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(LOL! Ah geez, sometimes I just crack myself up ... !)
It reminds me of Laura Ingalls from "Little House on the Prairie". Laura had long brown braids.
I remember a scene from one of the books where Ma was in a hurry getting Laura and Mary ready for church and accidentally tied Laura's pink ribbons onto Mary's braids and Mary's blue ribbons onto Laura's.
Laura noticed the mistake right away, but didn't say anything because she was so happy that she got to wear something different. She stared at them all thru Mass.
I have absolutely NO idea WHY I remember that from some 35 years ago ... but I do. And it makes me smile.
See? Totally looks like braids. That chain stitch is amazing ... one of the coolest stitches I know.
This is not how the leaves are stitched in the original pattern ... I just felt like making mine this way.
They're fun to stitch and look pretty realistic, I'd say. Sorta like a Boston fern, maybe?
And I had to do more alterations to this letter. The flowers on the original design are really cute, but because I've reduced the size of my Sampler by 30%, those flowers became too small to look good.
So.
I came up with these tiny little pink bells. I have a thing for bell/drop type flowers. I just made 4 or 5 straight stitches for each flower. Easy peasy.
I'm not sure these flowers exist in real life. I think of them as stylized pink Lily-of-the-Valley. I bought one once from a mail-order garden nursery. It died. I'm not a very good gardener.
On the other hand, however, I'm a decent embroiderer ... happily these little pink bells will last forever!
Oh, and I added a little yellow knot - single strand only - to really emphasize the bell-ish-ness.
I think it worked out rather nicely.
Speaking of work, there are a TON of stitches in this little W ... (actual size is less than 1 1/2"!) ... and totally worth every single one.
LOL! V stands for VERY LONG TIME since I worked on this poor, neglected sampler!
It was a bit of an archeological dig to even find it buried under layers of Quilt Market sewing fabric & mending & ... stuff ... you know how it goes. ;)
ANYHOW, here's where I left off ... 3 months ago? Yikes!
I used the same brown as U.
And that long/short stitch again that I love so much. You just can't beat that texture!
The palest pink makes for a sweet little scallop trim.
But also super cool (I think I've been using that phrase too much lately ... but I can't think of any other way to decribe it right now so ... super cool it is.)
I kept thinking feathers on an arrow, as in bow & arrow. Can you see it too? Or am I just going completely mental here?
I was also asked about my needle size yesterday so I thought I'd do a little show & tell on the subject.
My favorite brand - Jeana Kimball's Embroidery/Redwork needles. Love them.
And my favorite size is 10. HOWEVER, I ran out of 10s and have been resorting to an old pack of 9s lately ... which are longer. Embroidery needle numbering is such that the larger the number, the smaller the needle. Totally decided by a man, I'm sure! LOL!
But I don't like buying new needles if I have some that still work, even though they are a little cumbersome.
Anyhow, a #9 embroidery needle is about 1 3/4" long.
I think my needle looks so big in my photos because it's really hard to judge the size of my letters without accurate reference ... they are just over 1 1/4" tall.
Remember, I like little. ;)
And since it's the end of another row ... AND it's Friday ...
(Eeeeeeeeeep!!!!!!)
And one more thing ...
As to my plans for this Sampler when the embroidery is done, still no final decision. But the floss was inspired - in part - by these fabrics ... Moda's Seaside Rose from about 7? - 8? years ago?
I may or may not use them for the finished piece. All I know is that it will become a wallhanging of some sort.
All right, that was 2 weeks of Daisychain Sampler catch up and it sure felt good! But my old tendonitis is starting to bark at me a little and my sister has gone home so I should take a little break. Kay?
Oh wait, and just one MORE thing ... I've had a few questions lately about the floss I'm using.
Here's a link to a previous post with all that info, including where to buy the pattern, the floss and what colors I'm using. There's also a category called Daisychain Sampler under Tags on the right side of my blog where you can check out my progress to date. ;)
You guys are just like totally awesome with all your pink S snake remedies! From trumpets to tubas you had some fantastic alternative visuals. But my favorite - and the most popular solution - was to fill in the curl at the end of the so-called tongue. I'm gonna do that.
