Pictures!

There's the wrinkled "What Cancer Cannot Do" piece that I stitched for my friend who is battling breast cancer. It's all wrinkled from my Q-snaps and I haven't purchased the fabric to make a tuckable banner/frame for it yet...but the stitching is done. I altered the pattern a bit and didn't use the colors listed in the key, but here is where you can find the original pattern for free:
http://www.gloria-pat.com/resources/cancer_charts.html
The fabric I used was 32 count Silkweaver Belfast linen, hand-dyed and called "Remembrance Rose". The lettering is done in Vikki Clayton/HDF "Dark Mauve" premium silk, and the rest is DMC floss.

Now here's my recent eBay win:

That's the "Wildly Western" kit by Bucilla to add to my complete(?) Tall Guys collection. I just love those Tall Guys! Surely now I have them all. Surely...

Last night, I finished the stitching and beading on my next Christmas ornament -- "Merry Christmas" mini-needleroll by Shepherd's Bush from the 1997 Just Cross Stitch Christmas Ornament magazine. I am now pulling the threads for the ribbon. I've got the stuffing on-hand but am not sure about the ribbon. I'll have to look later to see if I've got the color and width I need to finish it off and take a picture.

So much for doing any shopping -- I am officially iced in now. We are not even supposed to get above freezing until Wednesday, and the weather forecasters seem to think our freezing rain will continue off and on between now and Wednesday morning. Great. *sarcasm* Oh well, if we lose power then we're prepared...we've got the fireplace and plenty of wood, lots of food, two generators, and my wonderful husband always makes sure that every time we lose power, at least one generator outlet is saved for my stitching lamp. :-)))

My housework and laundry are almost totally done, so in a short bit I will be working on the needleroll and other stitching. Tonight we are having leftovers so it looks like a great stitching day and evening to me. Woo hoo! Happy stitching, stay safe, and watch out for that ice!

No pictures yet...

...but I just finished stitching "What Cancer Cannot Do" for a friend who is battling breast cancer. It's hot off the Q-snaps -- wrinkles and all -- so I don't want to post a picture yet. Plus, I hope to get to Hobby Lobby next week and buy some pink ribbon fabric. My plan is to make a wall hanging / tuckable banner-type thing out of the finished piece. Problem is, Mother Nature is most likely going to give us some ice for Monday through Wednesday. Ewwwwwww. No trip to Hobby Lobby 'til that's over and done with.

I fell off the wagon but it's okay -- I consider what I bought "allowable purchases". LOL! One chart was purchased from a friend and I agreed to buy it before I went on the wagon. She finished stitching it and got the chart mailed off to me, so I had to pay for it. It's the "In Love" pattern from the Vervaco kit. I just love that! Anyway, the other purchase I made was off eBay for Bucilla's "Wildly Western" kit. I thought I had all the Tall Guys patterns from the Holiday Sparrow series of them but discovered that kit on eBay. I'd never seen that before! Now it's on its merry little way to my mailbox and then on to my stash closet to be stored with all the other Tall Guys. :-)))

I've got to catch up on everyone else's blog, stitch another ornament, and get a small thing done in order to keep my goals for the month. Technically, I have one ornament done for January but I really finished it in December...so I gotta get another one done. Besides, it'll be one more ornament in my collection, right? Woo hoo!

Hopefully everyone has been doing great. We've been crazy-busy here but at least I've managed a little stitching time. If we do get that icy weather then I'll just stay home, put a roast in the over or a stew on the stove, and stitch my little heart out while the boys play the Wii. Well, that is, assuming my 13-yr-old does his math homework and doesn't get grounded again. Ohhhhhhhh, SNAP! Anyway, keep that frog away and happy stitching! :-)

A finish for me and a gift from Mom

Here is a quick finish I stitched up while we were traveling. It is "Snowflakes" by Pine Mountain Designs. I turned the pillow so that the stitching is in the upper left corner instead of the bottom right as it was shown in their stock photo. I also decided against using the large white felt snowflake cut-out that should be in the dark blue square. It just didn't look right to me and seemed to be rather gawdy. Yuck. Life's too short to display ugly snowflakes. LOL! ;-) So anyway, the pattern is being forward to one of my blog readers. Enjoy the pattern and happy stitching, Heather!

