Peace, Love and Stitching

2nd Finish for 2012 & February Progress

2012-02-24T06:56:00.000-08:00

I finished January Cottage this morning and did my scrapbook page for it. My scrapbook is growing slowly but surely!

Here is another scrapbook page I did last week with my needlepoint piece, Rainforest Crunch. Nice and simple.

Here is my progress on February Cottage. I will start March Cottage this weekend most likely.

Hope you all have a great weekend!

I noticed I lost a follower. Hmmm, what a shame.

Updates and Thursday Tidbits

2012-02-23T10:10:00.000-08:00

I have been working on January and February Cottage. No pics right now. I am thinking I may wait until I am finished stitching them completely to take a pic.

I will actually have half the day off today. I hope to finish January Cottage and then start March on the same piece of fabric, just roll it up or stitch it right next to January. I will eventually put them in my scrapbook. I already have some great pieces of paper picked out.

The pink on the February Cottage is so much more VIBRANT in real life than in the picture. I love it! And it pops on the Sage Jobelan. I am looking forward to seeing May's cottage, as that is my birth month. And of course all of the other ones as well.

1. I watched The Help and Crazy Stupid Love today. Great movies. Have not watched a movie in a long time.

2. Work has been crazy busy since my co-worker basically up and quit about two weeks ago, only now helping us on a job here and there. So, I have had much more work than normal until we find a replacement, which is not easy.

3. I ordered another Namaste needlework magnetic case, in pink this time, for upstairs. I have my purple one downstairs. I love putting my orts in them! Not bad for $21 including shipping, off of Etsy.

4. I also ordered two books of my blogs, one from my old blog "I'll Be Perfect In My Next Life" and then all of the entries from 2011 for my current blog. I used Blog2Print. A little pricey, but for me completely worth it to have a softcover book that I can keep forever of my blogs, and all in color, including all of the pictures.

5. I am looking forward to Market Day at The Stitching Post on Saturday, March 3. There are a few items I have my eye on, plus look forward to seeing items that designers have not yet posted pics of on the Internet!

6. I am WAY behind in my TV shows. Like 11 or 12 hours worth! BF may be fishing Saturday morning so I may try to catch up then, but I am seriously considering just deleting them all and starting over, or just watching like one or two. My favorite show is Pretty Little Liars on ABC Family. And BF and I watch a few reality shows during the week like The Bachelor and American Idol and Survivor.

7. I started reading The Tao of Pooh by Benjamin Hoff, but could not really get into it. I finished recently two young adult books, one in the Pretty Little Liars series and one in The Lying Game series. I am looking for something else good to read. Waiting patiently for Gillian Flynn's new book to come out in June, Gone Girl. I read and loved both of her other books.

It's Thursday already! Can you believe it?

First Finish of 2012!

2012-02-19T03:37:00.000-08:00

LK's A Little Love is finished and already in my scrapbook. I cut the margins a bit too close on this one. Disappointing, but it still turned out all right. Lesson learned. I like to leave a half inch on each side and then fringe three threads of each side. I did that in my very first scrapbook page and it turned out good. I have since made a note in my stitching notebook for this. I am not sure why I did it this way this time.

Since this only took up the top of the page I hope to add another Valentine or love-themed design to the bottom.

And although I am not finished with January Cottage yet, I started February last night. Stay tuned for pics!

I must stop reading stitching blogs!!!

2012-02-16T12:13:00.000-08:00

I have no resistance to clicking on a link!! And when you can buy the pattern and get the download? Ugghhhhhhh. I just signed up for the Dessert of the Month on this site. Don't say I didn't warn you!

Valentine's Gifts and Updates!

2012-02-15T14:09:00.000-08:00

Valentine's gifts from BF! The flower vase is from Hallmark and you press a button on the back and it opens. So neat! Also pictured is a mug, snow globe, card, and a stuffed monkey I have named Brucey, after my favorite character in the movie Matilda, the boy who eats the whole chocolate cake in front of the entire class. You can do it, Brucey!!!

I have stitched a bit more on Lizzie Kate A Little Love. The frogs came to visit a bit on the L and I had to rip out half of it, but all is well now.

More on January Cottage! Cannot wait to get this one done, as it seems as if it has taken me forever with restarting it three times. Ready to move on to February and the others!

Still very much loving the Sage Jobelan and how great the white shows up on it. Can't say enough about it! I will surely be using it for future projects.

And finally here is my Qsnap lap frame! I finally received this after a small snafu where it was not mailed out until FIVE days after they had e-mailed me saying it had been mailed! But I have it now, so all is good.

I will be trying this out on my next project after A Little Love. I am thinking Little House Needleworks Little Miss Sunflower.

Updates!

2012-02-13T08:46:00.000-08:00

I was able to stitch some this weekend. Yay!

January Cottage~loving the Sage Jobelan. The white shows up very well.

Lizzie Kate A Little Love kit. Still loving this one. Great colors.

Punctuation

2012-02-10T14:45:00.001-08:00

Oh, my life as an editor/proofreader. Punctuation makes ALL the difference, people! See Exhibit A.

I could not stop laughing when I saw this. Happy Friday!

A New Scrapbook Page

2012-02-10T11:40:00.000-08:00

I whipped up this scrapbook page fairly quickly, having decided to not get this needlepoint piece I completed last year framed.

And I spied another must-stitch that will be released at the Nashville market in a few weeks, Plum Street Samplers Maxim & Zoya.

New Stuff and a Tiny Update

2012-02-09T14:20:00.000-08:00

My bobbin organizer boxes arrived at Walmart yesterday. Here are a few pictures to show you how they open from both sides and such. I love these!

On Tuesday I received my replacement cell phone, an iPhone 4! Love it.

And here is tiny, tiny progress on January cottage. The top branch is finished. Some progress is better than none, I suppose! No further progress on LK A Little Love. Work has been complete insanity this week.

Have you all seen the April cottage? Love it! Love purple!

And how about the Party Cakes pattern?? Oh, this is a must stitch!

I stitched, I stitched!!!

2012-02-06T05:45:00.000-08:00

I was finally able to sit down last night and start LK's A Little Love. Very cute kit.

Yesterday was The Stitching Post's Super Bowl sale. Astrid, Jill, DJ, Denise and I all met at Peace A Pizza right down the street and chatted and had lunch before going to the sale. Good pizza and salad! We will definitely be meeting there again. Maybe for Market Day in March? LOL.

Lots of people showed up for the Super Bowl sale. I didn't get anything worthy of a picture, a few threads, some fabric. I have enough patterns to stitch right now!

Country Cottage Needleworks has posted the April cottage on their blog. Very cute! I love that purple is in this one, and I especially love the bunny! Can't wait to see her Party Cakes post on Wednesday! I am thinking they may be thread packs like the other cakes she did. I enjoyed stitching a few of those.

I have not stitched any more on January cottage. I hope to get some stitches in this week on it.

I should be receiving my iPhone 4 and my Q-snap lap frame this week! Stay tuned for pics.

Happy Monday, everyone!

Someone...

2012-02-04T06:43:00.000-08:00

...does NOT want me to work on Lizzie Kate's A Little Love Kit!! LOL.

On Thursday I was going to start it. We were able to have an earlier-than-normal dinner and so I had about an hour extra of time, but then BF's laptop would not connect to the Internet, so I was resetting our modem/router, restarting his computer, blah, blah, blah, which quickly ate up that hour of time. Yes, I am the resident computer expert in our home! LOL. I fixed it, but alas no stitching that evening.

LAST night, Friday, I also had planned to start it. We went out to dinner at a restaurant and being Friday we were going to stay up a little past our normal bedtime. Well, when we were leaving the restaurant I said, uh, where is my cell phone?!?!?!?!? I always keep it in the front pocket of my purse. And the case on the phone is like a rubbery silicone so it sort of "sticks" in the pocket, so it is not falling out of my purse.

So, I check all in the purse, all over the booth, the car. And then BF goes back into the restaurant and has the staff looking, NO PHONE!!! When we get home BF calls it and there is no answer. Well, I have no choice at this point but to suspend the service and buy another phone. We don't have a landline phone, so our cell phones are it for us. We think someone STOLE it from my purse. The restaurant was so ridiculously crowded and I walked up to the front two or three times to check if they had called our name, and I was jostled and pushed by a bunch of people.

I start looking at phones online and just want to throw up. Since I had just upgraded mine in November I am not eligible for another upgrade until July of 2013!! So, if I'm buying a phone, it's at full retail price, hundreds of dollars. So, I'm thinking and thinking. My mom has a family plan where she has five phones on the plan, my uncle, grandparents, aunt, and her and my stepfather. Well, my grandparents never upgrade their cell phone. They hardly use it. So, she had an available upgrade AND a $50 credit toward a new phone.

So, I was able to use one of her upgrades to order a white iPhone 4 for only $50!!! I thought that was a great deal. And I should have it early next week. But I was on the phone with my mother for about an hour and 15 minutes dealing with that, and when I got off the phone and the computer, time for bed! So, no stitching once again.

Universe, why don't you want me to work on that LK kit?? LOL. I am going to attempt to start it tonight.

I am looking forward to The Stitching Post's Super Bowl sale on Sunday. I have decided to go after all. I look forward to maybe picking up a few things and seeing all of my stitching friends, Jill, Astrid, DJ, and Denise, as they are going also!

Jill and I also booked our reservation for the Salty Yarns Stitcher's Jamboree in Ocean City, Maryland in October of this year. Can't wait! Belinda from Blue Ribbon Designs is one of the teachers and there are two more that have not been announced yet. Very excited! This will be my first time taking a class.

Happy weekend to all!

Monthly Series

2012-02-03T13:06:00.000-08:00

I have always been in love with "series" of designs, especially monthly ones. I don't know why. I know others out there like series of stuff too.

