My 2017 Rotation and a Finish!

So I'm starting to get into a groove, and I've worked out a 2017 rotation of sorts.

I confess, I have a lot of big WIPS, or I should say UFO's. I want to get these projects finished so I have started a rotation-lets see if I can stick to it!

Here is my list of stitchy goals:

1.Santas Village-Country Cottage Needleworks. I started this the year it came out, got 1 house done and then never took another stitch until the end of 2016.

This is where I was as of Jan.1

Here is where I am now:

I finished house #2! So I want to try to finish one house a month, at the beginning of the month, and then work on another WIP from the 15th until the end of the month.

So this month I am working on:

2. All Creatures Great and Small by Barbara Ana Designs. This was my Christmas day start, as it was a gift from my husband. Here is what I got done Christmas Day:

And here is where I am now:

Of course I have many many more WIPs. I plan to work on other things intermittently. But these two are a main focus. 

I still need to finish Hideko's stocking, and I would LOVE to make progress on Houses of Hawk Run Hollow. And of course all of this is in addition to designing and model stitching so...LOL! 

But hey, its all good!

And I have a small finish!

Prairie Schooler Santa-Old St. Nick

This was a fun and quick little stitch. I am also going to try to do at least 1 ornament a month.

So thats what I have been working on! I received the proof pages of my article that will be in Kindred Stitches magazine-it looks wonderful! I can't wait for it to come out, its so exciting!! I think it is a June release.

Happy Stitching!

XOXO

~Annie

And now our hearts turn to...

Hearts!

I don't think I even had the tree down before I already began to think about all things red and white!

I have had a long, long love affair with red and white. In fact I have just recently decided red, white and gray are going to be the colors in my living room (hopefully this will be happening in the spring). 

So I pulled out some woolie hearts and began arranging them just so. 

But then I sold the lot in my 

Etsy shop.

 Ah me!

2017 Stitchy Plans

I pulled out my Santas Village (Country Cottage Needleworks) and have decided to try to do 1 house a month. I had the first house completed when I started it back in 2013? I think?

I was on automatic to receive the charts when they were first published, so whatever year that was.

Anyhow, I still love it, and I decided to focus on Chritmas a little more this year, so it is in the rotation.

I also really want to do an ornament a month, so I started a Prairie Schooler Santa from the chart Old St. Nick. He is the blue one in the chart below.

I found myself all alone on a Friday night (which I actually enjoy) so I binge-watched The Crown and made pretty good progress on my Santa!

I borrowed Vonna's method of mounting my fabric on needlework stretcher bars, and it works wonderful for those smaller bits of fabric.

 Thanks Vonna! Great idea!

It is cold and dark and nasty here today, with a howling wind that is knocking over garbage cans and blowing things all over. So I will leave you with a little ray of sunshine!

On Sunday "Cinderella" came over to help me stitch! We try to take my two granddaughters on Sundays when we can to give their momma a break. This is Amy, she is 3. Hideko is 18 months, and their momma is preggers with #3, due in March. So she needs a break!

Happy Stitching!

XOXO

~Annie

Happy New Year!

I hope you all had a wonderful New Year!

I have been busy, busy, busy, with holidays and family and new stitchy projects!

Coming in 2017!

I am doing a design for the digital magazine Kindred Stitches, which will be published later this year. I'm very excited about it and honored to have been asked. 

New Design: Cold Hands, Warm Heart!

In the midst of all of the holiday merriment I have also been working hard on my next design release! It is a snowman done in overdyed sampler threads, called Cold Hands, Warm Heart, I love how he turned out, and he will be finished into a cushion to brighten the dreary winter months! He will be ready in two shakes of a lambs tail!

Goodbye Designers Desk.

My favorite LNS is closing, and I am very sad about this. This place was in business for at least 20 years, probably more, and was a treasure trove of supplies, charts, inspiration and collective knowledge. So sad.

So in the spirit of final support(wink!) I helped them out by reducing some of their inventory!

I found a bunch of Prairie Schoolers and actually forced myself to put a bunch back. That blue Belsnicle from Notforgotten Farms has been on my list, and the sled pattern was actually in my cart at 123 Stitch! I love Heartstrings Samplerary, and who can resit anything from With Thy Needle and Thread!

My love affair with Carriage House continues, and I added 4 new charts to my stash!

I will never turn down BOAF or Goode Huswife, and at 75% off these were a steal!

And last but not least, who doesn't love the Mill Hill kits, and chickens, well, you know.

And the Victoria Sampler little houses chart I bought mainly for the finishing instructions, which are excellent.

On the Home Front:

I also squeezed in a little Christmas ornament stitching and finishing.

Here are some ornies from past years:

I had this bowl out on display and Isabel, my youngest complained that there were no ornaments for her. Now before you think she is neglected, she is the only one who has 2 cross stitch Christmas stockings! But I knew I had stitched her an ornament before, so I looked in my box of shame and sure enough there was a stitched but unfinished ornament for her from 2010. So I finished it, along with 2 ornaments I made for my 2 grand daughters:

Isabel's ornament is adapted from my Angels Among Us pattern, The sled is a Lizzie Kate design, and the mousie is from Brookes Books Publishing and is a freebie on her site.

And now I will leave you with some cuteness. 

These are my precious granddaughters,

 Hideko and Amy.

Happy Stitching!

XOXO,

Annie

Naughty Stitching

Happy happy joy joy!

 Happy happy joy!

My release of the Pins and Needles pattern has been an astounding success! Wow! I never could have dreamed!

I mean guys,
 I just casually pulled out my languishing cross stitch last September, in order to make a Christmas stocking for my newest granddaughter Hideko; and I found this completed cross stitch piece that was made for the market!
 I had never published it.

