Stitchy Saturdays

Each Saturday, I will feature either something I’m currently stitching, something I’ve just finished stitching, or something I’ve just designed. I hope you’ll all join me in displaying some of your own work and leaving a link to your post in the comments below.

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New Designs
Grudge
Posted 7th November
A subversive sampler with a truthful message. Don’t let them grind you down! Let them know you’re the bigger person by displaying this proudly and then ignoring them – and they won’t have the fun of getting a rise out of you!

In Remembrance
Posted 11th November
Small and simple – a poppy for Remembrance Day.

Ki$$ My @$$
Coming 14th November
Another subversive sampler that gets round overtly cussing by utilising computer keyboard symbols in lieu of letters. Charted for two colours (red and blue) but could be stitched in just one, or in as many as you like. Tell the world exactly what it can do as you display it with pride!

Charity Stitching
I have seven freebie designs for your own fundraising efforts or just for little gifts to raise awareness, but there is also the What Cancer Cannot Do Charity Blackwork Sampler chart which is available from my Folksy Store, with all proceeds going to Cancer Research UK. I’ve also listed some stitched goodies for sale at the store and again, all proceeds are going to charity. Even if you’re not a stitcher, you can visit my Just Giving page and donate a small amount f you wish. Although it’s no longer October, the fight against cancer continues!

Rules For Life SAL Group
If you’re stitching my Rules For Life sampler (available from my Folksy store HERE), you might like to join the Facebook stitch-along group. There are quite a few people stitching it right now in so many different ways – the range of fabrics and flosses is stunning.

Stitchy Saturdays

Each Saturday, I will feature either something I’m currently stitching, something I’ve just finished stitching, or something I’ve just designed. I hope you’ll all join me in displaying some of your own work and leaving a link to your post in the comments below.

Quite a lot to post about this week, so I’ll just bang straight on with it!

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Finished stitching:
I finally stitching the Quaker Alphabet Sampler which will be going into the lid of one of my sewing boxes. It’s stitched on sand-coloured 28-count Quaker cloth in Threadworx 1089 which is a variegated floss of deep red. I’ve never mounted stitching in a box lid, so I hope it all works out well and I don’t ruin the piece in the attempt!

New designs:
Bite Me Miniature Subversive Sampler
Released 17th October
This quick-stitch sampler is charted for just two colours – red and black – but could just as easily be stitched in monochrome (perhaps red on black, or black on red would look rather striking!). Perfect for displaying over Halloween or, if you’re a bit subversive like me, all year round!

Elizabeth and Darcy
Released 24th October
For all Jane-ites and fans of Pride and Prejudice, this pretty design in the style of a wedding sampler commemorates one of the best-loved love affairs of classic literature along with the name of Darcy’s famous home and the year the novel was first published.

Charity Stitching
October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month! I have seven freebie designs for your own fundraising efforts or just for little gifts to raise awareness, but there is also the What Cancer Cannot Do Charity Blackwork Sampler chart which is available from my Folksy Store, with all proceeds going to Cancer Research UK. I’ve also listed some stitched goodies for sale at the store and again, all proceeds are going to charity. Even if you’re not a stitcher, you can visit my Just Giving page and donate a small amount f you wish.

Rules For Life SAL Group
If you’re stitching my Rules For Life sampler (available from my Folksy store HERE), you might like to join the Facebook stitch-along group. There are quite a few people stitching it right now in so many different ways – the range of fabrics and flosses is stunning.

Stitchy Saturdays – Breast Cancer Awareness Month Stitchables

Each Saturday, I will feature either something I’m currently stitching, something I’ve just finished stitching, or something I’ve just designed. I hope you’ll all join me in displaying some of your own work and leaving a link to your post in the comments below.

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I’ve stitched a couple of items for sale to raise a little money for Cancer Research UK as part of Breast Cancer Awareness month. They’re available now from my Folksy Store.  On top of that, I’ve posted some freebie designs on my Kincavel Krosses blog for your own fundraising efforts.

For Sale at my Folksy Store (All proceeds to Cancer Research UK):

• What Cancer Cannot Do Charity Blackwork Sampler PDF – £3.50
• Think Pink Key/Scissor Fob (x 1) – £3.00 + P&P
• Think Pink Fob (x2) – £2.50 + P&P
• Think Pink Biscornu (x1) – £4.00 + P&P

Free designs to stitch for yourself:

• Think Pink Bookmark
• Think Pink
• Think Pink Biscornu
• Think Pink Key Fob
• Think Pink Key Fob 2
• Think Pink Mini Biscornu

Even if you’re not into stitching, you can help by visiting my JUST GIVING PAGE and make a donation there. Don’t forget to add gift aid if you’re in the UK – it doesn’t cost you anything extra, but it means the charity gets a little bit more.

Thank you!

Stitchy Saturdays – October is Breast Cancer Month

Each Saturday, I will feature either something I’m currently stitching, something I’ve just finished stitching, or something I’ve just designed. I hope you’ll all join me in displaying some of your own work and leaving a link to your post in the comments below.

October is
Breast Cancer Awareness month!

