Something old, something new and something(s) exchanged

Firstly the something old.  While sorting out our rather grandly (mis)named Library I found these three old samplers:

1996 - This one was in a magazine from the time.

1997 - This one was from a chart by Anchor which a friend lent me.

1998 - And this one was designed by me!
Using borders, alphabets and motifs from a cross stitch book I borrowed from the library.

All three are stitched on 14 count aida using DMC 3041, one of my favourites colours.  Each features a mixture of cross stitch and blackwork.  The mounts are actually lilac to co-ordinate (not blue).  The photos are clickable so you can enlarge them if you so desire.  Not all my photos are clickable anymore as I've discovered it's quicker to "copy and paste" than use the "insert picture".  So if you want to see more detail then pop over to my Photobucket Album (link on the right).

And here's the something new, the continuing progress on Blackbird Designs Bluebirds:

Stitched on tea-dyed 28count.  

Which seems really HUGE compared to the 40count for my Three Hearts design!

And the something(s) exchanged?  Earlier this year Sarah-Beth suggested a little exchange with me.  Here's what I sent her and here are the goodies that she sent me:

This pic show the book and lots of lovely papers for scrapbooking plus some postcards and the cutest ladybird mini-frame.  And LOTS of little prezzies.

And this pic show the inside of the book (open to my favourite project - a doormat with strips of fabric wound round to make a giant cross stitch!) and the contents of the little prezzies.  Notelets, charms, embroidery patterns and the cutest mouse button.

Thank You Sarah-Beth for sending me Christmas in July, opening all the little prezzies was just like having a stocking full on Christmas morning! 

Finally, a Public Service Announcement - back in March Blogger discontinued Google Friend Connect for all non-Blogger blogs which basically means some of the blogs I was following fell off my Reader.  I recently re-discovered Reflections in the Pond by Silver Lotus via a comment on someone else's blog.  So if you used to follow Silver Lotus and wondered where she went, the Good News is - you can find her again!!

A Plethora of Small Finishes

You may recall back in March I made several small starts as part of March Madness?  Well, I have now made several small finishes!

In no particular order here they are:

This is my own design of a Union flag in a heart shaped stitched especially for Sarah-Beth.  She won one of my Epiphany Giveaways and we decided to do a little "local" exchange.  I sent her some local-to-me things and she will do the same.  As well as the local items I sent some Jubilee goodies too and thought a card would be nice.  I didn't feel like rummaging through all my mags to find designs which weren't quite right so it was actually easier to jot this down on graph paper and stitch it up!

I only stitched the red and blue, the white is the fabric.  Purists will realise there should be white spaces between the diagonal red stripes and the horizontal/vertical stripes.

If you'd like to see what else I sent her, then pop over to Sarah-Beth's Cross Stitch Blog and see for yourselves.  I was particularly pleased to get her the woven badge she wanted.  The company that makes them went out of business some time ago and my local gift shop was selling off the old stock, this was the last one in the shop!

The next finish is the Spring Heart by Gazette 94 to go with the Autumn previously stitched:

This was a very cheap frame from QD, the hearts are printed on the glass, clever isn't it?

I've just started another Band Sampler Round Robin on the Yuku Board.  My theme is "Purple with an Accent".  I am asking each stitcher to use DMC 333 as their main colour plus one other.  They also have to stitch with a fake British accent.  Not really, but it would be fun!  Here's my band:

This is stitched on Sparklies' Purpleberry Spludge, a great name for a great colour.  Last year's band sampler was amazing and alot of the same stitchers are doing this year's so I'm really looking forward to it.

The final pictures are actually 2011 finishes but I couldn't show them until now.  Dawn from Crafty Kitten found out she was expecting a baby due in January.  As she would be on maternity leave in January I decided to order my fabric just before Christmas so she could dye it over the holiday period.  I got an email on Boxing Day from her hospital bed saying "Baby came early, don't worry about your fabric, hubby is getting it ready to send to you"  That is the sort of customer service you get from Crafty Kitten, beautiful fabrics come Hell, High Water and Newborn Babies!

Anway, Nic, Hannah and myself collaborated on a Round Robin afghan for baby Sam.  Here are my two blocks in close-up:

This cute little dragon comes from here - Free Cross Stitch Charts

And this is the Tralala cat I have stitched before, available free from Socreastitch

I changed the colour of the dragon to blue and simplified the colours used ALOT.  There were 26 different colours used originally which I reduced to about 10!

Here is the whole piece in all it's glory:

This was a lovely afghan from Sewandso,  reasonably priced and very soft.  It specified "18 count evenweave" on the website so my brain said "that mean 36count which is equivalent to 18count aida".  When it arrived it really was 18count evenweave and a very loose evenweave too.  So the choice was to stitch over 2 and get 9count equivalent or stitch over 1.  Which I did.  Moral - read and believe the website.

Dawn was thrilled to bits with the present which arrived this week.  She sent us a lovely photo of Sam with it, I forgot to ask permission to post it here, so I won't just yet.  But his expression is priceless - he's got his arms stretched out wide going "how big is my blanket?"!!

BTW, Hannah is taking a break from blogging as she has one of those job-things which takes up alot of time at the moment.  She's in touch via FB and email and is keeping well in case you were concerned!

The other 2012 finishes can't be shown yet as they are all gifts.  If Parcelforce had got a move on I could've shown Christine's but they haven't so you will have to be patient along with her!

Finally, only three more followers until my 250 Giveaway!