My first ever Instagram photo!
My first ever use of hashtags!
Hopefully next week he'll get a face.
That's all for now, back to school, trying to finish a class before the end of my term.
Monday, January 28, 2013
Wednesday, January 16, 2013
Scarlet Letter stitching
If you read Nicole's Scarlet Letter Year blog, you've probably already seen these pics.
Ann Smith had some progress, and I started on some of the over-1 stitching. The plan to use tent stitch for the over 1 (except the words) didn't work out. I wasn't getting good enough coverage on the 35 count linen, so all that over 1 is being done with full crosses. Miss Ann has a lot of over 1.
Mom and I were discussing that deer on the left one night. I thought it looked like a moose. She thinks its a donkey with antlers. I really laughed at that.
The after Christmas illness that hit the household caught up with me. All 3 of us were on antibiotics for sinus infections, and I still have the lingering crud - cough and congestion. I'm not complaining too much, since this is what I lived with 90% of my time in Utah. I loved Utah, my body didn't. When I was at my worst, I indulged in a couple of new starts, partly because I didn't feel like facing the over 1 on Ann.
Meet Elizabeth Burrows. She's a small sampler, but requires some mental agility since the stitches are over 2, 3, and 4 threads. It was my first exposure to the Montenegrin stitch and Italian cross. I'm in love. I chose 4 silks from my stash, trying to respect Elizabeth's original choices, but drew the line at pale pink. Instead I substituted an overdyed cream silk that had some touches of peach and taupe.
Since taking this picture I've gotten down to the alphabet stitched in eyelets. I usually substitute smyrna crosses for eyelets, but I'm actually going with the more time consuming eyelets. Its worth it, they look great.
My other new start was CCN's Santa's Village. This is going to be a huge piece when finished, even stitched on 36 count. I changed out some of the floss, using overdyed cotton from my stash, but decided to stay with some of the bright colors. I'm questioning that now, but I'm not going to rip out what's stitched. Instead I pulled a darker and more muted red, and will bring some of that in, starting with the berries that should be in the bottom border. My wreath is missing its berries, and Santa his eyes, and of course the star on the top of the tree. I want to use some seed beeds and the JABCO button, so will wait until the end to attach those.
My goal for this year is to focus more on my "serious" stitching, with just enough "fun" stitching to keep life lively. I love my "serious" projects, but they tend to get pushed to the side so easily with my love for seasonal stitching.
Ann Smith had some progress, and I started on some of the over-1 stitching. The plan to use tent stitch for the over 1 (except the words) didn't work out. I wasn't getting good enough coverage on the 35 count linen, so all that over 1 is being done with full crosses. Miss Ann has a lot of over 1.
Mom and I were discussing that deer on the left one night. I thought it looked like a moose. She thinks its a donkey with antlers. I really laughed at that.
The after Christmas illness that hit the household caught up with me. All 3 of us were on antibiotics for sinus infections, and I still have the lingering crud - cough and congestion. I'm not complaining too much, since this is what I lived with 90% of my time in Utah. I loved Utah, my body didn't. When I was at my worst, I indulged in a couple of new starts, partly because I didn't feel like facing the over 1 on Ann.
Meet Elizabeth Burrows. She's a small sampler, but requires some mental agility since the stitches are over 2, 3, and 4 threads. It was my first exposure to the Montenegrin stitch and Italian cross. I'm in love. I chose 4 silks from my stash, trying to respect Elizabeth's original choices, but drew the line at pale pink. Instead I substituted an overdyed cream silk that had some touches of peach and taupe.
Since taking this picture I've gotten down to the alphabet stitched in eyelets. I usually substitute smyrna crosses for eyelets, but I'm actually going with the more time consuming eyelets. Its worth it, they look great.