But the problem in my mind is already solved because for the rest of my life when I see that "S" I will think of you and how funny and kind and generous you all are. :)
Also thank you for letting me know I'm in good snake-phobia company. :) I know it's irrational. And I don't want my daughters to inherit my junk ... I've gotten over A LOT of some pretty major hangups since becoming a mom ... like catching diarrhea with my bare hands and pulling teeth out another human being's head (that is just.not.cool! and that's what DAD'S are for!) But this snake thing ... I dunno.
But now on to T. This was a super fun one for me.
I loved how the colors in this letter turned out ...
... that what a happy coincidence Alicia's original Sampler has the reverse coloration and it works here for my Sampler too.
LOL! "Coloration!" Look at me using such a fancy schmancy word ... guess I'm feelin' kinda cerebral today ...
It's amazing how much embroidery I can get done when my sister is visiting. I really wish I had more stitchy friends that lived near by.
Why is it so hard to find people who like to sit around, drink tea, maybe eat yummy snacks, chat about whatever and make pretty designs on fabric with a simple needle and lovely thread?
Oh, and a few people asked me last week what I'm going to do with this Sampler when it's done. I do know it'll be hung on the wall. I'm leaning towards some sort of patchwork piecing to frame it. Maybe just in a frame. Haven't decided for sure. I'll have to play around a bit. I'm open to suggestions ...
This letter is done with a backstitch fill.
Which was totally ok with me.
'Cause it doesn't really matter (at least to me) if the stitches aren't all the same length.
And it has such a neat texture.
[Insert panic here]
Oh crap! NOW all of a sudden it looks like a pink snake - all poised like a hooded cobra, sticking out its tongue and ready to strike ... I HATE snakes!!!
No, you don't understand! I mean REALLY ... as in full blown phobia ... as in like Indiana Jones only add screaming like a girl running in the opposite direction with arms flailing in the air!!! (I won't even go into the reptile house at the zoo ... )
[Insert reconsidering very irrational response to thought of a snake in my Sampler and attempting to regain SOME semblance of maturity here]
But then again, maybe I don't like them because they don't come in pink ... maybe I could learn to like pink snakes ... hmmm, I'm gonna have to think about that one ...
And if you're Canadian, it's also for RRROLL up the RIM to win time, eh?! LOL! I actually went into a trash can yesterday because I forgot to roll up my rim before I threw out my cup ... didn't win anything though.
For those of you who have absolutely no flippin' idea what I'm talking about, lemme 'splain. There's a famous national donut chain (yes, there is some merit to the stereotype about Canadians & their donuts) called Tim Hortons - locally known as Tim's, Timmie's, Hortons ... and probably other nicknames I haven't heard.
Tim Horton was a hockey player turned entrepreneur. And may I just throw down the gauntlet by saying that Tim Hortons beats Krispy Kreme (an American donut chain) every day of the week and twice on Sundays. Other donut shops have gone head to head with Tim's, but none have lasted.
Just sayin'.
So once or twice a year, Tim's has a nationwide contest where you have a chance to win a prize ranging from a free coffee or donut to a car. The potential prize is hidden under the rolled edge of a paper cup, hence the term "roll up the rim" - and you have to roll the R like you're Scottish.
I don't drink coffee. Tim's does have a nice steeped tea, but I can get tea for free at home. And then there's also the thing about me not having enough self control to walk into a donut shop and NOT order a donut ... so "just a cup of tea" ALWAYS turns into "a medium steeped tea, double double (that's how I order cream & sugar) and a 10 (or 20) pack of assorted Timbits".
However, yesterday I was at the swimming pool for an hour on a field trip with my daughter and I WASN'T allowed to bring any stitching because then I wouldn't be WATCHING her jump off the diving board like I promised. And I also didn't have time to make a cup before I left home. But there just so happened to be a Tim's drive-thru on the way to the pool ...
But I digress.
LOL! I'm gonna make all you non-Canadians at least honorary citizens by virtue of meaningless trivia about this fine country if it KILLS me!!! LOL! You can thank me next time you're struggling for a topic of conversation and you find yourself talking about donuts and Snowy Owls at a cocktail party. ;)
All right, all right! Keep your shirt on ... here comes the Sampler.
