Melitastitches4fun's Blog

A wonderful group of stitching sisters met in Rehoboth Beach Delaware for a 2-day pilot class of “Sisters” with Nancy Cucci. Thanks to Roseanne J for organizing this event, we all had a great experience. But before class . . .

My husband, Linda, and I headed down on Saturday. We got some shopping in on Saturday  (for summer sandals) & again on Sunday (at the outlet shops) when my husband golfed in some of the most perfect weather ever.

Then, Linda & I enjoyed the Needlework exhibit at the Rehoboth Museum on Sunday. What’s great about this display is that tags mention the stitcher’s name and name of the piece making it easier to track it down if you like it. I did track down some of the cross stitch pieces for you thanks to 123stitch.com.

It’s always fun to see Patrick B, our current chapter President, showing his pieces: Autumn (love the colors) and Tortoise & Hare (a cute scissors sheath). And, I loved seeing the piece my mother stitched for my husband “Irish Blessing” (I didn’t note the stitcher’s name – sorry) – “May the road rise to meet you . . . and until we meet again <> may God hold you in the hollow of His hand.”

Roseanne J won 1st place in the Beadwork category for BEADazzled and in Canvaswork for Golden Opportunity, and a 2nd place for Winter Crystals (all Nancy Cucci designs).

Brenda C’s  “Let It Snow” (designed by Toni Gerdes) got 2nd place and “Beachcomer’s Booty” (designed by Ann Strite-Kurz) got 3rd place both in Canvaswork .

Geri W did well too in Canvaswork  with Summer Surf (designed by Nancy Cucci) (2nd place),  Walking the Water’s Edge (designed by Diane Herrman) (3rd place), and Three Santas (designed by Janet Casey Ziegler) (Honorable Mention).

The other category’s  were well represented too! I’m only mentioning a few of the lovely pieces.

• Counted Thread:
  -Shirley G’s “Tiramisu” (1st place) – reversible blackwork band sampler displayed so at you could see both sides – I found it is 29″x 10″ & was an EGA Correspondence Course by designer Dakota Rogers.
  -Shirley G’s “Metamorphosis” by Ink Circles (2nd place) – a medallion worked 7 times from top to bottom with more added to the design as it progresses down & becomes darker.
  -Patrick G’s “Four Seasons” by Janlynn (1st place) – 4 cross stitch  designs of the seasons must have taken multiple seasons to complete but worth it.
  -Ann S’s “Fish Tank” (2nd place) – with 3 fish finished on wooden dowels of different heights making it look like they are swimming in a fish tank with rocks & seaweed.
  -Agnes C’s “Winter Reindeer” by Dimensions Gold Collection (I think it was on a cover of a magazine last year or so). Stunning.
• Embroidery:
  -Janice C’s “Camellias”, a piece of Brazilian Embroidery (2nd place),  was lovely – pink & white flowers with green leaves.
• Heirloom Sewing/Quilting
  -Patricia S’s “Mom’s Enmeshed Embellishment’s” was interesting because the tools, such as a pair of scissors, curved basting pin, round items, buckle-like things, and keys (sorry, I forgot to ask Linda to identify them for me as she is also a quilter).
  -Ludmilla M’s “Endless Possibilities” (1st place) was very impressive – lots of curves & there were areas not sewed down (I can’t explain it very well – again, sorry).
• Miniature & Sampler categories were nice but not my area of interest. Jean T & Theresa B are names I see year after year here & at Woodlawn – both do lovely work.
• Shirley H won Best in Show for “Roses”, a piece of lovely ribbon embroidery.

My husband golfed again & did his own shopping on Monday & Tuesday after he dropped us off at class. In no time at all I realized that I’d forgotten my Elan needlepoint stand (for holding my piece on bars). But, I find it difficult to get much done in class anyway. I like to read, study, and digest the instructions before I dive in but you can’t do that in class. And, nothing is in the right place like it is at home. So, I was unstitching some on both days – my count was off by one thread once and I applied too many beads in every row instead of every other row in another area. But, I wasn’t the only one who did that (I won’t name names Dana!). And, some got more done than others especially those who went home & stitched until midnight! Roseanne reminded me that after the Nancy Cucci class in Oct 2011 (Stitches in Sterling which still isn’t done), I went to a bar & stitched in the evening! But, I needed to rest my eyes, back, and brain in the evening this year (everything is almost 5 years older now!).

And, as Linda said, “It’s not a race.” I really enjoyed learning about how Nancy designed the piece with beads, Kreinik, and floss in different areas to obtain depth. It’s a great piece – very pretty (being taught in New Orleans at ANG Seminar in Aug 2016). I’m making progress on Block 1 now that I am back home in my comfy chair! This is what I did just while I was in the 2-day class. You can see Nancy’s finished piece at: http://needlepoint.org/Seminar-16/classes/images/20105-Sisters-NC-6508.jpg

The Cheer Center makes a nice lunch & tables are set up in the back so we could all sit & chat for an hour! I enjoyed seeing people I usually only see rarely such as Janice G and Christine L at ANG Seminar; Roseanne J, Brenda C, Geri W, & Pat vdA when I get to Delaware Seashore Chapter; Kathy B, one of the owners of Richmond Virginia’s The Stitching Studio where I’d stopped in May of 2015 (sorry it was without you Linda!);  & I enjoyed meeting Dana, a recent new FB friend along with all the other stitchers from 7 area states (4 of the women stopped at Nimble Needle in NJ & enjoyed meeting Karen). Of course, spending time with Linda & my husband is always tons of fun!!

I didn’t get everyone in the picture but here’s the class hard at work!