Hi, stitching friends!
Boy, do I have a lot to show you today. Now, before you say, "Wow, Meg, you've been really busy," keep in mind that I stitched these over the past year. I placed a couple of big orders from Franken Frames and framed these a couple of months ago. I've been waiting for Halloween to get closer to show you, and I've been waiting for my dear hubby to help me with the hanging hardware on the back. That is the one part of the framing process that I do NOT enjoy one bit.
Thanks to my crabapple tree in the backyard, which sacrificed some of its lovely fall foliage for my photo shoot.
First up is Lizzie Kate's 2019 Halloween Mystery Sampler. Last year I showed you the drum I made from the bonus chart that came with this sampler. You can see that post here. I finished the sampler soon after that, but it has been in my "box of shame," a.k.a. unfinished finishes, since then.
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| Lizzie Kate 2019 Halloween Mystery Sampler Stitched on 32-count Fog by Picture This Plus with called-for overdyed threads Frame from Franken Frames |
I love everything about this sampler: the colors and the scared look on the moon at the top and the skinny little black house on the bottom.
Tall, skinny pieces like this are great when you have limited wall space. They fit in the most unexpected places. I hung this one on the narrow bit of wall between my bedroom door and the linen closet. It goes great there, and I see it every time I go into my bedroom.
Have you ever stitched a mystery sampler? What was it? Did you enjoy the process?
Next up is one that I've seen a lot of people stitching this year, Halloween Quaker by Lila's Studio.
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| Halloween Quaker by Lila's Studio Stitched on 40-count Murky by Picture This Plus with called-for overdyed threads Frame from Franken Frames |
Honestly, I would not have picked this chart up myself, but I'm glad I did. Last winter when we were on our annual Oregon Coast trip and driving from Portland to Depoe Bay, my husband and I stopped at Starlight Stitchery in Corvallis. While I browsed, I told him if he saw anything he liked to show me. He picked out this chart.
And I really wasn't sure about the fabric. It called for Murky by Picture This Plus. Since I don't have a local needlework shop, I order almost everything online. When this fabric came in the mail, my first thought was "Yuck!" But that was apparently just me, because everybody else who saw it - my husband, my son, my mom - were like, "Ooh... that's neat!" I do like it with the stitch, and I'm glad I went against my instincts (which were to send it back and get something else!). It really is perfect for this stitch.
My favorite "motif" was the little row of houses with their bright yellow and orange glowing windows.
There is a lot of black and variations of black in this sampler, so getting through the whole thing was hard. I had to take "color breaks" once in a while and stitch other things that made me happy. But I think the end result is quite striking. The few pops of color in it really POP. When I got about 75% done, I just plowed through to the end. I was ready to be done with it and move on to other things.
I love the spiderweb and the spiders, but they gave me FITS. A word of advice: if you stitch this sampler, go to the Lila's Studio website and download the corrected chart for this motif. I found out (too late, after a lot of stitching that I didn't want to have to frog out) that there were errors in the printed chart I bought. I almost put the whole stitch away for a very long time. I was that frustrated. I'm glad I persisted.
The cats motif is another favorite.
The designer has a photo on the cover of the chart of the cats motif stitched on orange linen and finished into a biscornu. It would also make an adorable Halloween ornament.
And finally, my favorite of the three stitches I'm showing you today: When Skeletons Dance by The Drawn Thread.
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| When Skeletons Dance by The Drawn Thread Stitched on 32-count linen with called-for overdyed threads Frame from Franken Frames |
I went through my notes and I apparently didn't write down what fabric I stitched this on, but I know it was 32 count.
Those of you with a good eye for color can probably tell I ran out of floss at one point in the house and in the moon. When I got additional floss, the dye lot was very different than what I started with! I was very frustrated and worried about it, but I went with it, and I have to say, I like the result. The house looks old and neglected with peeling, fading paint. And I think that's how the moon really looks through layers of atmosphere and thin clouds. So all my worry was for nothing.
The ghosts in the windows say, "Boo!
And I love this jolly skeleton.
He doesn't seem phased at all by the creepy spiders.
And these spiders are SUPER creepy. The one in the crow's mouth at the top of the house uses a fat black seed bead, and the others use 4mm black buttons. (I could not find black buttons so I used a black Sharpie to "paint" some pastel buttons black.) The effect of using beads and buttons for the spider bodies is truly terrifying. These spiders look (and feel) REAL!
I don't like spiders, but these are cool. At least these don't bite.
What are your plans for Halloween? Do you celebrate Halloween? I know it's not everybody's cup of tea.
We like it because we have lots of young families with kids in our neighborhood, so in "normal" years we get loads of trick-or-treaters. This year is different, though. With Covid cases soaring in our county, the health department is advising that no one trick-or-treat. I hate to say it, but this year we are probably going to turn off our porch lights and pretend no one is home. It has got to be really hard on the little ones.
Hopefully families with young children can find safe ways to have fun and enjoy the holiday. I'm lucky that my son and his girlfriend are old enough that I could just buy a bag of candy and say, "Here you go." They'd be happy with that.
I hope you all stay safe and healthy, and remember: This, too, shall pass. They just never say when.
