Class updates

Here are updates on the two classes I'm currently working on:

Twas the Night Before Christmas:

Desert Diamonds:

Desert Diamonds

Finally back to Desert Diamonds. I've now finished all those French knots. I don't normally mind French knots, but this time I was doing them in Ombre, and it wasn't the most peaceful of past-times.

And another of those arty shots to get the colour and knots better. Note, I said better, not perfect.

Desert Diamonds

I haven't managed to stitch much lately, so I'm still only on lesson two, and lesson four is due out next week. Oh well, I'm not too far behind so there is still hope.

The first panel of French Knots didn't go so well - I couldn't decide which direction to do them in, so they look a bit untidy. But they were a right pain to do, so it's unlikely that I'll take them out. However, you never know, I might really dislike them when I get to the end and redo them. For now though I'll keep working on the rest - the second panel is much smoother as I've figured out the best direction to do them in.

Desert Diamonds

I finished lesson 1 just in time. The very next day I got lesson 2 - and here's my progress so far.

I love these type of projects because the progress is so easy to see.

Desert Diamonds

And band one finished - all caught up with the lessons now:

Desert Diamonds

Another update on this. I was hoping to finish off lesson one (the tie-down stitches) tonight, but it looks like I'm rapidly running out of time to get off this machine and over to the stitching.

And here's me trying to be clever and get one of those wonderful arty shots. This is the best I came up with - most of the rest were barely fit to be seen in public (lol) It does show off the colour and the gold better though.

Desert Diamonds

Here is last nights progress on this. I am now behind though as lesson 2 came out today, so I'd better get a shuffle on to catch up. My photos just don't seem to be getting the colour of this very well. It is lavenders with gold Kreinik Ombre accents. Now that I've started to add the gold (the bit that looks white in the photo) it's really starting to come alive.

Now it's back to stitching.

Desert Diamonds

I've just started a new class from the Shining Needle Society called Desert Diamonds from Lisa Willis of Stitch Elegance. I've only done the first step so far - I fluffed around for ages with the edging of the canvas and mounting it. Not sure why I put kept putting it off, but I did, so I've only just started the stitching. At least I am still stitching the current lesson - so I'm not behind yet. I'm hoping to keep up so that I can then justify joining another class I want to do with the ANG Cyberpointers chapter.

Owl

I finished my owl for the group wall hanging we're doing, and I've delivered it. I only just remembered to take a photo of it before I put it in my bag, so here it is:

I'm now halfway through my scissor fob for this months exchange and I'm enjoying it so much I might even make a second for myself. This would also have the advantage of having two chances of getting the finishing right.

I really like the first colour on it that I used, and am toying with the idea that I will use it for the Glitzy Accessories - but I need to check how much of it I'd need as I only have one skein and I'm pretty sure it was a one-off colour (it's a 'hand-dyed original' from the Hand-Dyed Threads line from Textile Art Studio of Wellington, NZ).

Ok - skip that - while I was typing I just had a sudden thought and checked the instructions, and not only do I need two skeins, but it's watercolours, not waterlilies like I had in my head. So my nice 12 ply silk that I like is the wrong type of thread anyway.

Ah well, that just means that I get to have a rummage through my threads to see what I've got.

I've also realised in the last couple of days that it's time for the Cyberpointers chapter of the ANG to have their next meeting, which means that the first part of Diamond Iris (by Dorothy Lesher) is happening and I haven't done a THING about threads for that. So one of my big tasks for this week (cos I haven't got anything else to do - honest :lol) is to get my drawers of threads out of DD's room before she goes to bed (I always forget until too late in the evening) so that I can sort these two projects out and find out if I have to buy anything else - I'm hoping not much, although I know I will need some as I won't have more than one skein of anything.

Another good thing to do would be to find the instructions for Diamond Iris too. I know I received them, and then put them somewhere safe, I've just got to find where that somewhere safe was. I'm pretty sure I know, but we'll see - I've been wrong about things like that before.

Carole Lakes Glitzy Accessories

The Shining Needle Society is about to start some new classes. One of them is Glitzy Accessories from Carole Lake. I had looked at this, and thought about it, and decided that I could cope with not doing it. But then Pierrette posted a link to her blog post in which she showed her finished items from when she had previously done the class. I was sunk and have now signed up.

I have so far managed to resist Gay Ann Rogers Case for Colour. However there is still time to change my mind as she will have them available for a little while longer.

Christmas Ornaments

For the last couple of weeks I've been working on designing a Christmas ornament. I think I've finally come up with a design and I've started stitching. I can't show pictures as they are for exchanges, but Christmas is coming, and then I'll be able to.

I don't really like the thread I choose to stitch with - it's a imitation silk and it unravels almost faster than I can stitch. It's also hard to get out of the skein as it's very bouncy and tangles easily. So I had a brilliant idea that if I cut through the skein at one end I could just pull one piece at a time out and it might be easier. It was only after I'd done this that I thought about all the extra fraying time it would give all those new ends. Oh well, we'll see how it goes.

In between the fun of the ornaments I've also been working on the Heirloom Christmas Sampler - I'm still on the tree, almost finished it though so I should soon be able to move onto the next fun bit - and the Winter Welcome, although as it's mid-term break there's been no swimming so again not so much work - and as always O' Jerusalem. I will put some more pictures of these up soon, I'm just always forgetting to take them.

I've also joined the Shining Needle Society as they do some lovely classes there and the work is stunning. So even if I never manage to stitch any of their projects I can still drool. I heard about the SNS in three different places almost the same day - I found it first when looking at information on an upcoming online class from Merry Cox, then on Gay Ann Rogers website, and finally the one that gave me the push to sign up - Laura J. Perin's blog, where she had the most beautiful piece of stitching that she'd finished from a class by Gay Ann Rogers at the SNS (Oct 24th's post).

I have ordered the challenge ornament from Gay Ann Rogers (look under small designs on her webpage) and I hope to start stitching that this year, but it will depend on the ornaments and SAL's that I'm already doing. It should be fun though as part of the challenge is choosing all your own colours and threads. There's also encouragement to add to the design or alter it to make it your own and learn as you go.