The Pumpkin Patch Stitcher

Catching up and my first WIPocalypse 2012 update

2012-01-09T11:49:00.000-08:00

Well, I will get the WIPocalypse out of the way first since that will be a quickie. I started and finished In the Sweet over the weekend--my first WIP success (hopefully not the last, but..). Here is the before and after.

I am re-starting Secret Pumpkin Patch next. I have no "before" pics of that one (I am blogging at work again--I am a bad person) but that should also be a quick finish.

Now for the catch-up. Some time ago (in November of 2011) a Yahoo group to which I belonged announced a fall stitching competition. No one was supposed to post pictures online prior to the voting on the pieces since voting was to be anonymous. After several weeks this process finally got off the ground and--my entry was not there. All that patience expended for nothing, lol. So here it is--my own semi-original design (with motifs supplied by Jennie Lynn (hope I am spelling her name correctly) from the Samplermakers group for her Autumn Stitching Challenge.

And here are the promised exchange pictures. The first I received from Tatyana from the last Blackbird Designs exchange round.

This is the stitched piece from my partner Colleen from the Stitched with Love Winter Wonderland exchange. Colleen sent tons of other goodies as well (most of which have already been put to use). Oddly enough, this was the very same pattern that I stitched for my partner in this exchange. Unfortunately, the pictures of what I sent for both exchanges are on my home computer--the dangers of blogging at work! I will try to remember them for my next update. Thank you again Tatyana and Colleen--sorry it has taken me so long to post pictures!

Any finally, some recent stitching that I have not gotten around to showing off. I won a fantastic de-stash giveaway not too long ago from Danielle of Peace Love and Stitching--many charts that I been eyeing, and some even kitted up!
Danielle had gotten a start on this cute little Shepherd's Bush pincushion so it was a quick finish for me. Sorry for the blurry picture, this is a teeny thing and I have a difficult time taking pictures of teeny!

This guy was also part of the giveaway. I wanted this little LHN sheepie from the first moment I saw him. I am thinking of doing a simple finish like this as a pincushion without the borders and snow at the bottom.

I've got a few more finishes but I should probably at least pretend to be working for a while. Until next time...

The WIPocalypse is coming! (and other stuff)

2011-12-27T13:57:00.000-08:00

Is anyone still out there? I have been caught in the avalanche of activity that comes upon me from the beginning of November through the end of the year--daughter's birthday, my birthday friends' birthdays, scouting events, Thanksgiving, the general Christmas shopping/festivities insanity, in addition to the extra school and work obligations...so, in short, not a lot of stitching. Almost none in fact, aside from Christmas ornaments, most of which didn't even get photographed before going off to new homes.

I hope everyone had a good holiday. We had a very relaxed Christmas (meaning DH's family did not put in an appearance : )) and I have spent the last few days wearing PJ's well into the afternoon, eating cookies and watching past episodes of Doctor Who and American Horror Story..perfect for Christmas...and now, sadly, reality has set in and am back at work.

I did receive some lovely exchanges--one from the latest BBD round from Tatyana, and one from the Stitched with Love Winter Wonderland exchange from Colleen--but since I am at work the only pictures I have are the ones on my phone, so I will have to share photos next time.

As have many of you, I joined Measi's 2012 WIPocalypse and spent the better part of last evening going through my stash and compiling my list. I have about 15 WIPs in progress (I always seem to have around 15 in progress, no matter how many I finish) and dozens of untouched charts, some decades old. Of the WIPs I picked nine that I am most likely to get finished:
--In the Sweet (La D Da). Really only a few stitches left so this should be easy.
--Secret Pumpkin Patch (The Trilogy). Pretty close on this one too.
--Photobooth Snowmen (Bent Creek). This was going to be an ornie for my friend. Maybe next Christmas.
--Santa Claws (The Goode Huswife). I was going to make this for DD. Again, maybe next Christmas.
--Kindred Spirits (The Primitive Needle). This has seriously been languishing forever, and there is not a lot to do.
--Snow Garden (Blackbird Designs). I started this about two years ago I think. It's a small design what takes me so long??
--Bertie's Stocking (Shepherd's Bush). Again, about 2-3 years in the making. And almost done.
--Four Diamonds (Carriage House Samplings). I started this one recently then got sidetracked by Christmas.
--Alphabet Heart. I don't know the designer--this was a freebie off the web.

My plan (which will soon go awry I'm sure) is to finish one WIP and one previously unstitched chart per month. We will see how long that lasts. I will post my progress next month, along with pics of the exchanges. Hope everyone has a great new year!

Over already?!, another exchange and another leg on the journey

2011-11-01T10:42:00.000-07:00

I am trying not to slip into post-Halloween depression...another 364 days to wait! Oh well. It's not like I will stop stitching Halloween. Speaking of which, we exchangers in the Stitched with Love Fall into Halloween exchange got word that we could post our goodies on our blogs, so...

here is what I received from Christina..the adorable pin pillow is Halloween Pin Garden by Raise the Roof Designs, and she also sent a Halloween banner (which is still in DD's room and probably will be for quite a while), floss, beads, Steweb scissors (which I had coveted forever), the new BBD Halloween chart, spiderweb napkins and Halloween address labels. To say the least, a great package, thank you again Christina!

This is what I sent to my partner Heather--the pattern is Babs and Boo by Fresher Threads (I think) from the JCS Halloween book, but instead of stitching the little ghost I substituted a pumpkin button. I included the Lizzie Kate chart, pumpkin candle mat and stuffed pumpkin, mini holiday cookie cutters and recipe cards and a little DMC magnetized needle case. Hopefully Heather likes everything!

For those LOTR fans who were following my somewhat leisurely walk, I have finally made it the 458 miles from Hobbiton to Rivendell. I started out strong on this challenge and did pretty well during summer, but once the kids started school...oh well. I am now off on the next leg of the journey from Rivendell to Lothlorien, 462 miles. I am hoping to finish by June 1 next year but we'll see how that goes :0

By the way, I have made it through this holiday once again without getting a good scare..I don't know if it's because I'm jaded or because real life is so much more horrific than anything an author or screenwriter can come up with, but in any event, I am in search of good scary (suspenseful, not gory) movies or books to get me through my Halloween withdrawal. Any suggestions would be appreciated!

Happy Boo Day, early

2011-10-30T08:17:00.000-07:00

I don't know if time will allow for a post tomorrow, so happy Halloween everyone! Here is my finish-finished Talking Board which now lives with my friend Olga (who was pretty pleased with it) and a design from the JCS Halloween book, Wicked Night by The Primitive Hare.

I got the idea for the tray from Jane's blog Mamie Jane...she is not a stitcher but repurposes lots of older items and has some great ideas.

I fell in love with this design the moment I saw it. I did this for my BFF but will stitch another for myself. Sleepy Hollow is one of my all-time favorite stories.

This is the design I stitched for my partner Grace for the Seasonal Exchange. It is another one from the JCS Halloween book (which has some fantastic designs in my opinion) called Pumpkin Tree from Plum Street Samplers, done on natural linen with the recommended threads and finished as a pinkeep. In turn I received this gorgeous flatfold from Grace--a design from The Gift of Stitching Magazine, done on her own hand-dyed fabric. Thank you again Grace!

I hope everyone has a great Boo Day and thank you for visiting and for all your lovely comments!

A quickie in which fence cat says "o hai"

2011-10-20T06:13:00.000-07:00

I always amaze myself when I am able to post twice in two days, but I had a finish last night and time this morning, and that almost never happens. I'm sure most of you already know but this is Fence Cat's Halloween by Berit of Jaunty Fox Designs, done on Carved Pumpkin linen from Weeks (?) and finished as a pillow. I can't believe it's a little over a week until my favoite day!

a little post with no clever name

2011-10-19T06:56:00.000-07:00

Cow test successful! I'm trying to post for the second time this week...a few days earlier dear old Blogger would not let me upload any pictures. If I'd known it would work today I would have started with something more interesting...

Things have been crazy busy with school and the approaching holidays, but I do have a few things to show. Not much as my stitching time has been almost nonexistent. The first of my many exchanges has been completed--This is what I sent Elisa for the Rotating Designer (Prairie Schooler this round) exchange. This a portion of Pumpkin Patch, with the colors changed up a little bit. My DD begged to be allowed to keep this one! Fortunately my partner likes it too.

This lovely creation is what I received from Teresa. I love stitching bags so needless to say I was thrilled! The designs are from the PS chart Boo to You.

This little guy, along with the rickrack from the Victorian Motto Sampler Shop, was sent to Berit for being the first to guess that the WIP in my last post was in fact The Talking Board from Primitive Needle. He is from BBD's Casting a Spell booklet.

Speaking of which, my WIP is a WIP no longer. Pardon the wrinkles, it has not met with an iron quite yet. I have a somewhat different idea for finishing (borrowed from another blogger, not a stitcher) so look for pictures of this one in fully finished form sometime before Halloween.

Til next time, thank you all for visiting!

my monthly post

2011-09-21T10:15:00.000-07:00

I had fully intended to post to this blog more often, but in the mad dash in the morning to get two kids off to two different schools, feed everyone, make lunches, etc. it just doesn't happen, and I usually have but that one small window of uninterrupted computer access during the day :( Just as well, I don't have a whole lot to show...I have been stitching, but mostly for exchanges (four to be exact--not sure exactly what I was thinking) so not much I can show right now. I did take a couple of my old finishes and put them into box form, including the one above--a Goode Huswife quaker design done on willow green linen and trimmed with some of the antique lace I acquired at a garage sale during my recent trip. The other is BBD's Peacock Pincushion, done on the recommended fabric with Belle Soie Cranberry (I think).

I do have one other BBD finish (please forgive the quality of the photos and the lurid green background, I took some rather hasty snaps this morning on my son's funky cordoroy chair), Home of the Brave done with Cherry Bark on some very pretty Silkweaver fabric which I forgot the name of since I take everything out of its package once it arrives :) The other snap is of my almost-finish, In the Sweet by La D Da. Despite being within a few dozen stitches of finishing this little piece I have chucked it aside for the time being as the frogs are enamoured of those (*(&^ little flowers at the bottom...

This is what I am working on currently--love this pattern, the fabric (R &R 18th Century Mustard Seed) and threads (Belle Soie Noir). This is will be a gift for a like-minded friend for an upcoming holiday :) Since it is only a few days until fall, and a little over a month until my favorite day of the year, I will give away a little something to the first person who guesses the name of the pattern and designer. Just comment on this post, and if you want to play make sure I have a way to contact you. Thanks much for visting!

I'm stitching again...blogging not so much

2011-08-18T06:22:00.000-07:00

The title says it all I think. Thankfully I'm over the stitching slump, but whenever I contemplate the blog it's like...meh, too much work : ) But since I had a (small) burst of energy this morning I decided to post some recent finishes and assorted other stuff.

First off is my offering for the Seasonal Exchange--the latest freebie from Primitive Betty, finished as a pin pillow stuffed with crushed walnut shells and trimmed with brown chenille for my partner Pirjo in Finland. The fabric it is sitting on was used for backing. Haven't received my exchange yet, but hopefully soon!

I am soo ready for fall, as I'm sure most everyone is after this horrendous summer, and had to get a start on Halloween stitching. I received this Mill Hill kit as part of a giveaway from Ranae of Stitch by Stitch some time ago and finally got around to completing

it, using perforated paper instead of the linen.

Since Kitty Witch needed companions I stitched this little owl, a freebie from Cherrywood Studios, and a crow from Stone and Thread. Of course now some finishing needs to be done but I'm pacing myself :) Please forgive the awful photos but it is difficult for someone with my poor photography skills to get a decent shot of something this teeny. I swear I'm going to take a class or something before my next blog post.

And in keeping with the Halloween theme I pick up my old Kindred Spirits WIP again. I really love this design but I threw it aside in disgust some time ago when I realized (after I had stitched the words) that "kindred" was charted as "kindrid" which, well, is not right. Having overcome this obstacle, I hope to finish fairly soon once I tackle that monotonous border.

I hope I haven't bored anyone too much yet. I have some last-ditch summery-type finishes as well (when I get over a slump, I really get over it). This is BBD's Gathering Basket, sans basket which I didn't especially care for, done with random overdyed threads kinda close to what was called for, on a random piece of blue linen. And finally (for stitching anyway) a freebie from Little House Needlework, Summer House, again done with whatever random overdyed threads caught my eye. And no, I don't iron, lol. Ever.

Are you bored yet? Well get ready :) Here are some vacation pics.

OK this first is not a vaction pic--we went to a dog show locally and I could not resist getting a shot of this guy. He stayed in his car the whole time we were there--hope he wasn't glued down or anything.

So where did we go? Pennsylvania of course. I never tire of PA--what can I say, I love corn.

My first-ever (and possibly last) corn maze...

county fair with lots of livestock and other fair-like things...

This totally awesome antique sleigh which I really really wanted, no matter that it would not fit in my luggage and I don't really know what I would do with a sleigh.

These guys seem to have had a good time--a last little summer fling. DD

is starting high school in a few days

and I am already back to work so the good times are over for a while :(

Thanks for hanging in this long lol. I am going to try to post more frequently so I don't have to write a novel to get caught up again. Thank you all for visiting and for your comments!

giveaway winner

2011-07-01T10:31:00.000-07:00

Inspired title, no? This will be one boring post unless you are the winner of my giveaway lol. No pictures since I am at work, and no stitching either...I am in the midst of stitching slump to end all slumps, I started a bunch of smalls at the beginning of last month and then just lost all interest in picking up a needle, even though I love patriotic pieces and have really enjoyed looking at everyone else's work...

Oh well. Enough of the whine. The winner of the giveaway is #17, Vicky L! I will be e-mailing shortly for your mailing info. Thank you everyone for entering and visiting.

