Throwback Thursday: Photo Slump

I've been in a slump where taking photos with my "big girl camera" is concerned. So to buoy myself up, Dale suggested that I take a look at some of my old photos that received recognition from professional photographers. Sounds like a #throwbackthursday activity to me.

2013 - Peppercorn

2014 - Piano Soundboard

2015 - I Shall Wear Purple (self-portrait)

2016 - Dragonfly

2017 - Tall Grass

2018 - Rose

2019 - Orange

2020 - Sunset Clouds

19 in 2019 - January Update

We're already through the first month of 2019! That went quickly. Here's my first report on how I'm progressing on my 19 in 2019 goals and my year of whittle a little. I've started off with a bang!

Goal #7: Learn to use my pompom makers

Done! They're pretty snazzy little tools.

Then I created a heart-shaped Valentine wreath completely made of pompoms.

Goal #11: Watch the DVD about Lake Missoula

The DVD is called Mystery of the Megaflood. I thoroughly enjoyed learning about how much of the geography in my neck of the woods was formed. After I watched the DVD, I did some more research. If you ever have a chance to visit the Scablands in eastern Washington state, I highly recommend it. Fascinating.

Goal #13: Reach a specified weight by the time of my February doctor appointment

I'm well on my way! My appointment is next week. I made excellent progress on reaching this goal in January. Weight is one of several markers I'm monitoring. All are on track.


Goal #15: Purge and organize storage shelves

This will take quite some time. But I did sift through the Christmas decorations as I put them away, and was able to give quite a number of them away.  This is one spot where Whittle a Little comes in.

I also took several boxes of donations to a thrift store.


Goal #16: Use up my tea stash

I'm getting in the habit of having a cup of hot tea each morning with my breakfast. I've already used up my first box from the stash, Cranberry Apple Zinger from Celestial Seasonings.

Goal #17: Blog at least 25 weeks of #throwbackthursday posts of my 1997 - 2007 projects

I put up posts on all five Thursdays in January. It's rare to have a bonus Thursday!

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Goal #18: Blog at least 10 of my Ladies of the Evening collection (mend as needed)

I've blogged about three so far. One needs to be mended, but I didn't do that yet.

Goal #19: Finish one of my eight courses

I started The Creative License by Danny Gregory. I'm learning to draw!

Alternate Goal: Watch 50 movies from my Netflix/Amazon queues.

I watched two in January:

     1. A Wrinkle in Time

     2. Loving

I'm so pleased!

In January, I completed two goals and made progress on nine. Go me!

Throwback Thursday - 2000 (Part 3 of 4)

I continue looking back on the year 2000 starting with projects I completed in October. 

Pumpkin

This sweet 3-1/2 inch pumpkin design by Carolyn Meachum of Serendipity Designs came as a kit. I framed it in a gold frame and display it on my mantle each Fall.

Joy ChikadeeB

This tiny ornament is from a kit by the New Berlin Company. I gave this away as a gift.

Rustic Rose Towel

My sister received a chain letter from an elderly woman that she helped to care for. Though my sister usually disregards these kinds of letters, the elderly woman had received the chain from a favorite niece. So I was asked to fulfill the request because the woman was so excited about it.

In consultation with my sister, we picked out a design and color scheme. I found the pattern in one of my embroidery books, stitched it quickly, and sent the towel to my sister. She said that her client loved the towel and it made her day. It feels good to go out of my way every now and again to help out someone whose life isn't as easy as my own.

Shepherd Christmas Ornament

Here's another tiny ornament from a New Berlin Company kit. There are times when I need these quick stitches for a feeling of accomplishment

Noel Ornament

I fell in love with the simplicity of this pattern when I found it in an old version of Christmas Cross-Stitch by Better Homes and Gardens. This was an ideal introduction to Assisi work (also known as Voided Work). In this this type of stitching, the background is stitched and the ground cloth left exposed shows the design. Assisi work has the best result when the contrast between ground cloth and threads is high, like this white on red.

This ornament was stitched on red perforated paper with #8 perle coton. I then backed it with red felt. The banner's "pole" is a toothpick, stitched right into the top row of Xs. The finials are red beads, glued to the ends of the toothpick. I make the hanging cord from three plies of the perle coton. The finished size of this ornament is 1-5/8 inches by 4-1/8 inches.

The final #throwbackthursday from the Year 2000 ought to be posted next week.

