Want to come stitch with me?

Hello fellow stitching/scissor/craft addicts! :-)

Next week, we will be having Thanksgiving at our house. Not only does this mean lots of family and friends coming over to eat or just visit, but it also means I have to clean the house super-duper good! Okay, so I don't really have to but my borderline OCD says I have to. Today I started with bathroom #3 (which is the smallest of the three) and my craft room (which is really a second living room but who cares, right?). Wanna see?

This is standing in the doorway of the room looking towards hubby's computer area (the desk on the left) and my computer/sewing/crafting area (the desk on the right), and the built-in bookshelves in the back (center) of the room:

The windows you see on the right are my garden/sun room. I did an excellent job of cleaning it out last week. That was one of those things that got terribly neglected while I was working. I got it all nice and neat...just in time for hubby and boys to pile firewood in there and make a mess exactly one day later. Oh well, after this post I will go sweep up the firewood bits that are on the floor. Besides, I think I'd rather have dry firewood and a nice, warm fire on a cold night when it's raining as opposed to no fire at all because the wood is outside in the rain. Don't you agree? Oh yeah - a real plus is that I didn't even have to help cut or haul the wood. So see? A little mess isn't all that bad. :)

Wait...did someone just ask a question? Ohhhhhhhh, okay...someone wants to see the shelves and cabinets up close. Well, here are the shelves:

And the cabinets below house much of my sewing stuff, like fabrics and patterns:

To the right is a doorway which leads to the little bathroom. Now isnt' that just too convenient? Ya' get all busy doing crafts and next thing ya' know...well, at least I don't have to rush all the way to the other end of the house to use the bathroom. (Note: There is a bathroom in the middle of the house but I try not to go in there because the boys use that one. Suffice it to say "eww". Trust me.) Anyway, 2 outta 3 bathrooms are always clean. Here is the one connected to my craft room:


To the left is my cross-stitch stash closet. It's a horrible mess because I've got tons of boxes piled on the floor. Shhhhhh, don't tell the boys, my mother-in-law, and my uncle because some of their Christmas gifts are hidden away in those boxes. Should the boys peek inside, they will just think it's crafty stuff. Hah! Let's keep that our little secret. *hee hee* Anyway, sorry for the mess but here it is:

Yikes! It looks awful but I promise when Christmas is over that it will look purdy darn tidy again. :) I love my stash closet.

Now when I put my back against the built-in bookshelves between the messy stash closet and the little bathroom, here is the view to the right:

The doorway on the left is the opening to the informal dining room. That is my mother-in-law's piano that she had since she was a little girl, my old National / Eldredge two-spool sewing machine, a bay window, lots of sewing goodies piled around, and a little four-legged table that belonged to my husband's maternal grandmother. They built that table together so it's extreeeeeeeeemely special. :-)

Looking to the left, here is what you see:

That's the door to the garden room / sun room, an old wooden rocking chair, my Clark's spool cabinet (NOT totally the way it's supposed to be but hey, I love it!), and a comfy couch to sit and visit on. (That's often where I go when chatting on the phone with Mom or friends. Both sides recline. Ahhhhhhhhh!) That big ol' square coffee table houses all of our CDs, board games, and family fun stuff, including photos. There are hours of great family memories and fun inside that table.

Oh, about that Clark's spool cabinet, here it is up close:

And sitting next to my comfy couch is a sign I fell in love with because it made me think of my dear firewood haulin' hubby: (Note: the carpet isn't really red...it's maroon like in the other photos. Actually, it's OU maroon. No, I didn't plan it that way. It was like that when we moved in and I think it's pretty so it stays. No college football carpet in my craft room, thankyouverymuch! LOL)

Thanks for touring my crafty area. Feel free to come sit a while, chat, and stitch with me. Wouldn't that be great?

As the holidays approach, a lot of people tend to get depressed. Not me -- I focus on what all I have to be thankful for. We are all richly blessed...sometimes we just have to search our souls to see that. Don't let the holidays get ya' down. :-)

Happy stitching, everyone! Thanks for stopping by.

"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!

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*

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! :)))

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!

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.

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!

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! :-)

A finish (sort of), a WIP picture, and plants...

TGIF, everybody! :-) Thanks for the comments! To reply to a couple of them from the last post...Cindy, you're a nut! LOL! I will check out your blog tonight or tomorrow. Should I be afraid? ;-) And to Pam, yes ma'am, those are bottles of Stitcher's Lotion in the picture of my stash haul from the previous blog entry. Love that stuff! My favorite is the Blackberry & Vanilla. Running a close second is Raspberry & Orange. They both feel good and smell good. :)


Stitching news...Last night, I put the final stitches in Little House Needleworks' "Blessed are the merciful" -- the second of four patterns I am stitching on one piece of fabric. Halfway done, woo hoo! Please pardon the wrinkles:

I'm thinking about making it into a pillow that will sit in a dark brown rocking chair. Maybe...maybe not...we'll see. My mind might change a few times before this thing is even finished. LOL

I started an iris by Just Nan a day or two before the end of May. I thought I'd have it done within a couple of days but nooooooooooo. You know how life gets in the way sometimes? Well, life is finally out of the way for a bit and I was able to put more stitches into it last night:

I can't wait until this is finished (surely this weekend!) so I can put it into the matching iris frame. It'll go into our bedroom which -- thanks to mine and my mother's stitching -- has an increasing amount of purple irises and lavender-shaded things. (Yes, my husband sleeps in there, too. He actually doesn't mind! LOL)


Today I passed by the nursery on the way to pay a bill. On the way back by, I just had to stop because something caught my eye. No, not a baby nursery...a PLANT nursery! ;-p Anyway, there were these huuuuuuuuuge planters full of assorted plants and they were drop-dead gorgeous. The prices were just drop-dead. (hahahaha) They were asking between $100 to $150 for them! *thud* Sooooooo, I made my own for about half the price. Whaddya' think?


