Cardinal Joy

This year I decided to stitch a Christmas ornament for my Mum to display in her retirement unit.  After the passing of my Dad last year she didn't really feel it appropriate to hang bright decorations in her unit last Christmas but has decided to this year.  I came across this delightful little banner earlier in the year and research informed me that male red cardinals are very protective of their territory and everyone within it and that epitomised my father perfectly.  I felt this design 'spoke' to me.  

The design was sold by Dimensions as a kit which included full instructions, fabric, threads, seed beads, wire hanger and bells and was designed by Anita Phillips.  I'll admit that it was an intricate design and one which took much concentration and close study of the graph but the instructions were clear....so I plodded on.

Here are photos of the process - firstly the finished stitched design with border.

Then the edge was trimmed before it was folded and bells attached with red triple-strand thread through the back of the mitred corner and also the same was done with the wire hanger.

A neat slip-stitch hem was then stitched on the reverse to secure the edges and form a tidy finish over the border.  

I gave Cardinal Joy to my Mum last week and she has already found a home for it - one which catches the eye and is a feature of the room.  As a crafter herself, she absolutely loves it and the story behind it.

From my family to yours, I would like to take this opportunity to wish all my blog readers a Merry Christmas and a happy and safe New Year and look forward to showing and sharing more of my projects and new designs with you next year. 

Merry Christmas

Ros

'Christmas waves a magic wand over this world, and behold, everything is softer and more beautiful.' - (Norman Vincent Peale)

Christmas Heirlooms

Christmas is always a special time of year with varying reasons for different people. Decorating the home and the tree certainly adds sparkle and that little bit of magic but I've always thought that it reflected our personalities, lifestyles and beliefs also.

Quite a few years ago when my children were very small, I thought it would be a lovely sentiment to make a couple of 'extra special' decorations that would be given pride of place in the home, hold 'extra special' meaning and which could be passed down as heirlooms.  This 'Merry Christmas' cross stitch is one such heirloom which always hangs in our front foyer and with its colourful design mix makes for a beautiful welcome which has received many favourable comments over the years.  Unfortunately, the details of the design have been misplaced and cannot remember who the designer is, but I do know it was an enjoyable challenge to stitch. This photograph doesn't do it justice (the glass prevented clarity) so I have posted a couple of closer shots below to give a better idea of the design as well as the embellishments used.

I'm not quite sure really which letter I prefer because there's uniqueness in each one and no two letters are alike but the quirkiness of the design, even to this very day, has me spending time poring over it each year when it's unwrapped and ready for hanging.  But what's really special is that my daughter loves it so much that she's asked for it to be passed down to her in years to come.  Of course, that was always my intention.

But the heirloom which I intend to pass down to my son - a wooden Christmas wreath - was painted when I was studying folk art and as a young boy he was fascinated with the brightly coloured toy ornaments.  He laid claim to this when I personalised it by putting his birth year on the train.  It hangs proudly in our kitchen against the pantry and attests to the many, many, many time consuming but rewarding hours devoted to painting each and every design.

I would like to take this opportunity to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas with family and friends and a safe and happy New Year and look forward to sharing more of my projects and encounters with nature with my readers and talking 'stitchy' talk in 2014.

Ros

'The best thing about the future is that it comes only one day at a time' - Abraham Lincoln