Saturday, November 14, 2009

"Button Tree" by The Drawn Thread

What a crafty day I have had! And it was a good crafty day, too...no frogs, no mistakes, no big headaches...everything went well. Gotta love that!


Over the last several days, I stitched The Drawn Thread's "Button Tree" for my mother-in-law. I didn't have just the right frame in my stash closet so decided to come up with another finishing idea which led me to my first flange pillow finish ever. Thanks to finishing instructions by Summer Louise Truswell in her book "Needlework from Stitch to Finish", here is the finished product:



I folded down the upper left corner for this picture so the coordinating fabric could be seen. The buttons are from a bunch of sewing stuff my mother-in-law gave to me that belonged to her deceased mother, so it has special sentimental value.

The other crafty thing I did today was make this no-sew double-sided fleece blanket for a friend's baby boy:

I made another one last week for the baby boy's twin sister but gave it to the family before I took a picture of it. Oh well, it's the same except the backing fleece is pink instead of blue.

Now I have the rest of the evening to go stitch and perhaps read a bit before going to sleep. We'll go to church in the morning for the first time in about four months so that should be refreshing. :)

Thanks for visiting and commenting. Happy stitching!

Sunday, November 8, 2009

Stitching pictures galore and more!

Thanks to everyone who has welcomed me back and posted kind words about me quitting my job. It's not a big deal at all, I promise! And I'm really okay with it. Trust me...this is a good thing. :)



So while I was absent from Bloggerland the past few months, I did manage to get some stitching done here and there. Wanna see some pics? If not then you'd better leave now 'cause here comes a ton of pictures! LOL



First, I finished "Repair Shop" by Stoney Creek, woo hoo! Here it is before it was finished-finished:




And then here it is on the hanger (please pardon my hideous wall that desperately needs some TLC):



Second, I stitched a Halloween fob from a Shepherd's Bush kit. Here is the front:



And the back:



Third, I was also able to finish the Heart in Hand "Words of Wisdom" patterns that I stitched over one on 32 count Belfast Summer Khaki linen with the recommended Weeks Dye Works and Gentle Art Sampler Threads. I also used my beloved OTT light and a wonderful magnifier. *hee hee* So here is the finished piece:



And here it is inserted into a photo-frame box that I purchased at Hobby Lobby (at 50% off, of course, which made it only $10.00!):





Last but not least, I stitched a needlebook for my mother. The front cover is taken from a freebie design by Novalee02 and I charted the wording/borders myself. Here is the front cover with the needlebook tied closed with a black grosgrain ribbon:




The inside of the front cover:



The middle of the inside with two needles inserted into the plain black wool felt:



The inside of the back cover:

And the back:



And hey, guess what?!?!?! Our little Gingher family has grown by two more members! Mia and Elena have joined us. Here is the whole family (minus the plain chrome pair sitting by my stitching area as we speak):

Whew, I told you there'd be a ton of pictures! Hope you've enjoyed taking a peek at my finishes over the last few months. I promise to not be such a stranger. :)

Happy stitching and may God touch each and every one of you in a very special way. *hugs*

Friday, November 6, 2009

I'm baaaaaack!

Okay, so this will be short and sweet but I just wanted to make a quick post to say "hi" to everyone. I quit my job (long story) but at least I will have time to be a real person again. *sigh of relief*

Maybe this weekend will find me uploading pics and roaming other people's blogs I haven't seen in ages...

Happy stitching and I'll "see" y'all soon! I promise -- pics will be included! :)))

Saturday, July 25, 2009

A picture and an update

Hello fellow stitching addicts! :-) Long time no see, eh? I've been working full-time the past month which has left me very little free time but I'm lovin' the paychecks! LOL

The stitching time that I've managed to get has all been spent on "Repair Shop" from the Stoney Creek magazine (October 2007). Here is the latest WIP picture:

Believe it or not, this is the only thing I have stitched on in the last month! Yep, that's right -- no new starts, no project-hopping...nothing! I've been a good girl. I'm dyyyyyyying to get "Repair Shop" finished to hang in my craft room -- which should (hopefully) happen within the next couple of weeks.

The new 911 dispatcher job is going great but I'm b-o-r-e-d with observing and reading stuff from manuals. It's a necessary part of training, I know, but this coming week should have me doing "real" stuff -- like answering calls and communicating with the officers over the radio. I'm pumped and ready!

Wishing everyone the best and lots of frog-free stitching time...bye for now!

Friday, June 26, 2009

Uh oh, another new start...

*sigh* I tried to talk myself out of it but I just couldn't. That old sewing machine I bought recently is to blame. Check out my new WIP (work-in-progress):



That is Stoney Creek's "Repair Shop" from their October 2007 magazine. The fabric is 28 count aged ecru hand-dyed fabric by Stoney Creek. I love it! Well, not the metallics. Ewwwwww! Thank goodness for Thread Heaven!

