First Ever PIF Gift~

Look what came through the mail during the weekend!!!! It's a PIF gift from Elisa!!!!! I was soooo excited to receive this cause this is my first ever PIF gift~

It's a pin pillow with floss rings on 2 ends, and this is a Calico Cat design called Hearts & flowers. It is stitched with Victoria Clayton silks!! Isn't it just lovely? The fabric itself actually has a pink hue to it, but it doesn't show through very well on the photos....

PIF gift from Elisa
Calico Cat design "Hearts & flowers"
Thread: Victoria Clayton silks
Received: 02-07-2009

And here is the whole package!!! The lavender soap smells sooooo good!!! It made the whole package smells good. It fact that is the first thing I noticed before I even opened the package~ Thank you so much Elisa!!!!!

I also got the Heart and Hand framed last Friday~ I went to Michaels and sat on the floor with several frames in front of me for hours and this is my final decision!! I think it fits the design quite well~

Pattern: Willow Hill Samplings "Heart and Hand"
Thread: Recommended cotton floss
Fabric: 28ct DMC linen
Size: 8.25" x 5.25"
Beginning Date: 10-09-2008
Completion Date: 01-30-2009

Thank you all for visiting~ I hope you all will have a wonderful week to come~

Happy Dance~~

I've just finished stitching Willow Hill Samplings "Heart and Hand"~~ So happy!!!! And how appropriate to show this to you all in the month of Valentine~ This is actually a wedding gift for a dear friend, and now I'll have to go find a perfect frame for it!! That means a trip to the craft store~ Happy~

Pattern: Willow Hill Samplings "Heart and Hand"
Thread: Recommended cotton floss
Fabric: 28ct DMC linen
Size: 8.25" x 5.25"
Beginning Date: 10-09-2008
Completion Date: 01-30-2009

I enjoyed stitching this very much!!! Loved the colors and design, especially the border!! I've also learned how to stitch a Lazy Daisy, which I think turned out really cute!!

This is my first time using hand dyed threads, and I have to say they do add a little something to the whole picture. I'll definitely try them out again in the future~

Now the question is, which new project should I start with? :-)

I'm Still Here.....

I know it has been a week since I last post. I'm still here, just been busy - not at stitching, though.... My mom came to visit us so I was cleaning the house before she came, and now she is here, we spent lots of time doing things I hardly have down time to stitch!!! Not that I'm complaining or anything, I love it when she is here cause that means there will be delicious homemade food to eat~~ Mom's cooking is always the best!!!

I did managed to finish one of the Lizzie Kate Christmas designs, and although I struggled with the fabric I used, I love how it turned out. It is so interesting that by just adding an extra blue color with the traditional red and green, the mood of the entire design can be changed. Lizzie Kate just has impeccable taste in her color selections!!!!

Pattern: Lizzie Kate "Tiny Tidings XII - Joy"
Thread: DMC cotton floss
Fabric: 32ct Belgium linen
Size: 3.5" x 3.5"
Completion Date: 10-18-2008

I also worked on the Heart and Hand design a little bit. I finished the little prince in this pattern and now they look so cute with each other~ The color variation on the border is also very interesting. I hope I will have some time to stitch it more this week.....

Making Progress...

I had a lot going on this weekend and didn't get as much stitching done as I've liked, but here is my progress on the Lizzie Kate Christmas and Heart and Hand projects I've been working on~

The Christmas one is going well now that I'm used to the fabric, and I just love how the Heart and Hand one turned out~ This girl reminds me of Cinderella or someone just out of the fairy tales!! She is just gorgeous~ I'm so excited now to see it come together!!

Thank you for your great advise on using linen and hand dyed floss, it helped me a lot!! Now I'm going back to more stitching!!

A Few New Starts

I've started some new projects today. One is Heart and Hand from Willow Hill Samplings and the others are some Christmas designs from Lizzie Kate.

I debated awhile on the choices of fabrics and finally decided to use a 32ct Belgium linen on the Lizzie Kate designs and a 28ct DMC linen on the Heart and Hand project. This is my first time stitching on linen fabrics (can you believe that?!) and so far the DMC one gave me no trouble but the Belgium linen was a bit of a challenge. I realized that the weaves of this fabric is kind of uneven so it is harder for me to find the right spot to stitch in. It takes a while to get use to, but I do like it with all the floss colors I chose.

As for the Hear and Hand design, I used the recommended flosses. This is also my first time using hand dyed floss and I'm not sure if I know how to handle it right. Can anyone tell me if I can wash the stitched piece after I finish? I'm worried that the colors will run since hand dyed flosses are usually not colorfast...  If I can't wash it, can I at least iron it to get the wrinkles out? I really don't want to ruin it after all the hard work.....

Nevertheless, hand dyed threads do have their charm, and I look forward to see how it will turn out when I am done~