Girl with Needles

Getting ready for 2012

2011-12-19T20:14:00.000-05:00

First a big southern welcome to my new followers. Can't believe I have over 50 now! I'm sure some of you are finding me because of what this post is all about. Let's hope 2012 brings us lots of stitching time!

It seems I'm in the mood to start making lists for next year. I'm a great one for the making of the lists. I love lists. I even like to cross things off them. The problem comes when I make lists for stitching/knitting/crochet purposes and then aren't able to cross items off. I sometimes get discouraged and in a rut. But still I make them.

So, now I can make lists for Theme-a-licious 2012 and WIPocalypse 2012. The best news is that they aren't mutually exclusive lists and really each month's theme will help me figure out my list of WIPocalypse. I've kind of been throwing some ideas around in my head for Theme-a-licious, especially for January. My problem is do I want to use that challenge to focus on a single project each month or just create a my monthly rotation around the theme? Decisions, decisions. If I were only more like my friend TheresaR I wouldn't have such a problem. Unlike me of the many WIPs, she's a monogamous stitcher.

Here's what I've come up with so far.WIPs for WIPocalypse are noted as well.
Jardin January

Margaret W Brown 1838 - I'm using Jean's (of The Attic fame) conversion. (WIP)
Tulip Slip - my EGA chapter went together to purchase this as a project this year. We've contemplated doing the finishing in a program in 2012 so this makes great sense.
Winter Garden Gate - cuz, well it's SO close to being finished and if I don't get it done by then why not have a nice finish to start the year? (WIP)
Pansy Garden - and old UFO from ASG one year (WIP - kinda obvious)
Wild Woodviolets - this is a silk gauze piece I bought after a class many years ago. So pretty. (WIP)
Antique French Ribbons - since well there are flowers on some of the ribbons!(WIP)
My new Christmas Stocking will fit nicely in this catagory.
Apparently I wasn't around for the vote but I'm also going to start Ann Dale with my sampler guild friends. (Some friends huh? They wait until I've left to decide we're all going to do the SAL for this sampler!)
Misty Morning Vineyard certainly fits into this month and I keep saying I'm going to work on it and finish it before I die. (WIP)
Anniversaries of the Heart - because it's another huge project that I want to make progress on in 2012
Daughters of Longbourn Hall - see AofH for a reason (WIP)
Mary Corey - since I couldn't resist starting it when I bought it and it just is calling to me! (WIP)

Fangirl February (I'm listing the designers I'm going to choose from during the month)

Rae Iverson (Moss Creek Designs - who's website is being redone so no link right now)
Ellen Chester (With My Needle)
Plum Street Samplers
Patrick Woods
Tony Minieri - cuz I need to make some progress on that class

I'm sure as I look through my stash I'll find some other pretties I could work on. I need to look at ornament kits and see if any fit the bill as well. Let's be reasonable, it's also possible that I'll start picking up something just because it hits my fancy. But looking at the list I've got more WIPs than new starts and even a few UFOs. If I could just finish one or two that would be fantastic. In January I have a nice 3 day weekend planned with my DF Jackie. We went to this same retreat last year. I took way too much to work on. I'm going to try and pare down this year and see what happens...oh who am I kidding, I'll take way too much to do and talk way too much, but at least I'll have a good time!

Any others making plans for next year?

PS - I just looked through this list and thought, "You know....I may just ditch that entire list and do something completely different. It's all going to depend on what I feel like come January."

Another Great Weekend in Atlanta

2011-11-29T19:36:00.017-05:00

So, in case you missed it, I started the month off heading to Mesa, AZ with DF Heather for a weekend of stitching. Ok, let's be real, it was a partial day of stitching and lots of stash enhancement opportunities. Then I came home, worked to pay for that trip, and then proceeded to head off to Atlanta for 6 or so days of fun, stitching and more stash enhancement with my peeps up there after only being home for barely 10 days.

I worked from Jean's on Thursday but we managed to make a trip to Eat.Sleep.Knit's store. Now I've done some damage on their website. But as scary as the website is the store/warehouse is even more so. The proof is in the picture.

That's just my haul. DF Jean managed to have a pile just as nice. In all that is a full sweater and who knows what else.

Now, I was there to take a class at In Stitches with Tony Minieri Friday through Monday. But that didn't stop us from heading over to The Nimble Needle and checking out what they had. I like to make sure I support small business as many of you well know, so of course I couldn't leave empty handed.

A little something for mom's blue & gold tree....eventually.

Something for my stitched tree...eventually.

And of course I changed the colors!

(Quick Jean...don't look!) I had to have the Halloween shoe.
And really, didn't your mom tell you about kissing lots of frogs?

Then Friday we packed ourselves up and headed to In Stitches. Heather met us and she and I managed to get started on our project with Tony. About 2 hours in Heather leans over and says to me in a very low whisper, "I couldn't figure out what we'd be doing for 4 days!" That was way funnier than it sounds, believe me. By the end of the day my canvas looked like this...

No really, that's a day's worth of class. And that was a LOT of work. Tony kept the class moving and I kept up. By Monday, that's day 4 for those of you trying to keep track, I was a little punch drunk but still going strong. I think it helped that Jean & I decided back a few months ago that it would be fun to really try and relax some that weekend and to get a hotel room in Buckhead near the shop for Saturday and Sunday night. It helped some not having to get up quite as early as if we'd stayed up at her house.

We really treated ourselves, well and I found a good deal, and we stayed at the Grand Hyatt, which used to be Hotel Nikko. The Japanese garden is still there, but I didn't get out during a morning to get pictures. If you're staying in the area I highly recommend this hotel. The staff was wonderful and the whole place was beautiful. Unfortunately Jean started feeling sick Saturday and by Sunday she was slightly miserable...maybe really miserable. So she went home and I hung out Sunday evening with DF Heather watching the final NASCAR race and rooting for Tony Stewart to win. I even had Heather rooting for him, although if she'd seen Carl without his helmet before the race started she might have been yelling a different tune at the TV. Heather went home after the race and some dinner next door at Brick Tops and then met me Monday morning for breakfast at The Flying Biscuit cafe. Then we grabbed a ride from the hotel's shuttle for our final day of class. By the end of the day this is what my canvas looked like...

For those familiar with this pattern you might notice that the colors I have are a bit different than any of the pictures you can find online. That's because I went with the "fuchsia" colorway, which is really more a jewel tone take on the original. Love the colors and I'm planning on working on this next year. It's an amazing piece with lots of great stitches. Learned lots of great techniques as well during the 4 days.

Now most of you are wondering what other trouble I managed to get myself in to while wandering around such a great needlepoint shop for 4 days. Wait no longer...

I mean really? You expected me to by pass this? As Heather told her dear husband it was a triple threat. Lots of great blue/green colors, bunnies and they are in Medieval dress. I was a total goner. It really was sad. Plus Tony Minieri himself was there and kept giving me ideas for stitches and pulling colors from the vast supply in the shop. For four days we had it laying on a table in one of the rooms and would just pull fibers and play with what would look just perfect. I forgot to lay out some of the fibers I bought already to get a start on this, but let's just say I'll be working on this for a nice long time. Heck, I don't even have stretcher bars this will go on yet! Oh, and that brown dress is changing colors thanks to Mr. Minieri's suggestion. Now to finish the Mermaid so I won't feel too crazy about putting this in the rotation come 2012!

Of course all good things must come to an end. So it is with getting to hang out for 4 days stitching and looking at fibers and great canvases, spending time with old friends and making some wonderful new ones. Tuesday I had to get back to work and fly home, in that order.

Thanksgiving was a day spent with my parents, nice and quiet. Didn't even cook. I took them out to dinner so we'd have a relaxing day for a change. Didn't even make it to shop on Black Friday (oh please stop...I know what you're thinking...why would I need to shop after my two out of town crazy stash hauls...and you might be right.)

Now I'm on the countdown to Christmas. We'll be starting to decorate this week I'm sure. Takes time to put all those tree's up you know. Of course now it's dark at like 5 so it's time to have trees with lots of lights to brighten the darkness.

If you want to know...

2011-11-28T23:33:00.000-05:00

Earlier this month I took a trip to Mesa, AZ with DF Heather and took the infamous Chocolat with Jackie du Pleissi. Much fun ensued. She introduced me to her friend Annette who is apparently my twin separated at birth! The three of us had a great time.

Now, if you want to see pictures and a really good recap of what I did you need to head over to Heather's blog and read the post. My camera decided to hide on my and I didn't have it on the trip. Plus Heather does a much better job of letting you know all the fun we had (and the food we managed to find to eat).

I will show you my stash enhancement. I'm not sure what kind of fumes Jean pumps into the store to make you go all weak and have no will power to resist the patterns, fabric and threads, but apparently I'm hyper-sensitive to it. Here's what I couldn't resist...

Mary Corey with my own twist.

Changed all but the alphabet color, and working over 1 on 40 ct.

Some things off my wish list.

Changed the fabric but that's all.

And then Heather surprised me with the great project bag

Obviously it's perfect because it has bunnies! But that's not all. Inside was....

That would be fabric for Spring Quakers. I had the pattern and the threads. Now I just need to get some things out of my rotation, or not.

So that was my weekend in Mesa. I'm proud that I managed to blog about it in the same month. Next up the weekend in Atlanta taking Tony Minieri's class, Antique French Ribbons. Not too many pictures from that, but there is more stash!

Honoring Veterns Day

2011-11-11T15:15:00.001-05:00

It's days like today that I hope we all stop and think about the sacrifices that many have made so that we can all enjoy many of the freedoms we enjoy. Many of you who have read my blog and know me know that my family has a long tradition of serving our country in the armed services, well mainly the Navy. My brother Doug is retired from the U.S. Navy, his son, another Doug, is currently active duty Navy. Both my mother and my father's fathers served in WW2 in the Navy. One was lucky enough to come home, the other did not.

My mom's family served on both sides during the "War between the States" and I've been told that we even had members who served during the Revolutionary War. If I'm not mistaken someone in our family has served during every war the U.S. has fought since the start of this nation.

So today we take a few minutes to pause and remember and honor the many, many brave men and women have served in our military to make sure that we can live in a country that, while it may have it's problems, is still one of the best experiments in government by and for the people this world has known. There are still some of those great men and women who served in WW2 around, and if you are honored enough to know one, or are related to one, I hope that today you will say thank you for their amazing service. Same goes for those who served in Korea, Vietnam, Desert Storm and the current wars we are waging. And don't forget those who just put the uniform on and served even during the years when there wasn't an active "engagement" going on. Their willingness to stand guard is what has kept us free.

Thank you Veterans and may God bless you for you unselfish service to this country I call home.

A Return of the Themes

2011-11-10T17:30:00.001-05:00

Some of your know my DF Heather (or as many of us call her "The Magic That Is Heather") and her great blog. Some of you may also know that she and I spent the last weekend together in AZ (hey H you need to blog for us 'cuz you have the pictures!) and while we were there we not only stitched, ate and bought more stash, we spent some time talking about fun things. Heather mentioned she was thinking of resurrecting monthly themes like we have done in the past. I LOVED the idea and mentioned it would be fun to have some alliterations. (Not sure why but it sounded like fun to me.) We laughed, we talked, we laughed some more at some wild ideas of words that start with "J", and "O" and well a few other letters.

In the end Heather came up with a great list and you should head on over to her "Theme-a-licious" post from yesterday to read all about it...and sign up to join the fun.

And yes, I have already been planning what I could stitch for each of the themes. I love making lists. Plus the last time we did this I managed to get quite a few things finished and made some good progress on other items.

Camera should be here tomorrow. Until then I'm picture free.

No Eye Candy

2011-11-09T17:52:00.008-05:00

So, here's the deal. I've lost my camera. I went looking for it before I went to Arizona for Chocolat. Couldnt' find it. Figured I'd come home and "bam" there it would be right in front of me. Well, no "bam" no nothing. I'm at a complete loss. I've looked through all my bags, in my office, all over the house. NO CAMERA. I realize it's not that large so it could be hiding anywhere, but seriously? It's a nice Nikon point & shoot, about 2 years old. Takes fairly decent pictures. I really like it because it will fit in my purse and doesn't weigh a ton.

What's a girl to do?

Buy one of these is my answer.

Should be here by the weekend. Then maybe I'll have some pictures to share. And I'll probably find my sweet little camera as well.

Stitcher's Bucket List

2011-11-08T19:13:00.000-05:00

Chris over at Tot Hill Farms blog posed the question what is on your stitching bucket list quite awhile ago. Let's face it, we all have one. It would be really easy to say, "Finish all the pieces I took a class for" or "Complete everything in my stash (really, who thinks that's something that's doable?? have you seen my stash??). So here's what I decided on this week.

1. Finish at least one of the HUGE Chatelaine pieces I have in my stash. The two top contenders are "Misty Morning Vineyard" and "Tuscan Town". I have the most done on MMV so it might actually get finished.

2. Complete all 5 of Rae Iverson's Gate series. I have 2 completed and on my wall. I'm SO close to having Winter Garden Gate complete. See...

For those not familiar with this one I'm missing the mirror image of the assisi stag and some initials. (and a date to show when I actually finished it. Then I only have 2 more to do.

3. "The Wind Blows" from The Scarlet Letter. I'm not sure exactly why I love this piece, but I do. I have to stitch it some day. I have the pattern, just need to college the rest of the goodies for it.

4. I want a "Noah" wall. I have several charts that are Noah, all that I love. I want to do them so I can have a whole wall of them with a picture of my maternal grandfather on that wall as well. (Yeah, his name was Noah and he was in the Navy, died in WWII, and finally I was born on his birthday.)

5. Along those lines I've started an "alphabet wall", a "Quaker wall" and want an "A&E" wall. I have at least 1 of each so I've got a start, but I want more....MORE I say! Here's my current list for each wall:

Alphabet Wall

Stitchers Row (finished)
small prim hornbook (finished)
La-D-Da bunny (finished)
Illuminated Letters Sampler (Samplar Workes)
Poppy Maye Russell (Heartstring Samplery)

Quaker Wall

An Emblem of Love (finished)
Spring Quaker
Mary Peacock

Noah Wall

The Flood
A Weeping and a Blessing (Barrick Samplers)
Noah's Stocking (Carriage House - but not as a stocking)

A&E Wall

HallowEden (finished)
Mary Corey (The Linen Sampler)
and here's where I get stuck I need some more in my stash. I welcome ideas from those of you who read this blog. (Hey Siobhan which other ones should I add? You've stitched so many great ones I trust your judgement.)

6. Visit the V&A and really spend some time looking at their collection. Maybe even come away with some ideas for a design of my own.

I'm sure there are other things on my list, although right now these are the ones that come to mind. If you look, that's a lot of stitching. Who knows if I'll manage to finish any or all of these, but it's a nice little list. Maybe I'll take a look at it once a year and see if it changes.

Weekend Fun

2011-11-07T18:05:00.001-05:00

I have to admit that I have been a bad, BAD blogger. I had this written right after my weekend in August (gasp, that was like 2 1/2 months ago!) and it sat in my blogger folder as a draft since then. Why you ask? Because I kept meaning to take one single picture which I never did. So, I'm just going to post this 2 1/2 months late and beg your forgiveness. At least it has some good eye candy in it. I'm going to try and do better. I have some things to share from both my stitching and my knitting. So look for them. Thanks to those who have stuck around even when I have been quiet. And now what I did the weekend of August 19th.

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I promised a report on last weekend's festivities and I don't like to disappoint. It took awhile to get around to blogging it, but hopefully it will be worth the wait.

Friday morning DF Jackie picked me up and after loading up her car with my "essentials" we headed to have a quick breakfast before going to Camp Blanding for the weekend. We were lucky enough to meet up with some friends of mine and stake out a nice spot of tables in the middle of the larger of the 2 rooms. Everyone got all set up and as they started sewing, I started stitching. Now, before you get all excited that I accomplished everything I set out to do, let me just warn you that I always set goals and rarely make them happen.

On Friday I worked on a couple of things. One was the Hemstitch Pillow, which was a class I took YEARS ago, like in 1998 or something crazy like that. It's a neat piece and apparently will take me a lifetime to finish since when I pulled it out of my bag it looked like this...

I managed to finish that 2nd row. So now the after...(ok, so there's no after picture. Which is what held up this post for months....MONTHS.)

I also worked on Daughters of Longbourn. I love this piece and hardly ever work on it. So I decided it was worth working on Friday. Here's what it looked like before:

Actually I had a little more than this done, but not much. And here's what it looked like when I put it away after a stitching and talking and looking at other people's pretty quilts and eating and talking, did I mention there was some talking?

For me that's a lot of work!

Then Saturday morning was a little hard. I had to go to a funeral so I didn't have a lot of time that morning and came back after lunch. There was also the presentation of the Quilts of Valor to Camp Blanding. That's always something to see. I did make a good start on my Chocolat for the class in November. It always takes me awhile to figure out how to get my piece sewn onto the stretcher bars! But you can see, it's going to be fantastic!

This thread is fantastic and really I think I have plenty of time to get it done...no really.

I also managed to put in some time on Margaret W. Brown. This piece is just so sweet and if I haven't mentioned it before I just love the more muted colors that Jean at The Attic did as a conversion. Plus all those silks are just wonderful to work with. A little before....

And what it looked like after....

Jackie and I had discussed that we wanted to finish another project from our trip to Mesa in January. We decided that we could do an entire small little sampler that we got and put it in the cool frame we received during the weekend. Well, we did! Look, isn't it just too adorable?

The pattern called for the colors to be black, scarlet and a gold, but I decided to use some threads from my stash and go a bit more red, white-ish and blue. I'm working on getting this fixed so it can hang on my "alphabet wall". I need to find one of those small sawtooth hooks to attach to the back.

I did manage to add some things to my stash. There is a "sale" room where anyone can bring things that they no longer want to others can procure those items. I managed to procure several charts, and even some that were fully kitted up with fabric and fibers. All at a great deal. I also managed to "encourage" the purchase of a Singer Featherweight machine. It needs a little TLC, but was still a good deal. I almost wish I'd bought it since it was a 1935 which just might be the year my mother was born, but that can't be right so it's a good thing Eva took it home with her.

I did purchase a little bunny that's just too adorable and complete handmade by the very talented Heather Lynn. His name is Dusty and if you hurry over to here and scroll down you can see much better pictures than the one I took below of where Dusty is living for now. Although I think he likes being the bunny protector of my growing collection of "primitives".

That's all I have to share for now. It was a great weekend. I had a load of fun and can't wait for the next one in January.

2011-08-20T10:19:00.000-04:00

The Wild Sight by Loucinda McGary

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

First off the Kindle edition has some problems with formatting. I tried not to let the bother me, but I have to admit that I think this would have been a much more enjoyable read if it hadn't been an issue.

Otherwise, this was a good solid mystery/romance with some paranormal elements thrown in for good measure. I liked the mystery more than the romance, I felt that the author could have developed it a bit more than just pawning it off as "instant lust/love" I mean that has it's place, but then I like things to develop a little more than it did. The rest was good. The mystery/suspense part was well written with a few twists that kept me guessing what would happen next.

Like a lot of the books I read for pleasure this isn't a hard book, won't make you think too much, just enough to be pleasant and enjoyable.

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So, since I've promised to blog more often I realized that this was sitting in my drafts and needed to be published so here it is. I'm sure Jackie and I are having a fantastic time and much stitching and knitting has been accomplished. Yeah, that's probably what's happening.....