EDITED TO ADD: Vicky, I can't find an email address for you, so please contact me!

Bad blogger & the high tea blogaversary giveaway

2011-06-18T07:05:00.000-07:00

That would be me, the world's worst--or at least the laziest--blogger. I have passed my second year of blogging and only 65 or so posts in all that time...those of you that post daily or weekly, I don't know how you do it. I have neither the time nor, in fact, the material for a daily post!

I haven't been doing a lot of stitching recently as I've been in a bit of a funk lately over DD's graduation--you know, kids growing up so fast, the passage of time and all that. Those of you who have already been through your childrens' high school and college graduations, marriages, etc., please don't roll your eyes at me too much, I know it's just an 8th grade graduation. But I walked into the house the other day and saw her on the computer (her usual place) and had the thought that in a few short years she'll be gone.. I'll come home and that chair will be empty.

*sign* rotten kids. They make me feel really old. (She's in the middle in this picture btw, with her arm around her little brother who looks like he's ready to leg it.)

Anyhoo. On to the stitching, what little of it there has been :) This guy I started around Christmas las

t year but just recently finished for one of my DS's teachers, from the JCS 2010 Christmas ornie issue. For some reason the frogs loved this one, but it did get finished before the end of the school year.

Next is My Needle's Work from Little House Needleworks. I had been searching for this chart for a while and came across it at my

LNS quite by accident one day. So much for my resolution to limit my stash purchases this year! It's done on a grey-ish evenweave with the recommended overdyed floss, sans border of course. Don't know yet how it will be finished.

Well. I had other things to show but I had better

get to the giveaway since Blogger is being a poo right now and telling me it may or may not let me save this post :( A while

ago I went nuts over the Impie, Hattie and Bea kits and purchased

the tea cozy and Tea Room Chart from Little House. This has been sitting in my bin for a year or more and I belatedly realized I am never going to stitch it. So the giveaway will include the chart, floss, cozy, some tea-related items and perhaps something made by me. Just comment on this post, no other hoops to jump through. I will draw a winner on June 30. Good luck and thanks for visiting!

still here...kinda

2011-06-06T13:19:00.000-07:00

Just popping in to say hello...end-of-the-school-year activities have me in an frenzy, DD is graduating (*sniff*) and even when I feel like stitching, I have no time! I have a few small finishes which I'll post shortly (I hope) but in the meantime, I wanted to ask if anyone wants to trade...I have two With Thy Needle & Thread charts (Love Letters and Sarah's Garden) which I will trade for Brenda's Soar eagle sampler ( kinda missed the boat on that SAL and now can't find the chart anywhere). Anyway, just drop me an email if interested and I will be forever grateful...

P.S. pup is random cute internet pup...not mine

pillow happy

2011-05-06T05:46:00.001-07:00

I have been on a finishing frenzy lately...quite unlike me, really :)...so I am showing off said finishes. First off, I heard from my partner Lisa that she received the pin pillow I made for the Blackbird Designs exchange, so here it is--on a peachy linen of some kind from my stash, done with the recommended GAST and WDW floss. I added some buttons from my stash and rick rack from the Victorian Sampler Motto shop.

This cutie is what I received for the same exchange from Sarah--Bird in Hand done with some gorgeous dark red floss, with buttons on the corners and stuffed with rice. I had stitched this myself for the last BBD exchange (I am crazy for designs with birds), and was kinda sad to let it go...now I have one for myself! Thank you Sarah, I love this birdie!

Here are a few of my recent finishes in pillow form. This was my first attempt at making a heart and probably my last for a while . Definitely not my favorite way to finish something and certainly not the best heart pillow you'll ever see :0

And here is a not-so-great snap of my mom's pincushion, which turned out much better. I trimmed it with chenille and stuffed it with ground walnut shells, which increased the postage tremendously since I think I used about six cups lol.

Here is the final finish of my finishing frenzy--actually stitched and finished in one day, which is almost unheard of for me...La D Da's Yellow Bird, done on a slightly distressed cream linen with WDW Havana. I think I've finally satisfied my compulsion to stitch birds for a while :)

Thank you all for visiting and for your kind comments. My second blogaversary is coming up next month so I think a giveaway will be in order...Until next time, happy stitching!

Part II

2011-04-30T07:01:00.000-07:00

How about that, I said I'd be back in a few days and it's actually been only a few days instead of a month :0 First, some baby pictures of my new garden--pumpkins, corn and tomatoes, and the cats' favorite! Since they discovered that the garden is back in business, when I come in the house after being in the yard for a while they are waiting at the door for their catnip, and I'd better have a few leaves in my hands or I'm in trouble lol.

Here are is another recent finish--Remember Me by Blackbird Designs, done on a brown evenweave with the recommended floss. This one is looong and it's kinda difficult to get a good picture of it but I really liked how it turned out. You probably can't tell from my lousy snap but I trimmed it with a brown chenille from one of my favorite eBay destinations, the Victorian Motto Sampler Shop. If you're not familiar with this shop, the owner has great overdyed floss and awesome new trims and goodies--chenille, rick rick, buttons, etc.

And my second finish--Crowns and Letters from Arachne's Silken Web. Not my usual type of thing to stitch--I won this chart from the online needlwork show a few years ago--but I did enjoy it. These motifs are from an 18th century German sampler. I wanted to make this into a pincushion for my mom for Mother's Day--if my own kids give me time, that is :)

Well, I had more, but speaking of kids my DS is awake (at @ 7:00 on a Saturday *sigh*) and bugging me for the computer, sooo...Until next time, happy stitching!

this is what happens

2011-04-26T05:39:00.001-07:00

when I don't post for almost a month...I actually have stuff to show! So much in fact that I have more pictures than I do time...so I will post another installment in a few days with more stitching and some garden stuff.

First, I DID actually finish Maude Eloise :) Made several "alterations" to this one aside from changing the name--the windows of the house I left unstitched, had to fudge the colors of the flowers a bit as I ran out of the floss I was using and was too lazy to go to my LNS, and left out the large gaudy flowers in the basket to the left of the house which I really didn't care for. I think it turned out OK though. It may end up being a Christmas offering for my parents, unless I can produce something more festive before then...

I have been digging deep down into my stash basket for things that have been sitting neglected for eons, as part of my herculean effort to reduce said stash before it takes over the house. Olga here (by Plum Street Samplers) was one of these neglected projects. Actually I originally started her on an orangey-colored linen, with the alphabet and all, then decided that I hated the color, scrapped it and started over on this mottled brown evenweave. I left out the alphabet and finished it as a hanging pillow--this was one of DD's Easter gifts (somewhat Halloweeny but I wasn't in the mood to stitch bunnies this year--besides, it's never too early for Halloween,is it?)

I attempted to balance out the fall-themed stitching with this piece from Country Cottage Needleworks from an old cross stitch magazine, on a linen scrap much pinker than anything I would usually use :) but it seemed to work with the design. I am not much of a pink person. Thankfully DD hates it too. I don't know what I'd do if she insisted on painting her room pink.

This is my failure of sorts, Love Letters (by Brenda Gervais).
I kitted this up and was blithely stitching along on my 28 count linen when I realized that it was quite a bit larger than the 4 1/2 inches it was supposed to be--checked that the count of the linen was the correct one--and finally realized it was intended to be stitched over one. By this point I had just about completed the alphabet so I said the hell with it and finished it over 2. So it will be a very LARGE pin pillow. All that stitching over 1 would have driven me batty anyway.

I have a few more finishes & new starts to show, so come back soon!

Maude Eloise and a winner!

2011-03-31T06:23:00.000-07:00

Well I am finally back with a M.E. update. Kiddies have been on spring break this week so I have had very little time for stitching. I have made some progress on Maude, as you can see (yes, I know the stem on one of the flowers is wonky. Too lazy to frog it yet). It seems that whenever I get close to the end of a project I start to lose interest in it. Hopefully I can put those last few stitches into her before she becomes a UFO!

I updated my Rivendell journey too (on the sidebar). The last two months have been pretty pathetic. The last week or so of February I had an excuse for not walking (the flu) but in March I was just lazy. My goal for April is to clear the Midgewater Marshes, about 62 miles (which will bring me to the 200-mile mark in this 458-mile jaunt), and by the end of May I hope to have passed Weathertop. I realize that if you are not a Lord of the Rings fan this does not make a lot of sense; this is mainly for my own amusement : )

And finally what you have been waiting for, the winner of my giveaway-- Mr. Random Number Generator picked #26, Andrea! I will email shortly for your info. Thank you everyone for entering and for all your kind comments. Until next time...

my current project

2011-03-19T10:13:00.000-07:00

I actually got the computer again this weekend, with one kid off on a camping trip and the other doing homework : ) This is what I am working on currently, Maude Eloise by Blackbird Designs, using a mixture of Weeks and DMC on linen which I dyed a light tan color

(you can click on the picture to biggify). I have had this in my stash for a few years at least--no idea why I let it sit so long, as I am thoroughly enjoying it! As a reformed quilter, I especially like the quilt stars and flowers along the top and bottom. I stitched my "real" name (that is, the one I was born with, not my married name) on the roof. The willow tree reminded me of the huge one that stood in the back yard of the house where I grew up. I still have pictures somewhere of my brother climbing on it after it blew over during a storm.

Don't forget about my giveaway (previous post). I am putting M.E. away for awhile to stitch something for said giveaway. Until next time...

two ta-da's and a giveaway

2011-03-13T08:38:00.000-07:00

Well, as predicted I am once more back to my sparse postings. It's not that I don't have anything to show, or to tell, but I am at the bottom of the food chain in my house when it comes to computer access : ) I'd invest in a laptop but the kids would probably claim that too.

I had a couple of stitchy-butt weekends and finished up my Evening Shades the Garden while said kids were off at a party and on a class trip. This was done with the recommended overdyed floss on tea-dyed evenweave. One of my favorite finishes so far. This will be given a place of honor in my stitching room..if and when I get a stitching room...

My second finish was an oldie from my stash, Sparrow's Song from The Goode Huswife (and another lousy picture). This one I did on white evenweave with the recommended DMC, although I omitted the outer border. I am thinking about incorporating this finish into a small tote if I can overcome my laziness and dust off the sewing machine. I've been pretty good about buying charts this year so far...I admit I've acquired a few (only 3, actually) which is amazing since I pretty much want all the new BBD designs. I don't know how long this self-control will last...

Finally, my long-overdue 100-follower giveaway --now that I'm at almost 150 followers--which is also to celebrate DD's acceptance (with honors) to the school she had hoped to attend (I'm still getting used to the idea that my eldest will be a freshman in high school in a few short months)! It will be a bit of a surprise, mostly since I don't know everything that will be included at this point, but it will have one or two hand-stitched goodies made by me, a pair of Ginghers, charts, and miscellaneous stitchy items. To enter, 1) be a follower, old or new; and 2) leave a comment. Easy! I will leave this open until March 30 when a winner will be drawn.

Thanks very much for all your kind comments in the past. I am still having issues with my work computer so though I read all your blogs pretty much on a daily basis, you'd never know since I can't leave comments :( Hopefully I'll be able to resolve this problem soon! Until next time...

another WIP done and and a new start

2011-02-18T17:11:00.000-08:00

A whole lot of nothing new around here...but it's raining, my DD came home from school with the flu and I don't have a lot to do, so I figured why not post a few pictures. I find that I'm starting to tire of my WIP-of-the-month (a whole two months into the year--surprising I made it that far) and am dying to start new things. I did finish Delivering Tricks, my first and probably last of the WIP pile to be completed for a while.

I could not resist this new start--Evening Shades the Garden, an old Blackbird Designs Loose Feathers offering from 2003--I had looked around forever for this pattern. I am using the recommended floss on linen which I tea-dyed. I am loving this one and it is stitching up pretty quickly.

I hope to have some good news at the end of the month or shortly thereafter--we should have word by then on DD's high school applications--and I plan to celebrate with a giveaway of some finished goodies, charts and scissors and such. So come back and visit soon!

and more de-stashing...

2011-02-04T12:34:00.000-08:00

As you may be able to tell, I am making a major effort to go through some of my stash that's been sitting for decades (no exaggeration). I don't know if anyone will want these, but I'm putting the offer out there anyway--these kits are all partially done by me, if you want any or all let me know. I will never finish these, most are on aida which I can't stand any more and they are just no longer my taste. If anyone wants pictures just send an e-mail and I will send as many as you like. Here they are:

--Patchwork Heart Quilt Sampler by Linda Bird (on cream evenweave)
--Scenic Farm by Dimensions (white aida)
--Cabbage Pillow by Donna Vermillion Giampa (on white aida but it is solidly stitched)
--Treetop Angel by Diane Arthurs (white aida)
--Neighborhood Quilts by Linda Myers (white evenweave)
--Roses on Toile (needlepoint) by Dimensions

As I said, let me know if you want pictures and I will dole these out on a first come, first served basis. The charts are readable but some are bit crinkled and in all fairness I warn you that they are from back in the day when I did mark my charts (I gave up that habit along with the aida lol).

I've been very bloggy lately

2011-02-01T06:41:00.000-08:00

Don't worry, it won't last long, then I'll be back to my once-a-month posts :) In the meantime, here is (not) Red House in Winter. I was going to do this for the Seasonal Exchange but changed my mind and stitched something else instead, so this will probably be the first of the teachers' ornaments for this Christmas.

Since I am short several colors for Snow Garden, I am making this my first February WIP--Delivering Tricks by Homespun Elegance. This one hasn't been sitting around too long, only since last fall, but I'm trying to finish up some of my pile of small half-finished projects before moving on to the larger half-finished projects. Haven't purchased any new charts yet, I'm so proud of myself...but then Nashville is coming up soon...

Fred and an exchange received

2011-01-29T10:05:00.001-08:00

Here is Fred, finally. Took me at least a year, probably more--
I should have known that I would stall out on that border! This
is why I don't stitch traditional samplers, though I do love them.

