Masquerade as of 26.01.11

Well I went back to work last week after my maternity leave so I'm not getting as much stitching done as I was.  I've been working on Masquerade this week and did slightly less than 1000 stitches on it which takes me to having completed 67.09% of this design.  My goal is to complete this design by the end of the year.  So here's the updated picture.

Believe as of 21.01.11

I've been working this week on QS Believe by Jessica Galbreth.  I am stitching on 20 count hand dyed aida called "Love in the Mist" from Crafty Kitten, 3 over 1, tent stitch.

I am using a different method this time for the stitching.  I've decided that as the fabric is so gorgeous I may not stitch the entire background.  I have therefore decided to stitch each colour one at a time over the whole design.  The first picture was taken after I had completed all the 310 and the second after I had completed all the 336.

I have to say that all the photos I take of this gorgeous fabric are in no way showing it at it's best.  The purples and blues are stunning and as much as I love the whole of the background of the design I want to leave some of the fabric showing.

Hickory Dickory Dock as of 14.01.11

This week I am really really happy with the progress I have made on Hickory Dickory Dock (sorry about the slightly out of focus picture).

I am really close to completing the first page.  I've now completed 26.33% of the total design.  I am really enjoying the colours and the pretty details on this. 

I am now about to start on my new project.

I am sewing it on a hand dyed fabric called "Love in the Mist" from Crafty Kitten.  This picture really doesn't do the fabric justice.  It is a gorgeous blend of blues and purples and absolutely perfect for this piece.  Dawn at the Crafty Kitten helped me choose exactly which fabric would be perfect.  I would highly recommend going to her if you need any hand dyed fabric or advice in choosing what would be the perfect fabric for your chosen piece.

This is all the floss in the piece.  I've never done a floss toss before and found it really interesting to see all the colours which will soon be blended together. 

I am stitching this piece as a memorial for a good friend of mine who  unfortunately lost her son last year to a congenital heart defect.  She and her husband are doing a sponsored sky dive in March to raise money for the hospital who cared for her son.  I hope you don't mind but below I have copied the e-mail she sent asking for sponsorship.  Should any of you be able to donate even a few pennies to help this extremely worthwhile cause it would be very much appreciated.

Dear all,


On March 11th 2011 our son Matthew should be here celebrating his 1st birthday, on 12th March Stephen & I are taking part in a Skydive to raise money for Birmingham Childrens Hospital as part of their heart appeal, I don't know if you're aware, this is the hospital where Matthew was looked after until he died. It is the most amazing place, the nursing staff are honestly heaven sent so we are trying to raise as much as possible, believe me when I say every penny counts.

I've unfortunately not been able to set up a JustGiving account as we have to raise a certain amount prior to the Skydive to pay for the jump itself, unfortunately the company don't offer these events for free :-( so I have set up a Paypal account and an email account so all the money is in one place and once we have raised enough to cover the costs, every single penny after that goes directly to Birmingham Childrens Hospital.

I appreciate not everyone likes having a sponsorship form shoved under their noses so please don't feel obliged to sponsor us, I just thought this was a way to reach a lot of people quickly and like I say, please don't feel obliged to do anything, but if you can spare even a few pennies please log onto Paypal and deposit whatever you can. The email address is skydiveformatthew@hotmail.co.uk I think if you send the money as a gift there isn't a charge.

If you would like to see the confirmation that we are actually taking part in this event let me have your email address, I'm more than happy to forward the emails confirming our places.

Thankyou,

Jo x

Thanks for taking the time to read this and I hope you don't mind me bringing this to your attention.  I know times are hard everywhere at the moment and especially at this time of the year but as Jo says every penny helps.

Blue Rose Fairy QS - 2011 SAL - as of 06.01.11

So this week I started stitching the 2011 SAL.  The chart I chose was Blue Rose Fairy and the finished item should look like this.

I am stitching her on 20 count white aida 3 over 1 tent stitch and here is a picture of the progress I have made so far.  I have completed 1,959 of 34,446 which is 5.69% of the total complete.  My BB goal is to complete 1 page and I have completed 24.99% of this goal and my blog goal is to complete 2 pages and I have completed 13.33% of this goal.

HAED BB 2011 Full Year Goals

A few days ago I set myself my stitching goals for 2011.  Having thought a bit harder about it I think the goals may be a little too much.  So today I have set myself a few less goals on the HAED BB, they are

1. Complete two pages in tent stitch of QS Believe not currently started
2. Complete two pages in tent stitch of QS Hickory Dickory Dock currently done 10.44%
3. Complete in full crosses SK Masquerade 2010 SAL currently done 61.83% 
4. Complete one page in tent stitch of QS Blue Rose Fairy 2011 SAL currently done 3.64%

I will still keep the original goals I set myself here on my blog but will be working mainly to complete the HAED BB goals.  Looking forward to seeing how realistic any of these goals are!