The rumors of my demise are false

2011-08-18T21:11:00.000-04:00

I am alive, and doing relatively well. Life has been busy with work and life. I realize that's not a perfect reason not to blog, but it's the only one I have. A lot has happened in the last 3 months or so and since I don't have a ton of time right now I'm going to give you the very, VERY quick update and then hopefully find some time to do more in the next couple of weeks. So here are the highlights:

Got a contracting job back with the company I've been with the last 3 times. I really like working there and this is a nice challenge. So far I've enjoyed it and learned a lot. It's through the end of the year so we'll see what happens after that.
I've been to Atlanta 3 times and Charlotte once. The Atlanta trips were a mixture of business and also some pleasure during my birthday weekend. Charlotte was all about family.
I really haven't finished anything on the stitching front. I'm very close to having the Mermaid done. The picture below is the latest and taken with my iPhone so not the best, but you get the idea.

In other stitching news, I took another class at the needlepoint shop in Atlanta for my birthday and started another large needlepoint canvas. I'll show pictures later.
In non-needlepoint stitching news...well all I can say is I've been stitching. I can't really tell you what all I've worked on and if I've even accomplished anything. I can say that I've made great strides in obtaining stash. GREAT STRIDES. I'll have to do an entire post on that, so for pics and info you'll just have to wait. Needless to say I've been trying to stimulate the stitching economy practically on my own.
I have no knitting news to report. I've been in the knitting doldrums. It's been so gastly hot that I couldn't even think of picking it up. I do have a few things on the needles and a pair of socks I really want to start so we'll see what happens.
Health wise, things are pretty good. Some days better than others. The RA seems to be in control, just have days where I have almost no energy, but those aren't too often. I did have to go to the dermatologist the other day. I had him remove a mole from behind one of my ears and he also took a spot on my leg. Neither are suspected of being cancerous, both were just annoying. The one behind my ear sometimes was being irritated by some earrings and the one on my leg was being caught by my razor so my very nice doctor said they were both going away.
Upcoming events include a very busy fall. Our EGA chapter is having an open house event the 2nd Saturday in October with a program about Bargello work. Then two weeks later they and our Sampler Guild are hosting a wonderful teacher, Ellen Chester, for a day long class which is completely full! Then the next weekend, (first of November) I'm meeting my DF Heather in the Atlanta airport and we're headed to Mesa, AZ for the weekend and a great class from Jackie de Plessie called Chocolat. THEN 2 weeks later I'll be back in Atlanta for a 4 day class with Tony Minieri called Antique French Ribbons. And at some point I'm trying to find a weekend to meet DF Jill in Tallahassee for a weekend of FSU football. That's enough to make you tired right there! Plus there's work to pay for all the fun. More on all of this later
This weekend DJ Jackie and I are headed far, far away (ok, it's really only a couple of miles away from my house) to Camp Blanding for a retreat. It is mainly quilters, but I'm taking all my stitching and even some knitting to work on. My goal is to touch each of my current projects for my 2011 challenge. I've taken before pictures and I'll take some afters. We'll see if I make any progress. I'm also taking my bag of ornaments that are stitched and need to be finished. Maybe, just maybe I'll manage to finish one or 2 of those. We'll see.

Ok, that's way more than I intended to write. I hope there are still some people out there who check in with me occasionally to see if I'm still around. If so, thanks for sticking with me and I'll try to do better! Until some time next week....good stitches all around!

Books and a Contest

2011-05-02T20:04:00.000-04:00

A Morbid Taste for Bones by Ellis Peters

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I'd heard about this series for years and finally decided to look for a copy of the first in the series. Thankfully I found one at a local used book store and I'll be looking for the rest. Brother Cadfael is a wonderfully written character, not to mention the story is good. The good brothers of Shrewsbury Abbey are off to obtain the bones of St. Winifred from her resting spot in Wales and the adventure is on. Brother Cadfael came late to the monastic life, but the lessons learned prior come in handy to help solve the mystery of who shot Rhisiart, the prominent landowner and vocal opponent to the moving of St. Winifred's bones. A short book, but a great read. I can't wait to hunt down the rest in the series.

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And now for the contest. The ever wonderful Edgar is celebrating his 4th Blogiversary with a give away. Even if you don't want to enter you should take yourself over to his blog (Blacksheep's bit of the web) and view the beautiful stitching. I also look forward to his estate sale finds and info on great movies, oh and the occasional baked treat is always nice too!

I'm sorry I haven't posted pictures of any stitching lately. This week was the first at my new contract job and it's been busy from the beginning. Nothing like diving in and going straight to work. That also means by the time I'm done in the evenings I really haven't felt like doing much of anything. I have managed to knit on the surprise gift I'm making but that's about all. Tomorrow is Sampler Guild so I promise I'll stitch and make some pictures!

Tonight some friends are throwing a dinner party for my parents to celebrate their anniversary. Even though it was almost 2 months ago, they decided to have a get together and celebrate now that my mom is feeling a bit more herself. They are all close to my parents and I'm sure we'll have a wonderful time together tonight, as we usually do. I might have some pictures from that as well.

Hope you all have a wonderful evening and enjoy some fiber goodness!

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I thought this would publish Friday night, and it didn't, so I'm going to let you in on another contest. Deborah over on Cranberry Samplings is having a give away. So click the link and see if you want to put your name in the hat.

Books, Books, Books!

2011-04-22T22:33:00.000-04:00

Obviously I needed to catch up on my book reviews since I've been away from the computer for a week. No really great reason why except that I took a break while I waited to receive the computer I'll be using for my new contract job and can get back to earning some real money. I've even been lax about reading blogs this week, but I'll be catching up this weekend and hopefully will be back to normal after Easter. For now, enjoy some reviews of books I've read lately. It's a bit of a hodge-podge, but then my taste in reading materials is pretty eclectic.

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The Ship in the Hill by William L. Sullivan

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

(Disclaimer: Won through Goodreads "First Reads", signed copy from author.

Another book I'd like to give 3.5 stars to if I could. I loved how this book blended the excavation of an actual Viking ship and the lives that the women found in the ship might have led in the 800's. Weaving some of what really happened, myth, legend and good old fashioned imagination the author brings to life the story of Asa of Agthir and the fictional Dr. Kirstin Williams. I think the author did a great job of taking the Viking legends and sagas handed down through time and used them as a starting point to flesh out the characters from the 7th century in the novel.

What I didn't like about the novel was how the people in the 20th century were "linked" to the people in the 7th century. I realize it helped to move the underlying plot, but seemed a bit contrived at times. But it didn't bother me too much, since it's a technique I've seen used by many a romance author who write stories that involve "time travel" (even though this book didn't).

All in all I enjoyed this book, it was interesting and well written enough to keep me reading well into the night. Plus I feel like I learned something about a part of the world that I didn't know that much about and it made me curious about Viking lore and history.

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The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency by Alexander McCall Smith

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

The first in a series of mystery novels set in Africa finds Precious Ramotswe setting up shop as a "Lady Detective" after her father's death, definately not something anyone thought she would do with her inheritance. Along the way we learn about Mma Ramotswe's life before becoming the first lady detective in Gaborone. The main mystery surrounds the disappearance of a young boy from a small town in the region, but throughout the book "smaller" mysteries, which really aren't mysteries in the traditional sense of the word, are revealed. Through it all Mma Ramotswe's down to earth intelligence and good sense shine as she helps those who come to her for assistance.

I'd really give this one 3.5 stars if I could. It's a fairly easy read, not too taxing on the brain. I liked that the author stayed true to the setting, giving me as a reading more insight to the area and the people. I'd like to read more of these and will probably try to get them from the library.

Disclaimer: I'm pretty sure I got this one free from Amazon on my Kindle. Too lazy to check and see.

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Enchanting the Lady by Kathryne Kennedy

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Some romance, some fantasy, some magic, some Victorian England and a hot man who's a shape-shifter...what's not to like? I have to admit that I thought this was more a YA book until I hit the first hint of sex and realized it was meant for adults.

This wasn't a challenging read, I had most of it figured out pretty quickly, but it was interesting and fun, and just what a friend likes to call "good brain candy".

I liked Felicity, the main female character. She has spunk, even though it seems she's almost invisible to everyone until she meets Terrence Blackwell, a shape-shifting baronet who is also a spy for the royal family. Terrance can't seem to forget the beautiful woman he can see through the spell cast by relic-magic, the type of magic that killed his brother. Terrence is a were-lion and his character reflects his animal nature, which made sense and made the story even more interesting in my opinion.

The author does a great job of describing an alternate Victorian England that is filled with magical peers and were-animals, where even the buildings aren't what they seem. This is the first in a series that I downloaded from Amazon when it was offered as a free promotional and is no longer offered free. I liked it enough that I'll be downloading the other books in the series soon since this really gets a 3.5 in my book!

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I started a new knitting project, but I can't show it off yet. It's a present for a friend that I'm fairly certain reads my blog. Also, I haven't taken any pictures. I do have some stitching updates that I need to blog about so be on the lookout for those.

HallowEden Happy Dance

2011-04-13T21:55:00.000-04:00

Can't believe I've actually finished another piece but...well....I have! This was one I started with my DF Jackie when we were on our retreat in February. We'd purchased it while in Arizona at The Attic's retreat in January. I loved stitching this piece and can't wait to decide on a frame and get it on the wall.


HallowEden by Plum Street Samplers

I love how Adam has a leaf but it takes a pumpkin for Eve! It's stitched on 40 ct Purely Primitive Newcastle with the called for Crescent Colours floss. I did do some creative cutting with the Candy Corn used for the pumpkins so they didn't turn out too yellow. I also used Brandied Pears for my first and last initial in the alphabet.

That's all for today. I'm still waiting on all the paperwork to be completed so I can get started learning what's going on there. Until then I'm getting some things done here at the house although today was a bit of a loss since I had a migraine almost all day. Hopefully I've got it under control this evening and won't have any more problems with it this week. Thanks everyone for stopping by and leaving comments I love reading them! Have a great evening and Thursday.

Lots Going On

2011-04-12T18:03:00.000-04:00

No really, there has been. There was the Clay County Fair, two Jacksonville Symphony concerts, a quick visit from my aunt & uncle on their way to summer in Michigan, oh and I got an offer for a contract through the end of the year that sounded very interesting and I've been getting all the paperwork for that done. But ya'll just want to see pictures.

Let's start with how mom and dad's anniversary sampler turned out when framed.

An Emblem of Love by Ellen Chester of With My Needle

It's so hard to get a really good picture of this since I ended up putting it under glass. The colors really don't show through in this picture as deep and beautiful as they really are. There was a small problem with the frame so it was ready until the Tuesday before our county fair started, which was the last day you could enter things in for showing. Mom, Dad and I went to the framers to pick it up and then take it directly to the fair grounds. Mom said she almost cried then, but didn't thinking if she did I would as well as the mother and daughter team that do our framing. It's now hanging on a wall in our house and they both really love it. Plus I did manage to keep it a secret, neither of them knew I was working on it.

Speaking of the fair, I took a few other things and did well in the ribbon department.


Left: Entries and ribbons awarded, Right: in exhibit hall

As you can see I took Traditional Elegance, Little Green Acorns, An Emblem of Love, Peacock Pinkeep Drum and Linen Sewing Book (entered as one item) and my Traveling Woman shawl. I'm pretty happy with the results.

Since I last posted I also finished La-D-Da's Briar Rabbit.

I love how this turned out and can't wait to decide on a frame. I think I know what I want but not positive. It will end up on the same wall as A Stitcher's Row. I finished this in record time, mainly because that's all I stitched on. I started on March 28th and finished it on April 7th. Crazy right? And I had to stitch the majority of the bunny twice since I messed it up and couldn't figure out how to make it work without ripping and restitching.

I'm not sure why I'm on the kick to only stitch on one thing at a time but it's continuing with HallowEden. I'm really close to having it finished and picked it back up after I finished Briar Rabbit. Here's a peek as of this morning.

I hope to get this one finished at least by the end of this week. We'll see. Last week I was asked to return to ING as a contractor and jumped at the opportunity. It's with the same group I worked with last and I'll be doing something a bit different. I am hoping all the paperwork gets completed and my computer arrives soon so I can start working. Yep, I'll be mainly working from home again which is another reason I jumped at this job. I like working from home, I have a home office so it all works out really well. Plus have you seen the price of gas? It's 33 miles from my house to the office in Jacksonville and my truck gets like 15 mpg on that trip. Ugh! Not having to go into the office every day is really nice, not just because it saves me some money, but time as well, those 33 miles take almost an hour to drive. So I don't have almost 2 hours of drive time every day or the expense of the gas plus a job that sounds interesting with a group of people I like. Just a great blessing.

I'd like to also thank Lee for including me in her March Favorite Posts. What an honor and so unexpected. If you've never checked out her blog run right over there and enjoy. And be sure to see what other bog entries were her favorites last month, she always finds some great posts!

That's all for now, I'm headed to a meeting a church that I'm hoping won't last too long. Hope everyone has had a great week and has been getting some time with your fiber project of choice!

SBQ: April Question

2011-04-10T12:01:00.000-04:00

Do you keep records of your finishes? We are so lucky to have so many record-keeping tools at our disposal to record our accomplishments. So if you do, what recording methods do you use? What do you think is important to record when you've finished a design?

For years I used a program called CrossMagic to keep track of my stitching patterns, projects that I've started (and finished), floss and silk threads. Unfortunately the owner of this program hasn't made any updates so it doesn't work on my newest laptop. For now I managed to upload the pattern and project data to Excel so I can keep it up there until I can maybe build a new database for me to use. This final part could take awhile. I've taken a beginning SQL class online but that was a year ago and since I haven't really used it a lot I've probably forgotten most of it. I figure I can get a good book to help me remember and get it all worked out.

Finally A Book I Really Liked

2011-04-08T15:25:00.002-04:00

Dead Witch Walking by Kim Harrison

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This book was a very nice surprise, partly because I've been reading a lot of ok but not good much less great books and partly because I really wasn't expecting to like it quite as much as I did. If I could give it 4.5 starts I would.

Rachel Morgan is the kind of character I like in my paranormal with a bit of thriller books. She's surprisingly more "human" than "witch" and she doesn't even realize it. She's tough, but a bit vulnerable. And she's honest, and steadfast (which is not a word you see often but I think it describes her perfectly.) She certainly can get herself into some interesting situations, living in an old church with a vamp qualifies as interesting in my book. Throw in some pixies in the garden, an old witch across the street, a rat turned human (or would that be a human turned rat turned human), a very interesting bad guy (or is he the really bad guy?), some more really mean witches and a demon and it's a fun ride from start to finish.

I'm looking forward to seeing what kind of secrets all the characters really have as this series progresses because that's what's going to make this all very interesting.

I downloaded a free copy of this book from Amazon to my Kindle.

View all my reviews

Time to Have some Fun! 2KCBWDAY7

2011-04-03T11:38:00.002-04:00

Day seven: 3rd April. Your knitting and crochet time. 2KCBWDAY7
Write about your typical crafting time. When it is that you are likely to craft?

Well the answer to that question is whenever I can. Seriously, I rarely like to just sit and do nothing. I almost always carry something with me to a doctor's visit, either an ornament I'm stitching or a small knitting or crochet project. I always carry multiple projects with me on trips. I stitch, knit or crochet when I'm watching TV, listening to a book on my iPod, hanging out with friends, you name it. I've knitted at baseball games, in restaurants, airports, in my car (not while actually driving, but sitting still at long traffic lights during rush hour why yes I have), on a plane, on a boat (took a knitting cruise with my LYS a few years ago), at home, my LYS and I'm sure some retail stores totally non-yarn related. I've pretty much stitched at all those places as well, although I haven't stitched at a baseball game, but I have stitched in the car on the way to a football game, and probably while we tailgated at least once. I love to knit or crochet on something simple during NASCAR races, usually while on a chat with several of my online friends. It has to be simple since I do pay attention to the race more than I normally would other things on TV.

If I'm home I have two places that I gravitate towards when I'm knitting/crocheting/stitching. One is the chair in my bedroom. It's a big, comfy chair with a nice large ottoman that I bought back in the early 90's. I love that chair. I have my Dazor on a rolling floor stand that I bought around the same time as the chair after I saw one at Spirit of Cross Stitch oh so many years ago.

Only mine is cream colored that's it exactly. This was totally worth the investment all those years ago. I have a place to put my drink and quite a few of my supplies close by. I also keep my stitching and knitting bags beside that chair for when I feel the need to switch projects. Right now I've got just the ones that I have in my "rotation".

The other place is in the family room. We have a sectional couch that has 2 recliners. I have staked a claim to the one closest to the fireplace since that's where I can plug in my Ott Lamp and actually see. There's always a project or two (ok or more) laying close by to pick up and work on. That's where the nice HDTV is and where the Wii is, so if I'm going to watch a movie from Netflix or really want to see the yummy men on Hawaii 5-O (just for instance) then I have to go in there to see them in all their yummy glory.

If there is nothing on TV that I want to listen to/watch, then I just listen to a book. One of the women that frequents my LYS turned me on to Audible.com and I love it. Sometimes I listen to several books a month, other times just one, and some months none. I always have several that I haven't heard on my iPod ready to go.

So, there's nothing typical about when I will craft, or maybe there are more people like me than I realize. I think that a lot of my friends are like me, but then again, maybe not.

Something to aspire to. 2KCBWDAY6

2011-04-02T23:38:00.000-04:00

Day six: 2nd April. Something to aspire to. 2KCBWDAY6

I really thought about how to answer this. I'm not sure there is much I feel is something to aspire to in the sense that I'm not sure I could do it. There are a few things I don't care to learn how to do in knit, but aspire to...not really. As I said I do want to learn double knitting, but I don't think it will be that hard. I can do color work and think it's pretty, but not my thing all that much.

The only thing I can think of is to make a Pi shawl a la Elizabeth Zimmerman. It's not like there aren't plenty of beautiful pattern already figured out, some are even in my favorites on Ravelry. But for some reason I want to make one that's unique. I have some amazing red lace weight yarn for one, I have the book with the directions and I even started looking at lace patterns to determine which patterns I wanted to use for the different sections, but putting it all together has eluded me thus far. Maybe I haven't been in the right mood to do the math, maybe I just don't want to tackle a BAP in my knitting when I have plenty in my stitching WIPs. I don't know what's holding me back. So maybe that's what I aspire to do, to create my very own version of the Pi shawl. I know I can do it, I just need to get motivated to start the planning and do the math.

If you aren't familiar with what a Pi shawl looks like just Google it and look at the images. There are some very beautiful ones out there.

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A brief stitching note. Today the frogs came to visit after I thought I could keep them away. I was one row off on the bunny for Briar Rabbit. I thought I could make it work, I was wrong, so today I pulled out most of the rabbit and started it over. I am not going to put it aside though and not finish it. I'm determined.

I also tried to move the program I've used for years to keep track of my patterns/charts/kits and what projects I have started to my small laptop. Didn't work since apparently the program won't work on Windows 7 and it certainly won't work on my Mac. I was not amused. So, I used the export feature and created .txt files for the two main databases and then imported them into Excel, at least for now. Maybe, just maybe, I'll create my own database that I can use on any of my machines. It would be a good project to reteach myself how to create and manipulate them. For now I'll just keep these files up to date. I even added in most of my newer purchases and what I've been working on. I made a few changes so I don't have to refer back and forth between the two documents to tell what is going on. I don't know why someone hasn't developed something as nice as the program I've always used that will work on a newer operating system and/or Mac.

Hope everyone has a great rest of the weekend. I'm hoping to make it to our county fair to see how my entries fared. I do know that my knitted item got a blue ribbon since a friend saw it and sent me a picture, but she couldn't get a good look at the stitched items and couldn't see the names so I'll have to see about those.

