I'm almost there. I really thought I would be able to finish over the weekend but I ran out of time. I would wait to share the finished product, but I couldn't resist as I have more stitchery goodies to share.
This is it--just seven little rows of stitches to complete on my Prairie Schooler "February Sampler", but strangely they take longer than you would think (especially when you are watching TV while stitching and get distracted. . .).
Part of the motivation for me to finish those last rows is having a few new projects on the horizon. It's been ages since I splurged and bought any new needlework designs, but over the holidays one of my favorite online stores had a New Year's sale that I couldn't pass up. Look what I found--a companion piece to Blackbird Design's Pink Hill Manor. Actually I found a lot more, but I'll save those other charts to share with you another time.
These two are the same size even though the motifs vary, and I think they will look quite nice on the wall sitting side by side. Actually these two are from a year long series of designs, but so far I've only bought the two houses. I'm just waiting for the floss to come in the mail and then I'll start stitching and I am looking forward to this one. Notice, however, how very little the linen in the photo of "Manor House" resembles the actual color of the linen in person (which I tucked under the chart). For now I'll stitch and frame the pair, but if I can get my hands on more of the individual charts I might be tempted to stitch more as I love little houses. Maybe I'll end up with a quartet of them?
This is the sampler I had in mind to stitch before that sale came along and I acquired the "Manor House". It is a reproduction of a real sampler put out by a Canadian company called The Essamplaire. I've wanted to stitch it for ages and have pulled it out of my stash in anticipation. If I can work out some sort of rotation, I might start stitching "Amanda Lavealliere" soon, too. This sampler is a pretty simple design and should be easy and fast to stitch. Amanda Lavealliere was a French Canadian stitcher and she made this in 1879.
And I broke down and began this one yesterday. It was a momentary impulse, but I think I'll enjoy stitching it. I stitched the design once before but gave it away, and with February (already) just around the corner now is the best time to start working on a nice seasonal design. I love Birds of a Feather, though sadly the company is now defunct. Last I heard the designer was selling needlepoint canvases (which I don't do). She also used to make the most beautiful hand dyed linen, too (of which I still have a few cuts). This is "Valentine Holiday" and while I (very curmudgeonly I might add) think that Valentine's Day is a holiday is grossly overrated (maybe because my Valentine's Days resemble Charlie Brown's), I must admit that I like Valentine's Day needlework designs. I think in part it has to do with the fact that I have a February birthday, but whatever the case I started stitching this and found I almost couldn't put it down (which hasn't happened for a long time when it comes to needlework), so I'm taking advantage of the moment to get in some extra stitching time.
I'm hoping this year is a better stitching year for me. In anticipation I've even started cleaning up my Picturetrail album. Since Picturetrail is a paid service I think I might look around for free access to photo sharing so any suggestions would be helpful. Only I do like the layout of Picturetrail.
More updates to follow as I make progress on my projects!