Ruth Ellen's Two Cents

Dear Stitchers,

In case you are wondering......I did complete As the Forest Grew...aka "the trees" for short.

This piece, by Karen Kluba of Rosewood Manor, was stitched on 32ct cream linen.  I started this in August of 2006 as my "recovery" piece following my first knee replacement surgery.  It was a challenging, but rewarding endeavor.  I started in the upper left corner - which by the way, is not my usual mode (which is working from the center out).  There are 14 (FOURTEEN!!!) pages of charts, so I chose to start on page 1.  I'd stitch enough to get to page 2 and ultimately to 3 & 4...to the top center...to do the verse and vine.  But...the operative word....I miscounted on one motif.....off 3 stitches or 6 threads...on page 3 and didn't realize it until the vine (border around verse) was completed.  I refused to rip it out....so I compensated, kept on stitching and you'll never know where I flubbed.  My creative juices took over.

And get this, a companion piece to this arrived just about the time "trees" got framed.  It is called Season of Trees.  Very nice....am I going to stitch it soon?  I don't think so, but it IS lovely.

We had a great day on Superbowl Sunday, seeing so many of you, and hearing from many on the internet.  Times have changed certainly, but the burst of excitement was such a GREAT thing.  I thank you so much for remembering us.  WE still have friends who look for us at Olde Ridge Village and fortunately are directed to our new location.  I think as stores around the country are closing, many wonder if The Strawberry Sampler is still alive.  Yes, we are...and soooooo appreciate your business.

I think I shall do the happy dance when spring arrives.  We found several - 3 - wooly worms..the fuzzy brown and black little creepy crawleys...and they had very little black fuzz on them.  Now, as the people in the mountains of North Carolina around Banner Elk..say, the black on the wooly worm tells you what kind of a winter you'll have.  The more black the worse the winter.  Well, these wooly worms indicated a mild winter...and I'd say they were right.  There have really been a lot of gray days - "sad days" as my Dad has called them. He has made it to this point at age 92. He has done surprisingly well since my mother passed away in September of last year. He is waiting for the sun though. I can't get him to come to PA for much, but when my sister, Carma, comes in this summer from New Zealand, he may ride over then to be with everyone. Beth is in New Zealand, at this present moment, enjoying late summer there..and the sunshine.

We are seeing so many Quaker - Ackworth pieces, samplers which are reproductions and look alike new charts.  Most of these use one color of floss, sometimes interspersed with one or tow other colors.  In that William Penn (our Pennsylvania ancestor) was a Quaker, we have a unique connection to this series of sampler motifs.  Westtown School - a Quaker school - in West Chester, is just a few miles from us and makes us even more interested in these reproductions. 

This is a new design, Quaker Alphabet, that we just put up online.....It's a nice one, because it's not too large that it can't be done!

The children there, both boys and girls, learn to cross stitch, sew, whatever.  I think often that we are missing something with many children today with little to no "working with your hands" such as home economics or wood shop  I hope many of you are "teaching the children" ....you can make a difference for these kids.  Many things I learned to do with my hand came from my mother taking the time to show me to cross stitch on checked gingham...to quilt...sew my clothes...paint wood and tin..and more.  My Girl Scout leader for many years was a gift as well.  I recall making a bead loom from a cigar box...long before the wire bead looms were on the market.  Often it takes a mother or grandmother with this knowledge of creating or recreating using our hands.  My grandsons are trying out the screwdriver, hammer, electric drill, and paint brushes and rollers.  Soon we will dismantle something and see how it works.  Chris likes to paint the walls and Jim enjoys taking the screws from the door frames. 

Before Beth left for New Zealand, she worked every night on Drawn Thread's Toccata-Number One.  It has so many fun stitches and turned out quite nice. 

We haven't framed it yet..just pressed it for you to see.

She took Amager...the new chart from Needleprint which I highlighted in my last Two Cents...motifs from an area in Denmark, right outside of Copenhagen, that was settled by the Dutch.  I'm looking forward to seeing Beth's progress on it.  It was her piece to work on during the long flights back and forth to New Zealand...and any free time she had down there!

We did find 2 more chart packs for The Sailor's Huswif which was on display in the cabinet by the register for awhile.  If you are interested in this, call the shop or email us.  It is $25.00.

Admittedly, I have stitched some little items...and completed a few other pieces.  The scissor fob on black Lugana with the Mary Engelbreit tin is my recent completion.  It reminds me of a Whitman Sampler tin that I created and hoped to share with you all...maybe I will get busy and get it done.  Look for it! 

The wreath set at an angle was a piece I showed you as a work in progress many months ago.  It is hardanger stitches, beads, back stitches, and silk ribbon stitches.  The directions are very good and it was enjoyable to see the finished work.  It was stitched on 32ct linen and a thread pack is available for it. 

RE'S Picks of new stuff....Things I'd like to add to my "to do" list..... (click on the name of each project to take you to their "specifics" page)

Sweetheart Tree...a Strawberry Quilt Block has queen stitches, beads, and 4 sided stitches.

Little House Needleworks....Heart of America is a delightful new chart with the overdyed thread and buttons included.  I really like this and may start it tonight! 

With my Needle ....Quaker Turtles. This is certainly a twist to the Quaker motifs.  Stitching this would be fun...the "putting together" a challenge.....but the end result is so charming.  Carma, my sister, and I, did turtle watching for loggerheads at Pawleys Island where we lived.  We watched baby turtles hatch and trek out to the ocean...at dusk or night usually.  I have a wonderful picture/poster of their journey to the water.  They are so wonderful to watch as they move to the water...with a long journey ahead.  As we say in Pawleys..."Lights Out..Sea Turtles Dig the Dark!!"

Blue Ribbon Designs....Small Tokens of Affection.  These little sewing smalls are my weakness.  I could do all of them.  Again, the putting together is always fun too.

Well, here's hoping Abby gets this on line with photos and all...

Until then...teach the children and make a difference!!

 

Ruth Ellen