Knot in the Fray

Happy 2012, a finish and winter blooms

2012-01-02T01:07:00.000-05:00

I want to wish everyone a grand and wonderful 2012.

I have not posted in a long time. I have however finished one very special cross stitch project. I can now show it here since I was finally able to gift it to my Sweetie's mom.

I finished "Celtic Noel" designed by Lavander and Lace. I'm not sure of the kind of linenbut it was a 40 count. I stitched it 2 over 2, except the face and hands which I stitched 1 over 1.

I started the cross stitch in July 2011 and finished it the last week of September 2011.

I added the border and bias buinding and maded it into a quilted wall hanging.

I truely enjoyed the stitching of this!

I was pleased and excited to find my Christmas Cactus in bloom this year. Only a few blooms but more than it has ever had before. I love how they look. in bloom!! I hope they will bloom again for me.

I always loved my grand mother's Christmas Cactus. Every year it would be filled with blooms.

Having mine bloom brought back memories of family gatherings at my grandparents home for Thanksgiving or Christmas. The whole family would gather there (well, at least as many as possible). Aunts, Uncles and Cousins, all crammed into my grand parents home. We had anywhere between 20 and 30 people there.

We always had good times when the family got together. I miss those gatherings! At times i really regret the miles that seperate me from the closeness of my family, mostly at the holidays.

What I have been doing

2011-11-09T14:32:00.000-05:00

I have been having a crazy year! My stitching progresses in fits and starts. I am currently trying to figure out how to finish a gift that is intended for the SM's mother. In the mean time I have not started anything new. so for now there is nothing to report.

Blog hopping and some stitchie finishes..No pics though

2011-09-30T23:40:00.001-04:00

Merry Meet!

I have been doing a lot of blog hopping and reading lately. I know that i have not been posting very much about my many hobbies, but that is because life has been a bit crazy. I have finished a few different cross stitch items.

My favorite has been "Celtic Christmas" designed by Lavender and Lace. I love the colors in it and it swas a nice simple stitch for me. I started it July 14th and finished it September 9th. Yes both in 2011. I really love the look of it. I made two changes to the pattern. 1.) I did the face 1 over 1 because I felt that it looked smoother and blended better. 2.) I added a few extra beads around the outside boarder. I wanted to put my own stamp on it and i had so many beads left

I also finished up a Quaker Sampler that I sort of made up on the go. I have several different patterns and I wanted to make my own design. It is stitched 1 over 1 on linen that I had left over from another project (not sure of the manufacturer or the count). Since there is so much repeating between the patterns I just sort of pulled the ones that I like to stitch from about 4 different ones. I like how it came out.

I have also been working on "Quaker Halloween Sampler" by Cherished Stitches. Once again I am making it my own by using a bunch of different threads that make me feel "Holloweenie". so far I really like it. Once again it is a bit of fabric that I have owned for a long time. It is a Charles Craft that looks like Burlap. I am also stitching it 1 over 1. I do not know what colors I have been using, but they are all DMC 6 strand embroidery floss.

So that's what I have been stitching. I will post some pictures as soon as I get a new camera. The old one has breathed its last and been put to rest.

Merry Part,
Tina

2011-09-23T16:37:00.001-04:00

I found another site that I have been devouring! The authoress is so talented not only in her designs, but also in how she finishes her work. Pop over and give it a loook

Trying something new

2011-09-03T13:41:00.000-04:00

I have been wanting to learn appliqué for a long time now. I took the plunge and bought a few blocks from the JoAnn's old block of the month on clearance. I am working on the 6th block of the "Tulip Twist" collection.

For this being my first ever attempt at this technique I am not to disappointed at how it is coming out. I will improve as I continue to work on this. I will post photos as soon as I can get to my computer.

Another Cool Blog

2011-08-27T14:07:00.000-04:00

3 Creative Studios is a really cool site, They have lots if cool techniques and challenges that i think are appropriate for many different skill levels. They also have lots of cool tutorials, block of the months, and other fiber art related activities. So cool. Stop by and Check them out

Another cool idea

2011-08-26T17:23:00.000-04:00

Melinda has a quick and easy steno book cover on her blog. I am definately going to give this one a whirl.

Again I started reading her blog from the beginning. She has been blogging since 2006!!! Lots of great Eye Candy!!!! Don't we all LUV Eye Candy!!!!

Pop over and take a look. She does beautiful work with fabrics and other textiles. Fun read

Cool Things I have found out in bloglandia...

2011-08-25T20:43:00.001-04:00

First off let me say that I have not doing much in the way of either crafting or sewing of any sort. This is because I am not at home. i have however been skipping about bloglandia and have found som really cool things that I thought might intrerest others.

Can you guess what this used to be? It took me a moment. I found this awesome giftwrap center at Sew Many Ways. I started reading from the newest post and got hooked. I popped into the archives and started reading from the very first post. So many cool ideas...This one really hit me though..(we got a new tree last xmas and now I know what i can do with my "retired" tree.

This is the first of what I hope will be much more frequent blog posts.

Let's try this Again!!!

2011-08-03T15:34:00.000-04:00

Ok, I'll admit it...I am a BAD blogger! I have had so much on my plate that I just spaced on updating anything! So do you wanna see what I have been doing?

Well, your gonna anyway...LOL

we had to clear out the basement and storage areas

all the old broken mowers, rusty metal bits and broken bits and pieces so that we could

end up with storage for camping gear, canning suplies and misc. other things.

It amazes me how much stuff we pulled out of the basement and crawlspaces of the house. we ended up taking two trailers and three truck fuls of "STUFF" away..Why you ask???? We had to make room for ......

Our NEW heater!!!

Our NEW HEATER!!!! That meant that we had to have the old one and the old oil tanks taken out.

While all that was going on we also had projects going on outside:

We put in a new kitchen window as well as a matching livingroom window. Notice the UGLY gray siding? Well all of that was taken down...

And we put up new vinyl siding..It is a NAPCO product. The color is "Heather"

I LUV, LUV,LUV this color!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Now notice that the basement walls are all peeling and chipping...We fixed that and also put in some lovely new flower beds........

The kids and their friends were a great help! they did all of the digging and removal of grass, turned the soil and tilled in soil ammendments (read that as "stinky manure"). then they helped me to move all the flowers that you see from the various beds around the property. We finished filling the beds with wood chips and watered thouroughly. WHEW!!! All this work took months to complete because of the Rainy Wet and Chilly SPRING we had in Syracuse!!!

Why did we do all of this work? My DS graduated from HS and we were trying to get things ready for his graduation party. My family drove out from Minnesota and we wanted to have everything finished! We did get it done in time for the party, but we were working straight through until the evening of his graduation ceremony! i have never been so exhausted as I was after all of this craziness!

