Audie Award Nominees 2013

Most of my blogging is on my stitching, but today I'm posting my impressions on the audiobooks nominated for the 2013 Audie Awards in History and Literary Fiction.  I listen to audiobooks while I drive and when I stitch, and I've read all the nominated books in these categories.  If you'd like to see what I thought of them, you can check out pages per the tabs above, or here are the direct links:  Literary Fiction and History.  The actual awards will be announced on May 23rd, so I'm interested to see how close my opinion is to that of the offical judges.

Sunday Stitching Update April 28th

My progress was slow in the past couple of weeks. I had a business trip to New Orleans for a few days, then a few days after I got home I had such a terrible cold that they sent me home for 2 days to rest & recoup. I'm better now, so hopefully I will get back on pace. I'm about 1/2 done, so I took it off the floor frame for this photo. For our newbies, I'm stitching mine on 36 ct. Lakeside Linen in Vintage Sand Dune using the suggested threads.

As for the alphabet, I had thought of putting the letters in correct order. However, I went to stitch one night, and my husband said, "I've been looking at your chart and have some questions about the alphabet..." If the out of order letters caught his interest, I figure maybe other family members who see it framed may pay more attention when they see it, too. I'll be doing the full piece as charted



And They Sinned by Examplar Dames - 64 days progress



Easter Sunday March 31st

I'm continuing to devote my stitching time to And They Sinned, which I started February 23rd.  Today was Day 37, and this afternoon I finished page 1 of 3 1/2.  With today being Easter Sunday, it was fun to finish the page with a bunny at Eve's feet.

And They Sinned by Examplar Dames - Day 37

I did do more stitching on page 2 this evening, and I think that page will go a bit faster than page 1.  A large part of the page is alphabets, so it's not as busy and has fewer color changes. 

Monday Update March 25th

I'm keeping busy working on And They Sinned, reaching the 30 day point on Sunday March 24th.  Some days I don't get any stitching done, but I seem to make up for it on the weekend.  This week I'll definitely be finished with page 1 and on to page 2.  The chart has only 3 1/2 pages, so this is moving along nicely! 

Monday March 18th

I am so committed to And They Sinned!  Yesterday was Day 23, and I've reached the Tree of Life.  On the picture below, the blue bird in the bottom center sits on the top of that tree.  I'll be working on that tonight and doing my best to get most, if not all, of page one completed this week.

And They Sinned by Examplar Dames - March 17th, Day 23

Monday Update, March 11th

I was tired last night, which I attribute to losing that hour for Saturday's time change, so I took a picture of my WIP but did not post a blog update.  I'm really loving And They Sinned, and my husband's challenged me to stick with one piece from start to finish, so I'll see how long this takes to finish.  Yesterday was Day 16 for ATS, and I finally got past the clouds.

And They Sinned - March 10, 2013 - Day 16

I also took a couple of pictures of my Mark 2 by my new recliner.  This set-up is perfect for me, and I truly stitch in comfort.  I just realized, too, that the fabric color is truer in the pics below.

 

My Mark 2 Set-up



A look from behind the recliner



And it flips easily to the back



Sunday Update March 3rd

I'm really enjoying stitching And They Sinned by Examplar Dames.  Today was Day 9, though I don't get much done during the week since I work.  I hope to get this done quickly so I can move on to my Scarlet Letter Sampler, SDW A German Band Sampler circa 1710 for Nicola's Scarlet Letter Year, so I'm considering stitching this exclusively for now.

And Thy Sinned by Examplar Dames - Day 9

I also won a contest run by Deborah Dick of Tempting Tangles.  My prize was the chart for Giovanni's Alphabet, which is another lovely sampler.  It will be a while before I get to start this one, but I do look forward to stitching it.

Giovanni's Alphabet by Tempting Tangles

Sunday Update February 24, 2013

My most exciting stitching news this week is that I finally started And They Sinned by Examplar Dames on Saturday.  This is quite a large Adam and Eve sampler, which I'm stitching on 36 ct. Lakeside Linen in Vintage Sand Dune, using Gentle Art Sampler Threads.  I love the fabric, and I think I will really enjoy stitching this piece!

And They Sinned
Chart Design

And They Sinned
First Progress Picture

SDW A German
Band Sampler circa 1710

In addition to starting And They Sinned, I also received another chart, SDW A German Band Sampler circa 1710 from The Scarlet Letter.  This is my first Scarlet Letter chart, and it's beautifully done, so I have a feeling it won't be my last.  SDW is similar in size to ATS, and I'll be stitching it as part of Nicola's Scarlet Letter Year celebration.  If you'd like to know more about that, follow the link on the right hand side of this page.

