Eye Candy

I just came from the DMC exhibit in our local mall. Every so often (maybe 2 or 3 times a year), DMC Philippines would hold either a contest or an exhibition and with it comes a reunion of fellow stitchers. I still remember my first such event last year. Beginner stitchers then (me!), were treated to an intro lesson to cross stitching.

This time around, I was grateful to realize I was considered part of the "group" already. I had real life stitching friends! Not just folks that I've met over facebook but real life cross-stitching, needle-wielding happy chattering friends. I still consider myself a beginner stitcher...but an expert collector.

It was fun! Finally, a little circle of people who understand the draw...the lure of stitching. How hot the burn for hunting stitching treasure is.

We even had an impromptu lesson after I pleadingly asked someone to teach me how to make the neat  back that I saw last reunion/contest. (Someone had stitched a project whose front of the cloth is as neat as the back of the cloth and vice versa).

Time for me to thank Honey now for teaching me. (THANK YOU!!!)  I'll post pics another time when I take the time to 'practice' what was preached. Right now.. I just want to showcase some of the works our locals have stitched. Each patterns is either an original (from personal photos) or DMC patterns.

At times like this, I'm proud of being Pinoy. Skill, patience, creativity comes shining out... take a gander at the photos...

This is the father-in-law of Arlene Braid (who made this one). He really plays the bagpipes!  WOW.

I'm grateful to our local DMC company. They take the time to host events like this. If it weren't for them? I wouldn't have fallen head over heels for cross stitching. And I give them also a lot of props for keeping the art from dying. They're doing their best to fan the flames so people will get back into it.

I have to admit, here in the Philippines, it was in the 80's and early 90's where people would cross stitch A LOT. It became a fad and it almost became extinct. DMC Phil has been nursing the cross stitching population and bringing it back to life. Thanks DMC! More power to you guys!!

Cross stitching, for me is an art form. A way of making sure something of YOU will last longer than your lifetime. It's therapy-- a way of calming yourself and being happy in your solitude. You become at peace with yourself and with the world when you stitch.

Special mention to this one... I forgot to get the name of the stitcher... but can you see the amount of metallic thread she used!?!?! (**take note: You can't get ThreadHeaven here!) AND she added a metallic gold rosary...and little gemstones to make this an uber special pattern. 

CHRISTMAS HO-HO-HAUL!!!

My darling panda got me thread for Christmas. Lots and lots and lots of thread. I can now say, I'll have a "MASTER KIT" already. Meaning, I'd have ALL the colors of the DMC cotton floss. So I can pick up ANY pattern and stitch without having to bother collecting the colors. This way, all I have to do is replace the floss color when it runs out.

To a lot of stitchers, they'd probably shrug. They've been at this far longer than I have and I'm sure they have the complete DMC line once, twice... multiple times over. But this is the first for ME to have the complete set. (at least I will by tom, when I get my giftie :) )

Anyway, my panda's only idea on cross stitch is from what I tell him or what he reads on my blogs. So I had to accompany him to DMC to pick out my thread colors. (*** thank you thank you thank you for my threads lovey!!!)

Of course, being the logistical OC that I am...I already printed out a checklist of the DMC charts and marked off the ones I had.

(** taking the time now to say THANK YOU to DMC Philippines!! :D )

I had loads of fun chatting with the DMC staff (who I think are uber friendly and would gladly sit down and stitch with you any time). My voice kept going higher and higher.... I was excited! All the pretty colors!!!

I was trying to do my best NOT to do my butt dance in public but my panda knew I was doing it inside. My feet couldn't keep still. My eyes were probably sparkling. And I know I had the goofiest grin on my face.

And the best part? Other than having my panda with me alllllll the way from singapore, and getting the complete line of colors?

THESE!!!!

I got 19 pcs!! You get one for every 12 skeins of floss.
(It used to be 1 for every 24 but with Christmas so near, they 'marked' it down).
I got the angel, the reindeer and snowman. Didn't go for the Santa... his beard covered his face too much.

