Christmas Banners Stitch-a-Long, part 8

Hi everybody! Last time I was feeling like there were SO MANY SEQUINS and that this was going to drag out a bit. Here's where I left off: 

I got all of the "inner" sequins done and started on the long line of sequins around the edge. And here's the thing -- they looked SO GREAT that I just kept stitching them on! Clearly, I got my groove back because...

IT'S HAPPY DANCE TIME!!!

I am so pleased with how it turned out after all. The red sequins around the edge add exactly what was missing from the earlier stages. Thanks everyone for all of your support as I struggled a little with this. 

I'm going to stay in the Christmas vibe because, well, I still have SEVERAL (yep, more than three...) Christmas kits downstairs. Next up is actually a new one: 

Yep, I'm moving into the third dimension! My husband loves gnomes, and over the years I have given him a gnome every year. Some I've made, some I've bought. This guy looks adorable and fits in with my felt-and-sequins obsession.

For our next check-in on August 11 I hope to have gotten a good start on him. I don't yet have a sense of how he goes together, so we'll see!

The other stitchers in this stitch-a-long are always working on amazingly beautiful and diverse projects. Go check out their blogs and get inspired: Avis, Claire, Gun, Christina, Kathy, Margaret, Jackie, Megan, Deborah, Sharon, Daisy, Cathie, Linda, Mary Margaret, Cindy, and Helen.

Halloween Ornaments Project, July 2024

For my June check in I hadn't finished my ornaments. Shame! Shame! But I'm happy to report that I finished two ornaments from the Prairie Schooler "Boo to You" booklet: 

But that's JUNE. For July I made up another pattern from the 2023 Halloween special issue of Cross Stitch magazine: Midnight Meeting. 

I stitched the cats on white Aida -- as called for in the pattern -- and thought it looked a little bland: 

So then I overdyed it with the "ice dye" method -- so much nicer!

So I made it into what feels a little oversized as an ornament, but will definitely find a home on my Halloween tree: 

Next month I'm going to do something a little different -- I saw this "kit" at a local store and thought it seemed like a good addition to my tree: 

I plan on staining him black and adding a little silvery color. I know this won't take long, but it will be nice to have a little break, maybe?

I'll be back on August 13 to share my finished ornament and my next project pick.

Christmas Banners Stitch-a-Long, part 7

Hi everybody! How can it have been three weeks?!?! Last time I had finished the critter embroidery and was set to start on the sequins. And there are a LOT of sequins. But here's where I was last time: 

I started the sequins on the bow on the top of the piece, followed by the letters, but realized I would be happier getting the rest of the "interior" sequins done before doing all the ones around the edge. So here's where I am now: 

I still have some green sequins on the tree as well as some "sparkle" embroidery on the tree to do, and then some red sequins on Santa's suit. But I did all the white sequins! When I look at the "before" and "after" photos they don't look very different, sadly, but in person there's some pretty good bling going on already. 

I wish I could get more of the sparkle effect, but here's a closeup of the lettering: 

For next time I hope to have the sequins added about halfway around the perimeter. I'm hoping I get into a groove and it doesn't take quite so long! 

The other stitchers in this stitch-a-long are always working on amazingly beautiful and diverse projects. Go check out their blogs and get inspired! Avis, Claire, Gun, Christina, Kathy, Margaret, Jackie, Megan, Deborah, Sharon, Daisy, Cathie, Linda, Mary Margaret, Cindy, and a warm (belated!) welcome back to Helen!

Halloween Ornaments Project, June 2024

Well this is embarrassing. This is the first time in almost two years that I haven't completed the project I set out to do!

Having made two of the ornaments from this booklet (the ghost and the skeleton, of course) in May, I decided to make two more.  

But somehow I ran out of time and didn't complete them. The stitching is done, but I haven't actually "made them up". Here's the most shameful part: the hardest part about completing them will be getting to where I stored the felt I use on the back! 

Next month -- besides finishing these two ornaments! -- I plan on stitching another piece from the 2023 Halloween special issue. (Seriously, I look forward to the new edition each year.)

I didn't bring the issue with me, but here's a shot of the cover and I've circled the project I want to do -- it's called Midnight Meeting. 

You may recognize other projects I've done! (And now I'm thinking about that cute 3D witch's hat in the foreground...

I'll be back on July 13 to share my finished ornaments and my next project pick.

