~ WIP's & Woes ~

Good Morning Friends & Folk ~

Happy TUESDAY to us all...

{yes, I have to keep telling myself it is not Monday.}

Me thinks a #flosstube video might be made later today,

to show you a few of the Works In Progress that are now living in my stitching bags...

they run the gamut between Christmas, Everyday, Halloween & everything in-between.

so far, these are the 7 that I am flitting between

like a deranged moth...

and here are a few of my project bags ~

purple one is my beautiful PSS bag made by Faye of Carolina Stitcher,

beautiful floral bag is from Lucy Beam

skelly/day of the dead bag is from Stitch'n Button

and my favorite is my 'Witchy' bag, from Lela Mae ~

the title of this post is wip's & woes...

so you saw the wip's,

now for the woes:

I was looking through my piles of linen, to {what else} begin yet another design

and came across a few that I forgot to mark as to what color/count they are.

ugh.

I try {really} hard to pin a small note to them but sometimes they fall off

leaving me quite perplexed.

of course I can always figure out the count,

but the color or dye is another story.

so I know that the one on the top of the pile below is osnaburg ~

I do love cross stitching on that even though it is such a weird wonky count {35/36} and has cotton 'seeds' in it and is not 100% natural {cotton/poly}

but, the bottom two remain a mystery as to the color name...

and the one below with the needle in it is {I think} my own hand dyed/stained

Old Farmhouse Linen...

but I can't identify the other two.

How do you all store/organize your linens?

~ are they labeled?

~ by count or color?

~ what is your preferred count to cross stitch on?

Inquiring minds and all that...

{{ and stay tuned for the #flosstube video announcement on social media  }}

Blessings from the Farm

~ Lori

~ Good Things ~

Good Morning Friends & Folk!

a very happy Thursday to you all ~

Isn't this mid-October weather fabulous? 

well, it is here in beautiful old Virginia!

2 days in a row I have been wearing 

socks and long pants and a long sleeved shirt ~ seems weird not to be barefoot!

So ~

I have been stitching on models...

are you like me and have so many project bags for your WIPS?

I love this one...

it is from my talented friend Vitoria Gable at

 Stitch N Button <---click br="" here="">

I love sugar skulls and anything Dia de los Muertos 

and just had to keep this one for myself!

I mean just look at the quality and detail...

and that zipper pull is to DIE for {pun intended}

💀

here is the lining fabric

 seen through the heavy vinyl front: 

and here is the back!

🌼 ♥ 🌺 ♥ 🏵 ♥ 💮 ♥ 🏵 ♥ 🌺 ♥ 🌼

I am almost finished with this cross stitch design..

I named it 'Indian Summer' when I designed it in August,

so the name is staying even though I will be releasing it in a few days!

my gorgeous scissor fob also came from Vicki ~

there are so many cool things in her Etsy shop...

fobs....scissors....needle minders....project bags!

I have to finish this corn, 

one more corn cob and one more pumpkin on this.

I'm stitching it on my 30ct. Old Farmhouse Linen

using 2 strands of DMC threads over 2 threads of linen ~

 I like to switch between two of my favorite antique hoops when I work,

it helps the linen to keep from getting too marked by the hoops.

That's it for today!

what are you working on?

stitching? punching? hooking?

beading? embroidery?

there is so much creativity in each of us...

hoping you use a little bit of yours today!

Blessings from the Farm 

~ Lori

~ New Cross Stitch patterns Listed ~

 Now listed in our Etsy shop as paper/mailed or pdf/download patterns ~

"Samuel & Elizabeth" aka 'Sam & Libby"

 Who doesn't love Uncle Sam, or Aunt Libby?
... and who makes the dandiest apple pie in all of the USA ~ why this couple of course!

stitch count: 90 x 79
linen used: 30ct Straw from Weeks Dye Works
DMC threads: 310, 400, 420, 645, 926, 3064, 3782

model stitched using 2 strands over two threads and finished into a sawdust stuffed pillow
{our very own organic sawdust is available in our Etsy shop!}

 and ~

"My Threads are Cut"

This little gem had me on pins and needles {pun intended} while stitching it...
it is reminiscent of those wonky-bordered schoolgirl sampler of long ago that we love so much!
two tiny houses joined by a tidy little fence, a basket-ful of the words 'my threads are cut - my work is done.'

stitch count: 129 x 146
linen used: 40ct Old Farmhouse linen from Notforgotten Farm
Weeks Dye Works threads: tarragon, cognac, sand, schneckley, beige, confederate grey, molasses & havana

model stitched using 2 strands over two threads and framed under glass in a handpainted frame by yours truly {email/message me for frame availability}

 to see all of my cross stitch patterns, 

~ or to purchase these, click HERE

Kind thanks for your recent emails regarding both of these fun to stitch little designs!

{ I love them too!}

 We have also relisted our beautiful hand dyed & stained linens ~

these are being offered for Pre-Order again only.

Blessings from the Farm

 ~ Lori

~ A Handy Tip ~

 Good Morning Friends & Folk!

a glorious Tuesday on tap for us here at the Farm ~

...sunshine and warm temps, along with a subdued breeze 

will have me stitching on the front porch swing after my chores are done.

as you may know, I am stitching a new design that is entirely made up as I go ~

I sometimes feel this helps my work look more primitive, and...

well this one fits that bill completely!

the border hasn't met up at all the way I had hoped for,

as you can see on the bottom left under the yellow house I am stitching:

no worries, 

as I said before I will embrace this as a happy accident and roll with it.

