St. Valentine's Day Free Pattern

I promise you I had every intention of stitching this by now . . .

What's that expression? Man plans and God laughs . . . after this past week I have no problem believing that.

It's a tiny pattern, only 1.5 inches by 2 inches when done over two on 40 count. With any luck I'll have it done by St. Valentine's Day but I wouldn't be at all surprised if some of you had it done before me.

If you'd like to download the pattern simply click on the Free Patterns link on my sidebar. Maybe pictures of some of your finishes will compel me to get started on it.

xoxo

Jennie Lynn

Journey's End

Let thy love my spirit cheer as my guard, my guide, my friend, lead me to my journey's end.

Now I have to admit this one gave me some trouble. (See earlier post regarding the trials and tribulations of hand dyed threads). Now with my husband being so busy the framing is going to take longer than I anticipated. So I decided to put up a picture of it unframed. I was just waiting for a nice sunny day since I was having a lot of trouble getting the white to show up. It shows up quite nicely against the dark linen but my photography skills are somewhat lacking. Then again I'm a stitcher, not a photographer, so maybe I shouldn't be so hard on myself.

Let me know what you think of the finished piece; feedback is always welcome. I was going to wait until it had been framed to put the pattern up for sale, but if you're interested simply click on the Patterns to Purchase link on my sidebar or e-mail me.

xoxo

Jennie Lynn

Fabric and Framing

Journey's End is finished . . . well almost. The stitching is complete, I'm simply waiting on my husband to make me a frame for it. In the meantime I'm picking a fabric to go around it. I like using fabric as a mat inside the frame. Really I try to use something from my fabric stash anytime I can; what's the point of having it sit in a box? I also have to decide how to finish the frame. Currently I have no ideas about that whatsoever. Whenever in doubt, though, white is always a safe bet.

Next up is Keeping Joy. It's very similar to Journey's End. As a matter of fact it uses a lot of components of Journey's End that just didn't end up working in the final design. That happens to me quite often. I think I'm going in a particular direction with a design and then suddenly it takes a sharp turn. Some pieces stay, and some go, and some I hate to see go. But if I'm particularly enamored with a certain piece of the design that just doesn't work I simply work it into another design. This time however I think I'm going to use pink rather than blue and gold. I adore pink; at this moment I'm typing on a pink laptop. I find myself gravitating towards pink quite often in my designing so I make a conscious effort to use other colors. I've been so successful that I don't have any designs in pink. I think it's time so stay tuned for that. I've already picked out the colors. I love having a finished piece but the idea of not having anything ready to stitch panics me, so I got together the supplies for Keeping Joy days ago. It's a quick stitch so I should have it up in a week or so provided the children don't get anymore snow days.

xoxo

Jennie Lynn

Sneak Peak of Journey's End

Here is just a little peak at my next pattern and I haven't got much more than this stitched. I don't know if I'm the only one with this problem, but hand dyed threads present me with unique challenges. They are beautiful and I love stitching with them. I had a skein (well some of a skein) of WDW Gold Leaf left over from another project. Now I must have bought that skein a year ago if not longer. I was using it in this design, ran out of it and needed to buy another skein. The new skein had so much more brown in it than yellow it looked like a completely different color. It was still a lovely color but it looked so different than the one I was already stitching with I had to take out all the old stitches and redo them with the new thread. This was the only part of the design I've had time to restitch. I despise taking out stitches but I suppose lesson learned. Always check my threads and when necessary stitch with a new skein, preferably before I start any stitching at all.

xoxo

Jennie Lynn

Bluebird

I got a comment and a couple of e-mails asking about my Bluebird. It hadn't actually occurred to me but it is one of my patterns. It's from years ago and I designed it for that beautiful blue toile which is the backing of the bird. It's funny where inspiration can come from.

The pattern is a somewhat randomly arranged alphabet of both upper and lower case letters. It's stitched over two on 40ct R & R Park City Blend using GA Barn Grey because it matched the blue in the fabric. It was finished into the bird and hung with tea stained silk ribbon. It spends most of its' time in my craftroom but recently moved to my diningroom because the blues so nicely reflected the icy winter weather we've been having.

Thank you for your kind words about it and if you're interested in the pattern let me know. The pattern would include the alphabet and a sewing pattern for the bird itself when stitched over two on 40ct. If stitched on another size linen the pattern would have to be resized which I typically do using the copier function on my printer. A printed pattern is $6.50 including shipping charges and an e-pattern is $5.00. If you're interested simply e-mail me at appleseedprim@yahoo.com or use the link on my sidebar.

xoxo

Jennie Lynn

The First Tulips of the Season

My husband and I had a little spat yesterday and in way of an apology he came home from picking up the children from school with these beautiful tulips from the local flower shop. I wasn't terribly angry at him this morning; I was letting go of it, honest. The tulips helped though. They're a hint of spring and on such a sunny day I could almost convince myself that it wasn't thirty degrees outside. Though I have to admit I'm in no rush for winter to end. It's odd how such a little thing can make such a big difference. I had to include a picture of the little card that came with the flowers. My husband's message made me smile but the card itself made me laugh. The flower shop has preprinted cards for anniversaries, birthdays AND for when you're in the doghouse.