I don't know what to do with him now--he will probably be framed at some point in time--but at least he's done!

And here is the piece I received from Kathy A. for the Seasonal (Winter) Exchange--JBW Snow Globe finished as a lovely pillow. Thank you Kathy, I love it and can't wait to display it next Christmas! As I write this, it occurs to me that (once again) I forgot to take a picture of the exchange piece that I stitched before it was mailed. Does anyone else have this problem? I am constantly begging my partners for pictures of things. Oh well, their pictures are usually better than mine anyway :)

I am trying to squeeze in one more WIP for January before I pick up Snow Garden again. This is LHN's Red House in Winter which I realize does not look very red lol. I am hoping for a quick finish...well, I can hope anyway! It seems that whenever I think I'm going to finish something soon it end up dragging on for weeks...

BTW, I'm sorry about the lack of comments on others' blogs lately. I still do the majority of my blog reading at work (it's about the only time I can count on having computer access) but can't sign in to Google, sooo... I still do read blogs faithfully, but can't do much else.

That's it for now. Looking back over past posts I noticed that I had planned in November to have a big birthday/100 follower giveaway, which obviously never happened, but I will put together something in the near future. Until next time and thank you all for your comments!

so I lied

2011-01-27T07:16:00.000-08:00

sort of. Fred IS done...but I don't have time for a proper post this morning and haven't taken his picture yet, so this is just to announce the winner of the Valentine Rose chart is #9, Ranae! I will e-mail you shortly.

(And after some internet research, at work of course, I think the scissors mentioned in the last post are the Lindsay model from 2004.)

Back soon with Fred picture(s) and my next WIP. Have a great week everyone!

A finish and a question

2011-01-20T14:08:00.001-08:00

but probably not the finish you were expecting :) Yes, Fred is still languishing. The striped bottom portion is almost as much a pain as the border was--but he will be done this month.

This was going to be my wip-of-the-month for February, but I picked it up on a whim and finished early. It is BBD's Valentine Rose, of course. I looked back through my blog and noticed that I had proclaimed this one "almost done" back in May of 2010. I'm so proud, it only took about 8 months to put the last few dozen stitches in it! The initials at the bottom are those of my grandmother, who lived in a fabulous old brick house much like this one back in Kutztown, PA--I thought of her and the house immediately when I saw this design. I haven't quite decided on my February wip but I think it might be Snow Garden.

Any takers for this chart? If so, please indicate in the comments that you want it. I will do the random number generator thing on the 27th if more than one person is interested.

For anyone who knows Gingher scissors, do you know/can you tell from my crappy picture which model these are? I bought them in 200_? , recently saw a pair (Julia) that I thought looked like it on eBay for some astronomical price, and was wondering if these could possibly be the same model. I tossed all the packaging and don't recall the name of mine. I just bought them because I thought they were cute.

I've logged about 38 miles through Middle Earth so far in the Walk to Rivendell Challenge. I hope to walk/run (though it's more walking than running, believe me) about 60+ miles per month, which will put me at Farmer Maggot's by the end of January, then it's on to Tom Bombadil's house and hopefully Bree by March.

That's about all for now. A completed Fred will be displayed in my next post!

giveaway winner

2011-01-11T06:49:00.000-08:00

Sorry, I know I'm a day late with this--I planned to draw a winner last night but I ended up spending two hours at the dentist, after which I didn't feel like doing much of anything...

Anyway, the random number picker came up with #4, Gabi! I will email for your contact info. I have many, many more charts to dispose of so this is one of several giveaways to come this year.

Frederick is very close to being done, so I look forward to showing him off next time!

a little finish, a little giveaway and the same old resolution

2011-01-03T06:09:00.000-08:00

I have been stitching a little bit more lately--not much with the kids underfoot, tbut they are finally going back to school today--but this is my latest, Acorns and Pines by LHN. I used the recommended DMC on white linen and then "sponge-painted" it with a tea bag.

Is anyone interested in the chart? If so leave a comment and I will include my leftover floss which should be ample to stitch this little piece again. If there is more than one taker I will throw the names in a hat and draw a winner on January 10.

I made a few additions to my sidebar for the new year, the first of which, related to my recurring new year's resolution, is my WIP-of-the-month project. I have been digging through my stash and getting very sad looking at all the nearly-completed projects which have been sitting around for years (does this sound familiar to anyone?) so I am going to try to finish one (or more if possible) per month, and to keep myself accountable will post pictures and the beginning and end of each month of the WIP in question. For January I decided on Frederick here, which was begun, I think, about two years ago and which is absurdly close to being finished. I am not allowing myself to start any new projects until the WIP-of-the-month is fnished. I'm not letting any more new charts follow me home either, until I make a dent in the stash pile (same resolution as last year--though I know it will be broken at some point).

The other addition to the sidebar is not stitchy-related but I thought I would share it anyway for you Lord of the Rings fans--this is the Walk to Rivendell challenge (found at www.eowynchallenge.net). If you walk/run/bike etc. you keep track of the distances you travel and this site has mileage charts that correspond to different portions of Frodo's journey (I chose Hobbiton to Rivendell) so you can see how far you have travelled in Middle Earth (if that makes sense). It's going to take me a while just to get out of Hobbiton, I'm not as quick as Frodo even though we're about the same height :) Anyway, it's an interesting motivator for someone (me) who needs an extra push to get out to the track in the morning.

Don't forget to leave a comment if you're interested in the chart! Until next time...

to anyone who is still following this blog...

2010-12-18T07:35:00.000-08:00

Thanks!! My postings are becoming more and more, er, random.
I have not had any traumatic life event that has kept me away from the computer...just good old-fashioned laziness and a bit of distraction. You see, I'm in love...no, not with some guy. I bought myself a Kindle for my birthday a month ago and he (his name is Alastair) and I have hardly been apart since. So, as I've read about 15 books in the past month, very little stitching has been going on around here. Also for some reason, I cannot sign in to my blog at work any more (which is where I do most of my blog reading and commenting) and have had some difficulty accessing other people's blogs, so I feel quite out of the blogging loop now :((

One of the (very) few things I was able to finish this past month was my BBD exchange piece for my partner Patty, the Summer House pincushion from the Honeysuckle Manor booklet. This was the first time I had made a pincushion of this type and I'm afraid that I was a bit overenthusiastic with the ground walnut shells--the thing weighed about 10 pounds when I was done with it--but thankfully Patty liked it anyway (failing all else she can use it as a paperweight).

And this is what I received from my partner Lisa in the same exchange--the smaller piece is a motif from Blessings and Kind Wishes, and the larger pin pillow is the "Now I Know My ABC's" freebie--both beautifully stitched and finished!

No other new stitching--but I did finish a few things I had stashed away in a drawer for xmas gifts.These little quilt squares had been sitting around forever (so long that I forgot the name of the pattern/designer) so, since I was not about to put down the aforementioned Kindle and stitch something new, I finished them as ornies for the kiddies' teachers this year.

For me mum and dad I finished my Goode Huswife Pennsylvania Pillowe into... (gasp) a pillow, and
finally got around to completing my Carriage
House Pennsylvania Dutch stocking (yes I know it's a bad picture), which has been sitting in a drawer unfinished for so long I don't think it's ever made it onto this blog.

I am finally feeling the urge to pick up needle and thread again, so hopefully I will have something to show for it next time.
For all who celebrate it, I hope you all have a great Christmas!

my BFF's birthday present and some mail goodies

2010-11-02T06:39:00.000-07:00

My blogging and stitching mojo has been in the dumps lately...I guess someone had better get out the cattle prod since I have one more exchange and several gifts to churn out :) I did finish the gift for my BFF, a late-October baby who is also (no surprise) a huge fan of Halloween. This is BYOB by Glory Be, on 32-count linen from the depths of my stash basket using the recommended floss. My projects frequently don't turn out like I envision them but this time I was quite pleased with the finished product.

I managed to get my offering for the Seasonal Exchange in the mail and the same day received this adorable little pillow from Lynn. It is a Bent Creek design and Lynn stuffed it with crushed walnut shells. I love designs with birds, especially crows, and the fall fabric is beautiful. Thank you again Lynn!

Some time ago I won a giveaway Natasha was having

on her blog to celebrate her 10th anniversary, and
she sent this beautiful little pin pillow--the pattern
was by Elizabeth's Designs, not sure of the name.
Her stitching is so tiny and delicate--thanks again Natasha!

Speaking of anniversaries, DD and I are both having birthdays this month--DD is entering the dreaded teens and I will be closer to 50 than I like :o So I think a giveaway will be in order for next time. Stay tuned!

I have seen the light and in fact emerged from the tunnel

2010-10-20T06:36:00.000-07:00

That is, the long dark tunnel of auction-donation stitching! We do love our school but that fundraising auction comes along as inevitable (and unavoidable) as death and taxes every year :) This is one of my two offerings this year--Quaker Christmas Tree Companion Two by the Good Huswife, done on some lovely Goldspinner linen from Silkweavers, using Belle Soie Cranberry, B.S. Harvest and pretty overdyed "spice" floss from Victorian Motto Sampler Shop. Obviously this was not the original color scheme, but I could not resist using the Belle Soie. I wanted to do some Christmas pieces since the auction is held in mid-November and lots of folks go there to do holiday shopping. The other piece I donated was LHN's Poinsettia House which I stitched earlier this year--accidentally deleted the picture, so I will have to post that later. Frederick is staying with me, not quite finished yet, but close--DD did not want him to be given away. I don't know about Blueberry Hill, I might finish it sometime...or not. I still have a hard time bringing myself to stitch on aida.

After many moons, I think I am almost done with the Please Pass the Biscornu exchange. This
cutie I received from Gillian, and
the pumpkin biscornu was my last, which went to Nita. I was an interesting exchange...not very well organized, and the moderator disappeared early on and actually deleted the blog before the exchange had been completed, but the ladies involved were all very nice and very talented. Hope we meet up again sometime!

Now I can finish up my last few exchanges and more importantly get back to Halloween stitching! I can't believe October is almost over already. This month goes by much too fast for me. I don't have a lot of Halloween stuff to show but I did

manage to finish Raven's Roost, which now lives on DD's bookshelf next to her non-Twilight vampire series. No Twllight allowed in our house! I'm currently working on Witch's Ball which will be a birthday gift for my Halloween-loving BFF.

Until next time, happy stitching and thank you for all your very kind comments!

death by UFO

2010-10-02T07:46:00.001-07:00

Happy October everyone (greatest month of the year in my humble opinion)! I still have not much to show but in between stitching for various exchanges I have been working on some very old UFOs, Frederick here being one...I just loved this pattern and had to have it the moment it was released, but I fizzled on the border...and I have moments when I'm not sure about the fabric either. I was considering framing & donating it to the kiddies' school for the annual fundraising auction which is coming up soon, assuming I can motivate myself to put in the last few stitches, but wanted to get some opinions--finish, or use as bedding for DD's new mouse?

Same thing for this one--Blueberry Hill, one of my oldest UFOs--so old it's done on aida (yuk). I gave the school a few other Linda Myers pieces in the past and they sold. Worthwhile to finish or should I not bother? I do have the option of fulfilling my obligations by writing the school a check in lieu of donating anything, thank goodness : )

I have some exchanges in the mail so hopefully I'll have more to show next time.

and the winner is...

2010-09-26T07:21:00.001-07:00

Just a drive-by post today to announce the winner...no pictures of anything since my camera has gone missing:( I went for the old-fashioned method of slips of paper in a bowl (thew some catnip leaves in too to see if my cats would pick a winner, but they just picked out the catnip and left the paper lol). Flaglady 8, I do not have an e-mail address for you, so please contact me with your mailing info and I will get your package out to you as soon as I can. Thank you everyone for entering and your very kind comments!

blasts from the past and S.A.B.L.E. giveaway

2010-09-19T07:26:00.000-07:00

I know, two posts in two days...either feast or famine with my wee blog : ) I was looking through some photos of vacation yesterday, this being one--one thing they have lots of in PA is corn--and remembered that I had taken pictures of some cross stitch in my parents' house that I gifted them over the years.

I'd like to say I remember the names of these designs but I don't--I think the blue house pillow was from a cross stitch book. The other pillow is a Prairie Schooler design but I don't know which one. My DD thought it very odd that I was photographing pillows.

Kinda difficult to get good pictures of framed pieces because of the flash/glass interaction, but I took a few anyway. This is the Goode Huswife's 1824 Penny Rug sampler, one of my favorite pieces that I've gifted to someone else. At least it's still in the family : )

and another Goode Huswife piece,

Pennsylvania Quilt Pincushion (I think).

I heard from Mayte that she did receive my replacement BBD exchange (whew) but I will have to wait to borrow one of her photos since I neglected to take one myself.

On to what I'm sure you've been waiting for, the giveaway! I've been on a list-making spree lately and that included a list of my current WIPS and charts waiting to be stitched. This as you can imagine was a bit scary--about 15 WIPS/UFOs and some 56 charts as yet untouched, and another pile of charts of things already stitched. So I've hit S.A.B.L.E., I'm sure...and there are things due to be released at market that I've already decided I cannot live without, SO here's the giveaway--and since this photo will not cooperate, a list:

1) BBD Peacock Pinkeep

2)The Goode Huswife Raven's Roost

3) The Primitive Needle Follow Me

4) LHN's Poinsettia House

5) Carriage House Sampling's Samplers in Miniature

6) Notforgotten Farm's Pennsylvania Pillow

7) La D Da's Mocking Bird

8) Carriage House Sampling's Matter's Choice

9) Carriage House Sampling's Fall's Gifts, and

10) Stacy Nash's Liberty Sewing Pouch.

