A History of Chris-Mystery

 As I was preparing this year's free Christmas Mystery Stitch-a-long, I discovered it's the TENTH ANNIVERSARY! Seeing how nostalgic I have been lately, I thought we might enjoy a little stroll down memory lane. The Mystery projects started in 2011. Many of you have been with us since than and some even since our start on eBay in 2003. xoxo

So, the Chris-Mystery projects began as a Halloween stitch-a-long! We had been doing "Friday Freebies" to generate some traffic, and it occurred to me that something on a larger scale might be more fun. Each week, we released a letter-- this is where the poems began, too! Here's our very first instruction sheet. 

Pretty cute, huh! If you told me I would be expanding on this tradition through ten years of stitch-a-longs, well, I just don't think it's believable.

We had the Yahoo group at this time-- participation was fabulous! Were you a part of the old group? You could post your own photos, and each week we had hundreds of photos of each letter. When Yahoo closed the groups down, all these photos were sadly lost.

Of course, we went on to do a Christmas one, just a couple of months later. Short words seem to work well. Both my finished Halloween and the Joy table runner were given away as gifts. I know exactly where they are--hee,hee-- do you think it would be nervy if I asked for them back to take better photos! 

2011 Chris-Mystery JOY

A year later, we were still working on short words! This one, I had the presence of mind and also the greediness to keep-- it also had quilting patterns for the embroidery machine to finish it. I think a bell definitely went off in my head-- and it took a while, but this is the precursor to the fully quilted designs you see now, like Stitches of the Sea.

2012 Chris-Mystery NOEL

Now we're in three years, and the next one lives in INFAMY-- my main embroidery machine broke down, and would be in the shop for WEEKS! I had to get out an old one-- and then finally had to buy a new one. Instead of PUT UP THE TREE! and SLICE UP THE FRUITCAKE!, other exclamations were coming out of my mouth all through this stitch-a-long. Looking back on it, it was one of my least favorites-- I think I see it in a better light now. This one, I have no idea of where it is honestly. I think it's in the house somewhere buried. Cement shoes.

2013 Chris-Mystery DECK THE HALLS

In 2014, I decided to go back to short words-- I wanted us to make something for our sewing rooms. We stitched out the word PIECE, because I though "Piece on Earth" was sew cute! To this day, I have people write to me saying Piece is spelled wrong. For those people, did you know that an A is included so you can also stitch it as PEACE? Apparently, no one reads product descriptions anyway.

I ended up donating this, unfinished, for my local quilt guild's sale-- someone finished it, and I guess at that point, I felt better about it--

I bought it back!! LOL

2014 Chris-Mystery PIECE

I guess by 2015 I'd had enough with short words-- we did ornaments. I love the way this came out, and this is out every year in my home. This stitch-a-long had one color ornaments for free, and full color ornaments for sale-- the upgrade kit had been born!

2015 Chris-Mystery Ornaments

2016 was the year of the Countdown to Christmas Advent Calendar-- we did a design a day for the month of December. I do not know how I kept up with this! I would still like to take these counting designs and make a big applique quilt out of it.



For the stitch-a-long, I just took bits and pieces from it and used them to cobble together a table runner. This is one of my favorites-- I hate to say it, but it's still just a flimsy--quilted this year? Hope so.

2016 Merry Christmas Tablerunner

Next came the Twelve Days of Christmas-- this had a free charm size, and then a 4"x 4" detailed version for sale. The charm size has a beautiful finishing kit, not pictured here.

2017 Twelve Days of Christmas

The 4" x 4" set I stitched on large star blocks I had made with the Fat Quartershop's book "Among the Stars." They just re-released it, and it reminded me how close I was to finishing this! For the life of me, I cannot find it. It's one of those situations where I have obsessively looked in the same places time and time again. 

The next is my very favorite one! My Christmas Album. There were charm and 4"x 4" designs. I was thinking of the song "A Few of My Favorite Things" when I digitized this.

My Christmas Album 2018

Here is my finished 4"x4"-- completely embroidered with sashings and plaid and bows. Art from the heart! This hangs proudly at my front door, from about Thanksgiving to Valentine's Day... all the finishing designs are also available you can make one just like it, too!

Then the year of Cross Stitch began!
These were sew fun to digitize, with all of our favorite Christmas Carols. Again, there were two sizes. 

