WARNING - this is going to be long, as I've been VERY busy this month, LOL! I have QUILT CANADA coming up in a couple of weeks, and I'm trying to get several new things done up for that, so here's what I've been doing:

First, I've noticed over the past couple of years, that more and more stitchers are looking for small kits... some beginner things, but also just quick and easy projects to travel with, or finish as gifts.

So I've been giving that a lot of thought, as kits are expensive and time consuming to assemble... but I finally decided, if there's a need, we should fill it.  But I wanted to keep it fairly simple - at least to begin with (wink).  So the first thing I did was RETIRE 16 Charmings - the first 4 sets (of 4) that I created.  These small, easy designs were the perfect base for what I had in mind for kits - though I must admit that in the beginning, my ideas were kind of vague!

I took the 4 Christmas motifs, modified and added to them, and turned them into absolutely adorable little bellpull ornaments, which are on the website (click on the link).

Second, the next set of four I'm working on will be FOLK BOOKMARKS, and they will be added to the KITS link once I have the models finished.  I found 4 short sayings about books, or reading, and I have the graphs all done, and I'm hoping to get them stitched (AND kitted) this weekend.

Which brings us to the THIRD project this month... creating FOUR NEW designs for the FRIDGE NOTES series!   Again, you can follow the link to see the existing set (if there's more than 4, the white backgrounds are the new ones).  These are notepads with magnets on the back (so you can hang them on your fridge), with designs stitched on perforated paper and inserted in the top!  I have 2 of them stitched so far, and again the last 2 are on my list for this weekend - wow, it looks like June is going to be busy as well!

Number FOUR is more a progress report, on something I designed that is out being stitched.  The model for DANCE WITH ME (the little girl on a water color background I've been telling you about) is on it's way home - hurrah!  It will be going out to shops in June, and in the July newsletter...

FIVE is a new design I finished, for a pair of GORGEOUS evening bags, which I'm calling GOLDEN MAZE and SILVER MAZE.  They are being stitched with Kreinik braids (gold and silver, obviously, LOL), so will be quite elegant for an evening out.  I plan to make a Dorset Button (with braid) in a lovely pinwheel pattern on one, and buy a large decorative button for the other... I'll see what I can find for a button, and whether it's gold or silver will determine the color of the Dorset!  This model went out to a stitcher near the beginning of the month, and the first one is about half stitched already (this stitcher is FAST!).  I already have the lining material on hand, and the chart set up, so can't wait to get them back and finish them.

But wait, ROFLOL, there's more!  Number SIX is ALSO a new design - I finally got the Keirstead IRIS & MONARCH artwork converted, and it looks gorgeous (if I do say so myself)!  That too has made it's way off to a stitcher, and I expect I'll have a good report for you on that one next month.

But I'm not done yet!!  After some discussion with the editor of "A Needle Pulling Thread", we have bumped the LOUIE ARMSTRONG piece I've been working on, ahead two issues, and I am frantically working on designs she would like to have instead... but she has been told that they are going on hold until AFTER Quilt Canada - I can only do so much, LOL.  So though I started SEVEN and EIGHT, they are mostly rough sketches and have been set aside for 2 weeks.

And now we're up to NINE.... I am updating the basic fridge magnets I used to make, to a lovely square plastic version ... if I can find small easels, I will also package some up to stand on a desk or shelf.  I love the look of these - and they are so much easier on my hands than using the manual machine that makes the other type of fridge magnet!  We will be retiring those old magnets shortly.... and I'm about half-way through making 9 dozen magnets (with 9 quilt sayings) for QC... I'll convert the rest if I have time, or after the event.

TEN and ELEVEN are things I did JUST for Quilt Canada, or at least in limited quantities.  I have half a dozen small, fat, wooden hearts, that are BEAUTIFUL, some are layers of different color woods, some have a hollow heart centre, all are stunning!  I picked them up at a gift shop (where they were just sitting in a bowl on the counter, looking pretty, LOL).  I drilled tiny holes in the tops and added an eyelet, and put them on silver chains, for beautiful necklaces!  However, they only had a limited quantity, and I may not get more, so the ones I have may be the only ones available.

