Swirligig

So, I didn't win Anna's challenge, but I had fun participating. Here is my contribution to the contest.

The fabric is 28 ct platinum linen. I stitched with 2 strands of WDW Confederate Gray and 1 strand of Kreinik Blending filament (100HL). Too bad you cannot see the sparkle - it's subtle even in good light.

The beads are leftover from another project. They're white or ice frosted seed beads from Mill Hill, I think. They look sea green because I attached them with the Confederate Gray thread. The finishing fabric is leftover from this project.

Reading List

My local alumnae reading group has posted its reading list for the next year. I'm excited about many of the titles on the list, but given my daily life, it's unlikely that I'll be able to participate with the group much this year. I'm just hoping that I will get to read some of these eventually.

The Uncommon Reader by Alan Bennett - October
My Life in France by Julia Child - November
Olive Kittredge by Elizabeth Strout - December
Infidel by Ayann Hirsi Ali - January
Loving Frank by Nancy Horan - February
The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery - March
I Do Not Come to You By Chance by Adaobi Tricia Nwaubani - April
The Help by Kathryn Stockett - May
West with the Night by Beryl Markham - June
The Snakehead by Patrick Radden Keefe - July
Leaving India: My Family's Journey from Five Villages to Five Continents by Minal Hajratwala - August
A Pearl in the Storm by Tori Murden McClure - September

There were a couple of other books they considered but didn't choose that I'm also interested in. They are:

Admission by Jean Hanff Korelitz
My Body, Their Baby by Laurie Miller
Prep by Curtis Sittenfeld

Have any of you read any of these? What did you think?

Cross-stitch update

Finally, I have the time to post an update about cross-stitch. What a concept. The first photo is my August Rose for the Bride's Tree Stitch-Along.

Patchwork Garden (center part of design) by Ewe & Eye & Friends. I bought this as a kit and stitched it using the provided materials.

The next project is the start of a birth sampler for one of my nephews. You may remember that I've completed samplers for both of my nieces and two of my nephews. This is for a third nephew, and I have one more to do eventually. BTW, I know what I'm stitching as birth samplers for my girls, but haven't had time to work on them yet.

This is the Acorn Garden Sampler from Patricia Ann designs. I really love the colors in this piece. His birthday is in November, so I thought this was a great scheme.