Coffee and Cross Stitch

O Beautiful For Spacious Skies | Cross Stitch

Summer just kinda lends itself to patriotic stitching, doesn't it?  The summer holidays honoring our veterans, those who gave the ultimate sacrifice for our freedoms, and those who volunteer to continue to protect us and the freedoms we have help keep us in that patriotic mood.  At least for me they do.

Heartstring Samplery always has such wonderful designs (the coffee series is by far my favorite, of course), and when I saw this piece, I knew I had to add it to my stash. 

I used all the threads called for, and stitched it on 36 ct Legacy from Picture this Plus.

Cute, right?

I love how your initials and the date are incorporated into the design.  I had to alter the "J" slightly from the given alphabet, since it leaned left while the "A" leaned right.  It looks goofy.  So, with the help of my friend, Catherine (I sent her pics of the original and then the altered letter to see which was better), I had the "J" lean slightly right so it was closer to what the "A" was doing.  

I love the strawberry vine on this design, too.  The reds are perfect, and they frame the rest of the piece so nicely.

Are you guys working on any patriotic pieces for summer?  I have With Thy Needle and Thread patriotic piece in the works, which I hope to share with you all soon!

Bookstore | Cross Stitch

Over the past couple of months, I've had two people contact me after seeing pieces I've stitched here on my lil' ol' blog, asking for help.  I cannot even begin to tell you how much that means to me.  I've been neglecting my blog so much this past year, yet somehow still inspiring people to stitch their hearts out.

That said, I've made a promise to myself that I'd be better about posting more regularly.  I've even written it in my planner, so you know it's serious business.  I lost my stitching mojo there for a while, but I think I got it back.  At least, for now.  So, fingers crossed it hangs around for a while so I can share some of the fun things I'm working on.

Even with a bit of a lack of stitching mojo, I still managed to finish an ornament.  Little House Needleworks always has the cutest ornaments, and this one is no exception.

And, hello!  BOOKS!  How could I pass up an ornament that's of a bookstore?!

I need to make sure I do the finishing work on this one so I can put it on the tree that I promised myself I'd put up this Christmas.  I haven't had a Christmas tree in 3-4 years, and I miss it.

Oh, and what are you guys reading right now?  I've hit a couple duds so far this year, but I read The Nix, which was ok, The Bear and The Nightingale, which I really liked, In a Dark, Dark Wood, which was unfortunately very predictable, and I'm currently reading The Last Days of Night, which is about the patent lawsuit between Edison and Westinghouse back in the late 1800's.  So far, I'm loving it.  I have nine books on hold at the library for my nook, so hopefully they'll keep me busy over the next couple months!