IHSW 2019 - March Edition

I feel like I need to spread out my posts a bit, otherwise I'm only posting in the middle of the month! Or at least I need to post more, that may be the answer. :)

Time again for the IHSW and since my stitching bug has returned thanks to the FB group School of Magical Stitches and Literature, it's been a lot of fun working on so many projects. I don't know why the thought of "homework" and finding how my old WIPs fit into the categories each week makes me want to stitch more, but here we are.

Please check out the link at Jo's page for all the other hermiters and cheer them on as well!

This weekend I worked on:

Basset - which you might have last seen here in 2018:

And now, several hundred stitches later:

It's practically done at this point! This is a Brenda Franklin design and it fit a few homework tasks, so this weekend was maybe only 300 or so stitches, but they count too!

I also pulled out Joy Snowglobe because one of the homework prompts was to work on something like a crystal ball. I think this fits the bill rather well.

It was last here in 2018:

and is now here:

500 stitches later. If I can get this to fit in any more homework, it could be another finish this year. That would be so nice. I would love to start something new, like that awesome Sea in a Bottle that Katie just finished, but so many WIPs need working on! Hopefully I can fit them all in this week's homework as well, or maybe that might tempt me to start something new.

As for knitting, I started the Everyday Slouchy Beanie by Dragon Hoard designs. It's a free pattern on Ravelry and is my first attempt at using mohair. So far I really like the look of the colours I chose and it's knitting up fairly quickly now that the band is done.

It's a double band, which I love the idea of for warm ears, but it was a little tricky to put together. Possibly if I'd stuck with the provisional cast on as charted, but I didn't have a crochet hook when I started the hat, so I just had to knit into the cast on. It was fine, but may have been easier if I'd just stuck with the recommended idea.

I also have a mini start on some socks for a friend, but just a very tiny start. That makes just 2 pairs of socks I've started now without finishing any. Not too bad considering where I was a few months ago, with a few single socks awaiting their mates. :)

I hope everyone had lots of time to craft of any kind, and Happy Stitching!

Tiffstitch

Gifted Gorgeousness - March Edition

It's that time again, the 15th 16th of the month and time to post about the amazing gifted goodness we've all stitched or received or used in some fashion over the past month. Check out our fantabulous host Jo's post for everyone else's link-ups and her beautiful work too.

I've succumbed to the School of Magic Stitches and Literature and have been stitching up a storm this past month!

Tribal Dragon (DD) was here:

 and is now here:

Princess and the Dragon (DD) was here:

 and is now here:

 Letters from Nora - L was here:

 and is now here:

 A Kiss for a Snowman (DD) got a little love:

 as did Animal Parade:

and the only knitting I've been doing that I have photos of has been for me, so no updates there either. I have been knitting, but not as much as cross stitching lately. 

And I almost forgot to add the lovely gift I received from Rachel! She had promised to send me some GITD threads she wasn't too thrilled with and put in several other lovely things too. 

I love the Halloween theme for everything, I had mentioned I wanted to use the threads for Durene Jones Halloween stitch with Lakeside Needlecraft and these might be some other lovely editions, plus the awesome buttons and chart! Thank you again Rachel!

I hope everyone has had a good month!

Happy Stitching,

Tiffstitch

People's Choice SAL - March Edition

Here we go again with the People's Choice SAL hosted over by the lively Jo. Please check her post and sign up (late like me!) and see all the people who managed to sign up on time as well. :)

I've stitched a lot of freebies over the years, so I've been tracking down which ones I can find and see if the links are still active. As most of us have probably done, I have files and files of these saved on various devices, and hope they outlast the electronics! I print when I think of it, but that ends up taking a fair bit of room in binders, etc.

After going through all the photos I can find in my local account, this seems to be my first freebie. I don't have a link to it, but hopefully it can be found on Cyberstitchers or somewhere similar.

This is from October 2010, and was stitched and gifted to a friend of my mother's who was undergoing cancer treatment. She survived another few years after this was stitched, but she did pass on several years ago. 

Lady Kell of Kincavel Krosses used to be a fairly prolific designer, but I haven't seen her online in quite a while. I hope all is well. This is her snowflake bookmark.  She has tons of great freebies like these:

All gifted to recipients that enjoyed the humour, so that was lucky :)

This was a free pattern by Flossy Bobbin. I love this so much! It has been one of my absolute favourite stitches. However, it was lost in our move and I have no idea where it is. :( That was 6 years ago. Also, Flossy Bobbin has taken down her blog, so this pattern is not available any more. 