If y'all want individual pictures of any particular chart on the list, just let me know. I've stitched most, not all, of these. Though I have a harder time parting with things not yet stitched since I always think, maybe someday... some of my others which have been in my possession for years (decades?) will no doubt be offered up later this year. If anyone is interested in this batch, just leave a comment on this post. I will draw a winner in one week on next Sunday. Good luck!

no time and too much stuff to do in it

2010-09-18T07:35:00.000-07:00

(if that even makes sense). This pretty much sums up my existence at this point. Things be a bit hectic. Between the kids' school stuff, work (inconvenient and often boring but unfortunately necessary), volunteer activites, and a house that needs cleaning no matter how I try to ignore the problem, there's the fact that I've signed up for a zillion exchanges and need to stitch for my BF's birthday, DD's birthday and the school's annual fundraising auction. It's so bad I actually dragged out a calendar and made a stitching schedule. My blogging and blog-reading and commenting have definitely gone by the wayside!

I have a (very few) things to show. I did do a lot of stitching during vacation but I think many of those finishes will end up being exchange pieces, so I won't show them here at this point. I didn't go too crazy at my favorite cross stitch shop in Reading (about two minutes after we walked in the door DS asked when we were leaving) but I did pick up a few BBD patterns--one of which was the Peacock Pinkeep above-- and indulged in some Belle Soie for the first time (which I love). I also finished a few WIP's including this little Goode Huswife quaker.

I hope to have some exchanges to show soon. I had to stitch a replacement piece for Mayte for the BBD exchange since this went missing, much to my distress (although, according to the post office records, it was delivered, Mayte never received it--she lives in an apartment complex and I am afraid someone might have stolen it). I sent the replacement piece with signature confirmation required, but she never received the notice (although, again, according to the P.O., a notice was left). I hope the second turns up since I don't know if I can produce a third!

Thanks all for letting me rant. I promise the next post will have more stitching and less complaining : ) At least the weather's cooled off...and only a little over a month until Halloween!!

bad bad blogger

2010-09-07T16:39:00.000-07:00

That's me. I have been back from PA for a week and just have had too much stuff to get caught up on to make it to the computer--and DD and DS are back at school, so unless I happen to be up at 5am or thereabouts blogging might be scarce. I did want to show some exchanges I received--here is my gift for the Blackbird Designs exchange from Laura R., Pumpkin Blossom, front and back....

and two biscornus received from Michelle for the Please Pass the Biscornu exchange, one a Sweetheart Tree design and one Michelle's own design. Sorry for the crappy photos. They are both beautiful!

I did lots of stitching during vacation but haven't taken any pictures yet so I will share next time. I think a small giveaway is in order in the near future since I now have over 100 followers. Until next time...

RIP little guy

2010-08-13T18:37:00.000-07:00

My daughter's cute little brown and white mouse, Pippin, passed away this morning. I know he was "just a mouse" but he was a sweet and funny little soul and we all grew to love him over the two years he lived with us. Rest in peace buddy, we miss you.

A fall explosion

2010-08-05T16:35:00.000-07:00

It's August. I don't know what that means to most people but to me it means it's time to kick my Halloween fervor into high gear. I've had some help this year from the very generous Ranae (http://crazyxstitcher.blogspot.com/ --still haven't perfected my hyperlinking), whose blogoversary giveaway I was lucky enough to win a while back. Can you see all this fall goodness?! Ranae included this cute ornie she stitched as well as charts, Halloween fabric, needles, floss, a Mill Hill kit, and handmade scissor fob. Thank you again Ranae, I love everything!

I pulled out my mongo tub of Halloweenie decorations and am ready to get started! I have been finishing up some Halloween/fall smalls of years past which are finally ready for display this year.

Can you tell I'm really really tired of summer?

Finally, I heard from Catherine that she received my giveaway package...

unfortunately of the stitched items in the three packages I sent, this was the only one I remembered to photograph beforehand. You'll have to check out Cindy's and Valerie's blogs to see the rest!

That's all the news that's fit to report. Have a good weekend and thank you for all your past comments!

one last pumpkin...

2010-07-24T16:57:00.000-07:00

is all I have to show, and then I must get off my hiney and get a final exchange out the door, as well as the packages for my giveaway winners...I have not forgotten you ladies, your goodies should be in the mail next week! Pumpkin is from an old old old xs magazine, done with a variety of overdyed floss from my stash on Sugar Maple fabrics Pumpkin Patch. Not sure how I want to finish it, a pillow maybe--ideas anyone?

Almost forgot my Please Pass the Biscornu exchange for Sheila--pattern from a French blog, stuffed with crushed walnut shells. I am pretty proud of myself on one hand for actually remembering to photograph an exchange before it was mailed, but I can never take a decent photo of these little things.

That's about all. I'm in town for another few weeks and then it's VACATION in Amish country!! Wot Wot!! Can you tell I'm ready ?

Pumpkins in July

2010-07-12T06:46:00.001-07:00

Greetings to those of you who are still following this blog despite my absences! I have wanted to post over the last few weeks but with kids and DH underfoot it has been near impossible to get near the computer or to stitch either, for that matter...

I am on the countdown to Halloween : ) much to the amusement of my family. Everyone seems to think my pumpkin frenzy is a bit premature but once the solstice has passed and the 4th of July festivities are done I am ready for fall--as evidenced by my recent stitchy choices:

Pumpkin Pete by The Trilogy--minus the words, colors tweaked a bit in accordance with what I had on hand. His shirt bears a scary resemblance to one of my DH's shirts which I am convinced is the world's ugliest

And Boo to You by Homespun Elegance, using some great hand-dyed thread from an eBay seller I recently discovered. I am working on another pumpkin from an old cross-stitch magazine and started Witch's Hill from Notforgotten Farm, but not enough progress to warrant a picture yet.

Do you like my eerie Casper pumpkin shot above? I wanted to show how big they have become, --I have four now, hoping for more by fall...

A few recent exchanges have been received by my partners. As usual, I forgot to photograph them before they were sent so the photos were all borrowed from the recipients. First off is my biscornu for June sent to Mayte at MagicXS (picture better than any I could have managed : )) This pattern was a freebie from the My Aunt's Attic blog, one of my favorites, done on antique white linen with Carries' Creations Phantasm. This thing turned out HUGE, the biggest biscornu I have ever done, but thankfully Mayte likes it..

Next is my offering for the Seasonal Exchange/Summer. This is the LHN pattern "Heart and Home" which I changed by replacing the berry basket with a flag, and the row of hearts on the top with a star, photo borrowed from my partner Tanya of the Friendship Crossing blog.

Finally, this is my exchange for Blyn for the Holiday Exchange (4th of July)--Happy Flag Flag Day by The Trilogy. This was my first attempt at a pinkeep and I am pretty happy with how it came out.

Thanks everyone for letting me borrow the pics, I am really going to try to remember to photograph my next exchanges before the mailman takes them away : )

I also wanted to thank Staci (Snippets and Stash) for her 400-follwer giveaway which I was lucky enough to win and which I received over the weekend.
There are some cute buttons, rickrack, napkins and note cards, among other things. Thank you Staci, this really cheered me up!

Until next time, happy stitching!

sorry I'm late...

2010-06-23T10:01:00.001-07:00

Hi folks. I know I said I was going to draw the winners for the giveaway yesterday, but lately it's been too much to do, too few hours in the day--so much for the lazy days of summer : ) At least we're over the hump, the summer solstice has passed and we're counting down to fall (finally)!
Anyway, with the help of Mr. Random Number Generator, the winners are:

Catherine

Cindy

Valerie

I will be e-mailing you ladies shortly for your mailing info. Please don't expect blazing speed in getting your packages to you, but I should have everything in your hands, or at least in the mail, before I leave for vacation in August. Thanks to everyone for entering, and for your comments and support! I still have a stack of charts I will never get around to stitching that defies belief--it's a bit depressing actually--so I may have a de-stashing giveaway later this summer. Hope everyone has a great week!

just wow

2010-06-19T06:59:00.000-07:00

Once again, I have no stitching of my own to post about, but I wanted to show off this stunning flatfold I received from Raffaella for the Holiday (4th of July) Exhange. This is Brooke Nolan's Spirit of America Angel which was in the Just Cross Stitch magazine last year, stitched on 28 count navy cashel. The stitchng is beautiful and the finishing absolutely flawless--my crappy photography does not do it justice. Thank you so much Raffaella! The funny thing is, as my long-time followers may recall, I partially stitched this last year on perforated paper, but due to overzealous trimming, I did not leave enough room to stitch the angel's hand, and threw this project in the bottom of a drawer in disgust...I guess I don't have to figure out how to salvage that piece now : )

The only other cause for excitement (in my mind anyway--aside from the fact that the kids are starting summer school on Monday) is the fact that I will now have at least one Casper pumpkin for fall, and have been seeing more and more of these goodies starting to ripen : ) : )

A last reminder, too, my giveaway is on Tuesday, so please check out my June 3 post and leave a comment to enter...that's about it so have a great weekend!

another week and not a lot to show

2010-06-12T07:08:00.001-07:00

Hi everyone,

I think the title of this post says it all. This was kiddies' last week of school and with the end-of-the year parties, procuring the traditional teacher gifts and everything else, I have had hardly a minute to sit my butt in a chair and stitch. I had a "where have the years gone" moment when I dropped off Daughter for her last day of 7th grade. I always get sad at the end of the school year (my kids have the opposite reaction). This year was particularly bad. In a year's time she will be off to high school--what the...? What happened to the two-year-old who used to walk around with a baggie full of plastic dinosaurs? Eighth grade graduation is going to be tough (for me anyway), even more so as she will be leavng the much-loved school she's attended since her preschool days. Crap. Maybe I can sneak some white wine in a Sparklets bottle into wherever they have the graduation ceremony.

On a happier note (kinda) I have been working on The Goode Huswife's Quaker Four Corners sampler but the frogs have been jumping, leaping, cavorting all over this little piece so progress has been painfully slow. I am currently picking out the entire motif on the lower left corner... and just the "W" in the alphabet had to be frogged three times! Arrgh.

The rest of my own stitching has been on exchange pieces so I have no more of my own work to show. I did receive two exchanges this week. This one is from Michelle for the Seasonal Exchange--it is a JBW design stitched with Dragon Floss thread and beautifully finished. Thank you Michelle! I don't have a lot of summer-themed goodies for decorating (definitely NOT my favorite season--I feel a lengthy rant coming on about all the things that are wrong with summer--maybe the next post : )) so this will be displayed prominently! The other piece was from Julie for the Summer Ornament exchange for the ILCS Yahoo group. Julie did not mention who the designer was, but it is cute and I love her finishing--I will definitely have to try making a no-sew cube sometime.

Since I have nothing else to show, I took some snaps of my pups, who hardly ever make it on to the blog, with good reason--I had to wait at least 10 minutes for them to hold still so I could take a picture. Can you tell they've been chasing each other all over the yard?

And the garden...tiny corn plants are tiny no more, and hopefully soon I will be enjoying my home-grown tomatoes...

That's all for this week. Don't forget to enter my giveaway (previous post). Happy Stitching!

Mehitable Wright and the Peacocks of Doom and a blogger-versary

2010-06-03T05:54:00.000-07:00

Well guess what, it's my one year blogger-versary already. To tell you the truth I have been going back and forth trying to decide if I should post about a giveaway, or announce that I was taking a blogging vacation--some stuff going on here and health concerns (nothing life-threatening, just stuff that I would rather not deal with) have made it difficult to blog in a sufficiently upbeat manner. After several days of wallowing in self-pity I realized that there are lots of other folks worse off than I am, so....a blogaversary it is! If I am occassionally bitchy and blog without lots of lols and : ) : ) I am sure you all can cope ; )

I recently was fortunate enough to find a lovely and rather large grab bag of linen and evenweave pieces, and have been stitching smalls like crazy, Mehitable Wright's Redwork Sampler (featuring the Peacocks of Doom which are of Doom b/c I ran out of the red CC floss I was using...I thought they looked good in black anyway) by Pineberry Lane being one of these. For the giveaway there will be three names drawn, with each receiving one of my recently -stitched smalls (Mehitable will be among them) finished in some manner...a stitchy box top, or pin pillow, or pinkeep...I will take the preferences of the winners into consideration..;and an assortment of charts and other goodies, again tailored to the likes of the winners to the extent possible. Not sure what will go into each package but hopefully you will dig it. The giveaway is for my followers this time (you are of course welcome to become a follower if you are not already); just leave a comment on this post. I will draw on June 22 which is also my ??? wedding anniversary (I could do some math and give you an exact number but I am too lazy...my eldest is going to be 13 this fall so let's say it's at least 14 years, k? though I have a feeling that it's more..seems like 100 some days...)

For those of you who are still awake, I have some exchanges to show as well. This lovely is from the BBD exchange from Lisa V in Australia, and is of course Bluebird (I love this design, which I stitched for Elisabeth, and was thrilled to receive one of my own) done on a lovely pink linen and finished as a pinkeep.

The second is from the Please Pass the Biscornu exchange from Mayte--done with Dragon Floss on willow green linen with bugle beads and crystals and just beautifully finished. Thank you Mayte!

That's all for now folks. Thank you, by the way, for all the lovely comments on my finishes in the previous post! You all are very kind. Until next time...

lots of exchanges received

2010-05-19T06:26:00.000-07:00

Hi all,

I have not managed to complete a single thing this week, even Valentine Rose which only needs a few dozen stitches more...I have been exceptionally scatterbrained, bouncing from one project to the next, with at least 4 or 5 projects in my travel bag. Nonetheless, I do have some pics of various exchanges received by my partners. Please note that all of these photos are my partners' pictures, since no matter how I try I can never remember to photograph anything before mailing it.

First are the pics from the Please Pass the Biscornu 2010 exchange: the one on the top was for Gillian and is a freebie from the Floss Box. The second was for Michelle and is another freebie from a French blog, both done with DMC.

