Bunnies in Winter Patterns

Posted on January 19, 2016 by Rabbit Girl Crafts

You know you’re a stitcher when…

When I get bored, I start browsing 123stitch. I love to scroll through the new patterns or browse different categories of patterns to see what catches my eye. Am I the only one who does this?

So, I was looking at winter patterns and started noticing various design trends, including the number of rabbits that appear in winter cross-stitch scenes. Here are a few of my favorites:

Winter-Rabbits

Top Left: “Christmas Joy Ride” by Carriage House Samplings

I have seen “Christmas Joy Ride” finished. A woman in my guild stitched it, and it is even more stunning in person. I love the colors in this one.

Top Right: “Hares Winter” by Plum Street Samplers

Bottom Left: “Frosty Forest 4: Frosty Friends” by Country Cottage Needleworks

I love the whole Frosty Forest series — so cute.

Bottom Right: “Cardinal Winter” by Little House Needleworks

This one includes another popular subject for winter designs — cardinals. Their bright red feathers provide a welcome pop of color during the often dreary winter months.

I love seasonal designs, but maybe I should start looking ahead to spring instead. I might have a chance of finishing some Easter stitching if I start now…

 

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Weekend Reading–1/16/16

Posted on January 16, 2016 by Rabbit Girl Crafts

My husband and I finally saw Star Wars: The Force Awakens this afternoon. The movie was even better than I expected. I was afraid to get my hopes up too high, but I really enjoyed the film. I’m so glad we finally had time to go see it in the theater.

Anyways, here are some links from my adventures around the web this week:

This is Colossal visits the Forbes pigment collection at Harvard, a collection of “2,500 pigment samples placed in tincture bottles and housed behind tall glass cabinets.”

Carolina Stitcher completed the “Cottage Charm Stitcher’s Pocket” kit by Miladys Needle, and the finished piece is stunning. Love it so much.

Melville House has a list of 100 essential books as recommended by David Bowie. He liked the classics.

The Needlepoint Book by Jo Ippolito Christensen is now an app.

“From the start, Cameron’s work was lambasted in the press. And the biggest cause of criticism was the thing that, ironically, would turn out to be the hallmark of her style and her enduring fame: her mistakes.” Nice article from the BBC about the work of photographer Julia Margaret Cameron.

Video of the Week

Since I have already mentioned David Bowie, this week’s video is dedicated to another great artist we lost this week — Alan Rickman. This is from a scene from one of my favorite films of his, “Truly Madly Deeply.”

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WIPs: Stitched Smalls to be Finished

Posted on January 12, 2016 by Rabbit Girl Crafts

I looked back at my 2016 stitching goals for the year and realized this should have been on it, too:

7. Finish or frame completed stitched items!

I have several pieces that I have finished stitching but that are still laying around waiting to be turned into ornaments or sent to the framers or something else.

I stitched these four little guys last year, but they still need to be finished:

FinishingCollage

The top two photos are ornaments from the “Nordic Holiday” set by Prairie Schooler. I already have six of these finished into ornaments, but I lost my momentum and still haven’t finished these two.

I don’t know who the designer is of the pumpkin in the bottom left photo. This was a guild project, and I modified the jack-o-lantern’s smile from the original pattern. This may become a pillow ornament–I haven’t quite decided yet.

The bottom right photo is from the “Prairie Birds” set of patterns by Prairie Schooler. I have three of these finished as pillow ornaments, but, again, I stitched this fourth one and then never finished it.

So, I’m posting these here for accountability, so maybe I’ll finally get them done–soon!

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Weekend Reading — 1/8/2016

Posted on January 9, 2016 by Rabbit Girl Crafts

Lots of folks still publishing roundups of 2015 this week.

I enjoyed reading Amy McLay Paterson’s article “I read 164 books in 2015 and tracked them all in a spreadsheet. Here’s what I learned.”

Walt Crawford’s reading list cracked me up. I love that he is unapologetic about his love of crime fiction and other genre books. I feel embarrassed sometimes about reading trashy books, but if you want to see the good, the bad and the ugly of the books I read, send me a friend request on Goodreads.

And, while we’re talking about books, I love this funny and sweet “22 Stages of Visiting Your Public Library.”

You know it’s the new year because there has been a deluge of articles about goal planning, making goals, sticking to goals, writing down goals, etc. However, this short article titled “How to Establish a Daily Practice of Almost Anything in 6 Steps” seems both simple and doable.

Video of the Week

“Paper World” is a beautiful animated short about how we are all connected.

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California for the Holidays

Posted on January 5, 2016 by Rabbit Girl Crafts

Last week I was posting from chilly northern California, where my husband and I were visiting his family for a late Christmas get-together. Here are some photos from the trip:

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The top photo is a view of the San Francisco skyline from the Presidio near the Golden Gate Bridge. Unfortunately, this picture does not do justice to how beautiful the city looked in the setting sun. The middle photo is a view of the Golden Gate Bridge from the Walt Disney Family Museum, where we had gone to see the Disney and Dali exhibit. We spent a good part of the day at the museum, which is much larger inside than it appears from the outside. The model of Disneyland in the bottom photo was taken at the museum.

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One of the days we were in the Bay area, my husband and I drove up to Napa. We started at the Hess Collection winery, which also has an art gallery which includes some major 20th century artists. My husband is photobombing the picture I took of an Anselm Kiefer sculpture. We had lunch at the Boon Fly Cafe, where I had some awesome smoked salmon flatbread.