I wasn't sure if this dark brown & light pink would work together.
I was worried the dark would end up super loud ...
... and the delicate pink would disappear.
I don't think that happened. I am totally diggin' how it turned out.
The first time I did a search for something on the internet was in June 2002 for my first daughter's first birthday. I wanted to take a picture of her wearing a fairy crown made from the pink daisies growing under our kitchen window. But I'd never made one before so I Googled "How to make a Fairy Crown."
Here's how it turned out.
That's my little cutie almost 10 years ago.
(Sorry 'bout the quality - they're photos of photos ... remember, I took them back in "the olden days" before I had a digital camera! LOL!)
A few years later, I made another one for my second daughter. This time we were on a holiday (and she was almost 18 months ... you know how it goes with the second child ...) No pink daisies to be found, but there were tons of white ones.
This is the little munchkin who made the anniversary embroidery I showed last week.
Is it normal that looking at these pictures of my babies makes my heart ache? I miss that new baby smell & the squooshy squoosh & pudgy cheeks & baby giggles & tiny fingers & them sleeping in my arms.
(Sigh.) Anyhow.
This is my long way of explaining WHY I wanted to make this "Daisychain Sampler" in the first place. Seriously. It was this post on Alicia's blog that sold me.
And now with this letter? I would do the entire alphabet with this style of letter. Really, I would!
I admit to almost wishing I'd used a darker background fabric so I could make the daisies white.
But I think this pale buttery yellow worked out so beautifully.
Normally, I'm a little (ok, a lot) fussy about my lazy daisy petals being exactly the same length and perfectly spaced around each flower. But in this application, I felt the haphazard, "natural" approach would suit this letter best.
So I let go of my OCD perfectionist tendencies and just let the petals be where they wanted to be. Some flowers with 5 petals and some with 6 ... and a few are just half flowers.
Love it.
Something told me to go with my favorite blue as the flower centers.
Could you not just weep?
Isn't it THE.most.unbelievably.pretty.letter.EVER?!
As you found out yesterday my sister is visiting. But despite the time lost searching for the Snowy Owl on the weekend, my sister & I still found some time to stitch & chat.
I forgot to show you the group shot after I finished the last row ...
And now for some poetry.
P is for Pretty.
P is for Pink.
P is for Perfect.
P.
I totally missed my calling as a poet. LOL! NOT! Think I'll stick to stitching & sewing.
Unless Sesame Street calls.
Then it'll be all, "I can't work with this big yellow bird. Get him off the set or I walk!"
I have a very rich ... & delusional ... imagination.
Oh my gosh you guys! I had no idea so many of you even remembered my poor Sampler, let alone missed it! I'm totally sorry 'bout that. Thanks for letting me know. Now I'll be more motivated to finish it. :)
So here I go again coloring outside the lines not following the pattern.
And yes it's all because of my deep & abiding dislike for the satin stitch. I especially didn't want to do it for this letter because the stitches would be reeeeeeally tight together along the inner circle and then a little farther apart along the outer circle.
I don't know why exactly, but doing that makes me crabby.
As my daughter used to object when she was little(r), "Me no like!"
So. I've chosen one of my all time favorite stitches instead - the feather stitch.
Now, I didn't exactly plan that well and used a bright blue pen to trace.
But do you think I was worried?
(Oh, and by the way, to join a feathered circle simply thread your last stitch thru the first one. Neat, eh?)
Sometimes I actually ENJOY solving problems like this ...
See? Colonial Knot to the rescue.
"There are no mistakes, only opportunities for embellishing."
Words to live by ... if you're like me and you love to make things, but don't always get it "right" on the first try.
Oh and in case you can't tell from the photo, I used two shades of yellow here. Just 'cause.
And in case you needed reminding of the nerd that is me, here's what I think about my beautiful golden filagree letter ...
Is now a good time to admit that back in high school a friend of mine & I used to write notes to each other using Rune letters we decoded from "The Hobbit"?