Friday's Should Be for Books

2011-04-01T09:28:00.001-04:00

So from now on, or until I get tired of doing it, I'll post about books on Fridays. Hopefully I'll actually have something to talk about each Friday. Of course with the knitting blog week I'm participating in this week that means there will be two posts at some point today. Luck ya'll

Murder Off the Books by Evelyn David

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I enjoyed this book. Not high lit by any means, but a good solid mystery. The characters were well written and I really loved the interaction between Mac and his lovely dog Whiskey. The story was convoluted enough to keep me interested and the ending was a bit of a surprise. I hope to read more about Mac and Whiskey solving mysteries and saving the day. (And maybe even getting the girl?)

View all my reviews

Downloaded when offered free on Amazon.

Currently reading: Dead Witch Walking (Rachel Morgan/The Hollows, #1) on Kindle.

Where are they now? 2KCBWDAY4

2011-03-31T09:37:00.000-04:00

Day Four: 31st March. Where are they now? 2KCBWDAY4
Whatever happened to your __________?
Write about the fate of a past knitting project. Whether it be something that you crocheted or knitted for yourself or to give to another person. An item that lives with you or something which you sent off to charity.

I guess this isn't so much about the projects as it is what happened after I knit them. Back in 2008 a church friend's granddaughter was diagnosed with a brain mass that was causing her to have seizures and be in a lot of pain. At the time Lilly was only 2 and of course scared of all the poking and prodding that was going on plus she hurt. Her great-grandmother (actually step-GGM) was still alive at the time and she loved to dress up and wear hats and so when Lilly was going to have to have brain surgery and most of her hair would be removed GGM told her she'd get to wear pretty hats until her hair grew back. I wanted to make sure she had one that was pretty and soft for her head so I knit her one from a design by Leigh Radford. I used Plymouth Wildflowers DK in a soft blue color since she is so fair skinned. Here's a picture of Lilly sporting her hat after her hair had grown back some.

To me the most important thing is that 3 years later Lilly is a happy and very healthy little 5 year old girl.

The other is also related to sickness. In 2009 we found out that my cousin Dennis had aplastic anemia and due to his age the usual treatments weren't advisable. So instead he had to have chemo to kill all the stem cells and then take medicine to grow back his own with the hope it would grow back without the illness. It was a difficult treatment which meant he had to leave his home outside of Charlotte and move to Baltimore during the procedure. He and his wife stayed there for months and of course it was in the fall and winter. Poor dear lost all his beautiful dark hair so I thought he needed a dashing cap to sport when he went for treatments. I made him Claudia with Misti Alpaca Silk & Cotton yarn. It was soft enough it wouldn't bother his newly bald head, but would also keep it's shape. No pictures of him in it, but I did manage to get a picture of it on my mom before I shipped it off. I know he was surprised and since I made it in Ohio State Buckeye Scarlet, or at least as close to it as I could, he was happy.

Pretty simple pattern and looked great too.

So it's a theme of hats for people who are sick and lost hair, but the great news is that even though the procedure that Dennis originally went through didn't produce the results we had hoped for, he was able to have a different procedure last year that did the trick and he's doing quite well.

It's fun to make things for yourself, but I also enjoy making something for a friend or family member, especially if it lets them know that I'm thinking of them during a time of difficulty.

Tidy mind, tidy stitches - 2KCBWDAY3

2011-03-30T19:30:00.000-04:00

Day Three: 30th March. Tidy mind, tidy stitches. 2KCBWDAY3
How do you keep your yarn wrangling organized? It seems like an easy to answer question at first, but in fact organization exists on many levels. Maybe you are truly not organized at all, in which case I am personally daring you to try and photograph your stash in whatever locations you can find the individual skeins. However, if you are organized, blog about an aspect of that organization process, whether that be a particularly neat and tidy knitting bag, a decorative display of your crochet hooks, your organized stash or your project and stash pages on Ravelry.

In some respects I'm very organized about my work, and by extension about my crafts. I have lovely containers that I store my yarn in, well most of it at least since unfortunately I'm acquiring yarn faster than I can knit it! For now I have a lovely tall wicker basket full of yarn, 2 smaller baskets full of yarn, a large round hat box full of only sock weight (but not all of my stash) and a lovely trio of baskets that my mother bought for me last year for my birthday.

I only have a picture of the pretty set of baskets since the rest is kind of well boring. Not sure if you can tell but the middle basket has all the yarn for my Great American Aran Afghan that I started back in 2009. I wish I had more of this completed than I do, but some day I'll get all the blocks finished!

My goal is to purchase a couple of these lovely shelving units from IKEA, Expedit. I'm shamelessly copying my DF Heather since I'm pretty sure this is the same ones she has in her "craft cabana".

My goal with these is to be able to then put all my knitting books, patterns and magazines together in one place and also have baskets that would hold some of the overflow of yarn.

I wish I were a lot more organized, but it is my hobby so I don't like it to be too much like work!

Skill + 1UP -2KCBWDAY2

2011-03-30T00:01:00.003-04:00

Day Two: 29th March. Skill + 1UP. 2KCBWDAY2
Look back over your last year of projects and compare where you are in terms of skill and knowledge of your craft to this time last year. Have you learned any new skills or forms of knitting/crochet (can you crochet cable stitches now where you didn’t even know such things existed last year? Have you recently put a foot in the tiled world of entrelac? Had you even picked up a pair of needles or crochet hook this time last year?

Sadly I haven't learned any new skills this year. I have a few on my list that I really want to delve in to and at the top of that list is double knitting. Last year I bought yarn to make Rainbow scarf, which is double knitted with Kuani. Even bought the Kauni I liked for it, but I haven't dipped my foot into this technique. Maybe after I finish the scarf that's on my needles right now.

I did have fun at my first attempt at dying yarn. I dyed some sock yarn at my LYS during a Midnight Night. I love how it turned out but haven't decided on a pattern to use it for.

The colors are pretty wild, but it was a lot more fun than I imagined and I'd like to do it again.

A Tale of Two Yarns 2KCBWDAY1

2011-03-29T19:30:00.001-04:00

I know! Two blog posts in one day is insane, but it may happen a few times this week. I just found out about this and couldn't resist joining in.

Day One: 28th March. A Tale of Two Yarns. 2KCBWDAY1
Part of any fibre enthusiast’s hobby is an appreciation of yarn. Choose two yarns that you have either used, are in your stash or which you yearn after and capture what it is you love or loathe about them.

This isn't exactly an easy question, there are SO many yarns out there and SO many different ones in my stash that I just love for many different reasons. I've thought about this and am going to say that I love all things hand dyed and am a sucker for them in all their forms. I mainly buy hand dyed sock or lace weight yarns because I live in FL and it gets fairly warm here and we don't really have much of a winter, some of my friends would say we don't have any winter. So I really like knitting things like socks, shawls, wraps and the occasional hat or two. Sometimes I'll buy a yarn because I just love how it looks, thinking I'll use it for one thing and end up using it for something entirely different.

That's what happened with this skein of Rio De La Plata sock yarn.

I thought I wanted to use it for a crocheted purse I saw in a magazine. Obviously the yarn had other ideas since it became this...

Southern Porch Hat (ok the pattern is really North Porch Hat). The yarn was perfect and I've gotten more than one compliment on it when I've worn in this last year.

And then there's times when the perfect yarn is found for just the right pattern. Last year I went to Stitches South with friends and it was a wonderful experience. I finally saw yarns I'd only heard about, The Sanguine Gryphon, Habu Textiles, Lisa Sousa and Madeline Tosh to name just a few. Knowing that if I didn't have at least some sort of plan I'd just buy all kinds of things that when I got home I'd have no idea what to do with, so I went prepared with several patterns that I wanted to find something different for, something that my local store doesn't, or didn't at the time, carry. One of the patterns I had in mind was a fairly easy wrap called Cambria Wrap. I wanted something just perfect for this pattern, not too much change in color, but enough that it would flow thinking that the pattern was fairly simple so the yarn should be as well. I searched and in a booth from a dyer I'd never heard of I found this.

The yarn is from Knitting Notions and is their Classic Merino Superwash Sock. It's just beautiful to hold in your hand in the skein and then you knit it and it looks like this.

And at this point it wasn't even finished so it's not blocked. I'm still hoping to get it blocked and a picture of it in all it's glory up later this week. But the colors are unbelievable.

So what don't I like about these yarns, not much I have to say. They both work up beautiful, have great drape and just plain look amazing. The only problem is I don't have more in my stash!

Really I Couldn't Help Myself!

2011-03-29T09:22:00.002-04:00

Here's the deal, I found this bag with some DMC and a spool of Kreinik in it today. The bag also contained some printouts of items in my stitching stash and what I needed for them. So I was curious, I went looking for the patterns, found a couple of them and of course felt the need to start one. Now here's the really screwed up part about the whole thing. I didn't have all of the floss colors needed, but I still wanted to start this one project, so I went to my stash, made a few changes and got started. I am justifying my actions based on the fact that I cast off Autumn in Cambria, a wrap I started last May after I bought the yarn during Stitches South. Made perfect sense at the time.

So here's what I managed to get done during Dancing With The Stars and Castle tonight. Please note that I was also on an online chat with two friends during DWTS and making comments about the routines and costumes. Plus in the middle I decided that I didn't like the color the alphabet was done in so I needed to change it. (Sorry for the glare on the pattern and I don't know what's up with that odd shadow in the top right of the fabric, no natural light makes it hard to get a decent picture.)

Briar Rabbit by La-D-Da

For those who are interested here's what I'm actually using. The fabric is from my stash, it's from Country Stitch in NZ and I'm not sure if they still produce this color since I got it by being part of their club several years ago. It's Cashel 28ct overdyed and the color is called Kiwi. It does kind of look like the brown on the outside of a kiwi fruit. The fiber changes include changing the alphabet from DMC 612 to two different flosses. For my initials (TMB) I'm using GAST Deep Sea and for all the rest I'm using a skein of overdyed cotton from my stash from The Dye Shop called Tropical Teal. I checked their web address and it's no longer being used so I'm going to make a guess that they are out of business. If I'm not mistaken a group of us went in together for some floss and fabric that was all hand dyed and I ended up with this color, I actually have 2. Then for the carrot and flower instead of DMC 3858 I'm going with WDW Terra Cotta, it looks so pretty with the fabric, just the look I wanted. Not too orange. The other sub I'm making is for the bunny, I'll do the body in GAST Lambswool and the tail in Anchor 926. So, really I'm only using DMC 730 & 833 from the original list on the pattern. I like my choices so far so I'm happy.

Sorry no picture of the finished wrap, I need to block it and get some pictures in some good light. That might not all happen until this weekend as we're supposed to get some much needed rain this week. Hopefully tonightt it won't rain since some friends and I have tickets to the FSU v. UF baseball game at the Jacksonville Baseball stadium. It's always a fun game and this year we have tickets right behind home plate.

Why Yes I Do Love Things Over The Top

2011-03-25T09:29:00.004-04:00

I realized Wednesday while doing the finishing on this...

that I really do like things a little over the top, tricked out, "totally MacDaddy'd out" (as one friend recently said about my little snow bunny ornament). I had decided I didn't want to frame this piece so I collected all sorts of lovely ribbons and flowers and stuff, including this sweet little beaded bird

thinking that maybe I'd use some of it, ok all of it, to decorate my cube-it. And decorate is what I did.

May your day be bright and cheerful and just a little over the top!

Murder and Mystery: It's Books Again

2011-03-24T09:57:00.001-04:00

Here I was lamenting I hadn't been reading so much and I've finished another book. I really would have given this one 3 1/2 stars if I could. I liked it, but can't say I loved it. I do have to say there was a lot of research that went into this one, and I respect an author that puts that much time into researching, especially a mystery. Makes it better. So, even though it's 3 stars I'd recommend it and I'll probably pick up the next in the series to see what happens.

The 7th Victim by Alan Jacobson

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Having debated between 3 and 4 stars I went with 3 on this one. There was a little TOO much going on with this main character for me to believe she could hold it together as well as she did in this book. That's fine, I can suspend my belief for a good book but it did keep me from giving it 4 stars.

There are a lot of points to keep track of and even small things end up making sense in the end. Some are there to try and throw you off track, while others help you begin to see a picture before our heroine does. I didn't have any trouble believing she wasn't "seeing" all the pieces, since between her ex-husband, the investigation, her mother issues and her son's issues there were a lot of things for her to deal with and that's what I think kept her from figuring out what was going on earlier. Like any really good mystery all the clues are there, the reader just has to pick them out and put them together, much like the detective does.

All in all a good, fairly fast paced, mystery. I might even have to see what happens to Supervisory Special Agent Vail next.

View all my reviews

(I didn't receive any compensation for this, I picked this book up for my Kindle while it was free from Amazon. No affiliation, blah, blah, blah.)

Let's Talk Books

2011-03-23T09:13:00.000-04:00

There's a problem with the title of this post. I'd love to talk about books I've been reading that I just love and have been engrossed in, but the truth is I haven't read anything like that lately. In fact, I've not been reading as much as I normally do. I can tell this because it's the 3rd month of the year and I've only actually read five books. Yes 5, two of which I've rated with 2 stars on Goodreads and one with 3 stars. This may have something to do with my inability to get all settled in with a good book lately and just relax.

On the other hand, I've listened to 3 books on my iPod in the last 2 months. Mostly while stitching. All from the same author and they are part of a series I've been listening to over the last year. I love them. They are just good ear candy, they're probably great reading candy too, but I started listening to them at work and I just kept along with the series that way. Plus I enjoy listening to a book while I'm stitching.

Right now I'm reading

I downloaded it to my Kindle, I think when it was free. It sounded like something I might enjoy and when I was trying to decide on what to read the other night after finishing a YA book that I had figured out from the first page but kept reading because I thought I might like the characters. You can see from my review that I had some mixed feelings. Hopefully this latest book with come with a better recommendation.

The Luxe by Anna Godbersen

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I've had a hard time deciding if I liked this book or not. In some respects I did which is why I eventually erred and gave it 3 stars. There were wonderful descriptions of turn of the century, high society New York, and some of the characters were interesting, though probably not the ones I was supposed to be interested in. However, I had a hard time liking the older sister, the good sister, the sister whose funeral the book begins with. I'm sure I was supposed to like her, but I just had a hard time doing so. This is apparently the first in a series, and I'm not sure I'm curious enough to find out if the next book deals with the characters I liked or not. Perhaps later.

View all my reviews

(Hmmm, I think there's something about me having to say how I obtained my books that I reviewed. Well I purchased them from a large online bookseller, or at least I downloaded them from there. They may have been free when I did so, I really can't remember.)

March Blogger Question - Stitching

2011-03-21T09:06:00.002-04:00

Do you have a favorite Irish or Celtic stitched piece? If you don't, what about a piece that represents your heritage?

For some reason I haven't stitched something that is specifically Irish or Celtic looking. Not that I don't have a piece or two, or more, in my stash to work on of course. My mom's family, which is the side I know the most about, is Scots and Irish. Several, think more than 10, years ago I went to visit a friend in south FL for my birthday and made him take me around to the stitching stores we could find for part of my gift. I'm fascinated by Scottish samplers and when I saw this one I had to have it and the silk to make it. I finally finished it last year and it now hangs in our living room. I realized that I've never shown a picture of this piece after it was framed so what a perfect opportunity. Of course it's hard to get a good picture because of the glass but here goes.


Traditional Elegance II

I should probably go find out all the particulars, but I'm lazy and just don't feel like going to find it. I'm pretty sure that the chart is OOP. It's worked all in silk and the told filling at the bottom is a gold thread that was "fun" to work with. There are also small gold beads in that area. It may have taken me several years to finish this one, but it is worth it. I love this piece.

Or maybe a family tree style sampler?

I actually have been thinking about this more since I've been working on the anniversary piece for mom and dad. I'd like to do one tracing back the female side of my family, so me, mom, her mom, her mom....etc. I haven't seen anything that screams to me, but I'm sure I will find something eventually. Or if you have an idea I'd love to know about it!

Making Progress

2011-03-20T14:00:00.000-04:00

Not much to talk about, mainly because I just don't feel like typing. However, I finally got a picture of HallowEden for your viewing enjoyment.

HallowEden by Plum Street Samplers/Paulette Stewart

Stitching this on 40ct. Newcastle in Purely Primitive and using the called for Crescent Colours fibers. I really do like this piece and am enjoying stitching it. I have made one change, I stitched my initials in a different color than how it's charted.

Still working on March goal for Alphabets and not even going to try and get that picture until I'm done. I also stitched a small St. Patrick's Day piece, but I need a button to finish it so nothing to show on that yet either.

That's it for now. Hope everyone had a good weekend and is getting some fiber therapy, I know I am.

Is It Really Better To Be Late Than Never?

2011-03-16T10:51:00.001-04:00

Often a question I ask when I've set a stitching goal for the month and the end of the month has blown by and I haven't finished my goal. Not sure I know the answer, but I give you Valentine Rose as proof that if you persevere you might eventually accomplish something.

Valentine Rose by Blackbird Designs

I tried to get this to look as close to how it looks in person as I could. This is pretty close. This one is dedicated to my mother's sister, my Aunt Nora, whose birthday is the same day that some little rodent decides if we're going to have an early spring or not. I spent as many holidays and much of my summers with her and her family as a child as I did at my own home with my parents. My mom wanted me to have the time around family and since my aunt has three sons, one of whom is the same age as I am, that was where I went. Not that I minded escaping Florida in the summer to go to the mountains of West Virginia. Then when I was looking for colleges my Aunt Nora went with my mom and I to check out the first college I attended and over the years I've called her for advise as much as my mom, especially when I needed help with my accounting homework in college!

The "J" above and to the left of her name is for her husband James (Uncle Jim) whose birthday is also in February. The "S" is for Nora & Jim's granddaughter Sara who was born minutes after my maternal grandmother died. The other "J", at the top left corner in the blue/green color, is for my father's sister, JoAnn who also celebrates her birthday in February. I used a different color for her since her last name isn't Hart, well technically Sara's isn't any longer since she's now married but to me she'll always be Sara Hart.

With that goal accomplished I managed to get a start on March's goal for Alphabets. No picture yet since it's all in cream silk perlee which looks white and is a bear to photograph. I'm only going to try that once when it's finished.

That's all for today. Wednesday's don't leave much time for stitching in the evening since I have band practice and I need to do some drama directing for the church. We're doing a series of readings/dramas during our contemporary service in place of actually reading the Gospel lesson for the day. Somehow I ended up in charge of it. Hope you all have a fantastic day!

Another blogger's idea

2011-03-15T13:45:00.009-04:00

While trying to catch up on my blog reading I headed over to Lee's blog, Lake Stitcher, and saw an intriguing post. Her idea was to pick a pattern from her stash that's been around for a few years, say from when you first got serious about stitching, and work on it during her birthday month, which just happens to be March. Lets just say I have a fairly decent stash. Not as large as some, but certainly I've reached SABLE and if truth be told if SABLE was more a place on a track my stash would be like a super speedway and I'd be on at least my 2nd Green/White/Checker finish of a 500 mile race. (If you're not a fan of NASCAR this means nothing to you, but for some of my friends this will explain a lot. For the rest just believe me when I say I'm WAY PAST SABLE.)

I have no idea what I'm going to choose but I decided this was a great idea and I'm in. I've got a few months until July to go through my stash and decide what I want to work on, if I need to make any thread changes and gather supplies or wander through my fiber and fabric stash to see what I can use. I'm thinking about all the classes I took back "in the day" and all the patterns I've collected over the years. I'm fairly certain something is going to just jump out and say, "PICK ME!!!"

