Things are about to change here, again. (what? again). Not NewNeedlepoint.com, I think I have changed it all anyone could possibly change it in under one year.

We are moving home, going back to live in our own house. We are excited about this. It has been hard living in rented houses this past year. I have missed my own little house and my own little pool. Jack The Cat has missed the pool enclosure which is his kingdom, where he lords it over all the lizards.

Anyway, I have to pack up everything and move again (didn’t I do this 6 months ago?) We will be moving home February 1st, 2010.

We will be just in time to enjoy our pool next hot, hot summer.

Anyway, that is my big news.

I am making progress with both my new Bargellos. I have just 3 canvases in my category and I know I need more so I am stitching away furiously. Netflix is doing rapid turn arounds in my movie rentals right now. I must have movies to stitch to, I must.

This is how far I have gotten on the American Flag Ripple Bargello Canvas.

I took the big sunburst off the upper left hand side of the canvas, it was “too much” but then it did seem to need something there. I added this small, 3 color and uncomplicated sun and it does seem to work.

The background stitching is going well. This pattern for the background, which has no name as far as I know, is stitching up wonderfully and very quickly. I think it makes a terrific sky.

Here is a close-up of this stitch.

Below is the cubes Bargello I am stitching in shades on gold to yellow to white in a purple grid. I took this picture this afternoon, I have done quite a bit more stitching since then.

And this is a close-up of the section.

I tried to lay this our in a *suburst* format, with all the gold centers radiating out from the center grid. That did not work, super duper did not work. The counts on the side grids are not right for that.

I did not want all of them to point the same direction either. So I am stitching the top and bottom triangles opposite each other and the sides pointing up.

I know this is confusing. It means that 3 of the triangles will point one direction and just one of them, the bottom one, will have the design pointing in the opposite direction.

This may look really stupid or it may look interesting or it may look like I made a really big mistake while stitching.

We shall see. Fortunately Bargello is pretty easy to unstitch. Much easier then double strand DMC #5 on 18 mesh canvas (groan).

I am making progress listing all the books I have bought for my Rare & Hard-To-Find Books category

I have 35 listed and a few more to list and a few more on order. I do seem to be reaching the end of what, even I, can load into this category.

A few of these books are *Gift Quality*. Very few, but what did I expect, they are used old books.

This is a UK edition of Dorothy Phelan’s Florentine Canvaswork. It is in incredible condition.

The US edition is called Traditional Bargello. Exact same book, different names.

This copy of Beth Russell’s William Morris Needlepoint is like brand new.

All the Beth Russell books seem to be rare and hard-to-find. I am not a fan of Beth Russell’s work. I know it is lovely but it is not my taste so I find it odd that her books are in such demand. But indeed they are.

I have a fine 1st edition copy of Kaffe Fasset’s iconic Glorious Needlepoint

I have 2 more excellent condition books. An Elsa Williams Bargello in great condition and the “crown jewel” of this collection. A great copy of Gay Ann Rogers extremely rare and very hard-to-find book, An Illustrated History of Needlework Tools.

I will list that tomorrow.

I don’t know if anyone is interested in my *reading report* but I am enjoying doing it. If it bores you, feel free to stop reading here. I have no more news, you will not miss anything of any importance.

I finished the Mary Street book, “The Confessions of Fitzwilliam Darcy”. It was better then I expected it too.

Then I put off beginning Persuasion, the last book in my Jane Austen list (sort of like I eat the thing I like best, last. I delay the pleasure, enjoy it more for having waited)

I re-read Juliet Shapiro’s Excessively Diverted. I did not remember it very well, when I began but I know I must have liked it well enough to keep it. I am fairly ruthless about that.

I have so many books (and we do seem to move so often these days) that I only keep the ones I really enjoy and want too read again. If the books I do not want to read again are not library books, I take them over to the local library and donate them. They sell them in their used book shop. It helps support the library. It is a win-win and I like those.

Anyway, Excessively Diverted was cute and I enjoyed some parts of it quite a bit but over all, I was not excessively diverted. I was just diverted, some.

Then I stopped messing around and began Persuasion. It is a lovely book, a touching and sad story, so far anyway.

I am always sympathetic towards Anne Elliot. I really like the Crofts and find Lord Elliot and Elizabeth amazingly dim and self-absorbed.

The one character I just don’t get is Mrs. Clay. What, really, is her reason for doing what she does. Getting away from her home & children? Bettering herself and her situation through her “wiles” and seductions? No idea.

Now this is odd. The only movie I know of that is better then the book is Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining. Stephan King’s book was pretty good but the movie is incredible (“here’s Johnny!” or “all work and no play make Jack a dull boy”).

Great stuff. It has occured to me that perhaps 1995′s version of Persuasion, while not the hit movie that Sense & Sensibility, Emma or several of the recent versions of Pride & Prejudice have been, is a wonderful movie. It might be, if not better then the book at least as good, in it’s own way.

The direction by Roger Mitchell and the cast with leads Amanda Root & Ciaran Hinds et al, is first rate.

There is more detail in the book but not enough to make a difference and the story line and characterizations in the movie are so perfect.

I know this is heresy to even think, never mind say out loud.

I am half way through the book, Anne is in Bath and Captain Wentworth has just arrived there. Anne distrusts Mr Elliot. So do I, he is too smooth. Too polished and correct (this despite the fact that I already know how it ends).

I am happy reading it.

I went sort of nuts and ordered 6 Pride & Prejudice *sequel*, *prequel* and *what-if* books from amazon.com. They make a huge pile, I am going through them, without messing them up in any way, trying to figure out which I will keep and which I will return.

So far, the only ones I am sure I am keeping are “The Darcys Give a Ball” and ” Affinity & Affection”.

Oh my.