Stitching Friends Forever

November Week One and Four

Thank you's
Styling with Stitches
New Stitch

It's hard to believe that today is the last day of November.   The time is just flying by and there is still so much to do before the Christmas holidays. Mary and I have been busy stitching for week one and week four.   I bet you thought we forgot about week one this month.  We didn't!   We are just late in getting them sewn up.  So today will be a double project day which means double the work double the pleasure.   

We start with thanks you's to three lovely ladies.   This past week I received a most beautiful RAK ornament from Andrea of The Craft Room.   I have been following Andrea for quite some time because of my love for her stitching and stunning finishes.   So you can imagine my delight when I found out I won one of her RAK'S.    It is a beautiful Prairie Schooler Santa which I'm so over the moon about.   I love everything about it from the perfect flat finish, the pretty cording, the organza bow, the lovely three pearl pin and even an adorable heart charm on the back.  I was like a little girl on Christmas morning opening a gift when I received this beautiful gift all the way from England.  

Stitching Friends thanks our good friend Catherine of I love to stitch for the really pretty Blackbird Designs and Shepherds Bush patterns she sent for Mary and me to stitch. She knows how much we love patriotic and SB stitches.  We can't wait to get going on these lovely designs.

We also would like to thank our new friend Sandy of  I majored in Home Economics for the beautiful chart Silent Night, Holy Night with the prettiest cardinals that was sent to us too.  It is a time consuming pattern but so pretty.

Thank you so much stitching friends.   

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Styling with Stitches
For our week one project we made stitched quilt hangings to put on metal containers.  They are both by Fanci That which make them whimsical and adorable!

RJ's quilt hanging
I chose Harvest Angel by Fanci That.   This company is not in business anymore but I was able to find this one on Ebay and scooped it up.   I chose my own over dyed threads and added a star button to the halo and a blackbird on the fence.  When I made the little quilt I used a tiny sunflower border in black and cream and then a bigger border of homespun black check.  I still want to go back and do a quilt stitch around the borders but probably not until after the holidays.   

This is my little quilt hanging on a metal container.  I added a plant, some fresh sunflowers, wicker pumpkins and a birdhouse for the blackbird

The quilt hangs by vintage black ribbon

Closeup showing the two borders...one with sunflowers and the other a check homespun

Kinda crooked but shows the detail of the stitch and buttons better.  Can you see the pumpkins on her feet?  And it says Crows on the mailbox with a small red lever.   The details on these angels are amazing.   I wish I had gotten a better up close photo

Harvest Angel
by Fanci That
40 ct. country mocha Newcastle linen
overdyed threads
buttons from 123 stitch

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Mary's quilt hanging
My hanging is another Fanci That stitch appropriately named Pumpkin Hollow.  I think the Fanci That patterns are such charming and whimsical stitches. 

I found this great wood and metal basket at Hobby Lobby and knew it would be perfect for a fall display to hang on my door.   I enlisted the talents of my good friend, Cheryl, to help me design the arrangement.  

I omitted the word Pumpkin that was on the pattern.   I found some tiny wooden leaves at a quilt show that worked well for the little halo.   The called for threads were used with the exception of substituting a few DMC colors, 3371 for Cherry Bark, 931 for Blueberry, 340 for Purple Iris and 738 for Summer Meadow. 

Closeup of quilt hanging

I love how this arrangement turned out

                                                                                     

The back has a hanger at the top

                                                                                               

Pumpkin Hollow
by Fanci That
40 ct. country mocha Newcastle linen
threads listed above
buttons found at a quilt show

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Something New

RJ's new ornament - I chose a design by Blackbird Designs.   Have you ever seen a chart that you just had to stitch?   Well this one did that to me.   The first time I saw it I was in love with everything about it.   I really thought the blackbird was beautiful with the golden basket in his mouth and I loved the pretty brick color of the alphabet.   I usually don't date things or put my initials on them but this one needed it.

For the finish I did a thin piece of black homespun and then a larger piece of a pretty tiny floral that Mary had sent me from a quilt show.   It had the perfect brick red and black in it and worked so well.   I made my first attempt at a yo yo with a button.  Why?  I made a mistake when trimming my stitch.   I trimmed three sides and forgot the bottom.  Only after it was sewn up, did I notice my error. I may pull it apart and fix it later but for now I think the yo yo takes up space and helps make the extra length of the linen look more in line.  At least I hope so.  

Love the colors in this stitch

Closeup showing the yo yo and fabrics

Gathering Basket
By Blackbird Designs
overydyed threads
40 ct. flax Newcastle linen
vintage button




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Mary's new stitch -  I stitched this for my friend Cheryl's printers box.  She changes the display seasonally and I volunteered to make a little stitch for each season.    I call this my mystery stitch because I cannot recall the design or threads used.  I tried a flat fold for the first time using chipboard and gluing the linen down. Neither method will be used again by myself! The chipboard was difficult to cut and once I placed the linen on the sprayed glue surface I could not move the stitch to align it evenly. I'm glad my learning experience was on a small piece like this one. 

Perfect for Cheryl's printers box

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Thank you all so much for your visit.  We really appreciate each and every one of you.  Next week we will the doing our Styling with Stitches post.   Until then "Happy Stitching".                      Mary and RJ


                                        Begin each day with a grateful heart
                                                               unknown author