Miscellaneous - that's what happens when you don't post often enough...

Ho Ho Ho Stitchers!

I have found a cute background for the Xmas season, and I just can't say how much I am enjoying this season.... I have lots of things to show: my house decorated for Xmas, the most beautiful gift from my dear friend Margaret, the exchange gift I have made for Barbara, as part of an exchange organized on a board... but my goldfish memory is in need of DH to upload the pics... Call me Dory -you know, the blue fish in "Finding Nemo"...


Yet, I have scanned a few thing, not all Xmassy. You probably recognize three of the four seasons by Prairie Schooler from TGOS magazine. I found them last summer in the to-stitch projects just before we left for our holiday and decided they would be a perfect summer project. So I started with summer, of course:


Then I intended to stitch the spring one with sheep but my mojo for spring was gone. I wanted to stitch winter, because my puppy's coat would glisten like snow in the sun and it was inspiring..

And last autumn was the season to stitch the autumn chart, that is also my contribution to the December Hallosal.

Oh, and here's one of my other contributions to the Hallosal, I don't think I have shown it here. It's Bent Creek's Cat O'lantern.



What next? Well, I have just finished my Spot of Xmas by Midnight Stitching.



And I have finished the Threadbasket's sal (see posts below for links) with Jardin Privé's lovely stocking. I have brought a few changes, because I intend to turn it into a real stocking for filling next Xmas. Daphné is clearly counting on finding some Daim caramel sweets in there... Lol! I have the fabric, just need the courage to deal with the finishing... (sorry the fabric is creased...).


Daphné and I have been sick for two weeks now, with ups and downs, but the virus is clearly nasty. We're extremely tired and nauseous -good thing for me to lose weight, but Daphné is already very thin, with possible tendencies to anorexy that we have to deal with -without showing our concern...

Corentin is doing OK. His teeth haven't changed colours so it's a good thing. Next appointment in January, and then March... We'll see.

OK. That's it for now. I just wanted to say thank you for reading me, for leaving comments in a hectic moment.

Enjoy the season, Ladies! Take time to sit and look and smell and feel Xmas and the special spirit that's filling us with joy.

Hugs to you all, Stitchers!

Lili

Running in circles with reindeer

Hi Stitchers!

A short message to say I'm sorry I haven't had time to blog lately. I really hope that things become less hectic soon so I can visit your blogs, see what you've been up to and say Hi.
Last event was my son's accident while playing football. His front teeth are very sore and the dentist says he might lose them in the mid term. He's 14 so there won't be any other teeth as we don't have any sharks in the family (though I have serious doubts but no proof. Lol!).

Lizzie Kate "it's a jingle out there"

His upper lip is sore and "inflated", and he's having big headaches. I had to go and pick him up from college in spite of the high doses of ibuprofene and antibiotics he receives. He needs to see the dentist almost every week to see how things evolve.

I don't know how working mums manage with their sick kids. I'm so admirative... I am totally unable to think of anything but my son and daughter and worry worry worry... Running in circles...

Rico designs

As you can see, I spend wonderful evenings running in circles with my reindeer friends...

Hugs to you all, Stitchers!

Lili

Happy Thanksgiving!

San Man Originals.

Happy Thanksgiving to all my friends!

French online shop offers free shipping worldwide

Hi Stitchers!
Only today, November 20th, from 00.01 am to 23.59 pm French time. Beware, if you're in the US, you're about six hours late.
You will have to select "gratuit" on the first page, that is "free" when filling the order form.
Here's the address:

Des filles et une aiguille (girls and a needle: who's gonna win the one and only needle? Lol!)

I recommend their service. They're great.
Will post later but wanted to let you know asap.
Hugs to you all, Stitchers!
Lili

Jardin Privé, a long love story and a great sal

Hi Stitchers!

I didn't intend to write another post that fast, but a beautiful worthwhile sal has just started and if you want to be part of it, the fun is for NOW! It is a new sal by French designer Nathalie Cichon, aka Jardin Privé.

You can find her site there and she sells pdf files of her designs. On the left part, you can find adorable freebies in differents languages under the name "grilles gratuites".

Jardin privé (Private Garden) is getting famous worldwide (who doesn't know her Quaker Lady and her Quaker Gentleman? The Lady is even proposed with a cat instead of a flower on her blog!) and has a partnership with an American online needlework shop named The Threadbasket. There's a SAL there that started Nov 1st.


I haven't hesitated long and I'm in, with a fabric I didn't think I would ever use as it's DMC321 aida... and I'm having fun with every stitch. It's in four parts, and the first two have been issued.