The week after the DS graduated was spent in cleaning up and packing for my big move. I did absolutely no stitching during all of this. I also did not get any blog reading done. When I did open my reader the other day I had 4500+posts to read!!! Can you say Skip and start over!

So like my header says...Lets try again!

Time to start over: or why I havent posted lately.

2011-07-14T14:23:00.001-04:00

It seems like life is finally dropping out of overdrive! the last few months have been one hectic day after another. When the SM took a job out of state (Wisconsin is half a continent away) we had already started to do the outside remodeling of the house. Needless to say i ended up being the one to deal with all the work being done. i am glad that it will not have to be done again for a very long time.

I have not been stitching anything! Spending all day outside doing yardwork and supervising the siding of the house left me exhausted! On top of all that I was also planning my DS's Graduation party. My parents and aunt drove in all the way from Minnesota!!!!!! I felt like a two headed chicken that was trying to run in circles...not a fun sensation!

So, you ask, what did I acomplish during the spring months? Well, we now have a home that is as lovely on the exterior as it is on the interior. The basement is cleaned out and we now have a high efficency propane heater and an on demand propane water heater that should last us for many years to come.

The DS graduated from High School with Honors!!!! YAY!!!! We were able to be outside for most of the day. In the evening it started to rain and we werre all either under the gazebo or in the house. For the most part it was good.

My mother and my aunt spent a week helping me to make goodies for the party: peanut butter balls, date balls, raspberry bars, lemon bars, cookies of several types, potatoe, macaroni and fruit salads, deviled eggs and dips of every sort. The refrigerator was packed to overflowing by the time the party started.

Food friends and fun...what more could one want on a sultery summer day? hmmmm...maybe sun! I must admit that the cloud cover did make it much more bareable. Over all, everyone had a good time and my mother and aunt and I were complimented on the food many times over.

Wow! 2 Months, really?

2011-03-09T07:27:00.000-05:00

I have had such a crazy new year. I have had very little time to sit down and do anything. Between the SM getting a new job, in a new city(Green Bay, Wisconsin) and helping him start to get our stuff slowly moved out there, and running the DS hither and yon as he completes his senior year of High school, I am exhausted!

I have made several trips between Syracuse, NY and Green Bay, WI over the last two months. I like the area that my SM found us an apartment. It will be interesting to go from a 5BR, 3Bath house to a little 1BR, 1Bath apartment. I am slowly going through all of my craft supplies and fabrics. I never really realized just how much STUFF I actually have. So far I have dug out 4 (yes four) huge 35 gal bins of fabric and 1 that is stuffed to the gills with yarn. The scary thing is that as I am going through my workroom I continue to find more.

In addition I have 2 drawers full of beads, buttons and misc. findings. a double sized filecabinet that is chock full of papers and stickers for my scrapbooking, and 2 half bookcases stuffed with books. I guess I should not be suprised. I have had 20+ years to accumulate all of this STUFF. I am thinking that I will have several giveaways or some such over the next few weeks. I need to work out how I will do so.

I am both excited and nervous about this whole move. It seems like we just got the house all in order and now we are up and leaving. DD#1 and DS will be living at the house while they are going to College. I am hoping that the experiance will help them to see that life is not so simple as they seem to think right now. They will be paying a bit of rent and have to work at keeping the house and land kept up. Good experiance and safe at momma's home.

My permanent move will take place the first week of July. I am doing it this way so that the DS can finish his Senior Year at the same HS he has been in for the last 3 years. I could not see pulling him out and transfering him to another school when he is doing so well now. He is in the National Honor Society and several clubs as well as the first chair in the Winter Percussion Mallets section. (not like he ever gets to sit down, lol.)

DD#1 is done and out of the US Army as of May 11th! YAY!!!!! She is so excited, as are we all! I am looking forward to spending a month and 1/2 with her at the house. She will be of great assistance to me as I get things ready for the final move.

So as you can see I have been crazy busy. I will be posting here more as I go through STUFF and perhaps running a contest or two. Hopefully some people will actually enter.

TTFN

Tina

HAPPY, HAPPY, JOY, JOY!!!!!!!!

2011-01-12T12:06:00.000-05:00

I have gotten the greatest news!!!! my DD#1 will be coming home from Afghanistan soon. YAY!!!!!!!

We only recently discovered Skype, so we have been able to talk to oneanother and have even gotten to see one another via video, but having her home will be SOOOOOOOO much better!

Just had to let someone know!

Peace, Tina

just another day

2011-01-09T13:15:00.000-05:00

There are no pics here because my old computer is no longer...I need to get all my pics off it and as of right now I have no way to upload any pics. You will have to use your imagination to "see".

It is another snowy day here in Upstate New York. After a few days of sunshine the gray skies have returned. I enjoy the snow for the most part, just not the having to move it. LOL

With the kids off to their father's for the weekend, snow removal is up to the SM and me. So we bundled up and headed out to shovel. It isn't to bad if we keep up on it; however, it seems to fall faster than we can shovel. It is not so bad for me and the SM; poor Jack (our teacup Yorkie...all 3lbs of him) is struggling to make his way through the snow to do his business. He is not all that fond of the snow. I have to giggle when I see him out in it looking for a place to do his business. His favorite thing to do when it snows is to find a tire track or some footprints and follow them for a bit.

Nose down and meandering through the tracks he finally decides that he will just have to do his business as best as possible in the adverse conditions. He returns to the house looking decidely dejected and much more white (the snow loves sticking to his coat). At the door his yelp signals me to open the door and admit him to the house. His little body is looking a bit plumper, from the covering of snow, but only for a moment. His whole body is a blur as he goes into a frensy of shaking to rid himself of the snow covering.

Snow scatters through the porch and he has to check out the mess that he has made. After a few sniffs he is finished and lets me know that he is ready to enter the house. As soon as the door is opened he madly dashes into the familyroom and jumps up into the SM's lap. They have a quick conversation about how mean I have been to send him out into the snow. Gotta love that the dog favors the SM over me...probably because "mommy" is the one that usually puts him out to do his business. Gotta love it!!! LOL

I do hope that you all have a lovely day. Stay warm and cozy...that's my plan for the day...knitting a scarf and finishing some xmas ornies that I started. I think that I will be putting them away after today, finished or not. Time to start someting to brighten my gray days.

Peace,
Tina

Happy New Year

2011-01-01T12:59:00.000-05:00

I hope that everyone has a peaceful, and joyful 2011.

Such a wonderful Christmas

2010-12-25T21:03:00.000-05:00

It has been a lovely, wonderful day. We woke around 8:30 and got the ham and potatoes all ready to go into the oven. while we waited for Nana to get up (and warded off the kids pleas to open their presents) we enjoyed na nice fresh cup of Coffee. It is so nice having most of the kids here for Christmas.

