Glitches

Mother always told me there would be days like this! I've been working on the Brant Point Sailor's Valentine diligently, finishing the segments with Petite Very Velvet that I'd waited about 10 days to arrive. It was time to starting adding the embellishments.

I sewed on some rope trim I'd found on my shopping excursion three weeks or so ago, and all went well until I needed to end it off. Can we say UNRAVEL, boys and girls? Can we use it in a sentence?

I thought I had a solution to that problem, so I rummaged through the shells I had purchased and started arranging them on the canvas. The four absolutely wonderful starfish I bought, which I had planned to showcase on the Nobuko segments, were too big. Back to square one.

A very wise woman once counseled me, when you run into a glitch in a design, put it away for a few days and wait for the "light bulb moment" when the logical solution dawns on you. Rush a design and it will be garbage. So I'm heeding this advice and putting this canvas on the back burner until I either (A) have a flash of inspiration or (B) go shopping again!

Slow but steady progress

Stitching basketweave isn't tedious--it's actually quite relaxing. But it's also time-consuming, as you can see from my progress photo for today.

I've been stitching exclusively on the Brant Point Sailor's Valentine since picking up the threads I needed at my LNS on Saturday. I've managed to finish two segments on the outside of the octagon and start the last one. I'm itching to finish with the Petite Very Velvet, as then I can start in on the fancy stuff!

But the more I work on this outside area, the better you can see the difference in textures between the PVV segments and those stitched in Nobuko with Vineyard Silk Classic. I'm liking the way this project looks so far, but I'm also anxious to move on to the next steps!

Back in the saddle

I'm doing a happy dance here, because my order for Petite Very Velvet for my Brant Point Sailor's Valentine came in and I picked it up yesterday at my LNS. And I've been basketweaving myself into oblivion ever since!

No photos yet, but I promise to remain diligent and have something to show for myself soon. Just didn't want my faithful readers to think I'd fallen off the face of the earth!

"Toto, we're not in Kansas anymore!"

So where have I been and what have I been doing? Ensconced at the painting table in my office/studio, cranking out canvases!

First I Sugar-Plum-Fairied myself out painting Nutcracker ballet ornaments. Yesterday I moved on to characters from the Wizard of Oz, and what a trip down Memory Lane this is turning out to be!

I remember the evolution of these designs as clearly as if I'd done them last week, although it was actually 1998. My two sons enjoyed keeping me company through the first showing of the movie I'd rented, but I lost them for the second screening. I sat there with pencil and paper in hand, making notes and sketches for future reference. We lived in Connecticut then, but would soon make the move to Texas, and my personal life was in turmoil. These little people are definitely a bright spot from that chapter, and I'm enjoying getting reacquainted with them.

Dorothy--and Toto, too--will be headed to South Dakota when I've finished painting the series for someone who saw them in the recent issue of Needlepoint Now and wanted to give them a good home. And if this stitcher enjoys working these canvases as much as I did way back then, I'll be Over the Rainbow!

The waiting game

When I finished stitching the four outside segments of the octagon on the Brant Point Sailor's Valentine, using Vineyard Silk Classic in a Nobuko stitch, I knew exactly what I needed for the remaining four segments. Time to hit my LNS!

But when I made the trip to Town-Ho on Saturday, it turned out Barry had only one card of Petite Very Velvet in the color I needed--V604, a light tan that I've used before. He promised to order more for me this morning, but it will take perhaps 10 days for it to arrive from California. Drat!

Why was I so adamant about using Petite Very Velvet? I wanted a different texture for these remaining areas, while staying as close as possible to the color in the original areas. I'll also be doing some top-stitching in these areas, and I've found the PVV provides a nice, smooth "bed" for this purpose.

So until my ship--er, shipment--comes in, I'll be playing a waiting game with this project. I've long since given up being a monogamous stitcher, so I'd better find something else to work on in the interim!

Two down, two to go

Last Sunday, I was finally able to squeeze in my shopping expedition for Sailor's Valentine supplies! That night and last, I've been working on the octagonal frame around the center scene.

For four of the eight segments, I've chosen Vineyard Silk Classic "Beach" in a Nobuko stitch. These areas will be embellished mostly with shells, and I figured the "nooks and crannies" of the Nobuko stitch would work well when I get around to attaching the shells.

This shade of thread, when combined with this stitch, almost gives these areas a grass cloth look. Two more segments to go, then I get to attack the last four segments, with a different stitch and thread!

The center scene

Progress: I've finished stitching the center scene of the Brant Point Sailor's Valentine!

For the lantern room and gallery of the lighthouse, I took a little artistic license. These areas are all black, but I wanted to accentuate the railings of the gallery. So I worked all the black areas you see here in DMC #5 perle cotton and filled in the base of the lantern room with DMC floss #3799 in mosaic stitch. The beacon, which has a flashing red light as its night identification, was worked in Kreinik #12 tapestry braid #003.

I didn't have the right shade of perle cotton for the little red roof, so instead used all six plies of DMC floss #3777 in rows of slanted gobelin stitch to make this area stand out from the tower itself. I used one of my favorite small water stitches--diagonal horizontal cashmere--with DMC floss #322 to give a hint of movement without overpowering the lighthouse itself.

I chose Felicity's Garden "Truffle" in a diagonal mosaic stitch for the sand. primarily because the silk/wool blend gives a softer look. The rocks at the base of the lighthouse were worked in satin stitch with DMC floss #646 and 647.

With the center scene completed, I can move on to the outside area, but I need to find some time for a shopping excursion first!