Christmas Countdown #10: Craftiness Is Not Optional

If you're looking for an elegant, simple tree skirt to make, this Free Fleece Pointsettia Tree Skirt tutorial is just the thing - found on the wonderful crafty blog Craftiness Is Not Optional.

Christmas Countdown #9: Val Laird Designs

I couldn't help but be charmed by this Free Christmas Dove Pattern by Val Laird Designs. Just a few simple stitches can transform this sweet pattern in so many ways!

Christmas Countdown #8: Nancy Nicholson Design

These Christmas pocket patterns by Nancy Nicholson Design are so sweet - I love the colors and variety of stitches.

Christmas Countdown #7: Ellucy Stitches

Maybe the holidays just aren't your thing? Then express your holiday grump quite elegantly with this Go Away pattern by Ellucy Stitches. Unwelcome Christmas cheer need not get any further than the door this year. :)

Christmas Countdown #6: Roxy Creations

How cute are these little Felt Gnome Santa patterns by Roxy Creations? This looks like hours of delight with little pieces of felt and fuzz - perfect!

Christmas Countdown #5: Trellis and Thyme

I am always charmed by Trellis and Thyme's holiday offerings, like this sweet Frosted Tart Ornament pattern - I love the idea of simple little ornaments that can be stitched up quickly as gifts or during quiet moments with family.

Christmas Countdown #4: Cozy Blue

This Folk Holiday Kit by Cozy Blue is just lovely, isn't it? I love the golden-mustardy color of the pre-printed fabric, and having the option to do this up in simple white or go a bit crazy with colors, as you are inspired.

Christmas Countdown #3 - Sea Quilt Shop

I adore the un-fussy sweet simplicity of these Coastal Tree Ornaments in the Sea Quilt Shop. I also love the light, sherbet fabric colors and the sweet stitch details - just lovely!

Christmas Countdown #2: Mmm Crafts

It's become a holiday tradition for me to pop over to Larissa Holland's beautiful Mmm Crafts shop to see what she's created next in her 12 Days of Christmas series - this year, it's the sweet Drummers Drumming and Pipers Piping patterns. I also highly recommend the matching felt sets from Benzie Design - once you've used them, you'll never want to craft again with simple craft felt!

Christmas Countdown #1: Satsuma Street

The annual Christmas Countdown on Feeling Stitchy begins! Every day up to Christmas, I will feature lovely patterns, kits and ornaments to get you into the holiday stitching spirit.

First up is this Peace Banner pattern by Satsuma Street, who never disappoints - every year a new lovely holiday pattern in unexpected colors and lively textures. This can be ordered both as a downloadable pattern, or as a kit.

Feeling Random Friday #6: Bug and Bean Stitching

Can you believe it's December?! How did 2017 go by so quickly? Let's take a look at Bug and Bean Stitching today! Marley is a hand embroidery artist whose work is beautiful! I picked the particular picture above for a few reasons, 1) My wedding anniversary is September 10, 2011 (09/10/11), 2) That shade of blue in the background is pretty similar to what's on the walls of most of my house, and 3) If I'm not mistaken, that's a Rifle Paper Company pattern on the left. I really like her style!

You can find Marley on Instagram @bugandbeanstitching and on Facebook, You probably know that I'm a dog lover, and Bug and Bean are the names of Marley's two Corgis, who are absolutely adorable! Here are some of my favorite hoops she's stitched up:

A post shared by Embroidery Hoop Art | Marley (@bugandbeanstitching) on Sep 23, 2017 at 6:11pm PDT

A post shared by Embroidery Hoop Art | Marley (@bugandbeanstitching) on Sep 5, 2017 at 3:26pm PDT

A post shared by Embroidery Hoop Art | Marley (@bugandbeanstitching) on Aug 29, 2017 at 7:14am PDT

Wonderful Wednesday 57: Namaste Embroidery

This Anemones and Succulents pattern by Namaste Embroidery is breathtaking. You can either purchase the PDF pattern or the pattern and fabric, and if you don't have Cosmo threads there is a full conversion for DMC, as well. Jessica also has numerous videos to walk you through, and the added bonus is watching her do such stunning stitching, of course!

There are numerous lovely wreath patterns in her shop as well, including some beautiful holiday themed patterns, take a look!

Stitchy Snippets - Birds

These incredibly realistic brooches of birds are created and embroidered by Polish artist, Paulina Bartnik. Paulina adopts the Needle Painting embroidery technique, which she applies to a felt base. Such stunningly colourful and realistic pins would surely make the most perfect Christmas gift :) See more of Paulina's work here.

Feeling Random Friday #5 with The Needlework Finisher

I hope that all of my stitchy friends in the United States had a terrific Thanksgiving yesterday! Today is the day known as "Black Friday" here, and it's one of the biggest shopping days of the year! This year my husband and I decided not to purchase Christmas gifts for anyone...a strangely scary yet liberating feeling. Since our pup Sidney has cancer, his treatment has taken up all of our extra money, so we will be making our gifts this year.

I was looking at Instagram to find some ideas and came across @theneedleworkfinisher, Diana Sagmoe. I tried needlework once, and I was pleased with the results. After seeing the beautiful pieces in Diana's feed, I realized it's an art I need to add more of to my stitching. You can find Diana on Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest. Here are some of my favorites from her Instagram account.

A post shared by Diana Sagmoe (@theneedleworkfinisher) on Oct 15, 2017 at 6:55am PDT

A post shared by Diana Sagmoe (@theneedleworkfinisher) on Nov 22, 2017 at 4:42am PST

A post shared by Diana Sagmoe (@theneedleworkfinisher) on Nov 6, 2017 at 5:35am PST

Wonderful Wednesday 56: Lolli and Grace

This beautiful Home Sweet Home pattern by Lolli and Grace is such a holiday for my eyes. I love watching this designer's marvelous sense of color at work, and this latest pattern is no exception. There are so many beautiful new stitches you can try out, and her use of unusual textures and details is lovely.

I'm also loving This Home is Built on Love and Dreams, another PDF pattern in her shop:

If it's holiday patterns you're wanting, there are plenty of adorable, colorful items to be found in her shop, like this lovely Joy to the World pattern: