Finishing up my ornaments for the year

And once again, I've finished all twelve Christmas ornaments--one for each month of the year! I really wondered if I would get all twelve done this year as our fall was filled with such sadness and busyness and I just didn't find much stitching time. But, I did it! "Where there's a will, there's a way," as my dear mother liked to say... Would you like to see the final three for 2022? 

For October, I chose a whimsical Santa by a new-to-me designer: My Fanny Design based in Italy. I chose to stitch him on black--over one on 28 ct. black Monaco with good old DMC threads. I did change a few colors to work better with the black and also changed his skin color to DMC 407. This is called "Santa Collection #1" and I love how it turned out! I finished him using some green checked fabric and added handmade cording, some frosty branches, and a trio of rusty jingle bells at the bottom.

How sweet is this green-robed Santa with his little snowmen buddies. Did you notice the tiniest one peeking out of his hat?

I turned to Heart In Hand Needleart for this next finish called "Pocket Round--December 25th." I actually stitched this one four times and sent three of them out inserted in greeting cards to some international stitching friends! This cute design stitched up very quickly and was the perfect solution to creating an ornament in a very busy month. For this piece, I used 40 ct. vintage country mocha Newcastle linen with a mixture of overdyed threads and DMC. The finish was a simple one--just two rounds of different sizes surrounded by handmade cording. Quick and easy--and I thought the plaid bow was a perfect accent.

My November ornament finish by Heart in Hand Needleart

Now, for my December ornament, I had a bit of a dilemma! I stitched it twice using the same threads, but different fabrics. The end result was one on natural linen that was a bit more rustic and cute looking and one on gray linen that was more elegant and classic. I love how you can get such a different look just by changing up the fabric and the materials used in finishing. 

Can you guess which one I ended up choosing to add to my tree this year? Well, before I reveal that, let me tell you a bit about the chart itself and the changes I made. This is from the Madame Chantilly Chart, "Celebrate Winter." It is just a small motif from the lower left portion of the chart (you can see the entire chart right here).  I fell in love with the sweet bird perched on the tiny white house. So, I ended up stitching it twice! Now, on the original design, there were no snowflakes so I found charts online and added them to form a rounded finish. Here is a great collection of free snowflakes if  you ever want to add some to a winter piece of your own: free snowflakes from Sue Hillis. I think they add so much to the final look!

Same chart, same thread, different fabrics.

I stitched a gray version on 40 ct. Stormy Night Newcastle linen... To this one, I added white handmade cording, a gauzy white bow and just a bit of green holly and three white beads to accent it.

 

And I stitched a brown version on 40 ct. raw natural Newcastle linen... This finish got cording in the same taupe color as the little bird's body and a cute polka-dot bow.

 

Aren't they both adorable??? How to choose, how to choose? Well, since my October and November ornaments were on the whimsical side, I chose... the gray version for a bit of elegance! Which one would you have picked? I will use the other finish on the natural linen as a gift for someone special next year. 

So, here's a question for my longtime readers... do you know what is coming up next now that I've finished all 12 ornaments? Why, it's my annual "Parade of Ornaments," of course! Hope you'll join me in my next post  as all twelve 2022 ornaments are featured!

In the meantime, here's a wonderful dessert recipe for you to make--it serves a lot of folks and is so, so tasty. My middle son has requested this for his birthday ever since he was a little boy--I can't even tell you how many of these I've made each December 4th when his birthday rolls around. We celebrated this past Sunday (a week late this year) and everyone agreed that this "Giant Chocolate Eclair" was as yummy as ever. I actually cut the recipe in half  as there were only four of us so it was more like a "Mid-sized Chocolate Eclair." 

Here's the recipe for those of you who would like to give it a try. It takes a while because there are four layers: the pastry layer;  the cream cheese/pudding layer; the Cool Whip layer, and the swirly chocolate layer. But it is well worth the effort! If you enjoy the taste of chocolate eclairs (and who doesn't?), you'll love this (you can click on the recipe below to enlarge it). If you have any questions, please let me know...

 

I stumbled upon this very cute freebie below from Yarnspirations.com that I thought you might like, too. I haven't stitched it yet, but wouldn't it make a great piece for January? Just click below the photo to download the chart. They have a number of other charming free cross stitch designs for various holidays, too. Just click here!

This cute freebie from Yarnspirations can be found by clicking right here.

A shorter post today--isn't that a refreshing change from me?! I am hoping to get back to my Christmas cards and get started on my shopping this week. I've only bought presents for my grandson so far--I think not having my family here for Christmas this year has not been great for my motivation. I just keep procrastinating and procrastinating as I know I won't see anyone except my middle son and his girlfriend (who live nearby) until after the holiday. Anyway, I hope you're all staying healthy and enjoying your countdown to Christmas. Do take care, my friends! Thank you, as always, for visiting me today and for your very sweet comments and emails! Bye for now...