This is an adorable needle roll that my dear stitching friend Carolyn gave to my mother in a RAK package (Random Act of Kindness). My mother, in turn, altered a cat design and stitched this up for me. I love it for two reasons -- my mother did the stitching and it was formerly owned by Carolyn. Every time I see this piece in my home, I think of both of them. Thank you, Mom and Carolyn.

Today did allow me some, even if just a little, stitching time on "O Beautiful". I'm just a few stitches away from getting back to the bands and specialty work. The more progress I make on this piece, the more anxious I get about finishing it and having it framed. *big, huge grins*

With today being the one year anniversary of when I quit smoking, I decided to remove the little counter that shows how long I have been a non-smoker. So for those of you who followed my counter, don't panic -- I didn't start smoking again. LOL! Today I was able to call my insurance agent and let him know that I now qualify for the non-smoker's rate for my life insurance. *goofy lil' happy dance*

I also edited my list of Recent Finishes over on the right. It's now set to show only the last ten finishes. There wasn't an apparent reason to have a list of items that made the page longer than it had to be which surely slowed the page's loading for those who don't have high speed. (I used to suffer through dial-up so you folks who are now doing the same have my sympathy.)

The evening is still young so I think I'll go snack and then stitch some more. Stay warm and happy stitching!

And the winner is...

*drum roll, please*

Lynda! Woo hoo, congrats to you! E-mail me with a list of your stitching likes, dislikes, wishes, wants, needs, etc. and perhaps even some general likes/dislikes. I'll spend a couple of days getting a little goodie bag assembled just for you. You can e-mail me at loriray2003 AT yahoo DOT com. This is going to be fun! :-)

Here's what happened with the drawing of the names: I put everyone's name on a little strip of paper and scattered them out on the floor. Then I called our cat over and told her to pick a name (like she could understand). Well, lo and behold, she came over and sniffed out Lynda's name. Soooooo, I guess that means Lynda has something about her that our cat likes. Consider that a huge compliment because our cat is, um...let's just say "not very nice most of the time". LOL

I told the cat to pick another name (again - like she could understand) but she was so freaked out because I picked up the piece of paper that she had so carefully sniffed out that she wouldn't come back over to the pieces of paper. Hahahaha! Crazy cat! This was fun and I'll have to have another drawing in the future.

Thanks a million to everyone who entered (and didn't enter...*pointing a finger at Lisa* ;-) hee hee). I appreciate the comments and reading everyone else's blogs, too.

We've been out of town for a couple of days so I need to post a picture of a small finish and catch up on everyone else's blogs, too. Hopefully today and/or this evening will allow me some free time to do those things and work on "O Beautiful". Happy stitching! :-)

Happy New Year!

May 2009 be all we each want and need it to be. It's going to be a great year, I just know it!

Today I will work a little bit at the shop because we are taking off tomorrow and going out of town to visit my grandmother and my sister. Brad will do the driving so that means stitching for me in the car - woo hoo! I won't be able to work on "O Beautiful" because it seems linen and I don't get along too well in the car but I can easily work on an aida project, perforated paper, or perhaps a small evenweave project. (Like another 2009 Christmas ornament or a Pine Mountain pillow kit maybe?)

Okay, I'm going to take the plunge here and offer a drawing. If you'd like to be entered, simply leave a comment on this post stating that you'd like to be entered. The prize is a grab bag of things yet to be determined because I will try to pick things to send that the winner likes. Easy peasy, right? I plan on drawing a winner's name on Monday, January 5, 2009, so check back then for a post that announces the winner's name. By the way, that date also happens to be my annniversary for quitting smoking -- one year smoke-free, so celebrate with me!