I just saw this finish on Beth's blog of LK's January Flip-It and I remembered how I always wanted to stitch that series. I actually had a cool scrapbook idea of stitching a bunch of the LK series, like all of the January ones and putting them on scrapbook paper that has the month on it too. There is a series of paper I have seen at AC Moore a bunch of times that has each month written on it, like January is blue and has "January" written a million different ways, pink for February, green for March, and so on.

But I laughed and thought would I get tired of stitching the word "January" six or seven times? LOL.

Oh, but I can dream....

January Cottage Redux & New Purchases!

2012-02-03T11:30:00.000-08:00

I just wanted to post a quick update.

I was able to put in a few stitches yesterday on January Cottage. LOVE the Jobelan! So glad I am using that fabric, although in real life it is much richer looking. In this pic it looks sort of washed out.

I also have bought a few new things for myself. As BF likes to call me, Inspector Gadget. I wear that title proudly, thank you very much! LOL.

After seeing Jill's Q-snap frame in person, I thought about it for a week and decided to go ahead and purchase one from Stitcher's Paradise. I placed my order this morning and just received an e-mail that it shipped already! Lightening fast! I should have it Monday/Tuesday as it is coming via USPS Priority Mail.

And I also ordered four of the Creative Options bobbin boxes that have been all over everyone's blog posts lately. I wanted one each for DMC, GAST, WDW, and CC threads. I actually went in person to my local Joann's this morning, but they did not have any. So, I decided to just go ahead and get them from Walmart's website and have them shipped to my local store and I can go pick them up when they arrive, which should be February 13 or thereabouts. At $9 each, not a bad deal. Shipping to my house would have been $20!!!

Have a great weekend, everyone! I hope to have some progress on LK A Little Love kit on Monday to show you. Stay tuned!

Thank you!!

2012-02-02T06:47:00.000-08:00

I just wanted to say thank you to EVERYONE who commented about my blog post yesterday. You all were right on the mark and so insightful and wonderful.

Ponderings and Introspection

2012-02-01T09:55:00.000-08:00

This post has been a while coming. I have thought about what I wanted to say and wondered how all of my blog readers would feel about reading it, or even if any would read it, after seeing how long it is.

As of late, I would say actually a while, my stitching has been all over the place and it has caused me much mental stress and strife, and I am not really sure why. I have started and stopped and scrapped more projects and spent more money than I care to admit to anyone.

I was gung-ho about the CCN cottages back when they were first announced and then I was obsessed with a HAED, and wasn't going to stitch the cottages, and then the HAED was giving me fits and I thought there is no way I am going to be able to do this, and I started seeing all of the pics on the Cottage SAL and I thought these look so great, I HAVE to do them! And in my craziness I dropped out of the Cottage SAL blog and am now on a waiting list to rejoin. Idiotic, yes, for me to have dropped out!!!!

And I have restarted January cottage about three times now. And then I started LK Fat Snowmen. Both projects on 25 count, tent stitching, mind you, because I wanted to stitch faster, you know, and get something done. But then I got to the snowman on the January cottage and it just looked 50 kinds of wrong.

So, I am restarting, again, on 32 count Sage Jobelan, and stitching them all individually for my scrapbook. And restarting LK Fat Snowmen at some point on the fabric also, 2 over 2, full cross stitches, like I normally do, and going to do them individually for my scrapbook also.

And I look back over my cross stitch "career" and see a lot of trying different stuff, scrapbooking my pieces, finishing them myself, framing, getting them finished by someone else, trying linen, all kinds of threads, different size needles, and it goes on and on and on. But I feel as if I am not getting anywhere. Like I am going in circles. And it is completely maddening. Because I love this hobby. It is the only thing I do for me.

And I read everyone's blogs and everyone seems accomplished and moving forward and not have any of the schizophrenia I feel. Is there anyone out there that feels the same way? Maybe you are just not putting it on your blog. But on some level, by BF and others, I feel judged and it makes me want to shut down and not write on this blog and keep my stitching to myself.

And I think to myself this must be simpler. I am making this WAY too complicated. Just all of it. Like fabric. My favorite all time fabric is Jobelan. It's evenweave, so no slubs like in linen, and it's fairly non-see-through, so I can carry threads if need be. But why do I stitch on linen then?

And scissors. I don't know if any of you have this problem, but it seems as if most of the scissors out there my fingers just do not fit comfortably in those holes, except ONE pair, Kelmscott Tudor Rose scissors. Fabulous ones.

And finding a fabric where WHITE floss shows up well. This has caused quite a conundrum for me in the past. The Sage Jobelan seems to fit that bill, though. We shall see.

So, I am taking a deep breath and having a do-over, and hoping and praying I can move forward and accomplish some finishes.

My goals for February:

1. January Cottage~32 count Sage Jobelan~finish for my scrapbook
2. Lizzie Kate A Little Love kit~32 count Lambswool Jobelan~finish for my scrapbook (the linen that came in this kit is very scratchy and stiff, so I am substituting)

If you have read down this far, thank you. I know this post seems all over the place. I just wanted to get this out. There is a sane stitching person in me just trying to claw its way out!

I also am organizing my threads on bobbins now. Much neater. Thanks to Rachel for causing me to have that lightbulb moment. I don't know why I didn't do this before. My goal is to have a box for each different floss, WDW, GAST, CC, DMC, just like she does.

And if I have not commented on your blog lately, it's not that I am NOT reading. I am. Everyone is doing a completely fabulous job on everything. You all make me laugh, sometimes cry, and I find inspiration and hope every day through all of you.

Update & A New Start

2012-01-30T14:47:00.000-08:00

New start! Lizzie Kate Fat Snowmen.

And January Cottage updated:

Still more January Cottage

2012-01-26T04:00:00.000-08:00

I have the hardest time getting a good pic of my WIP's. The pics seem to be so very different from what the piece looks like in real life.

I am still loving the 25 count, as it is nice to not have to come back to the complete the second leg of the X. I am finding that on items like the windows I have to stitch a different way than I normally would. Normally I would outline the windows in the brown and then fill in with the white. Well, I did that and it seemed crowded. So, on the other part of the house I am going to be stitching in rows and parking some threads as I go along so I may be using three different colors in a row, but I won't be trying to fill in anything, if that makes sense to all of you.

Some of you commented how tiny this one is going to be. Yes! 3 by 3. I am going to stitch all 12 cottages on this same piece of fabric, 3 wide and 4 down.

I broke out my StitchMate floor stand yesterday morning and put this piece on it, and pulled out my floor daylight lamp. I forgot how much I love stitching on a floor stand! It was actually prompted by BF. I was showing him the Qsnap lap frame that Jill has and mentioned how I was considering getting one, and he said, uh, you have a $400 stand that is currently sitting in the closet. LOL. He said it jokingly, but it got me to thinking. Why am I not using that stand? It does not really take up too much room in my office.

But this leads me to want a "downstairs" project that I can put on a Qsnap and work on in the evenings and to take with me for get-togethers and retreats, like this Sunday at Denise's. Because I am NOT pulling the cottage project off the scroll rods every night and putting it on a Qsnap. Uh, no. Yes, I don't need the Qsnap stand. I just want it. LOL. But I am going to make a trip to The Stitching Post today to see what project I can get for that endeavor. LK Fat Snowmen maybe???

At the retreat Jill and I went to in November we saw the Snowmen partially stitched and we went back and forth as to if we wanted to stitch it. It's growing on me. LOL. I will have to see if something else catches my eye today. Whatever it is, I will be stitching on 25 count again using tent stitch.

A bit more January Cottage

2012-01-24T08:06:00.000-08:00

I find it difficult to get the perfect angle and lighting on the camera, so here is January Cottage from a few different angles.

First WIP of January Cottage

2012-01-23T12:30:00.000-08:00

I started CCN's January Cottage this weekend, 25 count Mushroom Lugana, 2 over 1, tent stitching. I am going to stitch all 12 cottages on this same piece of fabric, 3 wide and 4 down. Should be an amazing piece of stitchery if I can stick with it. We all know my track record is not too great. But there is always a first time. I have hope, as I really am enjoying stitching this so far.

Ready to go!

2012-01-20T02:18:00.000-08:00

I was able to get to The Stitching Post yesterday during my lunch hour and get the needed floss and fabric for both January and February cottage. I bought 25 count Lugana in both Mushroom and Summer Khaki and decided to go with the Mushroom for the cottages.

I should be able to start this evening. Stay tuned for pics!

I am nursing a "HAED" ache

2012-01-19T06:50:00.000-08:00

My HAED has been giving me fits. I have restarted about three different times on different fabric, using one or two threads. Today I experimented with tent stitching using 2 threads over 1 on 25 count Lugana. And I liked how it looked, but I was just frustrated with having started over so many times and stitched the same spot again and again and again. So, I decided to peruse Google Reader, and I came upon the CCN Cottages stitch-a-long blog, and then I had a crazy thought.

I could try the CCN Cottages all on one piece of 25 count Lugana, 2 over 1, and stitch them using tent stitch. I have both of the January and February patterns, but now just need the floss and fabric. So, a trip to The Stitching Post will be in order. I am hoping this afternoon or tomorrow, as work permits.

So, I am giving this a try. Wish me luck. And stay tuned for pics. I just realized I have not posted since January 4!!!

First progress pic of my HAED~a video post!

2012-01-04T07:46:00.000-08:00

I have not stitched as much as I would have liked lately, but I did get in some time last night and this morning. Patience, Grasshopper, I tell myself each day, and this project will come to life.

Stitching on 40 count R&R Iced Cappuccino linen, 1 over 2. This is about 650 stitches.

This is my first video post.

My Christmas Haul!

2011-12-28T05:06:00.000-08:00

As always, BF and everyone gets me the best Christmas gifts. I am very blessed.

There were a few items I did not get pictures of. I received two Sephora gift cards (best makeup store ever!!!!) and two Amazon gift cards. Of course I have already spent these!! LOL. BF and I also received a $100 gift card to Ruth's Chris Steakhouse, which we are saving for Valentine's Day.