We have another new addition to my sewing/craft room. It's a Clark's spool cabinet. :) Okay, so it's not totally original but I don't care...we got a great deal! The top drawer is original and so is the cabinet shell...and I think the pulls are original, too. Regardless, I love it and think it's a great piece for my sewing/craft room. Now I just have to find two perfect chairs for either side of the cabinet:


And just for fun, here's a silly picture of Freddie checking out the drawers to my sewing machine cabinet while I had them out for cleaning:

Now for job news...I got the 911 dispatcher job! It's official -- I start Sunday at 6 AM. My schedule is 6 AM until 2 PM, Sunday through Thursday for the next 60 to 90 days while I'm in training. Our benefits will start September 1 (WOO HOO!) and the pay is higher than they advertised. (Can I get another WOO HOO?) Get this...my supervisor told me that he's been on the job 37 years and he scored my interview higher than any interview in his entire career! Yep, it's WOO HOO time again! *patting self on back*

Okay, so enough WOO HOO'ing for a moment...this will take away from my stitching time. *sniff, sniff, pout, pout* But I think it'll all be worth it. :) Also, I'm way behind on e-mails, responding to people who have been so wonderful to comment on this blog, and checking out other people's blogs. I'm sorry. Maybe I'll be in a routine soon and can catch up or at least check out what y'all have been doing on your blogs. Once I'm through training in 2 to 3 months, I can stitch and surf the internet while on the job when it's slow. (I'm trying to refrain from another WOO HOO!)

Meanwhile, count your blessings and keep the frog away from your stitching.

Thursday, June 18, 2009

Announcing the winner and introducing something new...

Hello everyone! I am so sorry for being a day late in drawing names for the Just Nan chart. The winner is...*drumroll*...Taffy! Woo hoo, congrats to Taffy! Thanks to everyone for the nice comments and entries. It's always fun to have drawings. :) Taffy, I'll e-mail you this evening with a request for your snail mail address.

Now I have to introduce everyone to the latest addition to my sewing/craft room. *another drumroll* Here it is:


HAH! You thought it was going to be another pair of Ginghers, didn't you! LOL!!! There it is in all it's glory...and I haven't even cleaned it up yet. It's a National Two Spool treadle sewing machine -- formerly Eldredge but bought out and manufactured by National. After some extensive Googling, the best information I can find so far is that it was manufactured between 1908 and the 1920's. As far as I can tell, it's only missing a presser foot, a leather belt, and a plate to cover the bottom spool housing. It may take me a long time but I want to get this thing up and running!

Here are two more pictures of it all settled in my room: (pardon the open mini-blinds -- the cat has just gotta see outside, donchaknow?!?!?)





We've just started redoing the back living room and totally converting into my craft room. I am so excited that I could just screeeeeeeeeeeeam! :))) More pictures to come later as we change things up.

In job news, I have an interview next Tuesday for the 911 dispatcher job. I've said my prayers and kept my mind open to any direction the Lord may or may not want me to go and all I sense is to just go for it. So I am. LOL

I'm working on getting my June stitching goals accomplished but doubt I will make them all. Oh well, it's fun trying. ;-)

Thanks again to everyone for checking out my blog. I really enjoy everyone else's blogs, too, and some of the recent comments have shown me some new blogs to check out which I will do soon.

Happy stitching!

Sunday, June 14, 2009

Heart in Hand's "Mothers Words of Wisdom"

I just spent the last few hours stitching "Say Your Prayers" on my Heart in Hand "Mother's Words of Wisdom" series. Just three more to go until it's complete -- woo hoo!


My stitching would have gone much quicker if it hadn't been for thunderstorms all around us (had to watch the severe weather updates) and eating (those pesky hunger pangs!) but it still went quickly.

Gotta run -- storms are still around! They just announced on the latest weather update that most of our town is without power. Yikes! We do have a generator if need be. Brad knows that I'll be a happy camper as long as I can stitch. LOL

Happy stitching and bye for now...

Just Nan's "Sparkling Iris" is finished and framed!


I was hoping to get this done yesterday but today is fine...at least it's done! Whew! I did a so-so job framing it but it works for me. LOL! It is stitched over two on 32 count Zweigart Periwinkle Prism Belfast Linen. I used plain ol' DMC floss and beads supplied in the chart pack. There are enough of the small white alabaster beads if someone wanted to stitch it again without the Swarovski crystals, soooooooo...I'm giving away the chart and leftover beads. If you're interested, just say so in your comment and leave your e-mail address so I can contact you if you win. Only comments on this post will be considered. I will draw a name on Wednesday, June 17, 2009, at 7 PM Central Time.

Hope everyone is having a relaxing Sunday. Happy stitching! :-)