So I thought, what the hey!
 May as well finish the charting and put it in my Etsy shop as a PDF, right?

So I did.

My Etsy Shop

 And then I shared it on Instagram, and you guys liked it! I mean really liked it!

(When I was designing cross stitch before, there was no instagram, so, no way to see instant market reaction, and not a lot of seeing what people are actually stitching, unless they were sharing it on a blog.)

And then I thought, may as well send it to my distributor (whom I haven't been in contact with in almost 3 years), and guess what happened? They placed a huge order!

And now I have reprinted 3 more times!

So exciting!

So thank you! thank you! thank you!!

So what is naughty stitching?

Well its all the wonderful designs by my favorite designers that I want to stitch!

But, I need be stitching my own designs for the marketplace!

LOL!

And you know how long cross stitch takes!

So pretty much everytime you see me posting on Instagram any stitching that I have not designed, for me, it is naughty stitching!!

Like this:

My instagram handle:

anniebeezfolkart

And this:

And sadly, this:

So I have used the "mom" card, and recruited 2 of my children to help me stitch models in 2017.

My 2 daughters Isabel and Chelsea and Chelseas beautiful babies, Hideko and Amy

Neither of them are cross-stitchers, yet! But oh boy! Do I have news for them!

After all, I gave them life, right!?

And as Lorelia Gilmore says:"Some would liken giving birth to the most rewarding experience in life, but I would say it was more like doing the splits on a case of dynamite!"
Ha! Ha! Ha!

So, they owe me!

Big time!

Have a wonderful Holiday Season, however you celebrate it!
See ya in the new year with some great new designs!

OXOX,
Annie

Cross Stitch Terms and Abbreviations

Can you add anything to the list?

Frog- when you have to rip out stitches you have done in error, because the sound of it is "rippit! rippit~"

UFO- unfinished object

WIP- work in progress

BAP- big a**ed project (those huge projects that take a long time to complete even when you are totally on it!)

FO- finished object (the stitching is done)

FFO- fully finished object (meaning it is framed or finished into an ornament, pinkeep, etc.)

YOW- year of WIP's (you are focusing on your wips for a year)

Floss Tube- videos on Youtube of cross stitchers sharing their work

SFS-stitch from stash, there is also a Facebook group by this name

SAL-stitch along (people working on the same design and sharing their progress with one another)

Stitch MAYnia- starting 15 new projects the first 15 days of May-there is also a Facebook group by this name.

SABLE- stash acquired beyond life expectancy!

Bobbinate- winding floss on cardboard bobbins

XOXO,

 ~Annie

Two Finishes and A List of Cross Stitch Terms!

Here are 2 finishes, yay! They are small but I'll take it!

The first is Barbara Ana's little pinkeep from the Fall 2016 issue of Punchneedle and Primitive Stitching Magazine. I have a digital subscription to this magazine-I truly love it! There are always projects in every issue that I want to stitch, inspiring punchneedle, and there is usually even a rug hooking design as well.

I also finished a little wool applique pin cushion top. Now I just have to finish these little pieces into pin cushions and I will have two of what is known in the cross stitch world as FFO's= Fully Finished Objects.

Here is my progress on Houses of Hawk Run Hollow. I don't have much time to actually work on it, but I am going to make it my focus BAP (Big A**ed Project) for 2017. I've been stitching this with q-snaps, but I have decided to switch to scroll rods because I don't want the q-snaps to distort the stitched areas. I ordered some big ole 30 inch scrolls, and wowzer! They are B-I-G!!! I think I will like this much better.

Hanging around Floss Tube I have picked up some new cross stitch abbreviations and terms that I had not heard of before. One is the afore-mentioned term:  FFO. I thought it would be fun to share a list!

Frog- when you have to rip out stitches you have done in error, because the sound of it is "rippit! rippit~"

UFO- unfinished object

WIP- work in progress

BAP- big a**ed project (those huge projects that take a long time to complete even when you are totally on it!)

FO- finished object (the stitching is done)

FFO- fully finished object (meaning it is framed or finished into an ornament, pinkeep, etc.)

YOW- year of WIP's (you are focusing on your wips for a year)

Floss Tube- videos on Youtube of cross stitchers sharing their work

SFS-stitch from stash, there is also a Facebook group by this name

SAL-stitch along (people working on the same design and sharing their progress with one another)

Stitch MAYnia- starting 15 new projects the first 15 days of May-there is also a Facebook group by this name.

SABLE- stash acquired beyond life expectancy!

I'm sure there are more that I have forgotten.

 If your favorite abbreviation or term is not on the list please leave a comment and share,

 and I will add it to the list!

Happy Stitching!

XO,

~Annie

New Stitches

I have been working on some smalls in my spare time-while waiting for family in the car, etc. Here is my little Barbara Ana design almost complete. All she needs are 2 acorns and a star motif!

Autumn Keeper Pinkeep from Fall 2016 Punchneedle and Primitive Stitching Magazine design by Barbara Ana

Speaking of Barbara Ana, 

I am planning on stitching

  ALL CREATURES GREAT AND SMALL 

in 2017.

 I am absolutely smitten by this design.

I love love love this!

 I have tried to tell myself that I MUST finish Houses of Hawk Run Hollow first, 

before I start another BAP!

 Oh man, I hope I listen to myself! *sigh*

.

Here is my progress on Houses:

I have the top row done and I'm working on the first house of the second row.

 I am stitching it on 40ct. Pearled Barley from Lakeside, 1 over 2 with the AVAS silks.

 Loving it!!

But its a long way to go by 2017. 

And I still have Hide's stocking to finish.

There are not enough hours in the day people!

XOXO

~Annie