Country Fried Stitches...

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Good afternoon friends!  Wow wow wow what an action packed month I've had already.  Earlier this month, my EGA chapters partnered to bring renowned needlework instructor Marion Scoular to WV to teach our group a whitework technique called Pulled Stitches.  It is a totally new technique for me (to which hubby said, Seriously?  How is that possible?) and I thoroughly enjoyed expanding my stitching repertoire with this two day workshop.

As you can see, this is an early progress pic.  I'll be finishing this little hummingbird later this month and will be sure to post the finished pic then.

The following weekend was my birthday and hubby decided a quick four day get-away would be good for us.  We drove just three hours up the road to Columbus OH to visit the Country Living Fair, see Cirque du Soleil (Totem), eat at lobster or two at the Fish Market, and swing by (wink wink) a couple of very highly recommended needlepoint shops in Dublin and Powell.

Well.  I'm here to tell you, it was a whirlwind weekend but I enjoyed every last second of it.  I can not say enough good things about the women at What's the Point in Dublin and Louise's Needlepoint in Powell.  Both were exceedingly pleasant, funny, helpful and not even slightly pushy.  Oh, and the sales! 

HappyBirthdayToMe, HappyBirthdayToMe.... :-D

Being brand spankin' new to painted canvas, I decided to pace myself and focus on small things.  While there were dozens upon dozens of small canvases to choose from, I couldn't resist these:

 

The peacock is by Squiggee Designs and is stunning in real life.  I am very excited to start on it but also a little intimidated (no stitch guide). I want to do it justice and I'm not feeling super confident in my needlepoint skills.  The good news is I have several friends who are needlepoint experts and I plan to pick their brains before I set my first stitch in that one.  I'm thinking spangles!!!

I couldn't wait to start the little stocking and actually worked on it quite a bit in the hotel.. Here is my current progress with it:

I'm honestly loving it and can't wait to send it off to be finished.

And, clearly, I haven't put stitch 1 in my Monet piece since July/August.  I keep hoping the stitching elves will help a girl out.

That's all the news that's fit to report, friends..

Til next time, keep your needles nimble,