Stitching: Class with Jeannette Douglas!!

As many of you may know I have a bit of a crush on designer Jeannette Douglas. Not only because I love her intricate patterns and colour scheme choices; but also because she lives here in Calgary!! 
I recently made some connections with a lady in a local Sampler Guild and via that connection was invited to attend a class with Jeannette! I was even luckier that two others I knew from many years ago, attending stitching retreats and what not were also attending. So I did my first 'external' stitching get-together in almost 6 years.  

Now, before you get too excited I will warn you that these patterns are only available via a class with Jeannette at this time. You cannot buy them any other way. Advance apologies! 

ABC Sampler: Friday Night
The set-up for the course started with a couple hours on Friday night working on a small ABC Sampler. And of course me being me I chose a colour scheme that no one else did! (lol) I've worked on this piece since being at the class and I just adore it!! I learned that I did the border stitch slightly incorrect in the past, so it was good to learn how to do the stitch correctly! 

The colour scheme I chose is between the two framed patterns shown on the pattern cover. My stitching to date is below. It's on 36ct linen using a variety of silks that Jeannette supplied in a pack. 

More Stitching: Saturday
After the Friday night of getting some stitches on linen I was super stoked for part 2 of the course which was a full day with Jeannette on a stitching sampler type piece. I don't have any photos yet... as I have stitched a pathetic amount of it. But it's much larger than ABC and is full of all kinds of crazy stitches I've never done before. Unlike ABC this piece is much larger and has only one colour palette (which I love, of course) so everyone in class will end up with the same piece at the end of the day (or relatively the same). 
Again I learned some new stitches and had a great day enjoying the overall comfort of stitching in a room with a bunch of ladies. It was drama free and a nice change of pace to my usual stitching time spent in my chair at home. That said, I love my chair and so I'll continue to stitch there on my own! 

In Other News: 
I've been stitching away on the band sampler and a piece for my SIL (that will not be shared as it's a little...um... inappropriate). I also really need to get back to Alice! So I have committed to my husband that I will spend some time with Alice during our December holidays together. Now I can't wait for December to be almost over even though it hasn't even started! 
My Etsy shop has been decimated by the Canada Post strike and I'm considering closing it down entirely. For now it is just not generating many sales as I cannot guarantee anything to be delivered before Christmas. On average during holiday season I'll do about $900 in revenue in November/early December. So far that is all lost revenue. At just over $100 revenue in last three weeks the lost income hurts. That said, it has opened up a lot more time for stitching. So depending on how you look at it's a good or bad thing. I'm not sure which it is yet. Time will tell I suppose. Regardless of what happens with it I can say that in 6 years, with just little ol' me running it, it's been way more successful than ever anticipated. Which is a nice feeling. 

Thanks so much for visiting my blog! 
Watch this space for some pattern giveaways I plan to host in December! You heard it here first. :)