Throwback Thursday - 1998 (Part 3 of 4)

My walk through 1998 continues from mid-year.


Just Like You

This is the companion piece to My Heart Belongs to Daddy which I completed in 1997. I still have these two pieces hanging in the hall by our office door.

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Santa Bear

I used this Christmas ornament as a teaching piece. My oldest daughter, Jeanne, wanted to learn how to stitch. So she and I each began this ornament. We stitched our ornaments side-by-side, and she did finish hers. But she didn't catch the cross-stitch bug the way I did. She did, however, design a few cross-stitch pieces, some of which I stitched and will point out later.

Best Friends

On the insistence of my 5-year-old Jodie, I bought and stitched this kit. As a little girl, she thought of herself as piglet and her daddy as Pooh. Dale and Jodie surely did interact the way piglet and pooh do in this piece. I recently passed this piece on to my granddaughter, Melody.

September Birthday Faerie

In 1998, fairies were all the rage in the stitching world. When I found the Birthday Faeries book by Barbara Baatz at a local store, I understood what the fuss was all about. They really are quite pretty. The wings have blending filament in them to make them shimmer. The overskirt has beads to add dimension. I stitched this faerie for my daughter Julie's 12th birthday, and managed to keep it a surprise.

Earth's Book Mark

I stitched this bookmark for an online friend of mine who was an in-person to my brother Paul. She was a great support to him as he went through cancer treatments, and a great support to me by keeping me informed about how he was doing.

This bookmark is designed by Betsy C. Stinner of Earth Threads

Drive the Cats Crazy

This freebie chart by Ruth Sparrow of Twisted Threads is an adaptation of the cartoons by Emerson Quillin. I used some Alpaca wool to stitch the mouse to make its fur nice and fuzzy. I used some rayon thread for the bra to make it shiny and silky -- just like any female mouse would want! Then I used some cotton floss and a #9 crochet hook to make the mouse some nice warm slipper and appliqued them onto the end of her hairy little legs! I sure wish I had better macro photos of this one. It's the details that make this piece pop.

Throwback Thursday - 1998 (Part 2 of 4)

Hoppy Easter

Part two of looking back on my 1998 stitching begins with Easter. I found a quick, cute chart by The Sweetheart Tree. I wanted to give stitching on black a try. It's cute, but the pastel colors of floss would have been sweeter on a lighter fabric.

Silver Splendor

My next jump in learning about different kinds of counted thread embroidery came with an Embroidery Guild of America  (EGA) correspondence course on blackwork. The goal in blackwork is to make the stitching on front of your work and the back of your work look identical. This is achieved by utilizing a double running stitch in a specific pattern. The added beads are stitched only to the front. The numbers on the white piece in these photos are where the class instructor evaluated the piece and gave suggestions on how to improve my work.

I enjoyed this class so much that I stitched the pattern twice - one on white and the other on black. I used rayon threads and stranded gold metallic threads on the black piece so it sparkles in the light and is striking against the black ground cloth.

Pattern Darning Bookmarks

The next counted thread technique I learned is called pattern darning. This is another technique that can give you a reversible completed piece. Unlike blackwork, both sides may not be exactly the same. But the pattern formed on both sides is pleasing, and thus reversible.

Pattern Darning stitches are executed like a running stitch by using an "over and under" stitching method. As you work back and forth across the fabric, the tread running under the fabric will create a shadow which is an important part of the design. When you flip your piece over, you have a different design, also enhanced by the shadow of the stitches on the other side of the fabric.

Creative Kids Bookmark

This was a teacher gift for my daughter's preschool teacher.

Teacher Pencil Holder

This was the other gift I made for Jodie's preschool teacher. I stitched the apple with red rayon thread so that it would be shiny. I covered a soup can with the stitchery and glued ribbon around the top and bottom edges. Then I filled it with some nice sharp pencils.

The Artist's Way

I'm still in the midst of this course and loving every minute of it.

I was happy to see this quotation by the author of The Artist's Way on Instagram this morning. It's exactly how I feel.

I'm always amazed at the artists who work in the midst of chaos. Have you ever seen the tables and floor of Project Runway at the end of a workday? Total pigsty! One of my most prolific artist/quilter friends works this way, too, with piles of fabrics and trims surrounding her. It's her source of inspiration.

I'm the opposite. Such piles make me itchy. I need to have clear spaces in which to create. I'm freer to make new and fun and beautiful objects if my home is tidy and my workspace is clean.

