It’s rather appropriate that the first of the Cabochons by Susan Portra to start in 2026 is Hope since I am hopeful that I will complete the series this year. It’s actually the 4th in the series (still missing 11 and 12 if anyone has a lead on how to get them).
Hope is supposed to be on a gray canvas using Rhapsody R04. My canvas is called pewter, a type of gray that looks great with this Rhapsody. Although my card of Rhapsody is not numbered, it goes great with Neon Rays N08 which is in Susan’s original colorway. I am switching out Anchor Floss and Pearl #5 for DMC threads.
The basting of the outline was done last night. I did get the top row of 26 cross stitches in at our ANG Main Line Stitchers chapter Stitch-in today but I was convinced to rip them out because I had not done that many and they had not been done according to the instructions. The top stitches of the cross stitches are supposed to point to the center. I had spent too much time shopping and talking to restitch them there. And, I had forgotten to get my unstitched starting photo.
So, this was my progress during the Saturday night football games.
This church ornament by Cross My Heart, Inc was a destashed item from Sally that I took out to have a small piece to work on periodically. The company is still online at EverythingCrossStitch(.com) but this kit is from 1992 and no longer available.
Having not done a cross stitch kit in years, I had forgotten that the threads come all together. It took some time because the greens are quite close but I separated them onto a couple of floss organizers.
I made a copy before marking it up further and enlarged it. Only the outlining in backstitch remains.
You can see how the outline helps define the shapes. While the overall design was evident, now it pops. Very easy finishing. After attaching the ribbon, some E6000 around the back edge adhered it to the metal tart tin. Cute idea!
Filed under: Florentine Fancywork by Toni McKelley, Other People's Designs
Florentine Fancywork by Toni McKelley was an ANG Correspondence Course years ago but I didn’t get it and regretted it. So, I put a saved search on Ebay quite some time ago and forgot about. Back in June, I got notified that the instructions had been posted and I bought it. When it arrived, I asked my husband to put it away for Christmas. Again, I forgot about it! What a wonderful surprise to open it today. That’s definitely going to be on my must stitch list for counted pieces in 2026!
Toni used Rainbow Gallery Overture which she calls a space-dyed thread! Haven’t seen that term before. It’s what I call overdyed. And, it calls for V114 Victoriana that has been discontinued! Of course. Toni uses segments of it in the border but not everywhere. Apparently, it has greens, yellows, and peaches according to the text and photos. I have one card of Overture that isn’t V114. But, the separated strands are slightly thinner than strands of Watercolours. Since I have lots of skeins of Watercolours and coverage will be better, I will switch to one or two skeins of Watercolours.
There is also Rainbow Tweed RT66 Leaf Green which is still available but I think I’ll stay with Watercolours.
First, I will pull the solids. Flair, Mandarin Floss, Neon Rays, and 3 Splendors are all available at Fireside Stitchery which I can pick up on Saturday January 3rd at our rescheduled December Stitch-in. That leaves Gold Rush 14, WG53C, Violet Blush that is not available at Fireside Stitchery but is still available elsewhere. I do have Gold Rush 14, WG86C, Lilac that is a bit darker but might work just fine. Once I obtain the solids and decide on the Watercolours, I will decide on the Gold Rush.
Very pretty design combining the various bargello patterns together.
Filed under: Susan Portra, The Cabochons, Peace
Tiara by Rainbow Gallery is next on my list of threads that I don’t like!
Good news is that laying the long lengths of pearl in advance of couching was not difficult except for the thread. Tiara separated at the ends and was catching. I’m not getting a break with nasty threads.
I worked on the background during a Zoom call, during football games, and a movie. It’s interesting to see Susan’s choice to do the denser tent stitches on the sides and skipping every other for the more open pattern on the top and bottom.
The cabochons went on easy enough.
It’s now added to my finishing pile. And, I won’t allow myself to start the next cabochon until this one is finished. So, I’ve got to find time!!
