Good Morning World!

Gee… I don’t know why I sound so excited this morning… it’s overcast and looks kind of chilly!  Oh well… maybe I’m being optimistic?  lol

I just wanted to share what I’m working on right now.  It’s Just for Today by Primitive Traditions.  I think it’s really coming along!  Here is my progress:

 

and this is what it’s going to grow up to be…

 

I really loved the verse on it.  Right now I’m struggling with am I going to keep it or give it away as a Christmas present…. I keep going back and forth.  :sigh:  I guess we’ll find out once it’s done, right?

Anyway, I hope that you have a wonderful day and I’ll catch up with you again soon!

 

Rose Garden by Blackbird Designs

New Digs! August WIPocalypse Update

Hi everyone!  I think I have found a home… I’m going to use this space for all of my updates and cross stitchy stuff.

First off – I really hate that Multiply has booted us from the space.  I get that they want to move in a different direction with there site, but how many people are they disrupting to do that?  Way too many for my comfort…

Anyway, enough of ranting – it won’t change anything, so let’s just move on….

I haven’t been doing tons of stitching this month.  Mainly it was just during my lunch hour at work.  BUT I have made progress on a small piece.  I’ve been working on the Rose Garden by Blackbird Designs.

First let me show you where I started this month…

Yep… pretty basic.  I have been in love with this little design for longer than I can remember.  So finally on one of my recent excursions with my Sister, Laura, I decided to give in to temptation.  This sweet little design came home for good.

So, I started working on the border and laying out how I wanted the piece to flow.  You can’t really see from this picture, but there are initials on the left border and the year on the right.

Well, during our weekly Thursday night stitching at the Library, Laura and I plotted my initials (NCN) and I put them in.  Loved them! I continued with the border and worked my way around to the date.  Now… what date to add…. did I just want to use the current year?  or was there a date that was important to me?

As I pondered this, I came to the conclusion that I wanted to make this a remembrance piece for my Mother who passed a few years ago.  But again, what date?  Her birth?  her death?  what?  I finally settled on her birth year and worked that into my piece.

Suddenly, my initials looked out of place!  Now what was I going to do?  I know!  I’ll swap my initials for my Mothers!  But I needed a plan of action… her initials were quite different from mine – NCN for MAP – how was this going to work?

As I started comparing the designs for each letter, I discovered a very simple solution.  I was able to alter my Ns for her M and P by only removing a couple of stitches!  And since the C and the A were completely different, the C had to come out completely.  So, the next weekend, I sat down with my trusty scissors and clipped the thread in the middle of the C.  One would think that part of the floss would move back up the design and the other would move down the design…  just my luck, they didn’t!  The both started moving down!  Now how in the world did I actually stitch that letter????  I held my breath and kept picking and suddenly one strand jumped to the top!  Success!  My plan was working… finally!

Here is my progress to date.

I am very pleased with the results and have been happily stitching ever since.

So.. until next time…. happy stitching!

July WIPocalypse

Hello!  This has been quite a month!  I spent the majority of the time getting ready for a visit from my brother and new SIL!  We had the absolute best time laughing and joking.  It was a wonderful visit and I missed them as soon as the left my driveway.    We’re already planning to visit them during the Christmas break.  That seems like forever away, but it will be here quickly!

While they were here, we had a girl’s day out and went to The Sunflower Seed in Topeka and then on to Heart’s Desire in Wichita, KS.  Sue Ellen has been cursing us ever since because she bought some Hardanger and just can’t seem to put it down!  And of course I had to buy several things while I was there too!

I finally gave in and bought Poinsettia House!  I look at it every time I’m in the store and always seem to put it back.  Well, not this time!  It came home with me!  I can’t wait to kit it up and start working on it!

I also purchased The Rose Garden by Blackbird Designs.  It’s another one that I’ve looked at for ages.  I love it so much that I actually came home and immediately kitted it.  Here is how I’m going to stitch it…   pale pink evenweave and rose floss.  I think it will be really pretty once it’s all done.