I don't know how many of you frequent the stitching message boards but I usually do. That being said, the boards seem to be taking a turn towards being negative again. I hate it when those phases happen. Sooooooo, blogging and roaming other stitcher's blogs is becoming my favorite way to communicate with other stitchers, look at photos, and get inspired with tons of great ideas. Don't get me wrong -- I will never quit the boards altogether...but maybe it's time for me to play it safe and avoid 99% of posts that aren't stitching-related.

I don't make resolutions for New Year's but I do have some goals in mind I'd like to achieve (in no particular order):
1. Make it through year #2 without smoking.
2. Be a better mother and wife. (I'm not bad at all but my theory is that we can all find ways to improve, so why not?)
3. Change up my blog a bit...make it more visually appealing, add a few gadgets, etc.
4. Stitch at least one -- but preferably two! -- Christmas ornaments per month.
5. Stitch one "small" per month. I'd love to have a basket of needle rolls! Ooooooooooooh! A small might be a needle roll, Pine Mountain pillow, needle book, etc.
6. Try not to start a new project unless I either finish a project I've already got going, am making a gift for someone else, or if it's for one of these goals (like an ornament or a small).
7. Don't buy any new stash without stitching or purging some of what I've got first. There are a few exceptions which I outlined in the last blogging post. I did add the "purging" part, though. If I go through my stash and sell things that I know I will never stitch, then I can use that money for new stash. The points of this goal are to quit impulse buying and accumlating more than I am stitching because I already have way more than enough. Stitch more, buy less.

That's enough goals for now but I might add to or change that list. The main purpose was to just get some of my thoughts and ideas out and see what I can start working on accomplishing.

Hope everyone is stitching to their little heart's content today and feeling good about 2009. Take care and bye for now! :-)

Welcome home, Casandra!

Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy!!! Everyone please extend a warm welcome to Casandra, the latest collection in LoriRay's Gingherland! *drool drool* Okay, okay, so these will be the last Ginghers to add to my collection for quite a while now. The only scissors left that I wish to add to my collection are rarely found and sell for way more than I am willing to pay anyway. Besides, I think I have plenty now so there's no harm in stopping, right? Right?!?!?! *feeling Gingher withdrawal pains already*

Tonight I finished my second ornament in the Mill Hill Winter Greetings Charmed Ornaments series, #MH16-8305 titled "Noel". Here it is, hanging on our tree:

It's much prettier in person. The background isn't really reddish like that...it's more of a rich, deep burgundy...but that's the best picture I could get. So now I have a whopping grand total of three, yes THREE, ornaments for my Christmas tree in 2009. LOL -- but it's a start!

Now I think I'll go back to working on "O Beautiful" again. I'm sooooooo close to having the cross-stitched mid-section completed and will get to work on nothing but specialty stitches again, which I really look forward to. :-))) I think I have a spot picked out for this piece so I'm getting even more excited about finishing it.

Before I forget, I still plan on having a giveaway of some sort on my blog soon. I've got to sit down and go through my stash and figure out what to give away. Would y'all prefer fabric? A kit? Floss? Heyyyyyyyyy, how about a surprise grab-bag based somewhat on your likes/dislikes? What a great way to ring in 2009, right? *hint hint*

Quick stitching note -- I removed the Neighborhood piece from my WIP list (at the very bottom of my blog) already even though I barely got started. That's a very time-consuming piece and I have too many other things I want/need to stitch up this year. Maybe next year or later in the year but not right now.

*drum roll, please* Okay, I'm going on the wagon for an unspecified amount of time now. It's not necessarily the 10/25/50 challenge, but I have got to quit buying so much stash! I'm running out of room -- and I've got a huge stash closet! Time to stitch more and buy less. I will allow myself to spend gift certificates, replenish floss supplies as I use them, and buy items that are relevent to either something I am working on or kitting up. The only other exception is I can buy something that is normally hard to find (like another pair of old Ginghers -- mwah hahahaha) or an unbelievable sale. Oh yeah -- I can also buy the new Ginghers as they are released. Of course! Did I even need to spell that out? LOL!!!

