and the highs for the day time.

stitched on 14 count Aida banding

Finally the next IHSW will be 18th - 20th April so make sure you note the date in your diary or come and join us in the Facebook Group - IHSW on Facebook. If you don't do Facebook then you can check in here by leaving a comment on my post.

Gifted Gorgeousness March Link-Up Post

  

Welcome to the March Gifted Gorgeousness link-up. The link-up date continues to be the 15th and I will keep the link-up open until the end of each month so you have plenty of time if you are late posting.

The format remains exactly the same, there is a list of rules on the main sign-up page if you want to check what is required but basically anything connected to the word "gift" is allowed, whether it was a gift TO you or is a gift FROM you.

My focus piece for the first half of the month was a gift, the lovely Fairy Idyll from Mirabilia.  I couldn't wait to get back to her this month.

stitched on 32 count Vinyard Murano from Crafty Kitten

Here's the portion I've been stitching this month:

I converted the purple colours to co-ordinate better with the fabric.

My evening piece, has ever, is Annie Beez's 12 Days of Christmas

stitched on 28 count black Jobelan evenweave

This one isn't a gifted piece but I'll be stitching it on the 13th of every month for Dark Thirteen so you'll see this every GG post too.

This is Halloween Tiny Town from Heart in Hand Designs:

stitched on 32 count Tobacco Belfast linen

I'm using the DMC conversion for this one.

Finally it is your turn to show us your Gifted Gorgeousness for the month.  Please use your name or your blog name in the field and NOT the words "March Update" so I can easily see who has linked up this month.  And link to the actual post, not just your blog.  It is easier if you copy and paste the link, rather than typing freehand.

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Finally Fully Finishing Fun for March

 

Hosted by Rachel the Ten Hour Stitcher

This SAL is designed to motivate us all to do something with that box of Finished pieces instead of just storing them under the bed.  We will all be linking up on Rachel's blog on or after the 10th of each month (10 Hour Stitcher - 10th of the month).

After sorting out all my frames last month, I matched two of them up with some 2024 finishes.

First up was Moonshadow Mini by Full Circle Designs in a nice gold frame:

Then Quiet Hour Sampler from La Broderie in a deep wooden frame:

Here they are both together so you can compare sizes:

I then decided to try something a little more challenging, one of my Annie Beez 12 Days of Christmas stockings.

I photocopied and cut out the template provided, made two on stiff card and then realised it was going to be quite tricky to mount the stocking neatly on the card.  So instead I drew round it on the reverse of the backing fabric and then sewed the two pieces together (right sides on the inside), folded over the top edges to make a nice hem, turned it the right way out and voila!

Here's how the front looks:

Finally, I am undecided whether to attach some trim along the top or not.  It does need a little hanger but I'll wait until I've finished a few more.  I hope to do at least one per month...

March Plans

This year I want to focus on 2 larger pieces and then spend the rest of my stitching time on the series I have started.  The order I stitch them in is going to be determined by the WIPGO Board.  Jessie-Marie calls two numbers each month and those will be the projects I stitch that month. 

In February, the numbers 7 and 8 were called.  These related to Cottage Garden Samplings Year in the Woods series and the Art Nouveau Head.

The Swans were a finish for February:

stitched over 1 on 25 count Cirrus evenweave from Chromatic Alchemy

This is where I finished the Head for the month:

stitched on 14 count White Aida

For March, the numbers 9 and 24  were called.  These relate to Mirabilia's Fairy Idyll and the Art Nouveau Head (again).

I couldn't wait to start stitching on Fairy Idyll again this year.  Here's where I started her:

Here's where I am now, I've been working on the purple bed flounces.  These are a colour conversion to suit my fabric:

stitched 32 count Vinyard Murano from Crafty Kitten

Finally, my evening project will be the Annie Beez 12 Days of Christmas Stockings.  Here is Day 3 so far:

stitched on 28 count Black Jobelan

February Stitch from Stash and Pie

 It's time for Pie!

I spent the first half of the month working on Cottage Garden Samplings Year in the Woods and have now completed The Swans next to The Fox:

stitched over 1 on 25 count Cirrus evenweave from Chromatic Alchemy

After that I moved on to the Art Nouveau Head, which is my oldest WIP.

I went from here:

to here:

stitched on 14 count white Aida

Here's my evening pie:

The second stocking took a lot longer that the first one.  Partly because it was the Christmas holidays when I started the first one so I had more time to do things in the day which gave me more stitching time in the evening.

You can see the two main projects in my Smalls post earlier today.

Finally, Stitch from Stash, a lovely no-spend month.

February Smalls

 

         

The Smalls SAL is hosted by Rachel

For my Smalls stitching this year, I will be stitching the 12 Days of Christmas from Annie Beez.  They don't take long which then gives me time to stitch some blackwork or another small from my list.

Here's Day 2:

stitched on 28 count black Jobelan evenweave

Finally, once I finished Day 2, I moved back to Winter's View by Susan Penny from Cross Stitcher magazine.

Here's where I am now:

stitched on 14 count White Aida

February TUSAL

      

It's TUSAL time!  

Here is my TUSAL jar with my current project:

And here's how the Art Nouveau Head looks at the end of the month:

stitched on 14 count white Aida

Finally, her number has been called again for March's WIPGO so hopefully I can finish the bottom half of the design and make a start on her ornate headpiece.

February IHSW

     

IHSW or International Hermit and Stitch Weekend always starts on the third Friday of the month.  It's a chance to lock yourself away and focus on your stitching for the weekend.  You can take part on your blog or via the Facebook page - IHSW on Facebook.

This year I am attempting International Hermit and Blackwork.  I do love blackwork and have a couple of projects I want to try fit in to my rotation without being on the WIPGO Board.

My main blackwork piece is the Halloween Blackwork from The Steady Thread.  I didn't get huge amounts done on this but went from here:

to here:

 

stitched on 32 count tea-dyed linen

I added some more of the blue to the crystal ball, started the shelf and vases to the right of it.  Then a few bits of border.  The border is fiddly but I can stitch it without the chart in front of me.

On Sunday morning I continued with this year's Temperatue SAL.  Just a very simple column of colour for each day.  Charting the lows for the night time and the highs for the day time.

Finally the next IHSW will be 21st - 23rd March so make sure you note the date in your diary or come and join us in the Facebook Group - IHSW on Facebook. If you don't do Facebook then you can check in here by leaving a comment on my post.

February WIPocalypse SALs

       

WIPocalypse is hosted by Measi's Musings

Each month we have to share the projects we want to complete before the End Of The World.  Since 2011 I have chosen a number of projects to focus on that year, starting with my "11 in '11" and increasing to "24 in '24" for last year.  For 2025 I have decided not to attempt this.  I want to focus on 2 larger pieces and then spend the rest of my stitching time on the series I have started.  This month I stitched on 2 of them and had 1 finish.

2. Craft Collection Art Nouveau Head

6. Cottage Garden Samplings Year in the Woods - 

The Swans is a finish

Finally, Measi always gives us a topic to discuss:

February – What stitch-a-longs (SALs) are you participating in this year?

Obviously, WIPocalypse!  My other SALs are

Fully Finished Gallery - show anything you have FFO'd on the 10th
Gifted Gorgeousness - post anything gifted on the 15th
Smalls SAL - last Friday of each month
The TUSAL - post on the New Moon each month

I don't tend to SAL actual designs as I have my rotation planned and it rarely fits in with other people's plans.  But if you are stitching anything that I am stitching do let me know and we can call it a SAL!

I also tend to avoid Mystery SALs having been bitten once or twice.  I wait until most of the piece has been released and then see if I still have FOMO and want to start it!