Last weekend, the LNS – CC & Company, had a JBW Trunk Show.  It was really fun and there were several new designs.  I picked up Autumn Harvest.  They had it stitched up as an orny and it was really cute!  I’m not sure how I will finish it, but it should be a fun stitch!

I also found this Erica Michael’s that I thought was too cute to leave behind! I was really drawn to how quiet the piece felt.  So, it went in the bag too!

Then the last purchase was the first part of the new Lizzie Kate Mystery Sampler!  It looks like it is going to be great fun to stitch!  So, now I have to find a piece of fabric and collect the flosses so I can get started!  Spooky!!!  And the freebie she included is too sweet!  It should take about a minute to stitch!  (my kind of stitching for sure!)

Now on to what I actually STITCHED this month!  like I said… didn’t have a lot of time getting ready for the visit, but I did manage to complete the first page of Barnwood Buttons!  Yeah Me!  I’m going to have to rotate it with something else because I’m finding that I’m getting bored with all the white….  boo!  I really LOVE this design and am anxious to get it done.

But maybe the white issue was because I’ve also been working on my Round Robin and of course the part that I’m stitching is….. you guessed it!  WHITE!    LOL!   I’m working on the dove… can you see it starting to emerge?  I’ve got to get busy and finish her up so she can fly on to the next stop on her travels.

That’s about it for the month!  I hope you enjoyed my update.  You have a wonderful month of stitching and I’ll catch up with you again soon!

Bye for now!

June 4th WIPocalypse

Ok!  Only a few days behind this month.  YEAH ME!
For some reason, May was one of those harder months for me.  I was sick a couple of times, had a migraine, and just didn’t feel like doing anything for more days than not.  Then in the midst of all this, I was working towards completing my first piece of fiction and entering into a contest through Hay House / Balboa Publishing.  The deadline was June 1st and I made it!  I’m so excited.  Everyone please keep me in your thoughts with the hope that I come out as the first place winner! 

Even through all of that, I somehow managed to get in a couple of finishes in May.

The first was the Rosewood Manor freebie.  I’m really loving these little patterns.  They seem to all flow together really well.  I’ve got 5 designs so far – 1 was finished in 2011 and then the two so far this year.  As I was stitching the center section on this month’s finish, I worked the same color around the wheel.  At several points, it looked more like a Mandala than a sampler!  I think it turned out pretty nice!  The blackwork really shines, in my humble opinion.

Now just so you get some idea of what I’m working towards, I thought I might show you all of the samplers that I’ve completed so far.

This is the first one that I finished in 2011:

One of my brother’s favorite flowers was the Iris, so this was a really nice piece for me to stitch.

  and here is the 2nd one that I finished last month.  Love that little bird!

Then, just so you can see how these are all going together, here is a picture of the group of 4 that will be done this year for the WIPocalypse:   As you can see, I’ve finished the bottom 2 in this group and have the top 2 to go.  I’m currently working on the one on the right.  This should make a really nice grouping once they’re all done and framed alike.  One nice feature of the designs is that Karen uses nearly all the same colors.  So as I get others from Rosewood, I’ll be able to add them to the grouping without any problem!

The other piece that I worked on was a really quick little Christmas design.  I’m going to make it into a small banner with a rod and tassel.

Isn’t it sweet?

That’s just about it for the month!  Like I said…. it’s been a slow one, but at least I have a couple of things finished!

I hope that you have a wonderful month stitching!

May WIPocalypse

WOW!  This took me nearly a month to figure out how to get my pictures in again!  I was handling it exactly like I always have, but for some reason this month Multiply decided that wouldn’t work!  So finally in the middle of the night last night, I thought of a different way and voila!  Worked perfect! So now for your reading enjoyment… my May update.

