2nd Tis the Season update

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Good Saturday morning, friends! 

This weekend for me will be like much others, busy, running around, grocery, checking in with family, laundry and then back to work, but I've pledged to find some time to work on Tis the Season today.  Some days throughout the week, I'm so wiped out by 6p that I can't concentrate well enough to pick it up.  So, to make up for that, I'm just going to have to find more stitching time on the weekends!  Or else I'll be working on this piece come NEXT Christmas!

I'm still enjoying stitching with the single strand of silk, but I'm wondering if the cardinal is starting to look a little thin?  I shouldn't worry too much about it now b/c I'm certainly not going to take it out and restitch with 2 strands.  The color I selected is Strawberry Shortcake instead of the called for Poison Apple.  I like a really red cardinal and Poison Apple was much too sun-baked for my liking.

Now for my crisis of the day.  The online photo editor I've used for years (and swear by) PICNIK, is closing in April!  Do many of you also use Picnik?  I honestly adore it compared to other photo editors I've tried.  I'll be lost without it.  It's so easy to use and offers me all the functions I could ever want.  Boo. Hoo!   I'd really appreciate any suggestions for a "you-don't-have-to-be-a-geek-to-use-it" photo editor. 

And with that, it's time to walk to d.o.g.

Happy stitching,

Tis the Season progress

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I'm happy to report that I spent a large part of MLK holiday on my rump, working on Tis the Season.  It's being worked on 32 ct. linen with Belle Soie silks, one ply over two.  I generally think one ply over two on 32 count is too sparse (especially with solid color blocks) but I think this is coming out well. 

What do you think?

Blackbird Designs

This little cheerful piece has helped me find my stitching groove again.  While the enthusiasm is still gurgling, I'm going to hop off the computer and settle in for the evening.

Happy Stitching Friends,

Round tuit

Yesterday, I found my 'round tuit' and whipped up a batch of suet for the birds.  They've hung around the deck today much more than normal so they must have missed it.  The cardinals are still learning to trust my back deck as a safe feeding ground so I was excited to catch this one sneaking in for a snack.

I think he has given me the inspiration to start my first new project for 2012: 

Tis the Season by Blackbird Designs

A quick stash search reveals that I only have one of the 8 Belle Soie colours required, so I might be off to my LNS a little later today.

However you spend your day, here's hoping it's peaceful and warm!

Tea in January

HAPPY NEW YEAR, FRIENDS!

I hope this post finds everyone healthy and happy in 2012.   Considering that my last post was in October, I'd love to show and tell you tales of all the stitching that has been happening since then, but sadly, I haven't even made enough progress on Pinecones since then to share an update.  In December, hubby and I took a quick 3 day trip to Columbus OH to see Andrea Bocelli in concert (swoon) and cruise the Winter Fest fabulous art festival.  While I didn't snag anything worth bragging about, I always enjoy walking the aisles and aisles of beautiful hand crafted wares.  We also darted away for another three day trip to visit family in NC.  The rest of the year was just a blur. 

Today is the official Packing-away-of-all-remnants-of-Christmas Day at my house.  I hate to put away the dishes and nativity.  They are always the last to go.  Just to prolong it a bit, I'm blogging about it whilst enjoying a cup of very special tea.  I've never tasted a tea exactly like it except for the first time I enjoyed it back in May.  It is one of the signature teas served at the historic Caffe Florian on the magnificent St. Mark's plaza in magical Venice, Italy. 

(Warning:  memory lane straight ahead)

Setting:  St. Mark's Plaza, Venice Italy
Circa:  May, 2011
Subject:  Taking tea with hubby

For starters, hubby doesn't drink tea.  So, everytime we visit a place with a tea room of particular note, he knows he will be persuaded to join me for the 'experience', as he calls it.  He's a great sport and even acts like he doesn't mind (plus they sell Coke everywhere).

salmon quiche and aperitif for me, club sandwich and Coke for hubby

Since it was late afternoon and we were quite hungry, we skipped the scones and went straight for the heavy stuff.  After lunch, I couldn't leave until I had tried their tea.  Can't come all the way to the Caffe Florian and not have a cuppa!  You might be thinking Italy is all about espresso, which was true, except for the treasure trove of teas at the Florian.

From their marvelous tea menu, I selected one they called Te Mosaico Veneziano and it was stunningly brilliant.  A black tea with orange rind and lavender flowers.  I couldn't resist bringing home a small box of beautifully presented silk bags of this tea.  Which brings me to the present.  It may not be May and I'm definitely not sitting in the sun on the plaza of the oldest caffe in Italy listening to the orchestra, but the tea is just as brilliant as it was then.

