Peel Stitch-In May 2026

Barb, Judy, Jeanette, and I attended the Peel Stitch-In yesterday. We carpooled with Jeanette as our capable driver.

We all were pretty excited for another stitch day.

Since the usual venue in Port Credit is under renovation, the next couple of Stitch-Ins will take place at the Meadowvale Village Hall. 

I'm sure at one time Meadowvale Village was a quaint little hamlet on the 2nd Line near Mavis Road in Mississauga,  but now it's a very chi chi poo poo community of enormous, stylish homes. It was very easy to get to from the 401. 

The start time was 10am and we got there well ahead of time. As is her custom, Barb got a spot near the front of the lineup so we could be among the first to get a good table.

Once inside we got set up. Roger and Charlotte supervised Barb's stitching.

We were in the back corner (front right in this photo), adjacent to the hall leading to the back room where the vendors were; Kimat Designs, Tiny Modernist, and Hand Dyed by Rolanda. There were two accessible washrooms by the front door.

I did have a moment of panic, though. When I started getting my spot organized, I couldn't find Ernest. I went back out to the parking lot and sure enough, he was lying face down beside the car. Poor little guy! I picked him up, dusted him off, and took him inside to be reunited with Thomas. Crisis averted. 

Ernest and Thomas kept me on task. We were beside the huge windows so the light was so good we didn't even need our lamps.

Those of us who didn't pay in advance by eTransfer were able to give the $10 cash to the organizer, Cathy. Each of us (humans) were given a door prize ticket for later.

A 'show and share' table wasn't originally planned but a few folks did bring items for display.

As well as the Tomato Tomahto project I'm working on, this one by Hands On Design was on display and ended up being one of the door prizes! I just might have to acquire this pattern, too.

Two of these 'Little House Needleworks' pieces were on display.

This was someone's Round Robin piece from the Toronto Guild of Stitchery. A round robin is started by a participant and is passed around monthly to other interested stitchers. The originator decides the format, and colour scheme. Each subsequent person makes a contribution using those parameters.

This piece was HUGE; 365 stitches x 429 stitches or about 23" x 27" on 36ct fabric over two threads. A Google Lens search tells me it is 'Pandemic' by Long Dog Samplers. Understandably, it was released during the COVID-19 epidemic as a large-scale pattern for stitchers worldwide. 

Everything had to be cleared out of the hall by 5pm sharp so we decided to head for home by 3:45. After realizing the 401 was too slow, we made our way up to the $$$407$$$ for a much more enjoyable drive home.

I stitched most of the time but looking back I didn't accomplish a whole lot; lots of gabbing, I guess. On stitch days like this, I do try to get a bit done on two of my long-time UFOs.

I did a wee bit on the turtle's flipper. I started this project in the fall of 2020. It came with 16ct Aida fabric but I'm doing it on 30ct antique white linen.

There are a LOT of blended colours on this project so I picked a colour that wasn't blended - the dark purple on the lower edge of the flipper. I'm using 2 strands over 2 threads. The grid lines are done with sewing thread that will easily pull out when I'm done. Grid lines are so helpful on big projects like this with so many colours.

I also like to do a bit on my 'Newcastle Bouquet' on stitching or retreat days. Yesterday I completed the 'S' and began the red flower. This UFO dates back to when I started it in the summer of 2020.

I finished the grass on the 'Over the Garden Gate' project, did some brick work, and started a couple of the flowers. I substituted a brighter green for the called-for colour. I also added more 'structure' to the greenhouse as it looked somewhat incomplete to me. 

I was very happy to have this activity on my calendar yesterday to give me something fun to do on the second anniversary of Skip's death. I really appreciated all the kind messages I received. 

This morning my neighbour, Pam, treated me to brunch to honour Skip and her husband, Kees, who died exactly one year to the day before Skip did. We enjoyed a nice meal, pleasant conversation, and made a toast with our coffees to our beloved guys who will be:

Always missed.

Always loved.

Always with us.