I have also found out that my love story with Nathalie Cichon's designs is a few years old, as I have stitched this design that she offered on her site "Les Marottes de Nathalie" back in 2005. It was my first try with silks and one on one.

And this design, "aux fils du temps" was sold by A Mon Ami Pierre and Nathalie was the designer...


I was quite new at cross stitching at the time, so of course now I have a very critical eye on my NOEL and the threads you can see underneath... But hey, you gotta start and practice makes perfect...

Edit: I am also stitching her delightful "Douceur de Vivre" that I would translate into "La vie en rose"...



That's what I wanted to -quickly- share with you. I'm a fan... Gotta go now.

Hugs to you all, Stitchers!

Lili

Fall projects

Hi Stitchers!

First of all, I want to thank you for your kind comments that never fail to fill me with joy, and especially Diannthe who so kindly inquired about what I've been up to lately. Diannthe and I have very similar tastes and I've just found out that she and I had picked the same background (I think I did it unconsciously after she did). Lol! I love playing with backgrounds so I'll enjoy myself after writing this post... :D


Well, lately, I've been a lazy blogger but a very active cross stitcher. Though I wish I could do both, and I know people who are very good at it, I can't... I'm the kind of person who would get drowned in a puddle so you imagine with the kids off school, the bedroom repainted pink by courageous DH (I soooooooooooooo love my new bedroom!!!) and all the other rooms filled with things from my own bedroom (we don't have a spare room), well I was quite stressed out, believe it or not... Pathetic... Lol! Now that my aliens have gone back to school/work, things are more peaceful. I can breathe. Breathe, Lili. Breathe.

It smells of fallen leaves and wet earth here in Northern France. Here's JBW's Autumn Harvest. I have stitched it a few months ago (well, may be April or May) but haven't shown it yet. I stitch fall season all year long actually, as I'm part of the Hallosal. This is my August contribution to the SAL.


It is stitched on 25 count lugana, with from left to right Needle Necessities Witch's Brew, DMC fourty something, and Needle Necessities Vixen Red. The bird is Carrie's Creations black coffee. I would encourage everyone I know to try their hands at a JBW design. In fact, I think I have offered my best stitching friends at least one of those designs to stitch. And they have all loved it.


And this is my September-October contribution to the Hallosal. It's a big design according to the Hallosal standards, so I have decided to count it for two months.


And you sure recognize LHN's Autumn Harvest, that took me quite a long time to stitch, with a long pause that almost turned it into a UFO... I love it, but I must admit it was quite a boring project... I used the DMC threads the designer called for, and a French 32 count linen. A little stiff, which probably explains why it took me so long to finish it. A stiff fabric will really put me off stitching a design...

Hugs to you all, Stitchers!

Lili

Is it Xmas yet?

Hi Stitchers!

In France, after our three week summer vacation, we have no celebration to look forward to but Xmas. I must confess that I envy my American and Canadian friends who celebrate Halloween and Thanksgiving while we wait for Xmas and it's looooooooooong... Lol!

Autumn is a wonderful season, with beautiful yellow light and beautiful leaves to kick in while walking, yet it's also dull sometimes, and minds become dull too.

That probably explains why I have stitched for Xmas so much, lately. Lol!
You probably recognize the JCS LHN ornament and its companion piece (same year but can't remember which). Originally, they were not companion pieces though, but I wanted them to be, so I have changed the cardinals' colour to fit the pear tree, and used the same thread colours (my own mix, as always) and fabric (32 count Zweigart Fein Floba evenweave).

I have also stitched my initials in red instead of green. I no longer sign my stitching, but I like to personalize it when possible... ;)))


Here's French stocking by JBW. I'd love to finish it into an ornie for my tree so we'll see if I do. I have stitched it quite a while ago and can't remember neither the fabric nor the thread used.



The kids will be off school next friday night for ten days and it's high time because the're exhausted. My son is obviously still sad after the loss of his teacher, he talked about him last week with my mother and his eyes were filled with tears. My proud, sensitive little guy won't talk with me because he thinks I'm too fragile. I'm glad he found my mum to talk to.

My daughter is still her old self. We should've named her Alcaline... She's a bundle of joy... so energetic and happy. :D

My Dh will also have a week off and we intend to redecorate our bedroom. It was... pink wallpaper and it will be... pink paint. DH loved it so much, he wanted to keep it pink. That's fine with me, I love pink. Lol! I just hope I'm able to help him because I've been under medication for a week now with a very painful back, and thing don't seem to improve at all. I might have to resort to injections. Not fun...

Thanks for your kind comments, I feel so happy when I read them. I know how precious time is, which makes your comments even more precious to me.

Hugs to you all, Stitchers!

Lili