Can you believe this year is almost over? 2008 was not a bad year but I have a plan on making 2009 even better. We discussed a theory during my church's adult Bible study group last Sunday, and that theory was that if a person focuses mainly on his or own self then he or she is likely miserable by the end of the day. But if that person chooses to focus on others -- like encouraging others and/or doing nice things for others -- then he or she usually ends up having a wonderful day! Also, if a person must confront another person, then it must be done as lovingly as possible -- no raising of voices, no name-calling, no insults, etc. The leader of our Bible study group has been battling breast cancer for several years now and she says the encouragement theory works for her. She is so inspiring - I wish you all could meet her! (But still, please keep her in your thoughts and prayers as she is going in about a week to see how this round of chemo is working as the previous chemos have not done the trick.)

Hope everyone is getting some great frog-free stitching time. The frog has been staying away from my house lately. *knocking on wood* Meanwhile, take this challenge -- send a card, make a phone call, or send an e-mail to someone you've been thinking about. Let them know you care. It's amazing how good it'll make you (and especially the recipient!) feel. :-) Take care!

Finished two books!

Last Saturday night, I finished reading "Being Christian" by Stephen Arterburn and John Shore. It was an excellent book and answered tons of questions for me. I highly recommend this book!

Next on my reading list was a book called "Fireproof", based on the movie. The movie didn't come to our small-town theatre so we have to wait for its release January 27th. I figured I'd read the book before seeing the movie 'cause the book is always better than the movie, right? Well, I sat down after church yesterday and started reading "Fireproof" around 2 PM. Next thing I know, it's about 6 PM and I finished the book! LOL! It was such a great book! It was packed with action, romance, drama, and so much more.

Brad and the boys decided that I should have the night off so Brad cooked dinner and he and the boys cleaned the kitchen. (Gotta love it when that happens! *happy dancing*) I called my Mee-maw on the phone to tell her we received her Christmas package and to just have a nice visit with her. She started telling me about this movie she and a friend went to see for only a dollar each because the movie had been out for a while. She was trying to remember the name of the movie and kept saying it started with the word "Fire"...I was like, "No way!" Yep, my grandmother had went and seen the movie that afternoon for the exact same book I had spent the day reading! LOL! What a cool coincidence!

I did stitch a little bit on "O Beautiful" this weekend but didn't even give any thought to having a giveaway. BAD Lori! :( I think I'll get through Christmas first and then decide what to do. You couldn't pay me to go to a post office right now! I need to have a couple of giveaways -- at least one here and at least one at a the 123 Stitch message board. I have been the recipient of a couple of giveaways and I'm just so blessed to have my on-line stitching friends that I need to show how very grateful I am.

With this being the week of Christmas, hopefully the frog is on vacation (or frozen!) and will let everyone have some relaxing stitching time. :-)

"O Beautiful" by Shepherd's Bush

And there it is, a little over halfway finished. :-) I have loved every stitch, too. The colors are a bit more muted than I prefer but I still love it.

I'm going to go work on that a bit...I'll update more this weekend and figure out what to do for a giveaway. Woo hoo!

Happy stitching and hope everyone is enjoying their Friday. Bye for now!

My first Stitchalong, woo hoo!

There is a stitching blog/group called "2009 Christmas Challenge" that is going to try and stitch one Christmas ornament per month in 2009. After checking it out, I decided to join. I was their 100th (and last!) member. Talk about timing! Sooooooooo, one of my stitching goals for 2009 is, obviously, to stitch one ornament per month. Hey, it's a start! :-))) Here's the link in case you want to follow our progress: http://2009christmaschallenge.blogspot.com/

I have finally updated my Photobucket album with some recent pictures of my home with some Christmas decorating done. It's nothing fancy but it gives my mother (and anyone else who wants to) a peek inside my home.