Eleven was another limited item, though there's more of these (almost 40 all together), and they're needlework ... I had some cute little ornament toppers, a Santa, Rudolf and Snowman, so I ordered in some little 3" hoops, and created designs (smaller, slightly different versions of the charming sets, as well as two snowflake designs), and created little kits, which you can see HERE.  Again, these were a left-over item I hated to throw out, so re-purposed, and the patterns may not be available once this original batch is gone - though I think I'll keep stocking the wee hoops, and may re-package the patterns w/o the ornaments when they're gone.

Ten and eleven will NOT be available to shops, and the wood necklaces won't be added to the website unless there are any left over after QC... though the HOOPED kits are on the site now.

There's a few more things on the drawing board, but we're almost done May, so they will wait for next month - or at least next months note... but FYI (wink), I ALSO got the tile backsplash done in the kitchen, and the tile border done in the bathroom, though neither is grouted yet... (whew), no wonder I'm tired, ROFLOL... have a great month, and maybe I'll see you in Ottawa at Quilt Canada!

Wow what a month, LOL.  In spite of the work leading up to the Creativ Festival (in Toronto), I managed to work on THREE projects this month - and finish TWO of them!  I'm so proud of myself, ROFLOL.

Of course I am still working on the set of 4 wallets (remember I showed you the first 2 in Feb)... and I got the third one stitched (but not assembled), so the CAT is done this far (I think that w/o the button eyes in place, he looks like a zombie cat LOL):

So that was the first thing I finished ...  then I was looking at what to release to shops this month, and I thought "we haven't released a new Little Leaflet in a long time!", so I dug out my idea books, and scrolled through my in-progress designs, and came up with an adorable little silhouette of a child on a hobby horse, with the saying RIDE MORE... WORRY LESS (GBG).  It will be in next month's newsletter, so here's a peek at just a bit of it:

But of course, my favorite project I've been working on every spare minute (mainly while watching a WORLD OF DANCE marathon from our PVR, LOL), is the LOUIS ARMSTRONG piece in blues (of course).  I have Louis' head and shoulders finished, and I still have to stitch a few fingers on his trumpet hand, and then the trumpet next... the wording will be last, and I'll be done, LOL, should be any time now!  Just a reminder that this piece is for A NEEDLE PULLING THREAD, so won't be released any time soon... I've been talking to them about doing a series, since the first one (AUDREY HEPBURN - POSSIBLE) was in the magazine a couple years ago, so we'll see about that...

The stitcher working on DANCE WITH ME (the outline of a little girl dancing on a swirly water-color style background) sent an update, and she's about 3/4 done... I think this is going to be one of my favorite designs - but I say that a lot, ROFLOL...

I have TWO stitcher's waiting for projects as well - one is a Keirstead piece that is ALMOST designed, and the other is an idea similar to my SNOWBALLS & BELLS, only with Santa and Mrs Claus - and honestly, I haven't done more than preliminary drawings and idea notes for that collection... so still lots on my designing plate - and needle! 

What's on YOUR needle?

Not a lot of stitching this month (sigh), between the trip to England, and preparations for the Creative (less than 2 weeks away now) ... I haven't had a lot of time to stitch!  However, I did take the next of my little PURSE PAL designs with me to England, and got the front done, and started the back, so I'm quite pleased with that.

Before we left I did get almost half of the new WONDERFUL WORLD design stitched, so that is coming along quite well.  Not much time for designing, unfortunately, but once Creativ is done I'll get back to the designs I have on the drawing table.

I've been quite creative myself this week, LOL, building table extensions to turn two 4-foot tables into 6-footers, which will hold a couple of extra bins of charts - that will ease the snugness of the existing bins by allowing us to bring a few extra bins of charts.

This weekend I've been working on a card holder stand for my Needle Notes (blank note cards).  I think I'll make a box to keep the pieces in (along with the stock of cards), just the right size, and I'm going to cover it with modge-podge and pretty paper, (GBG), to make it sturdier.

LATER THAT WEEK... just FYI, I DID get the card holder stand AND it's box completed.  I even put some bright graphics on the top, so it looks very elegant, LOL.  I made a row of cubby-holes down the centre, to hold the stock of cards, with the long unassembled pieces of the strand fitting on either side, and the 2 triangular side pieces laying on top... it's bigger than I expected, but works well and goes together easily, so I'm very pleased with my construction attempts this month!  Now, on to Creativ Festival!

