Christmas stitching on Halloween

Happy Halloween! Do you have your candy and treats all ready for your neighborhood trick-or-treaters? What are you passing out this year? With the ever-increasing price of chocolate, we've chosen to hand out bags of popcorn and cookies this year instead of our usual candy bars. I adore chocolate and refuse to stop buying it for myself, but I've definitely cut back. Those chocolate covered almonds from Trader Joe's are my favorite after-dinner treat. I'm just limiting myself to one or two at a time these days as I try to make it last longer. So, do you celebrate Halloween in your country? It seems that it is spreading in popularity all around the world... I honestly think my grandson, Mister B, is even more excited about Halloween than he is about Christmas. He's dressing up as Snoopy from the Peanuts comics this year and has enlisted lots of relatives to join him. His little brother, Baby N, is going to make the most darling yellow Woodstock bird, his dad will be Charlie Brown, mom will be dressed as Snoopy's doghouse, his uncle will be Linus, and his aunt, Peppermint Patty. I can't wait to see a photo of the whole gang!

I should be stitching something for our next holiday here in the U.S. -- Thanksgiving. But instead, I've been working on catching up on my monthly Christmas ornaments.  For September, I chose this quick-to-stitch Prairie Schooler "tree" from the 2013 Just Cross Stitch Ornament magazine. It's stitched on 40 ct. woodland brown Newcastle using DMC threads. I did change the suggested green color to 520 and used DMC 610 for the deer. I also rearranged and added a few more snowflakes at the top of the triangle.

A classic Prairie Schooler "tree" finish for September

To finish this one, I created a triangular template on my computer using the measurements of the three sides and then cut out a piece of sticky board a bit larger than that. After applying a layer of batting to the sticky part, I simply attached the fabric to the padded triangle using glue. I then made the same sized backing piece, covered it with green gingham fabric, and glued them together. I surrounded it with cording and added a yellow star from my stash for a cute accent. I debated whether to try to insert the little stick (found in my yard) in between the two layers, but ultimately decided it would be too bulky and it would leave a lump in the front. I don't know about you, but I care more about what my ornaments look like from the front than the back :) So, I ended up simply gluing the stick on to the back as shown below. 

I simply glued a small stick to the back for the tree trunk

October's ornament is a darling design called "Letter to Santa" by Living on the Rainbow. She has such fun and creative charts sold here on Etsy. It's stitched on 40 ct. vintage country mocha Newcastle with DMC threads: 04, 310, 321, 322, 745, 3818, and white. Santa's beard and eyebrows are supposed to be stitched with Rainbow Gallery Wisper thread to make them fluffy. Unfortunately, I had none and didn't want to wait for an order to arrive so I just cross-stitched them. Not quite as cute, but probably easier :) I've never worked with Wisper thread, but I heard it's a bit tricky. Any pointers in case I choose to use it in future projects? 

Love the detail in Santa's face on this one!

What I love about this one, is that the backside is also stitched, making it look like a true letter! That checkerboard border on both sides about drove me crazy, but I'm very happy with the final look of this ornament.

Even the back side of the letter is adorable!

 

My Christmas ornaments for September and October 2025

 

I don't always decorate for Halloween since my dad died on that day eleven years ago. But, this year, with my grandsons visit in mid-October, I decided to pull everything out. I hadn't decorated my Pottery Barn cubby for Halloween in four years and it was so nice to see these old friends again! My five-year-old grandson loved the display and had fun counting the number of black cats (I believe there are 24!) that he could spot... so cute! 

Halloween stitching has taken over my Pottery Barn cubby. As always, my mom's silhouette occupies the center space.

Here are a few close-ups. I just don't have time now to link to each finish so if you have a question about a particular piece, feel free to email me or go to the "Halloween" and "Halloween stitching" labels in my sidebar to the right to do a search. Do you have a favorite in the bunch?

 

Giveaway winner... There were only a few entries for the "Autumn Walk" chart with the black cat which I offered in my last post. The winner's name picked at random is...

Marilyn H.

The winner of the "Autumn Walk" chart is Marilyn H.

Congratulations, Marilyn H.! Please send me your mailing address (my email is in the sidebar to the right under "A Bit About Me") and I'll get the chart out to you as soon as possible. Hope you enjoy stitching it!

Do you enjoy seeing photos from people's travels? I always do, so I thought some of you might like to see the photos from my youngest son's recent trip to the Patagonia region in South America. He and his fiancée (did I tell you he is engaged and their wedding will take place next June? We are so happy and excited for them! ) have traveled the world: Iceland, Norway, Oman, Mexico, Italy, Spain, Portugal, etc., etc. They truly love to travel together and experience different cultures. In fact, they are planning their honeymoon in Africa! Oh, to be young again :) Anyway, their pictures from Chile and Argentina were so stunning that I thought I'd share them with you today. Hope you enjoy...

Love the color of the mountains as they reflect the setting sun.

  

Wild and wonderful Patagonia

Oh, that blue!!

A lone cow gazes and grazes with those stunning, snow-covered mountains in the background.

My son and his fiancée did a grueling 14-mile hike one day. Don't think I would have made it!

Some of the wonderful animals they spotted on their Patagonian travels earlier this month. That fluffy, white pair of ewes is just so sweet, isn't it?

Another month is over and two very busy months lie ahead... I'm still in shock that 2025 is winding down so quickly, aren't you? Since becoming a grandmother, I feel the days pass by faster than ever. Or, maybe it's just getting older that causes that feeling. I don't like it, though, and wish the days would go by at a slower pace and last longer. Speaking of shorter days... we wind the clocks back this weekend--probably my least favorite weekend of the year. I dread the darkness that creeps in about 5:00... Anyway, nothing I can do to change that, right? Hope you all enjoy this last day of October! And, as always, thank you for your visits and kind comments. Bye for now... 

We did end up getting a bit of color in our front yard this year. Love the red berries against the orange leaves of the maple tree.