Buttons and Weeping

What do they have in common?

They are both things that I worked on yesterday. I sorted my button collection into jars and I finished the "Weeping Tree Sampler" that has pined away for years waiting to be finished.

Even though I felt lousy yesterday, headache, runny nose, and lack of energy, I convinced myself that it was only a cold (I really think it was/is) and not the dreaded H1N1, I decided to be useful and do a bit of mending.

My husband needed a couple of buttons replaced on a jacket. No prob! I'll just go through my buttons to find replacements. Should be easy right? Not when your button stash fills a 16 1/2 x 13 x 6" storage box. Did I mention that I have LOTS of buttons! Some I bought for sewing, some for crafting, and many because I thought they would look so cute/lovely stitched on a cross stitch project or maybe I could design something and use them as an accent. My justification list just goes on and on. Then there are the auction buttons. Some of my buttons are carded and many are loose. So like I said, I have lots of buttons. After much sifting, blowing my nose, oogling the pretties, blowing my nose, nashing my teeth in frustration, and blowing my nose, I found the buttons and mended the jacket.

As I was stitching the buttons on the jacket, it came to me that I could use the peanut butter and mayonaise jars that I had been saving to organize my buttons by color family. (I knew those jars would come in handy eventually.)

So I was able to get most of my buttons into seven jars! (You can't see the large mayo jar in this pic.) I didn't have room for all the white/cream/pearl buttons in the big PB jar so I put all the carded ones in a baggie and added it to my stitchery bead, button, and charm drawers. Don't ask.

To end the evening, I finished up "Weeping Tree Sampler" from The City Stitcher, thanks to the encouragement of Deb and Jolene. If I'd had felt better, I would have been happy dancing all over the place.

  

I do love this sampler. I saw it finished and framed in a cross stitch shop near Rockome Gardens in Illinois (does anyone remember the cross stitch festivals held at Rockome Gardens?) back in the eighties and I knew I had to stitch it. Can't remember when I started it but I know when I finished it! I apologish for the rumply look but I didn't want to iron it until it is ready to be framed. It is quite a large sampler and measures 13 3/4" x 12". I used a 32 ct Light Mocha Zwiegart linen and DMC threads. Here a couple of closer looks. (Pictures are clickable for an even closer look.) The first picture is very close to the real colors of the sampler.

The pattern had a lamb to the right of the house but I changed it to a cat instead. And I decided to stitch the current year instead of the date charted. To be consistent, I used the colors recommended for the lamb to stitch the cat; I also gave him a nose and whiskers. Does the cat shape look familiar? If you know Chessie and Me Designs, it should. I borrowed the cat shape from one of their patterns. He kind of looks like my cat, Baby, who passed away in 1986. I'll always think of him when I see this sampler. Here's a close up of Baby.

Here's a comparision between the original design and my sampler. Notice the white-ish blobs to the left of the Z. (You'll have to click to see it as my photography is lousy.) Wow, I just noticed that the picture on the front of the pattern has a little wooden cat. It kind of looks like the cat on my sampler, don't 'sha think?

I did finish up the little November sampler. Need to lace it up and get it into the little 2x3" frame (hopefully before Thanksgiving).

 

Back to deciding on my next big project. Until then, I've started a Brightneedle freebie, "Christmas Eve". I'm using 32 ct Water Lily and although I love the color, I'm not enjoying stitching on the linen after working on Zwiegart linen. I have a feeling that this won't be ready by Christmas this year.

Before I go this evening, I must tell you about my biggest surprise this week. I won Jolene's final October giveaway, me and three other lucky stitchers. I about fell out of my chair when I realized the Robin she listed on her blog was ME! I don't know which of the four prizes I will receive, but I am keeping my finger crossed.

And also I'd like to share another giveaway that I signed up for on Dafftycat's blog. Perhaps I'm on a winning streak. Will this ornie be mine? Stay tuned.

Thanks for stopping by this neck of the woods today. I look forward to your comments and am truely thankful to have the opportunity to share the love of stitching with you.