Finally, our new recliners were delivered on Thursday.  Mine works perfectly with the Mark 2 floor frame, and I was able to put it in the same place as the old one, so I still have the lighting that works so well for me. 

Sunday Update February 17th

This week we celebrated our 41st anniversary with the sampler I'd stitched to commemorate our 40th year finished, framed, and in our home.  As for current projects, I finished page 1 of HAED's Foregone by Marta Dahlig, though all you can see is dark drapery.  I did a bit on Wisteria by the Silver Lining, but will stitch more tonight once I get off the computer. I ordered SDW A German Band Sampler from The Scarlet Letter to stitch for Nicola's Scarlet Letter Year and look forward to getting that chart. 

HAED's Foregone by Marta Dahlig, page 1 completed

We decided to get new recliners for our anniversary gift, so we went furniture shopping Saturday.  Mine will be my new stitching chair, and I was careful to be sure the measurements worked with my Mark 2 floor frame.  I really like the light where my current recliner is situated, so my new one will go in the same space.  John's is a larger power recliner and needs to be plugged in, so we're moving the rest of the living room furniture around to make that work.  The new recliners will be delivered on Wednesday, and once everything's settled, I'll be starting Examplar Dames' And They Sinned.

My New Stitching Chair - A Recliner That Fits With My Mark 2 Floor Stand

John's New Power Recliner

Sunday Update February 10, 2013

It's been a good stitchy week for me.  I've already blogged about my sampler coming back from Jill Rensel, and I'm still thrilled with it!  I also got two other packages, both containing fabric.  Once was a fat quarter of 32 ct. Belfast from Hand Dyed Fabrics by Stephanie in her new color Odyssey.  The other was a special cut of Lakeside Linen's Vintage Sand Dune, purchased from Marty Branch's shop Stitch & Frog.  This will be used for And They Sinned, which I'll be starting soon.

I've made progress on a couple of pieces.  One is Wisteria by the Silver Lining on 28 ct. black Jobelan, stitched one over one.  I love these flowers and will probable do many more.

Wisteria by The Silver Lining

The other is HAED's Foregone by Marta Dahlig.  Once I finish the current page, I'll be moving And They Sinned to the floor frame.  This is still just the background drapery, but the lady will begin to appear soon.

My Sampler is Home

My sampler arrived home this evening from Jill Rensel, and I just love the framing she did.  I'm so glad that I found Gigi Ries' lovely Belles-Lettres D chart to stitch and celebrate a milestone anniversary.  Next week is our 41st anniversary, and we're happy this will now have a place of honor in our home. 

My 40th Anniversary Sampler, Belles-Lettres D by Gigi Ries

To make today even better, the Lakeside Linen I've been waiting for finally arrived as well.  That means I'll be starting And They Sinned soon.

Saturday Sampler News!

It's Saturday night, and I just got a wonderful e-mail from Jill Renseler.  She's finished framing my Belles-Lettres D by Gigi R and will be sending it home on Monday.  Here's the photo she sent:

Gigi R's Belles-Lettres D framed by Jill Rensel

I've also decided to join Nicola's Scarlet Letter Year Challenge.  Nicola turns 50 this month and has decided to celebrate by stitching a series of Scarlet Letter reproduction samplers over the next year and inviting other stitchers to join the challenge.  She's gotten great response to this, and has many small challenges and prizes going on.  I've chosen SDW, A German Band Sampler circa 1710 as the piece I'll stitch for this challenge.  I still have to order the chart, fabrics, and threads, but this is the one I've chosen:

SDW A German Band Sampler circa 1710 by The Scarlet Letter

This sampler will make a wonderful companion piece to And They Sinned, the sampler I'll be starting as soon as my Lakeside Linen fabric comes in.  There's been a delay due to illness in the family of the ladies who own LL, but hopefully it will be in soon.  Both SDW and ATS are about 45" tall, with SDW being just a bit wider than ATS.  I'd love to have both of them on my wall!

And They Sinned by Examplar Dames Design Co.

Sunday Update January 27, 2013

I did lots of stitching today!  It's getting late, though, so I'm just going to do a quick update on the three projects I've been working on this month.

HAED's Angel with Iris by Nadia Strelkina is a continuing WIP, but coming along nicely.  She's still my husband's favorite.

HAED Angel with Iris by Nadia Strelkina

Wisteria by The Silver Lining was a new start last weekend.  I still love stitching on black, and I may do a series of these lovely flowers on black Jobelan.  This one will look better when I get to the major part of the flower.

Wisteria by The Silver Lining

Finally, I got in 3 hours on HAED's Foregone by Marta Dahlig today.  It's the first time I've stitched that piece in two weeks, and she'll be on the floor frame until I start And They Sinned in February.  I'm looking forward to seeing the lady, since it's been all drapery so far.