My other new start was CCN's Santa's Village. This is going to be a huge piece when finished, even stitched on 36 count. I changed out some of the floss, using overdyed cotton from my stash, but decided to stay with some of the bright colors. I'm questioning that now, but I'm not going to rip out what's stitched. Instead I pulled a darker and more muted red, and will bring some of that in, starting with the berries that should be in the bottom border. My wreath is missing its berries, and Santa his eyes, and of course the star on the top of the tree. I want to use some seed beeds and the JABCO button, so will wait until the end to attach those.
My goal for this year is to focus more on my "serious" stitching, with just enough "fun" stitching to keep life lively. I love my "serious" projects, but they tend to get pushed to the side so easily with my love for seasonal stitching.
Tuesday, January 1, 2013
Last finishes of 2012
Dad's birthday was on Dec 20. Since I'm still unemployed, gifts this year were primarily handmade. I took a $6 box from Hobby Lobby and transformed it with some paint, sandpaper, wax and fabric into something special for Dad. From the first time I saw this Shakespeare's Peddler chart, I knew I wanted to stitch it for him. I couldn't afford the gorgeous pencil box it was designed for, so I adapted the chart to fit on top of this larger box. I thought it was perfect for his Navy heritage. Another case of me adding alphabets to charts.
That mess in the background of the photo is Dad's desk, and I was happy to see he's already using the box. I lined it with some padding and fabric. He's always throwing his watches face down, and scratching up the crystal. The watch you're seeing is a very fancy Citizen watch they picked up on the last cruise and was his Christmas present. We really don't want it getting scratched up.
Mom's Christmas present was an embellished wool applique piece, which isn't quite finished. I still need to trim it and blanket stitch the backing on. It was hard to find time to work on it without her seeing what I was doing. My embellishments lean heavily toward beads, since I have so many of them, and they're easy. I did do some bullion stitches (around the holly leaves on the right) and some challenged myself with learning drizzle stitches (the centers of the poinsettias). Drizzle stitches are fun and easy, I'll be doing more of them.
Sorry about the quality of the pictures, I was using my phone and a new to me app called PicsArt. I figured some pictures and a post are better than nothing, and I really didn't feel like taking the time to use the big camera or messing around for hours on the phone trying to edit and correct the pics like I normally would. I haven't come down with the crud as bad as Mom and Dad did, but I'm still not feeling great.
The final exchange I did in 2012 was a Christmas exchange with Stitched With Love Exchanges. I received the most adorable Rudolph ornament from Debbie, along with lots of other goodies. She packed everything in a decorated plastic jar. It was a great idea for protecting everything in transit, and was used to store Chex mix nibbles during the holiday season.
I chose to stitch 2 Santa ornaments for Melissa, finishing them with beaded edges and hangers, as well as stitching a decorative border for their backs. The Santas were freebies from Gazette 94. I'd really like to stitch them again for myself, doing the whole series, and maybe passing on the beaded edging.
One of the extras I sent was a chocolate advent calendar. I have some very fond memories of these from when I lived in Germany as a young child. Pretty crappy chocolate in them, but I still loved opening up the little squares each evening to get my treat.
I had mentioned in my last post I needed to find the picture I took of Delaney. Just like I thought, it was on Mom's fancy new smartphone. Delaney is 15, and has had a tough life. Don't ask me what she's officially diagnosed as having, I just know she's my special cousin, suffering from both physical and mental disabilities. Its very frustrating for her trying to communicate. She understands more than what people give her credit for, but she can't talk. She definitely remembers Mom from the last time they were together, and greeted her with lots of hugs. It took a few hours for her to warm up to me, but I got my fair share of hugs too.
While watching the Rose Parade this morning, I worked on some Ann Smith flowers. I really felt the urge to start something new last night, for New Year's, but held off, instead just moving to a new section of Miss Ann. Here's just a small snap of the top border flowers.
I'm still loving her vibrant colors. I actually stitched that blue flower twice. The first time was with some duller blues (I had originally adjusted some of the colors). I decided to rip it out and go back to the brighter turquoise blue originally called for. Its definitely mellower stitched and surrounded with the other blues than in the full skein.
