Love them!

I have a question for you guys...where do you buy your hoops?  I can only seem to find round wooden ones or some small round plastic ones...I would love to do more oval shaped things...I love the sunbather hoop a lot!

I have a whole range of sizes from doing embroidery/cross stitch over the years. Mostly bought at craft supply fairs, Embroidery shops or from sales tables at my Embroiderers Guild branch meetings. I also have an oval one like the sunbather one but I think mine might be smaller (difficult to tell from the picture) - it's currently wrapped with lots of masking tape needing to be cleaned off since I used it years ago for a project. 

I've been holding on to one 'special' one since I picked it up from a sales table. It's about 3" accross, made for Japanese silk embroidery and the smallest hoop I have ever seen. Still cant decide whether to use it as a hoopla or not.  seems a bit of a waste to never be able to use it again.

I've used 'split stitch' for the outlines and am filling in the colour with a mixture of 'satin stitch' and 'long & short stitch'.

Im afraid I have never mastered french knots, though my Mum did try to teach me. She is the really skilled embroideress in our family.

that mermaid is a read beauty  - I love her smile  she looks like she's about to laugh at something.

Im loving those Dr Who stitchings alwaysinmyroom! Cant wait to see them finished together 

Thanks guys  I'm kinda enjoying sewing something 'simple' for a change. Its a bit zen-like.

Im still struggling to come up with a 'summertime' design I want to stitch... but I have started sewing again on a piece I began years ago and has sat half finished for almost as long

This is suppsed to be my family's crest of arms. heres what I've done so far - middle shield, helmet & all out lining was done about 6/7 years ago.



I have stitched the 2 top red feathers today.

one more thing off the list  -  just a little one this time. A crochet rainbow ninja  

He's about 3 inches tall.

It's about half way through the year (how scary is that!) so I have decided to tidy up my list.

see here if really interesed.

I must get a push on and finish a few things. I have been working on my knitted 1940's gloves, my embriodered hoop and have ahlf finiished a beaded necklace as a sample for what I am proposing to teach at next years beading weekend away.

sheepBlue - that bag is soo cool    TM patches are on my list of things I want to try - haven't got there yet but maybe this year 

Hmmm  very cool theme but I dont seem to have any particular "Summertime" memories. could be a tricky one for me