There is often discussion about this topic in artist groups I frequent, and I tend to be in the minority. People say that if they waited until their workshop and home are clean, they'd never get around to creating art. My thought is that, as an adult, I get to choose how I live. I'd rather live daily with order in my life. It helps keep my mental health healthy!

It's nice to know this mentor feels and works the same way I do. I'm not a Lone Ranger in my Studio ... because there is room for more than one person there!

Throwback Thursday - 1998 (Part 1 of 4)

By 1998, cross-stitch had become a real passion. I still preferred to stitch small pieces. They worked best while raising a busy family. My attention span could keep up with small projects. Overall, I completed 22 cross-stitch projects that year -- nearly two per month!

January 1998 started out by doing the finishing work on the 1997 family Christmas ornaments. Like I said, busy family life.

1. Jeanne's snowman is called The Weather Outside by Sue Hillis Designs
2. My elf is called Elfie by Twisted Threads
3. Jodie's Angel is a Holiday Arches design by Alice Okon
4. Dale's Penguin is also a Holiday Arches design by Alice Okon
5. Julie's dog is called Puppy Card (designer not named)

I finished these ornaments as small stuffed pillows, four with satin ribbon hangers. I'd learned to make cording by this time, so used that technique to make the hanging cord on the elf. I used the same colors of floss for the cording that I used in the ornament.

Since I was in the mood, I stitched an ornament for 1998. This was designed by a fellow AOL stitching friend and given to me as a prize for a contest. With this design, I learned several specialty stitches. 

1. The "A," "B" and "C" are four-sided stitches. 
2. The tree is done in cross-stitch, but the ornaments and star are stitched one thread above the green Xs. 
3. The red bands are Herringbone stitches. 
4. The fancy work on either side of the "1998" are three variations on a herringbone, and called a herringbone cluster. A BIG challenge! 
5. The red square dots at the bottom are rice stitches. 
6. 1998 is backstitch

The next chart I stitched was a freebie from Twisted Threads called Aerobic Sitting. It's part of Emerson's Listen Honey... series which Ruth Sparrow converted into stitchery charts.

I recently came across this piece and displayed it again.

My next finish was a pretty bookmark for a Secret Sister in a stitching group. It's called Violets So Fair. I found the chart in a Leisure Art's book called Sweeter Than the Rose, part of the Christmas Remembered series. I love how delicate it is and how I finished it with long fringe.

The 1990s was a decade when lots of my stitching friends were having babies. I made this bib for one of my stitching group buddies for her baby boy. The chart is from designer Sharon Perna from a book called Cross-Stitch A Beautiful Gift.

With babies on my mind, I stitched another bib for another of my friends from the stitching group. The pattern for these little ducks in a row were also by Sharon Perna from Cross-Stitch a Beautiful Gift.  Both bibs were stitched on pre-made terrycloth bibs from Charles Craft that have a panel of aida fabric sewn into the front of the bib.

I plan to walk down the 1998 memory lane some more next week.

Throwback Thursday - 1997 (Part 3)

 My mosey back to 1997 cross-stitch projects continues with a nametag I made in October. I'd recently joined the Embroiderer's Guild of America (EGA). At each meeting, members wear namtags (sometimes quite elaborate) to both make it easy for others to recognize us, and to show off some needlework skills.

For my moniker, CameoRoze, I used an alphabet called Flower Garden from a book called The Ultimate Flower Alphabet Book by the American School of Needlework. And for "Margaret" I used the Leisure Arts Leaflet 407 called 20 Backstitch Alphabets: Mini Series #2. I thought the @ sign in Cameo was clever since I was well-known online in the needlework community.

This is where I learned the Nun's Stitch which is used for the pink border.

In November I finished one of my all-time favorite cross-stitch pieces. It's called Angelic Tidings and was a kit from the company Needle Treasures. Instead of using the fabric in the kit, I chose a Crystal Pink Annabelle evenweave ground cloth. So, so pretty.

Even though this is a large-ish piece by my standards, it worked up very quickly and was just a joy to stitch. To me, the most special part is the way the angel is holding the baby and looking at him with loving care, and the baby is looking toward earth, where he has a big job ahead of him. His cubby hand is grabbing onto the gold braid on her bodice. Just look at that smile! 

