Starsky...no Hutch!

Well hello my bloggy chums I hope you are all feeling as glorious as you are all looking today?!
Lots to show and tell today so I shall dispense with my usual drivveling on dive straight in! :)

So I have recently been contacted by the lovely Carina from Feeling Stitchy asking me if I'd lke to take part in their July Stitch-a-Long, naturally I responded with my usual grace and diginity "WOOHOO, HELL YEAH!" and felt quite the sewing super star...least until a certain furry member of Team Mimi came flying through the cat flap and promptly vomited a half digested mouse on the kitchen floor thereby bringing any illusions I had of grandeur crashing back to earth...bless their furry, blood thirsty hearts!

However despite the kitties best efforts to scupper my plans and with a guiding (and very patient!!) hand from my mate Carina, I have finally managed to create a pattern featuring my Tom Jones Gnome for your stitchy pleasure!

I have tried to leave a bit of scope for you to run with him so he could be painted, stitched, appliqued, beaded, whatever takes your gnomey fancy :)

So head on over to the Feeling Stitchy blog where you can download the pattern for free - it's a pdf file with no less than 3 sizes of the gnome, and add your photo's to the Feeling Stitchy Flickr Embroidery group with the tag "JulyStitchalong" and I will also be featuring your photo's here on the ol' blog too

This is a complete first for me and there's a combination of super excitement with a chunk of nervousness thrown in, but I hope it's ok and you have a bit of fun with him if you have a bash - technical stitching term there!

Now do you remember this wee fella from my last post?

This is Starsky the beloved and very much missed furry chum of my mate Mud, one half of the jewellery making combo It's a Lovely Cake

　

If you don't know the work of It's a Lovely Cake I urge you to visit their Etsy shop; Mud and Sarah make GLORIOUS one of a kind jewellery using everything from vintage charms, buttons, chains, beads and my personal favourite, wee farmyard animals!

Here's a few pictures of my faves but do check out their flickr stream, shop and website for more divine jewellery goodness!

Yoink! Photo's coutesy of It'saLovelyCake

They also undertake custom work, which I think is a fabulous idea...I've got a fine collection of plastic animals and bits and bobs I've collected over the years and a brithday coming up in a couple of months...*elbows Mr.Mimi in ribs hint hint stylee*

Anyroad, Mud was generous enough to commission me to do my stitchy thing.
So here he is in his stitchy finery:
See wee Satrsky looking splendid in his red ruff...Ruff! Ruff! PAWS!

I had a few guidelines: "PIG" (Starsky's pet name) in big letters

"Starsky"  "Paws!'  "Frank"
The words: puppy Teresa,puppy machine dawg, Kylie, Beadle,Celia and almonds

A big star carrying "Starsky" shoots across the canvas leaving a trail of stars and flames in it's wake
Celia, Beadle, Kylie, Puppy Teresa and Puppy Machine Dawg shoot around in all directions!
There's a trail of stars and general spacey stuff including a UFO. After some hardcore stalking I also discovered the girls had previously had a bit of a run in with the Ministry of Defence over UFO's and their existance. They were informed that what they sighted was probably something to do with the Russians....well this one, I can catergorically say, is most definately from Mars!

 A trail of love hearts meanders it's way round the canvas to meet Frank in the corner

Big nutty scattering of almonds swishes it's way through to give Mr. Penguin a bit of a poke whilst he's having a chat with Ganesh:

"Elephant man?"
"No, Ganesh, man!" (my old lady humour I'm afraid)

I cannot tell you how much I love doing this sort of work...just gimme a few guidelines and I'm off for a rummage around in your life! So if you have a furry, scaley, feathery or, er...fleshy chum (I do people to you know!) that you would like festooned with stitchyness you know where to find me

And once again a big THANK YOU to Mud for trusting me with her precious chum

Now as this piece was one of the largest embroideries I've done for a while I shall be mostly lying down in a darkened room, straightening my fingers and regenerating on tea and cake!

But I will be back soon with some of your photo's of Tom Jones Gnome, a few more Cockney Sparrows and hopefully some spanky new prints of my work
So hope you have fun with Tom...erm...well you know what I mean?!

Happy stitchin', big loves to y'all and thanks for droppin' by! x:)