That mess in the background of the photo is Dad's desk, and I was happy to see he's already using the box. I lined it with some padding and fabric. He's always throwing his watches face down, and scratching up the crystal. The watch you're seeing is a very fancy Citizen watch they picked up on the last cruise and was his Christmas present. We really don't want it getting scratched up.
Mom's Christmas present was an embellished wool applique piece, which isn't quite finished. I still need to trim it and blanket stitch the backing on. It was hard to find time to work on it without her seeing what I was doing. My embellishments lean heavily toward beads, since I have so many of them, and they're easy. I did do some bullion stitches (around the holly leaves on the right) and some challenged myself with learning drizzle stitches (the centers of the poinsettias). Drizzle stitches are fun and easy, I'll be doing more of them.
The final exchange I did in 2012 was a Christmas exchange with Stitched With Love Exchanges. I received the most adorable Rudolph ornament from Debbie, along with lots of other goodies. She packed everything in a decorated plastic jar. It was a great idea for protecting everything in transit, and was used to store Chex mix nibbles during the holiday season.
I chose to stitch 2 Santa ornaments for Melissa, finishing them with beaded edges and hangers, as well as stitching a decorative border for their backs. The Santas were freebies from Gazette 94. I'd really like to stitch them again for myself, doing the whole series, and maybe passing on the beaded edging.
One of the extras I sent was a chocolate advent calendar. I have some very fond memories of these from when I lived in Germany as a young child. Pretty crappy chocolate in them, but I still loved opening up the little squares each evening to get my treat.
I had mentioned in my last post I needed to find the picture I took of Delaney. Just like I thought, it was on Mom's fancy new smartphone. Delaney is 15, and has had a tough life. Don't ask me what she's officially diagnosed as having, I just know she's my special cousin, suffering from both physical and mental disabilities. Its very frustrating for her trying to communicate. She understands more than what people give her credit for, but she can't talk. She definitely remembers Mom from the last time they were together, and greeted her with lots of hugs. It took a few hours for her to warm up to me, but I got my fair share of hugs too.
While watching the Rose Parade this morning, I worked on some Ann Smith flowers. I really felt the urge to start something new last night, for New Year's, but held off, instead just moving to a new section of Miss Ann. Here's just a small snap of the top border flowers.
I'm still loving her vibrant colors. I actually stitched that blue flower twice. The first time was with some duller blues (I had originally adjusted some of the colors). I decided to rip it out and go back to the brighter turquoise blue originally called for. Its definitely mellower stitched and surrounded with the other blues than in the full skein.
Monday, December 31, 2012
Christmas 2012
Christmas was a little bittersweet this year. For the first time in years we only had 1 golden retriever with us. Jim and Mary Lou decided it was time for Cheyenne to go to a better place. Holly and Annie decided to make up for the loss by being extra cute.
We revived the tradition of going to the theater by attending the Christmas Pops concert at Copley Symphony Hall. I had to illegally snap this picture. I wish I'd been able to get a picture of the conductor's pants. Wild!
After Christmas dinner my uncle and his daughter arrived. It was sort of a surprise last minute thing. Luckily hishellions sons were with the witch his ex-wife. I need to find a picture of Delaney, I think I took it with mom's phone. She's very special. So special that I'll forgive her for leaving germs behind and we now have a house with 3 sick people, and I just spent the last 2 days bringing mom meals in bed.
 |
| Annie just barely holding still long enough to snap a pic |
 |
| Holly sitting nicely for her picture |
We revived the tradition of going to the theater by attending the Christmas Pops concert at Copley Symphony Hall. I had to illegally snap this picture. I wish I'd been able to get a picture of the conductor's pants. Wild!
 |
| Jim and Mary Lou at Copley Hall |
 |
| Mom and Dad at dinner before the concert |
We always play dominoes in the evening, Mom and Jim are the usual cheaters winners, I either win or lose spectacularly.
