New Themes and Featured Stitchers

The themes and Featured Stitchers for October have been posted. Enjoy!

Don't Forget - SAL Weekend!

Summer is drawing to a close here in the Northern Hemisphere while those of you in the Southern Hemisphere are wrapping up your winter and looking forward to spring. The Olympics are winding down as well, and despite some of the controversies, I hope you've been enjoying them.

But don't forget - this weekend is our SAL weekend, so get out those ornaments to stitch. And if you're at a loss or can't make a decision, check out the piles of freebies listed in the right hand side bar. The current month's themes are listed, as well as links to all the archived themes. (And remember, you're not obligated to stitch the themes or the freebies. They're provided as options).

We also have several new members whose blogs have been added to our Contributors section, so if you haven't checked them out lately, stop by and have a browse through our listing.

Featured Stitchers and New Themes

I'll be away this weekend, so I wanted to get the Featured Stitchers and the new themes up for August.

Check out the blogs and websites of our featured stitchers - this month has a somewhat more diverse selection and features several blogs in non-English languages. (A large percentage of our contributors are English-speaking / writing, but not everyone!) Most, if not all, can be easily translated through Google's Language Tools, so don't let an unfamiliar language stop you. Google will translate an entire website for you, so if you haven't used it yet, it's worth a look.

The themes for August are Bears, Fantasy, Geometrics, and Pets. I've tried to provide a large selection of freebies, but as always, if you know of other sites, be sure to let me know.

And one final reminder: please remember to label your posts / photos with the name of the designer and the title of the design. And if you know the source of the pattern (for example, JCS 2007), please include that as well. Any other information you want to provide (threads, fabrics, etc.) is completely up to you, but it is VERY important to include the designer's name with each photo that is posted. (I know. I harp on this all. the. time.) :-)

Abandoned Blogs and Labeling

I went through the list of Contributors in the sidebar, weeding out blogs that haven't been updated within the last few months. I found quite a few and removed the links as it's frustrating to click on a dead link or find a blog that hasn't been updated in ages.

I did, however, discover one blog had moved to Wordpress when I stumbled across a link on another blog, so I put the blog back in. If you're reading this, and you've moved your blog, please let me know so I can update. I'm a big fan of having the links in the sidebar so we can get to know each other. I can't tell you how many wonderful blogs I've found just by following a trail from one blog to the next. So if you have a stitching related blog or online album that's not listed in our sidebar, please let me know and I'll add it. And if you are listed in the sidebar, please check the link to make sure it's your current blog. If you've changed platforms or blog sites, please let me know so I can update the link.

Also, please remember to label your posts with the designer / source of your pattern to avoid copyright issues. Another designer, Jennifer Aikman-Smith, will be discontinuing the publication of her designs after her final two are released. Jennifer is pursuing other interests, but copyright infringement took its toll on her and weighed heavily into her decision. Therefore, it's very important to give credit where credit is due and respect the rights of the copyright owner.

Labeling posts also helps out your fellow stitchers when they want to stitch the same piece or see more by the same designer. I don't know how often posters check back on their comments to see if there have been questions about their work, so it's nice to give that answer right up front to those that are interested.

Thanks for your cooperation!

Don't Forget - SAL Weekend

Do you know all week I've been feeling guilty about forgetting to post a reminder about the SAL Weekend (like I did for June), only to realize TODAY that it's this weekend? Perhaps I should look at a calender every so often!

So it's THIS weekend for our SAL, and by our, I mean yours, because I have been severely lax in stitching ornaments for a few months. Between the moving, unpacking and getting settled, then vacation and yardwork, combined with me wanting to finish my housewarming gift to ourselves, ornaments have fallen a bit by the wayside.

But never fear, there will be new themes and new featured stitchers up for August. And just as a reminder, if you do have a blog or online stitching album and you're not listed on the blog, let me know where to find you and we'll get you added to the list.

Have a great weekend, and happy stitching!

It's Time for Christmas in July!

Greetings fellow Stitchers!

July is upon us, and that means the Featured Stitchers for July have been posted, as well as the new themes for the month. As always, if you have any links for ornament freebies, please sent them my way. Links to finishing tutorials are also appreciated, as are charities to which stitchers can donate ornaments.

I've been working on keeping our blog list updated - there's a few new blogs to check out. If you're not on the Contributor list and would like to be, please send me a link to your personal stitching blog or online stitching album. (Please make sure these blogs and albums contain primarily stitching content.) And each month, contributors are randomly selected from the list to be featured stitchers. By the end of the year, all blog/album owners will be featured.

