Sunday 19 May 2019

Birds, Most Wanted List Continued, Hubby's Latest Toy

Hubby with his Ryker.  He's loving it and it has taken a load of worry off my mind. I now notice them on the road; many more than I would have thought.  I guess with the population aging and bikers wanting to bike no matter the age, it makes sense these rigs become more popular.

My hand stitching time lately was devoted to cross stitch and I made reasonable progress on the Cornwall Cottage Sampler.  I worked on that feathery kind of green border which you might miss altogether if not pointed out.
Before....

Repetitious and not that interesting to stitch but I got it done. Everything lined up, whew! And this month I will concentrate on finishing the basket.
Today...
I am so happy to link up with my fellow stitchers at the international SAL hosted by Avis at Sewing Beside the Sea. It has provided just the incentive I needed to get this project finished.  And I'm finding it fascinating to see what these folks are creating with their cloth and threads.
AvisClaireGunCaroleSueConstanzeDebbieroseChristinaKathyMargaretCindyHelenLindaHeidiJackieSunnyHayleyMeganCatherineDeborahConnieClare, Mary MargaretReneeJennyCarmelaJocelynSharon

Quick question...can needlepoint designs be used for cross stitch?
 I started my stitching journey decades ago with needlepoint and hope to return to it when my eyes start to have issues with counting. I was given this gorgeous book by the wonderful needlepoint artist, Beth Russell. Inspired by William Morris.
There is this pattern I would be interested in working.  So please let me know if you think this is possible.


Most Wanted List-continued

French General Fleur de Noel fabricImage result for french general fleur de noel fabric

Blackbird Designs Wild Orchid fabric. Some say this is gone forever.  Please say that isn't true! It was so popular!

Image result for blackbird designs orchid
Perky Pet Oriole Jelly Wildlife feeder. Kind Collette at What About Rheema?  sent me this link on Amazon to check them out.



I got no photos of orioles at the farm but was thrilled to spy one just a couple of times. I've yet to see one here but know they are around. So I would love to attract them.
Here is one of the rose breasted grosbeaks taken back in 2015 at the farm with my little point and shoot camera. It was thrilling to watch him at the feeder and he grew comfortable with other birds like the mourning dove being very close by.


I have a hankering for something baked...think I will make a cake today, the old fashioned way baked in the oven! (Definitely not going to be using my bread machine again for cakes).

Hope all is right with your world today!
Linking this post with Kathy's Quilts  and Viewing Nature With Eileen.

25 comments :

Karen - Quilts...etc. said...

those birds sure are pretty. I have no answers on needle point - I hope you get answers to that. One of my younger brothers a motorcycle rider has gone to a 3 wheeler - his has one wheel in front and two in back - much safer then the ones he used to ride. He is about 57 I think

Sewing Beside the Sea said...

Yes, you can use the needlepoint patterns for cross stitch. Just do a small part of the design first to check you're happy with colours as cross stitches sometimes show the fabric a little unless there's a high holes per inch count. Great progress on the sampler. A finish is just around the corner :-)

Brian's Home Blog said...

That is some cool ride, it looks like something Batman would have! Love the birdies!!!

Karrin Hurd said...

Beautiful cross stitch!

Christina said...

Your sampler is beautiful!

eileeninmd said...

Hello, Jocelyn! Your cross stitch is pretty. That is a neat 3 wheel motorcycle. I like your Oriole jelly feeder. Great capture of the Grosbeak and Dove. Thanks so much for linking up and sharing your post. Have a happy day and a great new week!

Karla (ThreadBndr) said...

I have one of the other William Morris books, and if I remember correctly, it uses the same charts for both the rug canvas and a smaller cross stitch pillow. So I think you are good. I would use an overdyed dark linen for my ground fabric. It will be very pretty!

K Reeves said...

I definitely think you could cross stitch needlepoint designs. The trickiest part would be selecting the fabric to get a thread count that gives the coverage you desire, but that could also be fixed with more threads on the needle too. I love your cross stitch, and you are nearly finished; looking forward to the happy dance!

Pyros & Patch said...

Hi!Very beautiful!Have had good progress.It's lovely..
Carmels

Robin said...

https://shopriversedge.biz/cgi-bin/Store/store.cgi?product=wild_orchid_main&productid=2770_14&tracking4=search%202770_14&pid=1#2770_14
Found a few pieces of Wild Orchid here - Good Luck!

Magpie Sue said...

I should think that pattern from your book would work up beautifully in needlepoint. I would expect most any cross stitch pattern could be worked in needlepoint just fine. Good for you, sticking with that boring-to-stitch border until you had it done! The sampler is looking yummy. :-)

Magpie Sue said...

Okay, so I got it all backwards. Either way, in my opinion, graphed charts can be worked in either cross stitch or needlepoint. You might have to add in backstitching (or not), little tweaks like that, but otherwise I should thing you could go either way. :-)

Out To Pasture said...

That Ryker bike sure looks like a lot of fun! Good for your hubby to treat himself. Jocelyn, I've got about a dozen oreoles guzzling down grape jelly at my feeder here. Funny thing, I've tried them with other fruit jams and they always rebel and demand "grape only, please!"
I also like that chic piece with the birds and strawberries and dramatic dark background.

Siouxzq64@gmail.com said...

Hubby's bike looks like it is fun and settles the mind for you. Great bird pics. You are looking for fabric have you looked on Etsy sometimes you will find older lines there too. Love your cross stitch.

Libby in TN said...

You should be able to transpose many needlepoint patterns to crosstitch as the basic grid is the same. Some designs and themes might transpose better than others, definitely worth a try.

Nana said...

A nice "bike"! And also your needlework is lovely.

Nana

Anonymous said...

well done on finishing the border!
claire93

Chopin - A Passionate Quilter said...

Beautiful cross stitching! And those birds! So pretty!

R's Rue said...

Love

Sunny said...

Wow -- great work on getting that border stitched! I love this piece. As the others have said, charted designs can work equally well for cross stitch or needlepoint, but make sure your thread (or floss or wool, etc.) has enough coverage for your background fabric. One of my previous S-A-L projects was a Beth Russell design of William Morris's "Fox", and I'm still so pleased by it. I also think I might have a book in the basement with that pattern charted for cross stitch; I'll have a rummage around looking for it.

G Adrian, Sweden said...

Looking so great!

Jenn Jilks said...

This drives me nuts all day: motorcycles! With their radios on full-blast. sigh.
I love your needlework. I need a project.

Angie said...

Jocelyn - looks like you got your answer on converting needlepoint to cross-stitch. A friend of mine told me about an app called pictopat, which converts pictures to cross-stitch designs, including floss colors etc. Might be worth a try. Thanks for the link to the Jelly Feeder - I would like to give this a try!

Magpie's Mumblings said...

I hope you manage to attract orioles - I've heard that they love orange halves too, so you might want to try that as well. A friend has a Ryker and he loves it - and you're right to say that there's more of them on the road all the time. I can't weigh in on the needlepoint/cross stitch question but I don't see any reason why it shouldn't work.

Instant Embroidery & Promotions said...


Thanks for sharing your great postScreen printing in Calgary Alberta

Sportswear decorating Calgary