Sunday, October 7, 2012

The Big Finish

The Christmas Parade crossed the finish line this week! If you arrived late to the Parade, I started this Susan Roberts/Ashley Dillon canvas in May when I attended Needlepoint University at Amy's Golden Strand in Memphis. The canvas, stitch guide, and thread kit for this project was a Christmas 2011 gift from my thoughtful son and daughter-in-law. What a wonderful gift it was, too! It was so exciting to walk into Amy's classroom that Friday morning and see this canvas on stretcher bars with a huge bag full of wonderful threads just waiting for me to put in the first stitches.



Each time I stitch a canvas using one of Amy's stitch guides, I think it can't be better than all of the others of hers that I have stitched. But, each time it is and I learn something new - trying new stitches, a new technique, or stitching with a new thread.



Turkey work was definitely a new stitching technique for me. It certainly adds so much dimension and texture to the piece.



It's been a fun parade throughout the summer and into the fall! Thanks for sticking with me through the entire process and leaving such nice, encouraging comments along the way! There is another Parade in my stitching future - the 4th of July parade (also by Susan Roberts/Ashley Dillon). Love it (!) and look forward to stitching it but I think I will take a little break from another parade for the moment.

So, what to stitch next if it isn't the 4th of July Parade? The Melissa Shirley Whimsy canvas? The Melissa Shirley Helowise canvas? How about the Give Thanks canvas from & more Designs? That's the one, I think, and it is certainly season-appropriate as Thanksgiving approaches.





I started this canvas Friday evening and completed the first two steps of the first green stripe this evening (Saturday).  This is just the type of project I wanted to work on after coming off a lengthy piece like the Christmas Parade. It requires some careful counting but there aren't a lot of thread changes. And, a stripe is such a nice, compact way to measure your progress on a canvas - especially when all the green stripes are the same pattern and the cream stripes (which are also all the same) are a variation on the pattern that has already been established. A perfect project!

I had some quality time to give to Miss Mehitabel this week as well. Her face and neck are now lovely shades of green. Her hat is a work in progress at the moment. It needs a brim and a pointy tip to it. I hope I can do justice to those big red lips and even bigger teeth!



I made another trip to Pier One this week. We haven't even made it to Halloween and I have already started thinking about how to decorate the mantle for Thanksgiving. I just remember thinking how empty the house looked after I took down the Halloween decorations last year (sort of like how you feel in January when the Christmas decorations are put away). I picked up some beautiful mercury glass pumpkins and a gourd from QVC that are lighted with a battery powered light (that's on a timer!) to use as a focus on the mantle. They just glow so beautifully at night when the lights come on. I couldn't wait another few weeks to try them out so I loaded the batteries right after they arrived just to see what they looked like. I love them - an excellent purchase!

Anyway, didn't mean to get sidetracked on the lighted gourd and pumpkins, but I was looking around Pier One for some garland or silk flowers to use with the pumpkins. I found what I needed and also found one more Halloween decoration - a glittery purple broom.



I'm showing you this because it's a hint for another project that will be finding it's way to my door in the next couple of weeks. Can you guess what it is?

Hope you have a great week ahead!




18 comments:

  1. Hi Melinda,
    The Christmas Parade is beautiful. I love everything. Your stitching is perfect as always. Looking forward to seeing how you have it finished.
    Your little witch is looking good. She is almost finished.
    Cannot wait to see your progress on "give thanks" next week.
    Linda

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  2. Does the new canvas have something to do with parking a broom? Maybe? The Christmas Parade is awesome and a great finish. As you know, one of the Swans is stitching it. She is a bit behind you and will be thrilled to see your picutures here. I do love the Give Thanks. I have seen the one in the store and it is gorgeous. Tray, pillow, wall hanging? Which one for you?

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  3. Congratulations! Christmas Parade looks great and I know you can't wait to have it on display this Christmas. I'm with Steph--I think you are going to be one with Ruth Schmuff and those fabulous shoes!

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  4. Hi, Friends - Thanks for your kind comments! I think I will really enjoy Give Thanks. I will probably finish it as a pillow. I know the tray is an excellent way to finish it but I don't think I would ever really use it that way or even have a way to display it. The ivory colored sofa in my living room will be the home for this piece during the Thanksgiving season.

    Jane and Stephanie - you are on the right track with the broom although it won't be with Ruth's class.

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  5. Melinda,
    I've so enjoyed "watching" you stitch Christmas Parade. You have done a beautiful job stitching this canvas! I'm starting this canvas in two weeks and can hardly wait for the class to begin. Hope I do as good a job as you have AND that I finish it as quickly. Happy stitching! Monica

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    1. Hi, Monica - I'm excited for you to start the Christmas Parade. You will thoroughly enjoy it! Just stitch a little bit each day and you will have it finished in no time at all!

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  6. Christmas parade is fabulous and is exquisitely stitched!

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  7. I just finished stitching the Give Thanks canvas and love love love it--it was so much fun to stitch, you will have a ball. The Christmas parade is just lovely

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    1. Hi, Debbie - Give Thanks will be lots of fun to stitch. Did you use Amy's stitch guide? Thanks for stopping by!

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  8. (and the crowd goes wild)

    Woo Hoo! Congratulations on such an amazing piece! I have loved every minute of this and am awed by your prowess! What a lovely lovely finish for the holidays!

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    1. Hi, Coni - Hope you are feeling better these days! I was sorry to read you were under the weather a few weeks ago. Thanks so much for your kind words about the Christmas Parade. It was such a fun project and I will enjoy it for many years to come! Thanks for stopping by!

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  9. Christmas parade is simply marvelous Melinda ! a beautiful finish indeed. Can't wait to see what you are hinting about - I thought ruth's witch boots but I guess you have something else up your sleeve. Love your witchy ornament - too cute. Enjoy your week
    Melody

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    1. Thanks, Melody! You're on the right track with the broom - Quail Run out in Arizona is offering the Broom Parking class with Carolyn Hedge Baird this month and I will be "ghosting" the class. Great term to use - especially in the month of Halloween!

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  10. Okay, I'm not happy. Haven't even worked on the nutcracker and you are finished with the Christmas parade. It's beautiful!

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    1. You really haven't worked on it? It's such a beautiful piece! Just put in a few stitches every day and you will have it done in no time at all. Also, it is a good bit larger than Christmas Parade so I imagine it would take you longer to finish it.

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  11. From one Melinda to another, terrific job! Looks absolutely wonderful. Love Give Thanks, too. I have been wanting to stitch one of those & More canvases. Have fun with the broom class. Carolyn is such a creative teacher!

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    1. Thanks, Melinda! I don't often meet another Melinda who spells her name the same way I do. You will love any & More canvas you choose. Amy has some great stitch guides for quite a few of them. This is my third one and I have another one waiting in my stash of canvases. Thanks for stopping by the blog!

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