Stitching update

Sorry about the red bar behind each picture. If I delete it, then the pictures from past posts start showing up in random places in the center and the otherwise "dead" right-had column. I have been stitching. I have been trying to post also, but apparently my blog is too out of date to cooperate nicely with blogger. Not quite sure how to go up about fixing it. Today is a nasty rainy day. The girls and Jerry and I are sick. I have eaten nothing but tomato soup for a week. I thought I deserved a new start today. :) I have been wanting to stitch this Mary Beale Christmas design for a long time. Yesterday I actually picked up 'Lo a Rose,' and put a couple of words and motifs in. I love the design, but hate the fabric I chose. I think I am on a 15-year plan with it. I have always wanted to have an Old Testament tree for Advent. We do readings with the girls based on the idea of the 'Jesse Tree,' but it focuses on Jesus' bloodline, and so leaves out many Old Testament stories. I stitched 'Elijah' and 'Joshua' from Mary Beale's Christmas ornament. I am adding names. I also stitched 'Jonah and the Whale' from another Mary Beale ornament series. I like those slightly bigger ones better, but there are not as many of them. I actually spent some time this afternoon cutting out pieces of foam board for the ornament-making. Well, that's one step closer to a sampler tree! I also separated this post into paragraphs, but it did not work...

Ornaments and Blogging Blahs

I love being part of the blogosphere, but some things have changed lately that encourage me to avoid blogging. 1. I can't figure out how to blog straight from Picassa anymore. (Louisiana Man fixed that) 2. Whenever I upload pictures, suddenly they are all on top of each other, and I have to go in a separate each one. (got fixed somehow) 3. The right-hand sidebar is way, way down at the bottom of the blog. I looked it up on help, and it instructed me to look at link by link to see what the problem could be. Gee, thanks. (Now that is suddenly fixed too!! What is going on? This morning I had to scroll all the way down...Oh, for crying out loud!) (Now it is gone again! AAARRRGGGHHHH!)

Anyway, I have been stitching like..like...like a what? A house a-fire? A banshee? Do banshees stitch?
Next week homeschool starts back hard and heavy, so this week I am indulging in all my fantasy stitching!
The first picture is an WIP ornament from the November/December 1991 Just Cross Stitch. JCS has been publishing ornament for a long time - I have '85, '87 and '88! I love looking back through the older issues (older? I graduated high school in '91!!!) and seeing how the designers have honed their styles over the years; I also lament designers no longer designing. This issue seems to have left off the designers' names. It is fun to try and guess the designers, but they are only guesses. I wonder if the above is a Sheepish Designs, or Nostalgic Needle, or ... Any guesses?

The design below is definitely Sheepish Designs from the 1999 JCS ornament issue. It was designed for a dark blue (gunmetal?) linen, but I used what I had on hand (wood violet) and adjusted the colors a bit.

Who can resist Prairie Schooler? Such classic designs that never looked dated! This is 'Cranberry Christmas' from the 2007 JCS ornament issue. I think I might try to back this one with felt.
This is a Brittercup design from the JCS ornament issue 2006. I stitched this for our puppy dog Hektor, and plan on backstitching his name on the stocking.
This design is so obviously Homespun Elegance! I found this leaflet on e$ay a year or so ago. It is 'Colonial Celebration I' from 1990. There are 10 designs, and I would like to stitch several of them. This design is called 'Williamsburg Couple.' Louisiana Man and I went to Savannah on our honeymoon and again this year for our 15th anniversary. I thought this would be a good commemorative ornament for those trips. I need a wider ribbon for the edging - the turquoise floss I used for stitching it together shows! (I didn't want to waste a color I use frequently just for binding!)
I have always loved this series by Shepherd's Bush! This is the ornament for the JCS ornament issue 2006. I am just using overdyed threads I have on hand. I keep thinking it looks very Americana!

I am going to hop on the treadmill and read a bit more of 'Ross Poldark.' I started watching the mini-series on Ne$flix. It is very dated (an odd complaint about a period piece!), but still enjoyable. I like the book even better, and there are seven more in the series! It has to be a fantastic read to keep me on the treadmill - if only I could stitch and walk!! :)

Anybody still there? Yes, it has been awhile! I have been stitching and reading and homeschooling (a little bit), and taking girls to the pool and dance camp. I have managed to finish three pieces in the past month. 'Liberty Belles' by Little House Needleworks