Now, enough of that!  Back to reality and off to the packing with me.

Happy Stitching friends!

Pinecone Update and Retreat Report

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Hello Friends.  I'm back from Retreat and feeling lazy.  REALLY Lazy!  Must be the time of year but all I find myself wanting to do lately is lay around and watch the leaves turn color. 

Retreat was wonderful, as always.  Packed room with good friends, food and enough stitching to sink a battleship.  Instead of taking three projects (one per day), like my normal, I only took Pinecones.  Mainly because I was too lazy to pack more than one project but also because I wanted to get moving with this piece.  My goal was to have it finished and framed by now, but ...  (see lazy remarks above).

Gathering Pinecones

Hillside Samplings

The missing pinecone (in the 2nd position from left) was fly stitched and finished at one point but ended up twice as long as it was supposed to be sooooo out she had to come.  I'm talking to myself about starting it again.  It could be awhile...

Funny how I was drawn to all the specialty stitches in this piece but am not so sure about all of them now.  My lighting has to be just right and I still find myself squinting to get all the over-one stuff just right.  Once I finish the fly stitch pinecone, I might have to put it down for a solely cross stitch ornament, or something else along the easy lines.  Like I said, I've been in lazy mode for awhile...

In closing, let me share my Christmas cactus with you.  It's decided to bloom early this year:

Happy stitching to you, wherever you are...

taking 5

Have you ever just needed to take 5?  Or 10?  I sure have.  As I sit writing this I am reflecting on a summer that literally passed me by.  I am not sure what I was doing that was so important but I missed summer 2011 altogether.  The winds of fall are blowing with a little sprinkle in the air today and already making my bones ache a bit.  Lord I dread winter. 

I haven't had much time for personal creativity this past month due to setting the program for my chapter on Monday.  The prep work that goes into these programs can be all consuming.  I bow down to all you program chiefs out there.  I don't know how you do it from month to month to month.  All hail Education VPs!

And, lastly, I will shortly return to prepping the budget for my EGA chapter next year.  I can honestly say that I will NEVER never NEVER volunteer to be treasurer for any organization ever again after learning how much work it is for even my small chapter.  All hail Treasurers of the world!  After October, I'll have two more months of treasuring to look forward to before some other lucky duck gets to take over. 

Well that's my 5 kiddos.  I hope this finds you all well and tucked in somewhere stitching.  I'll be on retreat next weekend with the girls so I'll plan to update you on that in about two weeks.

Take Care!

Patriot Day 2011

It's been two months since I've posted and considering today's date, I considered not posting, remaining silent in observation.  Then, on the way back from church, I heard someone on the radio comment that the best thing we all can do for our country in these times is to do exactly what you would have done naturally, in rememberance of 9-11.  So, it's Sunday afternoon.  I've worshipped, eaten and now I'll blog while listening to the sounds of football in the background. 

:-)

And, I have two really good reasons to write today.  I actually have not one but two finishes to share!!  Incredible, I know. 

#1)  I have shared before, but now I have all (read that again, slowly.... A.L.L.) the finishing completed.  Since the stitching was finished a while back, it only qualifies as a finish-finish but I couldn't be happier.  Of course, it is the GPA stitching slipper that I began way back when.. and have blogged about a time or two (or four)

scissors case, fob, thread board, tassel and slipper

tufted slipper base

slipper 'rear-end' with carved burgundy button (THANK YOU GIULIA!!!)

felt needle page between slipper layers

You may be able to see the small cording finishing the edges of the slipper top and bottom.  I would be pulling your leg if I told you this was a quick finish.  It was not.  But, it might just be my new favorite stitching set.  Which brings me to my next finish to share..

I started and finished the Quaker pin cube that I've been threatening to start for like EVER.  I filled it with crushed walnut shells so it acts like a paperweight too.  I love Love LOVE it for several reasons but the primary reason is that it is red (and it's three dimensional, and it's Quaker and..)  Don't you simply adore stitching with red thread?  Last week, as I was trying to finish stitching this little pretty and thinking to myself (over and over again) how much I enjoy stitching with red, the Sunday message was about the city of Jericho and Rahab and the red cord that spared her house.  Funny how things just seem to "sync up", sometimes. Maybe I love stitching with red so much because it reminds me of how love is the red thread that flows through everything that is good.   

Quaker pin cube stitched with random overdyed red from stash

Around the house, the table is sporting her fall colours now.  I had the pleasure of having family visit recently so I added the second leaf to the table and two more place settings to make sure everyone had a seat at the table.  It's such a joy to have a table full of family and love...  Don't you agree?