I was happy to hear that my oldest, Angel, who is serving in Afghanastan, recieved her Package on Christmas Eve. She was able to call and briefly let us know that it had arrived and she got to wish us all a Merry Christmas. It made me miss her all the more. Still, I was glad to hear her voice and the excitement in her voice made my heart happy.

The other three kids were all here and filled with high spirits. It has been a while since I knew that they would enjoy the presents I had chosen for them.

DD#2 got part of her gifts last month, She needed winter tires for her car and with all of the snow that we have had it is a good thing that I we got them at the end of November. The rest of her presents were all car themed...welli n an obscure way...We got her a cute winter hat with ear flaps and ties. We told her that it was part of the car theme because it would keep her warm while she was out scrapping the snow off her car this winter. She also recieved a gift card to help buy a new car radio. overall the Auto was heavily featured in her ensamble. Nana got her a Wallyworld giftcard

DS recieved several gifts that all tied together as well. To begin he recieved a video camera. along with this he recieved 2GB of RAM for his laptop and a microphone that plugs into his computer. These went along with the program we got him. It is a video, music editing program. I hope that he will enjoy these. He aslo recieved a gift card for some movies from Nana

DD#3 got a Kindle, protective case, screen protector and a giftcard for some books. She also got two sweaters tht wse have to exchange. I am still buying for an 11 year-old...she is now 15...OMG she has "woman parts" that I forget to take into acount. From Nana she recieved the softest purple (her fav color) scarf

My Dear Man gecieved several gifts. DS and DD#3 each got him a nice thermal long sleeve shirt. DD#2 got him a gift card for I tunes....yea for music. His mother got him a Steelers sweatshirt. From me...well, we agreeded not to get each other gifts since we do so much for each other all through the year.

Nana opened many presents. From TX she recieved a cool coco mix from Starbucks and a tin of their cocoa mix. From DD#2 she recieved her favorite thing...a bag of mixed Hershey's choclate candies. My DM and I got her a gift card for her favorite spa, and a calander that has pictures from Scotland.

I recieved some awesome gifts. DD#2 found me some lovely Lavander Smelling bath products and candles. My favorite scent! DS got me a wonderful floor lamp with an adjustable reading arm. I love it! DD#3 got me two new wall signs. They are part of the set started last year by DS. My kids are sooooo Awesome!!!!! My gift from Nana was a nice Wallyworld card. Got to look for a bargain on a new TV for the family room. The one we have now is way to small for the expanded living area; it makes my eyes hurt if I watch it from my chair.

All in all, we had a lovely day! Good food, even the critters got some Ham for Christmas. I must say however nice the day has been, I am really glad that this day is coming to an end. The preperation has been tough and my body aches. It was all worth it to see the enjoyment in the eyes of my kids. For the first time I have been able to get the kids some really great gifts that I know they will enjoy!!!!!

I hope that your Christmas was a joyful day! Enjoy the rest of 2010 with your loved ones.

Joyous Blessings to you all.

Merry Christmas!

2010-12-24T21:19:00.000-05:00

We had a lovely Christmas Eve. Family is nice to reconnect with...especially when you are the one hosting! Not having to travel was nice. I was busy all week baking cookies and taking time to finish up a few special gifties. (I have plenty of sweets to hold us til the New Year).

I hope that everyone out in Bloglandia has a Joyous Holiday. May your gatherings be filled with happiness and your tummies with good food. Blessings of the season to you all.

Tina

Hardanger Happiness

2010-11-22T10:04:00.001-05:00

I have been playing around with Hardanger. Mostly it is because I have a bunch of fabric laying around that I am trying to use up; It is also because I have been wanting to learn to do it for a long time. This piece is my own design using up bits and pieces of purl cotton and a piece of fabric of unknown origin.

I appologize for the fuzziness of the pictures, I am not a photographer by any stretch of the imagination.

complete piece

Heart Motif at ends

Detail of edging

Detail of Center Motif

Center Motif

I enjoyed this project for several reasons:

I am learning a new needleworking skill set.
The rythum and flow of the stitching is very calming and let my mind relax.
The feel of the fabric and the way it contrasts with the feel of the purl is a subtle variation.
It develops rather quickly (I finished this piece in less than 3 hours over two days).
I like the fall color scheme.

Overall, I think that I will continue to explore this new (to me) form. I have several ideas that I would like to explore. First I want to learn the other (there are only a few that I have seen) stitches. I have gotten much better at the center picots, but there are other variations that I still need to learn.

I hope that everyone enjoys their time with Family during the Thanksgiving holiday (at least it is here in the USA). Don't eat to very much, savor every bite and every moment.

Tina

A slightly late finish

2010-11-03T09:03:00.000-04:00

I had actually finished this project about 2 weeks ago, but once again life got a bit hectic. Between Medical and Dental appointments I have been running around with the kids, All that time spent sitting in waiting rooms, now that theya re old enough to go in by themselves, gave me a lot of time to "play" with my "string".

I hope that every one enjoys looking at this little wall/door hanging as much as I enjoyed working on it.

Lenny the Lion

Manfred the Mummy

Count Carl

Gerry the ghost

Frightful Frankie

Wendy the Wistful Witch

Finished Hanging

Each of the characters was designed by me. If anyone would like the patterns for them please feel free to drop me an e-mail

Thanks for stopping by, and have a Great Week!

Tina

A Halloween Finish

2010-10-25T15:01:00.000-04:00

I have been doing very little stitching lately. The work we have been doing on the house has taken up so much of my time; I have been doing very little of anything.

One of the things that I did make time to work on is a cute fall table runner that I designed and stitched up one weekend. I like the colors and the way that they felt stitched up. I will probably do a few more of these type of projects. I really enjoyed the whole process.

Here are a few pics:

This runner was just something I dreamed up. I hope that you like it.

The fabric is felt and the threads are DMC. I am not sure of the colors as I have been trying to use up the loose floss that I am finding as I continue to sort through the things in my craft room. I blanket stitched the leaves and pumpkin sections down and then did the detail stitches using backstitch.

Thanks for checking it out

Tina

out of commision for a while

2010-08-14T09:29:00.000-04:00

Where have the months gone? It seems like Summer has slipped by. I have been so busy with things around here that I have not had time to post anything.
DS has passed his driver's education class. He can now take his test to get his license. YIKES! When did I get old enough for him to be driving?

DD#1 is still overseas in Afghanistan. She is doing well. I get at least one message from her a week, just to let me know that she is ok. Thank god for Text Messages. I don't know how my grandma and ma did it when they had loved ones overseas and they were waiting for a letter.

