Spell of the Moon by Blackbird Designs | Cross Stitch

Spell of the Moon 

Winds of Autumn

Blackbird Designs

Design by Barb Adams

Stitched by Brandi Fitzpatrick

Fabric - 32ct Natural linen by Zweigart

Threads - 

    CC - Black Coffee

    GA - Harvest Moon

    WDW - Pelican Gray

My Notes

My metal basket on my buffet was in need of a few more fall/Halloween pieces so I decided to turn this into a little pin pillow. The called for fabric was Tin Roof by Weeks Dye Works. I didn't have any on hand so I just used a scrap of natural linen by Zweigart and I like the results. To me Natural linen is a perfect blend of browns and greys. I did have all of the called for threads so I used them.

I used a piece of grey fabric leftover from my October 31 drum that I previously finished. The trim around the edge is some mystery yarn that is in my scrap yarn basket. I personally like to use yarn to finish edges. It's so easy to whip stitch on and I always have something laying around that seems to work. My tip on yarn is to use a drop of glue (like Elmer's) on the ends and they will keep from fraying. 

I also added one of those adorable bulb pins with some buttons just because Helen D. does it so I wanted to as well. I took her advice and ordered a bag off of Amazon so now I have enough bulb pins to do more projects than I ever will in my lifetime!

If you don't have the Winds of Autumn booklet from Blackbird Designs you need to get it. It's just full of wonderful Halloween and Fall pieces.

Happy Stitching!

 

October 31 by Blackbird Designs | Cross Stitch

October 31

Winds of Autumn 

Designed by Barb Adams

Stitched and Finished by Brandi Fitzpatrick

Fabric - 32 ct Natural linen by Zweigart

Threads - WDW Grape Vine

My Notes

I am so in love with this piece. It's my first finish as a drum. I've always been intimidated by the process but for this one I decided that Barb's finishing instructions sounded doable so I decided to give it a try. 

The linen that was called for was 32ct. Tombstone by R&R Reproductions. My local LNS (Cecelia's Samplers) was out so I just went with a basic Natural linen by Zweigart. The called for thread was Onyx by Gentle Arts. I used Grape Vine by Weeks Dye Works. I thought it went better with the linen and I had it in my stash.

For the finishing fabric I would have loved to use the same as Barb did, but it was a Blackbird Designs fabric that was no longer available. So I just took myself to Hobby Lobby with my stitched piece and found a piece of grey fabric that I thought went nicely. 

I pretty much followed the assembly instructions as they were written. I sewed it by hand using a ton of pins to keep everything in place. My advice is to just take your time and it will all come together. At about the halfway point I wasn't sure it would, but it did! I didn't have sawdust to stuff it with so I just used crushed walnut shells.

After everything was sewn together and stuffed I finished it off with the decorative Herringbone stitch along the top seam. I used a strand of  WDW Grape Vine. Let me just say that my Herringbone stitch skills could use some work but I'm happy with how it turned out. By the way I watched several YouTube videos on the stitch to remind myself how it is done. That was helpful but to me it is still an awkward stitch. But it's pretty when it's finished!

I hope this encourages you to give this one a try. If I can finish it you can finish it!

Happy Stitching!

 

Trick or Treat You're So Sweet! by WorthyKids | Juvenile Fiction Review

Trick or Treat You're So Sweet!

WorthyKids

Juvenile Fiction/ Halloween

Celebrate Halloween and the little ones who love it with this sweet lift-the-flap board book about Halloween's true hero—its candy.

Children love Halloween costumes and candy, and we love seeing them all dressed up, enjoying the spoils of their trick-or-treating. This book's simple lighthearted text celebrates children and their favorite candies, with a mix of humor and sincerity that will appeal to little ones with a sweet tooth—and parents looking for a cute, cozy tale.

Vivid illustrations feature a varied cast of trick-or-treaters, each with his or her candy of choice. As the text expresses affection in a clever-yet-"sweet" way, readers can lift flaps to reveal more Halloween fun. Heartfelt and funny, Trick or Treat, You're So Sweet! will soon be a Halloween favorite.

My Thoughts

Trick or Treat You're So Sweet! is such an adorable little book. The focus is on the actual candy each trick or treater receives rather than anything scary. Each page has a lift the flap door that hides a cute little trick or treater. The verse matches that candy given to the costume the little one is wearing. Such a clever idea. 

If you are looking for a non candy gift for a special kiddo this would be an excellent choice. I've ordered a couple of extras for my grands. 

 

Costume Express ~ Family Friendly Halloween Costumes!

When it comes to picking out Halloween costumes I am very particular with my boys. The selection must be family friendly and this can be hard to do with costume shops. I want my boys to be able to dress up how they want but I don’t want them to be exposed to anything x-rated while we are shopping.

I was thrilled to find CoustumeExpress.com where I could let my son pick his own costume and not have to worry about him seeing things he should not. This was my main goal when searching for costumes online. The other part was getting it here quickly. For some reason Halloween always sneaks up on me and I didn't want my son to be left with whatever the big box store had left over.

The costume got here promptly and the quality is the best we have ever found. Little M loves turning on the lights to impress others, especially the girls! I love that the costume lights up so cars and people see him. It's a safety feature and he doesn't even realize it!

Super Man symbol lights up!

Overall I am impressed with the selection that CoustumeExpress.com offers. Their website is clean, the delivery was very speedy, and the costumes themselves are made with great quality. I think next year we should dress up as family from one of their group costumes . Now that would be fun!

Connect with CoustumeExpress.com on
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Disclosure: The opinions expressed in this review are those of Whitney from Rambles of a SAHM. Products were provided free of cost in order to facilitate this review. This post contains affiliate links. Disclosure of Material Connection: I received one or more of the products or Services mentioned above for free in the hope that I would mention it on my blog. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising"