The Dogs

This sampler has been keeping me busy.

When I came across this sampler on Pinterest I simply had to reproduce it and itgave me reason enough to indulge my blue and white obsession.

The sampler immortalises our pets Blackie and Brownie in cross stitch. They are firm friends and up to mischief all day long. Our flipflops left on the front verandah have been chewed and the straps have been ripped off. They are mutts or Indian dogs.
 Blackie chases away the monkeys and has begun barking a warning should strangers come to our property. Brownie has some Dachshund in him and won't grow too big but he's the cute one and Blackie the handsome one.
We have a third  - Bullet. He's a wee one yet but it won't be long before he joins Blackie and Brownie on their trips around the estate, barking at monkeys and waiting with soulful expressions on the deck for treats.
I've started on another blue and white sampler - it's the nursery rhyme Hey diddle, diddle...

Everyday has it's challenges but the past two weeks have been particularly trying with internet and electricity problems but the pruned tea bushes breaking into bud, the chickens settling into their new coop and Bullet having found a home with us have made it all easier to deal with.
How are all of you doing? Is Autumn making it's presence felt? We're thinking of lighting a fire sometime next week when friends come to stay and in India the festive season has begun. Happy Navaratri and Dusshera to all those celebrating. Have a great weekend.
  

A Cross Stitch Alphabet Sampler

 I started this sampler when we moved to Coonoor in May and its finally done.
The pattern I painstakingly copied onto graph paper probably ten years back. I found it while packing my stash.
It was then that I decided it would have to be embroidered as a commemorative piece of the new environment we were going to be living in.
Will now have to wait for the next trip to Bangalore to get it framed.
Have a good week.

Redwork Sampler

I'm taken with cross-stitch red work and I thought I'd share one I made and got framed.    

 The framed sampler adorns our new home. It's a wedding, alphabet and Quaker motifs all rolled into one sampler.

 Detail of some of the motifs in the sampler.

I'm sorry if the pictures are hazy and bit distorted because it's behind glass and I had to try and avoid reflections besides I had only the use of my cellphone camera. The cord to transfer photographs from my camera to my laptop seems to have developed a problem so I'm unable to share any of the pictures on my camera. What a bummer. I have all the pictures for a tutorial on how I made the Monsoon fiber book but it's going to have to wait. Oh well, it's not the end of the world.

Hope you're having a wonderful creative week.

Stitching Forever

If I didn't post anything here last week it's because I was stitching.
I completed a red-work,cross- stitch sampler which goes for framing along with the winter sampler.

The cross-stitched statement - Stitching forever.... Housework whenever! and a spray of flowers found a place on My World.

Hope your week is all about doing what makes you come alive. Now back to my stitching. I'm going to start another sampler :)

Winter Sampler.... stitched and ready to frame

There... the Winter Sampler is all stitched and ready for framing. Needs to be ironed.

Winter Sampler

It's that time of year when friends and family are baking fruit cakes for Christmas. Every year I say I'll bake one too but it looks like 2014 will not be the year I bake my first fruit cake instead I've started on this winter sampler.
It's all red cross stitch on cotton fabric, thought it looked all Christmasy . The pattern for the Winter Sampler is a free pattern from Leisure Arts. They have suggestions of using the different motifs in the sampler on other products like a napkin ring, table runner and a candle band.

Have a good weekend. Busy couple of week ahead with the semester coming to an end.Curriculum to be completed and assignments to be marked.
Will have to wait for December to get started on projects which have been marinating.