Tuesday, July 6, 2010

An Autumnal Harvest of Stash Arrives

Greetings, Stitchers, from Hot, hot, hot Northern New Jersey. How hot is it? Well, only 100. And the humidity's not too bad...I keep reminding myself that it's like this for 3.5 months straight in Tulsa, Oklahoma (my hometown). But, enough of that, to put things in perspective, it's:

• 30 degrees Fahrenheit hotter than it's been for the past 10 days. (Well, starting on the 4th it reached that mark.)

• So hot that Friend Greg had to shamble over to Friend Tak's place yesterday because his power went out. Nary a cloud in the sky--so I was confused. Tak patiently explained that it's because it's hot and our power grid is old.

• So hot that the 2 window units are just barely passing muster--which means the one in the bedroom will frost up (humidity's climbing) soon, freeze over and refuse to work.

In conclusion, it's just Too Hot for New Jersey. I'm still amused that the NYC mayor declares a "Heat Wave" and talks of things like free city pools, "Cooling Centers" and ice creams in an address to the city when it gets like this.

Now, suddenly, I realize that I've got a strong Fall Longing. :P

So, if you're like me, and wishing to escape the heat then Look On to enjoy a (Happy Thing) tour of my recent stash acquisition.

After agreeing to take part in a private exchange (had been planning to take a break, but it was a Special Invitation! For Autumn! I was weak. :D), I dug in and looked deeply into the recipient's blog. I do know of the person, but not well, so it was fun catching up. But, not everyone loves Hallowe'en stichign as I do, and I pretty much reached that conclusion for this person. So, what to make. I really wanted to make something nice, that they would like, that also tickled my fancy, too! Searching and searching on the 'net brought Homespun Elegance to my attention. Now, I have an ornament (Santa Arrives Tonight 2009 WiP from them, but nothing else). I think I've become minorly obsessed. Do any others of you also hear their siren call? I don't usually see too much buzz around them on my blog wanderings.



This is an order from Anita, along with the OoP Fruit Sampler Salad: Cherry from Sisters and Best Friends(Hi, Sadie!) and a piece of WDW 30ct.Straw from an LNS. Please, please try her--you will not be disappointed. There are some great service places out there and then there are Disappointments. I don't wanna sling any mud, but if you've been recently let down, do try Anita. It couldn't be easier--you can just email her about what you are interested in and she communicates lightning fast. Only 1 of the 3 charts that I got were ones she "stocks" but the others were no problem for her to get and she did it so fast!





CHS Frederick: I finally got a copy of this goofy bird just under the wire. His mate, 'Rika, is on order for me as well, so soon they will be united in my stash. I've been agonizing for months over wanting to also get CHS "Designs from the Washington Post December 2005" before the OoP but just wasn't able to scrape it together in time. Hey; you can't win 'em all, right? ;) The straw and those flosses peeking in are a teaser for my autumn exchange--but the pattern's still a secret! I SO hope my partner will like it. I've already begun the stitching, and am second-guessing a part of the design, so we'll see how it works out as I go along. Do you also get So Nervous that your exchange will not be loved?





And This is the "Exchange for Me". I had it narrowed down to this or the one I chose, and I just kept fighting for Delivering Autumn even though it has a Black Cat and Pumpkin, inventing all sorts of rationales: "Well, this one's a little more complex so I should pick it; don't want Dear Partner to think I didn't care and just dashed it off." (Less is More.) "It's only ONE Jack o' Lantern!" (If one doesn't fancy jacks to begin with, how can it matter how many ?) "The orange isn't too saturated; it's not too loud, really it's very muted..." (I'm pretty sure that D.P.'s tastes are not much orange...)

Finally, I realized that what I really wanted was to stitch this baby and put it out at end of August to herald the Harvest Season and Hallowe'en. I could put it out WAY before it would be "okay" to bust out the Hallowe'en stuff...Yeah.... it's another LOL if I think I can get it done and dusted by August 1st, but I may yet! Wonder how I should finish it. could it be time to attempt a long cube? Or is this a wall hanging? Hmnn. I've got several other long-pillows in queue, so I'm shying away from that.

But, back to the point: Do you not LOVE these colors!? It's all the recommended except for 3 I already had. Now, I need to decide what count: do I go 1/2 on 36-40? Or do I do a 32 or 28 (as charted) with 2/2? I'm pretty sure I want to dye my own linen for this one as well--just a bit of some tan Rit crinkle-ings.

Well, I'm off to move away from the Hotsy PowerBook Screen to a Stitching Seat closer to the Air Con!



.•.





May your hands stay cool and dry
As your needles swiftly fly~


--Berit

19 comments:

Myra said...