Aren't they darling?!?!

Couldn't wait anymore and put them on my tree. 

I got this lovely couple a few weeks earlier. 

My complete DMC Christmas freebie haul.

Each goodie comes with a pattern that you can stitch on the bibs. I intend to keep the ornaments OUT of the box.
So I can stitch on them throughout the year. :) As a break from my giant HAED. :)

They absofreakinglutely complete my tree. They were missing little toys and now I got them.
Ooooooo-eeeeeeeee! I am HAPPY!!! :D 

I didn't get to decorate much this year... got too involved with stitching but at least this little corner of the house has Christmas cheer. 

AND.... with this post, I wish everybody a BEWITCHING STITCHY and WONDERFUL CHRISTMAS!!!!!


Hugs to all!!! :D

GLEEP-GLORP my ORT!!!

My ORT Jar

Ok, I went and hunted and came home with my prize. Got a nice simple, vintage-y kind of jar for my ORTs. It's absolutely empty. But hopefully it'll fill up... I do plan on stitching a lot this year.

Makes me sigh to think of ALL those threads I threw away the past few months. Heck, how was I supposed to know they had some kind of use??

Hmmm... seeing other peoples ORT jars makes me think of those colored sand-in-a-bottle things.

I wanted to "pose" my ORT JAR somehow. Decided to place the two books I'm currently reading behind it. Maybe in a week or two, I can post my jar with something else AND with something in it's belly. I can easily just imagine my ORT jar as being an alien..and it needs thread to survive. And it's saying "GLEEP-GLORP-ORT". Probably means "FEED. ME. NOW"

Now THIS is the stitch-a-long I can easily join with... just collect your little piece of thread and throw them in here...then post updates. Cool. Sooo easy. :) My ORT jar will probably go "Stitch woman...and feed me". Heck, that's another kind of motivation... (grasping at straws in order not to chicken out of the HAED).

Oh and... if you still don't have an ORT jar...you should get one. So you can start filing it up when the new year starts. :) Let's see how full I can get ORT to be.

Yeah, I named him ORT. Not O.R.T. but just plain ol' ORT. How original right? LOL!

ORT JAR NOW

Acronyms?  Sorta.

My stitching vocabulary is growing by leaps and bounds.

ORT - Old ratty threads
JAR - place to put my ORT's
NOW - as in today.

... I needs to find one...

If you don't have one... you should. :)  Click here to see the root of it all: TUSAL

The BACK of the Fabbie

I've been told time and time again to keep the back of your fabbie neat. Keep all your stitches in nice little rows... don't do knots... heck, it's more work keeping the BACK of your fabbie neat than sewing the entire project all together!

That's why I was sooo happy to 'meet' fellow HAED stitchers (I'm saying "fellow" even though I haven't started on my HAED--- yet) (I will in a week or two).  They've all told me it's near impossible to keep your back neat. I learnt concepts like CROSS COUNTRY, TENTING... and trust me, I felt so good when I found out it's ok if your back is messy. I was given full permission to get used to it. When I read comments by other stitchers not to worry about the back, I wanted to yell like Braveheart and go "FREEEEEDOOOOOOM....!!!!"

Now recently, I visited our local DMC exhibition... they had a contest and the grand prize winner and runner ups were displayed. I just wanted to share a pic of one of 3 grand prize winners. Unfortunately, I'm a bad blogger... I payed no attention to her name. I was too fixated on her stitches....and you'll see why in a bit. LOOK CAREFULLY at the pictures I'm going to show you. It's unbelievable.

This was one of the grand prize winners. She got around $1000. (Each winner got 50,000php).  It's a picture converted into a pattern. This is the front. But this isn't the best part...

DMC framed her work in a back-to-back glass frame. So people can admire front AND back. THIS is the back.

 Can everybody please say HOLY COW? I know I did. I think I circled her frame more than a dozen times that day... and I went back the next day. I mean, MAN! How in the world did she do it????