First up is a hand-painted mug from my sister-in law. Totally love this and have been using it every day since Christmas Day.

My brother and sister-in-law also got me this homemade cocoa mix. Can't wait to try it!

A watch from BF. LOVE this.

A new Pandora charm for my bracelet from BF, ladybugs!! My favorite. Besides bunnies. LOL

A daylight makeup mirror from BF. This works wonderfully.

Slipper boots from BF. I wore these the rest of Christmas Day. So comfortable and warm!

Just Dance 3 for the Wii from BF. I will be trying this out very soon!

An automatic candy dispenser from The Stepdaughter's mom. Can't wait to put some candy in it!

Fuzzy socks, another set of slippers, and a handbag hanger from The Stepdaughter. I had been looking everywhere for one of those!

A ladybug pillow pet from BF. Love ladybugs. I will be snuggling with this when I sit in my recliner in my office.

A cardigan, flannel PJ's, and Taylor Swift's Wonderstruck perfume from BF. Smells so good!!! And the box it came in was gorgeous. I had to keep it.

A Stila makeup palette and new makeup brushes from BF. LOVE both of these.

A snow globe and belljar wine glass from BF. I thought the wine glass was unique. I had not ever seen that.

New jewelry box from BF. Totally love this. Now my jewelry is all organized and I can see it all very easily when I open the lid.

Ring from BF. Totally love it. It made be hard to see, but around the stone is scrollwork. Just gorgeous. And lightweight.

An ePillow for my iPad!!! I have been using this constantly since Christmas Day. And there is a pocket on the side that holds my earbuds!!

Two more snowglobes from my dad and stepmom. I am amassing quite the collection now!

BF also got me this paper snowglobe that is in the center. It is the coolest thing I have seen yet!!

I also got a bunch of stocking stuff from BF, bubble gum, a shower puff, hand sanitizer, et cetera. All in all, I received lots of stuff!!!

I hope everyone had a Merry Christmas. I WILL be glad to see the holidays over with, however. On to 2012!!

I have been working on my HAED. I am just waiting to complete a bit more before posting a pic.

And I know the last TUSAL was Christmas Eve. I honestly did not have any threads saved. So, no pic. But I thought I would just mention it.

The giveaway winner is...

2011-12-25T06:00:00.000-08:00

Marjorie!!! Congrats, Marjorie!!! You won my stitching giveaway.

Please e-mail me your mailing info and I will get the package out to you this week!

Merry Christmas to all!

Giveaway and New 2012 Goal

2011-12-20T06:02:00.000-08:00

I have done a lot of stitchy pondering and thinking over the weekend. And that usually means purging and cleaning house, which of course means a giveaway for you!!! I did get rid of a lot of stash a while ago on Ebay, and this giveaway is the absolute last of it. YES, you read right. After this giveaway there will be no stitchy stash in my house save for my goal project for 2012, a Heaven and Earth Designs pattern!!!!

Now, while you catch your break and recover from your breakdown, let me explain. I have wanted to stitch a HAED design for as long as I have known about them. Have I done so? Not yet. And in my quest to pare down and not buy any stash in 2012, this seemed like a good way to do it. Between the 90 skeins of DMC, a bobbin box, the pattern, and the fabric, I spent $54. And save for running out of a DMC or two, I will not have to purchase anything further for this project.

The pattern I chose was Hannah Disney's QS Butterfly Keeper. I know this is a large undertaking and a lot of you may think I have jumped onto the crazy wagon. This will be monumental for me if I can complete this goal in 2012. Diary of a Manbroider is my complete and utter inspiration. He has completed MULTIPLE HAED designs, all breathtakingly gorgeous!

So, now to the giveaway. One lucky winner will receive the following:

Shepherd's Bush The Journey~pattern and silk (no fabric)
A scrap piece of 40 count Iced Cappuccino R&R Linen (approximately 8 by 9)
Little House Needleworks Little Miss Sunflower pattern and all threads
Little House Needleworks Warm Winter Woolens and all threads
Country Cottage Needleworks January Cottage and all threads
Bent Creek Thankful Quaker and some of the threads
Little House Needleworks Frosty Flakes ornament pattern
Country Cottage Needleworks Vintage Christmas pattern
Country Cottage Needleworks Gingerbread Houses pattern
Lizzie Kate Ho Ho Ho Quick It pattern and all threads (The snowman is highlighted a bit on the pattern)
Shepherd's Bush Merry Be Pincushion kit. I have started this and will include my started piece on the 6 by 6 Qsnap (you can see it in the picture)

All you need to do to enter is just leave me a comment telling me either your 2012 stitchy goal(s) or what your motivation is to complete a large project, especially if you have completed a HAED.

I will choose a winner Christmas morning. Good luck to all of you who enter!

I leave you with a pic of our Christmas tree this year.

2012 Plan

2011-12-16T03:43:00.000-08:00

In looking back over the year, I have spent wayyyyyy too much money, on everything. Stitching, makeup, scrapbook items, you name it. A wake up call yesterday when finding out my paycheck was going to be $430 less than I thought brought me to the realization that the spending has to stop and I have to be careful of any purchases. The stress of living paycheck to paycheck and always worrying about money is not worth any item that I can purchase with it, you know? I have enough makeup, I have enough clothing, and for now I have enough stitching projects.

My plan for 2012 is to stitch from my stash before buying anything further, except for the CCN Cottage auto program I am signed up for at Down Sunshine Lane. And I would like to stitch the Brooke's Books monthly cake patterns on her Yahoo Group. I have wanted to stitch these forever. And they are free!

Anything else I see/want is going on a wish list. I have to follow through on this. For my peace, and my sanity, and my bank account. BF says he is quitting smoking come January 1, and he spends $400 to $500 a month on that, so we should be more than all right in 2012.

So, here is the project list I have for 2012, in no particular order:

1.   Shepherd's Bush Merry Be~currently working on this
2.   Lizzie Kate Ho Ho Ho Quick It
3.   Shepherd's Bush The Journey
4.   Little House Needleworks Warm Winter Woolens
5.   Little House Needleworks Little Miss Sunflower
6.   Ewe & Eye & Friends Brown Bunny
7.   Little House Needleworks Frosty Flakes ornament
8.   Bent Creek Thankful Quaker
9.   Country Cottage Needleworks Vintage Christmas
10. Country Cottage Needleworks Gingerbread Houses
11. Country Cottage Needleworks Monthly Cottages (12)
12. Brooke's Books Monthly Cakes (12)

If I would even come close to finishing all of this, that would be fantastic. And not buying any charts for an entire year?? Wow. I don't think I've ever done that.

One more scrapbook page...for now

2011-12-15T06:12:00.000-08:00

I was able to finish one more scrapbook page. I have no more smalls finished. So, four pages done so far.

Two more scrapbook pages

2011-12-14T14:50:00.000-08:00

Two more scrapbook pages. I have to say that I love Bo Bunny's scrapbook products the best, as they have coordinating pages, cutouts, journaling pages, etc., and it makes the layout really come together.

It's a Christmas miracle...

2011-12-14T05:33:00.000-08:00

...that I am posting to this blog!

I have been busy with getting ready for Christmas, working like a madwoman, and also under the weather for a bit.

I did finish an ornament for our Christmas tree. Miss Crescent's Crowne Jolly from this year's JCS ornament issue.

I also started my scrapbook. I am currently working on Shepherd's Bush Merry Be Pin Cushion, and I am going to add that to the bottom of this scrapbook page when finished.

If I do not get on here again before Christmas, I hope all of you have a great holiday!

TUSAL and a finish!

2011-11-30T12:39:00.000-08:00

First up, this month's TUSAL. Yes, I KNOW I am days late in posting this. My right arm has been killing me from working like a madwoman the past two weeks, so I have been limiting my computer use to work only and hardly stitching.

However, I DID manage to finish Morning Brew!

Hodgepodge Cottage Morning Brew

Fabric: Lakeside Linens 32 ct Vintage Winter Sky

Threads: Crescent Colours

Started: 11/6/11

Finished: 11/30/11

Next up is Lizzie Kate's Ho Ho Ho Quick-It. Everything is ready to go!

And I have five finishes waiting to be put in my scrapbook. And I have all of the materials for them. Just waiting to get a chunk of time, and my new mini paper cutter, which should arrive today via UPS.

Progress

2011-11-21T05:05:00.000-08:00

I was able to stitch a bit on Morning Brew this weekend. Note to self: DO NOT cut your fabric until you are done stitching the piece! I do not have enough fabric by the mugs to put it in a hoop, so I am stitching in hand for the outside row of mugs. I couldn't tell you the last time I stitched in hand!

And on Saturday I received October Word Play back from Deb at Artistic Needle. Another great job! I wanted a ruched ribbon around this one. I am going to stitch the other ones on 40 count fabric, though, so I can put them in my scrapbook.

Beauty

2011-11-17T03:13:00.000-08:00

I had been wanting to try some anti-aging products for a while now. I am only 37, but sometimes when I look in the mirror I look 100 years old. Lack of sleep and stress will do that to you, I suppose. But on the way home from the retreat Sunday morning I decided to stop at Rite Aid and see what I could find. I am not expecting miracles here, but these three products below work pretty good in giving my skin a better appearance, at least I think so.

The cleanser is Olay Regenerist Advanced Anti-Aging cream cleanser. It has some scrubbies in it to help get rid of dry skin. Next is Loreal's Collagen moisturizer. Hands-down this is the best moisturizer I have ever used. Very thick and creamy, and smells great! And the last one is Loreal Eye Defense. I haven't seen much improvement under my eyes yet with this, but I am sure it is not going to happen overnight. All of these products cost $35 together. And they will last a while. I am keeping my eye out in the weekly paper for some coupons for these products for the future.

Moving on, I did receive a scrapbook order in the mail yesterday. My original thought was to use plain colored scrapbook paper and then jazz it up with stickers and whatnot. Well, after perusing Michaels and ACMoore last week, I did not see much I liked. I came home and went to Scrapbook.com. This is the most awesome scrapbooking website that I have come across. They have much, much more than any big box chain craft store has, and they have products that match, like the paper and journaling cards, which totally feeds the inner OCD and matchy-matchy tendencies I have with some things.

Bo Bunny is my favorite scrapbook supply designer. I have found some very nice items I have bookmarked for future projects I have in the works. But what I did receive yesterday was for Quaker Moon and Autumn Pinkeep.

As soon as I saw the owl in the tree, and I had wanted a black-based paper anyway, I was sold. And these coordinating journal cutouts go right with it. My plan is to attach the stitching to the paper and then attach a journal card with the stitching info: designer, name of chart, threads and fabric used, and time it took to stitch.

And I thought this was outstandingly perfect for Autumn Pinkeep. The papers are so much more vibrant and gorgeous in real life. Picking which journal card to use is going to be a tough decision. And I bought a special black pen to write all of the details. Now just to find the time to actually do the scrapbooking. I am thinking maybe this weekend. So, stay tuned for pics of finished pages!

I am only putting one piece on each page. I was originally going to do multiple pieces on one page, but I think it would wind up looking too busy. Trust me when I say I have spent quite a bit of time just picking out one paper and journaling card for one piece at a time.

I did receive some stash in the mail yesterday, With Thy Needle's December Word Play. I saw a snippet of January's Word Play on her blog a few days ago and can't wait to see it!

And finally I have done a tiny bit of stitching on Morning Brew since the retreat. Work has been crazy busy and I spent all of Sunday after getting home cleaning and unpacking.

You will see I have this project in a wooden embroidery hoop and not a Q-snap. I have gone back and forth about trying this method. I find my hand and arm tire easily when I am holding a Q-snap. This embroidery hoop is very, very lightweight. YES, I know that you should not leave your stitching in the hoop because of marks/creases that will not come out. I take the piece out each time I am finished stitching. YES, I know that putting the hoop over already-stitched parts can distort the stitches. All I can say to that is I do my best to be the utmost careful when I am tightening the hoop in those areas. And I read a tip online that if you are right-handed you should put the tightening part at 10:00, and if you are left-handed you should put it at 2:00 so your threads will not catch on it as you are stitching. I actually find myself holding that part of the hoop while stitching. It gives a nice place for your hand to rest.

I have actually liked stitching with the hoop so far. So, for now I'm going with it.

Have a great Thursday, everyone!

Back from the retreat!!

2011-11-14T02:57:00.000-08:00

I had a wonderful time at the Montpelier Needlearts retreat in Laurel, Maryland this weekend!!! Friday involved checking in at 1pm and receiving your goody bag and either a coffee cup or regular drink cup. It was so hard to choose which ones to take, as there were many beautiful ones. Here are the ones I chose:

Inside the goody bags were lots of charts, needles, and thread. Later on we also received this great pair of scissors, and they were purple!!!!

Jill and I shared a room and we met two great women, Sandy and Malissa. Lots of good food and laughs all weekend. And, of course, some stitching and stashing! I did finish JBW Designs Sleigh French Country Ornament.

JBW Designs French Country Ornaments (Sleigh)

Started: 11/6/11

Finished: 11/12/11

Fabric: 32 count Cream Belfast

Thread: ThreadWorx 1089

And I was able to get all the words stitched on Morning Brew. You can see one of my stash purchases on the fabric, a martini glass needle minder. LOVE IT!!!

The other purchase I made was the fabric for Plum Street Samplers Beans, Beans chart, Lakeside Linens 36 count Vintage Autumn Gold.

And I won a Lizzie Kate Boxer Jr kit, Candy, as a door prize!

On Saturday we visited the Montpelier Mansion Needlearts Show. Wonderful pieces of stitching on display! And the mansion was great to see.

All in all a great weekend! We will be back next year!

Step 1

2011-11-09T11:09:00.000-08:00

Michaels had 40 percent off all of their scrapbooks, and I had a 50 percent off coupon for a regular priced item, so I was able to find a scrapbook and get Heat N Bond, which I use to attach the stitched piece to the scrapbook paper. Tomorrow I hope to make a quick trip to ACMoore to find some paper to mount Quaker Moon and the Autumn Pinkeep! Stay tuned for pics!

Scrapbooking?

2011-11-09T06:50:00.000-08:00

I am considering scrapbooking my finishes once again. I have tried and not stuck with this method twice now. I looked around today and realized that eventually (not anytime soon, mind you) I will run out of wall space. Scrapbooking my finishes would solve that problem, not to mention an easy finish and relatively inexpensive, as I don't add special items to the scrapbook page, just the stitched piece. Ugghhhhh, my brain!!!

My main issue is finding the perfect scrapbook, of course. I saw one online at ACMoore that has an elastic strap that will keep the scrapbook closed when you are not using it. This appeals to me, as when you pick up the book, all of the pages will not slide in it. They will be staying put until you open it.

Thoughts?

Autumn Pinkeep Finish!

2011-11-07T05:53:00.000-08:00

I finished the autumn pinkeep last night.

Helga Mandl's Autumn Pinkeep

October 2011 Gift of Stitching magazine

Started: 10/30/11

Finished: 11/6/11

Fabric: 32 count Antique Ivory Belfast

Threads: ThreadWorx #1042

And here is Hodgepodge Cottage's Morning Brew that I started yesterday.

Busy Day!

2011-11-06T13:42:00.001-08:00

As those who follow my blog know, I am stitching the Autumn Pinkeep design from The Gift of Stitching magazine using a Threadworx thread.

I met Denise and Jill for lunch and stitching at Panera Bread in Catonsville yesterday and stitched some more on it. I was very close to finishing it there, but noticed I was running out of thread.

This morning I did run out of thread, and then remembered The Stitching Post was open today, as it is the first Sunday of the month. The store was so busy!

But of course I could not go in and just get that one thread. I also purchased fabric and thread for JBW Designs French Country Ornaments (the sleigh) and fabric and thread for LHN Warm Winter Woolens, plus another 8 by 8 Q-snap and another needlework magnet. I am adding LHN's Warm Winter Woolens to my kitted up projects, which makes a total of 6 projects that I have ready to go at any time I am ready to work on them.

And since I ran out of the Threadworx thread I did a small bit of stitching on Hodgepodge Cottage's Morning Brew.

I am home now and hope to finish Autumn Pinkeep this evening and
put JBW Designs French Country Sleigh ornament in its place in my rotation. Stay tuned for pics!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

A Major Want!!!

2011-11-03T14:00:00.000-07:00

Um, if any of you read Ruth Schmuff's blog, It's Not Your Grandmother's Needlepoint, I SO want one of these snap trays with my name embroidered!!!! Oh, Santa, this just went to the top of my Christmas list!!! Of course in the hot pink like the one shown, and with the black and white filagree type design. Ohhhhh.......

Stash!

2011-11-01T03:05:00.000-07:00

In yesterday's mail I received the fabric and floss for Lizzie Kate's Ho Ho Ho Quick It, Little House Needleworks Warm Winter Woolens pattern, and JBW Designs French County Ornaments pattern. I can't wait to stitch these designs!

Quaker Moon Finish & A New Start

2011-10-31T06:00:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I finished Quaker Moon.

Bent Creek Quaker Moon

Started: 10/10/11

Finished: 10/30/11

Fabric: Recommended 32 count Summer Khaki Belfast linen

Threads: Recommended WDW, GAST, and CC

I also started Helga Mandl's Autumn Pinkeep from the October 2011 issue of The Gift of Stitching. I am stitching it on 32 count Antique Ivory Belfast using the recommended ThreadWorx #1042.

Quaker Moon Progress

2011-10-28T04:44:00.000-07:00

I was finally able to sit in my new chair for longer than one minute and do some stitching on Quaker Moon. I am using petite black beads for the various pumpkins' eyes. I don't do French knots. Or should I say I have tried and failed to do a French knot and decided to do beads. Plus I like their uniform look. Now, threading the beading needle, well, that's a whole other story.

On a funny note, The Stepdaughter came into my office after school a few days ago and said, direct quote, "we made babies in school today." I said you did WHAT?!?!??!?! Her health class had to make "pretend" babies out of those small, clear ornaments that you can fill with stuff. After a few minutes when I could breathe again from laughing so hard I said you might want to word that differently when you tell people. LOL.

Are any of you considering doing the Crazy January 2012 Challenge? I am considering it, but kitting up 15 projects at once...well, I don't know. But still considering it.

October TUSAL

2011-10-26T02:31:00.000-07:00

Well, it's that time again, folks, TUSAL! In rearranging and redoing my office/stitching space I have once again starting placing my orts in a glass container. I think I did pretty good this month! The threads are from October Word Play and Quaker Moon.

Stitching Station Redux

2011-10-25T11:54:00.000-07:00

Now, you all know I have been awaiting the arrival of my new stitching chair for my office. It arrived TODAY!!! Here is how my stitching corner looked before:

And here it is after:

I have put the StitchMate and the daylight floor lamp in the closet for now. And the old chair and foot stool is now in our bedroom. I am going for simplicity here, folks, and space is WAY limited in my office. When I say I have been obsessed with perfecting how everything goes on that side table, it is an understatement. The table is low, hence the books. Every time I looked over at the table lamp or stood up from my office chair and looked in that direction, I looked directly into the light bulb. Um, no. And reaching for threads or scissors or anything, and it was like I was bending down every time. Again, no.

Luckily I inherited BF's mom's entire collection of hardback Stephen King novels when she passed in 2009, and they make perfect stacks. But of course, I had to put Jane Greenoff's The New Cross Stitcher's Bible on top. How could I not?!??!???!

