Thursday, January 13, 2011

Two off of the POSSIBIL(I)TIES lists and a quick and easy recipe

I managed to knock out two finish-finishes this week! 

First, I framed "Golden Poppies" from the March/April 1986 issue of Cross Stitch & County Crafts.  Yes, I started it way back then.  It sat in a box for over 20 years about half-stitched until I retrieved it last year.  It had been put away without the threads or the chart.  I found the chart when I was flipping through my old magazines looking for something else.  I pulled the threads from my aging stash and finished the stitching.  I have no idea why I packed it away because there weren't any counting errors, I've always loved the subject, and I had all the threads.  It's a mystery.

Golden Poppies
Cross Stitch & Country Crafts magazine, M/A 1986
Sttiched on 14 ct fiddlers weave aida
Recommended DMC threads
Backstitching and initial omitted (personal preference)
Ribba frame from Ikea

My second finished-finish was the "Christmas Joy" ornament by Angel Stitchin' from the 2003 Just Cross Stitch ornament issue.  This was stitched in 2009 and I had already laced the front of the ornament and glued up the back before it went into the pile.  I guess the glue needed over a year to dry???  I gathered the parts and whipped it together in no time.  It took longer for the glue to dry (really, this time) than for anything else.  Too bad it's going to have to be packed away until the holidays. :o)

Christmas Joy
Angel Stitchin'
Published in 2003 Just Cross Stitch ornament issue
Stitched on 32 ct. Cafe Mocha linen
Unknown overdyed threads from stash

Backing fabric from stash
Edged with feather-edged burgundy ribbon by Offray
Bow and hanger in same color 6 mm single-sided satin ribbon

I'm making slow but steady progress on my current WIP, a Dimensions Wire Whimsy kit called Christmas Birdhouse.  This has been a UFO for I don't know how long.  The copyright is 1994, so somewhere around then must be when I started it.  I know full well why this was a UFO.  It's on 14 ct plastic canvas, which I hate, and it's stitched using 3 strands, which I also hate.  So it was double-whammied, as either one of those would have been enough for me to lose interest.  I'll be sooooooooooo glad when this one is done and dusted.  I've only got a little more cross-stitching to go, then it will be back-stitch, a few French knots, and assembly.

I don't know about anyone else, but I tend to get in a rut and cook the same dishes over and over (and over and over) again for my family.  Sometimes, though, I crave something different.  Yesterday was one of those days.  As a break from some form of chicken or another, I had pulled a pound of smoked sausage out of the freezer yesterday morning for last night's dinner.  I had no idea how I was going to serve it.  On my way home from work I started thinking about it and got an overwhelming craving for zucchini with tomatoes and peppers.  I thought the combination would go well with the sausage, and boy was it ever good!  (Sorry, I didn't think to take a picture.)  Here's what I came up with:

Sausage and Stewed Vegetables

1 14.5 oz. can Hunt's stewed tomatoes
1/2 large onion, chopped
1/2 medium bell pepper, cut in 1/2" - 3/4" pieces
1/2 pound frozen zucchini slices
1 pound beef smoked sausage, angle-cut into 1/4" slices

Simmer tomatoes, onion, pepper, and zucchini in a covered skillet until the onions and peppers are tender.  Add just a little water, only if the liquid has cooked off.*  Add sausage, cover, and heat thoroughly.   Serve with your favorite side dish.  Serves 3-4 

*The sausage added a lot of moisture, so a little water will go a long way.

This will probably be my last update for a while.  We have a trip coming up the last week of the month and there's a lot of prep and packing  to be done beforehand.

Best to all,
Diane

Friday, January 7, 2011

A finish and my list of POSSIBIL(I)TIES

Last night I put the final stitches into Little House Needleworks' Snow White just before midnight and added it to the pile.  Please ignore the errors.  My inability to read/follow a chart is well documented.  :)  I love how it turned out, though, even with the boo-boos and on aida.  I gave away the vast majority of the aida I had in my stash* when I started stitching on linen, but there were a few pieces I just couldn't part with.  I love the color of this one.  I do plan to press it before I frame it...

Snow White
Little House Needleworks
DMC Blanc on Charles Craft Classic Reserve 14 ct. Aspen aida

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

On to my POSSIBIL(I)TIES.  The list below will be kept updated on the POSSIBIL(I)TIES page of this blog, and I've started a blog where I and anyone else who also has POSSIBIL(I)TIES can cheer each other on to turn all those POSSIBIL(I)TIES into finished-finishes!  Spread the word!

I'm not totally convinced I've found everything (picture me trying not to think about what might be hiding the boxes in the garage), but the current count is at 90.  Wish me luck! 

Ornaments:
  1. Home is Best - Primitive Bettys 
  2. Be My Valentine Quaker Style - Aury 
  3. House on a Hill - Chartmakers 
  4. Be My Love - Passione Ricamo
  5. Pinkeep d'octobre - Maryse
  6. Snowy Pines - Little House Needleworks
  7. Joy - Little House Needleworks
  8. Cool Christmas - Fresh Threads (1 of 9)
  9. Cool Christmas - Fresh Threads (2 of 9)
  10. Cool Christmas - Fresh Threads (3 of 9)
  11. Cool Christmas - Fresh Threads (4 of 9)
  12. Cool Christmas - Fresh Threads (5 of 9)
  13. Cool Christmas - Fresh Threads (6 of 9)
  14. Cool Christmas - Fresh Threads (7 of 9)
  15. Cool Christmas - Fresh Threads (8 of 9)
  16. Cool Christmas - Fresh Threads (9 of 9)
  17. Gifts - Melissa Dunajski w/beads
  18. Gifts - Melissa Dunajski w/beads (Blue)
  19. Retro Christmas Tree - Sharon Pope
  20. Winter's Eve - Prairie Schooler
  21. My Favorite Time - Lizzie*Kate
  22. Winter Houses - Industrioushead
  23. O Holy Night - The Needle's Notion 
  24. Ho! Ho! Ho! - 2006 Cross Stitch calendar
  25. Madonna and Child - Stitch 'N Hang chart
  26. Silent Night - Heidi
  27. Sleigh Rides - Heidi
  28. Christmas Ornament 2004 - Blackbird Designs
  29. Christmas Ornament 2004 (modified) - Blackbird Designs
  30. 2003 JCS Joy Ornament - Angel Stitchin'
  31. Herald Angels - Prairie Schooler
  32. In a Stable - Shepherd's Bush
  33. Rejoice (natural) - 4 My Boys
  34. Rejoice (white) - 4 My Boys
  35. All is Calm - SamSarah
  36. Christmas SAL - Tiziana
  37. Beginner Whitework - Teresa Wentzler
  38. Intermediate Whitework - Teresa Wentzler
  39. Joy - Lizzie*Kate
  40. Needleworker's Pocket - With My Needle
Stockings:
  1. Joi's stocking - Cross Stitch and Country Crafts
  2. Charlton's stocking - Cross Stitch and Country Crafts
To Be Framed:
  1. Home of a Needleworker (Too!) - Little House Needleworks
  2. Blackberry Jam - Sweetheart Tree
  3. The Counting House - Little House Needleworks
  4. The Golden Poppy - Cross Stitch and Country Crafts 
  5. Imperial Dragon
  6. Joy Sampler - Lizzie*Kate
  7. Signs of Winter - Bent Creek
  8. Be Calm - Shepherd's Bush
  9. Redbird Sampler - Bent Creek
  10. Snowflakes - Little House Needleworks
  11. Housework Makes You Ugly - Sisters and Best Friends
  12. Housework Never Killed Anyone - Lizzie*Kate
  13. Red Bird Fraktur - Knotted Tree NeedleArt
  14. Withering Tulips - Carriage House Samplings
  15. Happy Birthday - Blackbird Designs
  16. Acorn Hill - Little House Needleworks
  17. Father's Day Sampler (reframe)
  18. Super Dad Sampler
  19. Spring Blessings - Sandra Cozzolino
  20. Presbyterian Cross (needlepoint mom stitched for dad) (reframe) 
  21. Bless This House (Goodwill rescue) (reframe)
  22. Sailboats (Goodwill rescue) (reframe)
  23. Snow White - Little House Needleworks
Other or Undecided Finishing:
  1. Moons (quilt) -5 squares stitched for a planned baby quilt before and right after my daughter was born... in 1988
  2. Country Kitchen Shelf (pillow)
  3. Alphabet pincube
  4. Clean Your Room - Sister's and Best Friends (door hanger)
  5. Beeskep Alphabet (tin topper - outside done, inside gave me grief so I set it aside)
  6. Glove Whimsy - Wire Whimsy (hanging decoration)
  7. Fair and Square exchange squares from Georgie
  8. Fair and Square exchange squares from Lisa V.
  9. Fair and Square exchange squares from Sonda
  10. Fair and Square exchange squares from Kendra
  11. Fair and Square exchange squares from Jill
  12. Fair and Square exchange squares from Mairi
  13. Halloween Cat
  14. Seasonal Angels - Carla Acosta
  15. Floral "B"
  16. Home is Where You Hang Your Heart (pillow - just needs to be stuffed and sewn shut)
  17. Cat on a Rug stitched by mom
  18. Teddy Bear in Tub
  19. Angel on printed aida
  20. Carousel Zebra
  21. Flip Flops Rock - Sandra Cozzolino
  22. Happy Valentine's Day freebie - Sandra Cozzolino
  23. Art Deco face on red aida
I've got my work cut out for me, don't you think?

Happy 2011,

Diane

*I mailed a 13 pound box to a stitcher who stitches quilt squares for charities.  Thank the USPS gods for flat rate boxes!

Wednesday, January 5, 2011

2011 - The year of POSSIBIL(I)TIES

In 2010 I stitched 49 items and, to date, I have only "finish-finished" a grand total of 15 of them.  Two of those I completed on New Year's Day 2011.  I haven't even started counting all the un"finish-finished" stitched items I have that date back as far as the 1980s.  Let's call these "POSSIBIL(I)TIES":
Piles
Of
Stitched
Stuff
I’ve
Been
Ignoring
Longer
(IMHO)
Than
Is
Even
Sensible
This year I plan to tackle my POSSIBIL(I)TIES.  Over the next week or so I plan to take inventory of my POSSIBIL(I)TIES and list all the items I can find on my blog, in a post and probably on a new page.  As I "finish-finish" items, I'll either strike through them or change the color of the font.  By the end of the year, I would like to see all of the pre-2011-stitched ornaments displayed on my tree.  I would also like to see as many of the larger items either made into some item I can display in my home or put into suitable frames (within my budget and subject to my framing capabilities) and hanging on my walls.
Do you have your own POSSIBIL(I)TIES?  Would you care to join me in reducing them/it? :)
Happy 2011,
Diane

*** Edit - in starting my POSSIBIL(I)TIES list, I found that I had failed to list one of my finished-finishes for 2010.  So I have completed 16 of 49 (big whoop) and have 33 carry-overs from  2010 (in addition to the previous years' carry-overs, which I'll have to list from home).