DD#2 is now working 2 jobs. She cane and asked us if she could get a puppy. After much discussion we said yes. On Monday we will be going to pick up Mandrake (who will be known as Drake) the Min-Pin. It will be interesting to see how Jack and Smokey take to the new family member.

DD#3 is driving me nuts. She has multi-colored hair and although it sets my teeth on edge I keep reminding myself that hair grows....eventually.

My SM is busy with work and doing the finishing of the baseboards and trim upstairs. I will have a new Craft Room within a week!!!!!!!

Me??? Well I have been busy getting Ma moved up here from NC and settled in. Doctor's appointments and such to get her set up and taking care of all the things that go along with moving. I am exhausted. Beyond that I have been busy in the garden. I will try to post pics in a few days.

Well, I have done NO stitching, quilting, drawing...etc. over the last few months. To busy with running everyone where they need to be. I am looking forward to school starting again, then I can get some things done. First I will need to set up my new craft/sewing room. I am so looking forward to having a dedicated place to do my thing. It will be a first. No more packing things up and having to unpack them to work. YEAH!!!!!!!

Pics long over due

2010-04-12T11:37:00.000-04:00

I have to appologize to the two lovely ladies that were my partners in the pin pillow exchange that was sponsered by Becky over at BeckyBee's Stitching Hive.

I recieved a lovely sampler pin pillow from Sara over at Sara's Simple Stitching. here are my pics:

front

back

I am not sure what count the cloth is or what kind of thread was used. I love that the stitches are so even and neat. I wish I had the patience to work with backgrounds this small.

As for the pin pillow that I made, I mailed it out just before the Easter weekend. Ellen over at Fannie's Place recieved it and asked me to post some pics since she is not able to at this time. So here we go:

I have only taken a picture of the frount since the back is the pink satin that you can see peaking out from the spaces of the Hardanger. I came up with the design after reading some books to learn how to do this type of stitching. For this being only my third time doing Hardanger work I feel that it came out very nicely.

Designer: Tina

Fabric: 22 count white Hardanger

Thread: #5 and #8 DMC Perl Cotton: White

Stitched By: Tina

As for what else I have been working on, Well, Not much. The last few weeks have been a bit hectic. My DS partisipated in the State Compition with the Winter Percussion Ensamble. The School took second place. His younger Sis and I went and watched the compition. I must say, Bleachers are still the most uncomfortable thing to sit on. My poor backside ached for several days afterwards. (Is that TMI?)

In addition to running halfway across the state to watch the performances, closer to home I have been busy with gardening and such. As of yet I have not planted anything, still haven't reached the Last Expected Frost Date for Central New York. I have been slowly working my across my .95 acre to pick up all of the fallen branches and to clean up some of the deadfall trees (they will help heat my home well next winter) so that in a week or so I will be able to runn the lawn tractor over it with fresh new blades in the mower and not have to worry to much about the new blades being destroyed.

The days have been sunny and warm for the most part. the one day that we had rain here I did spend some time at my sewing machine. This is what I worked on:

My Snow Friends wall hanging is slowly taking shape. I am using blocks from the "Dear Hannah" program from Electronic Quilts. I am making the pieced blocks 3" x 3" and will be putting another strip of fabric between the blocks before I sew them together. I chose to paper piece the blocks because they are TINY, TINY pieces and I wanted tehm to be very accurate. So far I think that I have accomplished this. (the thing that they are pinned to is a slab of foam insulation taht we had leftover from the upstairs bathroom remodel. I plan to cover it with some white felt soon and it will be my permanent design wall.)

Pin Pillow Exchange sent, bathroom finished and a b-day wish

2010-03-30T18:37:00.000-04:00

Well, I did it... I put the pin pillow in the mail. I will post some pics when i hear that it has arrived at its final destination.

I am going to post some pictures of my DD #2's bathroom. It is the upstairs bath and since she is the one living up there it is "her bathroom".

the view from the door

to the the left

The dual stage toilet and basin sink (the sink sits on a custom made stand, topped with white carrara marble, that my SM made and I made the curtains for with DD#2's help)

note the lovely co-ordinated soap pump and trash can.

Teh vanity that was custom made by my SM. It is also topped with carrara marble and the DD#2 and I made the curtains. Again you will note the co-ordinated bath items. DD picked out her bath accecories Tissue cover, toothbrush holder and cup (she is using the cup to hold her cotton swabs) as well as trash can and soap dispenser. Her rugs are a lovely beige and her towels are a nice deep rose to co-ordinate with the floral print on the curtains. Finally she picked out a small lamp to sit on the vanity. Its shade matches the towels fairly well.

And last but not least.... The Shower Pod....

This shower has it all....

a rainfall shower,

a handheld shower,

6 body jets,

a foot massage and

an FM radio.

We could also hook up a phone line and a CD player to the unit. (A bit of overkill there)

It looks like an alien pod when all of the lights are on. LOL

Oh and a last Note:

HAPPY BIRTHDAY COCO!!!!

Your momma luvs ya!!!!

20 years ago

You entered my life and made it brighter!

Second Day of Spring

2010-03-22T09:43:00.000-04:00

I am so glad that Spring has arrived. We have been lucky enough to have beautiful weather here in CNY. We are curently snow free (KNOCK on WOOD).

DD#2 and DS

shoveling us out after the last February snowfall.

it is amazing to me that we have gone from so much snow just a few weeks ago to this...

The first blooms of SPRING

Jack posing in the sunshine. He wasn't quite sure what to think about the fact that he could run through the yard again.

I have felt so much better within the last week. I know that a lot of it is due to the sunshine and our mini-heatwave. It was above 50 F for 4 days this last week. I still kept the wood furnace stoked since the nights were down in the lower 30's F. The daylight hours were lovely. I was able to sit out on my enclosed porch and sip my morning coffee and not freeze my tush off.

Besides enjoying the weather we were busy working on refurbishing the upstairs bathroom. DD#2 is living at home and since we had the plumbing already run up there...it was there when we moved into the house 16 years ago...we had a plumber come in and make sure that it was okay to use. It passed the inspection and we have spent three weeks updatine the fixtures. With a new toilet, a basin sink and a space-age shower I wonder if the DD will ever decide to move out...LOL I will post some pics when we have it all set up and ready to go.

For now I hope that all of you in the Northern Hemisphere are enjoying Spring like weather. For those of you in the Southern Hemisphere I hope that your Autumn is a joyful time of harvest and plenty.

Peace,
Tina

Biscornu and Sissors Fob

2010-03-17T20:09:00.000-04:00

I have been very busy over the last month. My SM and I have been doing some remodeling of my home. Since we have been together he has almost completely remodeled the first floor of my house. I have helped him when I was able, but he has done the majority of the work. My DS has learned quite a lot from the SM. He can now drive a nail straight and has learned how to hang drywall. By far the DS enjoys the de-construction the most.