But I am OCD in that everything has to be just so. And I wanted a different kind of stitching area. The floor lamp bugged me, so I went to Office Depot and purchased this clip on Ott lamp, which so far is wonderful, and I can take this lamp on retreats with me. And the basket on the floor now holds my WIP's, as the table space is limited. I know it is hard to tell, but I literally have like 12 inches from when I sit at my computer desk to the edge of that side table where my stitching supplies are, so compacting everything is way necessary. Not to mention that I can just pick up a Qsnap and start stitching. The StitchMate, while wonderful, took up a lot of space in that area, not to mention every time someone walked in the room, or the dogs came in, someone would inevitably bump into it, and cue me having a heart attack.

So, here's to hoping my brain can rest about my stitching area now and I can actually do some stitching.

P.S. If you look to the far left of my "after" pic you will see our smallest dog, Layla, in her bed that resides in my office. She stays in here most of the day sleeping. Oh, the life of a dog! LOL.

October Word Play Finish!

2011-10-24T15:00:00.000-07:00

I finished With Thy Needle & Thread's October Word Play today.

With Thy Needle & Thread October Word Play

Started: 10/10/11

Finished: 10/24/11

Lakeside Linens 28 count Light Exemplar

Recommended GAST and WDW

Jill and I traveled to In Stitches in Alexandria, Virginia yesterday for one of their lock-ins. We had a great time!! In our welcome packet we had a JABCO pin. I decided to put it on one of the handles of my clear tote bag.

Here is the stash I purchased: 6 x 6 Q-snap, Zecca needlework magnets, Lizzie Kate's Ho Ho Ho Quick it (love this!!!), With Thy Needle & Thread's November Word Play, and the recommended fabric for Little House Needleworks Little Miss Sunshine. Also in our welcome packet was a $5 coupon and we received an additional 20 percent off our purchases!

I brought along Bent Creek's Quaker Moon and made some progress. Two people bought this pattern because they liked mine so much! I always find it amazing how different a piece looks stitched compared to the photo.

I forgot my camera. Boo! I wanted to take some pictures. Next time! I now keep my camera in my clear tote bag, so it will never be forgotten again!

Gadgets

2011-10-19T10:08:00.000-07:00

I love gadgets, especially needlework gadgets. Here are the newest ones I've acquired.

A needlebook with my initial from Crystal's Creations & Gifts on Etsy. This needlebook was featured in the newest issue of Cross Stitch & Needlework. I love their new feature on the newest needlework gadgets. And at $9 I thought this was a steal!! One can never have enough needlebooks.

I have wanted a clear tote forever and recently purchased this one from The Stitchery, including the clear notions bag on top. I will be using these bags for the first time this weekend at the In Stitches lock-in. One can never have enough totes either!!

I also purchased a new pair of traveling scissors. I love these for their antique look.

And finally I worked a bit on Quaker Moon last night. Progress! Oh, boy, I had to laugh as I uploaded this photo. Once I looked at this piece in a photo I realized the right part of the moon is a candy corn on the inside! Last night while stitching that part I thought, okay, they are just filling in the moon a bit. Hahahahahahaha.

P.S. While at The Stitching Post this morning picking up some much-needed needles and a Q-snap, I ran into the lovely Astrid!

Giveaway Alert!

2011-10-17T13:58:00.001-07:00

Kathy of A Stitcher's Heirlooms is hosting a wonderful fall giveaway! Go here to check it out and enter!

And Lisa of Hocky Mom Stitchin' Hobby is hosting a fabulous blogoversary giveaway here.

Stash & Some Updates

2011-10-17T13:17:00.000-07:00

I received some new stash in the mail today, two Shepherd's Bush kits, Creepy Pin Cushion and Get Scared. Love SB!!!

I also have been working on Bent Creek's Quaker Moon, completing the owl last night. You can see my Zecca magnet peeking out at the bottom. New favorite magnet!!! And they come two to a package. Love them.

And I have been working on With Thy Needle's October Word Play, although I haven't stitched on this in a few days. Boo!

Autumn Stitching!

2011-10-12T07:03:00.000-07:00

I have been stitching the past few days on two new autumn pieces.

First up is With Thy Needle & Thread's October Word Play. I LOVE these and can't wait to get November when it comes out. I am using the recommended overdyed threads, but I changed the fabric to Lakeside Linens 28 count Light Exemplar.

Second is Bent Creek's Quaker Moon. I started with the owl. I am using the recommended threads and fabric, 32 count Summer Khaki Belfast linen.

I purchased one of those Namaste Buddy cases for needlework supplies. Mine is in Eggplant. LOVE it! I am going to use it when I travel to the In Stitches lock-in on October 23 in Alexandria, Virginia, and also the Needlearts Stitching Retreat in Laurel, Maryland from November 11 through the 13. My first retreat! And Laurel is only about 20 to 25 minutes away from me, so win-win!

Happy Wednesday!

Office Re-Do~Part 1 Complete

2011-10-05T07:06:00.000-07:00

Before:

After:

My new stitching chair will not be delivered until October 25 (boo!), but then my office re-do will be complete. I will be sure to post a before and after pic of my new stitching station!

I did a bit on CCN's Merry Christmas ornament from his year's JCS ornament issue, but am hurrying this post up in between breaks from work. Busy week. So, I'll take a pic of my progress on it next time.

The Four Agreements

2011-10-03T15:04:00.000-07:00

I read an article today that really resonated with me. It summarized the principles in the book The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz. These agreements are not easy by any stretch of the imagination, but these are items that I am going to strive to put into practice immediately, as I know they would make my life less painful and mentally taxing a lot of the time.

The article was written by Mary Kelly-Williams, M.A., a contributor of Stepmom magazine.

1. Be Impeccable With Your Word ~ No slander, gossip, maligning or being catty or unkind towards another. While it may feel good at the time, ultimately it hurts our hearts and souls wasting precious time on disparaging another human being. We look and feel better taking the higher road.

2. Don't Take Anything Personally ~ Because it rarely is about us. It is often the other person projecting what they think we represent (or don't) when it comes to their relationship with us.

3. Don't Make Assumptions ~ We tend to put people in boxes and can be stubborn about letting them out. When we assume something we react to the assumption, not the reality.

4. Do The Best You Can ~ On any given day, do the best you can, with the capacity you have for that day. The capacity is ever-changing. We are human.

Busy Bee

2011-10-03T09:04:00.000-07:00

This weekend was a busyness of epic proportions.

Friday since BF was at a race in Maple Grove, PA with a friend of his I went to bingo with my mother, grandmother, and my mother's friend. I did not win (boo!) but had a lot of fun talking and laughing. When I got home at 10:30 p.m. I had to finish work that I could not get done before I left and then I had to take apart my old desk and move it out of my office in anticipation of my new desk on Saturday. Up since 5:00 a.m. and not getting to bed until 12:30 a.m. Long day.

Those of you who saw my post on Saturday knew I was waiting for BF to get up so we could get my desk put together. It took us FOUR HOURS!!!!! I was so thankful for BF. He was very patient. He put it together while I read the 28-step directions and pulled the appropriate pieces and hardware. The desk is great.

Unfortunately, once we got the desk together we realized the recliner I wanted would be entirely too big. I was very disappointed. BF suggested we look for a glider rocker for me. We went to Babies R Us that evening and it was like I was Goldilocks sitting in this big circle of chairs, trying to find the right one. I did not find one I liked. But we were next making our way to Value City Furniture to order our new den furniture, so BF said just look there and see if you can find a chair, and I did!!!! I found a recliner that is 4 inches shorter in length and width than the other recliner AND $300 cheaper!!!!

Sunday turned into discussing and organizing times with our neighbor across the street to purchase my old desk and our old den furniture. It's great because it saves us listing the furniture on Craigslist and/or donating it, but we are going to be over our neighbor's house two nights this week to help her get everything settled. And our new furniture arrives on Thursday. And we leave for camping on Friday. And this week for work my co-worker is off the entire week, so it's just me. Lots happening.

Sunday was also a family dinner at my grandparents' house and then I was heading over my father's to help him fix his computer, which turned into a three-hour ordeal. And after I had just done a system restore on BF's laptop that past Thursday evening, which turned into a two-hour ordeal. I am thinking of leaving the legal transcription field and going into computer repair!!! LOL.

One of the highlights of the week was getting more stitching stash, although I have yet to put a stitch in anything since early last week. In the mail I received Plum Street Samplers' Beans, Beans and Hodgepodge Cottage's Morning Brew. I also went to The Stitching Post Sunday (they are open every first Sunday of each month from 1pm to 4pm) to pick up some fabric and the flosses for Morning Brew. And I discovered a Blackbird Designs pattern that I had never heard of/seen before, Halloween Eve. I LOVE this one!!!

Well, when I looked at the color key for Morning Brew I noticed two colors were repeated. Well, that didn't seem right. So, when I got home I looked up the chart on ABC Stitch since that site usually has the supply list underneath that you can purchase along with the pattern. I noticed four different floss colors listed and four floss colors not listed. OK. This was getting interesting now.

So, I pulled out the color picture and compared the floss colors listed on ABC Stitch's website and the key in the pattern pack. ABC Stitch seemed to have it listed correctly. I am not sure what happened with the printing of the key included in the pattern. But for those who want to stitch this one, here is a pic of the key and a list of what should be changed:

1. Queen Bee should be Sunflower
2. Grasshopper should be Avocado
3. Wild Oats should be Wavy Navy
4. The Cobbled Peach listed next to the parentheses symbol should be Cherry Tomato

I just found out my job cancelled for today, so after hitting the grocery store and finishing a load of laundry I am hoping to put a few stitches in SB's The Journey.

Happy Monday, everyone!

New Stash & A New Start!

2011-10-01T04:33:00.000-07:00

Life has been complicated and stress-inducing as of late at my household. I am redoing my home office and it has caused me much headache because I have to have everything just so. I mean, I spend 10 to 12 hours, five days a week in there. New desk, new keyboard, new mouse, new office chair, AND new stitching/reading chair!

