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June Berries

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June Berries is one of the charts in the book A Fine Collection by Blackbird Designs. It really did not appeal to me that much until I saw it actually stitched. I decided then it needed to go on my “stitching soon list.” The book contains a series of twelve charts, one for each month. It is copyright 2002 and is now Out of Print.

The called for fabric is 30ct Sleepy Hollow by R & R Reproductions but I selected a piece of 16ct Parchment aida by Zwigert. I had all of the floss that was called for except Gentle Arts Rhubarb so selected a couple of Victorian Motto Sampler Shoppe floss I thought might work.

Started Stitching: October 5, 2021
Finished Stitching: October 26, 2021

Recommended Floss/My Changes

  • GA Raspberry Parfait/ I used Victorian Motto Sampler Shoppe Sweet Pea for the border
  • GA Harvest Basket
  • GA Rhubab – I used Victorian Motto Sampler Shoppe Weigela Blossom
  • GA Dried Thyme
  • GA Woodsmoke
  • GA Cherry Bark
  • WDW Cocoa
  • WDW Schneckley
  • GA Barn Gray – I used Victorian Motto Sampler Shoppe Bedazzled
  • GA Forest Glade

June Berries 10/9/2021

And here it is finished. I think I am going to make a pin pillow out of it to add to the dough bowl.

And a good way to spend a rainy day is finishing this one into a pin pillow.

June Berries from the book A. Fine Collection

The Philanthropic Pumpkin

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The Philanthropic Pumpkin, a collaboration between Hands on Designs and Lady Dot Creates, is a limited edition kit sold as a fundraiser to benefit Special Olympics IA and the Sioux City Knights Special Olympics delegation. All available kits have been sold.

The Philanthropic Pumpkin

The kit included everything you needed (with the exception of the DMC floss) to stitch the design and finish it as pictured. I was lucky enough to be able to purchase the kit. Also included are excellent instructions for finishing and assembling the final piece.

I am switching out the included linen for a piece of 16ct white aida which will make the finished piece the same size. Since I did not have all the called for DMC colors, I am using Victorian Motto Sampler Shoppe floss for the two shades of orange used. Heirloom Pumpkins is for the darker shade and Gray’s Lily for the lighter one.

Finishing Kit

And my start on the stitching.

The Philanthropic Pumpkin stitching finished

I thought I had finished stitching the top but found out I missed the backstitching on four of the flowers so had to go back and fix that. I decided to read through the finishing instructions again before I started assembling. I decided to enlarge the circle template a bit (120%) so the stitching was not so close to the edge. The clipping around the circle made me a bit nervous so I probably did not clip quite as close as I should have so it is a bit lumpy around the edge but I figure the rickrack will hide most of it and besides pumpkins are NOT perfect circles.

For me, the stitching was much more fun than the finishing but I am happy with the end result. I need to get a stand for it so that is up a bit higher for display.

The Philanthropic Pumpkin

My Heart Can Rest

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My Heart Can Rest by Blackbird Designs was released in 2020. It was influenced by an original antique French sampler that is pictured in the leaflet.

Every house where love abides,
And friendship is a guest,
Is surely home, and home, sweet home.
For there the heart can rest.

Henry Van Dyke (1852-1933)
Supplies for My Heart Can Rest by Blackbird Designs

The chart calls for 36ct Heartland by Picture This Plus but I chose to use 16ct Fog also by Picture This Plus. I used all the called for colors:

  • Classic Colorworks Balsam Fir
  • Classic Colorworks Barn Door
  • Classic Colorworks Dirt Road
  • Classic Colorworks Fool’s Gold
  • Classic Colorworks Gingerbread
  • Classic Colorworks Jakey Brown
  • Classic Colorworks Mossy
  • Classic Colorworks Peanut Brittle
  • Classic Colorworks Pelican Gray
  • Weeks Dye Works Pine Needles
  • Weeks Dye Works Used Brick

The stitch count is 170w by 157h which makes the finished size 10 5/8 by 9 7/8.

Started Stitching: September 15, 2021
Finished Stitching: October 2, 2021

My Heart Can Rest Progress 9/27/2021

As charted, the bottom of the design contains a name and date. A number of us are changing and adding a verse. I graphed the words “Where Love Abides My Heart Can Rest.”

