now WIP: Cherokee Alphabet by Frankye Jones

Well, after digging out my Cherokee Alphabet sampler, I decided that I want to finish it this year.  So far, I've managed to finish the "e" row and I have started on the "a" row, which is going to be the most complicated since several of the "a" letters have multiple possibilities (as can be seen already with "na," "hna," and "nah").

Working on this piece makes me a bit wistful.  For most of my life, the "Indian side" was never talked about, because my great-grandfather was "born on the wrong side of the blanket."  My grandmother, to this day, will not talk about it.  It was only after some sleuthing that I managed to find the name of (and documentation proving) my great-grandfather's birth father, and once I was able to do that, I could enroll in the tribe.  I'm still the only member of my family enrolled, and it makes me kind of sad.  There's a history that I know little about, and I can only learn so much from books.

UFO: Cherokee Alphabet by Frankye Jones

I remember finding this pattern in a library book and falling in love with it.  As a member of the Cherokee Nation, I'm drawn to authentic-feeling Native patterns (no "Indian princesses" or the like), which are nearly impossible to find.  So I bought the book that contained the pattern and began stitching it, sometime around 2003, I think.  But then I had to move, and I packed the pattern and piece away in a box, and three moves later, I have only now rediscovered it.

 

My goal this year is to take the pattern back up again, and perhaps even finish it.  And maybe, someday, I will learn how to speak some Tsalagi.

WIP: Green Flip It Series by Lizzie*Kate

Now that both "Tenné" and "Or" are finished, framed, and ready to be hung on the walls (just need to find the right spot and get to it!), I've started working on Lizzie*Kate's Green Flip It series.  Being environmentally conscious is very important to me, and I think once this project is framed, it will look great hanging over my dining room table!

So far, I've started the "Keep Our Air Clean" flip it:

As you can see, I haven't made much progress with it, but it has been fun so far to stitch.  :)