Next up is from the Seasonal (Spring) Exchange. Becky K was my partner and since she likes primitive designers I stitched a Stacy Nash design from the Garden Gate needlebook/pinkeep leaflet, but finished it as a pillow/basket liner on (I think) Days Gone By evenweave by Silkweaver. I always worry exchanges are going to get lost in the mail and this one gave me fits--it took 2 weeks to go from California to Oklahoma. What the....? I could have walked there faster!

Last but not least is the BBD exchange sent to Ela in France--another one that took forever to arrive.

This is BBD's Bluebird pincushion done in Carrie's Creation Old Brick. I also sent one of my box finishes--the design was a freebie on the BBD site and was an adaptation of an old/antique sampler.

I was sad as this was going to be the last round of the BBD exchange but thankfully Patti, one of the participants, took it over so it will continue.
Thank you girls for letting me steal the photos. I am going to try to remember to get out my camera next time before I shove something in an envelope. Thank you all also for visiting and(hopefully) commenting. Until next time!

two birdies, a little brick house and Paris at twilight

2010-05-11T06:02:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone, I hope you all had a great Mother's Day! Ours was free of drama and bloodshed, just the way I like it : ) Anyway, I finished up the La D Da birdie mentioned in my previous post. Here he is fastened to a prim box now being used to house my overflowing stitchy and sewing accessorites. I used a walnut stain on the box, painted over with whitewash and sanded it to make it look aged. The interior was lined with heavy card stock and varnished.This was a very simple finish but I like the way it turned out.

And here is the other birdie mentioned in the caption, my Seasonal Exchange piece from Conny. I thought this was quite adorable. It is from a Prairie Schooler booket, Birdsong. I have been on a bird-stitching frenzy lately so this birdie has lots of company! I am waiting (somewhat anxiously at this point) for my own Seasonal Exchange and BBD pieces to arrive at their new homes. Both were mailed more than a week ago so I hope they arrive soon.

I think I mentioned previously that I was working on the BBD Anniversaries of the Heart series. I finally got around to taking a picture of Valentine Rose. It would have been finished this past weekend but I forgot the chart at my office last Friday (work has been a little slow lately). I am hoping for another finish in the near future...I am falling behind on this series!

Finally, I had one more little finish--BBD's Souvenir de France, done on a greyish linen with Weeks Dye Works Twilight. The fabric it is sitting on was used for the backing. I recently discovered crushed walnut shells so I have been finishing some pincushions. Unfortunately it takes a long time to mop this stuff off the floor, as I learned when DD decided to use it for one of her own projects....

That's all for the time being. I added a poll on the sidebar relating to my impending blogaversary giveaway so let me know what you would be interested in receiving. Until next time, happy stitching!

virtual stitch-in progress and some garden pics

2010-05-03T06:07:00.000-07:00

Well the year is flying by--I don't know if it seems that way due to my rapidly advancing age or because of the fact that I keep pretty busy (mostly because of the kids--I myself have no life) but it seems Halloween should be upon us soon : ). The garden is finally in full swing. I won't bore you all with too many plant pics but I had to show my favorite roses, called Stars and Stripes. I am not a huge fan of roses but these are pretty cool. And since I hate store-bought tomatoes I grow lots of them every year. My local nursery has a pretty good variety and I like to try some of the more unusual types--this one is Green Zebra. My still-tiny corn plants are in the background. The last is a picture of my herb garden with my big bay laurel in the foreground. Having a garden is my favorite thing (actually the only thing I like) about summer. I could really do without the heat and scorching CA sun.

All right, enough plant talk. One of my Yahoo groups had a virtual stitch-in over the weekend and I put several hours in on my latest project, Bird in Hand by La D Da, for which I used DMC and some mystery overdyed linen. Didn't quite manage to finish, though he is close--he will eventually be slapped on the top of a large wooden box I am using to contain some of my stash, so hopefully I will have a finish-finish picture soon.

I also wrapped up this little Stacy Nash Garden Gate pinkeep--this was supposed to be for an exchange but I didn't want to part with it when it was done so I stitched something else for my partner instead!

Not much else going on. I added a Wish List on my sidebar so if you happen to have any of these charts and wouldn't mind parting with them, please let me know. Thanks for all comments!

mail goodies and never too early for Halloween

2010-04-22T06:14:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone, hope you all have gotten in lots of stitching time since my last post! It occurred to me that I have been negligent about showing some goodies which came in the mail recently,
so here goes--

This month I received two biscornus from the Please Pass the Biscornu exchange:

the first one from Bonnie is a freebie from a Russian blog (she did not say which) done with beautiful CC Bethlehem. The second, from Sheila, is a freebie from The Floss Box. Unfortunately I seem to have a terrible time getting decent pictures of these little things, but they are beautifully stitched and finished. Maybe some day I will remember to take photos of the ones I send out before they are packaged up, lol.

A while back I won a drawing from Marion of The Lake of Shining Waters blog in honor of her birthday. Marion sent this fantastic package--given my great self-control, I immediately dug in and stitched up the Plum Pudding Needlarts Bits of Blue as an Easter/birthday gift for a friend (I'd like to say I remembered to take a picture, but...). The Brenda Gervais designs are also really adorable--I had nothing from With Thy Needle and Thread in my stash before, and they are on my short list now!

I was also fortunate enough to win one of the many, many giveaways from Joyce at http://www.octoberfarm.blogspot.com/. I received the lovely milk glass candy dish on the right and then became enamored of milk glass--on a trip to my local antique mall I found the duck covered dish and had to add him to my small collection. I think both pieces are made by Westmoreland
but I am not sure of their age.

Finally, a little Halloween stitching. My DD left yesterday on a 3-day trip with her 7th grade class. She has been away from home before at sleepovers at friends' homes but never for this length of time, so I have been moping around reflecting on how quiet the house is without her, and how she will eventually grow up and leave for good, and there I will be, an old lady living alone with too many cats. So to cheer myself up I stitched up this little freebie from Primitive Betty's which will be finished up as an ornament for her upon her return. I know, we are an odd bunch--but she is a big fan of Halloween too, as well as of little black cats.

That's about all for now. I have been stitching a little on the BBD Anniversaries of the Heart pieces but mostly on exchange stuff, so no other stitchy pics. Thank you for visiting and for all past, present and future comments!

winners winners chicken dinners

2010-04-15T10:09:00.000-07:00

I know, lame title. Overall this will be a boring post unless you won something, lol, since I am at work and therefore no pics. I did finally get my garden put in so there will be some snaps of that next time, as well as of some mail goodies.

So without further delay, Mr. Random Number Generator says the winner of the tote is

Lisa

and the winner of the Quaker Row chart is

Cindy in MA

so please contact me with your mailing info and I will get these goodies out to you ASAP. Thanks to everyone else for entering and thank you for all your nice comments! I still have many, many charts either already stitched or never to be stitched so look for more giveaways in the future including a big one for my first blogoversary in June.

Quaker Row fini, mission pics & a giveaway

2010-04-08T07:27:00.000-07:00

I thought I would sneak in another post before DD goes back to school and starts her 6 a.m. highjacking of the computer again. I finally finshed Quaker Row, although I cannot get a decent picture of the whole thing to save my life, so I am presenting it in segments, unironed of course, lol. The fabric is not blue, this is early-morning light as I took these outside in my as-yet unfinished garden.

We, or rather DD, had much better luck with the snaps of San Juan Capistrano. This is just a small sampling of the mission and grounds. If you eve find yourself in the area I highly recommend a visit, it is gorgeous--San Juan is called the "jewel of the missions" with good reason.

And finally, a small giveaway. I am a collector not only of patterns and related stitchy stuff, but also tote bags to haul said stuff around, since I stitch before work, waiting to pick up kids from school, at baseball practice, etc. I brought this tote on eBay from a seller who specializes in making these bags--it has vintage chenille, rick rack, a button closure, and two large pockets on the inside. The other side is the pink strawberry fabric you see here. It is a good size too, about 13 x15 and is really well made but--I never use it. And it is taking up space. So, if you are interested, please leave a comment on this post, and if more than one person expresses an interest I will have Mr. Random Number Generator pick a winner on April 15.

Until next time, thank you for visiting!

*edited to add: I almost forgot, would anyone like the Quaker Row chart? If yes, then please indicate when you comment!*

long time no blog

2010-04-05T06:05:00.000-07:00

Greetings everyone, I hope you all had a happy Easter holiday! My kids conducted their usual annual experiment on the effects of eating chocolate all day (the results are pretty much the same every year) and we 0had an additional experiment on the effects of a 7.2 earthquake on a swimming pool (it makes really big waves). Needless to say this will be an Easter we remember for a while!

Things have been tremendously busy at work lately (with no end in sight) but I have managed a little stitching and finishing in my absence from blogland. Here is my son's bunny which I was able to finish in time for Easter. The fabric used to finish this piece was a lucky find in the bargain bin at Michael's--I think it looks like speckled eggs!

This LHN piece was DD's Easter offering. I always thought this was a cute chart and it stitched up very quickly, done with the recommended DMC threads on natural linen. I simplified the border a bit as I was running out of time to complete it.

Some more of my recent purchases arrived in the mail and I could not resist getting a start on BBD's Snow Garden, done with the recommended GAST and WDW threads. I am liking this one too even though it seems that the colors in photos of the BBD model are quite a bit different from the colors of my stitched pieces. Valentine Rose is next on my to-do list though I am not stitching all the small houses on one piece of linen.

And I had one more small BBD finish-- since it is never too early for Halloween, I dug into my stash for the 'Tis Halloween booklet and finally stitched up one of the small stockings. I hope to have many more completed for display in a few months!

I had hoped to have pictures of my veggie garden to show off in closing--I grow tomatoes, pumpkins, corn, peppers and whatever else happens to catch my eye every year, but this year things have been so busy it hasn't exactly gotten off the ground yet--so I leave you with some pictures my DD took of a few things that are blooming around here. The kiddies are on spring break and we are taking the train to the misson at San Juan Capistrano in a few hours, so I should have some good pics to share next time.

Until then, have a great week and thank you all for the nice comments!

lots of sitting time = a new finish

2010-03-19T05:54:00.000-07:00

I know, two posts in the course of a few days is unusual for me. With all my recent purchases I started feeling sorry for my older, unstitched charts, so I pulled one out, not expecting to finish before my new, irresistible goodies came in the mail...but my DS's baseball schedule this week consisted of --practice, game, practice, day off, and game, which gave me about 9 hours with my butt planted firmly in a folding chair, and therefore I am showing off my latest (unironed) finish. This is Pennsylvania Pillowe from

Notforgotten Farm, done mostly with the recommended threads on natural linen, except for the black for which I substituted an overdyed. Question: should I try to "age" this by dabbing a tea bag or splashing a little coffee on it, or leave it as it is? I kinda want to try but I am afraid that the black will bleed horribly and ruin it. Opinions anyone?

I have nothing else to show of my own, but DD got out her sock animal book again and whipped up this cute little squirrel. I think this is her best animal yet. She told me that his nuts are detatchable so I asked if he was married, lol.

That's it for now. Happy Spring everyone!

bunnehs, broken resolutions and an award

2010-03-17T09:50:00.000-07:00

Happy St. Pat's everyone! It is amazing how many hoops I have to jump through just to get a little computer time, now that DD has taken to getting up at the crack of dawn to do homework. I am sneaking a little update in at work (I know, I am a bad person). I really don't have a lot to show for the past two weeks--I am coming to the end of my bunny stitching obsession, having finished and pillowized the bunny for my friend's DD, and embarked on a bunny for my DS, who rather wistfully asked if he was getting a bunny for Easter when he saw me working on the friend's....

DS's bunny is a freebie from 2009 from By the Bay Needleart (thanks to Catherine for pointing this one out to me) and will also be finished as a small pillow, once I acquire another skein of the GAST that I ran out of with a few dozen stitches to go. Does anyone know of a DMC conversion for GAST Apple Cider so I can hopefully avoid making the trip to my LNS? I have no self control and I know I will emerge with an armful of charts in addition to the floss...I have been on a spree lately on evilBay (Blogger WILL NOT let me upload this the way I want, i.e. not sideways, so please just turn your head at at a 45 degree angle) and before you hoarders protest that this is not that much stash, I will add that I have another 10 charts winging their way to me in the mail right now. So much for no new stash-buying.

Speaking of the mail, I have received a few other goodies I wanted to show--this pretty is from the Please Pass the Biscornu 2010 exchange received from Shay.

I would show you the ones I sent to my partners for the past two months but I seem to have difficulty remembering to photograph things before I put them in the mail, so...if you are really curious, check out the PPB 2010 blog--fortunately the recipients did post pictures. I also received this from Lisa F. for a floss exchange for the ILCS Yahoo group. I love getting stuff in the mail!

I did feel a little bit guilty about all the new charts, so I put some stitches into my Quaker Row. Progress is not as much as I had hoped but at least it's a little closer to completion.

Finally, I wanted to thank Cyndi (www.cyniminsobsession.blogspot.com) for my first ever blog award:

From what I understand, the rules are:

1) Accept the award. Check.

2) Thank the person you received from. Check.
3) Link to the person you received from. Check.
4) Put the award on your blog. Check.

5) List 7 interesting things about you others might not know (I know Cyndi said 10 but I have seen 7 elsewhere, and I'm going with 7). Here goes. We're defining "interesting" very loosely.

--I lived in Japan at one time and taught English for 6 months.

--I have such an extreme fear of spiders that I will not stay in a room if I see a spider on the wall/floor/anywhere else.

--I volunteer for a website called DogsIn Danger that lists adoptable shelter dogs from all over the country.

--My parents named their dog after me (remember I said "loosely")

--I love corn mazes

--When I was in high school I wanted to train horses for a living

--I used to be a devoted runner (B.K.--before kids).