Here is one of my favorite photos. I love it because you can see our white and silver Christmas tree's reflection in the mirror:

Also, before I forget...this is my 100th post! Woo hoo! Am I supposed to have a celebration or giveaway? I think I've seen stuff like that on other people's blogs...y'all think I should have a giveaway? Just leave a comment and let me know if there's any interest. :-)

Yesterday evening allowed me some great stitching time and I worked on my Shepherd's Bush "O Beautiful" WIP. I didn't realize how much I had missed that piece. Wow, it's gorgeous and I'm making great progress. Expect a WIP picture in a couple of days. :-)))

And finally, a bit of Gingher news...I won the 4" Cassandra Ginghers on eBay today! *thud* Wowee! That's the last pair I can (reasonably) add to my collection so that should be it for my Gingher-buying for a while. (I can hear y'all laughing! Stop it! LOL) From now on, I will most likely only buy the new releases. I have, however, toyed with the thought of selling some of my stash that I know I will never get to *gasp!!!* and building up my PayPal balance so that when/if Gabriella or some other major-high-dollar Ginghers that I don't have come along then I can buy them and be totally guilt-free. *hee hee*

That's it for now. Thanks for reading and please do leave me a comment. Not only do I love seeing what everyone has to say but it also leads me to more blogs that I can add to my list, visit, and leave comments at. Happy stitching!

A few blog changes...

I've been piddling around with my blog today. (Can you tell we were stuck at home today due to some freezing rain?) I've moved my WIPs list and reading list to the bottom of the blog page. Another change is that I have updated the list of blogs I read. Now you can see more blogs than before and when they have been updated with most recently updated blogs at the top of the list.

Now that I've got a roast in the oven, I think I'll go stitch. Shame on me -- I still haven't uploaded the most recent pictures of my home. Oh well, there's always tomorrow... ;-)

New project, new scissors, and COLD!

The picture above is my latest new project. If I don't quit starting projects, I will have a gazillion WIPs. LOL! Anyway, what you see is a barbed wire border that will surround my "neighborhood" project. If you don't know what a cross-stitched neighborhood is then you are missing out! Over on the right side of my blog, if you scroll down you will see a list of links to other blogs. Check out the two "Me, Myself, and I" blogs for more information, instructions, more links to other neighborhoods, and some pictures. Google also turns up quite a few hits if you type "neighborhood round robin". Mine won't be a round robin but those round robin links will show you some awesome pictures! One of my stitching goals for 2009 will be to work on my neighborhood at least once a week, even if just for a bit.

See the scissors above? If you guessed that those scissors are the latest to be added to my collection, then you guessed right! *mwah hahaha* Welcome home, Lanell! *drool drool* Lanell should feel right at home with the rest of the 4" designer Ginghers that live happily in my home. There aren't many left that I would love to add to my collection and then I can quit buying scissors with the exception of adding the new ones as they are released. No, really -- stop laughing. ;-)

The arctic air made it here to SW Oklahoma. BRRRRRRRRRR! We made it to 78 degrees yesterday and today we never made it past 24. Daaaaaaaaaaang! And we wonder why we're all sickly. Sheesh! Tonight we will be a whopping 15 degrees and our wind chill will be ZERO but we should "warm up" tomorrow to 33. One would think that with these cold temps that we could enjoy the snow or perhaps a freebie day at home due to ice or something but nooooooooooo, all we have received so far is just the bitter cold. :( However, there is hope! Our long-term forecast shows that we might -- just might -- get a white Christmas. *happy dancing*

The dreaded rooster is finished!

And there he is! I am so glad he is done. Stoney Creek's attention to detail could make a pile of dog poop look beautiful but man oh man, their designs can sure be a pain to stitch! It's especially hard to stitck with something you don't care for and I do not care for roosters.

Now that I've got all my "have to" stitching done for the year, I worked on my Stoney Creek "Break Time" tractor WIP this evening. (One would think I've had enough Stoney Creek to last me for a while but noooooooo, I'm a glutton!) I only got about an hour's worth of stitching done on that WIP so I figured it wasn't worth the trouble of pulling it out of the Q-snaps, taking a picture, blah blah blah. Gimme a few days.