I was thrilled to have finished this stitching in time for Christmas. My mom and I had a girl's day out in early December, getting our hair cut, eating lunch and talking. She helped me pick out the mat and frame that afternoon. It was the last girl's day out we had together.

Mom died later that month, between Christmas and New Year's Day.

My Heart Belongs to Daddy is a Kidlinks design. This stitched piece was a joint gift to my husband from my youngest daughter, Jodie, and me. Jodie really did help stitch, even though she was only 4 years old at the time.

Jodie would sit in my lap, the floor stand in front of us. I would poke the needle down and pull the thread through. Then I'd poke the needle up, Jodie would grab it and pull the thread through. It took a little while for her to get the hang of holding on to both the needle and the thread. I rethreaded that needle more times than I can count on this piece!

Jodie is the one that found the chart and wanted to do it. The way this little blonde girl looks adoringly up at her daddy is exactly how Jodie gazed at her father.

The new technique I learned in this piece was how to use a blended needle, meaning two different colors of floss threaded into the same needle. It's what gives Daddy's pants the look of tweed.

The new technique I learned in this piece was how to use a blended needle. The chart calls for three strands of floss. On one leg of the pants, there are two dark brown strands and one light brown strand. The other leg is just the opposite, two light brown strands and one dark brown strand of floss.

This piece still hangs in our home, just outside our home office.

The last thing I sitch in 1991 was this Celestial Ornament for my sister Janet. She celebrates the Winter Solstice at this time of year. We have a "sister thing" about making it to the solstice while staving off the winter blues. So we both celebrate the beginning of days growing longer.

I used some DMC rayon for the dark blue, and some stranded gold metallic for the sun. Both those fibers are fussy to work with, but the result is so very nice in that the ornament glows in soft light.

The ornament designed by Carole Rodgers is from Cross Stitch and Needlework's 1996 Cross-Stitch Ornaments special edition.

That final Christmas with my mom was extraordinary. Early in the month, she spent the day with me and my sister Janet. She sat at the table and directed us as we worked (long hours!) in the kitchen. She gave us tips on how to make Christmas cookies from the old family recipes. It's one of my fondest memories.

Throwback Thursday - 1997 (Part 2)

In the middle of 1997, I completed two larger projects and several smaller ones. The largest was this version of The Beatitudes that I completed for my sister-in-law. It's one of her favorite bible passages which she said gave her some peace as she went through cancer treatment.

Bluebird Peaches was a chart I stitched for my oldest brother as a birthday gift. He, too, was going through cancer treatments. Because he lived so far away, I felt helpless to be of support to him. Stitching this was my way to do it ... every stitch a prayer. My brother was a bit of a local history buff and had a large collection of fruit labels form various California companies. I picked this pattern because I knew he'd appreciate the reproduction.

Every year I stitch Christmas ornaments for my family. I missed the mark in 1996, and didn't finishing stitching those ornaments until the following September! These little pillows were sewn together by hand with red satin ribbon loops as hangers.

I made this bookmark to accompany a book I sent to an online friend. I like my choice of fabric on this, but that yellow lace ... hmmm.

Throwback Thursday - 1997 (Part 1)

We're moving forward to 1997 where I finished at least 15 counted cross-stitch projects. These first five finishes were fairly small because I was working on a large project at the same time. These small finishes kept me from feeling crazy while I worked on the bigger piece.


 Easter Breadcloth

This was a sweet, fast project. Basically, it's the corner of a cloth napkin that we use to keep rolls warm for Easter dinners. Twenty years later, we still use it.

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Easter Egg Welcome

We hang this six-inch embroidery hoop near the front door each year to welcome friend to our home.

Mickey Mouse

I stitched this for my daughter Jodie because she wanted me to make something special for her. When Jodie didn't need it any more, she gave it back to me. Last week, I passed it on to my granddaughter, Melody.

Butterfly Pins

I was part of a women's church group where one of the gifts each new participant received was a butterfly. I decided to design and stitch these pins for my ladies. They are stitched on a base of perforated paper. Each butterfly has a unique pattern on its wings, but all the butterflies use the same color pallet. That was to symbolize that each of us in the group is an individual, but we all have similar threads of shared life experience.

Angel

This was my second attempt at stitching on a t-shirt fabric with waste canvas. In this case, I was covering up a hole in my daughter's jumpsuit. The hole was near the neckline, so I told my daughter that this way she could always have an angel on her shoulder.