Since my office is a spare bedroom in our home, and not very large, I have purged and organized like there is no tomorrow. I do have a large closet in this room, so that has been immensely helpful.

The new chair was probably the easiest of everything, although today I am removing the arms from it. I have had the chair in use all week and am finding that every time I use the arrows on my keyboard or use my mouse, my arms hit the sides of the chair. Highly bothersome. It's like I am boxed in by the arms. So off they come off this morning when BF gets up and hopefully that will solve that problem.

Finding the right desk was difficult. When I tell you I looked at every desk online at Office Depot, Staples, OfficeMax, Walmart, and Target, I am not exaggerating. That is basically what I spent last weekend doing. I told BF, I have to see these in person before buying one, as it was going to be a substantial purchase.

So, off to Office Depot, where I am armed with tape measure and paper and pen. The salespeople took one look at me and walked the other way. LOL. I was in that section for a LONG time. And I found one! Nice and heavy and sturdy, black, bigger than the one in my office now and even has a file cabinet drawer on it, so I can get rid of my plastic file box that had been sitting on my office floor for two years now. And the drawer in the middle opens up to become a keyboard/mouse tray!

The whole spark for the office renovation was us shopping for new den furniture. We found a sofa and loveseat that all recline and will be perfect for our basement, where we watch television in the evenings and spend quite a bit of time down there. The set also comes with a recliner. I sat in it and I was a goner. But to have said chair in my office I would need to get a new desk, as it would not fit in the room with my current desk, an L-shaped metal/glass combo that I have had for about 7 years. And I have needed a new office chair for forever. My old one was just purely awful.

Now, let me preface this by saying my current stitching chair in my office is a chair that belonged to BF's mother before she passed away in 2009, and that also belonged to her mother. This chair is over 100 years old, people. Creaky, not very comfortable, but served its purpose for me having a chair in my office to stitch on my Stitchmate or read in peace if I wanted to.

So, in about a week this will be my new stitching/reading chair, and my old chair will reside in our bedroom by a window. This chair reclines, folks, and is plushy, and has a corduroy look to it, but is completely soft and wonderful.

Now, what has caused me great pains and sleepless nights is finding the perfect keyboard. I work on a laptop, and have found that over time reaching for the keyboard to type has caused me upper back pain. So, I decided to get an external keyboard and mouse.

Well, for my work I type, A LOT, so finding a keyboard that I can easily type without fatigue is a must. I swear that over the past two weeks I have bought and tried and returned more keyboards than I probably will own for the rest of my life. Last night I was just done with it all. Frustrated. I am trying one more keyboard and then going back to typing on my laptop keyboard.

I finally did some research on the best keyboard for typists and discovered the IBM Model M. Now, this keyboard has not been made for some time, but Unicomp bought the technology and they are manufacturing them again. I remember typing on this kind of keyboard in my early 20's when I worked as a receptionist at a law firm. Your fingers fly over the keys. I ordered one last night. My Hail Mary. My last shot.

The key to this keyboard's greatness is buckling spring technology, where each key has its own mechanism. Keyboards made now are made cheaper and are akin to pushing a marshmallow, as I heard someone describe it.

Now on to the stitchy news! Down Sunshine Lane was having a grab bag sale where you spent $36 and received a grab bag of items worth $100. Resistance was futile. Here were my favorite items I received in the grab bag, which arrived in the mail yesterday.

I also purchased Little House Needleworks Little Miss Sunflower. Just love this one.

And my new start, purchased fresh from The Stitching Post yesterday morning, Shepherd's Bush The Journey.

I have also been wanting a new tote to store and/or transport my smaller stitching projects. I decided to visit the local Goodwill and see if I could find anything. And I came upon this beauty, for $4!!! Tan corduroy, Aeropostale brand, and I love it. There were a few spots that I cleaned up on it, but it looks practically brand new. I love thrift stores!

My final piece of news is that yesterday I received my Witchy Kitty ornament back from Deb at Artistic Needle. She did a tremendously fantastic job!!!! I especially love the backing fabric. So appropriate!!!!

Have a good weekend, everyone!

TUSAL & A New Start

2011-09-28T02:15:00.000-07:00

First up, this month's TUSAL.

I have started Country Cottage Needleworks Merry Christmas ornament from this year's JCS ornament issue.

A new needlepoint endeavour!

2011-09-19T09:50:00.000-07:00

I have put Cherry Cordial and Color Delights Plum to the side for now. I have missed cross stitch patterns!! So, I decided to try Lizzie Kate's Fall Alphabet on canvas and I converted all of the colors to Caron Watercolours (my new favorite thread to stitch with!).

The only issue I have (and of course there had to be one!) is that when completed you will see the canvas where there are no stitches, as in needlepoint normally ALL of the canvas is stitched. Well, I tried stitching the background two different times yesterday and it seemed as if the alphabet was just swallowed up by the stitching.

Here is what I have completed so far. Honest opinions please, good or bad. Do you think this will look all right stitched with the canvas showing around the design? Will it look all right framed? Has anyone completed any needlepoint where the entire canvas is not stitched?

I really want this to work and be happy with it. I love stitching on the canvas and being able to use the Caron Watercolors.

I am also going to revive this blog more to show more of my personal thoughts and life, not just stitching. I had been keeping a handwritten journal, but I can type so much faster than I can write, you know? And I can always get this blog printed into a book down the road.

I was off work today and had lunch with my baby sis at her school. She is 6 and in the first grade. Such a fun time! My next weekday off I am going to have lunch with her again.

Happy Monday to you all!

P.S. I am going to sit down now and do some stitching and watch "What Dreams May Come." I just realized it is on instant streaming for Netflix! Yay.

Updates!

2011-09-13T06:30:00.000-07:00

Color Delights Plum

Cherry Cordial

Two new starts!

2011-09-07T13:04:00.000-07:00

I started Cherry Cordial the other day. Not much done, but some progress!

I also started Needle Delights Originals Color Delights Plum. It is only 4 by 4 and quick to see progress. I have been working on this one in the evenings all this week.

SS Finish and a New Start!

2011-09-02T07:42:00.000-07:00

I finished Strawberry Shortcake yesterday. I loved working on this one!

Now, my next project was supposed to be Aquamarine, but there are still a few threads on backorder, so instead I am starting Cherry Cordial.

TUSAL & SS Update

2011-08-29T06:31:00.000-07:00

Today is TUSAL. The threads in this are mostly from Strawberry Shortcake, but some from Witchy Kitty also.

I have stitched almost two more blocks on Strawberry Shortcake. Only a block and a half to go!

Updates & New Stash!!!

2011-08-26T13:06:00.000-07:00

I have lost interest in completing Pirate Sock Monkey. It happens. Life goes on.

I have been working on Strawberry Shortcake the past few days. Still loving this one.

I received some stash in the mail, the 2000 JCS ornament magazine, and two extra Cross Stitcher magazines the seller threw in the package. I also received another origami ort holder from Etsy. LOVE these!!

I was off work today, so in addition to having my hair trimmed (not since April!!!) and my nails done by my wonderful mother, I made a trip to The Stitching Post and picked up JBW Designs French Country Squirrel and Scaredy Cats, and a fat quarter of 40 count Magnolia Lakeside Linens. For the squirrel I went with the called-for floss colors, but for Scaredy Cats I picked out GAST Cinders. I have admired this floss color from afar for a long, long time and have always wanted to use it. A perfect blend of black and shades of dark red.

While at The Stitching Post I noticed a wall of models of Needle Delights Originals patterns. Ohhhhhh myyyyyyy!!!!! Totally blew me away, and made me want to come home and stitch every single pattern I have of theirs!!! Just gorgeous, stupendous, magnificent. If you have a chance to visit The Stitching Post, do go and see these.

I have also been reading a lot. If you are on Goodreads, please request me as friend if I am not already a friend of yours. I love this site and have found lots of good book recommendations just from seeing everyone else's updates.

For those in Hurricane Irene's path, please be safe. We are as ready as we are going to get. I just hope we don't lose power, or if we do, not for long.

Updates!

2011-08-22T12:11:00.000-07:00

Pirate Sock Money

Strawberry Shortcake

Witchy Kitty finish!

2011-08-17T07:31:00.000-07:00

I finished Witchy Kitty last night. Now it is off to Deb at Artistic Needle to be made into an ornament.

Next up is Pirate Sock Monkey!

Updates

2011-08-15T06:14:00.000-07:00

More stitched on Witchy Kitty.

And the fourth block finished on Strawberry Shortcake.

More Witchy Kitty!

2011-08-11T06:37:00.000-07:00

I am enjoying Witchy Kitty a lot. I should stitch more Brittercup Designs. They are so cute!

Witchy Kitty update!

2011-08-10T08:02:00.000-07:00

More progress on Witchy Kitty.

Is anyone going to buy the new JCS softcover book coming out in September that has all the Halloween designs in it? I am considering it. I love Halloween designs.

Oh, cross stitch, how I have missed thee!

2011-08-09T06:24:00.000-07:00

I started the Witchy Kitty ornament last night from the JCS Halloween issue, and enjoyed it very much! Needlepoint can be mentally taxing at times. Cross stitch, not so much. So, it was a nice change. I am stitching this on the recommended fabric, with the recommended threads.

Block 3 on SS complete!

2011-08-08T12:48:00.000-07:00

I completed Block 3 last night on Strawberry Shortcake.

The clear Thimble-It pads work very well. My fingers are not sore at all!!!

I am also looking through my needlepoint patterns to figure out what my next one will be. I like to have the threads well in advance. That way, as soon as I am finished with SS, I can start the next one right away.

New purchases!!

2011-08-06T10:04:00.000-07:00

I worked more on Strawberry Shortcake last night. The outside of that third block is a bit fiddly, requiring much concentration.

