More Black Belt Stitching Wizard Stuff

Tuesday, July 16, 2013

Happy Dances and Road Trips

Happy Dance Alert!  Happy Dance Alert!

I had a happy dance on Wednesday night, but I wanted to keep it to myself until I could show the piece to the owner.  Which I did on Friday, so now I can share it with you.

How I received Kathy's ABC Christmas Sampler

Last September a group of us were stitching at Kathy's she was going through her pile of WIPs and made a comment wishing that this piece would just show up "finished".  I took it and put it in my stitching bag, there were immediately offers by others to help finish it up, but I had this little plan in the back of my head that I would try to finish it myself... or work on it until it ticked me off.  Either or.

ABC Sampler - Kit
cKrista Hamrick
Kit by Design Works Inc.

Towards the end I was getting a little tired of seeing it, but here we are!  I triumphed and can proudly say that I finished it for Kathy!  The last time she had seen it (the day I got the call that my Mum was in hospital) I was just starting letter "V".  In a month I managed to finish it off.




After visiting with Kathy on Friday for a few hours, to help her with some finishing I popped down the road to Ann's and Knowledge and Needles.  I spent the afternoon stitching with her "Friday Stitchers", Bonnie was able to take the afternoon off to come stitch as well!  Thanks Bonnie!

Chatelaine - sorry hard to photograph

Mystic Stitch

Ann had two new framed pieces to show off!  They are just awesome, a completed Chatelaine and a huge Mystic Stitch!


Ann's husband Dan also had something of his own to show off as well!  On Friday evening he threw me the keys to this.... and let me take it out for a spin on my own!

My shit-eating grin while driving Dan's 'Vette



It was a joy to drive his 50th Anniversary Edition Corvette ... convertible and he impressed me by having a 6 speed manual transmission.  A sprots car with an automatic transmission is just a waste of metal!  Oh my what a pleasure it was to drive!  It had a gorgeous purr/rumble, I didn't mind downshifting for a change, the power was there when I wanted it, and the transmission was nice and tight!  Thanks Dan for letting me take her out for a spin!!!

I worked on a couple of projects this past weekend.

I put in a little more on this travelling chart, Life's a Stitch by Lizzie Kate.  As you can see I'm working with my own colour choices.

Christmas Tags
Kit - Cross Stitcher Issue 260

I finished up these little "Christmas Tags" one of those little kits that come with the British Magazines.  I finished up the Candy Cane and the Red Mittens on Friday night.


Saturday that left me with a new start!  Yes, I had plenty of other projects to stitch up but I have this gift that needs to be done.  I can only show you a wee corner since the recipient is known to read my blog.  I'm now over 1/2 way done this piece, and its looking great!

So that's it for my wee road trip, I had a great visit with friends, and got a lot of stitching in!  Oh wait and I did get a little stash!  I picked up the latest JBW Wreath Charts and a piece of pretty fabric!

38 comments:

riona said...

What a happy post! It made my day!

Here in the states every newspaper, message board [even the stitching ones] and website is obsessing over the Zimmerman verdict ... with ugly racism running high on both sides of the issue and very few voices of reason making themselves heard in the cacophony of hatred being spewed over the airwaves.

Vickie said...

ooOoo! Dani I really like your choice of floss so far on the Lizzie Kate. Congrats on that big finish.

Bonnie Brown said...

You are very welcome!
It was great to see you again!

Ele said...

Wow, lovely finishes and gorgeous Photoshop

Barb said...

That Christmas sampler is beautiful!The car looks like fun!

Heather said...

Great stitching, Dani. And how nice of you to finish that project! It looks super!

Also, I love the car! How fabulous it must have been to drive it.

Anonymous said...

You look pretty fabulous in that Corvette!

You know if you gave up a few things, like maybe stitching and eating .....you could have one of your own. LOL

In the meantime, you'll have the sweet memory of driving Dan's. It a beaut!

cucki said...

Wow super sweet finish..it is look superb ..
You looking so sweet..nice to see you.
Hugs x

Julie said...

Brum, brum..... How exciting to be trusted with the new toy, lucky you.
Wonderful chatelaine, very impressive.
Christmas ABC is amazing , it's been fun watching it grow.

sharine said...

Very busy girl. The Christmas sampler looks awesome as does the car!

Linda said...