If you're a stitcher, take a look at Lee's post (linky again in case you missed it the first time) and see if you'd like to join the fun.

A Late Anniversary and such

2011-03-15T00:47:00.000-04:00

Although I didn't have it completely finished by their anniversary my parent's piece is completely stitched and at the framers being framed.


An Emblem of Love designed by With My Needle

For those who are curious about such things I used 36ct Lakeside, V. Lt. Examplar with a single strand of Belle Soie in Eggplant and Florimell Silk Floss from Gloriana Threads in Old Gold. It's all cross stitch with one thread of silk over 2 linen threads. The picture doesn't do justice to the slight variations of the Belle Soie nor the Gloriana. I'm pretty sure I've given credit before but I'm going to again. I really am indebted to my DF Melody for being willing to destash the pattern, fabric and Belle Soie so I could get started once I'd decided what I was going to stitch. I'm also thankful for DF Jackie since she let me borrow enough of the beautiful Florimell to work some of the hearts and the years in the gold. I thought I had something that would work in my stash but neither color was just right and what Jackie had is perfect. I've known for years the stitching friends are priceless and this project just proves that over again.

I did manage to finish the goal I set for DT's Alphabets in February, not that I've managed to work on it yet in March but there's still time. Another alphabet finished...

Looking at it I don't feel like I did much, but that was the goal. Here's a picture of what it looks like so far.

Hard to get a really good picture while it's on the scroll bars. March's goal is to do the section that looks blank right now. It actually shouldn't take me too long. I'm still impressed I've been able to stay on track with this one. I'm sure it can't last much longer.

I didn't finish Valentine Rose, the February block for Anniversaries of the Heart (AotH) during February, in fact I'm still working on it. I have just the year my aunt was born and a couple of initials to add and it will be complete though. My March goal for that isn't the March block, "A Wish for You", instead I'll be trying to get the bonus pattern found in the 7th block, "Swan Lake". It's an alphabet so hopefully won't take me too long since I'm getting so good a stitching alphabets. Although I'd like to stay on schedule with this piece, one block a month, even if I do it's going to take me longer than a year to stitch as there are 12 month patterns and 2 bonus patterns, one of which covers the width of 2 of the blocks.

Well and then there's the facination I seem to have with "HallowEden". I picked it up a last week after I'd finished AEoL and just keep working on it. I've been having a lot of trouble sleeping lately, mostly from RA pain, but I can sit and stitch and listen to a book and eventually feel tired. That's how I got the present finished and I'm thinking that's how HallowEden will be accomplished. No picture yet, but I'll get one soon.

That about does it. No party for the parents since they've decided they'd rather take a cruise when mom is feeling better. Still no job, but there are prospects. But spring has sprung and at my house it looks like this. Enjoy!

A Weekend Retreat

2011-03-08T16:26:00.000-05:00

I went a long way for this one, all of 9 miles from my house to Camp Blanding. Camp Blanding is the FL National Guard training facility, both for Army National Guard and Air Force National Guard. They also do a lot of other types of training for law enforcement. It's located on Kingsley Lake, where as a teen I spent many a summer day at either Stricklands or Kingsley both public access to the lake. It's a beautiful area and the facilities were excellent. You can read more over at DF Jackie's blog where she has some great shots of the lake and the room and a whole lot more about the weekend than I should write at this late date.

I will show you some pretty pictures though to distract you from the fact that I took FOREVER to write this post.

This is what my Linen book looked like before it was all put together and aged. I did have to finish stitching it when I arrived on Friday so I spent most of the day doing that...as well as eating and talking to people, some of whom I hadn't seen in a few years. I'm not normally a "primitives" person, but I love how this piece has turned out.

Next is the finished product...

Front, back and the inside. The pattern called for an inside pocket, but I had the pretty mother of pearl hearts you see here and decided I'd rather sew them into the inside and use it as a project book.

Jackie also wanted to learn some finishing techniques for ornaments. Now, I've got plenty of items that need to be finished, and my plenty I mean too many, so I thought this would be a good idea, a way to get caught up on my finishing. So I got all my finishing together, put it all in separate bags with everything I'd need, plus I packed a box full of some of my ribbons just in case we might need them. And here's what I accomplished.

I finished my needlepoint snow bunny ornament. That is all. Now mind you, I went a little overboard on the finishing and totally "mac daddy'd it out", but still. And to top it all off I ended up stitching the cording on after I got home. Still I love it! I loved stitching this piece and I love how the finishing turned out.

The only other thing I worked on a lot while I was gone was mom & dad's anniversary piece. I'll leave you with a picture of how it looked when we left Sunday afternoon. It is further along now and getting even closer to being done. Based on a number of things mom has said I'm not going to have a party for them after all. She would rather go on a cruise, so we'll do that once she's feeling all better from the mono. I'll just finish this and then give it to them when it's framed and explain why it's late.

February Stitching Blog Question

2011-02-18T00:22:00.000-05:00

We like to stitch things for people we love. Show us and tell us about one (or more) of your favorite needlework projects that expresses your love for someone.

I've been thinking about this one for awhile. I'm not sure if it's cheating to use a round robin as part of my answer but I'm going to go for it anyway. Several years ago my friends Jill, Judy, Heather and I decided that we should commemorate our friendship by stitching a piece together, creating a round robin sampler. We decided on doing band samplers and using motifs from the teacher/friend who is the main reason we're all friends. You see, we all met through taking classes from Rae Iverson. Well all except for Jill and I who met because we worked together and went to the same university. We took almost a year and had a lot of fun with them. They are all 4 very different and in a lot of ways express who we are as individuals. To see them all individually you have to go here you'll have to click on "Features" then "Heather's World of Needlework", then "See some Round Robins I've participated in", then "See a RR I stitched with friends based on Moss Creek designs" and look through the many pictures. (It's a bit of work but it's worth the reward to see the upclose pictures of each band.) You can seem them band by band and then how they turned out over all. Love them all, but I'm especially fond of my own.

The other one isn't finished yet. I have to say working on An Emblem of Love for my parents anniversary is a labor of love and I'm very happy with it so far. I can't imagine it not being something they'll love. No update yet, but I hope I'll have one after tomorrow, it all depends on if I get out and go in to Jacksonville or not.

Sorry about no pictures, but at least you can go see great ones on Heather's old site.

Some February Progress

2011-02-12T22:32:00.001-05:00

Haven't felt very well, what with the rain (which we really need so I refuse to be too whiny about it), the cold and not being able to take my RA meds for 2 months it's like a perfect storm of pain. But, I have been stitching so we'll cut straight to the pictures.

Since I finished my January goal for DTs Alphabets I jumped right in to February's goal. Haven't quite finished, but I did get a lot done.

The goal is to finish this single color alphabet before the end of the month. Shouldn't be too hard.

I managed to finish my January goal for AotH finished a little late, but it's done.

Snow Garden completed

I even managed to get the personalization done. I made a couple of changes. The name "Barbara Jean" and the date "1937" is my mom and her birth year. (Oh please, she looks WAY younger than her age so why shouldn't people know how old she is?) The large "J" down in the bottom left is for my DF Jean since her birthday is also in January. Then I added some cousins first initials that have birthdays in January. "A" - Angela (she's married to my sweet cousin Steven), "D" for my cousin David, and the "L" for Lynda Gayle.

I really love how this has turned out so far. It's very "cold" looking, and I know a lot of people don't like this square, but I think it looks great.

Since I finished and didn't want to get up to pick up anything else I started working on February. Here's where I was as of a few days ago.

Valentine Rose as of Feb. 8, 2011

These colors are very yummy! The house will take me forever, but I hope to get it finished by the end of the month. I need to order the month that has the first bonus pattern so I can at least get the border done before I start March. Otherwise I'll be off in my counting I'm sure.

And a peek of how it looks together.

AotH as of Feb. 8, 2011

No new pictures of mom & dad's piece, but I am working on page 2 so the end is in sight. The party isn't going to be until the 20th so I have a bit extra time to get it finished and let my framers have at it.

I haven't been knitting much, but it's NASCAR season again, so there may be a bit more knitting or crochet going on soon. I really need to make a blanket for Victory Junction from the yarn I bought last year. Have enough for two, but I'm not crazy enough to think I'd finish them both this year. I'm thinking crochet since I do that a lot faster. Make squares and then put them together is the plan. More when I figure it out. However, I have been working on a scarf which I need to take a picture of so you can see. Not much to see right now, but I think it will be lovely when finished.

I almost forgot! Head on over to Cranberry Samplers, she's having a give away since she's reached 300+ followers. Make sure you follow her and post a comment to enter.

Some Sunday Stitching

2011-02-01T13:19:00.000-05:00

Spent Sunday afternoon stitching with my friend Jackie. We met and just hung out for awhile with our needles and some threads. I only worked on AotH Snow Garden hoping that I'd finish it in January. Didn't make it, here's where it stands when I quit last night.

I wasn't happy with my dye lot of GAST's Cidermill Brown that is on the front of the house, mine was almost the color of my fabric, so I switched to GAST's Cinnamon. Love how it looks now. This picture actually captures the color of my fabric, and before you ask I don't remember. I think it's WDW Parchment, but don't quote me on that since it just as easily could be Lakeside or it could be R&R. I need to find the label and make sure I know, silly of me, but I've lost it. Maybe someone else will remember that was with me when I bought it on a trip to A Stitcher's Dream. Anyway, I'm going to keep working on this square so it will be finished and then hopefully get Feb started and finished. If I can do one each month then I'll be doing fantastic.

We met at Panera and had one woman stop to talk with us about our stitching. She said she used to stitch, but not on linen. The other woman works there and had to see what we were doing. Stitching in public is sometimes fun, since it might spark some interest.

I finally have an updated picture of mom & dad's anniversary piece.

This picture doesn't quite do it justice, but it's pretty darned close considering I took it at Panera. I've actually done a bit more late last night on the square I'm working on. The boarder is finished and I've started on the inside motif. Some more late nights are in order, or some days of being able to stitch without prying eyes seeing it. I'm still hoping I'll have it finished and framed in time to give it to them for their actual anniversary. We'll see.

In answer to KarenV's question, yes I'm using the called for fabric and fibers for DT Alphabets. It's Lambswool. It looks more khaki to me as well. I think as I get more of the design completed I'll be much happier. Once I get Snow Garden finished I'll be back to work on my February goal for this piece.

That's all my stitching news. Things here are slowly getting back to some sense of normal. My mother still isn't recovered from her bout with mono though she does seem to be gaining some strength. She still has to stop and rest a lot. We did have to go back to find out what they found with her CT scan. Not great news, some major arthritis damage in her cervical spine area that has to be addressed, plus we're still trying to find a good rheumatologist to get her started on more advanced treatment for the osteoporosis. Looks like we may try to find a doctor down in Gainesville. I'm not sure if they will allow my vehicle to park in the garage down there, but I'll give it a go. (Yes, all my Gator friends, that's a joke.) The symphony was lovely and we're thinking of getting tickets for Saturday evening's opera performance. I still need to work on the cleaning of my office. I would love to put down new flooring, cork I think, and then go get some bookcases from Ikea that I like. Lots of plans, too little time.

It's Still Only January

2011-01-29T14:12:00.000-05:00

And I did manage to finish one of the stitching goals I needed to do if I am going to finish any of the larger pieces I have on my list for my personal Crazy 15 challenge.

Yep, that's the entire top alphabet completed for Drawn Thread's Alphabets. I've still got A LOT more to stitch, and I have a plan that if I actually stick to it will give me a completed sampler that looks something like this at the end of the year. The big question is will I manage to stay with the plan? Or will I let some other sparkly goodie catch my attention? Be sure to stay tuned!

I've been stitching on the needlebook from Stacy Nash we got at our Primitives weekend. I've made good progress on that. Oh and I picked up AOTH to work on the January block. I don't think it will be finished in January, but I can hope. Plus I'm still working in secret on mom and dad's 50th wedding anniversary sampler. And by "in secret" I mean I only start stitching on it after 11PM when I should be sleeping. One night I got a little carried away and was still stitching at 3AM. I'm closing in on being halfway done.

It really does look beautiful. I met some friends from my last work contract for lunch Thursday after my doctor's appointment (nothing but my regular check-up with the RA doc, no worries). After that I stopped by the frame shop I use to go ahead and pick out a frame so we can get it framed quickly when I get it done. I've had my stitching framed by Great Hang Ups in Orange Park for more years than I or owners Dee and Julia (a great mother-daughter team) would care to admit! Even without the entire piece done we had enough to work with and found the perfect frame to show off that it's for their 50th and that it's a Quaker design. So now I just have to get it finished and to them and give them a few days to get it all stretched and framed. Sorry, no update pictures. I took the sampler but forgot to take my camera so I could get a picture! I'll have to try again soon.

I think that's about all my stitching news. Have only knit on a pair of socks and they aren't finished so nothing to show there. Tonight is the symphony and I'm looking forward to hearing the music they are performing. We're so lucky in Jacksonville to have such a great symphony. More people who take advantage of their performances.

Hope everyone is finding time to do the things that make them happy!

My ABCs

2011-01-26T12:45:00.002-05:00

Since I seem to be on a kick to do more samplers, and I've seen this on a few different blogs I thought I'd let you all know more about me. Although I think most of you know me fairly well so this might not be all that interesting.

A - Age: I'm 38. (Please you thought I'd tell you the truth?)

B - Bed Size: Full, but it's VERY high off the ground.

C - Chore you hate: Cleaning the bathroom

D - Dogs Name: No current dog, but the dog I had years ago I called Snoopy though his name was Leander Lafayette

E - Essential Start of the Day item: Coffee, food, coffee, tea, caffeine. Did I mention caffeine?

F - Favourite Color: hard one...deep blue, but also garnet, and green.

G - Gold or Silver: Yes!

H - Height: 5ft 6-is"

I - Instruments you play: Piano.

J - Job: Right now...looking for a job. I normally work as a Quality Analyst in the IT world of some sort.

K - Kids: none

L - Living Arrangements: The house my parents built.

M - Music You Love: anything but rap and hard metal. Most everything else is fair game for me.

N - Nicknames: T, Tree, Mericie

O - Overnight Hospital Stay: Just once to have my wisdom teeth removed. They almost had to break my jaw.

P - Pet Peeve: People who don't do their job, or don't do it well, and blame things on other people.

Q - Quote from a Movie: "I'll think about it tomorrow..."! Yeah, I can procrastinate with the best of them.

R - Right handed or Left: Right

S - Siblings: 2 half brothers

T - Time you wake up: right now whenever I wake up.

U - Underwear: Not much for the commando thing, plus I like "girlie" frilly items.

V - Vegetables you dislike: Beans and peas

W - Workout Style: sporadic

X - X-Rays You've had: hand, leg, chest (more than once), neck, teeth.

Y - Yummy Food you make: I've been told I make fantastic brownies. I love my own cooking so I'd tell you lots of things, including dinner!

Z - The best place to Visit -wherever I'm going next!

What Is This?

2011-01-25T12:15:00.000-05:00

Well this would be my second finish of the year. Yes, I've managed to finish something else before the month ended. I couldn't be more surprised than any of you are I'm sure. I do have to admit that I had most of this done so finishing wasn't really all that hard, or take all that long. I figure I worked about 10 more hours on it. Oh and by finished I mean I've finished stitching it, not that it's completely finished and ready to be displayed somewhere in my home.

This is one of those pieces that has been buried in my stash for way too long, it's called Simple Elegance. (There's actually a Simple Elegance II in my stash as well, not sure if it will see the light of day this year or not, stay tuned.) I went to Spirit of Cross Stitch, or at least I think it was Spirit that year, back in 1996 and signed up for classes, including the Sunday Sampler. I remember that I thought it was a great idea to learn new stitches and meet teachers. Of course it was on the last day of the seminar, but still I'd meet teachers that I might want to take a class with the next year. I was lucky enough to have both Ginny and Ken Thompson each teach a different stitch. There are some interesting stitches in the middle part, and some are made with some interesting fibers. It was a great introduction to all those things at a time I was just learning specialty stitches. But it got buried and put aside for something more "shiny" until I saw it this weekend and thought I should just bring it out and get it finished. Why not? It's pretty, it will look pretty as a cube-it and it made me smile when I saw my booklet with the pattern and stitches signed by Ginny and Ken. I'm looking forward to finding just the right fabric, maybe in my mom's extensive stash of fabrics, and items to put on the top to make it look even more beautiful.

Now on to finishing the stitching for my Linen Needlework Book from Stacy Nash that we got last weekend. DF Jackie wants to do the finishing together next month which means I've got to "get er done" as they say. It's actually going fairly quickly. Plus I've been working on my parent's surprise 50th wedding anniversary sampler at night when I "go to bed". I finished another of the half motifs at the bottom. I need to get a picture but haven't had a chance to do it in the daylight. This sneaking around is harder than it sounds! Not much knitting going on, just worked on my sock lately. Still no knitting mojo. Well that and I can't find the bag with my Tour de France shawl that I want to work on and I refuse to pick up anything else until I get that in my hands and get something done on it.

Happy Stitching & knitting & whatever!

PS - 18 days until the Budweiser Shootout in Daytona. Now that I officially don't care who wins the Super Bowl I'm just waiting for "the dark days" to be over and cars to go fast in what looks like circles.

A Primitive Weekend Stash Enhancement

2011-01-24T14:01:00.000-05:00

Of course I couldn't go all the way to Mesa and visit The Attic without buying a few lovelies to put in my stitching stash. Perish the thought that I wouldn't have! Too many lovely things to look at and pick from, but I managed to narrow it down and brought home just a few.

The Haul

Starting at the top left and moving clockwise around: "Illuminated Letters Sampler" by The Samplar Workes, "HallowEden" by Plum Street Samplers, "Happy Christmas" by Carolina House Designs, "Fancy Peacock Hanging Pinkeep" from Stacy Nash Primitives, "Alphabet Sampler" from Chessie & Me, another Stacy Nash Primitives "Sara Cricks Pocket Roll", a lovely piece by Chessie & Me "Mary K Holt 1810 Sampler", and finally "Neeles & Pins Heart Pinkeep" from With thy Needle & Thread. For some of them I went ahead and got supplies, which of course I know you want to see.

First "Mary K Holt 1810 Sampler". Jean had pieces of 40 ct. Vintage Meadow Rue from Lakeside that they had cut for a different piece but for some reason hadn't used. It will work for this one so I got that and the Belle Soie. Worked over 2 this will be a fairly small piece, but so adorable. I kept looking at it because I liked the verse and when Jean had it all laid out I decided I had to have it. I have decided I need more items on the wall I hung my "Stitcher's Row Sampler" on, and I think this will work there. If not I'm sure I can find an equally perfect place for it. For now this one goes into stash. Hopefully I'll pull it out later this year when I've finished something else.

Next is one I've seen on other blogs and just think is adorable. "HallowEden" will be my first Adam & Eve sampler. Both Jackie and I liked this one so we have decided to have a very loose SAL. There was only one pattern left in the shop so we have to wait for her to get her pattern. We did find the perfect fabric for it and both bought a piece and the Crescent Colours needed. The fabric is 40 ct (again...I'm not sure what I'm thinking!) Newcastle in a color called Purely Primitive. It's more green than it shows up in this picture. I think it's going to look fantastic. I hope Jackie has the pattern in time for our weekend in February.

Next is a seasonal piece I've looked at several times but never purchased because frankly I don't like the colors the designer choose. I love the design so I was "helped" to find just the perfect colors to make this piece my own.

