Summer to Fall

Thank you so much for all the comments on my John Reed finish. And apologies to those of you who wanted to leave comments, but couldn’t. It seems to be some sort of hit or miss thing with either blogger or this template I’m using since some people could leave comments and some couldn’t. So strange. Hopefully it’s fixed now though.

I finally got around to taking some photos of some amazing birthday gifts from friends that I hadn’t had a chance to share yet. This pincushion is a freebie design from The Sampler Girl that my friend Lori stitched and finished for me. She actually had several friends who had August birthdays, so she made several of these and personalized them with each birthdate and initials. Absolutely adorable – and what a perfect gift for an August birthday girl, like me!

And she backed it with this lovely blue fabric. So fun!

And if that wasn’t enough, she also spoiled me with this amazing gift. Although, when she gave it to me she said, “let me know if you figure out what it is”. She found this at a local quilt shop and said that even the ladies at the quilt shop weren’t sure what it was. But, since she knows my love for all things Tula, she felt like it would have a good home with me.

It’s difficult to get the whole thing in the photo, but it does say Tula Pink for Moda (so you know this is from way back) and then it has four little pockets, which she filled with fat quarters of some Tula fabric for me, two Birds & the Bees, one Saltwater, and one Nightshade.

So, since we were all stumped as to what this was I reached out to Miss Tula Pink herself and asked. And she very kindly responded that this was a promotional banner Moda did for shops and the intent was for them to be able to change out the fat quarters in the pockets as new lines from the designer were released. But the best part…

It’s made to look like a fabric selvedge! How fun is that??? It has a little sleeve at the top for hanging and then you can change out your focus fabrics at will. The most awesome addition to my sewing room, for sure! Thank you so much, Lori, for spoiling me!

Another friend of mine, Laurie, also spoiled me with a pincushion. This is one of Jeannette Douglas’s Quaker Pincushions. I love that it looks like a little pumpkin. And the Halloween pins she added are absolutely adorable.

And look at the back! Gorgeous houndstooth patterned wool and a beautiful button. So sweet. It’s perfect to put out for the season too. I totally should finish up the Quaker pincushion I stitched for myself forever ago, shouldn’t I?

She also gifted me with this blinged out skull needleminder. I, of course, immediately put it on my sugar skull stitching wallet so it can keep me company. So freaking awesome.

So thank you both for my thoughtful gifts, they are much appreciated and will be treasured.

I also thought I’d show you all what I’ve been stitching on lately, now that John Reed is finished. On October 1 I decided to start a new project. This is only my third new start of the year, if you can believe it, and one of those was finished in January. But, I was feeling the need for a fall project and this one has been calling to me from my stitching bag. Please overlook the fact that the majority of this is out of focus, my 50mm lens was obviously punishing me for never using it anymore.

Such a fun stitch, and just brimming with fall color. This is a design by the same friend Lori I mentioned above. She is so talented! You may recall she also designed this little pincushion I stitched last fall. I’ve been working on this still and hope to have it finished this fall.

The other piece I’ve been working on is the Sunday Mystery Sampler Paulette is offering as a free chart on her blog. I look forward to each new installment on Sundays, and it’s the perfect thing to stitch on Sunday evenings. And bonus, by Thanksgiving I will have a finished Christmas piece!

I’m using 40ct Vintage Light Examplar and for the most part I am stitching with the called for threads, although I had to switch from Shaker White to Oatmeal because the Shaker wouldn’t show up on my fabric (which really is not as pink leaning as this photo shows). I also changed the Espresso Bean to Pecan because I wanted it to be a warmer, lighter brown than my skein of Espresso was. And I stitched Mary in blue, because I wanted that little pop of color. The blue I used is actually a limited edition GAST I’ve had forever called Aquamarine. I can’t wait to see what the next installment will be. Oh, and I’m stitching Mary’s Sampler II, which is the more densely stitched version that Paulette is doing on black.

Oh, and speaking of The Sampler Girl (the pincushion from Lori reminded me of it), in case you haven’t seen, many of her patterns are going to be OOP at the end of October, and until the 31st, they are all on sale. So scoop up the ones you want, while you can!! (no affiliation, just a fan) I picked up Good Tidings with Jane Austen, which is the companion piece to the other two that I’ve already stitched. I am excited about the new direction she’s taking though.

I am grateful for vacation and working on new things.

**Edited to add: Still appear to be having issues with comments. Some people are able to comment, so do try refreshing if you’re not seeing the comment option. I’ll keep researching to see if I can determine the problem.