A Bit of Summer was first offered by De Handwerk Boetiek as part of their Pindrum club 2018-2019. It was included in the book Sewing Club released in 2020.

With a stitch count of only 113w x 60h it was a quick stitch. I selected a piece of 16ct aida from my stash and decided to use Victorian Motto Sampler Shoppe floss for some of the colors.

Started Stitching: August 12, 2020
Finished Stitching: August 20, 2020

Not exactly sure I will finish it.

Recommended Floss/Floss I Used

• WDW Carolina Cecil/VMSS P27
• WDW Cattail/WDW Beige
• WDW Cinnabar/VMSS Round Robin
• WDW Cocoa
• WDW Brick/VMSS Red Maple
• WDW Dirt Road
• WDW Kris’ Bon Bon
• WDW Oscar
• WDW Palomino
• WDW Putty

And shown above is another drum to add to my growing collection.

My Home scissor box is another of the projects from the newest book by Blackbird Designs, Sewing Club. It is meant to be stitched on 28ct Veldt Lugana by Picture This Plus over 1. I knew that would be way beyond my eyesight so I selected 16ct Wren by Picture This Plus with the called for threads.

I started stitching on July 11, 2020 and finished on July 17, 2020. My plan is to put it on the top of the medium size matchbox by TeresasPrimTreasures. I ordered two of the medium size boxes to use in finishing both of the scissor boxes included in this book.

I painted each of the boxes with Americana acrylic paint and then waxed them with Briwax. The was a first for me and not as easy as one might think. Each of the boxes was then lined on the bottom with a piece of Blackbird design fabric I had in my stash. My son added the little knobs for me. I still have to glue the stitched pieces to the boxes but love the way they turned out.

The Ripe Pear piece is from the same Sewing Club book as My Home.

I finally glued the top stitched piece to each box and glued the trim in place. Thanks to a generous stitcher who shared her Lady Dot Creations Vintage chenille trim with me. Love these little beauties. Now what to put inside.

Pins & Needles was released in 2015 but I just saw it recently and decided I HAVE to stitch this one.

While I really love the colors on this one, it calls for all silk floss and I was not willing to spend that much money since some of it sells for $8. and up a skein. The suggested fabric is 36ct linen but I decided to stitch this one on 28ct Monaco which makes it bigger. The smaller pincushions have the wording stitched over one.

There is no conversion chart included for the silk threads so I posted in a Facebook group and Jeannette kindly suggested conversions for some of the threads. There are two color schemes included and I chose the teal and purple.

Suggested Colors/Colors I used

• Silk N’Colors Acorn Woods/Cosmos Seasons SE80-8069
• Silk N’Colors Aged Plum/DMC 3740
• Silk N’Colors Mahogany WIne/GA Mulberry
• Soie d’Alger 5024 Teal/DMC 501
• Needlepoint Inc Silk 124/DMC 3859
• Needlepoint Inc Silk 154 Sea Green/DMC 3768
• Rainbow Gallery Splendor S1137 Tan/DMC 643
• Needlepoint Inc Silk 292/DMC 3051
• Needlepoint Inc Silk 975/DMC 3787

I still need to add the tiny buttons and charms to this one. But will have to check my stash to see what I have.

November 2021 – It’s taken me two years but I finally got back to my stitching on this one and finished up the two smaller pieces. Again, both were stitched on 28ct cream Monaco with the above colors. Stitching the wording over 1 was extremely hard on my eyes but worth it. Now to figure out how I want to finish these.

Started Stitching: Nov 27, 2021
Finished Stitching: Nov 29, 2021

While I love the Lone Elm Box used to finish this piece, I really did not want to spend that much money on it and mine finished piece was bigger since I had stitched it on 28ct. So off to Hobby Lobby to see what they might have. I found a Square Wood Pallet Box that would work and bought the last one at 40% off. I painted it with Folkart Acrylic Greenscape paint and applied Briwax after the paint dried. Bigger stitched piece was laced on a piece of 7.5″ x 7.5″ mat board and fixed to the top of the box using stitchery tape. The inside bottom is a piece of Jinny Beyer fabric another sent had sent me some time ago fixed to a piece of foam core. I love the finished look of this project.

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The two small pillows are finished with the same backing fabric as the box is lined with.

I recently saw a project posted in one of the cross stitch Facebook groups I am a member of and fell in love with it.

It had no information as to who the designer was so I posted and asked if anyone could identify it. The answer came quickly. The designer was Anne Brown, The Goode Huswife and it was called The Quaker Four Corners Sampler. And, of course, it was Out of Print.

A stitching friend contact me off list and offered to loan it to me. I quickly accepted. I already had the perfect piece of fabric and floss I wanted to use.

The fabric was a piece of 16ct Aida I had purchased from To Dye For Fabrics pictured below. The floss was Victorian Motto Sampler Shoppe Ginger Dark from Nancy Turner.

The chart arrived and I was ready to begin.

Started: July 26, 2019
Finished: July 29, 2019

I stitched this piece in memory of my Mom, Marjorie Little. I plan to add a small charm at the bottom of the V and finish it either as a small pillow or the same as the original one I first saw.

And I plan on hanging the finished piece on the door to my china cupboard where I can enjoy it every day. Thank you Vonna Pfeiffer, The Twisted Stitcher.

Heart in Bloom Sewing Tray was first released as a class project at the Shepherd’s Bush 2010 retreat in Utah. It was later included in the book, A Stitcher’s Journey. Both are Out of Print.

Stitch Count: 78w x 78h – The finished design size on 28ct over 2 is 5 5/8 x 5 5/8

Recommended Floss: Silk Floss by The Thread Gatherer. I was not willing to spend the money on ordering the floss so I used what I had in my stash. My changes are includes after the forward slash.

• Bark and Branches (DMC 3787)/VMSS Regal Brown
• Crimson Wood (DMC 3857)/DMC 3857
• Worn Brick Path (DMC 355)/VMSS Hearthside Stitching
• Tuscan Olive (DMC 3011)/DMC 3011
• Olive Branch (DMC 3012)/DMC 3012
• Ethiopian Rocks (DMC 644)/VMSS Sewing Notions
• Concrete Meadow ((DMC 3752)/DMC 3752
• Toffee Crunch (DMC 945)/VMSS The Dressmaker
• Pond Scum (DMC 734)/VMSS Vintage Quaker
• Hidden Canyon  (DMC 452)/VMSS Mocha Tan

Recommended Fabric: 30ct Espresso by R & R Reproductions. I chose to stitch mine on 28ct Cream Monaco 2 over 2 except for the initials which are stitched over 1. That part was difficult because of my poor eyesight.

Started Stitching: March 6, 2019
Finished Stitching: April 12, 2019