6) Pass on to 10 others. Here is my cop-out. If you are a reader, give yourself this award. I like every blog I read, and I read a lot, so I cannot single out just 10 I think are deserving!

Thanks for reading my blather, and as always thank you for comments, I appreciate every one!

Spring

2010-03-02T06:23:00.000-08:00

I can tell that spring is finally approaching--things are starting to bloom around here, I hear a nagging voice telling me that it's high time I thought about getting my vegetable garden started, and I have a strange compulsion to stitch chicks and bunnies.

Thank you all for your suggestions for bunny freebies--after much searching I discovered this Beatrix Potter-ish bunny on the gazette94 blog. I usually hate working on aida but I had this scrap left over from long ago and thought it was perfect for an Easter design. It's hard to believe that I used to stitch almost exclusively 14 ct. aida--it is almost painful to use it now!

With spring being in the air I have been unusually scatterbrained too--I have no less than 5 small pieces going simultaneously, the bunny being one of them. Three are for exchanges and the last is a new LHN that I have put so few stitches in it is really not worth showing. I have managed to make some progress on my Quaker Row. Does anyone else think the squirrel looks a little crazed? My DD had a "pet" squirrel we used to see all the time in the local park that she named Rabies, because he would always let us get a little too close to him, and would chatter and run up and down the same tree like he was being chased by something. This squirrel and Rabies definitely have the same nutty (pardon the pun) expression...

For some reason the kids and I were discussing our favorite blog dogs the other day (you know who you are, Happy, Rory, Abby and Teddy) and they asked if our pups could be my blog dogs. The problem with photographing my dogs is that they will without fail stick their noses directly into any camera they see, which makes it somewhat difficult to get a good photo. Julius, on the other hand, is much more willing to pose for a picture, so we decided to designate him official Blog Cat. Look for Julius updates in the future!

That's all for now folks! Thank you for all your comments on this and other postings and have a great stitchy week!

giveaway winners

2010-03-01T06:44:00.000-08:00

Hi folks, just a quick post since I'm pressed for time right now, but I promised to draw the winners of the giveaways today, so here they are, according to the random number generator:

Giveaway #1 (Goode Huswife charts): Shelley

Giveaway #2 (quilts): Terri

Please contact me with your mailing info ladies! I'll be back tomorrow (hopefully) with a stitching update.

a little birdie and a question for my readers

2010-02-22T06:06:00.000-08:00

I think two posts in one week has to be some kind of a record for me, but I wanted to show my latest finish, a little freebie from Midnight Stitching (I think). I changed the colors a bit to make it more Easter-ish, if that's a word. This will eventually become a door knocker which will make its way into DD's Easter basket.

Which leads to my question--I wanted to do two more spring/Easter smalls (preferably freebies so I can get started right away), maybe with bunnies or sheep, for DS and for my
BFF's daughter with whom we always exchange Easter goodies. Does anyone know of any charts of about the same size? Your assistance is much appreciated!

My giveaway is still open for another week (see the previous post) so if you are interested go check it out!

A kinda finish and two giveaways

2010-02-18T06:00:00.000-08:00

I had hoped to have two "ta-das" today for the two houses I have been working on, but DS decided he was going to get sick this week, and this cut down both on my stitching time and more significantly on my sleep, so I have not had the energy to do much after arriving at home other than flop down on the couch and watch the telly. I did decide that Poinsettia House is finished enough for me. It's not just because I hate borders (I do), but I also liked the simplicity of it as it is. I also wanted to try framing it a slightly different way. On Yuko's blog (Be Happy!)--I would do the hyperlink thing but I don't know how--I saw pics of some lovely xs pieces she had framed with lace along the top and/or bottom border, and I wanted to do the same thing with PH here. (The lace is pinned in place here for purposes of illustration since I'm not sure yet I want to use this particular bit of lace, but you get the idea). Anyhow--ta-da! **Edited to add: Doh! Looking at this again, I noticed that I am missing a stem and leaf on the poinsettia--not quite as done as I thought!**

I have not put even one more stitch in Sibley Hall, which I hoped would be done today, due to the aforementioned lack of sleep, but hope to have another finish to show in my next post (crossing fingers). My pile of shiny new charts continued to call to me, so I broke down and started something new, Quaker Row from Midnight Stitching, on a piece of mystery Silkweaver evenweave using some gorgeous Waterlillies silks (Copper Penny or something like that. I am very bad about not keeping tags or labels so I am never quite sure what I am using). This one is a lot of fun and should go quickly (crossing fingers again).

Aside from this I have been working on another exchange piece for a biscornu exchange, so that's about it for show and tell. On to the giveaways--I am having two this time, since the giveaway items are very different. Here is #1:

Two OOP cat charts from The Goode Huswife, Minerva and Gracie. As with the previous giveaways, these will come with the necessary floss. They were "used" by me but are in good shape. I had at one time considered putting my OOP charts up for sale on eBay put I am much too lazy and not avaricious enough, so my laziness is your gain! Just leave comment on this post--make sure you specify giveaway #1.

And here is #2:

Here are three minature clothesline quilts stitched by me. Just don't ask who the designer is as I have no clue. I found these when I was cleaning out my stash basket recently--these were done when I went through a "country" phase a while back, and though they are cute, they are not quite my style anymore. They could be kept as-is for display, and I imagine they could be used as rugs/quilts for a doll house, or made into pincushions, or ?? I shall leave that up to the recipient. Make sure you indicate giveaway #2 when you comment.

That's all for now! I will draw winners on March 1. Thanks as always for your comments!

An exchange received, Poinsettia House and attack of the sheep creatures

2010-02-08T06:19:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone,

Thank you for all your kind comments last time regarding my friend. I try to limit the amount of whining about my personal life on this blog, but it's tough when there's a 10-year-old involved who may lose his mom...

On to more fun stuff. This is the last exchange piece I received from Leeanne (Please Pass the Biscornu 2010 exchange). The pic was (unintentionally) rotated but you can see I have been spoiled again. I wish I could show a picture of the biscornu I sent, but once again I forgot to take a snap of it before I sent it on its way, so I will have to wait for my partner to post a picture and then borrow it.

I have still been diligently working on WIP's. This is my travel project, The Good Huswife's Sibley Hall, which has not made an appearance here for a while (if at all). I tend to get bored stitching large areas in a solid color, such as the lawn here, and the sheep (I think they are sheep anyway) are creeping me out--their heads are too small, their eyes are too big, and they are patrolling the front of this house in a very menacing way. Did I mention that I read a lot of Stephen King and similar trash? Anyway, I hope the sheep look less creepy when the whole thing is done, which should be soon, since DS has started baseball and my butt will be planted in a chair for several hours during innumerable games, practices, etc.

As I mentioned last time, I have also been working on Poinsettia House, and here is how it stands as of now..

I have been enjoying this piece a lot and hopefully will have another finish to show before too long.

Last but not least, here is Spot in his frame (sort of...I just set him

there temporarily for picture purposes, he needs a little adjustment before his final framing).

Thank you everyone for your comments and I hope you all have a great week!

2010-02-02T06:08:00.000-08:00

Hi folks,

It's been a while since my last post--it's been a rough couple of weeks, and I've just learned that a friend of mine is gravely ill. I won't bring you down with the details, but I will say that my philosphy from this point on is to live each day as though it's the last, because you never know what life is going to hit you with down the road...

Anyhow, this is my LHN exchange which I can finally show has it has been received by my partner. It is "Miniature Winter Gameboard", a freebie, which I altered to make more of a springtime piece. I included game pieces, some little wooden spools which I wrapped with DMC floss to match the board (seemed like a good idea at the time but I was covered in glue by the time I was done with all of them).

Yesterday I received this awesome package (same exhange) from my partner Conny.

Conny stitched Gourmet Garden on 32 ct. linen using the recommended threads and finished it as a pincushion which she stuffed with lavender. She also included the fabric you see here, lace and lots of little ribbon roses. Needless to say, I am pleased!

I am also happy to report that my Spot the Horse (Carriage House Samplings), a UFO from way back when, is finally done. I am really pleased with the way he turned out and I found a perfect chippy-paint antique-looking frame for him, so he may even be "finsh-finished" soon.

Other than that I have been working on LHN's Pointsettia House, my birthday present from my parents last fall, but no pics yet.

I have been good so far this year...working on WIPs only, haven't started any new projects. I don't know how long this will last, some of the things coming out at Nashville are extremely tempting!

Until next time, happy stitching! Thank you everyone for your comments!

first 2010 finish and winner of giveaway #2

2010-01-21T06:03:00.000-08:00

Greetings from soggy California! As with last week, I have been stitching on exchange pieces so I dont' have a lot to show, but I did hear from my partner in the BBD exchange that she has received my offering, so I can finally show off my first finish of the year.

This is BBD's "Summer Iris" without the border and the little birds and with the addition of some vintage buttons, done on Silkweavers evenweave with the recommended floss. I decided to make another attempt at making a fabric-covered box, which turned out much better than the last box in that it actually can be opened and closed without the use of pulleys or pliers or other similar instruments...

And since I have nothing else to show, on to the winner of giveaway #2: I used a random number generator this time to come up with the winner, Hazel! I will send you an e-mail later and get this out in the mail as soon as I can swim to the post office.

I am planning other giveaways since I still cannot see the bottom of my stash basket, but I have not had time this week to dig through it to see what's there--but it will be coming soon! I have been itching to break the first of my new year's resolutions and start something new--I have two gorgeous Quakers all kitted up--maybe I will have some stitching of my own to show in my next post. Until then, stay dry/warm and thank you for all the comments!

winner and giveaway #2

2010-01-14T06:32:00.000-08:00

Hello again everyone,

I have had a week of stitching on exchange pieces, three of which are due at the end of this month, so I do not have a lot to show. I did not receive my piece for the last exchange which has dampened my enthusiasm for exchanging a bit. I am giving my partner the benefit of the doubt and assuming it was lost in the mail.... still kinda disappointing.

I did pull out another older piece for UFO Tuesday, Peter's Stocking by Shepherd's Bush. This is almost done as you might be able to tell, but is perfect for UFO Tuesday since I can only handle working on for short periods--it has lots of pastel colors which are really not my thing. After I have been stitching on it for a while I feel the same way I would feel after eating a roll of toll house cookie dough--major sugar overload! I think this will be finished into stocking form and then sent off to the school's holiday auction in the fall.

Well without further ado the winner of the giveaway is Emily! Emily, I will e-mail you for your mailing address and get the pattern and floss out to you as soon as possible. I hope you will enjoy stitching it.

And on to the next giveaway: this is "Canon" by Whispered by the Wind. The model is stitched with WDW Turkish Red but maybe some of you are not fans of red, so when you comment let me know what colors you envision stitching this with if you win. I could see this done with a couple different overdyed threads. My LNS has a pretty good selection of threads but they do not have Belle Soie or Carries Creations and might not have the specific type you are looking for, so give me a second choice if I cannot find the first... Anyway, same as last time, just leave a comment on this post and I will enter you. I will draw a winner in one week on the 21st of January.

I did manage to put another older piece in finished form--it does help to have a working sewing machine.

This is a Carriage House pincushion...I couldn't find the chart and don't recall the name of the pattern but I liked the way it turned out. My hand sewing skills are not all that great so don't look too closely!

That's all for this week! Thanks for all your lovely comments!

New Years resolution/stash reduction giveaway #1

2010-01-04T06:21:00.000-08:00

Hello all, hope everyone managed to survive the holiday with sanity intact (never an easy task). I am not usually one for resolutions, which is OK since I hardly ever keep them anyway, but I do have a few modest ones for this year:

-- to keep up with this blog on a more regular basis (which is to say, to post more than once a month)

-- to finish two WIPS before starting each new project, with exchange pieces being the exception (I figured this would be a good way to reduce my backlog of projects, but recognize that this is the resolution most likely to be broken)

-- and lastly to dispose of some of my charts that have been sitting around for years and likely will never be done, mostly for the reason that my tastes have changed since I purchased them. I finally realized that if I haven't stitched a pattern within ten years, it's OK to send it on to a new home.

So without further delay, here is my first offering:

Dresden Plate Cottage by Linda Myers. This is a very pretty piece, and includes a quilt pattern as well. This and each subsequent giveaway will come with floss needed to complete it. To enter, simply leave a comment on this post. Anyone from anywhere in the world is welcome to enter. I will draw a winner on Jan. 14, so make sure I have some way of contacting you if you do win.

I haven't broken Resolution #2 yet and to that end I worked a bit more on Rest and Be Thankful.

That's all the news for now. Hope everyone has a great week and a great 2010!

phew...

2009-12-30T07:07:00.000-08:00

Hello, I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas! With the big day here and gone, I finally have a few spare moments to post. I am still kind of in the midst of the stitching blahs, but I did manage to accomplish a few things, Christmas-related and otherwise.

I whipped up a couple of these scottie dogs for the kids' stockings (from the most recent JCS issue) and managed to put Chester into tote form for my DD.

My sewing skills are still a little shaky but she seems to like him.

Kiddies got a Wii for Christmas so I have had more time than usual to stitch, but I have had a hard time deciding what I want to work on...I have emptied my basket of stash and examined patterns one by one more times than I can count these past few weeks, but much of it is unappealing right now, don't know why...I have been on a bit of a primitive stitching kick lately, starting with this cutie from Stacy Nash, Liberty Sewing Pouch, one of my few finishes. I did this with the recommended DMC on a grayish Silkweaver evenweave and am very pleased how it turned out.

I also started Lanaster County from Notforgotten Farm on a very pretty 40-count brown linen from R&R. I had planned to make this for my parents (who live in Lanaster County) for Christmas but it didn't quite work out. I am hoping that the 300+ days til next Christmas will give me enough time to finish it but the way I flit from one project to another, who knows.