The Independence Series ... and Winterthur

 In my quest to run a half marathon in all 50 states, there have been some strange trips. I had originally thought about a 2-week trip to the mid-Atlantic states and New England to pick up 5 of my final 6 states -- but that required a lot of time off and just didn't make sense. 

I found a 2-state weekend in September that would allow me to complete Vermont and Maine, so I focused in on Delaware, Maryland, and New Jersey -- which I could run on a Wednesday, Thursday, and Saturday. The first two states were so close together that I could even stay at the same hotel. I flew out on Monday, worked from the hotel on Tuesday (because it would have been grim to fly in the night before, frankly), then raced starting on Wednesday. 

I had some time after the Wednesday race to visit Winterthur and its exquisite decorative arts collections. I took the tram to the house. The gardens weren't particularly in bloom, but it was lush and green. I loved that it was all DESIGNED to look NATURAL. 

Then I went into the house and admired both the architecture and the exhibits. 

what's that on the right??

IT'S A KNIFE HOLDER

gorgeous embroidered necklace

After touring the collections, I moseyed around the grounds a bit. My favorite was this swimming pool and "seahorse": 

I enjoyed this very strange trip -- a great mix of running, sightseeing, and meandering. The only downside was that Wil couldn't join me for it. But he will be joining me for the shorter trip to New England in September!

June 3 - fly to Philadelphia, drive to Elkton, MD

June 4 - working in Elkton, MD

June 5 - Independence Series day 1, Bear, DE, plus Winterthur

June 6 - Independence Series day 2, Elkton, MD

June 6-7 - Gettysburg

June 8 - Independence Series day 4, Sussex, NJ

June 9 - Kentuck Knob and Fallingwater

Fallingwater, Finally

I have wanted to visit Fallingwater for decades and feared I would never have the excuse to be in rural Pennsylvania. But when I realized that -- given several hours of driving after running my third half marathon in four days -- I could visit it and fly home from Pittsburgh, well, I could think of little else. 

One of the challenges of visiting Fallingwater is that it's rural and there aren't really many places to stay nearby. I found a cute old motel in the town of Ohiopyle and stayed there one night before visiting Kentuck Knob and then Fallingwater the next day. 

Ohiopyle was adorable, and crazy busy with thousands of people all wanting to get on the river or the bike trails on a hot day in early summer. I grabbed takeout and sat on the balcony of my motel and just relaxed in the sun. 

Then the next morning I was up early and headed to Kentuck Knob, a smaller, lesser-known FLW house in the area. I couldn't really imagine living in Fallingwater (okay, I could), but I could easily imagine living at Kentuck Knob. KK is a fine example of his Usonian style, built in 1954-56 for I.N. and Bernardine Hagan.

I took the first possible tour in the morning. It's a small, but gorgeous house that really highlights the Wright's "compress and release" design style. Small doors, narrow hallways, and suddenly big rooms. As such, there were no photographs permitted inside. But I did take some from the front:

And the two balconies: 

This image shows how the tiny dining room was extended out over the patio so that they had room for more than 2 people to dine at a time. 

The kitchen was very small, but had a double-height ceiling and a skylight. This photo comes from the Kentuck Knob website: 

After the house tour I walked back to the visitor center so I could see the artwork. Highlights for me were obviously the Andy Goldsworthy pieces: 

Floodstones Cairn, 1991 - 2003

Room, 1992

Room, 1992

Room, 1992

After making too many purchases at the gift shop, I drove on to Fallingwater. 

I checked in for my tour (a bit early) and then went to see the "Iconic View". Sometimes when you see something in real life it doesn't live up to the photos. But Fallingwater did. 

Built for the Kaufmann family who loved the waterfalls on their land, they expected a more conventional placement of the house -- facing the waterfalls. But Wright designed the house to sit on top of the waterfalls in a stacked grouping of cantilevered "trays". 

My photos will never do justice to the design, but here are some of my favorite details: 

The way the stones are grouped and stacked:

This staircase down to the water that can be slid open and closed:

This view to one of the many terraces, more glass than wall: 

The big fireplace and various nooks in the main living room:

The way the house was built around the rock:

This adorable natural spring pool up by the "guest quarters":

I wish I could have taken pictures of the upstairs rooms -- they get smaller and smaller but each had its own terrace. Such a perfect house! I especially loved the son's room which was essentially a greenhouse. Glorious. 

I would have loved to take one of the really in-depth tours, but was still thrilled to be able to see the house at all.

FLW "signature" tile at Kentuck Knob