The Night Before, an Anne Stradal design

It has been a few weeks since I have posted anything on my blog, the reason being that I have not been feeling that well and have been taking things rather easy, which have given me the opportunity to do a lot of reading, something I love and usually am not able to find enough time for it.
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I have been able to do a little bit of stitching though and have been working on The Night Before which is the accompanying piece to The Day After that I have stitched not long ago.
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The photo below has been stitched by Anne Stradal herself and has been included with her permission.

[Designed and stitched by Anne Stradal of ABS Designs]

Below is a picture showing what I have done up to now.

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So far I have done a bit of the wallpaper, which I intend to do exactly as Anne did. I have done the flooring and the rug using the same color thread for the carpet (Rainbow Tweed RT55) and a DMC #5 perle for the flooring (mine is a shade lighter than Anne). The chair has been done in two shades of Velour Very Petite. I have stitched the table where the lamp is and the legs of the chair using the same DMC Perle #5 brown color.

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Now we are where things are getting a bit more complicated, at least for me :-) I wanted to change Mrs. Claus' dress, using the same color though as Anne did hers. At this point I am not sure if I like it or not. That is the reason I have not stitched yet her slippers as if I have to frog the dress, then I don't want to spoil the slippers. I was thinking of adding a little lace to the colar and bottom of her sleeves. Now, do I go for white or some pink color? I am still wondering what stitch I will be using for the apron and what color? Since she is not a maid, I don't have to leave it white if I don't want to. Oh! you may have noticed that I have stitched over the scarf that she is knitting and will also do the same thing over her apron because I want to add the stitched scarf over (like stumpwork). Still thinking about her needles as to how to make them. Also still debating about her hat, not sure what I will do..

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I have been wondering if I want to cover the shade of the lamp with some fabric instead of thread. Also have not decided how to do the lamp base, stem and finial. I will do the basket the same way as Anne did hers, but will wait for the balls of yarns as I may change some colors. As for the pine branches and bow, I may decide to do exactly as Anne did, unless I make the bow Brazilian embroidery style.

[My photo is a bit dark compared to Anne's but have used the same colors]

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So, lots of decisions still to make before this piece is completed. I will probably start working on the wallpaper while I am thinking about all this. If you have some ideas for any part of it, I would love to hear from you all and also tell me if I should change her dress or leave it as is. I don't mind doing a bit of frogging in order to make her look nicer :-)

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Pierrette =^..^=

Peace Tree

I have just this minute completed all the stitching on this latest ornament from Jim Wurth. This one has a Christmas theme and is quite different to the rest of the series which you can see here.

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You can see candles, bows of different sizes and colors, wreaths, etc.

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All the time I was stitching it, I could not decide whether I liked it or not. I like the individual components, just not sure that I like the overall look, if you get my meaning. It is like when you have this feeling that something is not quite right but can't quite put your finger on it.

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It is still a nice ornament as I don't think that Jim could create anything ugly even if he tried, but this one will need some getting used to it. On the other hand some of you may just absolutely love it. I would love to hear from you either here in the comment section or if you prefer just write to me at LovetoStitch99@comcast.net

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Now, I will go back to Angelina who has been sitting very quietly waiting for me to go back to her.

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Pierrette =^..^=

Peace Tree: Gold beads added

Here is a photo showing the gold beads inside the Jessicas that I had forgotten to add yesterday :-) With the beading added like that, it gives it a more finished look.

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Pierrette =^..^=