Lately, I've found myself being grateful for everything (large and small) more than normal.  I was even grateful when I discovered that if you press a half melted Milk Dud (because I left them in a hot car by accident) together with a peanut M&M, it turns out to be nearly perfect.  Next time you need a little ooey-gooey perfect party in your mouth, try warming up a Milk Dud -or two- and stick them to a peanut M&M -or two. 

Trust me - it's allllllllll good!!!

And lastly, I leave you with a picture of hope.  It is of a bird house build with love by hubby and just mounted to the tree yesterday.  We hope a couple of happy little lovebirds find it and call it home soon.

So, until next time friends.. hope you enjoy every minute of these beautiful fall days.  Jingle bells will be ringing before we know it!

Pinecone Progress

I have something to tell you, and you should sit down to hear it.  I wouldn't want anyone to pass out with shock...

I've picked up Gathering Pinecones to see if it's possible to finish it  and have it framed before September.  Wouldn't THAT be exciting???  FRAMING!!!!  Can't remember the last time I proudly waltzed a finished piece of needlework in to the framer.

I love these little Cretan stitch pinecones in the border:

They look a little funny without their tops on, but don't we all?

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Hope you all are sneaking in some stitchin' this beautiful sunny Sunday afternoon.

***

Hugs,

4th of July 'round the house

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Happy Birthday, USA!

A few things I'm thankful for:

• I am so thankful today for all the past, present and future uniformed service men and women who work, fight and die to protect my freedom. 
• I am thankful for the founding fathers and their infinite wisdom. 
• I am thankful for every teacher who leads her classroom in the Pledge of Allegiance. 
• I am thankful for our government leaders and their quest to do what is best for my country.  
• I am thankful for my pocket sized Constitution of the United States of America.  If it's been awhile since you looked over the Constitution, click HERE.   In the current political atmosphere, the word "unconstitutional" seems to come up frequently.  It helps to understand what IS constitutional in order to better understand what is NOT constitutional (aka "unconstitutional"). 
• I am thankful too for my freedom of speech.  I can not imagine living in a world without it.



I am also thankful to have marked many pesky little jobs off my "To Do" list lately.

Like finding napkins, tablecloth and silverware to match new dishes...

(better match in real life)

Making time to get a flower arrangement made for a special vase...

Having a lightening bolt of a great idea for organizing my espresso cups in the kitchen...

Finding appropriate frames for about 20 little pictures...

Hanging the pillow shams (I shared here several months ago) in my stitching room...

Finding an affordable, comfortable, attractive desk chair for my office nook...

!!!!!!!!!!!YAY!!!!!!!!!!

Nothing is quite as good for my mental health as wiping out an extra long To Do list. 

Hope you are enjoying friends, family and a fine cook-out wherever you are.

Guess Who...

You know it's been awhile since you updated your blog when you log in and Blogger says, "Who?  I'm sorry.  No one by that name lives here."

My deepest apologies for dropping off the face of the planet, but two years worth of "I'll get to that later" caught up with me about a month ago.  It all started with "Honey, have you seen the lid to this bowl?".  Which precipitated the emptying out and re-organizing of the pantry.  I threw away tea I bought when I was in college... 20 years ago...

You've seen this movie, right?  The "Git 'r Done" high you get from cleaning out a small area makes you think you are Super Girl and should tackle the closets, junk drawers, laundry room, kitchen cabinets, garage, garden, deck, car and everything else that has been overtaken by "I don't have time to deal with this right now".  Well, yes...that's exactly what I've been doing for the last four weeks, in addition to working very long days, six days a week. 

The Virgo in me is proud to say that as I sit here blogging at something til 2 am, the laundry is caught up, every dish I own is clean, the plants are watered, the fam is fed, the garden has been tended, the decks have been swabbed, the sheets have been changed, the pictures have been framed, car has been washed, oil has been changed, hair will be cut, and on and on...  I'm ashamed to say how long it's taken me to get my round tuit. 

As you may know (if you've been here before), hubby and I were on vaycay all of May.  Then we have June (a.k.a. the month of "Wine and Roses") with Father's Day, Sister's Birthday, Hubby's Birthday and anniversary.  So, as you can imagine, between prepping for our trip, then the actual trip, then celebrating something different every third day, there has not been much time for blogging. 

However, for hubby and me, the Fourth of July is always the marker of the slower pace of summer.  Personally, I can't wait.  I've whittled my "To Do" list down to the bare nubbin's, and believe I can see some serious stitching time in my very near future. 

I know. 

I KEEP saying that. 

:-))

Happy Fourth, friends!