This one is going to be short, but sweet since I really don’t remember much about the last month at this late date!  BUT I do know that I worked on my first ever Round Robin and got it sent off to the next person in line – Deanna!  Hopefully there weren’t too many “specialty fibers” included!    meow!  This is where I left it for the balance of the group to work on:

Then, I did finally have a finish!  This is the first one is THREE months!  I was really starting to panic because I counted up what I want to accomplish on this WIPocalypse and realized that I needed to finish SEVEN projects this month, just to catch up!  Well….I now know that this is an unrealistic goal and will just have to accept that I won’t be finished with what I planned by the end of 2012…..unless some miracle occurs that is!!!!

So this is my finish for May.  This is a freebie from Rosewood Manor.  I’ve got 5 of these that I’m working on to make a set.  Since they are all finished very similarly, I decided to change this one up just a bit by breaking the top border and adding a flower from the design below.  It’s really the only one that focuses on the alphabet running across the entire piece and the sweet little bird, so I thought it warranted some special treatment.  I really like how this turned out.  All of these samplers that Karen has put out are just so delicate and sweet.  My next one has a lot of blackwork on it that really makes it pop.  I can hardly wait to show it to you!  Ah… but I have to save that for next month!

One of my friends challenged me to enter a fictional writing contest, so I took her up on it!  I’ve been furiously writing over the last couple of months and am almost to the finish… I better be because the deadline for entries is June 1st!  So, everyone please keep your fingers crossed for me in hopes that I win!  Then we all can say….. I knew her when…. 

That’s all for May!  I’ll try to get back here in another couple of weeks and get the June update in on time!  But in the meantime, Happy Stitching!

April 6th WIPocalypse Update

yes… I know that it’s already April 14th, but I’ve been busy, ok?  

After the March update, Laura and I left for our mini-retreat and went to Abilene, KS.  We were there just 3 days, but it was so much fun that I would have stayed for 3 weeks!  I forgot my camera… again… so look for updates from Laura on our trip.  I think we travel well together… I’m the driver and she is the navigator.  Yes, we get lost sometimes because of our “differing” opinions, but at least we laugh and have a great time while we’re cruising through who knows where!  We’ll be planning more retreats, so maybe next time some of you can join us!

I did a lot of work on my TIG piece this month.  She moved from this….

to this…….

to this…….

and ended up the month here…..

I love how she has progressed, even though there was a LOT of frogging during the process.  I can’t tell you how many people at work have asked if I would just stop there and let them have her!  uh… NOT ON YOUR LIFE!  She’s mine and I can hardly wait to start working on the balance of her garden.

I also found a really cool hanger that I will use for her.  Naturally, it was discovered at Picture This Plus!    Isn’t it just perfect for this piece???

The second day of our retreat, we went to the coolest shop – Heart’s Desire in Wichita, KS.  It was filled to the brim with all sorts of patterns, but what was most impressive was that there were almost as many stitched samples to view!  Laura has some great pictures on her blog, so be sure to check those out.

So, being overstimulated like I was.. I purchased these little treats!

and even got the little watering can for the Sweet Nothing design!

They were really nice ladies there and we got these freebies to go with our purchases…

A sweet little birdie…

a companion piece to the Pink Tulip that I had stitched before!

and a really cute snowman with the floss!

Then earlier in the month, I received this piece from one of my on-line stitching buddies.  Isn’t it beautiful?

Lastly on the stitching front… I have started a RR piece that I will send off May 1st.  Here is where I am today… 

I had actually finished the 1 – 6 and the N by the Full Moon, so that is what I’m counting for this update.  The balance has been worked on throughout the month.  I just have one more motif to add on the right and the entire bottom is complete, sans border.  I really like the elegance of the letters and am looking forward to seeing this completed over the next couple of months.

Outside of these, I worked on updating my dining room, which you can see on my other blog.  Oh you can also see the beautiful tablecloth that I got for $7 at an antique store while on our retreat!

