Barb Adams and Alma Allen introduced Tiny Tree tops, Rose or Thyme at the Shepherd’s Retreat 2016.  While I did not attend the retreat, I was lucky enough to be able to borrow the pattern and stitch it. I used the called for threads (week Dye Works) but chose to stitch it on 16ct Doubloon Aida from Picture This Plus rather than the called for 32ct.

Started Stitching: January 22, 2017
Finished Stitching: February 22, 2017

Robert Louis Stevenson’s “A Child’s Garden of Verses” contains many poems which describe the world through the eyes of the younger generation. Here is one in which conveys the magic of a flower garden.

The Flowers

All the names I know from nurse:
Gardener’s garters, Shepherd’s purse,
Bachelor’s buttons, Lady’s smock,
And the Lady Hollyhock.

Fairy places, fairy things,
Fairy woods where the wild bee wings,
Tiny trees for tiny dames –
These must all be fairy names!

Tiny woods below whose boughs
Shady fairies weave a house;
Tiny tree-tops, roses or thyme,
Where the braver fairies climb!

Fair are grown-up people’s trees,
But the fairest woods are these;
Where if I were not so tall,
I should live for good and all.

UPDATE: June 2019

Rather than frame this one, I decided to have it finished as a drum. Beautifully finished by The Twisted Stitcher.

Catch the Wind with Quaker motifs/whimsical sea creatures/sailing boats/fish/loch ness monster/whale/cross stitch/counted thread.

The description of the Catch the Wind Mystery SAL by Tempting Tangles Designs intrigued me, so I decided to join in this one too. The price is right too since the three that I had joined were only $5. each. Again, the project is 16 parts with one part released about every two weeks.

Specifics on Catch the Wind

Design Size: 168w x 168h
Recommended Fabric: Wichelt 36ct Jobelan Lambswool

Recommended Floss: Ship’s Manor cotton floss (conversions for DMC and Gentle Arts are suggested. The colors I chose are listed.

• Sugar Plum 1 skein/GAST Claret
• Witches Knickers 2 skeins/Victorian Motto Sampler Shoppe Concord Grape
• Cleopatra 2 skeins/GAST Verdigris
• Autumn Sunset 1 skein/GAST Copper
• Neverland 2 skeins/Victorian Motto Sampler Shoppe Into the Blue

I chose to us 16ct Regency Aida by Picture This Plus

Started Stitching: May 1, 2018
Finished Stitching: October 19, 2018

 

 

Beware of the horrifying, cannibalistic Humboldt Red Squid (pictured below) – the Red Devil of the Seas. Here in “Catch the Wind SAL”, this monster is a more manageable size.

 

 

 

UPDATE: July 2022 – Framed with a simple black frame and ready to hang.

When I first saw this chart as one of the sneak peeks from the Nashville Needlework Market in 2017, I knew I wanted to stitch it. I ordered the chart from Crazy Annie’s along with a number of other Nashville releases.

Fast forward to 2018 and I decided it was time to stitch this beauty. While the recommended fabric was 36 Ct. Legacy, I chose to us 16ct Legacy by Picture This Plus. I also decided to switch out some of the floss and use one of my favorites Victorian Motto Sampler Shoppe threads.

Stitch Count: 145W x 156H.
Design Size: 9 1/8 x 9 3/4inches
Uses specialty stitches which I made some changes to

Recommended Floss/Substitutes I Used

• GA Baby Spinach/VM Spring Grass
• GA Copper
• GA Dried Thyme/VM Prairie Sage
• GA Gold Leaf/VM Gold Rush
• GA Honey Dew
• GA Loganberry/VM Sweet Violets
• GA Maple Syrup/VM Weathered Barnwood
• GA Old Purple Paint/VM Jacob’s Ladder
• GA Old Red Paint/VM Cherry Bush
• GA Pomegranate/VM Be My Valentine
• GA Portabella
• GA Summer Meadow/VM Prairie Parsley
• WDW Cadet
• WDW Charcoal
• WDW Deep Sea
• WDW Kentucky Blue Grass
• WDW Lucky
• WDW Peacock
• WDW Pelican Gray
• WDW Tiger Eye
• GA Tarnished Gold
• GA Tradewind
• GA Wood Trail

This was one of a number of projects I was rotating through. I started stitching on February 28, 2018 and put the last stitches in on the night of April 2, 2018. For now it will go into the bottomless drawer of finished pieces.

December 5, 2022

And here it is four years later, and Vintage Birds is now framed. I chose the SLIM COPPER WOOD PICTURE FRAME from pictureframes.com and it was on sale for 40% off with free shipping. 

 

July 2022 – Released from prison and framed. Ordered a frame from Amazon that I thought would work and it was only $14.00. Liked it well enough that I ordered three more.

Some time ago I purchased the book, Thank You Sarah Tobias by Blackbird Designs. The book contains seven stitching projects based on Pennsylvania Dutch motifs from a sampler stitched by Sarah.

The project from this book I most wanted to stitch was Flowers for Sarah Needcase. I knew that I did not want to finish it as a needlecase but loved the sampler itself.

The called for fabric for this project was 30ct Espresso by R & R Reproductions but I chose to use 16ct Legacy Aida by Picture This Plus. I did use the recommended threads, Crescent Colors – Tennessee Red Clay, Poblano Pepper, Little Brown House, and Joshua Tree.

Started stitching: November 10, 2017
Finished Stitching: November 18, 2017

I have a couple of narrow spaces on our house so I think I will probably finish this as a bellpull.

Quaker Family Register was one of the projects taught by Barb Adams and Alma Allen at the Spring Fling Retreat at Stitchville USA in April 2017. While I did not personally attend the Retreat, a stitching friend offered to lend me the chart to stitch. NOTE: This chart is now available in And Blossom as the Rose released at the Nashville Market 2018.

While the recommended threads were Weeks Dye Works, I chose to use Victorian Motto Sampler Shoppe threads instead of some of the colors.

Recommended Floss and what I used:

• WDW Caper – VMSS Black Forest
• WDW Confederate Gray
• WDW Dirt Road
• WDW Loden – VMSS Garden Green
• WDW Parchment – VMSS Country Tan
• WDW Schneckley – VMSS Basket Weave
• WDW Straw

Design Size: 178w x 159h
Recommended Fabric: 36ct Veldt by Picture This Plus
Started Stitching: June 2, 2017
Finished Stitching: June 18, 2917

I chose to stitch this one on 16ct Veldt by Picture This Plus.

I did make some changes from the floss pictured as I stitched. Part way into the project, I decided to stitch this in honor of my paternal grandparents, Leonard Little and Sammie Bayless and their five sons: Adrian (my father), Winston, Clifford, John, and Mahlon. My grandfather was born in Fayettteville TN and they were married there. All but the youngest son was born there so I used that place on the project. Rather than using the initial of the children, I chose to use their first names. Since the dates for the birth of the children were stitched over 1, I chose to omit them. I plan on adding a sheet to the back of the framed piece with all of the information on this family.

Now to decide on the framing.

It is now October 2019 and I am finally getting around to framing this lovely piece.