All hands on deck.....

Could Valentine's Day be over already??

And could February almost be gone?? 

And could March be just around the corner??

They say time flies when you're havin' fun.....I guess they're right.

We have been busy little bees here on the homestead getting ready for Spring Market in Nashville.

Woo hoo.....I can hardly wait.

I get to see all the designers that I look up to and admire.....plus there will be linen and threads and

more linen linen linen.

And I can visit with all the shop owners face to face.

It's going to be an amazing weekend!!!

We still have lots of work to do this week before we can hit the road on Thursday...

but, I wanted to snap a few pics and at least give you an idea of the new things to come.

 This is my Spring version to Christmas at Hollybery Farm.

Spring at Hollyberry Farm Sampler

It's stitched on 32 count this time and it's just a bit bigger than the Christmas sampler.

My idea for this one was to stitch the house from the backyard looking up at the house.

And in the backyard you'll find a sweet little brick garden shed, a beeskep and the flower urn filled with beautiful spring flowers.

Plus the little girl is back again in a pale blue dress this time with her watering can and a couple furry little friends in tow.

This is just a snippet......there's lots more good things to see in her backyard.

 Cat & Mouse Pinkeeps & Slipper

Believe it or not this was a last minute idea inspired by my good friend Carmen Sutton.  

I'm so lucky to have her help at Market, and during one of our many conversations this idea formed.

Our little Mittens inspired the kitty.

Only the stitched version is a little tamer than the real thing.

She is tearing thru the room chasing Phoebe as we speak.

And what's a cat without a couple of mice friends.

I also have a beautiful sampler done in the most gorgeous muted blues, tans and blushes.

It's inspired by an old sampler that I stumbled across last year. 

And the verse is so very sweet.

It's called Ann Bradley Sampler and I think the date is 1826.

Ann is being worked on right now....she will have a home in a lovely old frame.

And I have to thank my good friend Jean Hohulin for my sweet little Ann sampler.

She really went above and beyond to get Ann stitched and I can't thank her enough.

And my last new piece is called My Stitching Book.

It's being stitched right now by another good friend Tamara Storey.

I can't wait to see it finished.

And this one is something totally new for me.....I used a pale blush pink linen.

The color was inspired by an old piece of pink and cream coverlet that I picked up just just outside of Williamsburg VA last fall.  And Pat from R & R Reproduction Linen was kind enough to dye just the perfect color for me.

And my Book finally has a name

My name is Lidya, Inspirations from a School Girls Sampler

I'm keeping my fingers and toes crossed that it might be ready for market.

But, if worse comes to worse I hope to have the finished pieces from the book to show at market.

All good things are worth the wait : )

Here is the original Lidya Corker sampler dated 1803

 

It's hard to grasp just how beautiful she is.  

But, isn't she sweet.

All the projects in the book were inspired by this sampler.

And, I reproduced the sampler as well.

Oh, one more thing.......I'm going to have a sweet little Kit exclusive for market.

It's done in blues, browns and creams and was inspired by Spring.

I made it into a sweet little pinkeep and it's all packaged up in a nice little box with ribbon.

So, if you're coming to market be sure to stop by and pick up my brand new patterns and don't forget to get some kits......once they're gone they're gone

And for everyone else.....be sure to call up your favorite needlework store and have them get some goodies for you.  I know you're going to love them.

Have a great week my friends....

get those needles warmed up.....there's some good things coning your way

Smiles,

Stacy