Mystery SAL

Carol over at iStitch was kind enough to not only host a mystery SAL, but to design a special project for it.  Looks like 125 people signed up for it, and more are on the waiting list.  The incentive to keep up with this SAL is you don't get the next part until you send her a photo of the completed previous part.  In general I'm leery of mystery SALs, but I tend to like her designs, and I just finished the With Thy Needle and Thread 3 part mystery project, started it well before I knew what the whole thing was going to look like.  It ended up being gorgeous.  Hopefully I keep up with this and don't become one of the spots for someone on the waiting list!  Anyway, I received Part 1 on Friday, started stitching, and finished Part 1 on Sat.

iStitch 2001 Mystery SAL on 40 ct Weeks Grape Ice linen
with HDF Old Maid of the Vineyard silk

This week I was in Omaha, NE for a business trip.  I didn't get a lot of stitching done, but at least it was some.  I took a couple of Shepherd's Bush kits with me.  They're usually on an easy thread count fabric, and have everything all on one place, so they travel well.  Especially when I can't take my magnifier/work light with me.  As much as I love Teri and Tina, I'm not always a fan of all their designs.  The ones I do stitch, I usually make a few changes to.  With Angel Song I'm reducing some of the pinks and purples, and adding more blue, green and golden-tans (Sheperd's Moon silk by Threadgatherer).  Of course the angel at the top was what I started with, and that pink is really bugging me.  Its going to get ripped out soon and replaced with Shepherd's Moon.

Shepherd's Bush Angel Song on 35ct R&R Dark Cappuccino
with assorted silks

I've also put in some work on part 3 of the BBD 2008 Loose Feathers Mystery project.  Not a lot, but even a few stitches is progress.

Saturday morning is when Ogden has its local Farmer's Market.  I love going to it, since its only 2 blocks up the street.  In the 3 years I've lived here, its really grown a lot.  Its still short on fresh produce, and still has more "junk" than what it should have (at times I think to myself, are you serious, people think I'm actually going to buy this crap?), but there's always entertainment and plenty of food vendors.  This week we had a guy playing a didjeridu, and doing a pretty good job of.  Well, good enough I gave him a couple of bucks.

I picked up some fresh beets, zucchini, green beans, 2 loaves of bread (cranberry walnut and lemon sage), and of course a pastry for breakfast.  This week it was apple strudel from Volker's Bakery, same place I get my bread from (when I'm lazy and buy it instead of making it).  After wandering the market, I usually head back down to my house and sit on the patio with whatever goodie I bought to eat, an iced coffee, and my nook.  In the distance in the photo, you can sorta see the pedestrian gate that does out to 25th Street.

I know I've mentioned before about my finish of With Thy Needle & Thread's mystery project and how I ran it out of the house so my mom couldn't take it back to San Diego with her.  On Friday I stopped by Jill's so I could get a picture of it.  Its been stretched and waiting for the frame for a couple of weeks now.  I can be patient, since for once I picked something out that was actually available.  I have a knack of picking out discontinued moldings or mats.

With Thy Needle & Thread Birds of a Feather, stitched
on 35 ct Weeks Confederate Grey, assorted silks

I might actually have to stitch this again.  Myra turned 2 of her birds into cardinals, and they're absolutely adorable.  We'll see about that.  I have done a repeat stitch, but the first finish and the second were separated by about 13 years.  As you can see, some adjustments were made to the colors.  And I apologize for the crappy picture, I really wasn't trying to take a great one, since I knew I'd get a good one once it was framed.