I still haven't uploaded my home pictures to the Photobucket album yet. *bad LoriRay* Maybe this weekend or next week. We're due to get some nasty winter weather between Monday and Thursday - perhaps all four days! - so I might be iced in next week. Not a huge deal if that's the case because I'll go grocery shopping tomorrow and Brad is going to cut us more firewood on Saturday. If we have no electricity it'll be no biggie -- we have two generators that can power our TV for Brad, TV/games for the boys, my stitching light for me, and our refrigerator. The fireplace will keep us warm and give us somewhere to heat soup since our stove is electric. Anyway, I'd rather have snow so I'm putting my vote in now to Mother Nature -- make it SNOW, not ICE!

Hope everyone has had a great week so far. I really like the feedback/comments and visiting your blogs, too. It's amazing how so many of us have never met, yet we seem to have to so much in common. :)

Happy stitching!

Procrastinating but still stitching

Okay, so I finished cross-stitching the Stoney Creek huck towel rooster's tail and backstiched one thread's length before I got tired of it. *sigh* I set the project aside and picked up my Heart in Hand "Words of Wisdom" work-in-progress (WIP). I've now completed five of ten little patterns and am stitching them over one on 32 count fabric. Here's the WIP picture, hot off the Q-snaps:

So even though I procrastinated with Mr. Rooster, I still made some stitching progress on a different project. Once I get done with the backstitching on Mr. Rooster's tail then it oughta be smooth sailin' after that. I figure I've got about a week or so to get it done so it'll be finished in plenty of time even with my procrastination figured in.


Well, look at me go -- two posts and almost back-to-back, too! LOL! While that and my WIP are progress, I didn't sit down and upload pics from our home into my Photobucket album. Oops. Okay, so that'll be a goal for this week. Tuesday's high is supposed to be 41 with sustained winds of 25 to 35 mph and we have a chance for some snow showers. (Can you say "WOO HOO"?!?!?! I LOVE the snow!) Anyway, what it boils down to is that it looks like Tuesday will be the perfect day for me to stay home, work on Mr. Rooster, and get those pics uploaded.

I'll close with something for you all to ponder...I heard a phrase in church recently. It has been going through my mind off and on ever since. Here's the phrase: "You can either be part of the problem or part of the solution." Many of us have heard that phrase before now but it really hit home with me this time. As that phrase has been tossed around in my head, I came to the realization that, more often than not, I have been part of the problem. It was always my nature to gripe, moan, and complain -- or sit back and do nothing, thus allowing the "problem" to keep occurring -- instead of finding ways to help solve the issue(s) at hand. I'm trying to be a part of the solution now. More than ever I feel some "tests" are happening in my life but I'm trying to handle them the right way. And I'm trying my best. One can only hope and pray that that's enough to let others around me see the "new" me emerging and what a difference Christ is making in my life. :-)


So, on that note...are you part of the problem or part of the solution? Let's all work on being part of the solution. Goodbye for now and like a friend of mine says, "Be a friend." *hugs*

Christmas ornament finish, a WIP, Gingher scissors, etc.

There's the dreaded Stoney Creek rooster I've been stitching on a huck towel for my grandmother as part of her Christmas from me. It is a "dreaded" rooster because I detest roosters! Hope I don't offend the rooster lovers out there but sorry...roosters just ain't my thang! ;-)

Once I get that rooster towel finished, that's all of the stitching I have to get done by Christmas. Woo hoo! Then I can go back to stitching for me and being able to plan some projects for next year's gifts for people.



Next is a picture of an ornament I stitched for a fellow stitcher/internet friend who lost all of her stitched ornaments during a recent move. It is from the Prairie Schooler booklet titled "Santas and Snowmen". It will go in the mail Monday and has to go from the southern US to Canada. Have a safe little journey, Santa!