Over the last month my SM hired a handyman/electrician/plumber to help him on several projects. The first project the two of them tackled was to remove 1/2 a wall to open up the kitchen into the livingroom. It was a bit messy but it was doen within 2 weeks. Since the house is over 100 years old (built in 1906) we have been suprised a time or two as we worked. For once the suprise was a plesent one. The wall we were taking down was thought to be a supporting wall. It turned out not to be!!!! YAY!

Taking down the wall

Getting ready to put in the beam

looking from the livingroom to the kitchen

I love my granite counter top

a bit blurry but these were the cabinets above the counter that we repurposed and built a toekick for. They hold all of my spices.

So that was the first project for the end of February. Since wer had to move several wires my computer was down quite a bit. I wasn't able to post as we worked so now I am playing catch-up.

We have began working on putting in a second bathroom. It is up-stairs directly above our old one. All of the pipes have been up there, but as far as I know they had never been put into use. Soooooo...the handyman has been going through and making sure that they are sound. So far we have only had one leak that was promptly repaired. The HM has also been working on the electrical. We are replacing all of the old wire (circa 1930's) with new. We actually have more than one outlet upstairs now!!!! (I will be able to move my sewing room up there soon!!!!

So...lets move from construction on my house to that I have been onstructing with my needle. I was given the oppertunity to stitch up the March Fob and Biscornu from "A Girl as Mad as Birds" I had a lot of fun doing this quick stitch. I spent about 3 hours total on it. I sould have had it finished earlier, but last Saturday I was up at Fort Drum to seem m DD#1. She is off to parts unknown and I was able to see her off. (sigh!!!)

Without further ado....

This is a scan of the finshed stitchings.

Here is the front of the stitched and finished fob and Biscornu,

and here is the back.

I hope that you all will go over to Nic's blog and check out her other patterns. She sends them out via a PDF for free with a request from you...However I hope that all of you give a small donation, as per her request, to the MS Trust here. It is a very worthy cause!

Thanks for reading. Have a great day!

Tina

DD #2 graduated.

2010-02-24T09:25:00.001-05:00

Last night my DD#2 graduated from her Dental Assistant program. It was a short ceremony...for which I am grateful! We were in and out within 45 minutes. Now all she has to do is find a job! She has had two interviews at an Oral Surgery practice. That is always a good sign. Please send up a little prayer for her to get a job...wether it is that one or another. That is my good news.

My not so good news...my DD#1 called in the middle of the ceremony. She is in the military. She found out when and where she is heading. I'm not going to say where or when...Loose lips sink ships...gotta love cliches. She does get to come home for several days prior to shipping out. That is a god send. I am a basket case. I know that she has to do her duty. After all, she was the one who signed up knowing what the situation is in the world.

As a mother I am terrified. As a Veteran I understand the duty aspect of it all. None of it is easy for me to accept. This is after all my baby girl. She will always be my baby...any mother knows exactally what I mean. All I can do is be here for her no matter what.

Okay, I have that off my chest. I just needed to rant. Thank you for taking the time to visit. I hope you all have a great day.

Pin Pillow Exchange

2010-02-18T03:16:00.000-05:00

I am taking part in teh pin pillow exchange that is being hosted by BeckySC over at Becky Bee's Stitching Hive. I am looking forward to taking part in my very first exchange. I am having a hard time trying to decide what I will stitch up for this exchange. I am going to have to buckle down and just pick something from my collection of magazines and books that will make a sweet pin pillow. I hate making decisions like this without knowing the person.

Since I have started Blogging I have been fortunate enough to win a give away from Shell over at Tales from the Raspberry Rabbit. You can see posts about Mr. Rabbit here. I have still not decided where to place Mr. Hippy Hoppy Rabbit. My SM(Sweet Man) has taken to calling him TR, short for Traveling Rabbit.

In quilting news I am cutting the bands for both my blue and red "Snowfriends" wall hangings. With all the snow that we have had fall her in CNY (Central New York) I am feeling like putting them up for a bit. However, I want to get them done so that I don't feel guilty for not finishing them. My UFO's and WIP's are piling up. I have two Advent count down calanders and two other christmas items that I purchased for 75% off after Christmas. These 4 items are tucked away in a clearly labled box to be pulled out around October for finishing.

Speaking of the clearly labled box...I am striving to become more organized. My DM is a neat freak and I have a tendancy to leave things around the house. I do not want to drive him away so I am trying to curb my messy ways. I have been doing Flylady for about 4 years now and I am slowly taming my clutter and am to the point where I am mostly living with the things taht I love and use. She has helped me so much. If you do not know her go over to her website and check her out.

No new pics here, I haven't done much other than start to cut strips for the, above mentioned, wallhangings. The snow and cold make my joints ache and at times it is really hard for me to get moving. I am looking forward to Spring!!!! I will probably still be hurting but at least I will be able to sit out on the frount porch and soak in some sunshine as I drink my tea and do some stitching. I do miss the sunshine!

Well, enough of my bellyaching...I hope that you are all warm and cosy and getting to spend a bit of time on your stitching

Tina

Well, its about time...

2010-02-10T10:47:00.002-05:00

A few weeks ago I won a give away from Shell at Tales from the Raspberry Rabbit. I have been having such a hard time with electronics that I have not gotten around to posting the pics that I took. Well, I am going to remedy that right now! So with no further delay, here is Mr Rabbit.

I am showing him in three different locations because I am having a hard time choosing his permanent home. I would love to hear what others think. : )

On a different track, I an SOOOOO sick of snow. Here in Syracuse, NY we have had snow on the ground for three months now. We have had at least trace amounts of snow every day since Christmas. For the most part is is just enough to be annoying. If I have to leave the house I ahve to sweep the snow off the car before I leave. After I get done (shopping at Hobby Lobby or Jo-Anns) I have to sweep the snow off again. ARGH!!!!!

So I figured that I would share a few snow pics with you all (well, maybe some day I will have a follower).

This is what I have been dealing with. This bit of snow fell between 8:00 and 9:00 am.

I can tell that it fell between those times because DD#2 left for work at 7:35am and this is her empty parking space.

These three views are the view of my yard. There are only two houses back here in the woods, you can barely see my neighbor's house in the last photo.

Oh Well, I really should not complain. (I'll be knocking on wood as I say, Type?, this next bit) We have not lost power and for the first time in many a year we did not run out of wood for the wood burning furnace. I have plenty of food and know that if anything did happen we would be warm and cosy. After all one of the big perks about having a wood burning furnace is that if all else fails I can cook on top of it (it would need to be something I normally make in the crock-pot, but it is possible).

