Peace on Earth, Good Will to Everyone

Our "chicks" have flown home to the nest to be with us for the holidays, and I've been doing a fairly respectable imitation of Betty Crocker.  Not much in the way of stitching is going on, but my mind is still whirling as I stir cookie batter.

My Christmas card to you all is my favorite design of the season--"Joy to the World," first shown in the November 2001 issue of Needle Pointers.  It was inspired by a vignette my father had created for our mantel one Christmas when I was a child.

May you all safely celebrate the holidays with friends and family!

Crossing another finish line

One last finish for 2013!  I picked up the completed baby block yesterday at my LNS.  The little ornament is a gift for a friend's new grandson.

The cube measures 2-1/2 inches on 18-count canvas.  Stitched in DMC cotton floss and Kreinik metallics, it's personalized with the baby's initials on top and the year on the base.

I'm pleased with my first venture into designing a 3-D piece--hope the new parents like it!

An angelic season

Over the course of many years, I've stitched a lot of angel canvases--28 to date--but have never had an opportunity to display them.  This year is different! 

DH and I scoured the stores for a little tree to put in a corner of our living room, and here is the result--the Angel Tree.  Topping the tree is the December angel designed by Judy Harper for me a couple of years ago. I blog-stitched Emily the angel (bottom right) some time ago.  The remaining angels were designed by Joan Thomasson.

There are angels on the back of the tree as well, which can be seen through the window, but I ran out of tree before I ran out of angels!  So the remainder spilled out onto the mantel.  Believe it or not, I still have unstitched angel canvases in my stash!

A wild and hairy guy

Santa has a beard--a lot of beard!  This section took quite a bit of time to stitch, but I'm happy with the result.

The beard was worked with DMC Medici wool, the same thread as Santa's hair and eyebrows, using two strands of white and gray in a long-short/split stitch.  I actually stitched the gray areas first so I'd know where to fill in with the white.  The only tricky places were around the Christmas tree, where upright Gobelin stitches over one or two threads were all that would fit.

His cheeks look rosier now that he has his beard in place!