Kris Kringles Cross Stitch 2019


Last year, such a crazy year! I did not even think of a Christmas Stitch-a-long. Instead, we did "Once Upon a Time, Winter." There was talk of a dark winter for all of us-- I hope this brightened yours. 

And all of these past designs are still on the website-- visit the sale page today, 12/05/22 and buy them now for 80% off.

 Ghosts of Christmas Past On Sale!

Plus, our 2022 free stitch-a-long begins Wednesday--

"Winter Twist!"

And now let's hear from you! Did you stitch along for all ten years? Did you finish, or still WIPs? I hope I've inspired you to put a few stitches in something today... as for me, I'll be looking for my Twelve Days of Christmas stars!

xox 

Carol

The Breaking Point...

     I'll begin with my guilty pleasure... indulge me-- it's very appropriate because it's Thanksgiving week and I'm stitching a turkey! This project is going to go for a 3-4 month vacation after that turkey is roasted. I'm over it... I had a young person who I inspired to be more creative, and I called her one night after she got home from work. When I asked what she was up to, she said, "I am forcing myself to work on crafts." It sounded pretty tragic in that moment, but I have really reached that point in this project.

     This project has taught me a lot about sticking with ONE thing, focusing on it, and pushing through the hard parts. It's over the halfway point and now in the category of "IT WOULD BE A SHAME TO NOT FINISH THIS," so I wrote a date in my calendar book, May 1st, to pick it up again, and it will be on my wall by next Labor Day-- DONE!

    So that brings me to this project, in need of focus and a push! 

    It think we all see that will look incredible when I stitch it on there... so what's taking me? Well, the writer can just open a new document, the digital artist can just hit the undo button, and the musician can get a new sheet of paper, but if the machine embroiderer makes a mistake, they are faced with ripping out 50,000 stitches from fabric that will be ruined anyway, along with four perfect Stitches of the Sea blocks.

   It's going to take a moment of bravado to get this done. I know PEOPLE. ARE. WAITING. I hate myself for taking so long with this-- why can't I be more professional like Embroidery Library or Sweet Pea? It does no good to wish you were someone else, does it? Thanks to all of you, my patient friends.

     On the plus side, Carefree Highways are rolling on!

The finishing instructions are already out... I'll add a link below if you don't have them. 

So by the end of the year, we will have 35 states done, 15 to go. This one is super easy to assemble, and will be done by the end of spring-- it's been fun to make videos with my daughter, so I will definitely do filming while I assemble. 

Here's another skill that requires bravery! Sewing people... did you know this hobby would require such courage! I finally decided to PRACTICE on my longarm and loaded up muslin... 

Honestly, as imperfect as this might be under the microscope, wouldn't this look pretty good when stitched in white on white on my Oak Leaf Tablerunner? What's stopping me? Let's see what happens...

On the more quilty side, Chicken parts are coming together! 

Before, I would have selected colors and made each block one at a time. This time, I'm making twelve at once, stopped pinning as much, and "forced" (hee, hee) myself to work on it a little each day. I've never felt something come together so quickly. I do need some sashing fabric-- I've selected a black chicken wire print-- and that reminds me-- Fat Quartershop usually does 20% off your entire purchase on Black Friday. I put everything in my cart, so I can just wait till Friday, see if they are doing it, and then just purchase. If you do use the link above right on the blog, I get a commission at no cost to you and it also helps me rationalize the time spent on the blog-- I do appreciate it.

So this is the chicken quilt pattern. I screenshot from Pinterest, but it's a Lori Holt quilt block. I do love her picture blocks. The Farm Girl Vintage book is one I've used again and again. I like her applique technique, but just haven't had the time.

Last-- I got sucked into this!

After completing my Corey Yoder Christmas Block of the Month, I started to look for a new one. So Fat Quarter Shop has had this out for while-- I'd seen it, but it's really too traditional for me. Plus, it has some of the P--- color in it-- a no, no, for me!

Then, I saw it in person! It is just INCREDIBLE. To further rationalize, my neighbor is going to do it with me-- also, I cancelled my Sew Sampler Box for now-- so that makes it only about $5 a month more. It starts in January-- I cannot, cannot wait.