I decided to add my initials and Jims.

My Heart Can Rest Finished

Now to decide on a frame for this one.

July 2022 Framed and ready to hang.

My Heart Can Rest

More Blackbird Design Reprints

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The following charts are being or have been reprinted and are available to order from your local needlework shop (LNS).

Blackbird Design Chart Reprints

Honeysuckle Manor
Violet’s Blue
Maria Selby Humphrey 1831
Agnes Platt Strawberry Sampler Loose Feathers Spring 2013

Also being reprinted is the quilt pattern Midnight Silhouette.

Midnight Silhouette Quilt Pattern

What is a dough bowl?

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A dough bowl, or sometimes called a trencher, is a wooden vessel used to mix bread dough. Dating back to colonial times, these bowls were found in every home, and were carved from a large piece of wood. … The family dough bowl was a treasured and vital kitchen tool, and was passed down from mother to daughter.

Antique and rustic dough bowls can be quite expensive. I wanted to use one to display a bunch of small counted cross stitch pin pillows so went in search of something that would work. I did not need it to be an antique. My local Hobby Lobby came to the rescue. I was able to find both a large and a small one on sale. I bought both sizes plus an extra larger one for future use.

Dough bowl large size
Dough Bowl small size

Dimensions for the small size:

  • Length: 8 1/2″
  • Width: 19 3/4″
  • Height: 2 1/2″

Dimensions for the large size:

  • Length: 11 5/8″
  • Width: 22 1/2″
  • Height: 2 5/8″

And I still have plenty of room to add more once I get them stitched and finished.

Two Hearts One Love

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When I first saw this chart in one of my cross stitch groups I KNEW I had to stitch it for a dear friend who had recently lost her husband of seventy years. Two Hearts One Love is by Victoria House Designs, a new designer to me.

Two Hearts One Love cover

I chose a piece of 16ct Ivory by Zweigert from my stash and the called for DMC colors (152, 407, 950, 3012, 3046, 3722, 3781, 3782, 3790, and 3858). The stitch count is 125w by 150h which made the finished piece approximately 7 7/8 by 13 1/2.

I finished stitching this last night (9/15/2021) but forgot to not when I started, sometime the end of August. Now to decide on a frame.

Two Hearts One Love stitching finished

I decided to try a new place to order frames from, The Rusty Roof on Etsy. The rabbet depth on their frames is not as deep as I like but since I was not going to use glass and most of them were for smaller pieces, I figured it would work. I ordered one of the distressed wood frames in the color Espresso.

I pinned the stitched piece to a piece of foam core covered with a light weight cotton batting. It just fits into the frame with just enough room to use the point driver to hold everything together. I will then cover the back with brown kraft paper than when spritzed with water, dries taut. Rather than adding hanging hardware, I am using a black wrought iron easle.

Two Hearts One Love framed

Sarah’s Marking Sampler by The Goode Huswife

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When I first saw this small sampler displayed in one of the many cross stitching Facebook groups, I knew I wanted to stitch it. Only problem was I did not own the chart and it was OOP. Luckily, for me, a stitching friend offered to loan me her copy.

Sarah’s Marking Sampler cover

What exactly is a “marking sampler?”

A marking sampler is a small piece of cloth with the alphabet, numbers (up to ten) and possibly the name of the girl who made the sampler. … In Northwestern Europe, in the mid- to late nineteenth century, marking samplers were usually worked in cross stitch in a red silk, and later in a cotton thread.

From the Textile Research Centre

I selected a piece of 16ct Parchment aida I had in my stash along with the called for DMC floss. The finished piece would not be really large and framed could go on my sampler wall.

Floss colors used are DMC 610, 612, 645, 3011, 3021, and 3768.

Started Stitching: August 22, 2021
Finished Stitching: August 29, 2021

Sarah’s Marking Sampler Progress 8/28/2021

And it is now the stitching is finished. Now to decide on how to finish it – framed or pin pillow or something else.

Sarah’s Marking Sampler

A Bunch of Smalls

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I decided to go through the stitching drawer to see how many smaller finishes might be in there that I could attempt to fully finish. There are a lot more than I thought so I pulled them out and put them in a smaller container. I selected five of them to work on. Four of them were by Blackbird Designs and one was a free Christmas Bonus Chart from the Linens and Threads Mystery Sampler for 2020.