Peace from the Cabochon series by Susan Portra is coming along nicely. I counted the tent stitch blue border in advance of our Saturday Stitch-in because it requires concentration.
I added the pink Fyre Werks outline during the Stitch-in yesterday.
As in a previous cabochon, I substituted French Knots with cross stitches of various lengths (over 4, 3, 2, and/or 1) depending on the number of available intersections. I got the idea from Painted Canvas Embellishment: An Idea Book by Carole Lake and Michael Boren (Bands and Borders Over One).
Not wanting to start anything more difficult later that night, I added the bugle beads and all the long laid diagonal stitches. There were no instructions to stitch one row and then couch. So, I laid all the threads. Hopefully, I won’t regret that! I do have enough in case I need the remove it but I should be ok.
I am contemplating a T-stitch for the cabochon squares. The instructions leave them unstitched. Thoughts?
Peace is the third in The Cabochons series by Susan Portra. It’s on a light pink canvas but the blue and purple save it from being too pink.
I forgot to get a photo of the threads first. So, you see the Rhapsody boxes.
Our ANG Main Line Stitchers chapter Stitch-in was Saturday at Fireside Stitchery. There were 3 men stitching and not either of the 2 guys from our chapter!
Linda and I searched for red threads for Bring the Joy Santa that is a painted canvas the chapter is working on. Then, I started looking for threads for a counted project we’ll be starting in March but couldn’t decide on anything. Then, I got to stitch the Fyre Werks into Peace which was easy enough.
Shortly after I got to the blue tent stitches, I realized that the basted border wasn’t going to hold the entire design as charted. I had to move the motif down by restitching the basted border. Luckily, I had enough canvas to move the border up 6 canvas threads. By then, it was about time to head home anyway. Four hours flew by!
Here’s the rebasted border and my progress.
Counting the tent stitch blue border requires more concentration than a Stitch-In allows with our conversation and distractions of lovely painted canvases and walls of threads!
I finally decided what to do with Floral Fantasy, a small (4″ square) painted canvas by an unknown designer. After placing a buttonhole border around the design DMC Pearl 5 in green DMC 700, I whip stitched a piece of ultrasuede backing to it.
I held the ultrasuede in place with 4 Instant Tacky dots from Aleene’s as recommended by Ellen Johnson of Serendipity during her recent finishing class. Since they are acid and lignin free, I placed them on the back of the needlepoint (one near each corner).
The scary part is always cutting the canvas close to the stitching without cutting the threads. But, I did it. The trick is to squish the edge of the buttonhole towards the design before snipping slowly. Then, after all sides are cut, push it back towards the outside.
After placing 4 more pieces of Aleene’s tacky dots on the back of the ultrasuede in the corners, I attached it to the tissue box for our guest bedroom. I’m not worried about the tacky dots leaving a mark on the ultrasuede since I could easily remove the ultrasuede from the piece and reattach a new backing. Even with all those beads it’s not heavy.
I ran out Craf-tex and wasn’t finding it without a fusible interfacing. So, Linda suggested Peltex which she prefers over Craf-tex anyway. Michael’s wasn’t showing any brand in-stock near me. So, I went with Pellon sew-in stabilizer that I was able to find at Hobby Lobby in NJ (got their last yard and on sale) allowing me to continue on my finishing frenzy! It feels like the same weight as the other “heavyweight” one I’ve been using and is the same thickness.
This cabochon was stitched by the end of July but was waiting for me to get motivated to do the finishing. I try not to use glue (messy) and lacing across tab to tab as most finishers do doesn’t thrill me because it loosens easily. But, by lacing into the stabilizer, I can cinch it in place after every couple of tabs.
I had this piece of fabric from Linda along with 2 other fabrics that are actually earmarked for another design utilizing fabric applique that I have one my To Do List. It’s perfect for this ornament and I still have plenty. Aleene’s Instant Tacky Dots are fantastic! I placed one in the inside of the fabric to hold it in place on the magazine board, two dots on the felt that is slightly larger than the board and sewed around running stitch to gather the fabric together. That’s made my finishing so much easier! Making the piece of felt slightly larger made stitching the two sides together easier because the magazine board didn’t get in my way as I attached the cording.
