Spring Into Summer New Start Binge - #12 Lady In Red

Hello again!

It's week 12 of this Spring Into Summer New Start Binge being undertaken by Tiff, Annie and myself, where we aim to start a new project each weekend during the months of April, May, June and July.

This week's new start was the third of Valerie Pfeiffer's Solos birds. This is Lady In Red, a beautiful cardinal.

We don't get cardinals in the UK but I've seen them appear on so many projects it's actually been lovely to stitch one! It wasn't my intention to stitch just the bird but once I'd started her I couldn't stop. She's almost complete, just hasn't been backstitched or have her feet or an eye:

Lady In Red by Heritage Crafts

Stitched on 16ct Dried Petal over-dyed aida

Stitching time to date - 5 hours

So next time I pick her up I've more or less just got the foliage to stitch.

Next week, another Winnie The Pooh.

Take care,
Rachel x

The Loneliness Of Autumn - 50 hours

Hi all!

Stitching life in June has been really good, so I'm back with another update on The Loneliness Of Autumn, my SAL with Leonore.

I carried on with the second colour, dark blue 939, working as far down as the little red dots I added for reference. There isn't an obvious difference between the black and dark blue colours but there is certainly a visible difference in the density of the stitching.

I still need to add another 10 hours to catch up and be back on track with this piece by the end of June. Apart from working on new projects at weekends, I'm going to stick with this and hope that will be the case. Fingers crossed!

Take care,
Rachel x

A Monarch A Month - Edward V

Hello all!

I've added another Monarch Of The Month to the collection and thought it was about time he appeared on my blog. This is number seventeen, Edward V, looking young and very scared (or at least I think that's what his pose is supposed to be).

Edward V from Kings and Queens by Bothy Threads

Started - 1st June 2020

Finished - 2nd June 2020

Total stitching time - 3 hours 15 minutes

This period of history was dominated by Edwards and Richards and can be confusing.
Edward IV - the late king
Edward V - son of Edward IV
Richard, aka Gloucester, later Richard III - Edward IV's brother and Edward V's uncle
Richard - Edward V's bother

I've tried to make them as clear as possible in my little summary.

EDWARD V
Preceded by Edward IV (father)

Succeeded by Richard III (uncle)
Lived - 1470-1483
Reigned - 1483

Edward V became king after his father's death. At 12 years old he was already a well-educated and well-liked young man.

However, per Edward IV's will, Gloucester was to act as Protector until Edward came of age.

En route to London for his coronation, Edward was met by Gloucester who immediately dismissed and/or executed Edward's entourage.

Edward was then 'escorted' to The Tower Of London where he was housed 'for his own safety'. He was joined a few weeks later by his only brother, Richard.

Gloucester then declared Edward IV's marriage to Elizabeth Woodville invalid and their children illegitimate, thereby proclaiming himself King Richard III.

In the Tower, Edward and Richard were seen less and less, and by the end of 1483 it was assumed they were both dead.

Because no-one knows what happened to The Princes In The Tower, their fate has been the subject of numerous theories.

Shakespeare wrote that Richard III was the likely murderer, smothering the boys with a pillow.

Author Phillipa Gregory suggests in her books The White Queen and The White Princess that Margaret Beaufort, mother of the future Henry VII, was the instigator as she cleared the path for her own son's succession.

In 1674 the bones of two young children were found in Tower of London. Assumed to be those of Edward and Richard they were re-interred in Westminster Abbey.

In 1789 the coffins of two children were discovered in a vault adjoining Edward IV and Elizabeth Woodville. Not those of their two children who predeceased them, their identities remain unknown.

Edward V may never have been crowned king but his disappearance makes him one of the most mysterious monarchs of the last 1000 years.

Next month then, the infamous Richard III.

Take care,
Rachel x

Spring Into Summer New Start Binge - #11 Winnie The Pooh 3/5

Hi all!

Another weekend, another start of the 17 week long Spring Into Summer New Start Binge being undertaken by Tiff, Annie and myself.

This week I chose the third of five Winnie The Pooh designs. This is in fact number four in the series but, as the only one that's landscape, I'm having to swap around numbers three and four to make them fit my FFO idea. It's a bit of a shame, but the story these five pieces are telling still just about works.

Here's my start. I'm happy that I actually managed to stitch all four colours, working my way down after starting with his bottom!

Winnie The Pooh And the Hunny Pot 3/5 by Designer Stitches

Stitched on 16ct Cloud Blue Sky over-dyed aida by sewitall.com

Stitching time to date - 4 hours 10 minutes

Next week, another of Valerie Pfeiffer's Solos birds, I think.

Take care,
Rachel x

The Loneliness Of Autumn - 40 hours

Hi all!