I also sent out one of my pieces for framing…. not sure if I’m happy with it, but here it is….

I think that is all for now… Whew!  This has been a long one.  I think I covered everything that’s been going on in my stitching world…  I thank you for spending some time with me and hope that you have a wonderful month with your projects!

Brightest Blessings!!!

March WIPocalypse Update

Oops!  I’m a little late… but hey!  Better late than never!  right???  😉  I’ve been busy since the February post and have a lot to report on.

First, Laura and I finished our sampler and made it to our big brother’s wedding just in the nick of time.  We presented our present during rehearsal and were very pleased with the excitement and pleasure that our new Sister-In-Law showed.  And who would have known??? She’s a stitcher too!  YES!  Perfect family fit!

We don’t have a picture of the completed project yet because we didn’t even think to take one before we gave it to them!  Can you believe that???  So, we’re waiting for them to come back home after their honeymoon and snap one for us.  I’ll post it as soon as we get it.  Here is a picture without the frame.

Next, I made myself sit down and finish up Samurai by Fire Wing Designs.

As you know, it was a Christmas gift for my son, Eric.  The reaction that I got from him was priceless and I would struggle through that dark fabric and floss again if I knew that was going to be the response.  Here it is proudly hanging on his wall….

Next, I got busy and happily stitched my way through All Our Troubles by La-D-Da.  I started this on the plane to Texas and worked on it some while visiting there.  But the bulk of it was done once I made it back home.  I really loved watching all the colors play off each other and the shading of the flosses as they moved through the little blue bird.  I’m in the process of framing now.  It still needs a bit of straightening and then it will be ready for the wall.  Ta! Da!

I really loved working on this one.  And it makes my second finish from my WIPocalypse list, and my fourth finish this year!  YES!  I like these odds!  This means that I should be right on track to finish my list this year as planned.  =]

Next, I started working on Family Treasures III by Told in a Garden. 

I’ve just barely got it going, but it’s there!  I plan on working on it all month, checking my progress, and then deciding if I want to finish it out or put it back for a bit in favor of moving to something smaller.  You’ll have to check back next time to see what I decide.  Here’s what I’ve accomplished so far….can you see the ironwork of the arch?

Next Thursday, Laura and I are traveling to Abilene, KS for a mini-retreat for ourselves!  We’ve booked a room in an old Victorian B&B and will spend a few days roaming the town and haunting our favorite store – Picture This Plus!  We will be on fabric and floss overload by the time we hit the road home.  I can hardly wait!

At the beginning of April, I will begin my first ever Round Robin.  YEAH!  So, whatever I’m working on, I’ll stop and get my project going for that group.  This should be fun and it will be really nice to be able to share my quickly growing love of cross stitch with Laura and Deanna.  I just hope that my stitching will measure up.

I think that is pretty much all for now.  I thank you for taking the time to read my post and hope that you have a happy and successful month of stitching!  Bye for now!  🙂

Quick Update – posted 03/01/12

Ok… This is what I’ve been working on this month – “All Our Troubles”.    I’m about halfway through the little bird….  =]

Guess Who’s Playing Bunco! – posted 02/25/12

Laura and I spent last Thursday evening at the local Community Center and learned a new way to while away the hours…. BUNCO!  Actually…. if any of you have ever played, then you know this is not a slow and easy game…it’s fast and furious!  And those old ladies can be really cutthroat!  

We loved it though and soon enough were almost able to take on the crowd.

But you had to grab your dice quick or they would rip them off the table before you could even see what you got!  (it reminded me of playing Yatzee with our Mom!)

We had a wonderful time, but were starving by the time we got done.  We were there for 3 hours!  We hit Jose Peppers afterwards for a nice meal and then home to bed.

If you haven’t tried the game, I would highly suggest it.  It’s a really fun way to spend your time.  Well, until later …..  and don’t forget to yell when you hit the BUNCO!