Better Stitching Week, Good Mail Week

This was a much better stitching week--not quite a good stitching week, but a much better one.

I finally figured out a path for the double running stitch in this band of Hannah Thornbush that wouldn't make me totally bugnutz crazy or make my head explode.

I didn't get all the way across the row. I have come to the conclusion that working on 45/46 count linen works best in natural daylight, so this is going to be my Sunday project.

Why don't I get a light that mimics daylight, you ask? I have an Ott light whose hinge no longer holds the bulb end of the lamp up--it's been tightened but it doesn't stay that way--and it's very disconcerting to have the light slooooooooowly and gradually close itself.  And the Dazor is letting me know about its age. Periodically it flickers and twitches just the very slightest bit. I was planning to audition lights this summer, but Covid-19 has put a stop to traveling and visiting needlework shops. So, I'm doing real daylight at the moment.

I have the two big flaps for Tsubaki sewn together. The next step is working on the side flaps, and I need to study my paper mock-up and the directions before I take the plunge.

I have decided that I need to work on a Jackie project as soon as I take the class. This may be a problem, since I take as many of her classes as I can possibly fit into my available vacation time and budget, and she designs faster than I can stitch.  And I also need to remember to work any outline stitch that will be required for assembly a little more loosely than I normally stitch so there's some give when I need to get another needle and thread under it.

Hallelujah, the last band of lettering on Abigail Davis is complete! When I get the dividing band finished, I can move to the fun stuff!! And that means a little bit of basting, since the space between this band and the first motif is just enough to ensure that I'll be off. So I'm basting. Basting is boring but better than ripping.

And now to the mail.

I got the new spool holder that Jackie du Plessis offered. I didn't get a photo because it's in a project bag at the moment. I have some other accessory pieces that have been created from her buttons, and I'll try to remember to take a picture of the whole set at some point.

And these lovely kits finally arrived from Australia:

Inspirations offered these designs, created by Cynthia Jackson. I hemmed and hawed about ordering the kits when they first appeared, and by the time I ordered, Inspirations was out of some of the materials, so I had to wait until they were able to re-supply.  And then, with Covid-19, shipping from Australia just isn't happening very quickly.

The kits sat in Melbourne for almost two months before they caught a plane or a boat or some other form of transportation (possibly the back of a whale), and I tracked them across the US for over a week before they arrived. The kits were fine. The directions for the Tudor Rose and Pomegranate did not fare so well. Apparently the booklet got damp somewhere along the way (maybe riding the whale), and the pages were literally glued together. I tried to separate, but no such luck.

Now here is an example of exemplary consumer service. I emailed Inspirations. With a couple of hours, I had a reply--they were shipping a new copy AND provided a pdf so I could start stitching. I was thrilled by the rapid reply and delighted with the level of service.  I will be ordering from Inspirations again. 

So that's been the past week. I think I'll pick up my needle and finish that dividing band on Abigail, and then see what grabs my fancy next.