I selected the backing fabric for each one and ironed on light weight interfacing to the front stitched piece and backing fabric. Since my eyesight is poor, I decided to mark the stitching lines on the back of the stitched piece to make it easier for me to sew.

Top Row: Left, Bonus Chart from Mystery Sampler; Middle, Basket of Cherries,; Right, Apple Orchard
Bottom Row: Both are Coxcomb Bouquet

Once they were all stitched together, I stuffed them with polyester fiberfill. I found the corners particularly hard to get the stuffing to stay put. I closed the bottoms with a slip stitch but next time I will try the Ladder Stitch. Sorry, no photo of that stage.

Next it was time to select the trims I wanted to use. I am very fond of the ruched ribbon trim and had used it once before on an earlier ornament so decided to try that for at least a couple of them. Vonna Pfeiffer, The Twisted Stitcher, has an excellent tutorial HOW TO: Rusche Ribbon.

I had some chenille trims from Lady Dot Creates that I also decided to try. While it turned out OK, I think this was a thinner chenille trim and even doubled and twisted it looked skimpy.

Left: Coxcomb Bouquet – Right: Basket of Cherries
Basket of Cherries by Blackbird Design. Backing fabric also by Blackbird Designs
Coxcomb Bouquet by Blackbird Designs. Trim by Lady Dot Creates (petit chenille)
Apple Orchard by Blackbird Designs part of the Garden Club series. Backing fabric also by BBD Hyde Park series.
Coxcomb Bouquet by Blackbird Designs. Backing Fabric from the Hyde Park Collection by BBD. Chenille trim from Lady Dot Creates
Bonus Chart from Linen and Threads Mystery Sampler 2020 for January Ornament

And as you can see, the basket will not hold them all so I need to get a bigger one. I have three of this size all filled with smalls.

Basket from 1803OhioFarmBaskets

Maryland Blue Crab

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I first saw this chart posted in one of the many Facebook Cross Stitch groups I belong to. Maryland Blue Crab is the first of the Chesapeake Bay series by Ardith Designs.

Maryland Blue Crab chart cover

I had a piece of fabric in my stash in 16ct aida almost the exact color of the fabric used on the model. I selected Weeks Dye Works Jay Bird as the floss. It stitched up very quickly and now I need to decide how to finish it.

Maryland Blue Crab stitched

The fabric is much prettier than my photo shows.

I look forward to seeing what other designs she has for this series.

I sent this one off to Vonna Pfeiffer, The Twisted Stitcher to be finished.

Smallest Things Sampler

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When I first saw Smallest Things Sampler by Heart in Hand Needleart, I knew I HAD to stitch it for two of my step-daughters who were first time gradmas.

Smallest Things Sampler Chart Cover

“Sometimes the smallest things take up the most room in your heart.” The model stitched two over two on 32 Ct. legacy linen using Classic Colorworks and Weeks Dye Works. The stitch count is 80W x 84H so the finished size was only 5″ x 5.25″ which made for a quick stitch. The embellishments of a heart, flower and house buttons were included with the chart but I order two extra sets.

I selected 16ct French Country Mocha that I had in my stash to stitch it on and the recommended floss of which I had all but one of the colors.

Floss colors:

  • DMC 3053 or Classic Colorworks Eve’s Leaves
  • DMC 309 or Classic Colorworks Holly Berry
  • DMC 931 or Classic Colorworks Old Blue Jeans
  • DMC 761 or Classic Colorworks Rose Petal
  • DMC 3722 or Classic Colorworks Tennessee Red Clay
  • DMC 3052 or Classic Colorworks Weeping Willow
  • DMC 3045 or Classic Colorworks Ye Olde Gold
  • DMC 930 or Weeks Dye Works Blue Suede
  • DMC 3021 or Weeks Dye Works Grape Vine
  • DMC 822 or Weeks Dye Works Grits
  • DMC 611 or Weeks Dye Works Oilcloth

I decided to use my new favorite frame to finish these: Textured Gray Wood Frame that has a slightly greenish tint to it.