I'm working on a new design and hopefully if I'm not too tired tonight I can get the last little stitching done in one area so I can give you a sneak peak tomorrow, so stay tuned.

xoxo

Jennie Lynn

Fancy Peacock Needle Book

While waiting for some linen to arrive for my next project I designed and stitched this little guy. I love designing peacocks and had a lot of fun doing this one's tail a little differently. The colors are unusual for me too; it's been sunny here the past few days and these colors just seemed perfect. I finished it as a little needle book with some wool inside. The finished measurements stitched over two on 40ct linen is 3.5 inches wide and 7 inches long opened. I put my initials on the back panel but the pattern includes the full alphabet. I've decided to offer this one as a PDF pattern only; the cost is $5.00 for the full pattern chart, thread colors and linen used, and the alphabet. Simply e-mail me if you're interested and I'll send the pattern file as an attachment within 24 hours. I hope you like him and hopefully the linen for my next project will arrive next week.

xoxo

Jennie Lynn

Seek Thy Love PDF Pattern

I have decided to offer Seek Thy Love as a PDF pattern file as well as a printed pattern. If you would like the pattern as a PDF file simply e-mail me at appleseedprim@yahoo.com or clink on the link on my sidebar and I will send you a paypal invoice an file within 24 hours. The cost will be $5.00. Hopefully this is a little more convenient for some people. PersonallyI love these types of patterns . . . instant gratification. The pattern is in my hand and I can start stitching immediately. Patience is a virtue I was never blessed with and innovations such as computers and the internet certainly haven't helped me learn any.

xoxo

Jennie Lynn

What's wrong with this picture?

What's wrong with this picture? At first glance, absolutely nothing. It's a beautiful drawing done by my seven year old son, Benjamin. It's a drawing of his house, he explained to me. He's much more adventurous with interior paint choices than I am, his attic space is a lot better organized and his basement (complete with a clothes dryer and washing machine) is much neater. It's a wonderful picture and I told him as much. Then he told me about the people in his picture. Daddy he drew to the left, playing video games. Mommy he drew to the right, vacuuming. Now you tell me what's wrong with this picture? I showed it to my husband and told him that tonight, just to shake things up, maybe he should do the vacuuming.

xoxo

Jennie Lynn

Seek Thy Love -- A Pattern to Purchase

Seek Thy Love is finally finished and ready to be purchased. My valentine to you. If you wish to view more pictures of or information about the finished design and pattern simply click on the link on my sidebar.

If you would like to purchase the pattern for $6.50 which includes shipping charges simply send me an e-mail using the link on my sidebar or directly at appleseedprim@yahoo.com. The pattern is also available on etsy, simply click on the link on my sidebar.

The pattern booklet includes a color photo, easy to read charts, as well as suggested thread colors and linens. It also includes a printed chart of the free pattern Peahen's Valentine. If you would like to download that pattern seperately please click on the Free Patterns link on my sidebar. The peahen was originally designed as part of the 1805 Valentine panel of Seek Thy Love but I opted instead for the Queen's and King's crowns. Of course the design is still lovely and complements Seek Thy Love well and you could easily incorporate a third panel if you choose or make a seperate little pincushion.

I hope you enjoy the pattern. Let me know what you think and remember I love seeing finishes of any of my patterns.

xoxo

Jennie Lynn

St. Valentine's Day Free Pattern -- Cross Stitch

Here is the St. Valentine's Day Free Pattern. It's a complement to the pattern for purchase Seek Thy Love which I will post tomorrow. The pattern is entitled Peahen's Valentine. Year after year my husband complains that Valentine's Day is a "woman's" holiday, that men are primarily ignored in the area of recieving gifts and being pampered. I'm not sure that's entirely true but even if it were I, personally, have no problem with that. The peahen (rather than the more traditional peacock) is in honor of that spirit. The colors used are GA Pumpkin Patch, GA Dark Chocolate, GA Heirloom Gold, GA Grecian Gold and GA Shaker White and it is stitched on 40 count Weeks Dye Works Angel Hair. (The same colors and one of the linens used in the Seek Thy Love pattern.) If you would like print the free pattern simply click on the link on my sidebar. I hope you enjoy the pattern and consider purchasing Seek Thy Love. The two patterns really do look quite lovely together.

xoxo

Jennie Lynn

St. Valentine's Day Pattern

I'm working on my St. Valentine's Day pattern Seek Thy Love. I started it a week ago. Now it's not a large pattern, it's actually quite small. I got hung up there for a day or two. I picked out such lovely colors and two perfect pieces of linen and set down to stitch. Then, of course, as I'm stitching I realize you can't even see two of the threads on the linen. It was the perfect color; it was an exact match!!! So back to the drawing board. Do I change the linen? Do I change the threads? I have a much larger selection of threads on hand then I do linen so I opted to change the threads. I have to admit I went through several options, actually stitching them onto the linen. After a couple of days and just a little frustration I think I've finally decided. So much stress over such a little pattern. I am so fussy about my colors. You'll have to tell me whether or not it was worth all the effort. Hopefully I'll have it finished by next week. Did I mention there will also be a free pattern to complement it? Look for both patterns next week.


xoxo

Jennie Lynn