This is "Happy Christmas" and I made some major changes. My plan is to work it over 1 on the 30 ct. Weeks linen in Parchment that I found. That will make it a little over 8 1/2" not quite square. I started my conversion with the red Gloriana Florimell Silk called Poinsettia, apropos don't you think? That will replace the red called for in the pattern. The pattern calls for 2 diffferent greens and 2 different gold colors. I went with 2 greens and one gold. The 2 greens are both Gloriana silks, one is Luminescence 100/3 Silk called Granny Smith Green (that's the lighter one that looks like it's smaller but actually has 20 yards) and the other is the regular silk floss that Gloriana dyes in Elizabethan Green. Then for the gold I went with Aussie Gold from Dinky Dyes, also a silk thread. I think it will look fantastic together and I'm looking forward to working with it. I'll have to see how I think the threads end up looking on the 30 ct. linen. I may end up only doing tent stitch, rather than full crosses.

The final piece that I got fabric for is Chessie & Me's Alphabet Sampler. I went with a piece of Lakeside 36 ct in Vintage Fawn. Such a nice rich color that the reds and browns will look fabulous on. I didn't purchase the fibers because I'm fairly certain I have all, or most of them in my stash, or at the least something that will work just as well. It calls for DMC, Sampler Threads and Weeks all of which I have if I just go looking. This isn't a large piece either, it will end up being about 5" square, so would probably be a fairly easy stitch when I get started on it. I love how the letters go around and around the little girl in the red dress.

This piece will definatly go on the wall with Stitchers Row along with hopefully a few other alphabet type pieces that I have in my stash.

That about covers all the goodies I purchased. Lots of pretties to look forward to stitching. I do have something new to show that I finished over the weekend. Yes, I finished something else, well at least I finished stitching it. Job hunting is time consuming, but it's also nice because I have extra time to stitch!

A Primitive Weekend

2011-01-21T13:59:00.000-05:00

Finally getting around to trying to tell everything that happened on my trip with DF Jackie to Mesa, AZ for a weekend of stitching put on by the fantastic ladies at The Attic. If you head over to Jackie's blog she has a great day by day description of what we did. Since it's taken me so long to get things together for this post I'll just bring you the eye candy you come to see anyway.

First the great freebies we received during the weekend.

From left to right: from Priscilla's Pocket a beautiful handmade hornbook frame with a great little alphabet sampler to stitch and mount, from Chessie & Me "Rosey Alphabet Pincushion", above a great pair of scissors, a great mini quilt, scissor's holder & pincushion pattern from Renee Plains of Liberty Star, last but not least a beautiful hornbook necklace that Jean gave us on our first evening. There was also another lovely pair of scissors you'll see when I get to the project they go with.

Our first project was from Linda of Chessie & Me, "Needlebook of Stitches". I managed to finish putting the book together and started stitching on the front panel.

Notice the very adorable pair of mini stork scissors? Those were a surprise as well. I'm fairly certain this will end up being finished fairly quickly. It's been added to my current rotation so it will be coming out and seeing the light of day soon I'm sure.

Saturday morning we got a start on "Nancy V. Renssela: An Unfinished Sampler". I haven't decided what to put at the end, I've got some books I want to look through along with looking at the designs Linda gave us with the project. Linda suggested we decide how we're going to approach this project, one of her suggestions was to think about it as if we were Nancy's granddaughter who is going to finish the sampler years later. My grandmother taught me to stitch oh so many years ago, so as a tribute to her I'm going to take that approach. I'm thinking of using a quote at the bottom and I'll put both our initials on it. Here's what I accomplished between class and the other stitching I did on Saturday.


Nancy v. Renssela: An Unfinished Sampler on 36 ct Vintage Meadow Rue from Lakeside Linens

You can't see it, but I did manage to finish the first row of wording, so that's a very nice start.

That afternoon we were privelged to be invited to the home of Vickie Jennett to view her collection of needlework. What a great afternoon! I told Vickie that I was going to do this, so I guess I have to live up to my promise.

Gotta love a bathroon that has samplers in it! The whole house was full of wonderful examples of needlework. Not to mention sitting in the lovely weather and enjoying our lunch, like Jackie here...

Then there's Deb and Beth enjoying the lovely weather as well.

Deb, Beth, Angela (one of my many friends from the Atlanta Stitch Group), Jackie and I went on a bit of a shopping trip. First we went looking at Vera Bradley at a Hallmark store, we checked out a quilt shop (where I found a couple of lovely fabrics to add to my collection for backing smalls), then on to Vera Bradley and finally to The Attic to make our purchases. By the time we finished the back of Beth's car looked like this...

Bags are hiding bags. Can't say we didn't do our part to help the economy!

Sunday morning brought our time with Stacy Nash. This was the class I'd done the pre-stitching for and I was looking forward to it all weekend. The first order of business was to sew it together, then stuff it with sawdust Stacy had brought with her (don't you wish you could have heard that conversation from TSA when they looked at her suitcase filled with tubs of sawdust???). Then we sewed it up and embellished with stitches and finally used a solution of water and walnut crystals to make it look old. The final result?

The last one shows my little strawberry that we made and then could make as old looking as we wanted. I went for mangy looking! I love how this turned out and am looking forward to her releasing the Christmas themed one she did for a different class. Plus it's my first official finish of the year! Now I can sit back and relax and not worry that I won't finish anything this year.

All in all it was a great weekend. Saw old friends, met new ones and learned some great things. I hope Jean will do another weekend next year and that I can go again.

As an added bonus I got to meet an on-line friend who was also in the area with her son. Wendy & I met on Ravelry because we both like NASCAR. She's part of a group that meets online to chat during the races each week. Since almost everyone lives in a different state it's not like we've all met in person and she lives in WY, so I was excited when she mentioned she might be in Phoenix the same weekend I would be in Mesa. We managed to meet up for dinner. It was so great getting to sit and chat and actually meet! Now I want to meet the rest of "the gang"!

Wendy & I (two Tony Stewart fans together!)

I'm going to finish this post and start another to show you the stash I bought, you knew I did right? Stay tuned!

A Vacation Cut Short

2011-01-12T20:23:00.000-05:00

Unfortunately my trip to Atlanta was cut a little short because of the weather, but at least I got to go and have some fun with everyone up there. As usual DF Jean was a fantastic hostess. You know you're going to have a good time when this is what you find on your bed.

Yep, that's some Tony Stewart swag! Those who know me and kept track of my crazy attempt to get a copy of that calendar know that I ended up with 2 of them, plus this one that Jean ordered for me. I took one to my LYS to share the yumminess. I'm not sure where I'm going to put this one, but I'm sure I'll find a place! The picture isn't great since I took it on my iPhone, not sure why I didn't pull out the actual camera, silly me.

The weekend was mostly a lot of hanging out with friends, eating and stitching. Thursday night we headed over to Andy's for some fantastic turkey soup, birthday cake for Jean and stitching. Then on Friday it was all about hanging out at Jean's. We did a little beading...after I did some organizing of Jean's beading stash. There was some stitching and of course eating. Friday is when they started talking about all the snow and ice Atlanta was going to be getting. At first it didn't sound that bad, but it kept getting worse and when Delta started canceling flights and offering to switch people's flights for free, well I decided I should be a little proactive and get my Monday afternoon flight switched to Sunday morning so I could get home before I leave again for AZ. I'm really glad I did since the flight home had very few people on it and I'm not camping out at the airport. Plus I got to take my mom for an early birthday dinner.

Saturday was DF Jean's birthday and we had a great dinner with lots of friends at a great Chinese restaurant. It's always good to be with everyone and this was no exception. I'm not sure why we didn't get a group picture, but we didn't. Maybe next time.

I did some stitching while I was up there. I took several things with me, mostly new starts. Got around to starting three new pieces, which are going into my personal 2011 challenge.

The first is the one I'm doing a SAL with Jean & DF Ann. The Drawn Thead's Alphabets is such a beautiful piece. (You'll have to follow the link to see what it looks like when finished.) I'd love to say that I'll have this one finished by the end of the year, but I'm not that crazy, and I know myself. I have a plan that if I actually follow it will get me to that goal, but I have a feeling that at some point during the year I'll fall off the wagon, so to speak, and something else will grab my attention. But on to the picture of what I did finish while I was in Atlanta.

copy write The Drawn Thread

I've been working on this today while doing some laundry and trying to not get sick. (Yes, I managed to pick up some bug while I was gone, or more likely I had it when I left.) I'd love to finish this top alphabet this month. Like I said, I have a plan and that's the first month's goal. I think it's doable, so we'll see what happens.

The next piece I started while gone is another big one. Anniversaries of the Heart from Blackbird Designs is my poison of choice this time. I opted to do all the parts on one large piece of fabric. I'm working on a piece of 35ct linen to keep it from being TOO large. I love how it looks, but so far there isn't much to see, especially since what I have done is very light and doesn't show up well when I've tried to photograph it.

That's the best I've been able to do. This will be January's block. I'm working who who it will include. I know my mom will be there since her birthday was Monday. I'm trying to decide whether to have this be just family, or family and friends. I figure I have some time to decide.

I actually have more to show, but I started this post on Monday and it's Wednesday evening and I really need to finish getting packed to leave for Mesa, AZ in the morning. I'll leave you with this little tidbit.

By Milady's Needle, this is the beginning of Margaret W. Brown. I promise I'll tell you more when I get a chance. But now I'm off to get my final items packed and hopefully get a few hours of sleep before I have to be on a plane at 6:50AM!

Happy New Year Happy Dance!

2011-01-05T12:43:00.000-05:00

Wow, it turned 2011 and I didn't even take time to write a blog post thinking about all that has happened in the previous year or what I hope to do in the coming one. I have a really good reason too. It seems that my mother is sick with mononucleosis, and apparently it isn't the first time. We have a feeling she had a slight case when I was very, VERY sick with it a little over 20 years ago. This time she's really feeling it. She started feeling bad around Thanksgiving and hasn't felt good since. So, our Christmas was very low key and my final days working on the contract I was working were hectic with work and taking care of her. I know it's not much of an excuse, but it's all I've got.

However, I have had some time to do a few other things, like spend New Year's Eve in Savannah with friends. I didn't manage to get a picture of the entire group, but someone took this picture of me and my friend Donna, she's the tiny one.

I also talked myself and several friends from the sampler guild I belong to into starting a blog to chronicle our personal challenges for this year for finishing things. Since many of us do other things than just stitching there will be all kinds of lovely items showcased. There are currently 7 of us contributing and a few more are expected to join us. I'm so looking forward to seeing what everyone is going to work on this year. Some have their own blogs like I do, but several don't so this will be your opportunity to see the beautiful work they do. I hope you'll take a look and keep coming back to see what these lovely ladies have to share. You can find us at Working to Finish in 2011.

Ok, a couple of quick pictures before I head to finish getting ready to fly to Atlanta for my DF Jean's birthday weekend and to see all my great friends in Atlanta.

First, DF Jackie and I are headed to AZ next month for the Primitive's weekend at The Attic. We're both looking forward to it, especially since this will be Jackie's first opportunity to take classes from stitching designers. We received one of our pre-stitching kits last week and I started it on Jan. 1. I've finished all the stitching and am ready for the class. So proud of myself, but I know that it's helped that I am between contracts right now. When finished it will be a pinkeep drum.


Stacy Nash Primitives Attic Needlework Peacock Pinkeep Drum 32 ct. linen w/DMC

My personal challenge this year is to finish things, and keep a rotation to work on and attempt not to get distracted from that rotation. In the past when I've done that I've managed to finish things, or move large projects along nicely. You can read more here. I hate to repeat myself too much in the hopes that most of you who still read my blog will head over to the group blog to read it as well.

Finally, for those who won't be reading both, I'll show you the progress I made on Winter Garden Gate last night. I started with this...

(Yep, took this picture at night before I started hence the really yellow color, but you get the idea.) Worked on it for about 2 hours last night and now it looks like this...

This picture actually looks like it does in person. Notice that I started this in 2005. I'll end up putting 2011 on it to show when I finished, plus there is a place for my initials. I was excited to finish the leaves and berries on the left side. I think I'll tackle the right hand Assisi work next, but that's for after I make my way through my list the first time.

I hope to be posting from Atlanta to show my starts and what I'll be working on while I'm there. We plan to spend a lot of time stitching. I'm taking a few things with me to start on so hopefully I can make some good progress on each of them.

Long Day working

2010-11-04T22:47:00.000-04:00

With a little fun thrown in. My DF Jean says I'm working so I can buy an iPad when I get to Atlanta next week. The real reason is because I had a little audit project that HAD to get done and people were late getting information to myself and my co-worker working on it with me. But we managed to get through it and I think we found everything. Tomorrow we'll discuss with the people who need to do some clean-up.

I did take a couple of hours and meet friends for dinner tonight. All people I work with or have worked with at ING. We had a nice dinner and got to catch up on what's been going on in everyone's life. Short, but a good visit.

I went diving into my stitching bags. I managed to take some pictures of my WIPs but not all. When I get them all done I'll post something with a link so you can go see a portion of the madness. As crazy as it sounds I really want to have more seasonal small items, maybe even some that are a little larger. I'm thinking some additional starts may be in order. Bwahahahah!

With that I'm going to go get all ready for bed and find a place to stitch and relax so I can get sleepy, which I'm not right now. Tomorrow is Friday!

Getting ready for a new year

2010-11-03T20:33:00.000-04:00

Oh yes, I know it's a little early to start thinking about New Year's resolutions and the like but Sunday I was having a discussion with a friend and mentioned that several years ago I managed to finish off quite a few UFOs from my stitching stash by concentrating on a rotation that allowed for projects at various states of completion. My Sensei Heather, who many may know as TMTIH (The Magic That Is Heather). Now understand I did this when I wasn't knitting, so I managed to finish something like 12 items that year. Not bad. Finished a couple of large(ish) samplers, some smalls, pretty varied. So that has me thinking that I need to adopt that practice again. I have things that I can put my hands on that are withing 10 hours of being finished, some that are more like 25 and then others that need a lot of hours but that I really want to work on. So I'm thinking I'm going to do a bit more of a rotation and really be a bit more thoughtful about what I'm working on. Here's what I really would like to finish in say the next year, in no particular order.

1. Ornaments - I don't even want to think about how many ornament kits I have from the years I participated in an ornament kit exchanged based on the Just Cross Stitch Ornament editions. Let's just say there are more then 100 and less the 1000 and be happy about that. I have finished some, I even have enough that have the finishing complete to hang on a small tree each year, but if I were to get serious and stitch those kits I'd have enough for...well a BIGGER tree. I'm not going to put a number on how many to finish in the year, some are easy, quick stitches, other are more time consuming. I have one that has some hardanger in it and I need to just finish wrapping the bars and doing the doves eyes and it's done. So, I'm just going to say I should have at least 1 ornament going at all times.

2. Mom & Dad's Anniversary Sampler - for obvious reasons this needs to be done. I'd like to finish it before their actual anniversary on March 3rd so it could be framed, but I'm not going to be all crazy and think that's really going to happen.

3. Winter Garden Gate -

This picture is actually not current. I've done more since it was taken. I'd say a good 20 hours and this one would be done. I've already finished 2 of the 5 garden gates and have them on my wall, would love to add this one.

4. Blackwork Band Sampler

This one is also further along. (Wow, I need to take some pictures!) I ADORE this piece and would love to see it hanging up in my house.

5. Biscornu - I can't believe I haven't finished the stitching on this one. There is really no excuse. It's simple and almost complete.

6. Simple Elegance I - You may not really believe me but this one is further along too. (I know...pictures are proof!)

I already know that I want to finish this as a stand up.

7. Christmas Fairy - She's just so pretty, how can I not want to stitch on her? (Picture included just in case you'd missed seeing her before.)

8. Snow Globe Bunny - This is really an ornament, but since it's needlepoint I'm going to count it separate.

9. Eiffel Tower Shawl - A little knitting was needed of course. No picture because it's at a point where I really can't get one until I am able to bind off.

10. Autumn in Cambria - Another shawl I've got on the needles.

11. Socks - because it would be nice to finish some that are on my needles.

12. Mystery 4 - Ok, because I really am crazy I'd like to finish one of these before I die, get it framed and enjoy it hanging up somewhere in my house. I realize this may mean a visit from the crazy police, but I'm going to put it out there. I actually have this one and another one started, this one if further along so it is getting the nod.

Go ahead and click through to the picture on Webshots. There's an album just for this one and you can see Mr. Peacock in all his glory, with piece de resistance of crazy where I decided to do his head 1 over 1 (which for you non-stitchers is small and tedious but produces beautiful results that are amazing.) I really don't believe that I could finish this during the year, but why not work on it from time to time and see what happens.

13. The Daughters of Longbourn - Because dang it I'm enjoying this one and love stitching on it.

14. A sweater - I need to finish one of the sweaters in my UFO pile. Then maybe start another. Not like I don't have yarn for a few.

There's more deep in the recesses of my stitching & knitting bags. Small little things that could be finished like a scissors case that needs less then 10 hours on it and the stitching would be done. Alas I have no pictures. Not to mention the patterns I've bought in the last month that I'm sure will NEED to be started.

So there it is. My big list for me to think upon and try and work with. So what that it's not January 1st, I'm making my list now and seeing how it goes, that way in 2 months if I don't like it I can try something different!

A busy weekend

2010-11-02T18:09:00.000-04:00

I had a busy weekend and barely time today to share, but I'm going to carve out a couple of minutes and show you what I did.

First the kitchen update. Really I'm just going to show you that I managed to tile in the "bar".

This is where I keep the important stuff, wine and coffee. We also finished getting the tiles up around the window in the kitchen, but those pictures don't really show much so you'll just have to believe me. Now all that's left is the grouting and finishing. We found the perfect piece of wood to use to finish the edges so we need to get that purchased and stained as well so we can put it up. Also need to decide what we're going to use for the window sill. We have a piece of marble that was there, but I'm not sure if it will still fit. If not it's back to the drawing board.

So far you've all been good at not spilling the beans about the sampler for mom & dad's anniversary. Since you've been good I'll show you what I managed to accomplish while stitching Sunday afternoon with DF Jackie.

The sun was almost setting my the time I got to take this picture so it's not perfect. But you can see that the Elegant Eggplant Belle Soie has some shading to it. If got to start playing around with what I'm going to change so I can include some info on their anniversary.

I also worked on Daughters of Longbourne but no picture, sorry. Maybe later this week. Hope you all had a Halloween full of treats and not tricks!

Got Mojo?

2010-10-29T12:04:00.000-04:00

And by Mojo I mean for stitching and purchasing stitching. As those of you who are regulars (and by regulars I mean people who come and read my blog when I actually write something) may have noticed I haven't been stitching all that much. In fact I haven't been stitching hardly at all. Maybe a little canvas work when I was in Atlanta in July, but otherwise, nary a stitch in a piece of linen have I made. However, all that seems to have taken a turn for the ~~worse~~ better in the last week or so. I'm not sure exactly what changed, but all of a sudden I want a needle and floss of some sort in my hands.

Of course that means that I've been purchasing some goodies from a couple of my favorite on-line/remote needlework stores. I could list everything here, but instead I'll wait until I get stuff and show you. Instead I'll show you a few pictures of what I've been working on.

First and update on my Christmas Fairy. Isn't she pretty?