I love it! It sits on Brad's side of the driveway so I hope he likes it. If not...well...it's too late now. Or maybe I could sell it for $150. HAHAHAHAHA


Happy Friday, happy stitching, and don't forget to count your blessings. *hugs*

Stitching updates! (and a little rambling, of course)

Hello to my fellow stitching addicts! (Don't even try to deny it. We are what we are.) *hee hee*

I'd like to publicly thank CindyF for her recent giveaways on her blog. My name was drawn for the "Home Words" chart by Prairie Schooler. Thank you so much, Cindy! You're a sweetheart! Here's what I won:

I've been able to stitch a little lately but not as much as before. Continuing with my "Stash Closet Discoveries", I started the Redbird Designs Texas Alphabet Quilt. Since my sewing abilities are improving and I'm gaining confidence in that aspect, I figured it was time to jump in. Here is the first finished square, "The Alamo":

This past week, Brad, the boys, and I traveled to Ft. Worth to watch the Nascar truck races. As luck would have it, it was the most B-O-R-I-N-G truck race ever. There were two cautions for the entire race and both were due to debris. No, we didn't necessarily want anyone to wreck...but it wasn't even a close finish! *yawwwwwwwwwn* But there is a plus side to all of this...

We stopped in Decatur, Texas, at this little antique store that also happens to have a room and a hallway dedicated to cross-stitch supplies. I did some stash shopping there (WOO HOO!) and when we returned home, my stash-in-the-mail was waiting for me. (Wagon? What wagon?) Here's my haul:

In other news, I'm still in the running for a job I applied for. Have I mentioned it here before? It's for a 911 dispatcher job at our local police department. Last night was my first of two "sit-ins" where I observe the dispatchers in action and ask questions. Get this -- I can stitch when it's slow! *doing my funky lil' dance around the room, thankful you guys can't see me* I go back Friday night to observe a weekend night. I really like it and honestly I'd be surprised if they didn't pick me. We all hit it off so well! Sooooooo...we'll see what happens there.

Meanwhile, I'm thanking God that our area got some beneficial rain today but dodged the hail and tornadoes that occurred south of us. Whew!

Guess I'll go roam some blogs and then do some crafty stuff, like maybe cutting more fabric for the quilt squares, stitching, etc. Happy stitching! :-)

Another quick finish

After roaming through my stash recently, I decided that I have some of the coolest stuff...and it's just sitting there in my closet. Sure, it's fun to drool over but no one is truly enjoying my stash as it sits there, right? Sooooooo, as you can tell by some of my recent finishes, I decided to do something about it. Even if they're just small finishes, I'm thinning out my stash and getting things done so that they can be enjoyed. The next thing I picked was a little something for my wonderful husband.

That being said, here is a close-up of my third finish in four days:

That is "I Simply Love You" by Twisted Threads. It is stitched over two on 32 count Silkweavers linen called "Days Gone By". The lettering is done with two strands of Caron Waterlilies "Sable" and the heart is stitched with two strands of Six Strand Sweets "Mocha". I mounted the fabric and put it in a box that has a frame as a lid which you can see better here:

The colors are more true in the first photo. The frame opening measures 5" x 7" so it's not teeny but not big, either. The box now sits on one of our bedroom dressers. It's really lovely! Good thing I like that box/frame combo because after roaming all my framing/finishing stuff, I found out that I had three -- yes, THREE!!! -- of those boxes stashed away. And all the same color, too! Gah! In other words, look for two more of these in the future. Plus, I made a mental note to buy a black one. I'll try to make sure I don't end up with three of those.

Okay, now I'm off to go find another little something that I can hopefully finish today or tomorrow. This is fun! :-)

Two finishes in two days!

Okay, so they're small finishes but they still count! :~)

Today I spent the afternoon stitching and finishing a teeny little scissor fob from the kit "A Folk Art Sewing Box" by Hillside Samplings. Of course, you just know there was a Liberty Hill piece in that kit. *hee hee*

Here is the front:

Here is the back with my initials and current year:

Finally, where else would I display this little fob other than in my Liberty Hill curio cabinet, right? *big, huge grin*

I love it and it looks just perfect in the cabinet. There is a pincushion still do from that same kit but I'm behaving for now and not starting anything new. Yet. It's still early. *hee hee*

Thanks, as always, for looking, commenting, and visiting. Happy frog-free stitching!

Christmas ornament #6 finished

And here it is:

That is Victoria Sampler's "All Spiced Up" from their leaflet called "Button Up For Christmas #2". I used the threads, wire, and buttons from their embellishment pack but stitched it on a mystery piece of linen from my stash.

Other than this ornament, I've been working on my "Footprints" WIP. Maybe I'll have an updated WIP picture in the next day or so.

Thanks for looking! Now get off your computer and go stitch! LOL ;-)

Major happy dance!

Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy! Guess what I finished last night? If you said "Hillside Sampling's Folk Art Sewing Roll", then you're right!

Here it is all folded up:

Unroll/unfold it once and this is what you see:

Unroll/unfold it again and then you see the complete inside of the roll:

Here is the back of the entire sewing roll:

Here is a side view with the roll all folded up:

Here is a picture of the completed roll with the box that came with the kit --- note my little helper in the background:

And finally, here is where the roll and the box will reside -- on the bottom shelf of my curio cabinet that is dedicated exclusively to my Liberty Hill collection:

I am so excited to have this roll finished and added to my curio cabinet. Thanks for looking!

Tonight I hope to finish an ornament. Maybe, just maybe, I might start a new project. *mwah hahahahaha*

Happy stitching! :-)