Other than that I put a few stitches (very few) into Rest and Be Thankful, on which I am showing off one of my favorite presents, Dovos which the kiddies insist on borrowing....

Speaking of the kiddies, I thought I would show some of the things they made me for Christmas. They are a creative lot! DD found a book called "Stray Sock Sewing" or something like that, and has been on a roll lately creating these little animals.

I hope everyone has a wonderful new year. Thank you for all comments, they keep me inspired!

your very contagious stitching slump

2009-12-08T06:12:00.000-08:00

One of my favorite things to do lately has been to read other people's blogs, which is usually inspiring, but lately folks been posting mostly about their lack of stitching mojo, and this has now infested the Pumpkin Patch. Consequently, although I have turned out a few more ornaments, I haven't had much desire to work on anything else. Instead, I started digging in my large basket of stitched but unfinished items and have actually begun finishing them (I know, unique concept).

These houses are from an old cross stitch magazine (Cross Stitch and Country Crafts, I think) and since this is about the fifth year they have been sitting in my basket I decided to drag them out and do something with them; I found weighted papier mache house shapes at Michaels and after some very minimal backstitching (which I hate) they will be shipped off to my mom for Christmas.

This snowman is I think just about as old as the houses and has been sitting around so long I forgot who the designer is--I want to say Diane Arthurs but I'm not sure. I made him into a (very long) pillow with vintage lace from an old pillowcase that my cat managed to destroy.

And as much as I love BBD, I think I am about to give up on Bittersweet Moon. I did put some more stitches into it but all the colors seem off to me--the house looks green instead of blue, the alphabet has the charming color of dried blood, and the tree is red instead of the brown in the photo of the model, and I just don't feel like frogging it all and switching out the colors. Am I wrong to want what I stitch to look like the model? After all, I liked the way the model looked, that's why I bought the thing in the first place!

That's about it for this week. I'm hoping my mojo returns after Christmas, or soon at any rate; although my desire to stitch has deserted me, my need to acquire new patterns has not...

Julius says, remember to relax and enjoythe holidays!

finally finished something

2009-12-01T06:07:00.001-08:00

I'm back from another absence from blogworld due to computer unavailability (otherwise known as Thanksgiving break). I'll keep my complaining to a minimum and get to the finishes:

Currants, Coxcomb and Rose, done with recommended threads on a sparkly Silkweaver solo. I really like the way this turned out, it looks Christmas-y to me!

And here is proof that UFO Tuesday really works, Chester, one of The Goode Huswife cats, done with recommneded threads on white aida (yuk) in all his unironed glory. Modified the border a bit to make it more narrow since I hate working on borders. I did work on him on days other than Tuesday since I wanted him to be a Christmas gift for DD. I plan to incorporate him into a tote/bookbag instead of framing him, since one of my birthday gifts to myself was to have this repaired.

My old Brother machine had been sitting in a closet for years and I really missed having a working sewing machine. The man at the repair shop said that someone had apparently dropped a quarter into one of the openings on the machine which caused it to jam. Thanks kids!

I used to be a quilter and maybe I will pick up that hobby again too, but right now I'm a little rusty so I'm going to start off with small stuff.

Other than that I have been working on some Christmas smalls

Penny Angel by Primitive Needle from the Just Cross Stitch Christmas issue. This was also my first effort to make a fabric-covered box--directions are on the Blackbird Designs blog. Barb and Alma make everything look easy. It was not easy and it caused me to chuck my spray adhesive out the window. It looks OK from a distance though.

I'm also trying to finish ornies for kiddies' teachers:

This was a Debbie Draper freebie. One down, three to go.

My next UFO Tuesday effort will be a Shepard's Bush stocking which I began last Christmas.

That's all the news that's fit to report. I hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving and survives the Christmas shopping frenzy. Thank you for all comments!

stitching ADHD

2009-11-14T06:36:00.000-08:00

Ahh, finally some computer time for mom! I have been wanting to post for a week or more, but my DD is now in middle school with the workload to prove it--she has been asking me to wake her up in the mornings at 6:00 or 6:30 (believe me, this is waay early for her) so she can finish her work for that day. Unfortunately, this cuts into my computer time, as early morning is (usually) about the only time I don't have competition for the thing! Note to Santa: please bring me a laptop (don't tell my kids).

My stitching ADHD has reasserted itself. I have been going from one project to the other, to the next, not satisfied with anything....

I started this freebie from Carol R. at iStitch which I planned to finish as an ornie for one of the kid's teachers--I make ornies every Christmas which can take up a bit of time as some years they have had as many as seven teachers between the two of them. I started stitching this over one and then decided that stitching over one isn't anything I can tolerate for long.

I got a start on Rest and Be Thankful from The Cricket Collection, which has been in my stash for years. I decided that this was going to be the year I finally started it, but now that I have I am having doubts about my fabric choice (its Silkweavers' Poltergeist which I purchased, though I'm not a big fan of purple, 'cause I liked the name). I think it might look OK once it's completed so I am not quite ready to frog it out yet.

This is the project I have spent the most time with lately--I have gotten even further with it since this picture was taken and may be able to show off the completed piece soon. This is another old, long out of print and very hard to find Goode Huswife chart, Currants, Coxcomb and Rose. I searched eBay for an eternity before I found this gem, and have been enjoying it tremendously.

Ah, where would be all be without eBay? (I for one would have a lot more cash in my pocket).

And here is another one I am not sure I like--another I have been wanting to do for a long time, BBD's Bittersweet Moon. The house in the photograph of the model for this one appears to be a light blue, but my particular batch of WDW Cadet looks to me like a bluish-green. I checked several times to see if I had purchased the right color, and the color I have is Cadet, but...I just don't know. The bulk of the house is stitched so I guess I will carry on with this project too and see how it turns out.

I have been the recipient of some goodies too--I won one of Jolene at Dip Diddly Design's Halloween drawings--meant to post this a while ago but for the above-noted computer access issues. I would post a picture of my winnings but for some reason Blogger wants the picture to be turned sideways! Jolene has an awesome blog which should not be missed.

I also received my piece for the BBD exchange...

this is the Blackbird Designs ornie from the 2009 Just Cross Stitch Christmas issue. It is very pretty though I was not able to get a good picture of it. Thanks partner!

UFO Tuesday has been resurrected at the ILCS Yahoo group I belong to, and given my propensity to start one project after another and then toss them to the side, I figured I needed some encouragement to actually finish something! Here is my pick

for this endeavor--Chester, another Good Huswife oldie..

I know why I stopped working on this one--he was begun at a time when I only stitched on 14 count white Aida, and now that I have been exposed to the wide world of cross stitch fabric choices, I hate 14 count white Aida. That, and the yellows in the pattern seem too bright to me. However, I think if he has a good coffee/tea dye after he is finished, he'll be fine. I am hoping to finish him for my DD for Christmas--she has a collection of Goode Huswife cats in her bedroom (I know, what tween girl doesn't?)

Speaking of my DD, I leave you with this snap of the back of her front. She is now 12, which is somewhat astounding to me 'cause it seems like she was just born a few years ago, and hates having her picture taken...I don't know where she acquired this trait, but it is true that there are precious few pictures of me around that haven't mysteriously disappeared.

Until we next meet, hope you get lots of stitchy time. Thank for for all past & future comments!

isn't it ironic...or is it?

2009-10-31T11:36:00.000-07:00

I always get confused as to what constitutes irony as opposed to coincidence. For instance, if a kid is carving a barfing jack-o-lantern (you know, the kind with the gaping mouth with the pumpkin innards spilling out of it) and then runs into the bathroom and throws up, is that just coincidental or is it irony? That's my DD, she picks the best times to become ill, this time on Halloween eve. Not quite as bad as when she got sick the morning of her 7th birthday, when I spent hours trying to reach her guests to tell them not to bother showing up to her party. *sigh*

Anyhoo, on to business...my own personal random number generator (DS) has told me that the winner of the giveaway is Meari--Meari, please shoot me an e-mail with your info. Feel free to poke me repeatedly until I respond. I didn't get a whole lot of sleep last night.

I will probably have another giveaway shortly, since I have lots of charts I will probably never stitch or never stitch again, and for some reason I keep buying more...so until then, have a good stitchy Halloween!

finishing frenzy and a giveaway

2009-10-24T07:17:00.001-07:00

Well, as the title indicates, I have been finishing off things like crazy--quite out of character for me since finishing is my least favorite part of stitching. Since my last post, Matter's Choice, the Bent Creek houses, the Partridge and Farmer's Alphabet were all framed and have gone off to the auction. I would like to show pictures of them in all their framed glory, but that would require a level of forethought that I am apparently not capable of (which is to say, I forgot to take pictures before sending them off). They all looked good in my humble opinion, despite my mediocre framing skills. The one that I could not bear to part with was Christmas Tea by Plum Street Samplers. This is now being added to my own stash of Christmas decorations.

Also finished (but not re-homed) was some of my recent Halloweeny stitching. I think this Blackbird Designs one is my favorite, I loved this design from the moment I saw it.

This is another design from the Trix or Treat booklet which I used for the top of one of my multitude of little wooden boxes.

Another wooden box, not yet finished. I stitched this from a design in a cross stitch magazine years ago.

My DS spotted the perfect frame for Scared Silly at Michael's.

Finally, I turned another piece I stitched a long while ago into a needlebook.

My sewing skills are not even on a par with my framing skills so I

will be keeping this one for myself too. This design is Corn Crows and Cats, an old one from The Goode Huswife.

Which brings me to my first-ever giveaway in celebration of DD's (and her mom's) birthdays. This is not something you would be likely to find in your local LNS (at least I don't think so) since it's been out of print for quite a while, and I don't think the designer has re-released it-- The 1824 Penny Rug Sampler from The Goode Huswife. Penny rugs seem very cozy and Christmas-y to me, so I figured this would be a good choice for the season. This will come to the winner fully kitted up--the chart calls for DMC with no suggested conversions, but I know some of you like to work with silks, so if you want silks instead, let me know and I will try to figure something out. I may add some random Christmas things as well (just don't ask what 'cause I haven't figured that out yet).

To keep things simple, in order to enter just leave a comment on this post, one entry per person. You don't have to be or become a follower (unless *you like me...you really really like me* as the Flying Nun once said) and you don't have to advertise my blog on your blog. I will draw a winner in one week on Halloween!

Until then, happy stitching! Thanks again for all past and future comments!

(*I wanted to add...this chart is "used" in that I have stitched this design, but it is completely unmarked and has been sitting in a plastic baggie for the past few years.)

giveaway alert

2009-10-20T09:57:00.000-07:00

Hi folks,

Jaz over at Octoberfarm (http://www.octoberfarm.blogspot.com/) my favorite non-stitchy site, is having a terrific giveaway. Whether or not you enter, her blog is well worth checking out for the awesome pics of her trip to Salem!

I decided to jump on the bandwagon and have a giveaway myself to celebrate DD's birthday and my own (which are 3 days apart) so stay tuned!

farewell Jasmine and other news

2009-10-08T05:52:00.000-07:00

Well, dear Jasmine has gone on to her new home. I had quite a time getting her there, however. The weekend following my last post, with about a week to finish this project, I became deathly ill with some horrible flu-like illness and spent about 3 days literally unable to get out of bed, much less stitch. When I finally emerged from my mental fog, I looked for Jasmine and could not find her. Anywhere. Rest assured I do not have a cavernous house to search--it's more the equivalent of a shoebox--and all my WIPs are kept, in separate baggies, in one large basket. I started to worry that I would not be able to use my favorite mommy line on the kids--"Well, (fill in the blank) didn't disappear into thin air..." since my stuff was, in fact, disappearing into thin air. Then finally late Wednesday night I found her, in her baggie, wedged into the space in between my bed and the wall. I still have no idea how she got there. I suppose in my flu-induced delusional state I took her to bed with the idea of stitching in between bouts of throwing up? Somehow I managed to finish her in the remaining two days before the party--I left out some of the backstitching, which I didn't like the look of anyway, some beads and some details on the dress, but she turned out O.K. anyway--at least she has legs now. Unfortunately, since I was still stitching until within about half an hour before we had to leave for the kid's party, I only had time for one photo, which is not that great, but...it's all I have to show!

I also managed to get through the first round of the LHN exchange, and the exchange piece was received by my partner, but...can't show that either, since I forgot to take a photo, and said piece is now in Belgium. But this is what I received from Jennifer. Is
cute, no?

I think I am addicted to exchanging. I signed up
for the second round of the LHN exchange, joined a BBD exchange and a biscornu exchange which should be interesting since I've never made a biscornu before. Hopefully my partner for that one will have a sense of humor.

I finally have some Halloween stitching to show as well--Scared Silly by Birds of a Feather, done with the recommended Weeks threads on Silkweaver Starquest laguna. I also broke my stash diet and picked up some Halloween charts

one of which I could not
resist starting. I definitely need some more Primitve Needle charts.

I got a start on Hallow's Nigh by Notforgotten Farm too, but this one has come to a crashing halt as I misplaced this pattern--seems to be a recurring theme with me these past few weeks. If my senioritis continues to progress at this rate I'll be in an assisted living facility by Christmas, lol.

Anyhow, as you may have surmised by my last post, my kiddies and I love their school. Around this time each year the school has its one and only fundraiser, an auction of various items donated by families & friends. I see this as a prime opportunity to re-home some of my finished items--these are the ones I am thinking about donating this year...

Matter's Choice (Carriage House Samplings)

Farmer's Alphabet (Prairie Schooler)

Black Bird and Blue Bird (Bent Creek)

Quaker Heart (Ink Circles) Christmas Tea (Plum Street
Samplers).

and Partridge (Designs by Pamela). I don't have any very large pieces finished so I thought I would pick 3 or 4 of these & have them framed or otherwise suitably finished (by which I mean I will probably take time to pick off all the cat hairs).