HAED's Foregone by Marta Dahlig

Sunday Update January 20, 2013

It's been a busy week at work, but I managed to get a bit of stitching done on HAED's Angel with Iris this week.  What I'm excited about is finally getting started on Wisteria by The Silver Lining.  The chart was gifted to me at the end of November by Mary in the OneOverOners Yahoo Group.  I had intended to start it in December, but I ended up concentrating and finishing Gigi R's Belles-Lettres D.

I'm stitching Wisteria on 28 count black Jobelan, stitched one over one full cross.  I do like stitching on black, and I can tell I'm really going to enjoy stitching this design.   Here's a picture of the two leaves I've stitched this weekend, which happened to be International Hermit and Stitch Weekend:

Wisteria by The Silver Lining

My other major news is that my sampler, Belles-Lettres D by Gigi R, is now at Jill Rensel's studio, and we've agreed on how it's to be framed.  She'd suggested stacked frames with a fillet, and I loved the effect using a dark carved outer frame, a green gold inner frame, and a dark fillet.  She's going to try to get it back to me in time for our next anniversary on February 12th.  Here's a picture of the looke we chose:

Gigi R's Belles-Lettres D with framing sample from Jill Rensel

Sunday Update January 13, 2013

My big news tonight is that my sampler, Gigi R's Belles-Lettres D, is on its way to Jill Rensel in Utah for framing.  It's in the UPS system and should arrive at her studio on Tuesday.  She's made a couple of preliminary suggestions in our e-mail exchange, and we'll discuss options once she has the piece in hand.

Gigi R's Belles-Lettres D

Stitchwise this week, I worked on HAED's Foregone by Marta Dahlig.  I'm enjoying stitching this one on 25 count Magic Guide, 1 over 1 full cross.  I have about 4,400 stitches done, but so far it's all dark drapery in the background.


Approx 4,400 stitches done



Foregone by Marta Dahlig

Tonight I put Foregone away and will be working on HAED's Angel with Iris by Nadia Strelkina on the floor frame this week.  I also plan to do some beading on Mirabilia's Midsummer Night's Fairy, hoping to finally finish her this month.  She's been a long-time UFO.  Finally, I plan to start stitching Wisteria by The Silver Lining on black Jobelan, and since that's a smaller piece, I'll work that on my Q-Snaps and lap frame.


HAED's Angel with Iris



 

Mirabilia's Midsummer Night's Fairy



Wisteria by The Silver Lining



2013 - First Sunday Update

This is the first Sunday of 2013, and I think it would be a good habit to do blog updates each Sunday evening.  Here's what I've been up to stitchwise this past week.

I started HAED's Foregone by Marta Dahlig at midnight on New Year's Eve and worked on that this weekend as well.  Here's a picture of my progress so far with about 1800 stitches in.  This section is all dark colors, including black, dark brown, and deep plum.

HAED's Foregone by Marta Dahlig - first 1800 stitches

I've also been trying to select a framer for Gigi R's Belles-Lettres D that I finished on December 30th.  The first quote threw me into sticker shock, but I've come to realize that if I want such a large piece framed really nicely by someone who knows how to handle cross stitch, it's going to be expensive.  I now have two quotes I'm consdering and hoping to hear from one other source before making a final selection.  Here's the piece in question, which has a stitched area about 28" x 22".

Gigi R's Belles Lettres D - Waiting for Framing

I did receive the first page of the HAED BB Freebie SAL QS The Literate Dragon by Randal Spangler, but I have my rotation full for January and will probably start that sometime next month.  I'm really enjoying stitching Foregone, so I want to continue work on her, as well as HAED's Angel with Iris by Nadia Strelkina.  In addition, I will probably finish beading Mirabilia's Midsummer Night's Fairy and start Wisteria by The Silver Lining this month.  Those four will certainly keep me busy!

HAED QS The Literate Dragon by Randal Spangler - Probably a February New Start

HAED Angel with Iris by Nadia Strelkina - WIP

Wisteria by The Silver Lining - January New Start

Mirabilia's Midsummer Night's Fairy - Awaiting Her Final Beading

Final WIPocalypse Check-in for 2012

I forgot to post a final WIPocalyse check-in.  This is a bit redundant, but my Belles-Lettres D by Gigi R was completed on December 30, 2012.  I'll be taking this piece to the framers in the next couple of days, so here's the finished piece, both front and back, plus the WIP picture from January 2012.

Gigi R's Belles-Lettres D - Finished - Front

Gigi R's Belles-Lettres D - Finished - Back

Gigi R's Belles-Lettres D - WIP January 2012