Welcome to my angel

Here she is in all her lacy glory. 

I'm rather pleased with her - she fulfills a long held wish and due to the very great kindness of Heather from Whanganui I was able to finish her.   Thank you very much for the heads Heather.  Plastic spray bottles, bamboo skewers, some pellon and a few yards of ribbon - and voila!

I wasn't able to obtain proper "hair" so dacron pillow filling had to suffice.   A couple of strands of gold cord for a halo and I will keep my eyes peeled for some tiny stars to sprinkle in her hair.

She's all lace and ribbons at the back too. 

And beside her colourful smaller older sister she looks rather gorgeous.   I'm leaving them both out to enjoy for a few days before they go to their special box for storage until Christmas.   Lace Angel is described as a tree topper in the chart but her body is an empty plastic spray bottle so she will stand on her own and won't go anywhere near my tree:-)

In which I attempt constructing an angel

Having completed this years ration of Christmas ornaments I pulled out the next ziplock bag from the construction pile.   Blithely I opened it up to find....

the stitching is not completed.   There are several hours of fancy lacework.   I am halfway done the wings and then there is the long border of the skirt.   You can see the foundations of that at the top of the photo. 
Just as well I love hardanger!
But tonight my favourite stitching is competing with a gripping book.

I'm hoping that my dreams tonight will not be haunted by this heartbreaking account of the tragedy at Okawa Primary School during the Japanese Earthquake and Tsunami of 2011

Unlike the Tin Man

Unlike the Tin Man in the Wizard of Oz,  I have a heart and hearts aplenty on my Hardanger Angel.   The foundations are all laid now with just the lace work left to do so I am taking a break.   This is the bottom border of the gathered skirt - the gap between the kloster blocks will be lacework.

My next project is to put some more flowers on the floral initial -  primroses, cyclamen, lavender and something yellow, maybe some forsythia?  
And then I really must get back to my knitting.   One sleeve, a left front and a right front and a collar to go and already it is July.   The winter will soon be over so I need to get going on that.  
So much to do, so little time.   Yesterday I had a 10 hour day but today was able to finish at my standard 8 hours and so got home a little earlier.   However I spent an hour writing an old fashioned letter with pen and paper which has taken care of most of my evening.
Back with some progress tomorrow (or the next day...)

Angel Progress

Little by little I have made progress on the Hardanger Angel Version 2
Once this piece is complete I need to get back to my knitting but meanwhile I am enjoying my favourite technique.
So a quick snapshot before I go to bed.  The apron back and the shoulders are now completed.   Just the apron front to go -  perhaps tomorrow evening will see this finished.

Deep Satisfaction

"Aahh" she said with deep satisfaction and sighed happily.

Did you hear it?

The knitting is finished (well, the back and one sleeve) and I have started a new project.   Yes, yes, I know that there are two or three pieces needing construction but they are not on The List1

I started to grow a flower garden....but lost heart when it became difficult to match threads against the background fabric I have chosen.   Colour sense is not part of my genome and this project is proving harder than expected.  So a break from gardening is in order.

I looked around and found the ingredients to make an angel.   A bigger, more lacy and hopefully better hardanger angel than version one.   This one is intended to be all in white linen - 32 count belfast linen to be precise.  She is begun and I am so very happy.

Finem Gloriosum

Allow me to introduce to you my favourite angel of 2016

Jo from the Norfolk sent me the chart and Heather from Whanganui sent me the wooden head - thank you very much to you both.
The hardanger is stitched on 32 count linen and the cross stitch with DMC threads so she is definitely not a haute couture angel but I love her.
Even from the back she is elegant.

And a sideways glance

Now to name her.   Gloria? Alleluia? Seraphina?   I don't think so :-)

Dress Rehearsal

My lovely boss told me to take this afternoon off as I had been working long hours. So I was able to get the large grocery shop done.  I tried doing the grocery shop once a month, to save time but that has stretched out to once every six weeks.   Mind you I still hate shopping!
Anyway, I have some free time so I have been auditioning bodies for the Hardanger Angel and tonight we had a dress rehearsal.  

The Body Shop flowing soap turned out to have the exact size bottle I required.   Then the plastic stem of one cotton ear bud  and the tip of a bamboo toothpick and voila.   I can see how this will come together.  Maybe not tonight though:-)

Look at this.

I think this is probably a competition from 3M for the most ingenious use of Post It Notes - they have been known to run such things before.   The local office of the Ministry of Education decorated their window in the latest craze and I stopped to take photo on my way home tonight.

I have been knitting on sock number two and should hopefully finish it tonight, all the while dreaming of another stitching project.   To my immense satisfaction they are proving to be identical twins which was exactly what I wanted.

Stitching is finished and the hardanger angel needs construction.   I plan to get the fabric for the skirt this weekend.   Photos will follow.  The holes are for the neck and the ties around the waist although they do look like planned mistakes at this point :-)

And the winner is...

Tonight was the official draw for a lucky winner.   Can you hear the drum roll?   Thank you to all those who left comments and helpful suggestions for my trip.   With the willing cooperation of the HD3QBEM the winning name has been drawn.

Grace  if you can email me with your postal address I will mail off your copy of the ANZEG Diary.   There's a block of NZ specialty chocolate to include and.....a few other surprises.

I have been working on the front skirt of the hardanger angel tonight.   Densely stitched areas like this are not a favourite but I admit the overall effect is rather good.   What I thought was a bunch of roses is more like a ribbon tying green leaves but I'm not finished yet.  And I still think red velvet for the underskirt!

A White Night - with a splash of colour

Tonight I have been stitching white buttonhole stitch around the edge of the angel.   Perhaps not the most inspiring, it is nonetheless very satisfying.  

Another evening and I should be all the way round and can then begin the floral part.   I laid a piece of dark cloth under the lacework wing to make it clearer -  the fabric is still pristine white.   I wash my hands frequently while stitching this
I have pulled the floss for the flowers and think they should look really good.   My idea is to have a deep wine velvet underskirt- but no firm decisions have been made yet.   The HD3QBEM says that bottle green velvet would look good too.   She is of course correct ;-)
Tomorrow I will draw a name from the comments left for the giveaway so do leave a comment here if you wish to enter.   There will be a cake of Whittakers Black Doris Plum and Roasted Almonds chocolate included  - if that is an added inducement.

Finito

Congratulations to self.  The green cardigan is finished and fits perfectly. A lousy photo but I need a record. The HD3QBEM laughed at all the buttons but I like them and that's what matters.   Besides which there is no gaping!

And some Connected Wrapped Bars have been added to the Hardanger Angels Wing Tip.

Not bad when I am oh so very tired.   But no work tomorrow = a day to myself with a To Do List as long as ever.   First up though is the Embroiderers' Conference Exhibition.   The weatherman promises showers so I hope he is wrong as I predict a long walk from car park to venue.

A new start

Tonight I did some more knitting on the green sweater and have reached the armhole on the back.   I had promised myself a new start at this point so I have begun the Hardanger Angel.

Hardanger is definitely my favourite and I am already enjoying the setting out of the kloster blocks.   DMC perle #8 on 32 count Belfast linen = happiness:-) White on white isn't very interesting but the construction of this project is what makes it.   Watch this space.

Having more time in an evening to indulge my hobbies is such a great feeling.   

Next weekend is the National Embroiderers Conference and I have Friday off to go and visit the exhibition and the merchants mall. I am certainly looking forward to that.