A finish and a new start.......

I'm happy dancing - Quakers & Quilts is finally done! HUGE SIGH OF RELIEF!   I finished it last week - what a thrill to put that last stitch in. This one has been hanging on way too long - I went back to my blog archives to see when I started it and it was November 2009.  It's not like I worked on it constantly since then, I had starts and stops but those quilts along the bottom really wore me out!  Lots of backstitching, half-stitches, and color changes.   It's a beautiful pattern though and should look great on my bookshelves when I get around to framing it.

Without further chit-chat, here it is.........excuse the color changes from photo to photo... I was playing around in the photo editor trying to get the linen to look like it does in real life- you know how it is when you are photographing needlework.

"Quakers & Quilts" by Rosewood Manor

Stitched on 40-ct Lakeside Linen - vintage bisque - and

with a conversion to Belle Soie & Silk 'n Colors threads

I couldn't wait to start a new project and I snuck in the first stitches on Lizzie Kate's 'Christmas Rules' the night before finishing Q&Q.  I absolutely am loving this project! It's like a breath of fresh air after trying to finish up Q&Q - easy stitching, bright colors and just a joy.  I actually may have this done and framed for Christmas this year if things go my way.  I fell in love with it last year after seeing it stitched on some blogs.  It's such a cute design - I have all the Halloween Rules charts too and plan to start that one probably in January for next year's Halloween.   I even talked a coworker into stitching Christmas Rules with me - she cross-stitches but is more of a quilter most of the time.  She loves Christmas though and couldn't resist.

Here's my start so far.........right now I don't feel like stitching on any of my other projects so am going to relax and enjoy this one for awhile!