Then there's a long overdue start on The Daughters of Longbourn. Some of you may know that I love Jane Austen's books. All of them in some way shape or form speak to me. A couple of years ago my DF Melody gave me this lovely pattern and a cut of Vintage Maple Sugar fabric to stitch this one. I started the border last week when I was having trouble sleeping since I had those fibers. Then I called one of my favorite online stitching stores, Needlecraft Corner, and had the ever wonderful Drema send me the rest of the Crescent Colours needed. Not much to show yet, but it really is going to be beautiful!

A larger shot and then a bit of a close-up on a corner.

Finally I'm going to show off something that will have to be our secret. My parents will celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary March 3, 2011. I feel the need to do something to commemorate this event, because let's face it so few people manage this milestone anymore and it should be celebrated. I'm sure there will be a party of some sort and there has been talk of a cruise, but that's not lasting. So I went looking around at samplers. I have been debating between Emblem of Love by the wonderful Ellen Chester of With My Needle and A Sweeter Love by Plum Street Designs. Both are beautiful and it was a hard decision, but again DF Melody to the rescue. She happened to have the chart and a piece of lovely Vintage Exampler linen in her stash for Emblem of Love that she was willing to part with. Throw in the fact she had enough Belle Soie in Elegant Eggplant and the deal was struck. She very kindly sold me everything I needed and Tuesday at our EGA meeting I received it all and that night I started working on it. My hope is I can keep it a secret from them and maybe have it complete before the date. It's a hope and a goal, nothing bad will happen if I don't quite make it. So here's a peek at what I've managed to do as of Wednesday morning when I could take a picture since they were both gone to daddy's eye dr. appointment.

As I said, I'm working it on 36 ct. Vintage Exampler with a single strand of Belle Soie. The color is beautiful, my picture doesn't capture the subtle changes. I've actually finished that motif and a couple of small ones next to it and started the next one that is below the one you see. I'm going to make some changes, take out some motifs to allow me to personalize it with their information. I'm playing with the idea of using a gold color for the personalization. Something with an aged look. Now remember you have to keep this a secret. You can't go telling mom how pretty it looks.

Since I started this I received my order from Drema and will take some pictures of the new stash to share when I get a chance. There's this thing called work that keeps me from stitching, knitting and blogging, the only good it does is allows me to add to my stash.

Lastly I need to show you a picture of the adorable needlepoint bunny I've been working on. This is the piece I obtained during my last trip to Atlanta and is the reason I'll be headed back that way in November so I can take a class from the woman who helped me pick out fibers and decide on the stitches to be used.

Don't you just adore him? Lots of fun sparkly fibers to play with. I think that's why I have started to do some needlepoint, the fibers you can use.

That's my update. I have more to share and I'm still working on a catch-up post from earlier in the year. Hope everyone has a safe Halloween weekend!

Project Saturday

2010-10-23T21:44:00.000-04:00

Today was the Saturday put aside to do some more work on the ongoing remodel of our kitchen. Some of you may remember that we got new counter tops a while ago. And by "a while ago" I mean over a year, in fact I don't even know when it happened. There has been more then a few debates on what to use for the back splash and how to finish out the window. Finally a decision was made and today we put the plan in to action. Except we also kind of changed the plan when we got started and thankfully we over bought the amount of glass tiles we'd need.

So, this morning we started with this.

And then we started debating where to put the glass tile and where to put the stuff that looks like tin tiles but is really plastic. We had originally thought to put the glass on the bottom and use just 3 or 4 rows of it, but then we started playing around with it and totally changed our minds. By 7:30 or so tonight we had this. (Sorry for the bad pictures but it was dark and the flash and the lights distorted the colors, the actual color of the counter top is what it looks like in the before pictures. I'll try to get some more tomorrow in the daylight.)

It's still not done. I have to tile all around the window, put in the window sill and also grout the tile. Plus I need to find covers for the plug and light fixtures. I know I've seen ones that are "glass" so that's what I want to use. I think it will end up looking really great. Plus we're going to finish the top and the bottom with quarter round since there's a bit of a gap between the wall and the counter top. I'll take more pictures when I get more done. Hopefully not in another 2 years!

Last night I finished a small ornament that's been in my bag for awhile. Just a cute freebie that I received as a kit during one of the Ornament exchanges.

I felt like stitching some more last night so I pulled out my Christmas Fairy and went back to work on it. As of last night she looked like this...

One final picture of our fireplace all decked out for fall.

A little bit of everything, but it covers the entire season.

Where does time go?

2010-10-21T13:16:00.000-04:00

I know, there really isn't an answer to that question but I really am not sure where the time has gone between my last blog posts and today. It's been over a month. I'm pretty sure I'm just slack, but it could also be a bit to do with life. So to catch you up I give you the following.

1. I met my DF's Heather, Michael, Jill & Andy in Orlando for a long weekend of fun to celebrate Michael's birthday a bit early.

Andy, Jill, Me, Heather & Michael (Isn't he the brave one?)

He wanted to go to Universal Studios, especially the new Harry Potter portion. Much fun was had by all.

Hogwarts!

There was Butterbeer

And I got to meet the Hogwart's Express conductor!

And there was food.......and drink that was quite lovely everywhere we went.

Of course there was the wonderful pleasure of the company of my friends who all live in the Atlanta area. It was Andy's first visit to Florida. I hope we managed to show her a great time so she'll come back some time.

2. I have been supplementing my stash lately. Not a good sign. I don't have pictures of everything but I did do some damage when I went to Atlanta in July for my birthday.

Top row: ShibuiKnits Silk Cloud to be held with Noro Kureyon Sock for a scarf
Row 2: Rowan Lima for sweater, 2 colors of Cascade Yarns Ultra Pima in a garnet and a gold for a tank top, Ella Rae Bamboo Silk for a little jacket.
Row 3: SWTC Xie in two different colors (a shawl or 2 in the making), The Alpaca Yarn Co. Paca-Peds sock yarn, Noro Sekku
Bottom: Wollmeise Lace-Garn.

3. Went to Savannah after church just this last weekend to see the fall incarnation of the Gospel Show at The Savannah Theatre. I'm sure I've mentioned this before, but if you are going to be visiting Savannah you need to make reservations to see whatever show it going on at this theater, and I don't just say that because I've known the Musical Director/Drummer and his family for years and have become friends with one of the other cast members. It really is a good time. We went in the Spring when they did this show and my parents wanted to go again this fall. There were a few changes, some of the cast was different for a variety of reasons.

Since it was on a Sunday afternoon we left right after the 9:45 service at church and drove up. Now, we left pretty close to 11AM but because of traffic and the fact I travel with a couple of older, distinguished folk, we made it to the theater about 20 minutes before the show started at 3PM. Seriously, for normal people it's about a 2.5 hour drive. Of course we stopped and had a light lunch and the obligatory bathroom breaks along the way. But I didn't feel bad since Chris pulled into the parking lot and parked as I was parking our vehicle and getting out. Figured they couldn't really start without him so I'm going to put it down to having impeccable timing.

Sunday evening mom, dad, Chris and I went out to eat. We were staying right at City Market, so we thought we'd go to Vinny Van Go-Gos for pizza but the wait was at least an hour and mom was hungry. Then we thought we'd walk over to Jazz'd, but along the way we passed a few nice places and a band so in the end we ate at Cafe at City Market. Food was good and the weather was perfect. There was even a fairly decent band playing at that end of the market outside. Daddy tried to pick up a new girlfriend, but decided to stick with mom at least until next year when their 50 year contract has to be renewed.

Monday was reserved for lunch at Mrs. Wilkes Dining Room. We'd never been, but we had pros to help us navigate the awesomeness that is lunch at this institution. Chris and fellow cast member Sheldon met us there along with two friends of Chris', Angie & Kassandra. Kassandra has just returned from a year long tour of duty in Iraq (you can just barely see her sitting next to Sheldon in the picture below), so we were especially honored to share a lovely meal with her. They are both lovely young women and are both engaged to young men who are serving in the military. We had a fantastic time chatting before we went in to eat and during our meal. Well worth the wait (yes, Sheldon, even if we weren't supposed to wait). That's just half the table, you should have seen the other half where daddy was "protecting" the fried chicken.

In case you can't tell: friend chicken, mac-n-cheese, biscuit, rutabagas, creamed corn, fried cabbage, cole slaw, cucumbers in vinegar with some pepper and in the middle some candied yams.


Yep, that's bowls of greens, peas, green beans, lima beans, beef stew, and who knows what else.

After lunch we bid a fond farewell to Sheldon and then Chris, but only after he helped me find the lovely needlepoint store The French Knot I'd heard about that is just around the corner from Mrs. Wilkes. A bit hidden, since it's down an alley, but just beautiful inside. Met the owner, Audrey who is both talented and lovely. Of course I found a little something to purchase and will be heading back there when I travel up that way again. If I lived in the area I'd have their stitch-in nights on my calendar.

Isn't this just the cutest little ornament. Audrey had it, and the other two in the set, finished a couple of different ways. I'm thinking I'll have to call and order the other two canvases before it's all over. And her fiber wall was a thing of beauty. I should have taken a picture but I'd left my camera at home.

After that I headed to Wild Fibre for a little yarn stash enhancement. Found some beautiful Alchemy yarns for a new scarf and just HAD to purchase a couple of sock yarns. I also ordered a book that they will send me when it arrives.

4. I do have a long overdue picture of a finished knitted project. The picture isn't that great, because I made it at night at a friends home with my iPhone and not in daylight with my camera. However the model is outstanding and a really good sport. She's my friend Janet and the mobius scarf she's wearing isn't even for her! It's for our friend Joyce who was busy doing something else. Janet loved this so who knows, she might receive one in the future.

I'm sure I've missed some things, but I'm going to hope I can do better at blogging and have something else to share another day.

Free Spirit?

2010-09-15T23:52:00.000-04:00

Today I was talking to someone who probably doesn't know me all that well even though we do work together. This person made a comment that has me thinking. They called me a free spirit. Actually what they said was, "I think of you as a free spirit." Like I said, we work together, and honestly I'm not sure what it is about me at work that would have anyone thinking "free spirit". Is it because I'm a contractor/consultant? Is it because on my Facebook page I have listed all the countries I've visited, the books I've read. Is it the comments about the things I do? Because honestly I've never been called a "free spirit" and for whatever reason this has me really stumped, or thinking or something.

Lately I haven't been feeling all that interesting. I mean, really, let's see I work, I go sing at church and do some other stuff there, I read, I knit some and stitch even less. That's it. See, boring. REALLY boring. And then today, "I think of you as a free spirit." Huh? So, what makes someone a free spirit? Is it doing what they want at the drop of a hat? Is it doing things their own way, not conforming to what other's expect of them? Is it selling all their belongings and backpacking through Europe while writing a really great novel? What is it?

So, ya'll tell me? What makes someone a free spirit in your mind?

Oh, and I promise I'll try and get part deux of my travel adventures up tomorrow. That way I can blog about my trip this weekend when I come home without having to wait too long...at least I hope I can!

Ria Made Me!

2010-09-13T13:31:00.000-04:00

My friend Ria tagged from her friend Thom at Thom's Place with this. I answer these 8 questions and then tag 8 others. Thom is running a contest on his blog with a $20 gift card to any online store that has gift cards. To play, and win, you have to be tagged, answer the questions and then go over to his blog and guess how many people will do the same by Wed, Sept. 15th. I decided to play, wonder who else will

My answers:
1. Why did you start blogging?
I started blogging to quiet my inner writer. Really, that's why. One of my dreams has always been to write a book. So instead of doing that I decided to write in a blog. You'd think from the fact that I haven't been very good at keeping up with this blog my inner writer is not that loud. That is not the case. She's still very loud, I've just learned how to ignore her as the years go on. Maybe I'll start listening again and either work on this blog more often, or actually start writing a book. (And yes, I have a couple of ideas I just need to work them through.)

2. If you could travel anywhere in the world with no restriction of costs, where would it be and why?
Wait, do I have to pick one place? Are you kidding? If I had no cost restrictions I'd travel to all kinds of places. I'd go back to places I lived and traveled in when I was a child so that would take care of England, Wales, Scotland, Italy, Spain, Holland. Since I'd be in the vicinity I'd have to add in Ireland, Brussels, all of Scandinavia, Germany, Portugal, Austria, Greece. Then of course there's the old Soviet bloc countries that have so many different interesting places and architecture. I'd pick and choose in there but certainly Moscow, St. Petersburg, Budapest then down in to Romainia. Then I'd have to head into places like Turkey, parts of Africa, go back to Egypt and see Alexandria, Luxor and the Valley of the Kings and return to Cairo to spend some more time at the museum since we didn't get as much time there as I would like. Also I'd go back to Israel and go to Elat and spend a day or two there among other places. Head over to Jordan, maybe look up and old college friend from my High Point days, plus there's Petra and Madaba to see among other things. Then it's off to the Far East: China, Japan, Hong Kong, Tibet, Singapore, and some other places including Bali. Then Australia and New Zealand. Do you get the picture with this list off the top of my head? It would take me years to do everything I would want to do and see. I've dreamed of seeing the ancient ruins in Greece and Rome for ages, plus Crete, ever since I took all those Ancient Greek Art & Architecture classes in college. (Yes, I was a business major, but hey a girl has to have some fun classes too!) There are just so many wonderful things to see and do that I would have a hard time picking just one. And you said there were unlimited funds!

3. Did you have a teacher in school that had a great influence on your life? If so, what?
I've had several teachers who influenced me, but none to the point that I could say steered me exactly to where I am in my life today work wise. I had several teachers who encouraged my love of reading and history, especially Mrs. Bowles and Mrs. Ellis. I had both of them all through high school for English/Lit. and Humanities. They both taught me a great deal about literature and writing that I still think about today. Both encouraged all of us to take time to read and learn about more then where we were right now. That's a lesson that has absolutely stayed with me over the years.

4. If you could spend the day with a famous person, who would it be, and what would you do?
I hate this question because there are so many people I'd want to meet, but I'm going to go with Jane Austen today. I'd love to spend a day just talking to her about her characters. What they meant to her. Where she found her inspiration for them and how she viewed her own life. Share a cup of tea or two with her and mainly just spend a day doing what she did in a normal day.

5. Toilet paper – over or under?
I'm an over person myself, but I'm not fanatical about it.

6. Name one thing in your life that you would do over if possible.
I'd go straight to get my masters, probably straight to law school. Wait, back up. I might even go back and not transfer to FSU from High Point and finish my degrees there, then go on to law school, then maybe go to get my PhD. Not take a break just do that.
But in reality, I'd probably make the same decisions I made before.

7. Tell about your pets – if any.
I have parents instead of pets. They don't have vet bills, and they do talk back to you instead of just listening, but I still love them!

8. Do you live in a small town or a large town. (You don’t have to name the town.)
I live in the suburb of the largest land-mass city in the US. That just means that I have the benefits of a large town (pro football, semi-pro baseball, concerts, symphony, Broadway road shows, excellent restaurant choices, museums) AND I live in the small town that I basically grew up in where I can still go to my high school's football games on Friday night and see people I've known almost my entire life. And I can live in a house on 2 1/2 acres instead of right on top of my neighbors. It does mean I have to drive a bit to get to most anywhere I want to go, but that's ok, I don't usually mind.

I hope I've given you all enough time to participate. I'm pretty sure you all ready my blog fairly often and these really weren't hard questions.

Now for my victims Jackie - Jackie's StitchesJean - Baa Baa Knit StitchGrant - Mostly HarmlessJeanine - Sleepy Weasel Studio (long time since she's posted)Heather - It's Geek to MeKaroline - Karoline's CornerMelody - Wooly ThoughtsSusan - A Work in Progress

Who knew you're name could tell you this?

2010-09-02T17:30:00.001-04:00

You Are Submissive Sexy

You are sexy because you are sensitive. You feel deeply.

You're the type of person who loves being seduced and pursued.

You're too passive to ever take the lead, but you don't mind waiting for someone to notice you.

And once someone is chasing you, you love every moment until you are caught.

Everything inside your head gets a little intense at times. You can get a bit overwhelmed in the bedroom.

Your senses are very sharp. You are easily stimulated and turned on.

What's Sexy About Your Name?

Blogthings: We'll Tell You The Truth... Someone Has To!

Well now isn't that interesting?

All about travel (part one)

2010-08-24T18:00:00.001-04:00

So today we bring you part one of the recap of my latest travels. I've managed to go to Atlanta twice since the spring. Once with my DF Jackie, who's blog you should check out, and once by myself. Both trips were wonderful. Plus I made a quick trip up to WV for a family reunion and to help my parents drive home. Not to mention two trips to Savannah.

I'm guessing you want more information, or at the least some pictures of swag or other such nonsense. Luck you, I have just what you want.

The trip in April was for Stitches South. Neither Jackie nor I had ever attended and we were very much looking forward not only to the class we had signed up for, but also the chance to check out some yarns we had heard of but never seen or felt. Let me just say that we did our share of shopping. We stayed with DF Jean and her fab husband which helped cut down on cost, or should I say helped us be able to spend more. I'm not sure when we took this picture, I think it was after day 1 when we'd gone to class and then waited to get into the "hall of yarny and related goodness" for early bird shopping. In fact, I'm fairly certain that's when this was taken.

Now understand that this is for three people. Yeah, it still looks like a lot, but in my defense, I've already finished one shawl from some of what is there and am 3/4 way through another. I'm ready to sign up for next year. Maybe take two classes this time.

Of course it wasn't all about the ~~loot~~ yarn, we also spent time with friends Jill, Heather and Andy. Jackie got to meet my stitching/knitting friends in Atlanta and we even found a few minutes to take her to one of the stitching stores so she could look around. And yes, I did buy a small little something there that I've been working on (and need to get progress pictures of).

Mom, Dad, myself and several other friends also went up to Savannah in April to see a show at The Savannah Theater. We saw Southern Nights that day. It was the first time mom and dad had gone up and they really enjoyed the show. We always have a great time. Before the show mom and I found Wild Fiber and I did a little shopping there.

Lovely shop and very near the theater so that's just perfect for when I get to go back for a visit.

And here's a picture of "the gang" having a bite to eat before the show started.

from right clockwise: Mom, Don F., Lynn F., Tony F., Janet F., Joyce & my dad

I even have a picture of my dad after the show. Isn't he handsome?

Left to right: Chris Fullerton, Dad, Michele (I think)

Chris' parents are Don & Lynn in the picture above and we've all been friends for years. In fact, all of us attend the same church and are pretty close.

We went back up to Savannah for Chris' birthday in May and got to see the Gospel Jubilee they were putting on at the time. Amazing is the only word I can use. We're planning on going back to see the one they do in the fall as well.

Wow, that's a lot for one day. I think I'll leave you in May and try to bring you up to date with the rest later this week. Don't want to bore anyone you know.

The week that was

2010-08-23T17:30:00.001-04:00

Last week seemed to go by both quickly and at a snails pace. I started this blog post on Wednesday and then all of a sudden it was a new week. Here's what I was thinking:

So Monday morning I had my regularly scheduled doctors appointment for my RA. That wasn't so bad. In fact it went pretty well. Then I came home and logged back into work. That's when things started to go downhill, not that it happened all at once. Oh heck no. It was more insidious. Little things started piling up and it just became one long day where everything I tried to do took ten times as long as it should have. Tuesday didn't get much better, but at least I figured out how to work around some of my computer issues at work and by Wednesday things were going ok in that department.

I really wanted to knit last week. Really. But I didn't get much done. I did work some on a small project I'm doing for a swap, but it's not that exciting so I'm not making as much progress on it as I should. I really ought to be finished with it, but I'm not and I'm making myself knit on it so I'll get it done for my package to go out on time.