This is me rolling my eyes and shaking my head at my 15 year old self. Geez! No WONDER my parents didn't worry about me getting into trouble!
And no wonder I never had a date either! LOL! I guess I shoulda hung out a little more in the physics lab ...
How DID I end up snagging one of the hottest/most eligible jocks in school? Damn lucky I guess. :)
I feel so guilty having neglected my sweet little Sampler! Aye yay YAY! Thank you Sue Anne for the little nudge. ;)
It's not like me to leave something that I love so much alone. But I think it's because I'm taking so many "in progress" pictures of each letter. I literally have to perch in the livingroom next to my makeshift "photo studio" (THAT is a laughable description!), and hop up every 5 minutes or so to take a photo. Plus I need to do it during the day for good lighting so I can't stitch this up in front of the tv in the evening - my favorite time to stitch.
But enough whining and complaining. Here comes "N".
Wait, I take that back ... a little more complaining. See, I'm not a big fan of the backstitch. I like it more than the satin stitch, but ... it just gives me and my uneven stitches away. I MUCH prefer the stem stitch, which totally hides any little uneven-ness.
I know, you're probably wondering why. It's practically the easiest, most basic stitch of them all. I'm no staticisstatiticitiastatis ... BLAH! ... expert on statistics, but I bet it's in the top 5 of the most common embroidery stitches ... maybe even top 3 ... (maybe even #1 ... but I feel super nervous about saying something that bold and daring without something more than a hunch to back it up!)
It's just that I like to stitch fast and I can't do this stitch fast AND well. I can EITHER do it fast OR well. Guess which one I choose ...
Or half of the candy that melts in your mouth, not in your hands.
Or my daugher's middle initial.
Or just plain old "Mmmmmmmmmmmm", which is exactly how I feel about this color (again!).
You know, I really like the chain stitch ... once I figured out how to not pull too tightly so my links would stay nice and round!
It's another one of those cool texture stitches. I've used it as a purse handle, a skipping rope, a chain for a pocket watch, octopus tentacles ... it's super versatile.
But the whole time I was stitching up these flowers, all that was going through my head was, "The wheels on the bus go 'round and 'round, 'round and 'round, 'round and 'round ..."
Clearly I've been on one too many field trips with 5 year olds!
For the first time in this Sampler, I'm using a single ply - here for the Colonial knots.
I want the little knots in the flower centers to be delicate and I think 2 plies would be too chunky.
Remember, I reduced the size of my pattern by 30%. If you're stitching with embroidery floss too but on the pattern full size, you may not want to copy me here.
K is my favorite letter. I mean of all time. Before I was married my initials were K.K. Now I'm K.C. ... with my very own imaginary "Sunshine Band" all you 80s people ;).
I know it would have been expected for me to stitch it up in pink, but since E & J - the adjoining letters - are already pink, I just went with what color was needed here.
Light moss green. :)
I L.O.V.E. doing this stitch - long & short stitch. It takes a little bit to start seeing the texture.
But once you get going, it is the COOLEST thing.
Just to give you a scale reference ... told ya I like little!
Geez, I've neglected this poor Sampler for a month now! Shame on me. Let's blame it on Christmas. :)
Now you may (or may not) know I have a thing with quilting where I don't like the same color or the same print to "touch" when I'm piecing fabrics together. Well, I kinda have the same thing here.
I'm loosely following Alicia's color placement and she has dark pink in both "I" and "J".
I ALMOST changed the color. But I admire Alicia's talent so I figured if it's good enough for her, it's CERTAINLY good enough for me!
So I did it. I let the dark pink be beside itself here.
Ok. This wasn't so bad, satin-stitch wise, I mean.
I didn't worry as much about the edges being perfect.
'Cause I knew they would be hidden ...
... with a little outline. :)
You know, with all the yellow I've been using lately in my FWQAL blocks and now this pretty little letter, I really need to rethink my relationship with this color ...
July 4, 2012 
Is it just me or is it kinda sad that my Sampler is done?
Well, I guess now I'm faced with deciding on how to finish it.
I know for sure it'll be a wall hanging of some sort.
But do I just stick it in a store-bought frame?
Or do I do some sort of patchwork frame around it?