Most of you know how I have this, um, slight Gingher scissor addiction. Well, there are more scissors in my happy little obsession...er, I mean, "collection". *hee hee* Here are some updated pictures...first, we have the whole group standing on display in scissor blocks my wonderful husband made for me:



Now here's a closer shot of the right side of the group. They are:
--In the very back, the pair with the scissor fob are plain ol' 4" silver Ginghers
--The other silver pair in the back are 4" curved blade Ginghers
--Front block, back row, left to right are: Glory, Katelynn, Jamie, and Ashley
--Front block, front row, left to right are: Penelope, Gloriana, and Lindsay

The last picture is a close shot of the Ginghers on the left side of the group. They are:
--Block in the back has a pair of black scissors with heart-shaped handles. These are not Ginghers, rather they are by Kelmscott. They are most uncomfortable to use but I love hearts and scissors, plus they are just adorable in my scissor collection. LOL
--Front block, back row, left to right: Freedom, Emma, Bianca, and Olivia
--Front block, front row, left to right: Roberta, Julia, Sarah, and Sophia


Ahhhhhhhhh, I do love my Ginghers. *drool drool*

I have a ton of pictures to upload to my Photobucket album in the album called "Home". Feel free to visit there to see a couple of updated pictures of our home. I might upload the pictures later this evening or tomorrow, so gimme a day or two. :)

Hopefully everyone has been having a great December so far. I know the holidays are rough and depressing sometimes for people but as for me, I think I'm enjoying this year's holidays more than ever so far. We had Thanksgiving at my house for the extended family for the first time ever and we all loved it, I'm less than a month away from being a non-smoker for a whole year (WOO HOO!!!), my Christmas shopping is already about halfway done (if not more), and last but not least...the two most important things...I am thoroughly enjoying my discoveries while doing my Bible readings (not to mention I was baptized two weeks ago tomorrow) and I have a wonderful little family that I am most thankful for every day. May they always know how much I love them. :)

Take care of yourselves and give someone a hug and a smile. Meanwhile, happy stitching and bye for now!

Another quick finish

I stitched this card today for a person that I don't want to leave out this Christmas. I hope she likes it. :-)

It's a bit late tonight, so I'll probably wait until tomorrow to get started on a huck towel for my grandmother. It's a rooster and I'm dreading it! I apologize to you rooster lovers out there but man oh man, I do detest roosters. *gag* LOL ;-)

Bookmark finish

And there it is! This is for my Uncle Ronnie for Christmas this year. Every year, I try to make a little something for him. He is one who appreciates every stitch and the efforts put into handmade items. :-)

The design is called "Authors" and is from a Cross My Heart booklet titled "Page By Page". I stitched it with plain ol' DMC on a prefinished Charles Craft 18 count white aida bookmark. To finish it off, I applied blue sticky-back felt to the back side of the bookmark.

Why do I wait until it's almost too late before I start my Christmas stitching??? *slapping self in forehead* I saw once where a woman was going to try stitching her gifts during the first six months of the year, then spend the rest of the year stitching for herself. I need to ask her how that turned out. Maybe I should try it in 2009? That and I neeeeeeeeeed to go on the wagon and quit buying more stitching stuff! *slapping self in forehead again*

Thanks for your comments on my posts. I really enjoy reading what others have to say. Meanwhile, TGIF and have a great weekend!

Two finishes fresh from the framer!

Hahaha, I like the tongue-twister title. Oops, I did it again! LOL!

Here are two of my recent finishes back from the framer's today:

My Brother

Lizzie Kate's Flip-Its

I am so excited to have them! I will give the "My Brother" picture to my brother (like that's news to anyone, LOL) for Christmas and the other is for me. :-)

Also, here's my clock that I stuffed with orts and other leftover stitchy things:

I showed my husband the clock and explained how I had saved thread orts, floss wrappers and tags, pieces of perforated paper, etc. to fill it with. He looked at it for a bit then turned to me and said, "So...it's filled with stitching trash." I tried not to laugh at his comment but couldn't help myself. ;-)

It's been a great day (for a Monday - LOL). Hope everyone is having a wonderful week so far. Hopefully I'll be able to post a bookmark finish in a day or two. Stay away from me, you dreaded frog!

Top secret project revealed! (4 pics)

My mother received the top secret project today so I can tell you guys about it now. Woo hoo!

