Choosing Sides.......

I refuse to choose sides! That is the trouble. Both Tessie and Zar want me to work on their particular project. If they don't cut it out, I am going to take a three month vacation from both of them!

I worked on the rug for the gazebo last night and this morning. I have it all done except the border. That is all plain stitches, so it should be done today. That's not fast enough for Zar. He wants me back working on the hidden room in the cottage.

I am finished with the center and the inner border of the rug. It is turning out nice and square. It will only take a little steam to get the lumps and bumps out of it.

No, I don't use a frame. I have been doing this for about 30 years and by now I am so relaxed when I do it that I fall asleep with the needle stuck into the canvas and the TV going full blast.

Here's a close up of the front. You can see the pattern that I worked out as I went. There was no pre-planning.I just picked out the colors that would go with the gazebo and started doodling. This is what came out.

I may put a simple outer border on it to make it a little bigger. Maybe. I will have to try it in place to see how it looks first.

Here's the back. I got brave and took a photo of part of it too. I haven't trimmed off all of the little ends yet. Excuse the mess. Those are ALL Tessie's fault. Mine is the neat part.....The reason that I am showing you this view is the basketweave stitch. That is what keeps it on square better. Anytime that you have a plain area to work in needlepoint, switch to this stitch. It is worked on the diagonal and holds the canvas to square better than continental or tent. If you want to learn how to do it, go here. http://www.needlepoint.org/StitchOfTheMonth/98-03.php Or run to your nearest library or bookstore and look at the books on needlepoint. It is in almost every instructional book that I have ever picked up.

Now, the other part of the story. Balthazar has been around Tessie too long. He is picking up her traits. Earlier, I cut a piece of wallpaper that I am going to mess with and use for flooring. It looks like the old corrugated rubber flooring that they used to use in workshops for non skid surfaces.

After I did that, Zar pulled up a padded box that I made just for fun. He is using that as a seat, in his words, "Until you make something decent to sit upon in my workroom". He has been sitting there threatening to take over the making of the secret passage leading into the bathroom. I told him "Go to it!".

So far he just sits there, huffing and puffing, swinging the blasted wrench that Katie sent him. He gets up once in a while and peers through the opening as if something is going to happen if he does. I think that his Doberman shares my opinion that nothing is going to get done until I do it.--OH ! A cardinal is in my backyard stealing the squirrel's peanuts! Pretty!!!-- OK. I'm back now. Maybe I can talk Zar into working on the crank for the dumbwaiter. After all, he is the one with the wrench!

I'm going back to the rug now.

See you tomorrow.