We always have a puzzle in works in the living room, a quiet escape from the madness in the family/kitchen area. This year we blazed through the first puzzle in 24 hours so had to find a second one. I always like the 1000 piece puzzles, but mom and Jim lobby for the easy 500 piece ones.
Sweets are always lined up on the dining room sideboard. They change out daily. As one kind disappears, something new shows up to tempt you.
Our tree before the presents were unwrapped. Only a fraction of the ornaments we have made it
on the tree this year. My own tree is just a bit different - I have an extensive collection of Swarovski crystal snowflakes and sterling silver ornaments.
A typical low-key day. Notice that Annie isn't picky about who's lap she's in.
Annie getting in the middle of unwrapping presents.
Mom makes out like a bandit each year. Dad and I buy things for her, but she always has it in her mind we won't shop for her, so she buys for herself too. Well, let me amend that. I buy and wrap, Dad pays me back.
After Christmas dinner my uncle and his daughter arrived. It was sort of a surprise last minute thing. Luckily his
Monday, December 17, 2012
Recent Finishes
I'm proud to say I've had some finishes, somehow snuck in around exchange stitching. The biggest is my 2012 BAP Challenge piece, Blackbird Designs Christmas Garden.
Mom, Dad and my initials are stitched in red. The friends that always spend Christmas with us are done in gold. Mary Lou and Jim are family to me. Katrina was kind enough to share details with me about stitching the alphabet at the bottom instead of the charted Christmas Garden phrase. The colors are still Christmasy, but this at least gives it the option of being displayed year-round. I decided after taking the pictures I needed to add one more set of initials. I'm going to put a green SB up in the top right empty spot for Shepherd's Bush. This project was a gift from them to me last Christmas, and all of them signed the inside of my chart. Lots of things I could say, but I'll just keep it simple and say they're all special to me.
All of my other finishes are small compared to this. First up was the tote bag which was one of the projects from the retreat. I it in Arizona while we were motorhome camping. Perfect project for imperfect stitching conditions. Each of the designers at the retreat supplied a motif (or 2). The stitchers could pick and chose which motifs to put on their bags.
Next up is a piece designed by Nancy from the Victorian Motto Sampler Shoppe. It was originally started for an exchange, but then I decided it was too Christmas-y, then I fell in love with it paired with the red velvet.
Another project that was started for an exchange, but didn't make the final cut was this Homespun Elegance piece. I decided there wasn't enough actual stitching and didn't want the recipient to feel like they got the short end of the stick.
Next up is a Shepherd's Bush design from a few years ago. I've had this mostly stitched for a while, it just needed the last few stitches put in and the finishing done. Carol recently did a tutorial on hemstitching, so this was my first attempt. I'll definitely be doing more hemstitching in my future. Its a bit tedious and time consuming, but you get into a rhythm and it looks fabulous. I'd love to finish a sampler with hemstitching.
Last, but not least, a pair of Primitive Hare finishes. The larger one was kitted up at the SB retreat and is stitched on 30 count linen, the smaller I changed to read Merry White Christmas, and is stitched on 40 count linen.
Mom, Dad and my initials are stitched in red. The friends that always spend Christmas with us are done in gold. Mary Lou and Jim are family to me. Katrina was kind enough to share details with me about stitching the alphabet at the bottom instead of the charted Christmas Garden phrase. The colors are still Christmasy, but this at least gives it the option of being displayed year-round. I decided after taking the pictures I needed to add one more set of initials. I'm going to put a green SB up in the top right empty spot for Shepherd's Bush. This project was a gift from them to me last Christmas, and all of them signed the inside of my chart. Lots of things I could say, but I'll just keep it simple and say they're all special to me.
