Gifted Gorgeousness report for October

Mid October already - this past month has really flown by. My mind is still back in August! I'm quite recovered from my breast cancer surgery and so happy that I have finally lost my drainage tubes (on Day 24 and Day 32 respectively. The second one actually came out accidentally when the stitch just fell to pieces, otherwise I may still have been carting it around.) I will get my radiation therapy schedule this week when I see the radiation oncologist for the first time.

I have not been very productive this  month. I did crochet three cotton bags for three little girls on my Christmas list.

                                    

   

I finished up this replacement 'Baby's First Christmas' ornament for a friend's grandchild. I still have trouble understanding how I could have mis-spelled her name for so long. I am usually so careful to check spellings.

Just to keep my fingers moving, and my mood happy, I made two more beaded Christmas tree ornaments, to add to the basket of take-home gifts for Christmas visitors.

I have added the birth details to my great-nephew's dinosaur birth sampler. I have found a suitable frame, so now I need to get a mat cut so that I can frame it up for Christmas. 

And that ends my GG report for this month. I look forward to seeing all the lovely projects as I pop in to check the GG reports.

Smalls Report for September

I'm sorry to report that there has not been much stitching in my house this month. In the early part of the month I was focused on accepting the surprise breast cancer diagnosis. It was picked up at a routine mammogram - not even a lump to warn me that it was imminent. Then surgery, and for the last three weeks I have been carting around two sealed unit drainage bottles. So, cross stitch slipped down my priority list for a while! 

Nevertheless, here is my Smalls report for September.  The Smalls SAL is hosted bycHeather at Stitching Lotus.  I have stitched one more Baby's First Christmas ornament, post-dated as the recipient is now 4 years old. I have  stitched an ornament for her each year, but only this year did I discover she is an 'Annabel' not an 'Annabelle', which is what I had stitched each year on her Christmas ornament. So I decided she should have a BFC ornament with her correctly spelled name. On the  back I will stitch all her names and her date of birth. The teddy is (once again) the DMC on-line freebie chart, but I did change the facial features, as well as all the floss colours. I will be adding some tiny buttons and/or beads to the corners and sides of this ornament before I make it up.

 I have also finished all the letters on my 1 year old great-nephew's name sampler. I am using a shoe-horn to count each one as a 'smalls' finish. This dinosaur alphabet is by Claire Compton, and I found it in a UK hardcover book aptly titled 'Cross Stitch Alphabets' published in 2003. I swapped some of the dinosaurs, changed some letter colours, and added a bottom row of stitching to the 'Y's.

So, that ends my Smalls Report for the month of September. I am looking forward to checking out all the Smalls stitching reported this month.

Gifted Gorgeousness Report for August

It's been a very mixed month for me, in lots of ways, including my crafting activities.  In between medical appointments and an unexpected operation to remove two breast tumours I have been making Christmas gifts. I made this sweet crochet cotton dress for my 1 year old great-niece.

I liked it so much I decided to make one for my 3 yr old great-niece.

I love this pic of the two dresses together.

Annabelle's grandmother popped in for a visit and pronounced her dress "too short", Annabelle being quite tall for a 3 year old. So, I pulled off the white trim and lengthened the dress by adding a second band of solid colours at the bottom, and then I crocheted her a matching shopping bag with the left-over thread.

I finally made up my last five Christmas ornaments, which had been lurking around in my work basket for varying periods of time.

I have started a name sampler for my great-nephew Harvey ( a Christmas gift). I'm using a dinosaur alphabet by Claire Compton, but I am swapping some of the dinosaurs and changing some of the letter colours, to balance the colours and design.

And I have made 51 beaded angels, which I plan to distribute to my extended family as part of their Christmas gifts. I am embarrased to admit that, despite the fact that it is at least 10 years since I last made a beaded angel, I had all the 'makings' for this group. I could have made quite a lot more with my supply of beads, but I did run out of beading wire. The biggest angels measure about 7.5 cm (3") tall.  In all honesty, the angels are not very photogenic. They look much nicer in reality than they do in the photos. They are hanging angels, so lying around really isn't their thing.

And that brings me to the end of this month's GG report.

Smalls Report for August

I've had a little break from cross stitching while I grappled with an unexpected health issue (I am not happy when life interrupts my indulgences!), but I have managed to finish up the five stitched ornaments that have been sitting in my stitching basket for ages. I have now stitched all the Christmas ornaments on my 2018 Christmas list. I may make a few more to keep for myself.

These two little DMC Teddy Baby's First Christmas ornanents are for the grandchildren of friends.

And my three bead decorated Christmas trees.

That brings the total number of stitched ornaments for this year to 57. I may just have to stitch another 3 to round that number up to an even 60. 

Another crochet finish

A finish - a Christmas gift for my 1 yr old greatniece. I used 5 ply cotton (4 x 50g balls) and 3.5mm hook, with 4mm hook used for the bottom half of the skirt.  I've probably made it a bit too long, but it's still 4 months till Christmas, and she's having quite a growth spurt at present.  I'm happy to rip out any unwanted rows at the bottom to correct the length. This was a trial and error project. I started with My Accessory Box's Baby Blossom Summer Dress pattern (https://youtu.be/52sTbKgmpZk) but wanted a less openwork look, so I changed the skirt pattern, using only the chevron rows, increasing every 2nd row. When I thought the skirt was wide enough I stopped increasing and kept the stitches in each chevron strip to 18. I added the trim to the sleeves, and finished the bottom edge with crab stitch.

I have started a larger version for my 3 yr old greatniece, also as a Christmas gift.

Finally ... something to show!

That crochet bug has stayed with me long enough to make a second pinafore for my great-niece Sarah's first birthday. It's crocheted with 4 ply cotton using a 4 mm hook. I used a Ravelry chart Summertime tie top by Annie's Playground for the bodice but changed the shoulder ties to pinafore tabs. I went off on my own  for the skirt, edging and trim.

Smalls Report for June & July

I have had a stitching break for the past 6 weeks while I was outback in the caravan. We had a great holiday, free-camping most of the time. We travelled over 5000 km and visited towns and areas that I had never seen before, and a few old favourites. I learned a lot about the history of dinosaurs in Australia when I visited the Age of Dinosaurs Museum and the Dinosaur Stampede site  outside of Winton (in Queensland, Australia).  It was most  informative and enjoyable.

I may be using the shoehorn with this. I consider it a small project. It is a cotton pinafore for my very tiny 1 year old greatniece. I still have to add the buttons. 

And I stitched two First Christmas ornaments which are waiting to be made up:

The teddy (an old favourite) is adapted from an on-line freebie chart from DMC.

Finally, I stitched one bead decorated Christmas tree. I want to make another 5 for special Christmas visitors.

Not my most productive two months, but it was a very enjoyable holiday!