So that's another look through last week's camera roll. One thing's apparent, I am doing too much looking back and not enough forward. Maybe I make a short list of what I'd like to be showing next week... but let's not be too hard on ourselves-- Thanksgiving's at my house!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

xox

Carol

Carefree Highways Finishing Instructions

The Week That Was

 Some weeks have a tendency to just fly by-- last week was like that. All I can tell you is, I have been very busy, just not sure what I did!

    Each week before I write the blog, I check through my phone photos -- I do take pictures daily and I'd encourage you to as well. It makes a great diary! I do not have grandchildren yet, so when I bring out my phone, my friends know they are going to be treated to "works in progress." Heehee.

   Here's what I found this time:

   It appears a lot of baking has been going on. This is mostly the artist-in-residence's work-- her baking career started very young, and my role is mostly "sous chef." This relationship started at the tender age of 10, when she famously asked me in all innocence if I knew how to use the oven. We like to start our holiday baking early and have a freezer full of goodies ready for all the guests.

My sister gave us a "Delish" magazine special issue of Christmas cookies. The head chef asked me to mark the pages of ones that we might try-- I marked all of them.

For the first batch, we picked these swirl cookies. My mother-in-law used to make these every year-- the grandma that my artist sadly never got to know. Her spirit was with us. :-)

Then, as sous chef, once I get done finding and measuring ingredients, I make sure the scraps don't go to waste-- this is what I made extra from a beautiful apple pie. I freehand cut the leaf-- impressive, huh! The main pie came out so nice, there was a question if it would even make it till Thanksgiving, but it is safely in the freezer-- for now at least.

Next up, there was a chance that my beautiful Innova longarm was in danger of becoming a clothes hanging rack for awhile there! You might remember we moved it to the bedroom to give our artist a studio during the pandemic. I finally got this summer birthday gift quilted. I was going to cover it with beautiful swirls-- I just really lack courage, and went with straight lines. I've been watching a ton of feather videos on YouTube. So I tried on this little scrap... what it wrong with me. JUST DO IT!! Next up, I am going to quilt the background areas of my Oak Leaf tablerunner, DO OR DIE!

Then I have Set 7 of Carefree Highway well under way-- the Great Northwest. Some of the State flowers are very strange to me, to say the least. It looks like another planet to this New England girl. Doing my best to digitize them. Oregon Grapes, anyone?

Did you know Sagebrush has flowers?

 

Those two will stitch out today-- Washington is done. While it stitched, I have just about cut out the entire CHICKEN QUILT. I will be stitching chickens galore while the others are on the embroidery machine-- the pleasure of having TWO or even THREE machines going at once is one only a machine embroider knows. xox

The next video on my new YouTube channel is going to upload today. I have free templates for you to show you how to make finished pieces out of 5x7 stitchouts. This is an ALL-MACHINE technique. Christmas gifts, perhaps?

Thank you to all who subscribed on YouTube and watched--we are comfortably above 1,000 which tremendously helps San Fran Stitch in SEO rankings-- the Christmas free stitch-a-long is your reward and it will start the Friday after Thanksgiving. Watching myself on video has been the gift that keeps on giving-- I find it hilarious-- you really don't know yourself until you can sit back and watch the antics. I really appreciate my friends who are so patient with me! Feeling grateful.

As always, we end with this-- the FUN parts of that corner are now done. I'm not in love with the turkey that remains to do in that octagon there. Some of you expressed concern when I mentioned this might end up in a drawer. So I really need a break, but at this same time, I intend to pick it back up again in the spring and the goal is to have it framed an on my wall by September 1st?

I am serious behind on the dreaded backstitching-- some parts of this seem to have backstitching around every stitch. Just look at the corn!

The apple lady in the center still needs to be completely backstitched. I gave her her face-- just got tired of her blank expression. Faces are hard-- one tiny stitch at a bad angle, and you have a sourpuss in the center of your piece! I think she came out great. 

I'm hoping to get the dreaded turkey done and completely finish the backstitching I can by Christmas. Then it gets some drawer time for  the winter and spring. Some of you asked why I do this-- the machine embroidery queen? I wish I knew. I picked it up in June and haven't put it down since.

So now that I've done my weekly review, it appears I have accomplished a lot last week after all. I guess if I had 24 hours a day to sew, it would still not be enough nourishment for my creative soul.

xoxo

Carol

The Case of the Missing Face

     After the big power out, we were in danger of missing our Halloween. Fortunately, the artist-in-residence was home last weekend and we pulled it off with just a few hours to prepare. The pumpkin was carved, the seeds roasted, the candy bags at the ready!

