I’ve not been a very regular poster over the past couple of weeks! This was at least partly because we were attending a trade show last weekend, and what with preparations beforehand and backlog afterwards, writing Flights of Fancies was rather low on the list of priorities. “A trade show?” I hear you say. “Was there a stitching show on somewhere?” Well, no. Not exactly. This was for the day job, and involved gaskets, crankshafts, hose clips, trafficator knobs and oodles of other bits for pre-war Austin Sevens – the International Autojumble at Beaulieu. It doesn’t look quite like, say, the Treenway Silks show booth…

It’s a lovely part of the country to go to, even though we see very little of it; but on the way there we drive through the New Forest, and every year I try to manage at least one walk into Beaulieu village. It is very picturesque, has a chocolate studio, and at any time you might bump into a New Forest pony, donkey or cow. The first time we went I couldn’t get into the village shop because a donkey was standing in the doorway, completely at ease and with no intention of moving . This time I came across a pony on my way back to the Autojumble field; isn’t it a lovely sight?

As we were staying with a very kind and hospitable cousin this year instead of camping, I even got some stitching done! And here I have a confession to make. You may remember I mentioned some Victoria Sampler kits I had lying around, and my intention to stitch one of them. After a bit of digging I did find the kits, and I picked one to do, and then I got a little distracted (nothing new there). Remember the Guildhouse design which I was hoping to pair off with a companion piece? Well, while charting the companion piece I realised that it wasn’t quite the right size; but I did think of another way of using this particular shape by cutting different parts, and so before I knew it I had a pair of Kloster block shapes, neither of which was the right size to go with the first design. So I had to think of a fourth design – and while I was doing that, and experimenting with different bars (of the Hardanger variety, I hasten to say; don’t picture me on a pub crawl!) suddenly I had a set of three bookmarks all ready-charted.

I did then finally chart a design to go with the Guildhouse one, and I liked it so much that that was what I took with me on our Beaulieu travels. Because of the bead crosses and the double cross stitches and the fact that it is a pair of designs, I decided to call them Double Cross, and when I have stitched number one again (I picked some lovely shimmery lavender beads with a matching shade of Wildflowers) I’ll make them available on the site. For now, I give you a sneak preview of Double Cross 2, and of its new speciality stitch – remember those fuzzed out bars in the picture showing my unsuccessful bead experiments? The time has come to reveal them. I give you *drum roll* the corded bar:

And here is a good example of how designs influence each other: stitching Double Cross with its corded bars and beaded woven bars gave me a rather spiffing idea for two-coloured corded bars, so I re-charted the bookmarks (now called Ex Libris) to incorporate them. I have a feeling it may be a while before I get round to that Victoria Sampler kit…