And on a final administrative note, please remember to label your posts and give credit where credit is due. Labeling helps keep the blog indexed properly so posts can be located quickly. Giving credit to the designer or publisher is extremely important for both free and paid charts. As has been mentioned many, many times, designers work hard to provide great charts to stitch, and it's only fair their creativity and effort is recognized. Please be sure to give proper credit in your posts, and for freebie charts, provide a link back to the designer whenever possible.

June Themes and Featured Stitchers

I'm sorry I am running a little behind. I can't believe it's JUNE already! JUNE!!!! But the June ornament themes are posted and we have a whole new group of featured stitchers, so check them out!

This weekend is our Stitch-A-Long Weekend!

Don't forget this weekend is our Stitch-A-Long weekend for the month of May. Here in the US, it's also the unofficial start of summer with the Memorial Day Weekend, and many lucky stitchers will have Monday off as well.

Have a great weekend and a Happy Memorial Day!

New Featured Stitchers, New Themes!

I was a little startled when I realized this was the first day of May and I had to update the themes and the featured stitchers on the blog. I've gotten the list of featured stitchers up, so feel free to check out their blogs and stitching albums.

Don't forget - if you have an online stitching album or stitching blog that you'd like to list in our contributors section, please let me know. I'll make sure I get a link up so we can come and check out your work. As usual, I try to keep the list of blogs updated, so if you haven't updated your blog in four or more months, it will be removed from the list. It's not much fun for your fellow stitchers to check out an abandoned or empty blog. And if you switch blogging platforms, be sure to let me know the new address and I'll make the change. All active blogs (and stitching albums) are eligible for the Stitchers of the Month.

The May Themes will be up a little later. It takes me some extra time to set that up, so I'm working on that now.

DON'T FORGET!!!

This weekend is our virtual stitch-a-long. If you're still not sure what to stitch or can't think of any ideas, be sure to check out our list of freebies for the month of April. You can also access previous months.

Speaking of freebies, should you click through to a link that is no longer active, please let me know and I'll remove it. Thanks!

April Freebies have been posted!

The April Freebies are up! This month's themes are Angels, Churches / Religious, Decorations and Holly. As always, you're not obligated to stitch these themes or patterns - they're just provided as a suggestion*.

The April Stitchers of the Month will be posted on April 1st. Only stitchers with active blogs or photo albums will be featured. I occasionally check the blogs and albums of our contributors and remove any that have not been updated in at least the last 4 months. The blogs and albums are not requirements of membership, but they are a nice way to get to know your fellow stitchers, and those interested in checking out the blogs should have access to ones that are at least somewhat current.

If you have a blog or an online stitching album that you would like to share, but it is not listed, please EMAIL me with the address and I will make sure that you are listed (and eligible to be a featured stitcher!)

Also, please be sure to label your posts with at least the designer / publisher name (Lizzie*Kate, Blue Ribbon Designs, Little House Needleworks, etc.) and/or your source (such as a magazine - title and issue number). I know I harp on this a lot, but it is important for 2 reasons:

1. The designers work hard on these charts and deserve credit and recognition for their work

2. Other stitchers may be interested in stitching these designs and it's helpful if they know where to find them or how to ask for them

If you forget to label, you can always go back in and edit your own posts. If you have trouble doing this, please contact me and I'll be glad to help you out.



* Please note that this blog does not advocate or endorse any specific religion. The patterns are provided as a reference

Don't Forget!!!

This weekend, March 22 & 23, is our monthly stitch-a-long. I know many people will be celebrating Easter this weekend, so it might be a little more difficult than usual to find the time. If you are stitching this weekend and still don't know what you're working on, take a look at the long list of freebies posted on the right for tons of great ideas.

Happy Stitching!

A few Updates

It's the end of February - an extra long one with the Leap Year, but the end of the month anyway.

The March Featured Stitchers are posted - go check out their blogs!!! I never fail to be impressed at how talented and diverse our fellow stitchers are. Check out these blogs and the blogs of all our different contributors. If you're new to the blogging community or haven't made the rounds lately, now is as good a time as any to see what's been going on.

Don't forget that every month, new stitchers are chosen at random to be our featured stitchers and have their blogs or online photo albums highlighted for the month. If you are currently on our contributor list, you are eligible to be a Featured Stitcher. If are NOT on the list but you have a blog or an online stitching album, please let me know about it and I'll include you. Remember, it's never a requirement to have a blog or album, but it is a fun way to get to know each other.

I will periodically remove inactive blogs from the Contributors List. If a blog hasn't been updated in more than 4 months, it gets removed so that readers of this blog are getting links to current stitching blogs. Also, if you change your blog address, please let me know so I can update the links.

The March Themes have also been posted, and the February ones will move into the Archives tomorrow. This months themes are Sheep, Snowmen and Trains, and I've compiled a list of freebies for your enjoyment. (As always, you're free to stitch whatever you want and are not restricted to these themes). If you come across any other freebies, please let me know and we'll get them added to the list. Freebies are a nice way to try out new designers, and since the charts are usually small ones, they work great for ornaments.

