2019 Online Advent Calendar

Hi everyone!
I know you haven't seen me for some time here. It seems that even blogging has become difficult for me these days. Anyway...

Thanks to Jo of Serendipitous Stitching though I managed to make my last blog post for 2019.
And that's her Advent Calendar.
I am on December 22nd so here is my photo.

I had stitched this Christmas stocking for my son back in 1997. I managed to finish it for his third Christmas and I really like it so very much. There is so much detail in it. And beads too.

I had found the pattern in Cross Stitcher magazine issue of December 1996 and my mum did the finishing into a stocking when I finished it in time for Christmas 1997. So it was totally a labour of love from a mother and a grandmother to my little boy Miltos. I hope he will treasure it as a heirloom. And I hope you like it too.
For this Christmas I only stitched this little piece from Winter 2018 Craftpod kit. It's beautiful isn't it?

The red berries branch is from an older Craftpod kit too.
Jo also asked us to say in this blog post our favourite Christmas movie. If you read all the blog posts you will find lots of interesting movies to see for Christmas.
My favourite Christmas movie is a Finnish film called Joulutarina ( Christmas Story). It was sent to me as a DVD gift by my Finn friend Johanna and her family after we had visited Finland after Christmas 2006. You can find the movie with English subtitles on You tube and I personally show this movie to my pupils of the 6th grade every year and they love it.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0772176/
The second movie I love to watch not only every Christmas but also through the year and I have watched really a hundred times is You've Got Mail with Tom Hanks and Meg Rayan. In fact I am going to watch it today again as it is on our TV although I have it as a DVD as well when I want to watch it at other times. I especially like the scenes from New York at Christmas.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0128853/

I recently saw another movie on Netflix and really liked it so I thought of suggesting that one too. It is Klaus and it is animated and very very witty. I am sure you will like that, too.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4729430/

 I also thought of adding a few photos from this year's minimal Christmas decorations at our house.

 This is our big table with some fir branches, lights and tealight candles.

 My porcelain mushrooms, a wooden advent calendar winter scene, my nativity scene, and my crystal tealight candle holders.The blue cross stitched piece I made myself.

 This is where the stocking stands.

 Also you can see another Nativity scene, my son's first ornament a Santa on a bike, two little houses I got from Poland  and two music boxes from my friend Juliana.

That's a tea light candle holder I got as a gift from a pupil this year and the reindeer is from Finland.

 The wreaths I made last year. I had also made some blue ones that I sent out as gifts this year.

My pomegranate collection and the lights are from Finland too.

No Christmas tree this year.

But I admired this one at the city centre mall and loved it.Maybe next year!LOL!

 If you have read so far then I have a gift for you. This is a Christmas kit I had received from my friend Marabeth many years ago but I know this is not something I am going to stitch so if you feel like stitching it please say so in your comment. I will pick someone on 31st December.

If you would like to visit all of Jo's Advent blog posts you can do so here.

Thank you Jo for the inspiration once again.

Have a great Christmas and New Year's Eve. Enjoy the holidays.

EDIT. I finally did a drawing and the kit was won by Purple Pixie Dust.

Easter Treasure Hunt Blog Hop

Jo of Serendipitous Stitching organizes various cross stitch events and challenges in blog land.

At this time of year Jo organizes the Easter Treasure Hunt blog hop.

According to it the participants have to show something they stitched for Easter or Spring.

Then you will see a big beautiful letter. This letter when added to the rest that you will find in the other blogs that are taking part in the blog hop form a mystery phrase that you will have to find and write at Jo's blog in the comment section. Do not reveal the mystery phrase to my blog, only to Jo's comment section.

You will see my letter at the end of this blog post.

First you will see all the cross stitched things that I made this Easter.

I don't usually stitch Easter things or eggs but this year I started early due to an exchange in Kaye's of Kitten Stitching blog and therefore I stitched some for me too.

Here they are.

First the Easter rabbit I stitched for the exchange.The pattern is a freebie from Snowflower Diaries blog.I finished it in felt as a frame.

I also stitched my partner a card. Pattern found on pinterest.

Then I stitched two eggs for me. I found the patterns in my collection of patterns of Cross Stitcher magazine.

 After stitching them I mounted them on felt as ornaments and added a felt butterfly and a wooden flower.

 And as I liked the eggs I made some more. These are smaller and I found them on pinterest as Hama beads patterns. I was thinking of making them as ornaments too like the previous ones but I ended up to frame them as one picture at an IKEA frame.

This Easter  I also stitched this Easter lamb from La Comtesse & Le Point de Croix.

I gave this to a friend as a gift for her contribution as costume designer in a theatrical play.

 For a person who does not stitch at Easter that was quite a lot!
So here is my contribution to the blog hop, my letter is.....
                                       

(Photo of Seraphina Alphabet Letter H Cross stitch kit found here)

Isn't this a lovely letter to stitch?

Now that you have seen mine go to the next blog.

                                                   It is Tiffstitches a blog.

Go visit all blogs to find the mystery phrase and put it as a comment in Jo's blog. Don't forget to leave comments in the blogs you visit. All stitchers deserve your appreciation comments.Good luck with all your blog hop and stitching!

Have a great Easter!

