September 2024 Statistics

 Phew!  This was a busy month.  

Getting ready for my first retreat at Chantelles 141 (it was a blast), lots of sewing for my daughter's wedding, and a full two weeks of vacation led to a less-productive month by the numbers.  

I was still happy by my progress.

Chantelle 141 Design New Shop

If you get the chance, go there!

Chantelle's new shop is beautifully designed and filled to the brim with cross stitch charts, floss, punch needle resources, merchandise, and all of the finishing products you could possibly need to create your own beautiful pieces.  There are plenty of model examples to inspire you to try different ways of finishing.

 If you get the chance, you should go there in person to see all the things, but for now, here's a little preview.  The photos were posted courtesy of Laura, one of the 141 Pep Rally attendees. 

Check out Chantelle's web site... https://www.chantelles141.com/ or follow her on: Facebook,  Instagram, and YouTube.

Chantelle 141 Pep Rally - Post 2

Look what they taught us to do!

Priscilla and Chelsea helped us finish 3 adorable ornament. These were pre-stitches we stitched before coming to the retreat. They showed us how to do the finishing at the retreat and provided all the materials needed to be successful.

 Chantelle provided the cute ornaments (of course).  These will be available on her website soon.

Chantelle 141 Pep Rally 2024 - Post 1

 What a blast!  

I attended the 141 Pep Rally from Sept. 19, 2024 through Sept. 22, 2024 and I had a great time at my first in-person retreat.  (As a big plus, the person going to the retreat who volunteered to give me a ride from the airport did not turn out to be a serial killer as my daughter had feared.)

All the gals at Table 2 were wonderful and we had a great time.  We spanned 5 different states from the East to the West of the USA. A shout-out to all of you, miss you!

Chelsea and Priscilla (and Zinnia) were absolutely terrific as was Chantelle and the entire 141 Design crew.  A big thanks to everyone.

Favorite Stitching Setup

FRANKEN-STAND!

 My absolute favorite stitching setup for projects under 24" wide is kind of a Frankenstein floor stand created by me, but I love it.  

I can use it in a chair,  recliner, or couch.  

It has all of my tools easily within reach and it is very easily moved.

I know the picture is hard to see so I'll show you the individual parts below.

I started with a Needlework System 4 Lap/Table stand.

I added the Q-snap holder or I can use the Frame clamp depending on what I'm working on. I love the Qsnap holder as I can flip it easily.

I clamped my magnifying light to the top of the table frame with the C clamp that came with it, but there's also a base if you want to use it somewhere else. This is a must for me as I have impaired vision.

I hang my ipad from the light using the strap on the case so it hangs directly in front of me.  This is my favorite part!  (Sorry for the dirty screen in the picture.) 

The case is a rugged case because I take my ipad everywhere and I can be a little clumsy, knocking it to the floor occassionally.  It has a stand, a hand grip, and a short or long strap.  

You might be able to just make out the white ipad pen that is attached to the top bar of the light by it's magnet.  Not absolutely necessary, but I can reach the ipad more easily with the pen.

(I use Goodnotes or Markup R-XP to keep track of my progress on the patterns as I stitch.)

I clipped a binder clip upside down on the right side of the lap/table stand that I use to hold my scissors.   There is an orange magnetic cable tie around the clip.  I use that as a needle minder, or as a quick place to set my scissors while stitching.

 

Farther up the right side I have a piece of folded index card that holds my Lori Holt unstitcher. (I wish this tool had a hole in the end to hang from or was flat so it didn't roll away all the time.) 

You cam't see my ort tray but it is there behind the stitching on the tray.

Now for the strange part.  I put the lap/table stand on top of a simple folding tv tray.  I have it tilted slightly forward.  It has a lip on the front so the stand doesn't slide off.   

I did put an ironing ham weight on the base of the lap/table stand, but I don't really need it.  It is more of a safety precaution. I like to stick pins and needles into it too.

Clipped to the right side of the tv tray is my phone holder (not shown in picture). Great when I'm listening to ebooks or watching flosstubes while I stitch outside! This one can also hold my ipad when it isn't in the large rugged case.

The most important thing when I'm in the house is the piece of carpet mat placed upside down on the wood floors under the tv tray (soft side down).  This allows me to simply slide the entire setup easily with my feet or my hands and it doesn't scratch my floor. 

The other thing I love about this setup is I can easily just pick up the tv tray and move the entire setup whenever I want.  (I take it out on my deck all of the time!)   

Gather Butterflies

This week I finished Gather Butterflies

from Cathy Habermann - Hands on Design

Stitched on 32. ct Belfast Linen, Platinum that was tea-dyed

Can't wait to fully finish these!

I found a mistake in the Quilt Block. I was missing two stitches at the top right of the block.  I did fix this, I just didn't photograph it again. 

I also finished Gather Memories, but forgot to take a picture of it.

It always pays to take photos of your projects.  Sometimes you see things you have missed!

Summer Folk

 Hot off the Qsnap - Summer Folk

By Cathy Habermann - Hands on Design

Stitched on 32 ct. Belfast linen in platinum that was tea-dyed 

2 over 2 with suggested DMC flosses.

I'm loving all the specialty stitches.