I made a trip to The Stitching Post today and purchased a few items, namely two different kinds of thimble pads, which was the entire reason for my visit. I have found that needlepoint makes my thumb and first finger VERY sore. I hope one of these work. We shall see...

I could not resist walking around and checking out the new items. My eye landed on this....the new JCS Halloween issue! I am a subscriber, so I will get a copy in the mail in a few days, but I instantly thought this would maybe make Jill feel a bit better about having to rip out ALL of her sampler she has been working so diligently on. So, I bought it for her.

I thumbed through it quickly and this ornament caught my eye, Witchy Kitty by Brittercup Designs.

So, I purchased the fabric and threads needed. I need to order the pumpkin button online, however, as The Stitching Post did not have it. Such gorgeous thread colors!!

So, then I realized I did not have a piece of felt for my 6 by 6 Qsnap that I was going to be stitching this ornament on, so I made a quick detour on the way home to Michaels. I have found that I like to have the same color felt piece as the fabric I am stitching on, so a piece of gray felt I bought! But this also caught my eye...

A nice little caddy for taking along said small ornament project. This is actually a bead caddy organizer, but it is perfect for small projects. It has two pockets in the front, two pockets on either side of the handle, which my Qsnap fits nicely on one of those, and then on the other side is another pocket. I could not pass this up! I love all things organization.

You can see the different sides of it, and my supplies already in it, in the next two pics.

I hope you are off to a good weekend!

Block 2 finished on Strawberry Shortcake

2011-08-05T12:08:00.000-07:00

Update on Strawberry Shortcake!

2011-08-04T05:57:00.000-07:00

Of course I go against convention and start at the outside of each square and work my way inside. Each square is comprised of four parts and the designer says to start in the middle of each square and work outward. It is just easier for me to start at the outside and work my way in.

TUSAL & Strawberry Shortcake Update

2011-07-30T11:02:00.000-07:00

Here is my TUSAL for today. All Rainforest Crunch orts and a few on top from Strawberry Shortcake.

And I have been working on Strawberry Shortcake, but discovered that two sides of the box were not matching up, so last night I had to rip out ONE ENTIRE SIDE of the piece!!! Grrrrrr. But all is well now and I am moving on.

I also received in today's mail Laura J. Perin's Starry Nights. Gorgeous pattern.

First pic of Strawberry Shortcake!

2011-07-29T07:18:00.000-07:00

Rainforest Crunch finished!

2011-07-27T02:37:00.000-07:00

I finished Rainforest Crunch last night.

Now on to Strawberry Shortcake! Stay tuned for the first WIP pic!

Close to finishing RC!

2011-07-25T11:03:00.000-07:00

I only have two blocks left on Rainforest Crunch! Then it will be Needle Delights Originals Strawberry Shortcake. I already have everything ready for it.

I did receive in the mail a pattern I ordered a few weeks ago, DebBee's Designs American Beauty. This will be an interesting one to stitch. The rose is made up of small blocks of needlepoint stitches and done in eight shades of red and black overdyed floss from Weeks Dye Works, Gentle Arts, and Crescent Colours. It is 12 by 12. It should be awesome when finished.

So many patterns I want to stitch and so little time!

Stitch Day at In Stitches

2011-07-18T06:44:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, Jill and I traveled to In Stitches in Alexandria, Virginia for one of their Stitch-In events. It is about an hour and 10 minute ride, but so worth it! The fee was $20 and was from 1pm to 5pm.

Upon entering the store we checked in and received a welcome packet that included a free pattern from their clearance section, a $10 gift certificate to the store, and a door prize ticket. They gave away about eight door prizes, which were totally wonderful, and that included in most a pair of scissors and a pattern completed kitted up with fabric and threads.

They also served a delicious lunch of many different kinds of sandwiches, crackers and dip, strawberry shortcake, a number of desserts, and soda, lemonade, water, and coffee.

All of the store employees and ladies in attendance were all very welcoming and very interested in what everyone was stitching, many of them walking around to see what each participant was working on.

The only issue I had is that there were no tables, only chairs set up in a large circle. So, I had to balance threads, scissors and pattern on my knee. Some people brought little fold-up tables, and I have such a table for when we go camping. So, I told Jill next time we go I will bring the table and we can share it.

Also, everything you purchased in the store was 10 percent off, and if you spent $25 you received an entry for a drawing of a $100 gift certificate, which is to occur next week, I think. I spent $50, so I have two entries!!!

All in all, a wonderful afternoon. We will definitely be attending again. Their next one is supposed to be in October.

I purchased two bags, one to hold my needlepoint canvas, and one to hold threads for whatever project I am working on at the moment.

I also purchased the latest issue of Needlepoint Now and another pattern, Needle Delights Originals Cherry Cordial.

And since I gave Jill her present yesterday I can finally show all of you what I bought her at Bedecked & Beadazzled a few weeks ago. As you well know if you read her blog, she loves anything to do with cupcakes. So, while standing in line at B&B and watching the person in front of me spend $250!!!! on merchandise, I started looking around, and a stand of Needle Bling needle magnets caught my eye, and I saw a cupcake! And it was the only one! So, of course there was no question that I had to buy it for Jill, as I know she did not have it.

So, all in all, a wonderful Sunday.

Back from vacation

2011-07-15T11:20:00.000-07:00

I just got back this afternoon from five days of camping at Frontier Town, right outside Ocean City, Maryland. Let me sum it up by saying I am glad to be home.

I did visit Salty Yarns, but they did not have any counted canvas patterns, so I did not buy anything. Jill and I are going to In Stitches in Alexandria, Virginia on Sunday, so I am hoping to purchase some items there.

I did not get anything done on Rainforest Crunch while away, but here is what I completed up until we left.

I did visit Bedecked & Beadazzled last weekend. Lovely store. But it is 99 percent painted canvas, so not for me at the moment, but I did buy this neat gadget to keep your threads while stitching. Here is a pic of it buttoned up and ready for threads, and then laying flat for storage. BF calls me Inspector Gadget because of my love of stitching gadgets. What stitcher does NOT love stitching gadgets???

And I did buy Jill a small present, but I will not post a pic here until I give it to her on Sunday. Let's just say that I thought of her immediately when I saw it and had to buy it for her.

I have lots of mail, blogs, and laundry to catch up on. I did see the newest issue of Cross Stitch & Needlework in amongst the pile of mail, so I will look forward to reading that.

RC Progress

2011-07-07T12:06:00.000-07:00

I have been working steadily on Rainforest Crunch. Almost finished the second row of blocks.

More Rainforest Crunch & More Stash!

2011-07-03T08:20:00.000-07:00

I have been working steadily along on Rainforest Crunch. Still loving it! Here is my progress so far.

I did substitute the Kreinik braid for Rainbow Gallery Braid, as I cannot stand working with any Kreinik fibers. And I discovered a wonderful fiber in the process. I thought I had purchased two cards of Rainbow Gallery Braid, but in fact I purchased one card of the braid and one card of petite treasure ribbon.

When I went to use what I thought was the braid and discovered it was ribbon, I went, oh, crap! But then I said, what the hell, and tried it. The ribbon is wonderful! It lays flat and is a dream to work with.

I have started making needlepoint notes in a small notebook I store in my stitching bag, just so I don't forget anything of importance. Like needle size and favorite fibers and how many plies with this fiber and that fiber.

I received some more stash in the mail yesterday. Some fibers for Needle Delights Originals Strawberry Shortcake, Mirabilia's Lady Alexandra, and two Needle Delights Originals patterns: Color Delights - Rainbow and Aquamarine. I also could not resist picking up Needle Delights Originals Rainforest Revisited when I went to The Stitching Post the other day to pick up the remaining Caron Watercolours for Rainforest Crunch.

Ah, so many great patterns, so little time.

TUSAL & Rainforest Crunch, the continuing saga

2011-07-01T05:38:00.000-07:00

OK. First up is TUSAL. Quite a bit of threads for the month of June. Mostly The Peony Garden.

OK. Now to Rainforest Crunch. When we last left off, I was doing Rainforest Crunch on 28 count Jobelan with Caron Waterlilies, using two threads over 1. I got to Block 6 and didn't like how it was coming out. I restitched the inside about three times and then just said, okay, I've got to move on. Well, on Block 7 I could not get the threads to lay right. It looked wrong, just so wrong. Frustrated is not even the word to describe how I felt.

Then I had the idea to try Aida, as it is stiffer than Jobelan and the threads may lay better. I tried 14 count Aida and 18 count Aida. Didn't like it. Not enough coverage with what I was doing.

So, I said, okay, let me try it like it is supposed to be stitched, with canvas, and Caron Watercolours. After getting used to how the threads lay and figuring out the best size needle for me (24), and watching a video online about how to start and end threads on needlepoint canvas, here is the result so far. Block 1 partially done. And I am liking it!!! Yes, I know I did not tape the sides of the canvas. I was too impatient to get started. I do have a roll of tape now and will tape the next canvas!

BF says he admires my determination to get this project stitched!

And another lesson learned, stitch something on what it is supposed to be stitched, and with the fibers it is supposed to be stitched with, at least for the most part. The designers know what they're doing.

Stash!

2011-06-27T12:24:00.000-07:00

I recently purchased some needlepoint patterns from 1-2-3 Stitch, as they have had them on sale as of late, all from Needle Delights Originals.

First up is Strawberry Shortcake. I have loved this one since seeing it on Spinster Stitcher's blog, and I love pink.

Next up is Tahiti. LOVE the colors and the craziness of the pattern. Will be a fun and challenging stitch!

And my absolute favorite, Amazing Color. 144 squares! And all done in Threadworx silk. Will be a stunner for sure.

Updates

2011-06-27T06:04:00.000-07:00

Here is my update on Peony Garden. I did the bouquet in her hand.

Also, since receiving my silks in the original colors for Rainforest Crunch I have completed four squares.

Both pics are clickable for a larger view.