All of my other finishes are small compared to this. First up was the tote bag which was one of the projects from the retreat. I it in Arizona while we were motorhome camping. Perfect project for imperfect stitching conditions. Each of the designers at the retreat supplied a motif (or 2). The stitchers could pick and chose which motifs to put on their bags.
 |
| Shepherd's Bush 2012 Retreat welcome project |
Next up is a piece designed by Nancy from the Victorian Motto Sampler Shoppe. It was originally started for an exchange, but then I decided it was too Christmas-y, then I fell in love with it paired with the red velvet.
 |
| Victorian Motto Christmas Reindeer, stitched on 38 ct linen with Hand Dyed Fibers silk in Garnet |
Another project that was started for an exchange, but didn't make the final cut was this Homespun Elegance piece. I decided there wasn't enough actual stitching and didn't want the recipient to feel like they got the short end of the stick.
 |
| Homespun Elegance Christmas Won't Be Christmas, stitched on 30 count R&R linen with various overdyed cottons |
 |
| Shepherd's Bush Merry pin cushion. |
Last, but not least, a pair of Primitive Hare finishes. The larger one was kitted up at the SB retreat and is stitched on 30 count linen, the smaller I changed to read Merry White Christmas, and is stitched on 40 count linen.
 |
| Primitive Hare freebie |
Sunday, December 16, 2012
Catching up on exchanges
I've done several exchanges the last few months, and have been absolutely rotten about posting pictures. Please don't think my brevity of words means I'm not impressed or love everything I received, I'm just sneaking in this post between quarters of my Supply Chain simulation.
Animal Antics exchange, received from June. She did a fantastic job stitching me some cute squirrels.
For the Stitched With Love Halloween exchanged, I received a totally amazing witch's hat ornament from Sarah. The linen she sent me was just perfect for some Christmas stitching and mom nabbed a piece of the quilting fabric right away for one of the projects she was working on.
Terri (Dixie Sampler) also hosted a Haunted Halloween exchange, and I received an adorable L*K pin pillow and a fantastic tin topper from Parsley. She finished the inside with some magnetic tape, so needles stick to the lid. Its also the perfect size to put the adorable scissors she sent me, covered with bats.
I chose to stitch a Notforgotten Farms piece for Jonette (no blog).
There was also a Christmas exchange hosted by Stitched with Love, but I'm not quite sure what the status of it is. The blog over there is shut down but I haven't received word about being allowed to post pictures yet. No clue if my package arrived. I had fun wrapping, so I'll leave you with a pic of wrapped items. That's not giving anything away.
Yes, the cutting table also serves as the wrapping station up in the craft room (also known as the bonus room and the room where I have my computer set up).
Animal Antics exchange, received from June. She did a fantastic job stitching me some cute squirrels.
I sent some Plum Street hares to Lisa V. Other goodies were sent as well.
For the Stitched With Love Halloween exchanged, I received a totally amazing witch's hat ornament from Sarah. The linen she sent me was just perfect for some Christmas stitching and mom nabbed a piece of the quilting fabric right away for one of the projects she was working on.
I sent out 2 ornaments to April.
Terri (Dixie Sampler) also hosted a Haunted Halloween exchange, and I received an adorable L*K pin pillow and a fantastic tin topper from Parsley. She finished the inside with some magnetic tape, so needles stick to the lid. Its also the perfect size to put the adorable scissors she sent me, covered with bats.
I chose to stitch a Notforgotten Farms piece for Jonette (no blog).
There was also a Christmas exchange hosted by Stitched with Love, but I'm not quite sure what the status of it is. The blog over there is shut down but I haven't received word about being allowed to post pictures yet. No clue if my package arrived. I had fun wrapping, so I'll leave you with a pic of wrapped items. That's not giving anything away.
Yes, the cutting table also serves as the wrapping station up in the craft room (also known as the bonus room and the room where I have my computer set up).
Sunday, December 9, 2012
The past 3 months in 30 seconds...
September....
Mom and Dad headed up to Oregon for Dad's 50th high school reunion. I joined them for the first leg of the journey (in the motorhome) and we stayed at Seal Beach for 4 days. While there we....
Mom and Dad headed up to Oregon for Dad's 50th high school reunion. I joined them for the first leg of the journey (in the motorhome) and we stayed at Seal Beach for 4 days. While there we....