I'd love to show you pictures of something I finished, or something I worked on, but really, I've got nothing. So, I'll post this in the hopes that tomorrow I can post some pictures from at least one of my trips this summer. Stay tuned!

Rainy Saturday

2010-08-14T17:10:00.000-04:00

It's been a really rainy Saturday today which means I've been pretty lazy. Really haven't done much all day except catch up on some TV I had recorded and knit. So, what am I knitting on you ask? I've been spending most of my knitting time on two different shawls. I don't have up to date pictures on either, but I'll let you see what I have. I was going to take a new picture of both, but my camera is hiding after being on vacation. I really hope I didn't leave it in the hotel.

First up:

This is my take on Natalie Servant's Eiffel Tower shawl. It was a challenge during July for the Tour de France. I didn't finish, but I did actually start the second repeat of Chart 2 today. I'm doing the 5 arch version, which is actually 5 arches on each of 2 sides. The yarn was a gift from DF Jennifer who I "hang out with" (in an online chat) most Sunday afternoons as we watch NASCAR. Check out both of her blogs here and here to see what yarny goodness she's up to. Oh, the yarn is called Yarn Chef and I adore it. It's lace weight and so yummy to work with since it's got some silk in it. I can't wait to see the drape on this when it's finished.

The other shawl I've been working on is this one:

This is Cambria Wrap that I'm doing in some lovely yarn I scored when I went to Stitches South. (Oh, I haven't talked about that have I? Well maybe I'll do a single post on trips and what I scored later.) Anyway, the yarn is from Knitting Notions and it's fingering weight. (Classic Merino Superwash Sock in "In the Light" colorway) I love the colors and bought enough for this pattern when I saw it. This is a very simple pattern that was easy to memorize and has been my travel, or non-thinking, piece for awhile now. I wanted it nice and long so I could wrap it around me on cool evenings, because I live in hope that it will eventually cool off, plus I think long wraps are elegant and make jeans look dressed up. So, I'm using 2 skeins and it's going to be perfect. I've actually started and second skein and am making nice progress. Especially since I haven't really knit on it regularly.

There's more, I finished Traveling Woman made with some wonderful yarn from Sanguine Gryffon called Kypria. I don't have a finished picture of that either, so you'll just have to wait.

Time to head out for dinner so enjoy the pictures and send good thoughts my way so I'll find my camera.

I bet you thought I'd stopped blogging

2010-08-13T17:30:00.001-04:00

So the truth is I had, but not forever. The main reason was because I've been busy and life just seemed to go by without me managing to blog. I'd think about a blog post and then the day would be gone, or the week, or the month and it wasn't relevant any more. Since I last blogged I ended up one contract, took a month off and started another contract that has kept me VERY busy. I've finished a couple of knitting projects and I've even stitched a little. So I'll try to do better and also get everyone caught up on the important stuff.

Let's see, I think some eye candy is in order to get the ball rolling.

Cancer away Citron

I knit this for a lady I work with when she found out she had a melanoma on her face and was going in for surgery. I used Zauberball and love how it turned out. When I blocked it I made it a little too pointy around the edge, but I still love how it turned out and she was surprised and has used it and loves the color so I'm happy with it.

I also finished Sapphire Beauty and can't wait until it's a little cooler so I can start wearing it. I would make another one of these for a gift, same with Citron. Both are great, easy patterns you can work on while you're watching TV and relaxing.

My lovely model for both is my mother. She's always willing to help me out, but sometimes she wants to keep things. I guess I need to make her a shawl.

That's all I have time for today. I've got some more pretties to show off so I'll be posting some more I promise.

Something Different

2010-03-21T22:30:00.000-04:00

In my last post I showed you this...

But I wasn't feeling "the lurve" and so last Saturday I ripped it all out and decided to work the yarn in a new pattern. I decided on Butterfly Shawl (yep that's a Ravelry link so if you knit or crochet you shouldn't have a problem). Now I'm feeling the lurve! I love this new pattern and have about 14" done. Here's a little glimpse of how it looks now.

I think that the yarn really shines through on this one. Oh the yarn is from Twisted Fiber and I love the colors! It was a gift from someone who apparently really likes me. I don't know who sent it, but I do know I love it and will love this shawl.

Yesterday was the first day of spring and also Midnight Knit at my LYS. We did something special and handpainted yarn. I decided to use Cascade Heritage sock yarn and loved thinking about what colors I wanted to work with. I decided on teal, lime green and fuchsia. Not my normal colors but sounded like spring. Here's what I ended up with

I call is "Bunny on Tequila"

I started a new project yesterday. A friend wants a mobius scarf like one of mine so she decided on yarn and I'm knitting it for her. No pictures yet, but it's in blues.

Tonight after dinner I finally got the Wii Balance Board hooked up and started using it. I tried some Yoga, some Strength training, some Aerobics and even some Balance training. I'm hoping that I can meet the goal I set today. Check back in 2 weeks to see if I manage to meet it.

I think that's about all that's been going on. Hope everyone has a great week!

I've been kinda busy

2010-03-13T15:07:00.000-05:00

That's my excuse for not blogging lately. To prove it I have a few pictures to show what I've been doing.

First a finish that's been a long time coming.

It's called Traditional Elegance II and as far as I can tell it's no longer in print. It's done in all silks, Wildflowers and soie d'Alger and the gold is Japan thread with a few gold beads thrown in. I don't want to think about how long this took me to finish, but it's been a few years. I actually got everything but the Japan thread and beads in last year and have been slowly working on that part.

There are three couples at church having babies. I decided to do a little knitting for them. I have one sweater done for one of them, and finished this for another that is due in June.

I love the detail on this one and the pattern is very simple. Plus it was raglan top down so no real seaming! Not to wait and find out if the baby is a girl or a boy so I can put buttons on it.

I also started a new hat for myself. I'm using yarn from my stash, so I feel good about that. Plus it's in fingering weight, so I might get to wear it in April at Stitches South if the weather is cool...and I finish it.

I took this picture the other night, I'm actually a little further along and switched to the larger needles and added stitches to make the poofy part that I love about this one. It looks very much like a Monet painting I think.

Finally I've been trying to work on my Sapphire Nelly. It seems I put in 10 rows and take out 5. Still it's getting a little larger, very slowly.

Plus there's been some actual going to work happening. Not to mention since my current contract ends at the end of the month I've been talking to headhunters and getting my resume out and even had an interview. I've also been reading. Thought I'd reread Emma and am taking my time with it so I can really enjoy it. It's been awhile since I've read it and am discovering some parts I didn't remember. I'm also doing some reading for church and some fun reading.

I think spring might even been here soon, so I've got to find the energy to get things ready to plant my tomatoes and peppers and the like soon. Need to get some herbs too. Maybe plant some oregano with my tomatoes. Yummy.

Until next time!

Finally I won a medal!

2010-02-18T22:49:00.003-05:00

For those who don't knit or crochet or aren't familiar with Ravelry this blog post will mean very little. For the rest of you...well indulge me for a few minutes.

On Ravelry (and seriously if you knit or crochet and haven't joined yet I really don't understand why), they are sponsoring another Ravelympics during the Winter Olympics. They've done this before and I even entered in 2008. Didn't finish anything so of course I didn't medal. You see this is my kind of Olympics because if you set a goal and you finish within the time frame of the 14 days of the Olympics then you get a medal. Last time I tried to make a shawl. That was a dismal failure. This time I took at look at my projects page and saw a lot of WIPs (works in progress for those who have stuck in there and don't know the lingo) and thought, I want to finish these off. Some don't need a lot of work, others a little more. The event is called WIPs Dancing. (You know like Ice Dancing but for WIPs...isn't that adorable?) The other night, Monday actually, I finished these:

The pattern is sort of the Popover Mitts pattern from an out of print book by Cascade yarns. I made some changes and used a different yarn (Brown Sheep Nature Spun Worsted), but the results a wonderful. I've worn them all week! We've had a nice cold snap and that has meant I needed something to keep my hands nice and warm. The color of the yarn was "Cherry" so I call them "Cherry Popovers". And for all this I received this lovely medal. I'm very proud and would like to thank my parents and friends for believing in me that I COULD actually FINISH a project!

Really....I'm alive

2010-02-11T12:43:00.009-05:00

I know there must have been some discussion, but I'm here to put that to rest...I'm alive, and I escaped the kidnappers so don't send that ransom you were asked for. Seriously, I've been a very bad blogger and haven't kept you all up to date on what's happening in my life. So, I'm going to try and quickly bring you up to date and then try very hard to blog more then once every 6 months.

First, I got a contract job and that seems to have taken up more of my time then I'd like. Maybe time isn't the right word, maybe energy is. I'm coming to realize that the RA doesn't always allow me the same energy level that I think I have. So some things fall by the wayside. However, I've loved working at this job and was excited when my contract was extended to the end of March. Of course that means I now have to start looking for the next job, but that's ok too.

Since my last post I've seen
With my friend Kathe. We had a blast! What a great show.

I've managed to finish a few knitting projects, including a cute beret that I wore to work yesterday but that I don't have pictures of it yet. I also finished a stole/scarf and no there aren't any pictures of that. I've been working on a "super secret project" for about 2 weeks now. It's coming along, but slower then I had hoped it would.

As usual I went to hang out with my friends at a stitching retreat in October. We were back in Hilton Head again and had a great time together. One of the classes we were supposed to learn how to make scrimshaw. I learned that I'm not going to be making much of it myself and that I now appreciate the cost much more. While there my DF Heather helped me do the finishing for Halloween Fairy. Isn't she pretty?

Christmas was our usual decorating craziness with our open house on Christmas Eve thrown in. Then Christmas Day we went down to the church to have dinner with at the community dinner and hang out with everyone down there.

New Year's Day found me down at the Gator Bowl to say farewell to my beloved Coach Bowden. We had a great time and I admit I got teary eyed several times. The city did a fantastic job of sending him off in style. AND the team pulled together and got a win over WVU.Did I mention it was cold and rainy that day? It was, but we bundled up and had fun. I even managed to wear a new hat I'd knitted that week AND my HP/FSU scarf. (Jill & I above at the game.)

In January I took a trip up to Atlanta to spend time with my friend Jean (a.k.a. Doxietrek) for her birthday. It snowed, and more importantly the roads iced up so we spent a couple of days just hanging at her house. Our friend Ann had come in from TN so we stitched, knit and played some Wii games. Apparently it was news to Jean that I'm a tad bit competitive. But it did let me figure out that I like the Wii, so when I got home I ordered one as a late Christmas present. Having fun with it.

That's about covers the high points. I'll leave you with a gratuitous picture of my fireplace this Christmas. Had to put new lights on the garland and went with LEDs. Love the way they look, especially with the flowers I used.

Travel...food...it's all good

2009-10-06T23:00:00.006-04:00

So many things to talk about I have no idea where or how to start. Let's see...many of you know that I decided to go to WV with my parents the middle of last month. I'm sure some of you may be wondering how I managed that when I announced I had a job. It's simple, yet complicated. Bottom line, the job seems to have fallen through. Not enough funding. So I'm back to looking and talking to headhunters. Oh the fun.

But it did allow me to drive my parents to WV for my mom's 55th high school reunion and some time with family. We got such a late start on the 15th that we stopped for the night in SC. Then we took our time getting started the next day so that we barely arrived at my aunt's house in time for dinner on Wednesday.

My mom's class joins with the class before and after to have their reunion and for the last several they have had a picnic on Friday and a dinner and dance on Saturday. I love going to the Friday night picnic because it's relaxed and they have so much fun talking about all kinds of things. It's also when some of their old teachers show up.This is my mom on the right and the woman who was her "Home Economics" teacher. I was knitting on a sock when she stopped by where we were sitting and she wanted to know if mom had taught me how to sew and knit. My mother did teach me to sew as a child, but never could teach me to knit, my friend Kathe did that. Mom told her yes to sewing, although I never have sewn as well as she has, but that I am a much better cook then she is. My aunt said her teacher wouldn't believe that since mom was always the "golden child".

Coach D'Antoni stopped by...no not Mike, his father.We asked him if he'd been to NYC to see Mike coach and he said yes, but he missed going to Phoenix...NYC is colder!

The evening was held in the school cafeteria. Mullens High School no longer exists, the building is now a middle school. We had a good time talking and having some really good pork bar-b-que.

This trip I managed to get to visit some places I hadn't been. We took a day and went to Fayetteville, WV. We spent some time shopping in the Ben Franklin there. They had some great fabric. I really wish I'd had my box of ornaments that I need fabric for finishing with me. Then we went looking for a place to eat and found ourselves at Cathedral Cafe. I had a veggie sandwich and tortellini salad that was delicious. My aunt had quiche and mom had a Reuben. We all thought it was excellent and would go back again, next time maybe leave some room for desert. I highly recommend it if you're in the area for Bridge Day or some white-water rafting or visiting one of the really wonderful state parks near there. (Hawks Nest comes to mind.)

We also took a day and went to Lewisburg, WV. Eat lunch at The Stardust Cafe. Amazing food. We really should have left room here for desert since the owner's brother is the Crazy Baker and bakes all the deserts for them. I really would have loved something off the pretty red tray the server brought to show us the desert choices. We walked the main downtown street and checked out most of the shops. I even stopped in O'Shea's All About Beauty where you could get your hair cut and find some really pretty yarn. I managed to leave with just some sock yarn, which I don't have a picture of. We took a look through a few antique shops, but didn't find anything we couldn't live without. Finally I scored a glass of Iced Chai at The Wild Bean. My aunt had told me there was a really interesting Irish Pub there we would check out. Unfortunately they aren't open on Thursday's so we didn't get to try it out. We'll be going back though, because they have Irish Stew, Guinness and something called Chocolate Guinness Cake. When I read this description I knew I'd want to start with desert, "Brought to you by the Irish Pub and the Crazy Baker: A deep chocolate cake infused with the elixir Guinness Stout. The cream cheese frosting has a generous dose of dark Jamaican rum." Now that sounds like something worthy of the numerous calories it has to have. What I'd really like to do is stay at one of the B&B's in Lewisburg and be able to hang out one night when they are having traditional Irish music.

Another first this trip was lunch at King Tut Drive-in in Beckley. This is the first place my aunt ever had pizza. Mom & Nora say it hasn't changed much since they first went there in the '50s.
Mom volunteered to hold up my sock at the sign. Have to say that I've always thought the hot dogs at the Dairy Queen in Hinton were some of the best, but the one I had here surpassed it. Now I want to go back and try the pizza which my aunt says is really good. Oh, and again with desert. For some reason we managed to never save room for it and they have home made pies.

So, that about takes care of the trip. There were other side trips, but nothing major. I did I lot of knitting and reading. All in all, a really good vacation.

A Blog Award

2009-10-01T23:38:00.006-04:00

Not sure I deserve an award for my blog lately since it's been so sporadic, but my friend Ria over at "Short Attention Span Theater" thought I did last month. How she manages to blog most every day while raising an amazing daughter, working and being married is beyond me. She makes me tired just thinking about it. I met Ria online because we both knit and like NASCAR, which obviously makes her a very wonderful person so go check out her blog. I have to say though we've never met IRL, I just know she's all kinds of awesome, and not just because I'm fairly certain she laughs at my snarky remarks when we're on a chat during a NASCAR race.

The rules of the award are as follows: (oh and let me point out for the non-USA bloggers who I'll be naming you have to read this in your best Scarlett O'Hara or Rhett Butler voice. Carry on.)

Pam says: “In my best southern accent, I would like to say that I have been thinking about a new award and what I would like it to say. People are like Forrest Gump said ” Life is like a box of chocolates and you never know what you’re gonna get.

You can see this box of chocolates is filled with different and unique candies and just like the chocolates we are all different and unique people. We are the same in that we all have common ingredients that make us more a like than not. Except for the frosting, which represents our personalities, we are indeed very similar on the inside.”

And of course there are rules: 1. That you must pass this award to others.

2. Link back to me when you have passed them forward.

3. Write a nice post about this award.

4. You must read this award with a southern accent. I call it southern day where we all have to speak with a southern accent. I know that will be hard for some of you, but for the rest of us, we will be fine. So now, ya’ll just enjoy this little ol’ award and have fun with it.

5. And of course let your folks know that they have a nice award waiting for them.

So who get's the box of chocolate next?

Jill at Stash Collector (maybe she'll post now too!)

Heather at It's Geek to Me (a.k.a. "The Magic that is Heather")

Jackie at Jackie's Stitches (because I just taught her to stitch on linen and she's amazing!)

Grant at Mostly Harmless (because how else would I see lovely pics of England and keep up with the Reading soccer...I mean football scores? oh and I shouldn't forget the lovely pottery.)

Karoline at Karoline's Corner (because she has amazing stitching and the every lovely Rosie, oh and more lovely shots of the UK.)

Siobhan at Notes from Blue Hen Hollow (of the prolific and beautiful samplers and who I hope one day to visit in Ireland when I go to see where my Sullivan family ties came from.)

Melody at Wooley Thoughts (whom I stitch and knit with IRL and who's rugs I think are magnificent)

I hope everyone enjoys their box of chocolates as much as I enjoy seeing a little bit of their world in their blogs. (BTW, I changed the picture of the box of chocolates because...well I don't know why. This picture of the chocolates is from this company in the UK. Sometimes I just drool over what they have on their website. I'm thinking it would be worth the trip.)

And there was much rejoicing!

2009-09-09T13:20:00.001-04:00

I just got an email that I've been offered a new short-term contract/consulting job.

That is all.

Another new start

2009-09-01T23:43:00.004-04:00

So, I made another new start today. Which looks bad, but it's for a class I'll be teaching Sept. 12th. That means I need to work fast in the hopes it will be finished before class starts. It's a cowl pattern with a drop stitch pattern in it made from Cascade 220. Fairly easy and mindless. That being said, I managed to have to start it twice today because I twisted the join, but once I restarted I was able to get the first repeat finished....just about 13 more to go! No picture yet, there isn't much to see.

Otherwise, not much going on. Still looking for a job. Some things don't seem to change much lately.

So I like people...

2009-08-30T12:33:00.001-04:00

Your result for Howard Gardner's Eight Types of Intelligence Test...

Interpersonal

41% Logical, 24% Spatial, 41% Linguistic, 20% Intrapersonal, 49% Interpersonal, 47% Musical, 6% Bodily-Kinesthetic and 12% Naturalistic!

"This area has to do with interaction with others. People in this category are usually extroverts and are characterized by their sensitivity to others' moods, feelings, temperaments and motivations, and their ability to cooperate in order to work as part of a group. They communicate effectively and empathize easily with others, and may be either leaders or followers. They typically learn best by working with others and often enjoy discussion and debate.

Careers which suit those with this intelligence include politicians, managers, teachers, social workers and diplomats." (Wikipedia)

Take Howard Gardner's Eight Types of Intelligence Test at HelloQuizzy

Yarn from heaven

2009-08-27T23:57:00.004-04:00

So yesterday was a very interesting day. I set out for my LYS and to meet a couple of friends for lunch later then I wanted. As I was leaving I realized I hadn't checked the mail the day before, so I stopped and did that and found a package for me. It's always nice to get a package, especially when it is unexpected. Inside the package was 2 skeins of this...I have no idea who decided I needed a yarn pick-me-up since so far no one has taken credit and there was no note in the package. I have a feeling I know who it might be. So, if you are the one, then THANK YOU!!!! It's beautiful and I love it and it made me smile, still does.

