Lud-in-the-Mist by Hope Mirlees

I signed up for Julia's fall book box last year, and received a pretty edition of Lud-in-the-Mist in addition to some fun little treats. I'd read the book before -- it's a lovely fantasy that manages to be very English and very magical at the same time.

The book cover was a pretty pick and green floral design, so pretty I was inspired to stitch it:

I think I'm starting a new series where I replicate different floral book covers; next up is Quartet in Autumn, the Plume paperback edition of which had a striking pattern.

A Flurry of Snowflakes

To finish off the Christmas season.

These are the brick-stitch snowflakes designed by Miyuki for Fusion Beads:

The two on the right I stitched last year, the two on the left this year. There's one more pattern from the Miyuki set, which I turned into holly leaves and berries, and another designed by Fusion Beads for this year, which isn't finished yet but which I'm hoping will look like pine branches and pinecones.

Bead & Button's December issue had a memory wire bracelet with snowflake dangles. I made just the dangles, and turned them into earrings:

Finally, I put some vintage mercury glass beads on a snowflake form:

A couple of the beads are already starting to crack -- they are so fragile! -- so I don't know how long this snowflake will last.

Maybe I'll crochet some snowflakes, too; it's still winter, after all.

Christmas Sampler

This sampler was the ninth of my stitch9challenge, and I finished it on the second to last day of the year. It was by far the most fun to stitch:

The Christmas pudding, and Nativity were inspired by other designs, modified by me to fit the 14x14 stitch squares. The Charlie Brown Christmas tree, regular Christmas tree (made from fly stitches), and winterberry bush were my own design. The cross stitched gift was a Stitchy Box design, the one over one cookies were Brooke's Books designs, and and the blackwork was from ... somewhere. The beaded candy cane was a reject from a pair I made for earrings. I made a beaded snowflake, stitched a woven rose, and embroidered an ornament-shaped piece of felt. Lace, charms, buttons, and a tiny crystal cross round out the squares.

I love inchie samplers, and I'm sure I'll be doing more.

Book Round-Up: Christmas Edition

Christmas Eve at Friday Harbor by Lisa Kleypas: an easy romance by Kleypas. As with Smooth Talking Stranger, the best part was the depiction of the love between one of the protagonists and the child he adopts.

The Usual Santas: a Collection of Soho Crime Christmas Capers: The publisher Soho Crime put together an eclectic collection of stories from their mystery and crime authors, which span the globe. Beware the center section of tales -- they are super dark!

Ten Blind Dates by Ashley Elston: to get over a breakup, Sophie lets her large, boisterous family set her up on dates throughout the holidays. It was cute and all, but I think I am too old to be truly engaged by teenagers doing teenage-y things.

Christmas Days: 12 Stories and 12 Feasts for 12 Days by Jeanette Winterson. Easily the best of the bunch, Winterson's stories and memories are gorgeous and moving; she has a profound understanding of the season. I got this from the library on impulse, and I plan to buy a copy for myself.