 DH's favourite video game of all time is Metroid. This is Samus in a save module from Metroid 2? I think. It was a free pattern on Sprite Stitch back when people put more patterns on there instead of Etsy. I remember the designer is from Calgary, Alberta, but not where to find the pattern. Possibly in the archives of Sprite Stitch!

 Also from Sprite Stitch for my BIL, if any of you have played Legend of Zelda, this is hilarious ;)

If you like little video game sprites, Dork Stitch is the place to go. She must have designed thousands of these by now. I don't think I'm exaggerating. They are fun little gifts for friends and family that enjoy video games. These are 2 from Metroid, Zero Suit Samus and Samus in her full uniform.

Another great place to find some amazing blackwork is with Elizabeth Almond at Blackwork Journey. This is the Box of Delights from 2017 (I think) and it was a lot of fun to choose colours and create something a little out of the box for me. 

I love this cute little bat! He was a freebie from Durene Jones' Facebook group. I think she posts a little freebie every Friday, so if you enjoy her designs, head to this group. 

Have we all stitched this yet? This is Palko-lap's brilliant 2015 calendar. If you want to see a current gemstone version being stitching, please check out Rachel at Ten Hour Stitcher for her beautiful work. 

I loved creating this one! It was a silhouette from Des Filles et une Aiguille. They have lots of different designs, and this one spoke to me, even though I'm not usually a sampler stitcher. I used some fun Dinky Dyes from an Oops pack and a spare scrap of fabric and ta-da! This hangs by our front door. 

For some great hardanger patterns, check out Mabel Figworthy's Fancies. She has some neat little freebies and this one was an anchor that I modified for a friend's Southern Baptism. He was baptized in the lake and everything, it was quite an experience to witness. 

Lastly, this is from Lakeside Needlecraft. They often have free SALs throughout the year, just check out their Facebook group. This one was designed by Durene Jones and I used Chromatic Alchemy threads, and I love the rainbow effect. Hopefully I can make this one into a pillow or something fun so you can feel all the different textures. 

I think that's all for now. I have a few more Kincavel Krosses that I've stitched and I'll leave those under the signature if you're interested. :) 

Happy Stitching!

Tiffstitch

IHSW 2019 - February Edition

I hope everyone had a great hermitting weekend and got lots of stitching done! I did have a decent amount of time and was able to turn Fishing from this:

 to this!

A finished object! And one more WIP off the list. I'm so glad to have finished this. I stitched it 2 over 2 on 28ct Chromatic Alchemy Tempest and left the sky unstitched. I think it will look fine in a hoop and that will be my first ever attempt at a hoop finish when I get around to it.

Happy Stitching everyone!

Tiffstitch

Gifted Gorgeousness 2019 - February Edition

It's that time again to showcase all the gifts we've received or made or whatever we can fit into this post. Check out everyone's blogs over at the link-up on Jo's page since she's the hostess with the mostest!

And onto what I've worked on/gifted/been gifted/etc. this month:

Fishing

I'm so close to a finish on this one! I need to get finished, and find my ecru thread, it's gone missing from this pack, so I need to find what I've done with that. :)

Love you to the moon and back - Barbara Ana free design 

I found this one through the link on Jo's blog about hearts for the People's Choice SAL. It was a quick stitch and I was happy to find some GITD thread to make it really fun. It was a gift for DD for Valentine's Day and she loved it! I used DMC variegated thread for the heart and stitched it in a way to make it look like patchwork, as it is charted. 

Socks!

I did finish the second sock, but haven't got a photo of it. They were a big hit with DD and if you check the first photo, I'm using the new Addi flexi-flips. For any of you sock knitters, they really did feel faster than magic loop to me. I can't speak for DPNs, but might be worth a try.

Happy Stitching and Knitting!

Tiffstitch

Secret Stitching Sweetheart Blog Hop 2019

It's time again for the Secret Stitching Sweetheart Blog Hop! Hosted as always by the fabulous Jo, please head over to her blog to see a list of all the participants.

I'm on the lookout for the stitcher who stitched this beauty:

This looks like a very cute Dragon Dreams design and I have few guesses on the most likely candidates to have stitched this one. Off to see who has mine and join in the fun! 

Happy Valentine's Day everyone!

Tiffstitch