Well, I have bent your ear for long enough. I hope you all have a good day, and as you stitch may your threads stay knot free.

Tina

Finally back

2010-02-03T23:21:00.000-05:00

This last month has been very hard on me. It has been sbnowing almost every day since Christmas. When the weather is like this I end up feeling very blue. I have been hunkered down in my recliner and and have spent a lot of time working on my band sampler that Sharon B, over at pintangle, inspired me to begin. It has been a very enjoyable diversion from the weather.

I ahve also finished all of the embroidery on my snow friends blocks for my wall hangings. You can see the original post here. These are something that I have been working on for most of the month of January.

Here are the five red that will complete the red work wall hanging.

Here are the 6 that will go into the blue work wall hanging.

I have picked out several fabrics to frame each and then to join them together into a nice wall hanging. I still need to block them. I am going to frame them out and make some smaller pieced blocks to square everything up.

I would love to know what you think of them.

peace, Tina

Gone for awhile

2010-01-28T00:51:00.000-05:00

I have been feeling very blue for the past few weeks. It is an awful feeling when depression hits you. It does not help that we have had several days where the sun was unable to break through the clouds and it SNOWED all day long. It also does not help that the cold weather makes my joints swell and ache. Aw heck, Who am I to complain? I have a house, 4 happy healthy kids (youngadults?) and a man that loves and cares for me. A time to be thankful in light of all the distruction in Haiti.

Well on to what has helped me to come out of my blues...My son and #3 daughter have had the last few days of for the NYState Regents Testing. DD#3 has no tests this time around so she has been hanging out with mom. We spent a few lovely hours working on her "Purple Passion" quilt. This is her first attempt at quilting so I have been bery impressed that she is sticking to it.

On the left I am showing her how to use a rotery cutter. We started out by cutting 4 1/2inch stripsFrom there we cut them into 4 1/2 inch squares. On the right is DD#3 cutting squares. Notice that she is a lefty and I am a righty. It took us awhile to figure out that we needed to move the rueler to the opposit end of the strips in order for her to cut them more easily.

All of our hard work paid off though. We cut over 400 squares. The 10 colores that she picked out flow nicely. We played with them for a while until we found a pattern that we liked. We hung the completed strips from magnetic clips and hung them on our fridge to check our pattern. I especially like that they will be progressing in a stairstep pattern. The best part is that She did all of the sewing by herself on my machine. Her seams are very straight and, for the most part, are a very tight 1/4 inch

In other crafting: I completed this lovely granny square throw for DD#3. It is made up of my many odds and ends of yarn. I just crocheted each one until there was not enough to go another round. I used up quite a bit of my yarn stash. In all there are 9 different yarns in it. On the left you see DS haming it up. He felt that since his sis got to be on mom's blog he should be there too.

Long Extended Weekend

2010-01-11T23:32:00.001-05:00

I had all of the kiddlets here at one point or another this weekend. It was nice for me since I was able to find some one-on-one time with all four of them. This does not happen very often!

With the 21yo DD up at Fort Drum (about 80 miles from home) I see her less and less often as she is starting to spread her wings and soar. She is enjoying her job and has settled into a routine (something that she sorely needed).

The 19yo DD is trying to spend some time with her bf. She will have very little time over the next few weeks. She started her internship for Dental Hygenest. I expected her home around 5:oopm, but she texted me to letme know that the dentist had asked her to stay for an emergency visit. I was impressed that he put this much trust in her after only one day. When she finally did get home she was glowing and exhausted. LOL I would be dead if I had been on my feet for 12 plus hours.

The 16yo DS actually had this evening free. And to top it off, he actually had a conversation with me! I almost passed out! Teen-aged boys always have been a mystery to me.

The 14yo DD texted me after school. (She lives with her father) She wanted to tell me about her day...I wonder if there is something in the water around here???? We texted back and forth for over an hour (Again...be still my heart!!!!) We actually talked about "things" and did not get on one anothers nerves...We are definately to much alike at times. I think that the texting is a good way for us to communicate...Makes us think about what we are saying...No heated exchange of unintended words.

The SM (Sweet Man) left early this AM to return to his education. It makes the house really quiet when he leaves. He will be done with his Bachlors in Mechanical/Production Engineering in May and we are both ready for graduation. ?He had a short day today, but tomorrow he will be in classes from 9-9, what a schedule. Even with breaks it is a long day.

Me...I spent most of the day sipping Tea and stitching as my ctitters lounged about the house. I have finished more of the snowmen blocks for the wall hanging but am being lazy about posting the pics. I promise I will have them up tomorrow. For now it is off to slumberland.

First block stitched

2010-01-07T13:15:00.001-05:00

I finally got my DS to get the scanner hooked up correctly so that I could scan my finished blocks. This is the first one that I have finished for the redwork wallhanging.

I really like how this block came out. All total I only spent about 4 hours doing this stitching. It amazes me how calming doing the outline stitch can be.

I am now working on the same block only this new one is in blue. There will be more pics as I continue to work on the blocks

Peace, Tina

long day

2010-01-06T01:07:00.001-05:00

I spent the better part of my morning sitting and waiting at the Syracuse VA hospital. I knew that it was going to be a LONG wait so I went prepared. I have been working on redwork blocks for the "Snowfriends" Quilt, designed by Lynda Howell, from the Nov/Dec issue of Quiltmaker magazine. I get to combine two of my favorite pastimes together into one (three) lovely wall hangings.

I absolutely LOVE my snowmen! I finished up one of the larger blocks and my doc was actually so nice as to tell me how much she liked my work. It is amazing to me that so many people are stitchers (or married to them). I have had so many lovely conversations with people about my work and what they are working on, are going to start, and what they have just finished. I love it.

You are going to have to wait for a pic of my finish (I have an actual WIP...LOL). I got home after noon and snuggled into my recliner and started to stitch another (the same???) block but in blue this time. I want to make three of the quilted wall hangings...one red, one blue, and one in color. I have my work cut out for me.

I should be in bed right now, but my arms both hurt. I got 2 shots...H1N1 and pnemonia. I'm greatful that I am able to get these, but at the same time I wish they wre not necessary! Ah, Well, my health is the most important thing. I need my strength to stitch.

Sweet dreams,

Tina

My First Biscornu

2010-01-02T13:39:00.002-05:00

Well, I finally finished my first Biscornu. it is many small squares that I filled with DMC varagatied purple floss (number unknown) Blackwork patterns.

Each one is an experiment going from very little fill to dense fill. Each of the squares is 14x14 squares on 14 count Adaia (did I spell that right?) so each is one inch square. The finished size is aproximately 5x5 inches and 1 1/2 inches high.

The buttons are a small green topped with an even smaller light purple.

