Other New Pippin Designs

To make up for not being able to make it to Destination Dallas this past September, I ordered some canvases.  These are some of the canvases I ordered from Pippin Designs.

Jennifer has a series of seasonal designs.  I am blog-stitching summer, but here are the other 3 in the series.  The first is winter.

 Then, we have spring.

 And, finally, we have autumn.  Each one more interesting than the last.

 I used to believe that Needle Nicely didn't have many Halloween canvases.  Perhaps next week I'll show the wall of Halloween canvases we have put up to go with this one.

 Someone from Washington, DC, was in and mentioned that no one in that area seems to do doorstops.  With Vero's breezes, we really need plenty of them. 

Summer by Pippin

Jennifer Tan of Pippin Studio has done a series for the 4 seasons.  I have decided that "Summer" is the canvas I'll be stitching at home now that I have my stitching mojo back.  I will be stitching the kimono at the shop.  Both will be stitched primarily in Splendor.

Cleaning up after ripping

Here is a picture of the lines where I ripped out the red outline of my kimono.  Notice that there is a
residue remaining along the lines.  This residue would show through the pattern stitches within the boxes.

Next you can see where I folded over a piece of Scotch tape.  I used this piece of tape to remove the bits of residue.

Starting the Kimono outline

After I cut the recommended piece of 18-mesh canvas, I found the top center.  I also found the top center stitch of the kimono outline.  I am stitching the outline before I do any of the pattern stitches.  I am stitching the outline "in hand", but will transfer to stretcher bars when I start the pattern stitches.

This is my current status.  If you look closely, you can see the enlarged holes in the canvas indicating 10s. You can also see where I have inserted the needle to mark where I left out one section along the top.  I was wondering why I had so much canvas remaining on the left side of the design.  To my regret, I discovered the reason.  Just think of me ripping out and perhaps rethinking my stitching strategy.  Sigh! 

kimono class

I have finally gotten my stitching mojo back.  As a result I will be stitching a painted canvas at home and a counted Kimono at the shop.  I will have it as a class where I will offer different color possibilities from which people may choose.  The initial cost to the stitcher will be the Leaflet, the canvas, stretcher bars and the outline fiber (all will be stitched in Splendor).  I will be offering different possibilities of colorways from which students may choose.  Starting in January 2018,
the class will meet every Monday from 2-4pm at a daily cost of $20.00 ($10.00 per hour).  Students may take as long as required to complete the project, but always at the charge of $20.00 for 2-hour session.

I have always lusted after this project, but felt it wasn't commercial enough to teach.  No more.  I am 75 years old and if I am going to stitch this, now is the time.  I just decided to invite others along for the ride. The kimono is to be stitched on 18mesh canvas.  The overall canvas size is 20x24" and you may choose a colored canvas if I have it in stock.  The stretcher bars will be 20x15 so that the project will be moved and the bars will not be so unwieldy.  I have yet to do the math as to how large the finished design will be (the graph paper has no grid of 10s).

The Kimono is based upon a design by Maggie Lane.  I will be stitching it in bright, jewel tones with accents of Balger metallic.

What a success!

Marcia and I both got a jump-start on Needle Nicely's Small Business Saturday by coming in early. She kitted several canvases while I did the math and started keying in credit card numbers for items that people had pre-selected before the day.  Some are not in town, but "up North" visiting family.  Others are in town and wandered in throughout the day to pick up their canvases.

Clover informed me by email that this was the busiest day for my Clover credit card terminal.  Of course, they are talking about a little over 2 years.  We won't tell them about the other 34 years in Vero Beach!

I started my morning by stopping by the Vero Beach Book Center, a wonderful independent book store.  I'm not positive, but I think it opened in 1975.  I always stop there on Small Business Saturday before I go to Needle Nicely for the day.  Such an enjoyable tradition!

Demolition Derby

In my continuing effort to see all area ERs and Trauma Centers, last Wednesday night I managed to achieve another best.  I had gotten a steroid shot that afternoon and knew that i wouldn't be able to sleep Wednesday night.  I started downloading ebooks so I would have a selection from which to choose at 4am.  Thank goodness I take off my glasses when i am on the computer.  I got thirsty about 10pm and headed to the kitchen for some water.  I turned on the kitchen light--and there in the middle of the floor was a creepy black water bug.  I casually took a tissue from my pocket, leaned over to wipe it up and promptly overbalanced to do a one-point landing on the kitchen floor.  Split my forehead open, with blood everywhere.  I managed to get off the floor (a really amazing accomplishment) and woke up Arthur, my husband.  He cleaned up the blood (and killed "the bug") while we waited for the Rescue Squad to take me to Fort Pierce's Lawnwood Trauma Center.  On the way, I was more concerned that my Manhattanite husband was getting lost following the ambulance--Fort Pierce is not the safest area to be wandering around after dark!

So, I had a CAT scan, an EKG, some bloodwork and who knows what else while they gave me 6 stitches in my forehead.  The stitcher remarked that she was trying not to mar my beauty.  I responded that at 30 I was beautiful, at 75 I had to get over ir all!

The upshot was that I was there from about  10:20pm to 2am when they released me.  No medications.  Ta!

Because of my bloodthinner, on Thursday my face was solid black with both eyes swollen shut.  Not a pretty sight.  I was in semi-shock. On Friday, Arthur and I woke up to realize that we needed to check with my local doctor. First we went to my local gp, who was out-of-town, but I saw his nurse practitioner.  His office staff then shuttled me across the lobby to see Dr. Lieberman, who told me what to do with my face (wash with peroxide and then spread bacetracin all over it).

Monday, my gp was back in town and he had me stop my bloodthinner.  Tuesday I went to the wound care center, but they declined to treat me since my wound was sutured and not open.  They also recommended that I have Dr. Lieberman remove my sutures.  Went to him later Tuesday--he removed the sutures and suctioned out what he referred to as "currant jelly" from the  gigantic knot on my forehead.  Already last night it had started to swell again, so it was good that he is having me come back next week for more suctioning. The suctioning  sounds yucky!

One positive outcome of this entire episode is that I accepted that I needed to start using a walker.  Yesterday I went to a medical supply store and selected 2, a red one for the shop and a silver one for at home.  Now to retrain my thinking to use them.