TAST Week 1 and TAG TUESDAY

Fly Stitch

I have done this stitch previously - shown with cross stitch at the bottom of the Sampler piece.

This time I explored several variations, with mixed success and looking a bit chunky!

I think I'll use finer threads on the 16 count Aida for other stitches,or give them more space.



Tag Tuesday

I also made three quickie tags for the first week's challenge in Carolyn Saxby's TAG TUESDAY.
They are recycled Christmas cards with punched snowflakes and trees, and other bits and pieces added.
I'm hoping to make future tags with stitching and textiles, rather than the "lick and stick" papercraft versions that these are!

I wish the blog server didn't keep changing things - it does make it difficult to post for oldies like me, struggling with posting!!! Maybe I'll get better before the system changes again ....



TAST 2012 Sampler Header

Sharon b's new Take a Stitch Tuesday starts this week. I have done part of the 2007 and all the 2010 challenge as individual pieces so decided to make a sampler of the stitches this time and work with a button theme.
The stitch area will be 10cm. wide and I'll probably edge it to 15cm.
I'm starting with a 16count Aida band but will use a variety of materials and threads as weeks go by.
Today I made this simple header - just Cross Stitch, Back Stitch and French Knots, stitched with DMC Perle 5, 550 and 904. A small piece of lace is couched down at the top and the first few buttons were added.
I see that Week one is Fly Stitch - I'll be thinking how to explore this, I have used it before.
The challenge is on Sharon's blog, http://www.pintangle.com/journal/author/pintangle

2012

I have a bouquet of two dozen gorgeous roses to start the year ... may each month be filled with roses for us all! Connie.

TAST & Buttons

I'm so looking forward to sharon b's 2012 TAST challenge which starts next week.
(http://www.pintangle.com/community-challenges/2011/12/1/take-a-stitch-tuesday-2012-challenge-information-page.html?lastPage=true&postSubmitted=true)
Inspired by my dear friend Carolyn Saxby (http://carolynsaxby.blogspot.com/) who mentioned that she is thinking of a theme for her work in TAST, and as I have done about half the stitches in the 2007 and all in the 2010 challenges, with no theme, I decided to choose a theme this time too.
So ... I've enjoyed using buttons on Christmas cards this year ... I've had a good sort out of many old boxes tucked away and I've found hundreds of buttons.
I'll be doing TAST, with buttons, (and no doubt flowers and beads, which I can't resist), this time. Let's hope Sharon's stitches are easy enough for me.
This pre-challenge piece is Backstitch and Buttons - very easy!

Gift Tags

I needed six more gift tags .. so .. a couple of hours ago I found card offcuts, picture scraps, scissors, cutting knife, rule, DS tape, and my trusty Gold Leaf pen ...
time flies when you're having fun!
I got carried away - never mind, hopefully I'll find them for next year's pressies!

Happy Christmas!

I seem to have fallen into once a month blogging!
Anyway, here we are near to the end of 2011 and looking forward to Christmas and then hopefully a good New Year. My life is quite repetitive, most of my crafting and photography goes on the Flickr site (linked at the side here) so there is not a lot to add here.
Many thanks to friends who pop in, your comments are always very welcome.
Happy Christmas to all and all good wishes for 2012, Connie.

Roses in November

No blogging for some time - I have mostly stayed at home, making small cross stitch motifs for Christmas cards and wondering about a possible spinal op next year - quite a lot to be thinking about.
Today I had a phone call to see the consultant on Thursday, so decision time is soon!
It's a strange month - unsettled in many ways.
The weather has been cold, warm, dull, sunny, each day different. Yet the roses still bloom, beautiful for a few days and still beautiful as they dry out (as in my new header ..) - we are lucky to have roses in November!