I used up some of the materials that I had on hand to make this item. It may not be perfect, but I am very happy with my experiment.

For my next Biscornu I will probably stuff it a bit more. I like the way that it squishes right now, but my next one will be used as a pin cushion and therefore will be made much firmer.

Merry part,

Tina

As we begin 2010

2010-01-02T12:02:00.001-05:00

I borrowed this from another blogger...and unfortunately I can't relocate it..if you know where it came from let me know. I thought that it was a great way to lookforward into the new year. So, with no further ado...

As I begin 2010……

I'm feeling… a sense of anticipation. I am looking forward to more blogging, taking part in some of the swaps and contests, and “meeting” more people in blogland.

I'm seeing... SNOW. It snowed again last night and the cars have about ½ inch covering.

I'm thinking... how nice it will be to snuggle under the afghan I am currently crocheting

I'm appreciating... the warmth of my home. It was just a year ago that my furnace died and now I have a lovely wood fire in the furnace and my whole home is comfy and warm. Also the fact that I have both my refrigerator freezer and my chest freezer full of food. It wasn’t all that long ago that I was wondering from day to day what I would be feeding my family.

I'm cooking... scalloped potatoes and ham the leftovers from last night’s dinner with our neighbor.

I'm planning... to begin stitching the blocks for “snowman collector” in lovely blues and another in reds

I'm reading... Nothing at present. I need to make a run to the library.

I'm wearing... A tee-shirt and sweatpants…comfy and cozy all the way!

I'm creating... Peaceful spaces in my home and lovely art to hang in my spaces.

I'm hearing...The Barrett-Jackson auto auction on Speed. It is a rerun, but my boyfriend is a lover of cars…There are a couple that I wish I could afford to bid on…. anyone have a '68 mustang in red? LOL

I'm enjoying... The antics of my teacup Yorkshire terrier, Jack, as he tries to tear his “daddy”, my boyfriend, from his studies.

I'm sharing...My life with the best kids and a wonderful man.

Peace and blessings, Merry part

Tina

Some end of the year finishes

2009-12-27T12:03:00.003-05:00

Since my last post, I have been extreamly busy with the prep for the holidays. Between Yule, Christmas and now New Year invites I also had to get things ready for my brood here. I love the time spent on getting things ready, but am pleased to now sit back and relax for a few days before the New Year begins.

Yule (Winter Solstice December 21) was spent with my oldest DD. We made cookies and began in ernest to get the meals ready for the day of Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. Christmas Eve was spent at home with 'the Brood'. We opened all of the presents that we had for one another. For the first time ever all of the kiddos had purchased a gifty for momma (aka ME). I love each of them and was plesently suprised by how much thought went into each of them.

I want to share some of my finishes for the year with you.

This first one is of a blackwork butterfly that I have been working on. The patterbn is from Stitches Magazine. It is one of 16 that will be placed into a frame and hung on the wall of my family room.

This is one of the "twin" angel that I made for my neighbor Ms. Liz. She wanted one for herself and one to give to her daughter-in-law. I was very pleased with how they came out. The only parts on them that were not had done were the head and hands. Those were purchased online. I hand sewed the dress, underskirt, and sleeves and hand beaded the cuffs just at the edge of the lace. The wings were made by shaping some "pipe cleaners" and sandwiching them between two pieces of gold tulleand using my sewing machine to satain stitch over the formed wings.

Thats all I have for now. I will be working on some new projects over the next few weeks and finishing up some of my WISP's that I have had hanging around.

May you all enjoy your Christmas goodies and I wish you health and happiness as the New Year begins.

Feeling Blue

2009-12-16T00:17:00.001-05:00

Well, since I last posted I have completed several small cross-stitch items. I will post some pictures once I get to the store for batteries.

It is amazing that I keep finding myself up at midnight watching the shows that I DVR'd. The Martha Stewart Christmas show was on Fine Living the other night. I love to watch her at work...If only I was as organized as she is. Sigh....some day. For now I will have to enjoy my creative clutter. I do need to get everything all picked up so that the tree can be hauled down from the attic.

I have been putting it off. I am having a hard time getting into the spirit of the season. I think that it has a lot to do with the cold, wet, blustery weather. It has been gloomy. Last Tuesday it did snow about 4 inches. It looked like a glistening jewel when I got up. By mid afternoon it had started to rain and by eaving all the snow was gone. We ended up with icy roads and a few downed tree limbs. Tis the season.

I am going to have to give myself a kick in the kiester. Time to get over the gloomys. This is a time to enjoy and celebrate. I need to remind myself of all the good things that I have.

So here goes: My Happy List

I have a warm and comfy home.
I have a wonderful Boyfriend who cares about me.
My Children are healthy and (usually?) happy.
My car runs and has a new muffler (ah the peaceful hum of the engine is sweet).
My parents are coming from MN to spend part of the X-mas holiday with us.

Hmmmmmm...This should not be so hard! I will need to start posting some happy thoughts. I am going to shoot for one happy post each day for one week. It is a beginning that I hope will lead me to a happier place before the real holiday hits me.

I sound so whiney. Ah well...I am determined to turn over a new leaf and be more positive.

Merry Meet

Tina

Happy Birthday Momma

2009-11-30T18:23:00.001-05:00

You would think that after 40+ years I would remember to give my mother a call on her birthday. NOT! There is a 2 hour time differance between NY (me) and MN (mom). I thought about making the call this morning...had a doctor's appointment...gonna live for another 100+ years...LOL anyway, I didn't call mom. Then when I got home it was after noon and she is in classes (going to school to be a nurses aide) and will not be out untill after 9:00 pm MN time. I am usually dead asleep by 11:00. I guess that I should stay up and call my mom.

I have been stitching on the blackwork butterflies in the 198 issue of New Stitches. I love this magazine...I need to talk to the gals at Barnes and Noble to have them set a copy aside for me. I have a hard time finding it if I don't get there the day that it comes in. I need to check and see if they will do a subscription to a Yank. That would make my day!

When I get batteries for my cam I will post some pics. I tried to take some, but the cam died...ARGH

Have a wonderful December First.....Only 24 more days until Christmas!

The day before Thanksgiving

2009-11-25T19:09:00.001-05:00

Today has been a very harried and active day. Everything is all set to be popped into the oven. Turkey, mashed potatoes, suffing, candied sweet potatoes, acorn squash and gravy from the drippings. Very traditional but oh so satisfiing.

The smell of baking cookies is presently in the air. My oldest DD has the weekend off from the US Army and arrived home earlier this evening. She is only about 75 miles away from home...how many soldiers can say that. her contribution to the feast is White Chocolate Macadamia nut cookies. Her SO made a New York style cheesecake.

DD #2 is making a no-bake double layer pumpkin pie. She had a test run at it last night as she had to bring in a desert for her Dental Assistant classmates. It both looked and tasted great.

The DS spent his day off from high School making Sugar cookies. Simple ones that were cut into circles, sprinkled with cinnamon sugar and baked. Yummy!

DD #3 had already made her contribution last weekend...She and I made three kinds of cookies...8 batches of dough frozen in one gallon ice cream buckets...simple ones;oatmeal rasin, chocolate chip, and peanut butter. We ended up makeing a nineth batch and baking them up. Those are gone already (who would have thought that 5 people could eat 3 dozen cookies in less than a week? LOL). Since the efforst of last weekend were consumed she made a graham layer bar that is an old family favorite passed down from my mother's mother.

My SM got the turkey all set to go. It is a good thing that the weather here is staying in the low to mid 30's F. We were able to season and bag the bird and then set it in the roaster on the inclosed porch. It will be quite safe there as it is supposed to dip down into the low 20's F overnight.

As for me I was the supervisor of the kitchen. Between batches of cookies and bars I tried to get in some crochet work. I began a treetop angel that I plan to give to my neighbor, Ms. Liz. She is a fistey widowed 84 year old woman who still throws logs down into the basement to feed her wood stove. I love her dearly. She reminds me of my Grandmother. Anyway, I finished the head and began the first round of her neck and shoulders.

Tomorrow there will be 8 of us here: me, my SM, DD #1 and her SF, DD #2 and her SM, DS and DD #3. All of the family together again makes the nest feel full and brings a glow to mommy.

Happy Thanksgiving to All of you.

What to do? What to do?

2009-11-24T14:49:00.002-05:00

I have been relaxing with a cup (or two) of tea as I scanned through blogs that I am following. So many thoughts and ideas that are running through my head. I really need to pull out my old sketch books and put some of these ideas down on paper.

Ahhhh...where does one start? I figure that since it is getting so close to Christmas I ahould sit down and work on some of my UFO's. Even before I do that, I need to pull them all out...hmmmmm...where is that box....it has only been up in the attic for 16 years now!!!!!!

Wow. Has it really been that long? YEP....ARGH! There are UFO's that were started for people that are no longer with us. So many people who have slipped in and out of my life. What to do????? I have to rummage through the box and see what can be salvaged. Can any of these be repurposed or exchanged? Can I actually finsh any of them...do I have all the needed supplies???? Argh....What was I thinking?

Well...I'm off to hunt down the box. Look for me later....maybe I'll show you what I have found

chicken scratch 2

2009-11-23T15:36:00.001-05:00

I decided to up load a few more of the scans of my chicken scratch. I like these two much better. I worked them using a blue color from my floss box that was in a tangle. The light double cross stitch is the base for the weaving in this photo. All the floss is three strands. The abstract stitching was done following the lines or crossing the blocks of the squares.

I have been enjoying this form. I can see that there are many other ways that this form of stitching could be used. One of the things that I would like to explore further is to use these stitches on an evenweave cloth.

I can remember seeing and doing this stitching when I was a youngster. I am not sure of the name of the company that the kits I worked was, but I know that they did in-home parties to demonstrate different stitching forms. My mother still has many of those pieces of work.

Again here are some more stitches. I think that they are based on several different photos that I saw while browsing the web. I have seen so many interpertations of this form over the last few weeks.

I enjoyed re-learning these stitchs, it took me back to my childhood and made me feel so youthful. Working the stitches brought back good memories. My favorite one is of working a lovely yellow gignham pillow with a rooster pattern. It was one half of a set...the other was a chicken.

This memory makes me smile because I was stitching it as we rode around on my parents pontoon boat. The sun and sweet air come rushing back as I sit here and think about it. It makes me nostalgic for my parents home.

2009-11-21T12:35:00.000-05:00

Things around here have been a bit hectic. I am not all that fond of my vehicle at this moment. Over the last few days we have had three cars in the shop. Ouch!!! Well, my pocketbook is about empty. My SO and my DD#2 both had their cars in as well. Not such a big deal, just an annoyance.

With all the running back and fourth between the garage and home, I have not been able to sit down and stitch like I would like to. I managed a few moments of stitching at my machine. I finished up two chair cushions and a fitted curtain/cover for my bookcase. I do love getting at my projects and actually completing some of them. As of right now I have no photos....Must add batteries to the shopping list.

My nest project will be completely non-sewing related... I have been asked to make cookies for a family get together the weekend after Thanksgiving. I am to make three kinds of cookies, Oatmeal raisin, Peanutbutter and Chocolate chip. I will be baking my heart out. I figure that 10 dozen of each will allow everyone to take some home if we can manage to keep the kids out of them until next weekend.

Off to don the apron and start mixing....Maybe a triple batch of oatmeal.... wrap it up and bake it later.... Now that sounds like a plan....

I'll let you know how it goes.

To my fellow Veterans

2009-11-11T20:35:00.006-05:00

I am proud to claim the title of veteran. I am also proud that my oldest daughter has joined these ranks as well. She makes me so very proud. I wish to thank all of those who wear the uniforms of the United States Armed Forces.

The family and friends of all these people deserve a day of their own as well. Since that has not been set into motion yet it is with heartfelt thanks and deepest gratitude that I say to all the spouses, children, parents, and other faimily and friends, we are proud of all that you have sacraficed for the freedoms that your soldier fights for every day.

God Bless all our soldiers and their families

some of my work

2009-11-10T20:03:00.001-05:00

I am going to attempt to add photos to this page. I am still working out how to do all of this. Please be patient with me.

To the right is my first attempt at Chicken Scratch. I picked the wrong color (to light a blue) for it to show up very well, but I figured that even my oops' are a learning experience. Most of these are just areas that I stitched to see if I liked the pattern.

The photo (below left is the next area on my Gingham. I switched colors (DMC floss, not sure of the color as it was in my floss drawer as a tangled mess. 2 strands) and am much happier with the looks of it. I am still not completely satisfied with the way that the floss is laying in my woven areas,

I have been enjoying the time I have spent stitching my chicken scratch. I hope that if anyone likes it they will drop me a post. Also and suggestions as to how to improve the way that the floss is laying would be greatly appreciated.

Hope that everyone "in your neck of the woods" is healthy and happy. (I apologize now to my English Professor. I still use way to many euphemisms.)

First time ever

2009-11-08T09:36:00.002-05:00

So I have been reading blogs non-stop for the last few months. I keep wondering what I could have to say that has not already been said. It seems that I have talents in common with many other bloggers and since this is the case I would like this blog to be a way to dialog with them about ideas and such. After 17 years of marriage I got divorced. Now for the first time I have been able to "play" with my artistic and creative side. It has been a lot of fun.