Once my husband was available to be my stationary hook, I made cording with 4 lengths of DMC #5 Pearl 356 used in the design. The loop was done first and attached to the ornament side of the stabilizer. That’s another lifesaving tip! It makes starting and ending the exterior cording so much easier. And, the loop doesn’t twist when it hangs. I was lucky that my stash had the matching DMC Floss 356 to attach the cording.
I don’t think anyone would find where I started and ended the outer long cord. That’s usually been a problem but this one worked perfectly. Finishing still takes time but what doesn’t with needlepoint! At least I no longer dread the task. And, I am thrilled to say these Cabochons are some of my best finishes.
In my last post, most people queried said to place the Cabochons on the bottom half. Well, by the time I did the finishing, I had forgotten about that and finished it the way I’d been thinking it should be finished-with them on the top.
The Silent Auction at ANG Seminar had a lot of items! I got outbid on several counted pieces but did “win” Hearts and Flowers by Jim Wurth. It’s another octagonal-shaped ornament. Whoever donated it included their copper and blue thread choices. I’ll be pulling that colorway to see what that looks like (eventually). I’ve got a lot of stitching to do on my design from my other NAN class and my 3 ANG classes – my main goals now for the rest of 2025. Basically, 4 projects and 4 months!
Charity is the 2nd in the Cabochon Series by Susan Portra. All designs are based off a Rhapsody, a discontinued Rainbow Gallery thread. This one is R18. This card says, “Try running other yarns thru this.” I ran an overdyed thread thru white Flair for a nice effect in Beautiful Ohio, a technique that I learned from teacher, David McCaskill. It helped me win the ANG Princess Grace Award (https://melitastitches4fun.com/category/melitas-adaptations/ohio-star/).
This card of Rhapsody is too dark but a solid color through a lighter one would be nice to try. Learning/Sharing #1.
I did change to the Diagonal Greek stitch from French Knots that were supposed to go above the 5 diamonds. I found the pattern in Painted Canvas Embellishment by Carole Lake and Michael Boren. The French Knots were supposed to be on every Canvas thread with 5 strands of floss. It seemed to heavy. I used 2 strands for Diagonal Greek (3 strands were still too heavy). It really fits the design and reminds me it’s ok to change a stitch to what you prefer. I’ve heard more than one teacher say that once you purchase their piece, you can do what pleases you. Learning/Sharing #2.
I stitched on Charity last month and this month at our ANG MLS Stitch-in. Although I spent over an hour shopping for threads to fill in the kits for the other designs in the series, I did finally sit and stitch. That’s when I learned from Linda M (who learned it from teacher, Toni Gerdes) that using glue stick on the end of Tiara will control that from splitting apart. And, it really does the trick. Linda and Toni to the rescue! But, I will not seek opportunities to use this thread. I don’t see an advantage to it over other threads not requiring special handling. Learning/Sharing #3.
That leaves the bugle beads and Cabochons to do. Here I got the location of the prongs established and enlarged the holes with a large needle to ensure placement looks consistent. Learning/Sharing #4.
We talked bead trays and at least one person didn’t know that the square sticky bead tray with a cover can rest on the canvas while stitching with the cover bent backwards. Another reason this wasn’t a favorite bead holder was because you can’t turn the canvas over without it falling which I agree is a bother. So, I added a magnet inside the box. Problem solved. Lesson/Sharing #5.
I can’t take time now to do the finishing but I had to finish the bugle beads and attach the cabochons.
The directions show this finished sideways.
I stitched it thinking I’d finish it this way with the center motif looking like a heart.
Then, I solicited opinions from everyone yesterday and my husband today. I think it was unanimous to go this way.
What do you prefer?
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