Hello to all my blogging friends. Here we are on another Wednesday exposing our spaces to the world. This week my craft room has been revealing a few hidden treasures that are now spread out on the ironing board so I can share them with you.
I have a guilty secret and I feel I now know you all well enough to be honest and own up......
My name is Annie and I was, in a former life, a x stitcher and embroiderer....Oh there you go now I have said it!!
There are other secrets that I may share with you at another time depending on how you react to this one :-)
I have been having a good sort out and have found some of my hidden treasures....Can anyone tell me why they were never framed?....answers on a postcard please :-)
I just know some of you will want a closer look so I have collaged them so you can enlarge for a good snoop browse at your leisure.
There are hours of work here and they were all rolled up together and hidden in a cooking foil box!
The one in the top left with the paving slabs on has literally 1000s of french knots making up the details....did I really have that much spare time on my hands ? You can see one of them is dated 1996 and I would have had a 12 yr old daughter , an 11 year old daughter and a 9 year old son back then so were there more hours in my days? How did I do it? and why oh why were they never framed up?.....and this really is just the tip of the iceberg folks :-)
I have also found this shoe box crammed full of little cross stitch kits, some of which came on the front of magazines.....and yes folks I probably still have all the magazines too!!
Does anyone have any suggestions as to what I can do with them all.....I wont be doing the x stitching now and they should go to good homes don't you think?
There you go. I feel so much better now I've confessed.
My latest LillyBo quilt and bag are also finished but I am still knitting a little friend to go in the pocket so pop back later in the week if you'd like to see it all. I will do my best to pop to see as many blogs as I can in between my sewing jobs later but would like to say thank you to all who call by here to leave such lovely comments.
Don't forget to link up your happy posts here to share with others and make the world a happier place to live.
35 comments:
Your x stitches are lovely! I would want them on display not hidden away somewhere! My eyes arent good enough (even with glasses) for such close up work.I started a cross stitch 5 years ago and it is still only half finished.X
Oh my goodness!! I didn't realize you had a boxful of them!! Don't we know a clever blogger who does lovely cross stitch??? x Jo
Stunning work!! I used to cross stitch too, but not for ages. I took years (literally) to finish one large Asian style piece (it was good, though not this tidy!) but I never got round to framing that either.... wonder what else your moving/tidy up will produce!! Have a lovely week. Helen, 8
Oh Annie, that picture with poppies! All equally beautiful and those paving slabs ... (Remember I am a poppy fan hence the first comment)
Cross stitch packs? Hm... Group such as Mencap's Gateway, hospital rehab place, Inskip (thinking of somewhere they might be put to use for dexterity) that kind of thing. Otherwise Charity shop to raise money. Sorry no more help.
Thanks for your visit, just got back from a delish brekkie, full up for the day now.
Hugs
Neet xxxx
Wow gorgeous x stitches Annie! Never tried my hand at this type of craft but it sure looks like a lot of fun (and work! lol)
Thanks for sharing and have a lovely week. xx
Waving hi from the Pyramids in Egypt!
Roudi # 58
You've always been stitchy crafty and I would say at that time the X stitch was the easiest thing to pick up and put down, didn't take up much space and allowed you to be creative...I know a handful of gals who came to crafting this way - me included. My eyesight is too bad now, it would drive me mad!! They are beautiful; but as you're about to move, framing them and sticking them on a wall to enjoy at last is probably not an option! Shame.
Lovely cross stitching Annie and the poppy field has to be my favourite. Maybe in the new house there will be room for them to be framed? As to the surplus kits... maybe pop one in the bag with the quilts... maybe a Mum who has to sit for long hours with her little one would find it therapeutic?
Great creative work, you could frame them, or make wonderful cards for family and friends.
Ref your unused kits...
Maybe run a little stall at a school or village hall fair and sell them making a little spare money for you and donating some to charity x
Happy WOYWW Heather #59
They are lovely Annie what a shame they have been hidden away. Ihve some unfinished pieces, some to be framed and some to be started. Not sure eyes good enough now. Thanks for popping by. Anne xx
Well you’re a dark horse, I didn’t realise that you cross stitched as well Annie. All the pieces are lovely for I especially love the poppy field one, it’s beautiful.
Not really sure what to suggest you do with all those little kits though. I’ve been known to stitch the smaller free kits onto a larger piece for aida fabric so they can be made into cushions for the Kids Company project but the ones I don’t stitch I usually hand in to the hospice charity shop. At least that way someone can get the pleasure of stitching them and the hospice is helped as well.
Happy Crafting!
Sue @86
x
Hi Annie, you're not the only one with that particular guilty secret - many cardmakers started with cross-stitch and one thing led to another :) So you could make them into cards instead of framing them - not suitable for all but maybe some. Confession time - I gave most of my kits away, either to my son't lovely partner or to a crafting buddy - both still have the patience and the eyesight for it. Charity shops might also be grateful for them. Have a happy WOYWW, Elizabeth x #26
Beautiful cross stitch Annie. Am sure I see a touch of Jo Verso in one of them?
I think Neet came up with some good ideas for the little kits. Like many others, I still have some cross stitch on the go, several in fact. Good for long plane journeys :)
Happy WOYWW!! Hugs, Di xx
what a shame all your hours of hard work didn't make it into frames and places around your home for people to admire. I am so glad you have dug them out and shared with us.
Maybe a hospice charity would like the little cross stitch ones in the box it may be that patients or their families would like to do them while spending hours by loved ones beds.
Have a great WOYWW thank you for sharing your workspace today
Ria #39
They are gorgeous funds. Such ntricate work. I have always fancied taking it up but it looks do delicate. eBay? Giveaways? School? Charity?
Famfa 105
I can't believe you're downsizing your home and your lovely work room too Annie. I'm not surprised you did xstitch too, love the top two, especially the poppy field. How about donating the box to an old people home or drop in centre?
Hugs
Brenda 105
Seeing as you have fessed up, I too can reveal that I was a prolific cross stitcher (and still am sometimes) and I too have pictures not framed!! I also have kits and magazines hidden away!
One reason for not framing them is running out of wall space and paying for the framing!
Those french knots are impressive!
Hugs
xx
wow that is some hoard, isnt it great when you find hidden stuff like that.
I used to be a big x stitcher too but dont enjoy it now. Your embroidery is lovely, so many feench knots and i know how hard they are to do.
You could always ebay them and buy more stash.
well done for the confession, i bet you feel much better now.
Gill x
Your pieces are lovely! I am all thumbs and can't do any kind of needle work (I did try needlepoint when I was young, but my attention is just too scattered, and after a year, I completed ONE pillowcase for my mom. 30 years later, she never rec'd a mate for it. I love quilts but can't sew a stitch! Enjoyed seeing your work! Enjoy the day! Winnie#78
Ohh my you have done some amazing work! It seems as you are moving now you have found a lot of those treasures - I used to do stiching but haven't done anything for ages - you reminded me now maybe I should start again!
Will be back to see your quilt! So many secrets have been revieled! Love it! Ha, ha!
Lots of hugs,
Cardarian
Your cross stitch is absolutely amazing.
Happy WOYWW Susi #84
sure enjoyed the snoop hehe adorable work! happy woyww!
All,that love and time spent on crafting is never wasted....I've got stuff like that packed away as well! Perhaps you could give the kits to a local school or retirement home?
And we ARE of an age, you and I!!
hugs, LLJ 32 xx
I think many of us are x-stitchers in a former life, Annie. I still get mine out from time to time and can assure you I have a box with three times as many kits in as you, although I have given some away to a local stitching group as I know I'll never do most of them.
I love the path with the garden border, that is really beautiful. thanks for sharing your guilty secret!!
Happy WOYWW
hugs Lisax #55
I have to confess that my box of cross-stitch kits is at least twice that size, but I can't bear to part with them yet. The little verse on the centre row of your pieces is one that I stitched for my Daughter-in-law when my first grand-daughter was born. She is twenty-one now and a mum herself!
I hope you get some viewers from your house quite soon. My son put his house on the market this week. It's in Erdington and he seems fairly confident that it will sell, but I am not so sure.
I hope the little ones are getting over their spots now.
Hugs. Kate x
There is some lovely work there - far to good to be in a box!!
Happy Wednesday
:)
Laura
93
Thanks for stopping by and Happy WOYWW to you. Oh the little secrets we all have STASHED away. I guess we were young and could do it all, We all must have the same mess!! How life changes. Thanks for sharing and I'd love to hear more!!
You certainly need a "Round Tooitt" for your beautiful embroideries and kits. The reason they are there is because you have branched off into so many other things so didn't get "around to it"!
Your local BBC radio action line would find a good cause or charitable home for anything you don't want. Just give them a ring. It's treasure for someone for sure!
lv Jo x
Lovely cross stitching, they should be seen, maybe lavender bags for your friends?
Rosie x
OMG I so love the pig, how could you hide him away all that time. I think we all have a hidden box of forgotten treasure somewhere in our house.
Happy Belated WOYWW
Eliza
Cross stitchers unite.... we all have a box stashed away with our finished and in my case unfinished cross stitch. They are beautiful and if we hang around long enough they will be back in vogue. There are too many other wonderful crafts that give instant satisfaction. Poor little xstitch will have to wait.
Sandra
Gorgeous cross stich creations. I admire anyone who manages to have the patience to do it. I have made a few small ones in my time, but needles, thread and me are NOT a good combination...lots of knots and mess and a cross Caro! Thanks for sharing. Happy belated WOYWW. Caro #56
ah Annie,
...a simple reason why they were not framed you could not afford it with three children but agree with you - where did you find the time..
..well the kits could go to those who will use them but think you need to frame the others and distribute them to your family members. With hours of dedication by you would surely be treasured by them?
happy WOYWW Shaz in Oz.x #17
PS oh love the wee smiley phots below :D
oh Annie we all have deep dark secrets. I have a lot of stitichery also secreted away and I think I might take it out and collage it up on my craft room wall...in frames of course. I used to spend a lot of time doing a lot of other things when the kids were little. My grandmother used to tell me to save some of the energy I would need it when I got older...I know what she means now! Little late getting around this week but better a little late then never! Hope you have a great week. Vickie #11
The one with the poppies is beautiful. I tried cross stitching a very long time ago, but I'm too impatient for results so it's not a craft for me! Sorry I'm so late returning your visit.
Fiona x
I too used to be a x-stitcher many moons ago. After chemo, my hands are not so good as they used to be. Maybe one day I'll go back to it again. What about giving the little freebie kits away, some of them look so cute as keepsake toppers for cards? Just an idea. Have fun with the viewing! Karen x
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