I forgot all about the Cousin’s Quilt Square that I need to have done by February 21. Old age I guess..the theme of this years quilt is “birds.”
I usually do a cross stitch pattern on waste cloth.
The waste cloth is attached to the top of your quilt square. Waste cloth is a patterned cloth that has threads running through it..so that a cross stitch design can be stitched upon it and then the cloth is soaked and removed. The threads are pulled..Far Guy likes to do that part.
Here is my pattern. My eyes are not as good as they used to be..but it is coming along.
I pulled some pinky looking floss..I am not sure that it is quite right for the thistle flower so I need to go to town to get some more floss.
I organize all my floss onto plastic holders, that are marked with the color and then they are put into the containers in numerical order. It is one of the things I am anal about…I like it perfect and not a mess. I have been cross stitching for about 30 years and there is nothing as frustrating as having a balled up messy bag of floss to sort through when you want to begin a project.
Years ago I began with cardboard thingys to wind the floss on..then the plastic ones came out. I have a bunch of extras..I am not sure that they even make them anymore. I am not sure why I have three boxes either..I may have used a box for each of the girls..they both enjoyed cross stitching too. I used to cross stitch on sweatshirts and give them away as gifts.
Someone asked for my Pork Chop Recipe. Use one box of Uncle Bens Wild and White Rice and 2 cups of water and a little butter put it all in a roasting pan and submerge three uncooked pork chops into the rice. Bake at 350 degrees for 90 minutes…whilst you are napping:)
I do a similar casserole...rice, pork chops, but instead of water I use mushroom soup and add green peppers and onions....mmm...and the same easy cooking.
ReplyDeleteMy string is in a tin organized but I have no divider. A tackle box makes a good sewing box.
I like your system for your embroidery thread. I have never tried cross stitch. The patterns intimidate me. The pork chop and rice recipe is the kind I like...put it together and forget it for an hour or so.
ReplyDeleteI have never embroidered, or not for decades at least. I like your sense of order with the floss. Did you create that pattern yourself? It's really good, but I wouldn't expect anything else from a classy lady like you.
ReplyDeleteNo I did not create the pattern..I purchased it a long time ago at one of those half off sales:)
DeleteThanks for the chop recipe, I don't do naps...too dang spastic...can I still make it work??? Heeehehehe!!!
ReplyDeleteOh sweetie, your square is gonna be gorgeous. :o)
God bless ya and have a fantabulous weekend!!!
Gonna get nasty, nasty here so I'm dreamin' of fireplaces and movies. A girl can dream, can't she???
Ahha you do sew! I love those spools for embroidery thread. I wish they had been in my life as a child. Some how my mother could stitch like a crazy woman and never have anything in a tangle, I didn't get that gene. But boy howdy I would try, then I caved to this same set up after she had passed, and just like finally being able to paint my walls a color (I know, I was an adult with four children before she died) it opened a whole new world to me.
ReplyDeleteI'm not a cross stitcher, my stitches were never even enough to pull it off, I opted for the more artsy fartsy cheatsy wheatsy embroidery techniques, go figure, I fail at consistency....
Your thistle however is looking wonderful! Can't wait to see it on the quilt, but first I request that we see it when you get the thistle petals in and then the bird.
I bought pork chops yesterday... but got sidetracked by a pasta machine I bought at GoodWill, so changed my dinner plans - I fried the chops, made a sauce/gravy and had that on homemade pasta! It might have been nicer to nap!!
ReplyDeleteI like your organized floss. I used to do a lot of cross stitch and smocking. My floss is also organized, but it is in a book like thing and the floss is looped through a hole in a cardboard strip. I haven't done cross stitch in years.
Your bird on the thistle is really cute! Can't wait to see it finished!
I am the same way with my floss. Has to be organized and sorted into colors. I like the bird idea for the quilt. It will be pretty when done. It has been awhile since I cross stitched. My old eyes need some new glasses first. And, I like that recipe too - especially the napping directions.
ReplyDeleteI have a similar picture of my sewing bobbins all lined up neatly. The 'neatly' part didn't last long.
ReplyDeleteDon't forget to show us a picture of the bird when it is done!
Oh my - you're so multi-talented!
ReplyDeleteI have a similar recipe to you and Gail. I use water *and* Mushroom soup. Hubby insists. ;-)
ReplyDeleteAnd we use brown rice.
And yes, it always comes out good. I love to see how other people do their recipes, too.
I am sure your cross-stitch bird will be fantastic!
Not so much old age as much multitasking. Your Cousin’s Quilt Square bird looks great. It's been a long time since I've done cross stitch; although it's one kind of handwork I really like. Never heard of waste cloth. Thanks for the info.
ReplyDeleteI love cross-stitching, and I should try finishing a multi-year project in the next few months while we have no cats to grab for the floss! I really like your storage system, too. Right now my floss is organized by project, with strands looped through a plastic pallette.
ReplyDeleteI have never heard of the special cloth that you are putting on top of your quilt piece. It makes sense to do it that way to save the counting on small threads in cloth. I hope we get to see it when we are done.
ReplyDeleteI've never done cross-stitching, but as I'm getting older I'd like to get it a try. This wastecloth sounds interesting - definitely show us your finished product!
ReplyDeleteAfter seeing your last blog I found some small boxes with 50 empty plastic spools on Amazon. I don't embroider, but I use embroidery thread for various craft and card projects. The chaos has been driving me crazy! I have that on my wish list now. ;) You need three. You can't fit everything you have into two and a woman always needs room for expansion. Anyways, tickled to know about the embroidery spools. Thanks, Connie! :)
ReplyDeleteSomeone gave me a organized box of floss and the colors are so pretty,but I don't cross stitch. I could try embroidery.
ReplyDeleteI always enjoy your quilt square each year. I LOVED to cross stitch when I was younger. I admire your neat box with floss. The bird/thistle will be very nice. Thanks, too, for the recipe....I need a nap!
ReplyDeleteLooks like you have a good start on that quilt square - you better get crackin' Feb 21st is just around the corner :) I have an organized floss bin too - years ago I embroidered and then cross stitched...
ReplyDeleteI love organization of all kinds for my crafts. I don't cross stitch but I do all sorts of other crafts and I love little compartments. Your cross stitch is just lovely. Can't wait to see the finished product.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the recipe! I make one with milk, chops and cream of mushroom soup and potatoes but that rice sounds good for a change. I have 3 boxes just like that for floss! I think I had 3 because that would hold all the colors I had which were almost all of them at one time. Now they have lots more, I think. Your bird on the thistle is going to be gorgeous. I can see you do great work! I haven't cross stitched in a long time but I still have books and unfinished projects. I've never used waste cloth but I've heard of it. Can't wait to see the finished quilt block. It will be a stunner!
ReplyDeleteI have floss for my teeth. giggle.
ReplyDeleteSure do admire you and the others that are so crafty