Breast cancer is a subject very close to my heart, and not just because my heart is right under my boobs. I know several people who have battles breast cancer and fortunately won the war against it. As a woman who is particularly fond of her chesticles, I thought I’d draw attention to Breast Cancer Awareness Month and try to do something to help charities doing research and/or providing support for those who have breast cancer, and also the families of those who are battling it.

As a result, I’ve come up with four free designs which I’d love everyone to stitch for friends or charity – anything to spread the word. I’ve also designed a sampler which is for sale in my Folksy store. All proceeds from the sale of that design will be donated to Cancer Research UK (the ones who organise Race For Life every year).

Design: Think Pink!
Size: 65w x 24h
Free design just the right size for cards or to put in a small frame on a desk.

Design: Think Pink Biscornu
Size: 45w x 45h
This perfectly square design would make a lovely biscornu or miniature cushion ornament, or would fit nicely on a card. It’s a quick-stitch and, like all the designs I’ve created for Breast Cancer Awareness Month, features only two colours. Use up those odds and ends in your stash!

Design: Think Pink Key Fob
Size: 21w x 29h
Just the right size for a fob, whether for your keys or your embroidery scissors. It would also be great as a gift tag – just back it with pink card, punch a hole in the top and thread through a piece of pink ribbon to finish it off. These would be very quick and easy to stitch en masse using up all those little odds and ends of fabric that we stitchers just can’t stand to throw out in case they come in handy!

Design: Think Pink Bookmark
Size: 21w x 105h
Perfect for the book lover in your life. Just stitch this bookmark and slip it between the pages to show your support as you enjoy your books. Easily adaptable to make the bookmark shorter or longer, this is a versatile design that can be made to suit your requirements

Design: What Cancer Cannot Do
Size: 139w x 139h
This poem of strength and survival is so beautiful and heartfelt. Spelled out in a simple, clear font and surrounded by a blackwork border stitched in two shades of pink, this would look beautiful in a simple white frame.

It’s available at the very reasonable price of £3.50 from my Folksy Store. I’m only able to list five at a time, so if it’s not there when you visit the store, please be patient – I will relist it as soon as possible. I’m working tonight, so if it’s evening you may have to wait a couple of hours if it sells out while I’m away from home, but I promise it will be relisted as soon as I set foot through the front door.

If you do stitch any of these designs, I’d love to see photos and will create a special gallery over at Kincavel Krosses specifically for them if I get a few.

Some sites you might like to visit:

• Breast Cancer UK
• Race For Life
• Breast Cancer Care UK
• Breakthrough Breast Cancer UK

Thank you.

More Cards For Cancer Research UK Charity

I stitched and assembled another two cards to raise money in aid of Cancer Research UK, and then, as I ran out of cards but wanted to do more, I stitched another three patches which will be added to cards when they reach their destination.

The teapot cards were a free kit with Cross Stitch Crazy Magazine and didn’t take long to stitch. The other three designs were from various sources. I hope they, along with the other five cards I made earlier, will go some way towards raising a little money for a worthy cause.

Cards for Cancer Research UK Charity

My handful of cards for Cancer Research UK fundraising

One of the wonderful women at Cross Stitch Forum is raising money for Cancer Research UK by taking part in the Relay For Life, but on top of running as part of a team, she plans to sell cross stitched cards to raise more cash for this worthy cause.

It’s a bit of an “emergency call” for cards to come in quickly, as she has to have the cards by the end of June. As a result, I decided to give the few cards I had very recently stitched to stockpile for various occasions. Hopefully I’ll get a few moments to stitch another couple of cards, but in the meantime, I have five to hand which I can send on to her (I’ve never been so pleased to have ready-stitched cards!).

If any other stitchers out there would also like to stitch a card or two to be sold to raise money for this very worthy cause, please come along to the forum and post in the thread about it – I’m sure that any extra cards would be greatly appreciated.

Little Blue Angel

Design: From Donna Kooler’s 555 Fabulous Cross-Stitch Patterns (page 85)
Materials: Antique white 18-count aida; various threads

This was a quick stitch mini project for a charity that makes memory boxes for parents whose babies sadly didn’t make it. These little angels are used as a label on the boxes – blue for boys, pink for girls and pale yellow/cream for either. I was asked to stitch one in blue (there were 5 of each colour needed, but a whole bunch of folks volunteered – one of the lasses on the Cross Stitch ATC group on Face Book asked us). I used a little bit of gold metallic in the halo and star, but it doesn’t really show up in the photo.

Everybody Hurts – Helping Haiti

I couldn’t believe they chose this song for the Haiti relief charity single! Honestly – “Everybody Hurts”? Yes, they do – they’ve been buried under tonnes of rubble! I honestly thought it was a sick joke when I first heard about it. They could not have been less sensitive in their choice if they’d tried.

I’ll admit, I also get a bit narked that all these rich stars will do a charity single to sell to the general public to raise money, but precious few of them actually give much of their own cash. John Travolta is my hero at the moment. He flew his own plane filled with relief aid packs over there himself. That’s a man with integrity.

I’d have far more respect for the stars involved in this project if there was a proviso that all the participants also give a hefty chunk of their own money to the cause as well.

Anyway, it’s nice that they’ve all got together to do another Band Aid kind of thing, but I really wish Mr Cowell had thought a bit harder about which song to use.