What a great post Dani. Congrats on all the finishes and new start.

Linda

Sara said...

Congrats on the Christmas finish!

I saw those JBW wreaths last time at the LNS and wondered if you'd seen them yet. Will they be stitched as gifts this year?

AnnMcD said...

It was great having you here this weekend Dani! Thanks for coming. Glad you enjoyed Dan's car and for taking those pics of my finishes. Maybe I'll just copy them to my blog since as Dan loves to point out...I am the world's worst photographer...unless you like blurry pictures that is.

Lesleyanne said...

Congrats on your finish. It looks like you had a lovely time. How nice to drive such a gorgeous car. Great new stash.

Christine said...

Great stitching Dani, and it sounds like a great trip. That car is beautiful

Chris said...

Congratulations on that finish. It looks great!
What fun getting together with stitching friends. I love the pic of your driving. Great stash too!

Annie said...

The X-mas finish is gorgeous! You are so nice to do that stitching. And even more nice work in progress. Your fingers are flying!

I think that Corvette fits you perfectly. Pretty brave guy to just hand over the keys!

Bette said...

Love the Christmas finish! Kathy is so lucky to have a friend like you. Actually we all are. And what a sweet ride. Sounds like a fun time was had by all.

Karen said...

Great finish Dani! I enjoyed watching the ABC Sampler grow. It's so bright and cheerful!
Anne's Chatelaine and Mystic Stitch pieces are absolutely stunning! And I love your new stash. Those charts are adorable. :)

Unknown said...

What a wonderful way to start my morning - reading your fantastic blog... So happy to see the ABC's completed, I never realized it was going to be a wonderful surprise for a friend - WOW..

Your DRIVE must have been to CRAZY WONDERFUL..

Thanks for sharing.

Giovanna said...

Well done on the Xmas sampler - great job!

Lumiruusu said...

Thank You for this post ,so many interesting pictures-and yes!
You look fabulous sitting in the sportscar :9
Vrooooom!

Lovely finish and new charts..You are very busy!

♥ Nia said...

You've been busy!!! :p
Beautiful work! Well done sweetie :D

Brigitte said...

Oh yes, this is a well deserved Happy Dance! A great finish indeed!
I love your colour combo for the travelling pattern. It's so nice to see it looking different with each stitcher.

Julie said...

Congrats on finishing the Christmas ABC and nice new starts.
Wow what a car,your looking good!.

Melanie said...

Oh, that's a great big wonderful finish!! Very nice!! I'm sure she loved it. :)
Niiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiice car too.
All my cars (as an adult) have been standards. So extra cool points for me! lol (Honestly, I'm not sure I wouldn't be a little flustered to drive an automatic at this point since it's been SO LONG since I've done it. Heh.)

Carol said...

That is one impressive finish, Dani!! I'm sure Kathy is beyond thrilled :)

Love the photo of you in the Corvette--I have no idea how to drive a standard! With the hills around here, very few people have them...

Catherine said...

Great post of goodies ~ but my favorite thing is the great smile on your face!

Teresa S. said...

Wonderful,fun post!
The car is awesome (per my grandson).
And thanks for changing the background on the post-now I can read it so much easier :)

Sally said...

Super, super stitching Dani. The Christmas piece looks amazing.

Wow lucky you getting to drive that car!

Anonymous said...

I love Kathy's Christmas sampler! It really turned out beautiful.

Anne said...

Congrats on finishing the ABC Sampler! It's lovely!! You look great in that corvette :D Love the variegated thread you chose for the satin stitched border! It's a great version!!

Andrea said...

Great stitching, I love the Christmas sampler you finished for Kathy.

Sharon said...

What an awesome gift to give Kathy, it looks amazing! Your LK piece is very pretty!

Jo who can't think of a clever nickname said...

Such dedication to a friend! The ABC looks amazing.

Great stash accumulation too. I think I have those little tags somewhere too, I stitched the previous year's and scrapbooked them so I'm sure I have these ones too.

stitcherw said...

Wow, lots of lovelies to look at. Congrats on the finish, what a lovely surprise to be able to give back to her :) Nice new stash too, love the fabric color.
Sue

Karoline said...

Congratulations on your finish, I bet Kathy was thrilled.

Glad you had a great trip

Kaisievic said...

Love your finish for Kathy.