Up to 2009 cross stitch finishes.

Hello everyone! Here is a blogpost that I am sharing with Madame Samm of Sew we Stitch.

I have been doing cross stitch all my life, ever since I was a kid. My Grandmother Ariadne showed me how and we had a teacher at Primary School who showed us some too. I haven't stopped stitching since then. I am a slow stitcher but I tried to make a few things over the years. As I had photos taken with an old type film camera lots of my work is on paper still that I haven't yet managed to make digital. So I started taking photos inside my home of all the framed pieces I have made over the years. So here are some of my cross stitched pieces from childhood till 2009. I am working on making another file and blogpost with the more recent ones.

Enjoy!

To my cousin Maria July 2008

 My Round Robin with the blue and white theme finished in 1996-97, Blue and White pictures 1995

White and beige crockery 1997

 When my son was born I made this sampler for him. I was making it while I was pregnant with him 1994-95

My friend Gaby from Scotland made this for my son when he was born.

 Round Robin I made for my son before he went to school 2000

 A very old sampler that we don't know how it was found in my family. Made in 1871

Round Robin Lloyd Loom Furniture I started it in 1997.When it was returned to me it was only half finished and I had to finish all of it so it took me  a long time to finish. Up till 2007.

Wedding sampler for Marabeth's son's wedding.When I started it.

 Wedding sampler for Marabeth's son's wedding.May 2009 That's how it would look when finished.

 The lighthouses May 2009

  Wedding sampler for Marabeth's son's wedding.Finished May 2009
Photos of June 2009

A Christmas card I made and a bookmark.

Vintage handmade finds from the flea market.

Vintage handmade finds from the flea market.

Vintage handmade finds from the flea market.

Vintage handmade finds from the flea market.

Vintage handmade finds from the flea market.

Vintage handmade finds from the flea market.

Vintage handmade finds from the flea market.

Vintage handmade finds from the flea market.Detail.

I made this for my Brazilian pen friend Roberto Gilson's wife.2009

I had made this all by myself when I was a kid.Counted cross stitch.

I had made this all by myself when I was a kid.Counted cross stitch.

I had made this all by myself when I was a kid.Counted cross stitch.

A cross stitched bookmark made by my friend Cathy in England.

I had made this all by myself when I was a kid.Cross stitch on printed canvas.

I had made this all by myself when I was a kid.Half cross stitch on printed canvas.

I started this a long time ago.

I had made this all by myself when I was a kid.Counted cross stitch. I always loved the Orient. The faces were finished by a friend of my mum's.

A series of cross stitch Christmas cards from freebies of Cross stitcher and other magazines. Most were sent to my pen friends.All finished in 2009.

Ribbon embroidery Christmas napkin holders.

More cross stitch Cristmas cards. Most sent to pen friends.

Cross stitch kits found by my friend Marabeth at thrift stores.

I have stitched this one with the cats for Nancy in the States.

And this one for my best friend Gia for her new house.

I really want to stitch this one as so many houses I saw in the States looked like these.

I stitched this for my son's room.2009

I made this bookmark for my son's violin teacher in 2009.

I made this kitchen jotter in 2009.

These are all thrift store finds Marabeth had sent me to stitch.

Some of my cross stitch cards finished in 2009 and sent to friends.

This one was the first freebie I stitched and I have kept it.

I know I have sent the blue birds to Marabeth!

Look at the blue birds in her garden this winter.

This was a Round Robin I had started many years ago. I dedicated it to my father who loved fish and the sea and decided to finish it my own way.I stitched the black and yellow angel fish and the yellow fish at the bottom in the middle. Photo from July 2009

I stitched these boats for this lovely lighthouse frame in July 2009.

And added some little sea scenes in this lovely frame which unfortunately has broken.

This is I think my first printed half cross stitch picture from Primary School.

A printed cross stitch picture one of my former pupils made.

The two on top are mine from my Primary School years.

These were freebies from Cross stitcher magazines and I gave them to my Primary School pupils in Platy to stitch for me. When they returned them I turned them into this frame.I had made the rose in the middle myself, probably some more, I am not sure any more.

Details.

Finished lighthouses framed. July 2009.

A runner in blue and white for the beach house. July 2009.

My printed poppies from my childhood made into a cushion.

My Japanese scene from my childhood made into a cushion.

I stitched the majority of Marabeth's cross stitch ornament thrift store finds in November 2009

I also painted the wooden frames.

Two more of Marabeth's ornaments.

An old Irish religious design stitched and sent to a friend.

Two more of Marabeth's ornaments.

A winter scene stitched and finished in time for Christmas 2009.

The Christmas stocking I made for my son.

Some more Cross stitcher Christmas card freebies put into a free stand frame.

My 1995-1996 kitchen frames

My 1995-1996 Round Robin.

Finished winter scene. Christmas 2009.

Continuing my father's sea scene. Adding background all by myself.Adapting another picture behind the fish already stitched.

One more card.Freebie from a magazine.

Winter scene framed just in time for Christmas 2009.

A birthday sampler I had made for my niece in 1994.

I am sorry some of the photos are blurry and that they are not in the right order. I have been clearing my photo files and have been trying to add all of the photos in one blogpost.