And one last PS - please remember to label your posts and give credit to the designers / sources of your patterns.

DON'T FORGET!!!

This weekend is our Monthly SAL weekend!! Some of you are already heading into Friday afternoon / evening, so make sure you've got your charts ready and your supplies kitted up for this weekend's stitching!

February's Stitching Weekend...

This upcoming weekend - February 23 and 24th - is our monthly SAL weekend.

Start thinking about your ornaments and gathering your supplies so you're all ready to stitch this weekend. If you still can't decide what to stitch, take a look at our themes this month. We're featuring "Love", "Music" and "Winter", and there's a whole bunch of freebie charts to check out. Of course, you don't HAVE to stitch these themes, but you can use them as a starting point or to help you narrow down your choices.

Also, please remember to label your posts as it makes the blog so much more useful. Instead of looking through hundreds of posts, you can just click on a label and bring up all posts labeled as such. (Pretty handy, right?)

If you're confused on what to label your posts with, the left side bar has a link to tips on labeling your posts. You can click on the "Show All" option next to the label box at the bottom of your "New Post" screen (where you enter your posts). That will bring up a list of ALL the labels used so far on the blog and you can just click on the ones you need. Blogger also auto suggests labels as you type in the label box, so you can do that too. Don't worry if your label is not auto suggested or contained in the list - finish typing it in and it will add a new label.

And if you forget to label, you can always go back later and edit your post. I've been trying to fill in missing labels along the way as well. If you have any questions, just let me know and I'll be glad to help out.

February Themes of the Month

February isn't until tomorrow (well, sooner rather than later for some of us!), so I've posted the themes for February, as well as a whole bunch of freebies to go with them.

This month's themes will be Love (of course!), Music, and Winter.

The January themes will remain up until tomorrow, and will then move into the Archived Section. For as long as the patterns remain available online, the links will be active and you'll be able to access them. I do check periodically and remove inactive links, so again, if you see something you like, it's best to save it right away. Also, if you know of any freebies I missed that fit these themes (or would make a good ornament in general), please let me know!!

Remember, you're not obligated to stitch any of these themes or patterns - they're just suggestions to help you narrow things down if you'd like. You're always welcome to stitch and post whatever you like.

I'll also be posting the list of February Featured Stitchers later on today. Stitchers are chosen mostly at random (I use a Birthday List to make a few selections so stitchers can be honored in the month of their birthday). Since the object of the featured Stitchers list is to showcase stitching work, only stitchers with active blogs (updated in at least the last 4 months) or online photo albums will be selected. I've had several comments that people really enjoy visiting each other's blogs, and it's nice to see the most current blogs.

If you are NOT on the Contributor's list, but you have an active blog or online photo album (Flickr, Photobucket, Webshots, etc.), please let me know and I will make sure you get listed. Blogs can be on any blogging platform - Blogger, Wordpress, LiveJournal, etc. If you don't have a blog, but you do have an online album of your work, we can post that instead. (One link per person, please)

A blog or a photo album is not a requirement for membership, but it's always nice to get to know your fellow stitchers whenever you can, and perhaps participating here will help inspire non-bloggers to start their own and share their stitching with us.

Post Labeling

The more blogs I read, the more I realize just how useful labels are, especially in group blogs such as this. I've spent some times going over the posts and adding in labels, but I would like to suggest that we all label our entries to include the following:

• Designer or Publisher (Country Cottage Needleworks, Shepherd's Bush, etc.)


• Source - JCS ornament magazine (ie JCS 2007), book title, etc.


• If the pattern is a free pattern from the internet, label the post with "freebie", and if possible, provide a link or a website so your fellow stitchers can find it if they'd like to stitch it for themselves.


• You may also choose to label your posts with your name / nickname so that stitchers can click on that label to see everything you've posted. This is completely optional, however, and I didn't correct posts to include names if they weren't originally labeled as such.

Let's say you want to see what's been stitched from the 2006 JCS ornament issue. All you would have to do is click on that link listed under "Labels" and it will bring up all the posts tagged with JCS 2006. Or what if you want to see all of the Hillside Samplings or Prairie Schooler ornaments that have been posted. You'd click on that link and they would come up. As you can see, this is a pretty useful feature.

Labeling posts is very easy. At the bottom of the box where you enter your new posts, there is a box for entering labels. Blogger will even auto suggest labels from the current list as you start typing in that box. If your label is not auto-suggested by Blogger, it only means that it is not already on the list, so you should continue to enter it.