That's all my news for the time being. Thanks all for visiting!

ladies I love and some who annoy me, and some changes

2009-09-18T06:01:00.000-07:00

I guess I shall start with the obvious. My repeat visitors (if any there are) will notice that I changed the name of the blog. This I did because I belatedly thought of a name a liked better, but was too lazy to set up another blog. Also, A Twisted Stitcher was too close to the name of Vonna's blog, The Twisted Stitcher (not that Vonna seemed to mind too much, she was very gracious about the whole thing, but I was rather annoyed with myself for my unintentional lack of originality). OK, The Pumpkin Patch Stitcher is not terribly original either, but it suits me better because:

1. I grow pumpkins

2. I stitch pumpkins

3. I decorate with pumpkins

4. I cook with pumpkins; and therefore

5. I occassionally look like a pumpkin (but I am not putting a picture of that on the interwebs).

That being said, if anyone out there in blogland knows of another Pumpkin Patch Stitcher, please don't tell me.

On to the ladies. The first is my newest finish, The Sampler Lady from Little House. She was part of my recent and very self-indulgent stash haul (please forgive the pics. I am camera-challenged today).

I switched out some of the colors for the GAST threads I had on hand--I'm trying very hard to stick to the stash diet by avoiding the LNS at all costs (there are a ton of new Halloween-type charts out which would be just too hard to resist). I didn't do the border because it seemed a little boring but I thought about putting a row of spools (not boring) along the top to balance it out a little. What do you think?

I actually finished another WIP last night right after The Sampler Lady

instead of immediately starting something new--Trix or Treat from Blackbird Designs (it's actually a few stitches away from completion in this photo, but I was in a rush this morning--still haven't figured out why I have less time for stitching, and everything else for that matter, now that the kids are back in school, than I had when they were home in the summer). True, it was almost finished, but still--I don't often have two finishes in one day.

Unfortunately I now have to do something with a lady I'm not too crazy about.

I started Jasmine over the summer, and as I mentioned in a previous post it was intended for a friend's daughter's birthday. Well, said birthday is Sept. 27 and although I have only about a week to get it finished and framed, I just can't get into it. I suppose I'll force myself, otherwise it'll be sitting around for another year.

And here is the final lady who's giving me fits, Mary w.

I still love this project but the vastness of it is overwhelming sometimes. This is why I so admire those of you who tackle HAEDs or the like that take years to complete. Anyway, I did decide on a recipient for it, which will hope will keep me on track. I plan to change "Ackworth School" to the name of my kids' school and gift it to said school when they graduate. We will have been at the school for about 13 years by the time my youngest graduates from 8th grade, and they love the school (originally a Quaker school when it was founded many years ago) so I figured it might be a good "thank you". Or, I'll finish it and stuff it in a drawer to be company for my numerous other finishes.

Speaking of finishes, and since I am very wordy today, I thought I would show a few of my finished finishes. Sometimes these things sit around for years before I decide what to do with them, but this week I completed some older pieces...

I found these small unfinished wood trays at Michaels, painted or stained them and fitted a few smalls inside. These are now in my kitchen. Finally, I stuffed Ida Mae Crow (the Goode Huswife) which I stitched at the beginning of the year into the top of my floss storage box.

For those who have managed to stay awake this long, happy stitching! Thanks in advance for comments, I do appreciate them.

back from vacation and I need a stash diet

2009-09-03T15:50:00.000-07:00

Well we are back from Amish country where it was green, cool, crisp, autumnal and generally very lovely, and arrived in California to 100+ degree heat and wildfires. Woohoo!

We saw lots of farms and barns in various states of repair, covered bridges many beautiful old stone and brick houses....

tons and tons of corn...

and even some of these...

O.K, the tiger was in the Philadelphia zoo, not roaming the countryside.

But one of the best parts of the trip (for me, not so much for the kids) was discovering a truly fantastic stitch shop and blowing my budget there--Stitch N'Stuff in Reading (http://www.stitchnstuffpa.com/). Tons of charts, fabric, floss of all kinds, gorgeous models on the walls. I said goodbye to my self-control and bought..

Of course I had to start some Halloween stuff. I finished a few smalls, including one which I made using some of the Carrie's floss received in the recent exchange,

and started some others.

.

Now I am overwhelmed with projects (like I wasn't beforehand). Of course, since I got back home, my stitching time is virtually nonexistent. I am going to try to plow through the majority of these projects-and revisit my neglected WIP's-before I spend again. If I forget, please reach through the computer and slap me!

I leave you with a picture of this handsome guy who is 10 years old today. Love you Gabriel!

Happy Stitching until next time.

it's halloweeeen!

2009-08-13T06:09:00.000-07:00

OK not really. But by mid-August, in addition to beginning my Halloween stitching, I drag out my boxes of fall and spooky decorations. The kids are into it and DH just looks and me and shakes his head, at which point we all remind him that the Great Pumpkin is going to leave him nothing again.

I haven't actually done any Halloween stitching yet, though I have plenty, since I'm saving it for vacation in a few days' time--the kids and I are leaving the land of brush fires and strip malls and spending a few weeks in quaint and idyllic Amish country with the grandparents. The only problem with this (for me anyway) is the 5 + hour flight. Ah, flying--the joys of (simultaneously) attempting to be calm and reassuring to an 11-year-old who has expressed concerns as to the safety of air travel, and mentally cussing out the flight attendant who is taking FOR-EVER to make it down the aisle with the cart of alco-beverages.

Aside from planning what to stitch, I have done some actual stitching. I finished a piece for an exchange and put a few (very few) stitches into my Mary Wigham. Still on Part 1 of 9. I have resigned myself to the fact that I will probably be the last person on the planet to finish this project.

Sibley Hall is limping along--actually not too far from completion. I just have to finish the alien-looking sheep creatures on the lawn.

I even took out the Carriage House creatures, two of my older WIPs, Frederick and Spot the Horse, thinking that I might actually fnish something before we leave, but it was not to be.

I also wanted to show off what I received in a floss exchange on ILCS from Lisa. These are Carrie's Creation threads--I had never used them before but they are beautiful. I love getting stuff in the mail!

And lastly, but cetainly not leastly, I felt the urge to brag on my DD a bit. She is exhibiting some of her artwork at her school tomorrow. I think she does pretty well for a kid still a few months shy of her 12th birthday.

I don't think I'll be blogging for a while...I'll be lucky if I can beg for a few minutes on my nephew's computer to check e-mail. I do appreciate everyone's comments though, they inspire me to keep stitching. Until next time!

successes, failures & new starts

2009-07-29T06:21:00.000-07:00

I suppose I'll start with the successes since it'll make me seem

more, uh, successful. To begin with, I managed to finish my dragon, who will now take up residence in my "finished but unfinished" drawer (which is kinda full) until October when he will be framed for my friend's birthday.

And since every finish deserves (at least) one start, I dug into my recently acquired stash pile for this goodie by one of my new

favorite designers, Stacy Nash. Despite my somewhat limited sewing skills I am going to attempt a scissors pouch with this one, picture to be posted later if everyone promises not to laugh. I need to improve my finish skills since I signed up for the LHN exchange which Kathy K. mentioned on her blog.

Of course, since this was a quick stitch, I had to start something

else (I can justify ignoring my WIPs since these are small pieces and don't really count). This is Sibley Hall by The Goode Huswife, another one of my favorites. I went on a Goode Huswife buying spree a few years ago so I figured I might as well actually stitch some of the charts (I know, novel concept...).

Last but not least, here is a picture of the adorable ornie I received in an exchange for the ILCS Yahoo group, done by Debbie B. It is much cuter than my lousy picture shows.

On to the failures. Here is the first, the Brooke Nolan angel from

Just Cross Stitch. I took this along with me to work on in the car while waiting to pick up the kiddies from school, but forgot the pattern, and decided to trim around her for something to do...well, I overtrimmed. No room now for her little hand on the one side. I am sure there is a solution for this problem but I don't know what it is right now, so she's going in the WAL (worry about later) drawer.

And this is my final failure (at least in the cross-stitch realm) of the week

--my first attempt at a homemade fabric dye. I'm not sure if the picture shows how neon-y yellow it is. I found a recipe on the web for a turmeric dye, which did NOT mention how very bright the yellow would be; I tried to tone it down a bit with tea, then coffee, and ended up throwing in a little bit of just about everything in the kitchen. Quite a witches' brew and a lovely smell too, believe me. I guess it might be usable for a Halloween piece, or I might develop a taste for neon colors, who knows.

I guess that's it for a while. Thanks all for the lovely comments.

on the bandwagon

2009-07-15T06:00:00.000-07:00

Well I am finally on the Mary Wigham bandwagon. Barely on, as you can see, but still on. I decided just to grab colors I liked and ended up will a very fall-like palate. Hope it turns out OK. When I showed this project to DD, her reaction was "well if you can do something that big, why can't you start Hawk Run Hollow?" She was with me when I picked up HRH (Village of) last year and really liked the pattern, but I have had many excused why I can't do something that large. So I guess maybe when I finish this

BAP, whenever that may be, HRH will be my next BAP. Anyone want to do it with me? I feel as though I need moral support so it doesn't turn into a UFO...

I am determined to get at least two WIPs out of the way this month, since fall is coming and there are pumpkins to be stitched. I put in a few days' hard labor on my pixie/fairy/whatever she is supposed to be and she looks more like a pixie/fairy and less like a green and white blob.

This was my first Nora Corbett pattern and I can say without fear of contradiction, my last! It is pretty and I am sure it will be nice when it's done, but--backstitching and fractional stitches and beading, oh my! All the things I hate. After this I will run happily back to my quakers and such.

I also made a little bit of progress on my Spirit of America angel, who will be finished I think as more of a colonial lady as I am not doing the wings.

The only recent "new" project was an Christmas ornament for an exchange which I have been fussing over and hopefully will not be late, as it is being mailed a day later than anticipated.

This I started last winter as an ornie for one of the kids' teachers but I ran out of time/energy and never finished it. I was quite proud (and somewhat amazed) that I was able to find not only the unfinished ornie, but the pattern and floss after seven months. Hopefully the recipient will like it.

That's about all for this week. Hope everyone is well and getting lots of stitchy time. Comments appreciated as always!

I have been bad

2009-06-28T07:00:00.000-07:00

I realize that I definitely suffer from attention deficit disorder when it comes to stitching. I decided that since there was no way I was going to finish my dragon by the end of June as I had planned (though I have made some progress on him...)

I might as well throw aside all my WIPs and start some new projects. First is this cute patriotic freebie . I did this on coffee-dyed Aida. Sorry for the craptastic picture (here and elsewhere). I do have a decent camera, I'm just a lousy photographer.

I then finished it as a box top using an unfinished small box which I stained, painted white and then sanded. I like prim/antique stuff, can you tell?

I think I have a thing for little boxes. Here is another one which I did previously--the design is the Goode Huswife's Nine Patch Pincushion.

I then I embarked on another freebie, Coffin Buzz from Plum Street Samplers.

I had wanted to do this one for some time since I am pretty much known for being nonfunctional until I take in at least two cups of coffee. My DD's friend wrote in her yearbook, "I guess I'll see you at Starbucks this summer..."

I finally found a copy of the Just Cross Stitch issue with the Christmas ornies but the thing I liked the most was the patriotic angel stitched on perforated paper which I am working on currently, but I am only a few dozen stitches into it so really not worth a picture.

Summer has arrived and it is hot and miserable. The only thing I like about the entire season, aside from the 4th of July, is my garden and having homegrown tomatoes. After the 4th, I will be counting down the days until fall arrives!

I am still patiently (not) waiting for my Silkweavers order so I can start Mary Wigham. I was not crazy about the recommended colors so I decided to do MW in various shades of blue, brown & gray.

Lastly, here is my baby Cody wondering why I am outside taking pictures first thing in the morning.

Have a good holiday and keep cool everyone! Thanks again for all the nice comments!

mailman sabotaged me

2009-06-23T06:43:00.000-07:00

I have decided that I have to stay off of eBay as I am becoming a compulsive chart buyer. After my last post I was determined to finish at least one WIP but then one of my new purchases arrived in the mail and I couldn't resist starting it...in fact I did not work on anything else this past week. Here it is... This will be a present for my friend's daughter's first birthday.

This is what I have been working on the past few afternoons. I decided that I needed a new place to put my overflow stash so I found an unfinished crate with drawers at Michael's, stained it a dark walnut and painted the insides of the drawers and stenciled a few stars on it. This is how it turned out.

Since I have no more stitchy stuff to share, some pics of my overgrown garden...

By the way, I really appreciate everyone's comments on this blog and on the group. Hope you all have a good week!

First Post!

2009-06-15T06:11:00.000-07:00

Well here it is, I have finally started a blog. I was inspired by reading all the terrific blogs on the ILCS Yahoo group so I figured I would find out if anyone could follow my disjointed ramblings.

Late last week I finished Moonlit Garden. It was a really quick stitch, as I think it's a very cute pattern and I had been looking for it for a long time. It is above...

Also this weekend I started Jasmine by Nora Corbett, one of her pixie series. I don't really have much to show yet--it's a fussy little piece with lots of beads and such so I didn't get too far. I am usually not much into fairies and pixies but this is a birthday present for my daughter's BFF, who is still very much a fairy princess even though she is turning 12 (*rolls eyes*).

Still waiting for my order from Silkweavers so I can start Mary Wigham. The third part is coming out this week so I'm really getting behind.

Besides that I have to put some stitches in my dragon--I want to finish him by the end of the month so I can enter him in a contest. Unfortunately this is the Longest Week of the Year--the week in between the end of the school year and the start of summer school--and I will have the kiddies with me the whole time so might not get much done.