Austin Stash

It is nice to find patterns you don't already have.  The clerk that was helping me at Ginger's also loves sheep and pointed out Sophie's Sheep.  The other two sheep I found on my own.

But it is not all sheep.  I particularly liked the Three Stockings model I saw right by the front door.  They had done the pine needles in Artic Rays rather than regular thread.  It gave the piece a wonderful three dimensional look.  Besides sheep, I do love pumpkins.  This small pattern should be good to take as a traveling piece.

But I have to say that my favorite purchase of the trip was this 18 count canvas from The Needle Works.  I had a ton of fun ransacking all their luscious threads looking for just the right ones for this project.  I started doing needlepoint and only came to cross stitch late in my stitching life.  Cross stitch probably makes more sense for me as I am drawn to intricate patterns on small count canvas.  Although I have a ton of needlepoint stitch pattern books, I find myself doing basketweave and continental with lots of different threads rather than patterns with a lot of background stitches.  Right now all I want to do is start this project, but I am being good and working on my shells.  If I put in some hours today, I should have another quarter of the pattern done.  But I can tell that 2010 will be the year of needlepoint.  I have a stash of canvases that are crying out for some attention.  I am very tempted to take this canvas with me back east for Christmas, but I can't do that unless I have some stitchy presents finished first.  Back to stitching!