Labeling will also help make sure that designers are getting proper credit for their work. A lot of these designers operate on a small business level and work hard at creating these gorgeous designs for us. Their talent and creativity should be honored by giving them the credit they deserve, so be sure to label your posts appropriately and respect their copyrights. (On a side note, I know there are designers who have blogs of their own and participate in the blogging community, and I am sure they enjoy seeing their designs come to life at the hands of so many stitchers).

If you have any questions or issues, please don't hesitate to email me. Thanks!

Don't Forget!!!

This upcoming weekend - January 26 & 27 - is our official SAL weekend.

Many of you have been stitching all month and posting pictures, which is great inspiration! But if you haven't stitched anything yet, now is the time to pick an ornament or two and gather up your supplies so you're ready for the weekend when we'll all be stitching together.

If you're really at a loss, or just can't decide what to stitch, take a look at our suggested themes. You're not required to stitch those subjects, but they can be a great help in narrowing down some pretty overwhelming choices. And if you have suggestions for future themes or links to free patterns that would make great ornaments, please let me know. I've been collecting themes and patterns and will try to feature at least 3 with freebies every month. As a reminder, if you see a freebie you like, be sure to download it and save it to your own computer or print it out. It's so disappointing to go back for something and not be able to find it again. Also, make sure you're keeping track of the designer, or at least the website you got it from so that proper credit can be given.

Remember when you post your picture to credit the designer or publisher of the chart you stitched, if applicable. You can also list threads and fabrics if you like. Your posts should be labeled with your name, and the theme of the ornament plus the designer as well - just to make it easier for people browsing the blog to find what they're looking for.

And it's not too late to join! If you have friends or blogging buddies working on ornaments, send them our way and have them join us. The more, the merrier! You can also link to this blog from your own personal stitching blog.

Finally, if you know of any charities that accept stitched ornaments for fundraisers, send me a link and I'll list it on our page. Sometimes stitchers run out of space on their own trees or people to give their finished ornaments too, and donating to charity is a nice way to help out. Please note that individual stitchers are responsible for finding out and following the guidelines of both the charities they wish to donate to AND the designers whose charts they stitch. (The admins of this blog do not endorse any particular charity and are providing these links for informational purposes)

Ornament SALs

If you're running or involved in any kind of ornament SAL that you'd like to post about here, please let me know, and I'll set up a link to your SAL blog or site. For instance, I am also doing a Bride's Tree SAL for ornaments, which will remain open to all stitchers whenever they want to join. So let me know if you're doing any kind of ornament SAL.

Also, if you are involved in or know of any reputable charity that collects handcrafted ornaments for fundraising, let me know about that as well. I know it's a crazy thing to say, but sooner or later, you end up with ornaments you just don't have room for on your own trees anymore and want to give away to a good cause. I would like to start a list of charitable organizations that accept donations of stitched ornaments. (I'd like to note that it is the responsibility of the individual stitchers who choose to participate to check out the charity's reputation and guideliness and follow any copyright laws)

A New Look for the New Year

I hope everyone had happy holidays and a wonderful start to their New Year. Now that everyone seems to be settling back into a routine and lives are getting back to normal, I thought it was time to introduce the new look for 2008. It does need a little tweaking, so if anyone knows how to adjust the white space, please let me know. (Also, if you are finding things difficult to read or have any suggestions to improve the blog, please email me!)

In addition to the new look, there are a few other goodies on the way, so keep an eye out for them. One of the things we'd like to set up is a Suggested Theme of the Month. I know some stitchers have a hard time deciding which ornaments to stitch, so by providing a suggested theme, it can help narrow down the choices and make choosing a little easier. You don't HAVE to stitch the suggested themes, but it can be a real lifeline for stitchers drowning in a sea of decisions! I think 2-3 suggested themes a month is a good number, and the January ones will be coming by the end of the week. If you've got themes in mind, please let me know as we're in the market for suggestions.

I have a few surprises coming later today or tomorrow, so I'll keep those under wraps for now, but introduce myself. My name is Jennifer, and I live on the east coast in the US. I've been cross stitching for 5-6 years now. I've done embroidery for as long as I can remember (remember the iron on transfers?) and a little stamped cross stitch in HS, but always felt intimidated by cross stitch until my DH and I picked up a few kits at the craft store as a way of curbing night time snacking (you can't snack if your fingers are busy stitching!) The stitching bug bit, and here we are still stitching. I've graduated from pre-packaged kits to putting together my own flosses and fabrics for a chart to doing a little of my own designs. Most of what I stitch is given away as gifts, so my themes and choices of designers vary greatly. If you'd like to see more of my stitching, you can check out my blog.

I look forward to working with you all and making this SAL a good experience for everyone. I think it will be a lot of fun to see what everyone stitches throughout the year.