As we’re looking toward the magic of the holiday season, we know one thing for sure… it wouldn’t be the holidays without some sort of stitching magic with our favorite cross stitch queen, Susan Ache (@yardgrl60). She is always creating, charting, and sharing… shouting her love of Aurifloss from the rooftops, and helping us to create one mini masterpiece after the next. She has truly kept our holiday stitching hands happy!
To learn all about Susan and her background, take a peek at her very first interview with us right HERE. Little Quaker Christmas is where our stitchy love affair began and we’ve just been having one big cross-stitch party ever since. Her latest collection was Rosso Rubino, released over back in February. Read more about that one right HERE.
Today, we’re delighted to share Susan’s latest, a quick stitch chart to honor the family we choose. Friends.
In Susan’s words:
“Hi, It’s Susan Ache here just popping in for a real quick gift from me to you. The season of giving is coming upon us and I might just have the perfect solution for you…
Having friends who we love in our lives is just like having family. These are the people that we choose to be with in good times and bad. It doesn’t even matter how much time passes between visits– you know that they are always there for you and you will always be there for them.
I think that “friends-giving” is a wonderful way to celebrate a holiday if your family can’t be with you. Perhaps you’ve even chosen to have a separate occasion just to be with your friends. I’ve been thinking a lot lately about just how lucky I am to have such wonderful friends in my life. I know I would love to give them a little something special from me, to honor that bond, particularly now as we’re closing in on a holiday. But, the best part about having a good friend is that you can surprise them with a little heartfelt hand stitched gift at any time — you don’t even really need the holiday!
This is the reason that I created this chart for you. I just truly embrace the friendships that I have and with Thanksgiving closing in, what a perfect little housewarming gift to give– along with a great casserole for the table of course!
Now, the best part about this chart is that if you already own Little Quaker Christmas and Rosso Rubino, you are ahead of the game. This little beauty uses 3 colors from each!“
CHART DETAILS:
— Chart is 61 x 69
— Susan used a natural linen
— Sample uses 2 strands of Aurifloss
— Susan stitched over 2
— Aurifloss colors used for this sample: 2277, 5002, 5016, 1147, 2435, 2140
You know Susan is an excellent cheerleader, so make sure that you tag her at @yardgrl60 & #SAFriendsareFamily for this chart so that we (Aurifil and Susan) can cheer you on. Hashtags never go away and are always there for inspiration, so use them often on your hunt and with your work so it can be seen.
HUGE thanks to Susan for sharing her passion for the stitch with us, always!
If you’re looking for a larger chart to keep you busy throughout this coming holiday season, we’d encourage you to check out Joyeux Noël, charted and released by Susan Ache a few years back. This gorgeous sampler uses a variety of colors from Susan’s Little Quaker Christmas collection + some fabulous extras. Click on the button below to download the chart and HERE for all the stitchy details!
ABOUT SUSAN
Instagram
A love of color makes it easy for Susan to grab inspiration from her native Florida surroundings. With no grand idea other than knowing she wanted embroidery and nine patches in her first quilt, a new world opened up to this mom of now five grown children. Being self taught with many hours of reading about the makings of a quilt and quilt blocks has made this a lifelong passion. Susan is always searching for new and fun ways to show off as many colors as she can in a quilt. Most of her quilts are a creative impulse from trips to the garden center, a photograph, or browsing through paint chip selections. “I really never see just the quilt, I seem to see the quilt in the room that it belongs in”. Working in a quilt store for years helped Susan to pursue that passion of color and the fabric inspired life she enjoys while constantly striving to make her next favorite quilt.
Gorgeous work and designs. Thank you for the free downloads also.