I love Homespun Elegance designs. Their's is one of the few JCS Ornament issue designs I stitched. Delivering Autumn and Delivering Christmas are my favorites. I love the Autumn one for the same reasons you do and the Christmas one because of the dog. :o) Now your lovely stash pictures have me wanting to stitch Autumn designs.

It is HOT here too - may get up to 100 here tomorrow.

Sweet little quote at the end of your post - you are so eloquent.

Karen said...

Love all of the goodies! I love fall too and can't wait to start stitching for this year.

Homespun Elegance is one of my favorite designers and I can't wait to see you stitch this one up.

Hope it cools off soon....we are actually a little cooler in the south the last few days....mid-ninties. Hate to say it but hope the heat stays away.

Anonymous said...

Lovely autumn colours! I hope it cools down for you soon - it's cooler here than it has been, but set to heat up again at the weekend :(

Siobhán said...

Love the new stash, Berit! I love autumn, too. It's my favorite season, even if I do spend most of it wallowing in self pity because I miss the colors and scents of autumn in the midAtlantic states.

Homespun Elegance is a favorite of mine, too, though you wouldn't know it from my stitching! I collect their charts and don't usually get them out to stitch 'em, for whatever reason. I have a stack of their holiday ornaments, which are too flippin' cute. I can't wait to see you stitch your HE up!

Margaret said...

Isn't the heat awful? I'm hoping the humidity doesn't get too bad -- that's what I really hate! I love all your stash! Yes, I do love me some Homespun Elegance for sure! Those colors!!! Scrumptious! Love it love it!! Have fun with the exchanges! Hope that ac unit holds out!

Deb said...

This heat is awful, so I can see why you're thinking Fall - Fall weather would definitely be good right now. Love all your stash and those beautiful colors of floss.

Katrina said...

Fall is definitely my favorite time of the year :-). Great new stash, all the colors are gorgeous.

Chocolates4Breakfast (Terri ~ Boog) said...

Sorry about the heat wave. It's hot here in MI too but not quite that bad. Blech!

Love all you new stash. I also love HE, have a few of their charts but just don't get around to them....

Have fun doing the exchange.

Laura said...

I could not agree with you more--it is too hot to be in Jersey. I live 9 blocks from the beach and there is nary a breeze to be had. I've had my eye on Delivering Autumn for a while. The colors are definitely lovely. When I finish my baby stitching I may have to pick that one up.

Daffycat said...

Mmmmm, scrummy stash, Berit! I love Autumn too and Autumn stitching is my absolute fav!

Today in Oklahoma it is only 86 but feels much warmer due to very high humidity. It's been raining a lot the past few days! But I'll never complain about rain in July...it could be 105 with no rain for two months, right?

Christina said...

Lol - I know what you mean about the siren! I saw a GORGEOUS Christmas design by Witchy Stitches - never seen any of her designs before, how did that one pass me by? So of course, I have to trawl the net looking for anything else by her! You're right, it becomes an obsession.

Glad to see you found a Cherry sampler - that's going to look beautiful when finished. If it's anything like Winter Sampler, it'll be a joy to stitch too.

Loving your latest acquisition of Weeks Dye Works threads. How could you resist threads with names like 'Indian Summer' and 'Red Rocks'?? Must-buys, every single one of them!

Sally said...

Wonderful new stash! I ordered from Anita for the first time a while ago and it certainly won't be the last time :) She is brilliant!

Melissa Price said...

Berit, my temperature gauge in Montgomery, AL read 110 degrees F when I got in my car at 5:00pm this afternoon... UNBEARABLE!!! But we HAD to have groceries. And I feel for you all who aren't used to this oppressive heat. It's something else, and unless you are prepared for it, it's hard to survive it. Needless to say, I HAVE NOT been out to the garden over the last few days... Praying for relief, Melissa

mainely stitching said...

It's hovered just under the 100 mark here in Maine, too, which is simply bizarre and unnatural for this time of year. Stay cool. LOVE your projects!!

Meadows08 said...

I can see why you have the siren call Berit! The colours of the threads are stunning! Stay cool...

Littlebit said...

Ooooh, what beautiful autumn colors you have going on there. I LOVE AUTUMN!

As for our little run-in with power, yes, we have surge protectors. A lot of good it did; but then, not much had a chance with the lightening THAT close.

Tammy said...

I JUST pulled out the Delivering Autumn for myself!!

Anonymous said...

I'm definitely ready for autumn, but here in the middle east we don't really have seasons (just hot and hotter). Luckily October means moving back home to the UK and I for one can't wait for the chilly winds, multi coloured leaves and rain.
Love seeing all your projects though, the warm, cozy colours have inspired me to do some autumn stitching of my own :)

Anonymous said...

Wow, another Northern Jersey Girl. I really enjoyed reading your blog and then discovering that you maybe local to me. Very cool!