Barbara - The Flashing Scissors - (2018 - 3)

Hello my friends,

This Friday evening I thought I'd rake out a really old project and see if I could turn it into a FFO (Fully Finished Object)!

Starting with a piccy as it seems I have stitched more since my last post ..... filed here on "Kitten Stitching and the FF" .... surprisingly enough under "Tatty Teddy".

I've mostly been putting him off because of the backstitching, but as I now have a super-dooper magnifying glass I thought I'd be able to make better progress.

Tatty Teddy - Cross Stitcher

May 2004

Needless to say, I didn't get very far last night, as I wasn't sure which colour I'd previously used! Twice I had the needle threaded and then thought "No, it doesn't look right!" So I had to put it on hold until I'd checked the colours in daylight today.

Especially tricky as I had listed backstitching at least

a couple of times!

I've seen blogs where people have stitched TT, and I remember one lady in particular saying she was "winging it" with her backstitching of his fur, but I'm too scared to do that sure it would be a mess if I finished it that way. I can see he won't be finished any time soon!

One good thing though ..... I'll be stitching more later today as it just happens to be IHSW this weekend!

Do any of you have tips for easy backstitching?

Anyway, must go now, wishing you all a great weekend! I'm off to catch up on reading what everyone has been up to. See you soon! Although I might be tapping away on the 'puter again later as I have a Gifted Gorgeousness, and a TUSAL post to catch up with.

Happy Stitching Everyone!!

Hugs,

Barbara xxx

FlashinScissors' FF(4)

Hello everyone,

Late again, I'm forever trying to catch up on my blogging! How does that happen! And no, don't tell me, I do know really!

Not much progress to show, but if I hadn't started blogging, and hadn't joined "Friday Night Frolics", Tatty Teddy (TT) would probably still be languishing in the "dreaded cupboard"!

This is how he was last time you saw him:

 Week 3!

And here he is after last Friday's stitching:

Week 4

For some reason my camera wouldn't take a close up picture this week, but if you enlarge the picture you will be able to see I have continued the back stitch down his left side, and around his leg socket.

I found it very tricky following the pattern, and adding the stitches, but the board and magnets I mentioned last time have helped me to stitch quicker this week ...... it was just that time was against me!

Well, I'm hoping to try and finish TT tomorrow, what will you be stitching?

Looking forward to seeing what everyone else has stitched this Friday! Have fun!

Hugs!

Barbara xx

FlashinScissors' Friday Frolics (3)

Hello everyone,

Barbara of The Flashing Scissors here again!

I remember a blogging friend recently asking how we mark our patterns to keep our place whilst stitching, but I'm sorry I can't remember who that was!

This reminded me that some years ago CrossStitcher magazine had a most useful giveaway of a few magnets and a magnetic board.

For anyone who hasn't seen this before, the idea is that you place the magnetic board behind the pattern and then surround the area you are stitching with magnets.

Maybe this is how most people keep their place?

I thought this might help me stitch more than previous weeks! It didn't happen like that though, as I suddenly started getting ideas for my Valentine's blog post, although I did at least finish stitching TT's head.

Last week.

This week!

I'm just hoping my board and magnets will help me stitch more next week!

Travel stitching: CrossStitcher free gift - vase of tulips.

I am still attempting to stitch the following from the kit's photograph, as I don't have the pattern.

We had another train journey this week and I managed to stitch some more.

Last week's stitching!

This week.

Starting to take shape!

Happy stitching tomorrow night folks!

Hugs!

Barbara xx

FlashinScissors' Friday Frolics (2)

Hello,

Barbara of The Flashing Scissors reporting in, a little late, but nevertheless here is my stitching from Friday night!

Thank you to all the lovely people who made me feel so welcome here last week. I think I've visited everyone, but, if not, I look forward to typing to each of you this week!

This is where I left Tatty Teddy (TT) last week:

 There wasn't much stitching last week! 

If you visited last time you might remember that I had to wash and carefully iron him before starting on the job I hate - back stitching! Last week's stitching started just above the top blue flower, ending around his right ear (as we look at him).

I am pleased with the progress I made this week, stitching from ear to ear, but back stitch it is such time consuming, fiddly stitching.....

And this is my latest progress on TT .

and, as I was aiming to start a new project on a train journey on Saturday, I also prepped this kit's fabric ready for stitching on said journey, by washing, ironing and putting some threads in place to mark the centre - maybe not the best place for them!

 My new project!

The only slight drawback is I'm trying to stitch this from the photo.  Dear Sister passed me a batch of cross stitch kits and a pile of magazines, but the magazine for this one wasn't there! The photograph is a bit small and doesn't show the tints of colours very well, but I hope I can do it justice!

Saturday's stitching!

Well, that was all I had time for on Friday night, and now I'm off to catch up on reading some of your blogs. 

I look forward to joining you here, at Friday Frolics, again next week.

Thank you for visiting, and have a great week everyone!

Hugs!

Barbara xx

Flashinscissors 1st Friday Frolics

Hello Friday Frolicers,

I'm Barbara from The Flashing Scissors.

Thank you for letting me join you for Friday Kitten Stitching Frolics!

On my own blog I have been talking about my Cocoa Sampler (and a few other cross stitch projects) which I started years ago, and, with the encouragement I received from some of our online friends, I was enthused to pick it up again and continue. And then I thought if I were able to join you ladies here on Friday Kitten Frolics perhaps I could speed up my finishing rate!

So on Friday I decided to delve into the dreaded cupboard for something different, and found "Tatty Teddy" which I had stitched, and put away without finishing him because I hate backstitch! Anyone who has ever stitched a "Tatty Teddy"(TT) will know .... there are an awful lot of backstitches!

I remember stitching TT quite quickly back in 2004, despite struggling to find the right cottons from my stash as the pattern called for Anchor threads and in those days I mostly had DMC.

The pattern appeared in the magazine Cross Stitcher, with a competition for the first reader to send a photo of themselves with their stitched TT to win a prize, which gave me the incentive to start stitching!

TT and his pattern as I found him
 in the dreaded cupboard.

When TT came out of the cupboard he was looking a little grubby (there was a horrid tea or coffee stain to his left!) so first of all he had a little bath!

Then, before I could start stitching, my embroidery frame needed binding!

I had started the fur backstitch in the wrong colour
 - it was much too light.

After which I found another reason he had been pushed to the back of the dreaded cupboard!  At that time I  didn't have the colour the pattern called for, for the backstitch.... but I searched through my stash of threads and lo and behold I have it now!

The backstitch is in red on the pattern.

Here's Tatty Teddy, clean, ironed and ready for stitching!

Ready to stitch.

And I had to make a little start on him at least!

You might just be able to see a few sticky out
stitches above the top blue flower and above Teddy's head!

That's all I was able to do last night!

Now that Tatty Teddy is ready to play I hope to be able to stitch a lot more next Friday night.

Thank you for visiting today, and I'm off to see what everyone else has stitched!

Hugs!

Barbara xx