 Look closely at where my needle is below:

you can see that I am stitching the windows on this tiny house ~ but ~

I am stitching them over the already-filled in house!

the threads by the way, 

of this fabulous tiny dwelling are WDW;  Schneckley, Confederate Gray & Terrapin

SO beautiful together!

I find that by filling in all of my stitches. especially on a house ~ 

then going back in and stitching the doors/windows/details 

helps keep me from making a counting mistake...

~ you all know I love frogs, but not of the cross stitch variety!!!

my stitches may look a bit different than yours, too

as I like to wax my threads before I stitch ~ the wax keeps the threads tight and neat-looking.

also, I am a 'backwards' cross stitcher...meaning, I work from right to left when I stitch,
and turn my work upside-down to stitch row-by-row. 

Sounds confusing, but

~ being dyslexic, I have to find certain ways to do things 

so my brain and hands can communicate my thoughts into what I want as a finished product!

I think in my next post I'll will show you what I mean by 'backwards' stitching...

~ or ~ perhaps a short video will show better what I mean.

♥️

So, how many of you have stitched over your work like I mentioned above?

and how many of you will do it now that I mentioned it?

inquiring minds....

Blessings from the Farm

 ~ Lori

~ In Betweens ~

I will be starting another new cross stitch design today ~

in-between working on my red Christmas sampler.

the red linen is beautiful, but since it is a winter design, and done in only one color floss ~

I really need to be working on something a little more softer and spring-like...

so I chose my 40ct Old Farmhouse stained/dyed linen {from Notforgotten Farm}

and some Weeks Dye Works threads:

 

aren't they beautiful?

I 'keep' them all on my huge old Kilt pin ~ very handy indeed!

 

since it is a dreary drizzly and damp Sunday ~

I will sit in my favorite stitching chair and stitch the day away...

 

my Stitcher's Tray on the arm of my wing-back chair is such a useful thing ~

don't have one?? well ~ these are available in our Etsy shop: 

HERE

 

I hope your day is filled with sweet moments doing what you love ~

Blessings from the Farm

 ~ Lori

~ Hickety Pickety ~ and Old Farmhouse Linen ~

 Hello Friends & Folk!

and a happy rainy Monday, early evening to you all ~

oh the temps have been mild ~ 

and our gardens are now sharing their new shoots & sprouts...rhubarb, parsely & mint...

garlic chives and oregano too!

the barn and farmyard is bustling with new life too...

 Hens are roosting on their nests ~ waiting patiently for tiny hatchlings ~

and I can't wait for little fluffy chicks to come once again.

I am in a chicken mood!

...most of you have seen my progress of Hickety Pickety...

Hickety Pickety

my Black Hen...

she lays eggs ~ for Gentlemen....

I love this old nursery rhyme 

and thought it would be a good excuse to stitch a whopper of a hen...

one who lays dozens of fresh eggs at a time no less!

 

 

I am happy to say that you may now purchase my sweet

Hickety Pickety cross stitch pattern ~ as either:

PDF/Instant Download -click HERE

or

PAPER/Mailed pattern -click HERE

I stitched this onto my hand dyed 40ct Old Farmhouse stained linen from Notforgotten Farm™

and love how it came out ~

Also ~

I have found a new source for my base linen

and am happy to say that I am offering my

 Hand Dyed Linen once again ~ 

in LIMITED QUANTITY & PRE ORDER ONLY

**ALL of my Hand Dyed/Stained linens are done one at a time by me ~ 

so expect that each piece of linen will be different from one another.

no two are EVER alike, but rest assured that...
... you will be receiving a piece of linen with stains & colors that I prefer to stitch on ♥️

so here is an example of my "Old Farmhouse" hand dyed linen from Notforgotten Farm™

{below} offered to you in 28ct, 30ct, 32ct, 40ct  ~  with 36ct coming soon!!

and

 here is an example of my "Ironstone" hand dyed linen from Notforgotten Farm™

{below} in 30ct ~ { I am hoping to add higher counts in this beautiful linen soon as well ~ }

and I cannot stress this enough my friends...

KINDLY NOTE ~ 

ALL LINEN PRE-ORDERS IN MY ETSY SHOP 

WILL SHIP BETWEEN 1 & 2 WEEKS FROM ORDER PLACED,

 EVEN IF ORDERED WITH OTHER PRODUCTS FROM OUR ETSY SHOP ~

WHY? WELL, I AM ONE PERSON ~ DYEING AND STAINING ALL OF THIS LINEN 

{FOR  MYSELF and for YOU}      ONE PIECE AT A TIME...

PLEASE DO NOT PURCHASE 

IF YOU CAN'T WAIT THE 1 - 2 WEEK SHIPPING TIME FOR MY LINENS ~ 

----> THANK YOU & I LOVE YOU ALL <--- br="">

and with all of that, I will leave you to go fix supper for my beloved and myself ~

a nice batch of fish, with red potatoes and roasted cauliflower...

happy stitching, everyone!

Blessings from the Farm

 ~ Lori