Marta Mask Progress #4

DH was gone this past weekend, so out came Marta.  This mask is a painted canvas and, for me, requires totally uninterrupted stitching time!

I completed the ribbon, which took about 4 hours.  It's amazing how long it can take to stitch a relatively small area!  Of course, some of that time was taken up deciding what stitch to use.  After being unsuccessful with Slanted Gobelin, the edges were just too jagged, I ended up using a simple Mosaic stitch.  With Mosaic, it is easy to adjust to the shape.  I used two silk threads and needle blended to go from the lightest to the darkest.  There isn't much variation, so that worked very well.

Sedona Sunrise Progress #2

Sedona Sunrise is moving right along.

I have completed 2 of the inner corners.  Each corner is different, but uses the same threads. I have also completed the inner borders which define the center and square off the center area. 
I like the way Laura makes the center lighter, more sheer, by using thinner threads.

Bloomin' Bargello

New Bargello and Bargello Flower have now become Bloomin' Bargello.  I know, it's hard to keep up!

I finished half of the background.  This goes fairly quickly, if I would just work on it more!  There's just so many things to work on, I tend to jump around.

SOTM 2012 December

It looks like the 2012 SOTM will be my first finish in 2013.  The outlining is done; I'm not thrilled with it, but it is done.  I'm not very good at any kind of outlining unless it is a straight line! 

Next up will be the background.  I don't like the darning pattern we were given for the background, so I'm designing my own.  We'll see how it works out!

 

 

Happy Birthday To Me

Happy Birthday To Me.  No, I'm not telling how many!

It was actually Saturday and DH and my best friend took me out to Hanks for a wonderful steak dinner.  Hanks is in the Green Valley Ranch casino here in Vegas (actually Henderson) and it is my favorite place for awesome steaks.

But, before dinner DH & BF gifted me.  Cute kitty cards, lots of Godiva chocolates AND these two fabulous handbags!

These bags are by Mis Meg Creations (click to view).  Each of their bags is one of a kind.  They are stunning felted bags that I have been lusting after!  I know one of the creators and I'm just thrilled to own these.

The black one is quite large, suitable for travel!  I think you could put your whole weekend in there!  This will be my every day bag till summer.  And now I can send in my Brighton bag to be repaired!

The aqua one will be my summer bag.  I'm pretty sure it will be large enough to hold all my usual stuff even though it is quite a bit smaller than the black one.

I'm soooo lucky to have such a great husband and friend!

FMTM Block 4

I haven't worked on FMTM for awhile, but have now pulled it out & will concentrate on this project at least a couple of times a week.  This is Block 4 and it is slow going for me.  Several sections are pulled work and just seem to take forever!  The upper right corner, the square below the aqua one, shows the first of the final sections completed  All of the remaining sections are like this one.  Although they are small, they are slow to stitch.  I hope the next two blocks will go faster!

 

Sedona Sunrise

Before we went to Reno for the holidays, I decided to start a new project to take along (besides the Bargello) because all my existing projects are too big.  So I picked Laura Perin's "Sedona Sunrise". 

I got it all kitted up and after we were there a few days, I gave it a try.  It works up quickly and below is my progress so far.  I think it is going to be really pretty.  The only thing I changed was the metallics.
I don't know how often I'll work on this, but I'll keep you posted whenever I make some progress!

     

Bargello Flower

Wow, here it is January of 2013.  Hard to believe!  I'm sure there was a time when I didn't think I'd live this long (chuckle)!!

We spent the holidays in Reno, as usual, and this year DH's sister and her husband joined us for the Christmas part.  It was a busy time with all of us together, along with their 2 dogs and our dog & 2 cats!  They certainly kept us entertained.  Reno was very cold and snowy.  We are back in Vegas now, where it isn't all that warm either, but sunny! 

I didn't get a great deal of stitching done during the past 3-4 weeks, but I do have a few things to report.  First up is a new Bargello.  This is my second attempt for this design, the first I labeled "New Bargello".  I am now, tentatively, calling it Bargello Flower and if all goes well there will be several more color treatments.  This one is monochromatic, in aqua, surprise!  I know you're shocked!  I've just begun the outer sections and should have it finished fairly quickly now.

Sorry for the delay in posting.  I've been trying to upload photos for days & Blogger just wouldn't cooperate!  Today I did some research & figured out how to upload while Blogger is trying to correct this issue.