FROM MY NEEDLE - Wow, I had a VERY productive weekend near the beginning of Feb, LOL.  Remember some of the things I said were on the drawing board last month?  Well, not only did I finish the project notes for the three projects for Issue 50 of A Needle Pulling Thread (needlework magazine), I also finished designing the NEXT project (for Issue 51 - this will be the second in the series),  LOUIS ARMSTRONG, done in blues, to be stitched on a hand-dyed grey background fabric from Picture This Plus... and of course, I used my favorite song/saying "... and I think to myself, what a wonderful world..."  Now I just have to get it stitched in time!

FYI, the first in the series (an Audrey Hepburn design), was released to distributors and shops in January... which means you'll find it on the website this month (wink), just click on the link.

On the same weekend, I also finished up the Collective Stitch design I mentioned last month, a bough of apple blossoms, and the world's HELLO SPRING! in decorative script.  Gitta's will have the design as a free handout from June to August (note that Kathrin's DD is getting married, so they will be CLOSED JULY 13th).

And on the SAME weekend, LOL, I ALSO got a design done for Wichelt's newsletter... I did an interview with them as well, and I'll post a link here (and in my newsletter) when it's available.

(WHEW), that was a BUSY weekend, but I felt sooo productive!  Now I just have to finish that Keirstead I've been working on - and find a stitcher for it ... but that will probably be in the next update! 

As for MY stitching, I finally FINISHED the LION wallet (second of four), and can't wait to start the next one (CAT or FLAMINGO, hmmmm), but I think I better stitch LOUIS first (sigh).  The back of the lion came out beautifully... I started with a Zen-tangle inspired layout, but ended up selecting colors that gave the whole thing a very African vibe - quite suited to the LION - so I am very pleased with it!  I used Rainbow Gallery Fuzzy Stuff (FZ) for a nice furry mane, and that was the hardest part of the stitch... I did it last, but might suggest to anyone else stitching it that they stitch all of the lion (except the FZ), then start the back of the wallet, and alternate between stitching the mane and the back, as the FZ can be a little scratchy on the fingers! I used two shades of brown, but the darker one isn't quite dark enough, so I'll have to change that color to a darker one in the pattern instructions...  I have to play with the FZ as well, as I'm wondering about stitching over 2 on Aida (for a 7ct FZ mane!)... it may not be thick enough, but at full count is SOOOO thick, I'm curious...

And I had trouble finding dark enough gold-yellow (button) eyes for the LION, though I did find some nice pink ones for the FLAMINGO (I also re-designed the back of FLAMINGO the other day, and I really like it now, LOL)… I finally found some nice shiny gold ones with my CDN distributor, though they didn't have as dark a yellow as I wanted for the OWL (I bought the buttons shown in England, and am having trouble matching them now (sigh)), so I ended up ordering THOSE in bulk from the States!!  I've also ordered in some green buttons for the CAT eyes, so we'll see how I like them ... Here's a pic of the first 2 of the 4 designs that will all be in the same chart (the LION looks a bit funny w/o eyes, LOL, but they haven't arrived yet) ...

As you can see... I ended up adding a lightweight cotton sleeve to the top of each wallet, as the Aida was just too thick for the Flex Frames, even when I removed the seam allowances from the sleeve area.  However, I like them even better, (GBG), so that was lucky!  Now I'm trying to decide whether to put all 4 in one chart, or set them up individually...

So I actually DID start stitching LOUIS the other night, and have put in about 8 hours so far... I started with an area that had ALL the colors in, so I could see how they fit together, as they are all shades of blue, and so far, I'm loving it!!  I'm a tiny bit concerned about the amount of stitching I'm taking on myself... I may need to follow up with some of my stitchers who have been quiet lately...  Speaking of stitchers, a funny thing happened this month, LOL.

A customer emailed me to ask about a 3D design she thought she'd seen (turns out she was mistaken), but we got to talking about the idea... and it excited us both... and the long and short of it is that I have agreed to do the design, and she has agreed to stitch it for me!  I don't want to say too much right now, as it's just on the drawing board, and not being worked on yet... but here's a really big hint... think Santa and Mrs. Claus ... and 3D!

Well, I think that's it for me this month... basically, I'll be stitching the same project for a while, so I'll come visit next month, and let you know how I'm progressing!