The Loneliness Of Autumn is a SAL with Leonore which we are stitching one colour at a time extreme cross country at the equivalent rate of one thread length per day. For me, this 'just so happens' to work out at a nice and neat 10 hours per month.

I fell behind in April, only managing 5 hours, and didn't stitch on it at all in May, meaning I've got a bit of catching up to do. I'm hoping to reach the 40, 50 and, if I'm lucky, perhaps even the 60 hour mark by the end of June.

Happily, I've achieved the 40 mark, but before I show the pictures, there's another milestone to show - the completion of the first colour, black 310. Assuming I haven't missed any, this is 5,718 stitches, and 8.56% of the total, completed in 38 hours 30 minutes; quite a bit less than the 46 hours I'd estimated it would take.

The second most common colour is dark blue 939 making up 6.23% of the project with 4,148 stitches. I made a small start to bring me up to 40 hours.

Here are the 30 and 40 hour comparisons. You can just about see how the top right is a little denser with the addition of some blue:

So now lots more dark blue to stitch as I stay with this project on weekdays and work towards the 50 hour mark. But first it's the weekend. and that means another new start!

Take care,
Rachel x

Link-up For Fully Finished Gallery SAL - June 2020

Hello all!

It's the 10th of the month so time for another Fully Finished Gallery SAL, the place to show your FFOing achievements since your last link-up.

The link-up for this SAL opens on the 10th of each month and stays open for 10 days so, even if you have nothing FFOd today, or tomorrow, or the day after that, you still have plenty of time to join in.

This month I've been working on little ornies and pillows.

First up, is Polar Bear Cub. This was my February Smalls SAL piece and finished off as one of my usual ornies. I tried some little pom-poms around the outside but they were too distracting, so used barley twist cord, in white as opposed to blue since none of the blues coordinated.

Next up, the very pink Snuffles, my April Smalls SAL piece. This was always going to be a little ornie but instead of using barley twist cord around the outside I decided to use beads. Not only do they pick up the dots on the backing fabric but if you squint they look a bit like dragon scales! The beads came from Tigerz, with about 300 in the bag in a variety of colours. On their own they look really cheap and plastic-y but I'm really pleased how much better they look with the fabric. I don't think this will be the last time I use them, especially if I'm successful in stitching that shelf of rainbow Snuffles' I'm after!

Then we have Duckling which was my Smalls SAL piece last month. He's from the same set of Heritage Craft's' Little Friends series as the Polar Bear Cub above so was finished off to match. These were both stitched from my mum's stash so have been returned to her as completed pieces. I feel a bit like an Elf, performing magic when she wasn't looking!

Finally is A Little Wizard Of The Night, one of last year's Summer Of New Starts and finished earlier this year. He's been FFOd to match another Soda Stitch design I finished last year. I hand stitch all of my ornies which means this was very time-consuming, but so satisfying to watch come together over a number of days. The fabric was a chance find; I was looking for something black and Halloween-y, maybe with bats on, when I saw this one. I thought the swirls resembled the path the wizard might have taken as he flew around the night sky! The ribbon is plain black organza, gathered tightly to form the frill.

And that's it for me this month. Now it's over to you to show what you have finished.

Please link-up using the URL of your FFG SAL post and not the home page of your blog, adding a thumbnail of a finish and either your name or your blog name as the caption. The link-up will remain open for 10 days, closing at 6am UK time on 20th June.

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And please don't forget to follow other links and see what fellow fully-finishers have been up to; you never know, other projects may give you an idea for your next finish!

Once the link-up has closed I shall update the FFG SAL page with the number of entrants and entries. Last month there were 10 participants with another 27 FFOs, making 178 FFOs so far in 2020. Keep it up!

Next month's post will go live on 10th July at 6am UK time. Hope to see you there!

Take care,
Rachel x

Spring Into Summer New Start Binge - #10 Happiness Delivery Couple

Hello all!

The first weekend in June marks the beginning of the downhill stretch of this Spring Into Summer New Start Binge during which 17 new projects will be started during the 17 weekends of April to July.

Here are Tiff's and Annie's posts.

Last weekend I worked on a Halloween project, this weekend I kept the holiday theme and skipped on to Christmas. This is one of many Soda Stitch charts I have and is called Happiness Delivery Couple. I think the title has been lost in translation (they're Korean) but I will keep to it as I think it's quite cute.

I don't actually like the big smiles on these designs so will be changing the boy's smile  I'm hoping I can do a good job of it when I get there.

Here's my start. I'm really pleased with how much I achieved over the weekend.

Happiness Delivery Couple by Soda Stitch

Stitched on 16ct Pine over-dyed aida

Stitching time to date - 4 hours

I think next week's new start will have to be another of the Pooh designs, so lots and lots of gold to look forward to.

Take care,
Rachel x