One Step Back, Two Steps Forward

Over the past couple of weeks, I have been sorting through my  sampler charts trying to decide which ones I really want to stitch and which no longer spark my interest.

Needing a break from working on the enormous Ann Hair (The Scarlet Letter), I wanted a couple of small ones to work on.  I settled on two samplers, Lucy Adams and Katherine Iones (Jones) from The Examplarery.  Katherine was a class piece from years ago, probably at Sampler Gathering.  I still can't figure out where I got the Lucy Adams kit.  

I've stitched a bit on Lucy, but will use her mainly as a travel piece because the stitching is simple and won't require much concentration.  I should have taken a photo of her before packing her away to await a trip. Guess you'll just have to wait for a photo.  For now, I'll tell you she is a New Hampshire sampler and has two trees reminiscent of trees from that area

Then I pulled out Katherine Iones (Jones).  This is where I left off years ago.  Please excuse the lousy photo.  The colors are really very pretty--lovely greens and a dark rose.  A beautiful green silk satin ribbon will be attached along the outside edges.

So, what's the problem?  The directions specified using two plies of thread on the 36-count linen, and that is what I had done.  I simply did not like the "heaviness" of the stitching, but I loved the sampler. What could I do?  I decided to start again.  Rather than spending hours ripping out my stitching, I decided to start again on another piece of 36-count linen, and this time use only one ply of thread except for the satin stitches.   

Here is my re-start as of last Thursday. I love the way my sampler now looks.   I've made much more progress since taking the photo despite having an occasional visit from that pesky frog.

Here is a close-up.  

Since the photos, I discovered a counting mistake on that center cartouche.  Yikes!  I assumed that when my stitching met up, that everything was fine.  And then I started filling in the text on the inside of the cartouche, and it wouldn't fit.  It turns out I made not one, but two, counting mistakes, one on each vertical side.  I wonder what the chances are of doing that?  

I greatly dislike stitching eyelets over two threads, but since that is what Katherine did inside the cartouche area I decided that I needed to do the same.  I wonder if Katherine discovered that she too disliked doing them, because thankfully she only did five of her letters in eyelets and stitched the others in cross stitch over two linen threads.  (Thank you, Katherine!)  Katherine also did some free-hand stitching below the cartouche area.  Yikes, another thing that I don't enjoy.  I made myself do that area on Saturday.  I was worried if I waited to do that at the end, I might not ever finish the sampler.

Thanks to a rainy Sunday, I spent many hours in front of the fireplace stitching on Katherine. The loose thread next to the little flower under the crown near the upper right corner  marks where I need to add some satin stitches.  I'll also need to add satin stitches on the inside of that sawtooth inner border.

If all goes well, I might have Katherine completed before Thanksgiving.  Wish me luck.  

As many of you know, the Midwest had a rough day yesterday weather-wise. Our weather radio nearly went beserk.  Besides the rain and wind, tornado watches and warnings were all over the area.  (I stitched until the watches became warnings, and then packed my stitching away.)  We were spared the devastation suffered by so many elsewhere.  The thoughts and prayers of many are with those who lost loved ones and also property.