I stitched Lynne Nicoletti's "Wedding Envelope" in honor of my parents' 46th wedding anniversary. I made the postmark their actual wedding date and I made the price of the stamp 4 cents, just like it was in November of 1962. The really cool thing I did with this envelope is that I used a very special Thread Gatherer silk floss for their names...the same floss used in a project for my late, great Aunt Linda -- a project my mother now owns and cherishes. :)

Here's the front of the envelope:

And here's the back:

Here is the back of the envelope with the flap open so you can see the lining fabric:

Here's one of the sides: (which I did stitch by hand, thankyouverymuch! LOL)

I, um, have a confession to make. There have been several new additions to my 4" Gingher family. *hee hee* Sarah has joined us and Roberta is (finally!) on her way. Today, Gloriana was welcomed to the family, too. Hiiiiiiiiii, Gloriana! Woo hoo! I will post pictures soon because I would rather let Roberta arrive first and get a picture of the whole happy family. I loooooooooove my Ginghers! I do use them, too. It's a ton of fun and gives me great pleasure to switch out Ginghers to use on various projects. I like to try and make the scissors match whatever project I am working on. Plus, matching scissors to projects helps feed my borderline OCD. HAHAHAHA!

Hope everyone is going to have a great Friday and that the weekend will allow us all some frog-free stitching time. Speaking of frogs...has anyone seen my frog fob? I can't find it. *scratching head*

Mail Art received...my first ever! :-)

Even though I have already updated my blog once today -- see the post below this one -- I have to add this post all by itself so that it gets the recognition it deserves. My stitching/board friend, Winifred in Canada, sent me the first mail art I have ever received. It's even more wonderful than how mail art looks in pictures!


Included in the mail art envelope was a card, a Canadian breast cancer quarter, and a hank of Dark Mauve silk floss by Vikki Clayton. Wow, what a great package! Thank you, Winifred. *hugs*


Here is the front of the envelope: (note that I have strategically placed the floss over my last name and address...LOL)

And now for the back of the envelope, again with floss strategically placed to hide Winifred's address (LOL):

Thank you again, Winifred, for being so thoughtful, creative, and talented. I love my mail art and now you've made me want to make some, too. :-)

I'm baaaaaaack! This will be picture-intensive!

Hello to my fellow stitching addicts! *big, huge, cheesy grin* Sorry I've been gone so long but I'm back and ready to blog now.


I've been a busy little stitcher at times during my absence. Ready for some pictures? Here we go!


Here is a cute little Halloween box that was from a Mill Hill kit sent to me by a friend. I stitched and finished it sometime during the last two weeks:




I also stitched and finished Shepherd's Bush "House Haunting":

Major happy dance here -- I finished the Lizzie Kate Flip-Its project and took it to my framer just this past Thursday. They said it should be framed within two weeks and I am so excited! Meanwhile, until I get a picture of it framed, here is the finished piece:

During the past month or so, I finished up a few smaller projects, too. One is this Holy Bible bookmark:

I had stitched the bookmark for myself but then ended up giving it to my grandmother. Funny how things like that happen, huh? ;-) Don't make me talk about my mother and grandmother coming to visit last week. Remember my frog fob by Stitchy Kitty that I put on a pair of green scissors? Well, my mother stole it. Yep, she stole it. (Okay, so I gave it to her but it's more fun to make up stories. LOL)

Anyway...I managed to stitch and finish my first perforated paper Christmas ornament. It was an adorable little kit by Mill Hill called "Frosty":

For now, the ornament is hanging out with one of my snowmen I have on display year-'round.

Whew, I think that's it for stitching updates. Now I have added a WIP that is top secret until I give it to my mother. *hee hee* Tell ya' what...I'll tell everyone but my mother what that top secret project is. Here we go...time for my mother to quit reading...for everyone else, just scroll down....



...keep going...




...and keep on scrolling down... (Mom, quit reading!)




...the top secret project I am working on is....



...HAH, I am not stupid! I know my mother is still reading this! LOL LOL LOL

On that note, I will end this post with a promise to try to update my blog weekly and check everyone else's blogs on a regular basis, too. Happy stitching! :-)