At the last minute, we decided to invite the entire family over--

have you noticed that the best things in life are usually not planned?

We kept it simple with hamburgers and a salad, but dessert should never be scrimped on, so we made a giant candy corn shaped cookie cake and Rice Krispy Treats in Halloween shapes. I had a set of cheap cookie cutters, and it was fun to try to guess what they were supposed to be. A ghost? A tombstone? :-)

As the guests chatted happily and unaware at the kitchen table, out front a rather strange transformation was happening!

After the party, the artist suggested we all watch the latest San Francisco Stitch Co. tutorial. It was due to be released the next morning, and needed review. A bit mortified, I consented. 

My family was just bowled over... it was if they suddenly discovered I wasn't just in the sewing room to sneak chocolate bars-- I honestly had skill! They sat and watched the entire fifteen minutes. Even the artist herself commented how impressed they all were. Of course, I assured her that her video editing skills were no small part of the achievement. I mean, the music chosen-- well, it is exactly what has been playing in my head all this time.

Everyone got up to go, and Mr. SFO gave me a big hug--

it was a very special moment. Then we stepped outside...

Now, can you solve The Case of the Missing Face?

CLUE: No-- it was not Mr. Hyde, the rabbit! God knows where the candle went-- I should probably be pretty concerned about that!

This week was an improvement on last week--
it does so help to have power when it comes to productive sewing.

I finished the Scrappy Oak Table Runner,
to match the Acorn Zen Mug Rug.

It's always fun to go outside and take photos-- machine embroidery, in the wild. Even though we are currently misplaced in New England, it was hard to find colorful leaves-- the closer you get to Cape Cod, the more pine trees there are. Pine trees and cranberries-- those are two things I never knew about Cape Cod before we moved here.

The next night, we had our first frost, so no more coleus or marigolds-- they all turned black and limp. Next it will have to be snow pictures. BRRRRRRR!

I cleaned out the gardens yesterday, and planted a ton of spring bulbs. They are just waiting a few months to be photographed with the spring quilts. <3

The next set of Carefree Highways has begun--hello, Northwest! I'm just starting, but there is Mount Rainier all sketched in. You'd have thought that every state could pick a different bird, but I believe this is my second Goldfinch, but at least it's the first Rhododendron. Don't worry, I refuse to cut and paste the first Goldfinch in. I'm better than that.

Bats and Boos is in the finished column, and I have ten of twelve table runner pieces done for my goal this year. I did want to do four quilts. Two are done, I could probably count the Cross Stitch Cottage Quilt, and there's one more I want to make.

I'm ashamed to admit it, but my son doesn't have ONE quilt from me! This is probably also due to the fact that he's not that interested in one, but I gave a lot of thought to it and came up with an idea he will love.

It's the Chicken Quilt! 

He raised backyard chickens last spring-- and it has been a complete love story. It's so cute to listen to him talk about "the girls," and "my beautiful boy." (He got a rooster by mistake :-) I'm using a Lori Holt chicken pattern from her first Farm Girls book. I'm planning twelve 12" blocks, and with sashing and a couple of nice borders, I should come up with a decent size piece. It's red, white, and blue-- he's my Fifth of July baby!

Hoping to have it for Christmas (pieced, not quilted). There's the first of twelve "combs," easy as pie! This pattern has fewer pieces than some of Lori's blocks-- stay tuned.

And finally, enthusiasm is waning on the Sandy Orton Autumn cross stitch! I finished the upper left corner farmhouse, and now I'm in the upper right-- my least favorite part of the design.

The other diagonal bands had easy gingham designs in them-- this side has corn and tomatoes, and there's at least a dozen different colors and miles of back stitch. There is a turkey in the octagon-- oh, sew appropriate for November stitching, but it's just not as colorful as it could be.

Is this the point that it gets thrown in a drawer for twenty years?

Do I even have twenty years left?

What is about that split-second moment in a project, where a project suddenly gets "old" and laid aside, replaced with the a new one?

These are the questions that rattle around my head with the aforementioned music, never to be answered.

Have a wonderful week!

xox

Carol

Acorn Zen Mug Rug

Scrappy Oak Tablerunner
Carefree Highways Series

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