December 15, 2013

Old Friends

Hi, all! Time has been speeding up, I think, since Thanksgiving. We went to the Cape for the holiday, joining a zillion other people on the highway: 11 hours up; 13 hours back as we hit bumper-to-bumper traffic all the way from central NJ to Baltimore. It was fun while we were there, though. Here's a photo of one of our meals (I'd rather have this than turkey any day): oysters on the half shell from Martha's Vineyard and Buzzards Bay.
Working in Tysons Corner has its charms sometimes, but the traffic isn't one of them. This is how it looked from my window on Friday evening.
I've been working on Ann Dale by Shakespeare's Peddler. I pull her out every Christmas.
And I'm coming close to a finish on Peaceful Paradise:
This is an older photo of Pink, entertaining himself with my yarn project. He had already chewed on the bamboo needles. Pink: "They were tasty. This, however, is a little stringy."
Amended to add in reponse to Margaret's question: The header piece is a very old project that I started maybe 25 years ago. It's a Clara Waever design from the Eva Rosenstand catalogue. That's how I used to purchase needlework: from a color catalog (advertised in the back of stitching magazines) before I routinely visited needlework shops and of course, long before the internet. It's called "Stockholm," and it's still available. The design measures 18 x 47 on 26 count linen. I am not a fan of the linen that came in the kit--it's rough, and I prefer 40 count anyway, these days. All the same, I think I'll finish it as is. For one thing, the kit came packaged with either Anchor or DMC that is not numbered, so it would be impossible to scrap it and reuse the thread that's left if I wanted to stitch it on smaller count fabric, since it would be difficult to match the thread if I ran out. It's huge and colorful, though, so it's a shame not to finish it. Happy week!

14 comments:

Margaret said...

Ok, first off, what is that piece in your header pic? Wow! Gorgeous! Love your stitching projects too. You're always working on projects I want to work on too.

Cari said...

My goodness…those oysters are HUGE ! My mouth is just watering looking at them. YUM

I love all of your stitching projects. I'm so glad you rotate so I can see all of your beautiful work. The piece in your header is something else. You must finish it…what an accomplishment it will be.

Hugs to you and your sweet bunnies !!

marly said...

I really like the contrast and colors in Paradise. Almost done.

Chris said...

Lovely looking oysters.
Great stitching progress too. Thanks for the blog header info. I was thinking Charleston Harbor.
Have a great week!!

Melissa said...

Lovely, lovely stitching! It's fun that you have a Christmas piece that you stitch every year!

Jackie's Stitches said...

I like an oyster every now and then - these look delicious!

I've recently picked up Ann Dale again after a bit of a time out. It's a beautiful project.

Karen said...

Peaceful Paradise is so pretty; I love the colors in it. And I like "Stockholm" also -- more pretty colors.

I don't envy you that northern VA traffic. I found myself in Tysons Corner one Saturday afternoon and that was bad enough. Dealing with that rush hour would put me over the edge!

RG said...

Great looking work .. that top piece is really something, eh?

I am Sooooo glad you like oysters and such. I got a $50 gift certificate to Taylor's Shellfish recently and had to give them all to my son-in-law who loves them since we are just not able ...

Brigitte said...

Ann Dale is such a lovely sampler and I always love to see it on your blog.

Giovanna said...

A holiday at the Cape must be very special - such a lovely area. You're doing great on the WIPs, and that project in the header looks fantastic.

Rachel said...

Wow, Peaceful Paradise is so gorgeous! Your stitching on Ann Dale is lovely too!

Jennifer said...

Wow, love the Stockholm piece, especially since I've been there! I hope you finish it- it's a beauty! And coming to a finish on Peaceful Paradise? :-) Good news for me and my chart! Please let me know when I can send you my address. :-) I can only hope mine looks as beautiful as yours!

Anonymous said...

I'm with you on oysters over turkey!! But that kind of a drive ... eh, I don't think so. ;)

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