Went to the Getty Center
Went to the Getty Villa (my personal favorite)
(you can sort of see the backside of mom
through the glass - in the red shirt)
Went to the Queen Mary for dinner one evening
and Mom and I had afternoon tea another day
and we went to the Long Beach Aquarium
Annie and I then headed home for 3 weeks of bliss, I mean 3 weeks of uninterrupted studying. Oh, I almost forgot (don't tell Shawn) but a friend came out to see me from Chicago. We did the Zoo, the Midway, a walking wine tasting tour of Temecula, Food Truck Friday dinner, and a quick tour of Balboa Park before he flew back to Chicago
The 'rents got home and 2 days later I headed up to Utah for the Shepherd's Bush Retreat. The theme of the retreat was home for the holidays, and it really was home for me. The ladies at the Bush were my family for the 4 years I lived in Ogden. It felt great to be back with them, and Teri put me right to work. Oh woe is me, what a hardship it was to have Paulette Stewart all to myself for half a day (extreme sarcasm there). Poor Paulette had to put up with a borderline stalker fan picking her up from the airport and acting as chauffeur for the day.
The 'rents got home and 2 days later I headed up to Utah for the Shepherd's Bush Retreat. The theme of the retreat was home for the holidays, and it really was home for me. The ladies at the Bush were my family for the 4 years I lived in Ogden. It felt great to be back with them, and Teri put me right to work. Oh woe is me, what a hardship it was to have Paulette Stewart all to myself for half a day (extreme sarcasm there). Poor Paulette had to put up with a borderline stalker fan picking her up from the airport and acting as chauffeur for the day.
 |
| Mindi and Paulette, picture "borrowed" from Plum Street Samplers |
 |
| Mindi and Jill, with Midge and Gidge, picture borrowed from Plum Street Samplers |
Yes, if you look closely you can see I was wearing my budha pendant on the day I picked Paulette up and took her on a tour of the Temple grounds. You can't visit SLC without stopping by, its beautiful.
From Utah I drove down to Arizona to meet my parents in Sedona. For some reason I can't seem to find the gazillion pictures I took, except for the few on my phone. Oh well, I guess they're on the camera memory card and didn't make it to Dropbox or Picasa.
I also got a chance to stop by The Attic to drop off some donations for their charity auction and drool over all the samplers on the walls. I tried really hard to not look, my budget was already blown.
Early October I went to Las Vegas for my annual geek fest, otherwise known as the SOE Fan Faire. Its really just a chance to see friends I only see once a year and to have some fun going out to dinner. Not quite as much fun this year on an extremely limited budget, not to mention I haven't played my geek game (Everquest) in about 9 months. But, it was good to see friends.
Somewhere in all that I did some stitching, a few exchanges, a few finishes, and ripped out half the backyard to prep it for artificial turf. Pictures on all that next post, if anyone still reads this blog.
From Utah I drove down to Arizona to meet my parents in Sedona. For some reason I can't seem to find the gazillion pictures I took, except for the few on my phone. Oh well, I guess they're on the camera memory card and didn't make it to Dropbox or Picasa.
 |
| "Eat more Beef" at one of the artist colonies in Sedona |
 |
| Typical pose for Annie and Dad in the evening when motorhome camping. |
Early October I went to Las Vegas for my annual geek fest, otherwise known as the SOE Fan Faire. Its really just a chance to see friends I only see once a year and to have some fun going out to dinner. Not quite as much fun this year on an extremely limited budget, not to mention I haven't played my geek game (Everquest) in about 9 months. But, it was good to see friends.
We went to the Mob Museum
Had a "Dark Dining" experience (that's Shawn with me)
 |
| No, those aren't bras on our heads, just fancy sleep masks. |
Somewhere in all that I did some stitching, a few exchanges, a few finishes, and ripped out half the backyard to prep it for artificial turf. Pictures on all that next post, if anyone still reads this blog.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)