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Another day we drove a bit up the coast along Highway 1. In Stinson Beach we came across this little bookstore. I am lucky to be married to a guy who will always stop for a bookstore. We ended up at Point Reyes National Seashore, which was amazing. We hiked out to the lighthouse in the top photo, and we were lucky enough to see whales far out in the ocean migrating south. Point Reyes is also a great spot to see elephant seals, and we saw plenty of those as well. The bottom right photo I had to share because my sister-in-law made this awesome carrot cake in the shape of a rabbit for me. Not only was it an incredibly thoughtful gesture, but the cake was also delicious!

So, I had a good time despite the fact that I had a terrible cold during the whole trip, which I am still getting over. But, I love the time we get to spend in California, as brief as it is.

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Weekend Reading–New Year’s Edition

Posted on January 1, 2016 by Rabbit Girl Crafts

NEW YEAR 2016

Welcome, 2016!

Here are a few links for the first weekend of the new year:

I love these tiny crochet teddy bears that Noreen Crone-Findlay has been making.

Maria Popova at Brain Pickings selects her 15 best books of 2015.

Apparently nostalgia for cassette tapes is now a thing.

Etsy has launched some cool city guides that list area boutiques that feature local artists and crafters. It’s pretty limited now, but I would love to see it expand.

UGEARS makes elaborate working mechanical models from wooden pieces. Very neat.

Chris Maynard transforms real bird feathers into delicate and amazing sculptures.

Video of the Week

I enjoyed this stop-animation short about a girl who discovers a world under the sea.

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2016 Stitching Goals

Posted on December 28, 2015 by Rabbit Girl Crafts

2016Stitching Goals

I don’t usually make resolutions, but I do have a few things I’d like to do in 2016, so here is my short list of stitching goals:

  1. Finish Anhinga Blues.
  2. Start and complete the Satsuma Street 12 Days of Christmas ornaments.
  3. Learn a new stitching technique–maybe try some hardanger.
  4. Try designing some original cross-stitch designs. (I have lots of ideas!)
  5. Organize my stash.
  6. Spend more time stitching!

Do you have any stitching goals for the new year?

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Merry Christmas!

Posted on December 23, 2015 by Rabbit Girl Crafts

Merry Christmas

I’m going to be making an apple pie today and doing some last-minute cleaning before my sister and brother-in-law arrive to stay with us over the holiday. Have a Merry Christmas!

Video of the Week

This is what I’ll be watching while I cut up apples for the pie:
“A Muppet Family Christmas” from 1987 — one of my favorite Christmas specials of all time.

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Weekend Reading–12/19/15

Posted on December 19, 2015 by Rabbit Girl Crafts

This week’s roundup of art, crafts, stitching, books and other links that caught my eye this week:

Have you been downloading and stitching the free 12 Days of Christmas series by Plum Street Samplers? 11 Lords of Leaping was released this past week.

Very cook short video about the people who work at the Pantone color factory. Spoiler alert: They see color differently than we do.

The Corning Museum of Glass in New York has a 14-foot Christmas tree comprised of 2,000 handmade glass ornaments. And they light it up at night. Wow.

Happiness is Cross Stitching is stitching the entire Santa’s Village series from Country Cottage Needleworks as one giant piece, and it’s awesome.

&Stitches loves Japanese embroidery books and gives some tips for where to find them in the U.S.

Lit Hub talked to independent booksellers all over the country to compile their list of 25 Best Books of the Year.

Just because: Zoo Borns has photos of fluffy baby bunnies born at the Children’s Farmyard at Cotswold Wildlife Park in the UK.

Video of the Week

I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve listened to this song this week: “Grace” by The October Project, from the Book of Rounds album

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2015 in Books…er, Magazines

Posted on December 16, 2015 by Rabbit Girl Crafts

I wanted to do a crafty book round-up for this year, but then I looked back on the books I finished this year and realized I didn’t read a single art or craft related book. How is that even possible?

I feel like I read a lot of crafty things this year because I subscribe to a lot of magazines which I don’t count as part of my reading for the year. Digital subscriptions have enabled me to indulge my magazine habit like never before. I can subscribe to as many titles as I’d like and never have to worry about stacks and stacks of magazines accumulating in the house. Zinio has been both a blessing and a curse.

So, here are some of the stitching and artsy titles I subscribe to right now:

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CrossStitcher

CrossStitcher I like for its focus on trendy, modern designs. Issues tend to be filled with bright colors and bold graphics.

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Cross Stitch Collection

Cross Stitch Collection has more complex designs than CrossStitcher and the designs tend be more traditional and conservative.

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Just CrossStitch

This bi-monthly U.S. magazine is most well known for its annual ornament issue, but every issue features exclusive patterns by well-known designers. And, despite the title of the publication, this magazine includes much more than “just cross-stitch,” with patterns that employ a wide variety of needlework and embroidery techniques.

And, last but not least, I have to mention:

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The World of Interiors

I fell in love with The World of Interiors when I started working at a design school library that subscribed to it. The photography, the stories, the history, the architecture, the art & antiques–I cannot overstate how inspiring and beautiful this publication is. This is a British magazine, and the print subscription cost for a U.S. subscriber is very expensive. I got hooked on digital magazines when I realized I could afford the much lower digital subscription price. It’s still a splurge, but this is the one magazine I would not give up.

So, I read dozens of art and needlework magazines this year, even though I didn’t read any crafty books. But, I have a ton of creative books on my to-read pile, so here’s to next year.

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