Rainforest Crunch~Take Two

2011-06-22T09:03:00.000-07:00

So, off to The Stitching Post this morning. Out of 6 Caron Waterlilies they only had 2. Grrrrrr. But I was able to pick up those two and also Lambswool 28 count Jobelan for stitching the pattern on.

Now, I had two choices, for me at least, to order the rest of the Caron Waterlilies and the two Kreinik braids. Home Sweet Home Needlecrafts on Ebay, who I have had excellent, excellent customer service from before, and 1-2-3 Stitch, my go-to online store most of the time.

Well, we all know our impatience when we want to start a stitching project. I want the rest of those silks NOW, as I cannot even start the piece because I don't have the silks for the first block. So, I e-mail HSH Needlecrafts and the owner, Janet, responds within five minutes. And she has the silks and can overnight them!!! Fantastic.

A few minutes go by and she e-mails me to say ONE Watercolours does not come in Waterlilies, but that she has attached a scan of three possible substitutes. She scanned in a pic of the Watercolors and also three Waterlilies she thought could be substitutes. Now that's what I call good customer service!

Now, I had to order the Kreinik braid through 1-2-3 Stitch, but no problem. I can wait a few days for those.

So, I should be able to start tomorrow sometime. Fingers crossed.

Well...I did Block 2

2011-06-22T04:23:00.000-07:00

And I don't like all the crazy colors. It's too much. It is actually causing me stress! LOL. So, I have decided to do the project in the original colors. Now I just have to get them. And Ivory Jobelan to stitch it all on. I don't have to start work until 11:30 today, so I may take a ride to The Stitching Post (again!) and pick up the fabric and a few of the threads, just to get started. I have a full punch card, so I'll at least get $6 off my purchase.

I'll post a pic when I get started...again...sigh.

Block 1 Success!!

2011-06-21T07:16:00.000-07:00

Here is the threads I picked out for Rainforest Crunch. 13 Threadworx floss and 2 Rainbow Gallery Petite Braid, and 28 count gray Jobelan.

And here is square 1 complete! I will admit I am a bit afraid of how all of the colors are going to look together, as I picked out some very different ones, but I am going to go with it. Mine will be unique, for sure.

Rainforest Crunch

2011-06-20T04:39:00.000-07:00

Ah, the obsession of our needlework habit! I work on Mirabilia's The Peony Garden on my Stitchmate upstairs in my office most mornings. In the evening I sit downstairs with BF and watch TV from about 7 to 9pm. I wanted a project to work on down there sometimes. And I have always wanted to try needlepoint projects, like Laura J. Perin or Needle Delights Originals. Such color! And some different stitches.

So, yesterday I experimented. I printed out a free Laura J. Perin project, grabbed some floss and some 18 count linen and went to work. I am not one to work on canvas, although that is what most needlepoint projects are done on. I just don't like it. And who says all needlepoint projects have to be done on canvas anyway? Pfftttttt is what I say to that! I like evenweave or linen.

Well, I did not like the 18 count linen at all. I purchased some cork linen, not having used it before. And while three strands of DMC seemed good coverage on 28 count linen, it became very bulky after a while and it was tough for me to see the holes. So, I tested 2 strands of a dark red DMC on a corner of the pink dahlia 28 count Jobelan I am stitching The Peony Garden on and it covered well! I wanted to test a dark thread on a light fabric just to see. Jobelan is such a lovely fabric to work on, my absolute favorite.

Well, last night I decided I was going to do Rainforest Crunch by Needle Delights Originals, given that I had just purchased the pattern, and especially after seeing the Spinster Stitcher's color conversion. So, I pulled out my recently purchased DMC floss color card (with actual thread!!! yes, I found one on a UK cross stitch store website for $30) and I start looking. And promptly gave myself a headache. Picking alternate colors is difficult!!! And I decided I wanted overdyed floss, but not silk, as that would cost me about $100 in the silk alone!!!

So, today I am going to make a trip to The Stitching Post to purchased some 28 count Jobelan and 13 different Weeks Dye Works and 2 different Rainbow Gallery Petite Braid, as the original color scheme calls for two colors of Kreinik, but I am partial to the RG Petite Braid. Stay tuned for pics! And wish me luck.

Updates!

2011-06-15T10:19:00.000-07:00

Here is the awesome snowglobe that my dad and stepmom got me for my birthday. It is The Little Mermaid and it plays music! It came with a plate that you can get engraved and stick on the front. On Saturday I am going to get my name.

I recently purchased a chart holder for my Stitchmate stand, or should I say purchased again. I took it off a while ago and could not find it, so I reordered one. Much better than having the chart on my lap.

For any large chart, like a Mirabilia, I use this utility cabinet for organizing the floss. I number each drawer in numerical order and each skein goes in a drawer. It works very well and keeps everything nice and neat.

And here is my update on The Peony Garden. Moving right along. I will be to her face soon.

Update on Peony Garden

2011-06-10T11:38:00.000-07:00

TUSAL

2011-06-01T07:47:00.000-07:00

Here is my TUSAL update.

And here is the latest progress on The Peony Garden.

First WIP of The Peony Garden!

2011-05-27T07:12:00.000-07:00

They say it's your birthday

2011-05-19T13:20:00.000-07:00

Well, yesterday was, in fact, my birthday. I actually had a great day, although I had to work. My mother surprised me with lunch and gifts by coming over in the middle of the day, unannounced, which is usually a complete no-no in my corner of the world, but it was a nice surprise! She brought me wonderful flowers and a new charm for my Pandora bracelet.

BF and The Stepdaughter also each bought me a charm for my bracelet, and I used birthday money from my grandparents to purchase the Celebration Cake charm. My bracelet is coming along now!

Now, as for stitching, me and my stitching mojo have been at odds, let's say. It has been a frustrating week or so for me with starting one new thing after the other, and then not liking it, or getting bored of it. I was very angry and frustrated and upset at the whole thing.

I had a bit of time this morning and I decided to go to The Stitching Post and hope that inspiration struck and I would find the perfect project. I walked all around the store, looked at everything, and nothing was jumping out at me. I thought to myself there is no way I am leaving this store without a project, darn it!!!

So, I passed by the Mirabilia/Nora Corbett rack and stopped, and looked, and actually picked up Bliss Fairy, which I have always wanted to do, and then I saw The Peony Garden. I don't remember this one coming out. And the flowers just threw me and I said this is the one! (I also want to do Charlotte!)

This one calls for Caron Waterlilies. I have never used these, so did not know they were silk, to the tune of $6 each!!!!! But I still got them, but they did not have all of them the pattern called for, so I ordered the missing ones, along with the two Mill Hill beads they did not have, from 1-2-3 Stitch.

These silks are gorgeous and variegated, and all of the flowers, stems, petals and all are stitched in these silks, so it should look interesting.

Picking out a fabric was also a challenge and is usually my hardest task in a project, besides actually stitching the project to completion, of course! The pattern called for Light Pink Sand linen or aida. Hand-dyed Jobelan sitting in a basket caught my eye. I love Jobelan. It is probably my favorite evenweave fabric. And they had Pink Dahlia in 28 count, so I bought that.

Now, I have not stitched on 28 count or 2 over 2 in quite some time, as I have been stitching on 40 count, 1 over 2. So I am ready for the shock of BIG stitches!

I pray that I can finish this one. The first large project I ever stitched was a Mirabilia, and there was a time where that's all I stitched, one after the other, and I never tired of them. Maybe it is me just coming full circle back to where I started. I sure hope so. There are so many wonderful Mirabilia/Nora Corbett patterns out there that I want to stitch.

Blueberry Cake Wallhanging

2011-05-09T11:39:00.000-07:00

I received my Blueberry Cake wallhanging in today's mail from Deb at Artistic Needle. As always, she did a great job! The backing fabric is wonderful and everything is neat and perfect!

Some Updates

2011-05-09T07:33:00.000-07:00

Lemon Chiffon Cake. On the back burner for now.

I wanted to start something new. Little House Needleworks Faith thread pack.

And I also started Little House Needleworks Loving and Faithful thread pack in the Little Women Virtue Series.

May TUSAL

2011-05-03T05:48:00.000-07:00

I have decided to do my TUSAL a bit differently from now on. I am just saving that month's orts, and not keeping a large jar any longer of all of the orts from previous months. It's just easier for me to do.

This month the orts are from Lemon Chiffon Cake. Yellow and green and white.

Lemon Chiffon Cake

2011-05-02T10:06:00.000-07:00

Border is complete!

2011-04-27T07:37:00.000-07:00

The border on Lemon Chiffon Cake is done! Now on to the good parts!

Bloom and an Easter Surprise!

2011-04-26T05:53:00.000-07:00

I received my Bloom finish back from Deb at Artistic Needle. Again, she did a fantastic job!

BF surprised me with this Easter basket and card on Sunday!

Blueberry Cake & Lemon Chiffon

2011-04-22T06:04:00.000-07:00

Blueberry Cake is finished!

And here is my start on the next cake, Lemon Chiffon Cake!

In the home stretch..

2011-04-19T08:36:00.000-07:00

This was BF's birthday gift from me this past Sunday, Mirabilia's Waiting For Ships. Didn't Jill Rensel do a fabulously wonderful job?

And here is the wall in our dining room where they all hang. I also have Emerald Mermaid done, but that is on a side wall.

And here is Blueberry Cake. I am in the home stretch now!

A Blueberry Cake Update!

2011-04-17T04:59:00.000-07:00

More Blueberry Cake!

2011-04-13T06:31:00.000-07:00

Blueberry Cake Progress

2011-04-07T08:51:00.000-07:00

While waiting for BF at a doctor appointment this morning I was able to complete the border on Blueberry Cake. It is similar, but a bit different from the border on Strawberry Shortcake. I like how CCN changed things up a bit in each of these thread packs so they are not exactly the same, as that would tend to become a bit boring. I'm just glad the border matched up when I got to the last side!

In peace, love, and stitches,
Danielle