Skip to main content

A Visitor, Victorian Emojis, and Festive Music

Happy Wednesday!

It was an interesting week here at the Castle. A new visitor flew in: 

Doesn't he look dashing? Judging from his outfit, he must have flown in from some frosty climate. He hasn't told me his name yet, instead he's taken up residence on the fireplace mantle.

Cross Stitch Corner

Usually I stitch in the morning, but last night I got my stitching done at night. Does that mean I'm a member of the nighttime stitcher club? (Does such a club even exist?) It was nice to lounge on my sofa, fire up a podcast or two, and make progress on Nikolai.

I glanced at last week's WIP update picture- which you can see here.

Here's this weeks progress: 

Now, I have to admit that I was pleasantly surprised at the progress I've made! I'm nearly finished with this column! The splash of orange on his coat was great to stitch, and it was thrilling to reach the horse's nose. Nikolai might look a bit out of focus right now, but I'm convinced that backstitch will make him, and especially his face, really jump out of the fabric. But I'm probably not going to backstitch as I go, instead I'll do all the backstitch once all of the cross stitch is completed. Stay tuned for that, dear reader, because that won't be for a good long while.

Odds & Ends

I never thought of it before, but they sort of were the emojis of their day!



Lastly, have some music to get you into the Christmas spirit. I decorated the Castle Christmas tree with this playing on the background:

Happy stitching! 

Want to get my posts delivered to your email? Signup to my free newsletter here 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Jane Eyre, a Horse, and an Irish Harp

Paolo Chiabrando  on Unsplash Happy Tuesday! It's a rainy, windy day here at the Castle. When the wind whistles past the windows, it makes me feel like I'm in Jane Eyre, looking out across a moor. Have you ever read Jane Eyre? It was required reading for me in High School. So, have you ever read a book that's so engrossing that you can't bring yourself to put it down? That's what Jane Eyre was like for me. If you haven't read it yet, I highly recommend it! While we're still on this topic, here's a free Jane Eyre cross stitch chart that I found on one of my adventures in the magical land of Pinterest.  Slow and steady wins the race, as the old saying goes. Here's my progress on Nikolai:  Russian Hunting by Riolis I've reached the other side of the horse's neck and chest! That bit of yellow peeking out on the far left hand side is the background starting to appear again. I believe that black line is one of the horse's reins. Square by squar...
2 comments
Read more

Hot Chocolate, a Horse Ear, and Bonbons

  Rachael Gorjestani on Unsplash Happy Hot Chocolate Day! There's nothing quite like a hot, steaming mug of chocolate to brighten up a Winter day. And let me tell you, I need a hot drink here at the Castle. The weather has been absolutely freezing and very dark. Now, getting back to Hot Chocolate, here's a nice article I found that goes into the health benefits and history of that cheerful beverage. And if you're interested in really celebrating today, then here's a free Hot Chocolate PDF cross stitch chart that I designed a while back. The download is an ebook, so you'll get some other beverage themed freebie charts as well. Enjoy! Mind you, I haven't just been sipping mugs of Hot Chocolate and huddling over my heater (only some of the time). I've gotten in a good amount of stitching since my last post. Behold a horse ear:  Russian Hunting by Riolis I'm looking forward to stitching the pinks, yellows, and blues of the sky again. In shop update news, ...
2 comments
Read more

Meet Nikolai, and Eat Mississippi Pot Roast

Meet Nikolai Or at least, meet Nikolai's head.  See that dark block of stitches in the middle? Yes, that is Nikolai's head. He has one of those warm Russian hats on, so he won't catch cold riding through this winter scene.  I really like stitching in 10x10 squares, it's amazed me how much progress one can make when using this method.  Russian hunting is absolutely stunning, but maybe it's time for a change soon. Here's my tentative plan: keep stitching on Russian Hunting until the end of January, then at the beginning of February put it away and start working on one of my other wips. We'll see. Mississippi Pot Roast If you've had this dish, you know it's heavenly. If you haven't had it, you're missing out. Simple as that!  Beef, ranch dressing mix, pepperoncini peppers, and au jus. It sounds like a weird combo, but trust me- it is amazing. One of my all time favorite meals ever.  The flavors mix together beautifully. There's r...
Post a Comment
Read more