Now, as I told everyone at the yarn shop, when the yarn gods smile and send you yarn from the heavens you are REQUIRED to start a project. I looked through the patterns over on Ravelry, and decided on Nelly. I think it will be just the right look. I'm doing mine on a size 7 needle to get the feel I wanted. Here's how it looks so far.Oh and if you want some of this yarny goodness for yourself I recommend you go visit Twisted Fiber's shop and purchase yourself some. I'm planning on getting more when the elusive job finally comes along.

After all that goodness you know something has to not go well. Tonight I'm trying to print stuff for tomorrow. Of course I ran out of ink, on BOTH my printers and I can't finish. So, I'll do what I can and forget about the other. I'm very upset, but I did put it off until the day before and that's what I get for procrastinating.

Before I forget my friend Melody is having a contest over on her blog. Go see the yarny goodness and get yourself entered.

Blog Eye Candy

2009-08-27T17:31:00.006-04:00

I know, it took me long enough, but finally some pictures.

Let's start with the most recently completed piece of stitching.

Halloween Fairy
by Mirabilia

I made a few changes. First, this is stitched on a hand-dyed fabric in my stash and that meant I had to change one of the orange colors in her dress. I found some beautiful fabric and I'll be making a stand-up box out of her. She should be finished in time to be admired during October.

I don't think I mentioned before, but while we were in WV on vacation, my Mom, Aunt and I went out shopping through some of the antique shops. While this is not an antique it was something that I knew would be very handy to store yarn and would look pretty somewhere in the house. Mom thought it would make a great birthday present. We were both right! It's not where it will end up, but it does look pretty in the corner of the dining room. (And before someone asks, no that's not all of my yarn stash, but the 2nd tier holds all the yarn for my Great American Aran Afghan that I'm working on.)

I do know I mentioned going to Atlanta and spending part of my time stitching with a group of friends there. Well, we do more then stitch...
This was lunch on Saturday, or at least part of lunch. That green stuff is mint pesto left over from the previous evenings Harry Potter part at chez Lott made by the very talented Chef Andy. It was beyond YUM.

We also exchanged our ornament kits.That's what it looks like all lined up before "Santa" hands out the goodies.

There are actually some "ornamentfied" pieces on the tree, but they are hard to pick out. Most of us managed to finish stitching our ornaments and that was good enough to decorate the tree with.

Come back tomorrow for pictures of some of my current knitting WIPS.

I'm so excited

2009-08-22T00:27:00.003-04:00

Why am I excited? Because I'm going to ~~corrupt~~ teach someone else the joys of sampler stitching. My friend Jackie, who's knitting and quilting can be seen on her blog here wants to join the ~~craziness~~ fun. She's decided on a pattern, a lovely freebie from Blackbird Designs and I'm going to gift her some linen from my stash. We're going to pick out her thread tomorrow and have our first lesson for stitching on linen Monday.

Stitching is my first love and what I always go back to at some point. I don't stitch every day, but I love what you can do with a piece of fabric, some beautiful thread/fiber and a few stitches. Jackie knows how to cross stitch, and wants to learn other decorative or fancy stitches. I can't wait to teach her. I hope she enjoys it as much as I do. So if my stitching buddies would stop by and encourage her a little I'd appreciate it.

Booking Through Thursday

2009-08-20T17:02:00.006-04:00

Since I decided to participate in the Summer Reading Challenge over on GoodReads.com I figured I might as well share some of what I've read with you my fellow readers. Beware, I tend to have eclectic tastes in reading so you never know what you're going to find. I also happened across a meme blog entitled Booking Through Thursday, so here's today's entry.

What’s the best book you’ve read recently?

I'm going to go with the one that surprised me the most and was also good.

One of the challenges was to read a Dystopian novel. I ended up choosing this on a whim while browsing through my favorite used bookstore, Chamblin's. I was surprised to find that although the book made me uncomfortable, I also enjoyed it. The idea of a future world where when you reach a certain age you receive surgery that makes you "pretty" just like everyone else is unnerving and just a little scary. Who decided what is "pretty"? Along the way more questions are uncovered by the main character, Tally Youngblood, who is about to become old enough to be a "Pretty" and leave behind her "Uglies" days. Is the surgery just about changing the way people look, or is there more? Of course, since this is a series all the questions haven't been answered, but that just made me want to read the rest.

"Uglies" and the rest of the series, are considered YA, but I think they are certainly a good read for all ages. I do wish I belonged to an actual reading group and that we were reading it with the group. I think it deserves some thought and discussion to be fully understood.

So, what's the best book you've read lately?

No I didn't break my fingers

2009-08-19T23:50:00.004-04:00

But apparently I've lost the gizmo I use to load pictures from my camera to my laptop. Every day I thought I'd find it and would be able to write a blog post with pictures. Hasn't happened yet and I've not broken down and bought a new gizmo, but I did decide I needed to get back to blogging.

So since I last posted I've:
1. Been to West Virginia to visit with family for 2 weeks.

2. Applied for several jobs and spoken to a few headhunters.

3. Went to Atlanta for my birthday and to stitch with my friends.

4. Did I mention the job hunt?

5. Packed my winter clothes away. I realize this doesn't sound like much but it was a major undertaking, and yes, I live in FL so why I have that many winter clothes is the question of the century.

6. Helped out at the yarn shop and even taught a few classes.

7. Went to see a friend play a gig at the Jacksonville Landing. Wait I have a picture. This is Derrick, or if you go to iTunes Ace Winn where his new CD 3127 is available. I'm blessed to sing with Derrick on Sunday's and especially this Sunday when the two of us will lead worship at our 9:45AM service while our regular worship leader is out of town.

8. Finished some stitching and some knitting which I promise to have pictures of later. Started some new projects. I'm trying to finish one stitching project that I've been working on for at least 10 years. I'm so close. Hopefully soon.

I'm sure there's more, but for now that will have to do. I'll try not to go quite so long without a post. Maybe everyone hasn't given up on me and there might still be a few people who will read this.

It's all about the books

2009-06-05T16:12:00.001-04:00

Well, I might be, but not any more then normal. I've decided to join in the Summer Reading Challenge on GoodReads.com that started Monday. To actually complete the challenge I'd have to read I think 70 books before August 31st. I don't see that happening. What I do hope to accomplish is to read some of the books on my "to-read" list. Some of them have been on there a very long time. (Small plug, if you are looking for a simple way of keeping track of what you read and for ideas of new books and authors to read I highly recommend GoodReads.com.) I'll have to wait to post my list of books so far, not enough time right now.

But speaking of reading...here's a chance to win a book. Oh and take a stroll through the blog while you're there, it has some interesting material.

A Start & A Finish

2009-06-01T19:14:00.002-04:00

First the start.

On Saturday I "taught" a class using the great Ann Norling pattern "The Perfect Tee". This is a great pattern because it has a wide range of sizes and gives you instructions for making the shirt in several different gauges. I decided to make something for my mom so I went with a pretty purple/lavender ribbon yarn from Berroco. We started with the sleeves, so that people would get through their border pattern before they left the class. I've worked on it a bit each day since and here's what I have so far.

I really do love how it's looking, but it's a little fiddly, as I was telling one of my on-line friends earlier. this color will look amazing on my beautiful mother, very much her color. Would be awesome if I could finish it for our family reunion at the end of June. Not sure that can be done, but I can sure try.

Now the finish.

For those who don't know, I also do some beading. I've been known to make a necklace or bracelet in my time. I haven't done much in while, but I've had something laid out on my beading board for months, maybe close to a year. I couldn't get it to look the way I saw it in my head. The other night I sat down with it again and it just clicked...right to the point where I didn't have a clasp that was heavy enough to hold. That meant a trip to get some, which worked out well and today I sat down and finished it. Ta da...

I wish I remembered where I picked up the main piece of dichroic glass but when I got it I knew it was perfect for my mom. It's got lots of other glass and crystal beads. She's tried it on and it looks lovely on her.

In other news, I made a salad today and used the tomatoes and one of the bell peppers I picked last evening. Made a great balsamic vinaigrette with some oregano also from my containers garden. Added in some goat cheese and a little ham...yummy goodness and healthy!

The First Harvest

2009-05-31T21:57:00.004-04:00

Here it is, the first harvest from my container garden.Nor much, but still I planted them, and watered them and now I can eat them. There are more tomatoes getting ripe. The non-grape tomatoes are slowly ripening. It's a race to see if one of the red varieties or the yellow variety will ripen first.

They must be good...
...since something decided it would eat one of the ripe Sweet-1000's. I'm betting it was a squirrel, but it could have been a bird. Whatever it is, it's not welcome and if I catch it there could be trouble!

And then there was knitting

2009-05-22T01:00:00.000-04:00

I have been knitting a lot lately. Even sick I've managed to pick up and work on something daily. Here's a run down of what I've been working on lately.

First the lace piece from the cruise.

Then there's some socks that I actually finished.These are my "O Dublin" socks. Pattern "Dublin Bay Socks" (you'll have to scroll down and find the link for the .pdf on her blog. I used a skein of Politically Incorrect yarn I had in my stash called "It's All About the O". I love how they turned out. The pattern really worked well with the yarn or is it the other way around? Either way, they are really pretty and very comfortable.

Been working on the scarf that is beyond addictive. I'm using Noro Silk Garden and Noro Yuzen. I finished it the other night and got a picture of it today. It's so hard to show this off. It's a whole lot prettier in person. Plus it's a really quick knit. I might make another couple of these with some other yarn that has a similar color change and give them as gifts.

Haven't worked on my sweater lately, but need to pick it up and try and get it finished. I lost some steam with the cruise.

Have started another pair of socks. The pattern is so easy, but looks beautiful for all it's simplicity.The pattern is Harris Tweed, and I think it would make a great men's pair of socks, but I'm using it for myself. It's easy to remember the pattern, which is nice for socks that have seen the inside of 2 dr. offices in the last 2 weeks. Using Schoppel-Wolle Zauberball in Cranberries and some new square shaped cable needles. The square needles are supposed to be easier on your hands, and I have noticed that my hands don't get as tired working with them.

Last, but not least, is a mobius scarf I'm working on as a gift. I'm using the Fibonacci Moebius pattern (that link is for Ravelry and if you knit and aren't a member, well you should be). I'm using 3 different yarns for this one because I wanted some extra color. I hope the recipient will like it.

That about covers the knitting of late. Kind of all over the place, but that's nothing new for me. I'm trying to come up with some things I can make for presents and I'm trying to knit from my stash some. Hopefully that will continue to go well.

This is what happens...

2009-05-21T18:10:00.003-04:00

When it rains for 5 days straight this is what my driveway looks like.That's the lake that has appeared in our driveway now that we've had around 12" of rain. It stopped raining long enough for me to run out and take a few pictures. It was actually further down the driveway earlier in the day, but it was raining and I didn't want to get out in it. It spreads from our neighbor's yard into ours. It had stopped raining, but it's started back again. If it keeps up this will get larger again. We could see some of it from the dining room window.

Tomorrow I promise, pictures of knitting.

More From the Garden

2009-05-21T17:41:00.003-04:00

It seems there is interest in my garden so today we return to the garden.
The constant rain since Sunday evening has done some good as you can see. The bell peppers are looking good.

The tomatoes aren't looking too shabby either.
These are a yellow variety that I'm trying for the first time.

I love Sweet 100's and mine are looking good as well.

I also planted two Japanese Eggplants. The flowers on these are just gorgeous.

From that comes something like this.

Hopefully the rain won't cause too many problems. A little sun would be nice.

I'm off to teach another of the GAAA (that's Great American Aran Afghan) class this morning. Went out yesterday to the Lowe's grand opening (don't look Ria!). It's a nice store and they did give us a box lunch for free. I was disappointed they didn't have any herbs. I want to add some to my little garden. They did have some interesting perienials that we'll probably go back and get once the rain stops and we can get them and put them in the ground. Some things I haven't seen and thought were so pretty.

That about covers it. Hope everyone has a great Saturday!

Becoming a hermit

2009-05-21T00:24:00.003-04:00

I feel like that's what I've become over the last couple of weeks and maybe more like the little guy up there then I'd like. Between the upper respiratory infection and the medicine I got last week after the first antibiotic didn't do anything to cure me. Then this week came and with it the rain. And by rain I mean get out the boat because the creek is gonna flood. It's rained continuously since Monday or maybe Sunday evening, I'm not even sure any more. I so want to get out, but don't dare because of how I've been feeling.

The good news is I think this last round of $6 per pill WITH insurance antibiotic is actually working. It makes me sick to my stomach so food hasn't been my friend, but I'm to the point that I just want the URI gone so I'm willing to deal with the yucky stomach. That leads to more good news since I can't take my RA meds when I'm on a antibiotic. If all goes well I'll take the last antibiotic Friday and can then go back on the RA meds. After not taking them for 3 weeks I'm feeling the pain again which just isn't fun and is the bad news.

The other good thing is I managed to finish a scarf I've been working on and did finish the top of a box from one of the classes I took in Oct. But even this hasn't made me feel as happy as I had hoped. Hopefully when I'm feeling better my mood will improve. But right now I don't even feel like being around that many people. I'm supposed to have dinner Friday with friends. Last week I didn't feel like going to meet my knitting buddies nor to go Sunday to the stitching group I belong to. I'm hoping that this Friday I'll feel better and won't miss dinner with my friends. We all haven't been together in a couple of months and I know we have a lot to talk about.

Sorry this post sounds so depressed. But some days I'm not the happy girl and this seems to be one of those days. Tomorrow I'll try and get some pictures of projects and show you some pretty pictures.

Plants, Plants everywhere

2009-05-16T09:30:00.000-04:00

Before the cruise mom and I did some planting. We had a huge surprise this year when petunias started coming up in the wheelbarrow. I added some zinias and this is what it looked like when I finished planting. I love the cute little solar light I found at that huge store down the road.
This is what it looks like now! I had to move the little light to the front right side because it was totally lost in the petunias.
We also planted tomatoes, green peppers, Japanese eggplant and some herbs. I've always planted flowers with my veggies to help keep the bugs away. Nothing new there, my great-grandfather did too.
This is what they look like now. There's 2 types of tomatoes, the ones in the black planter are called "Brandy wine".
This is the other group at planting...
And now.
I think I ended up with 3 or 4 different types of tomatoes, including what my Aunt Grace always called "tommy toes" and a yellow variety. There are little tiny bell peppers on those plants and the eggplant have blooms that should bloom in the next day or two. So far everything looks healthy and are doing really well. Can't wait to have fresh tomatoes and some of that basil with some good mozzarella.

Cruise and knitting at sea

2009-05-15T09:30:00.000-04:00

Let's start with the fun stuff, like the cruise. Really, I went to knit, no really. Ok, so I went partially to knit. I also went because it sounded like fun.

We left on Monday and got on board early enough to have a late lunch. Have to say that the terminal in Jacksonville isn't exactly the prettiest, but they did a good job of moving us through fairly quickly, at least from what I remember from my previous cruise out of Ft. Lauderdale. The cabin was great, larger then I thought since we opted for an inside one and the "not so expensive cabin" at that. Before we left I found out that a friend I used to work with, and whom I have just gotten back in touch with, was going to be on the same cruise. John & I managed to text our way to meeting up before the ship left the harbour and talked for a bit. That wasn't the only time we saw each other, I also managed to get up one morning and meet him for breakfast. For those who know me, this wasn't exactly the easiest, but I got up early that morning to see the sunrise and then went to breakfast. It was a good morning.

But back to knitting and cruising. We had a small group, only 6, but I think we managed to have fun and everyone got started on the lovely design.
That's us. (Thanks John for taking the pictures for us, and you were right, that wasn't a great background.)

Ok, so we spent Tuesday at sea. Being at sea has to be the best in my book. There's so much to do on the ship, plus it's just relaxing to be sailing along. We had at least 1 lesson for the shawl on Monday, and another on Tuesday. I also took some time Tuesday to get a pedicure at the spa. Not exactly the cheapest pedi I've ever had, but it was very nice and it was a treat, plus I had my toes painted to match my outfit, so they were blue! (No I don't have a picture of my outfit that evening or my toe nails, bad planning on my part I know.) I do have this picture...
Yep, that's me under the hat. That hat and the massive amounts of SPF 70 lotion I packed managed to keep me from getting burned. That's a good thing.

Wednesday we docked in Key West. We decided to take the Conch Train. It was a great way to see a lot of the island. I would really like to see the inside of the Hemingway House, but this time just got another shot of the outside.
We dropped in to see "the other KnitWitz" which is really Knit Wits and saw lots of pretty yarn. Yes, I found something I fell in love with, but of course don't have a picture of yet. I'm planning on making one of those lovely open-weave scarfs. We had a great visit there and then headed to find this...
Yep, that's a piece of frozen Key Lime pie dipped in chocolate. So yummy and so worth the calories.

From there we went to Nassau. I've been to the Bahamas 3 other times and have only spent the night in Nassau and really hadn't seen much of the town. Kathe, my friend John and I stood at the front of the ship as we pulled into Nassau. It was so windy, but we enjoyed the view.
I think you can tell from this picture of me and John that the wind was pretty bad.

Not sure I've still seen all that much of Nassau since we mainly walked down to the Straw Market, shopped in some of the jewelry stores and then took a water taxi over to Paradise Island and walked around there some. We did find a nice little hole in the wall place to have conch fritters. No pictures of them, we ate them too fast. I would love to go back and spend some more time exploring.

The next morning I got up early to see the sunrise.The next morning I had breakfast with my friend John. It was a great day to hang out and do some more knitting on the project.

Saturday morning we found ourselves back in Jacksonville. I really had a great time. I hope DF Katha decides to do another one next year.

Indigo girl

2009-05-12T16:40:00.000-04:00

Your rainbow is shaded indigo.

What is says about you: You are a proud person. You appreciate cities, technology, and other great things people have created. Friends count on you for being honest and insightful.

Find the colors of your rainbow at spacefem.com.

Where does time go?

2009-05-08T12:00:00.007-04:00

Seriously, where does it go? I know they say it goes faster when you get older, but it's getting a bit ridiculous lately. That means I probably have plenty to talk about on the blog and I promise to get to everything over the next few days to a week. But here are the highlights.

Planted some things, like tomatoes and flowers and such.There's been some knitting

and a cruise
Oh and some goodies received in the mail that apparently I only took a picture of this package from DF Jean:
There were 2 packages with yarn goodness from a raffle that I need to get a picture of for a future post.

So, all in all, busy time. Oh, and I'm again looking for a job, but I've had some calls, so that's good news. Hopefully the right job with come along.

But now I have to get ready to go to a "going home celebration", or as some people call it, a funeral. Ms Joy was a wonderful woman of God who it was my great pleasure to know. She and her husband, Paul, have been a great part of our church for several years now during the winters and for the last few years full time. She taught me a lot about how to live and how to survive in the middle of times of trial. I will miss her smile and laugh and her great stories that taught me more then anything. The last few years she's been very sick with her heart and other things. I can't wait to celebrate her life today with her family and friends. Sure there will be tears, but mostly because she won't be around to give us her wisdom and smile each week.

Until tomorrow...

Time for you all to contribute a little

2009-04-23T00:18:00.002-04:00

Here's the thing...I owe you guys a ton of pictures of all the stuff I've been doing lately, but I can't seem to get that done. So instead I'm borrowing this from Min and hoping some of you will comment. (To see my answers to her click the link.)

1. name:
2. birthday:
3. place of residence:
4. what makes you happy:
5. what are you listening to now/have listened to last:
6. if you do, what is particularly good/bad about my blog:
7. an interesting fact about you that I don't already know:
8. are you in love/do you have a crush at the moment:
9. favorite place to be:
10. favorite lyric:
11. best time of the year:

recommend:
1. a film:
2. a book:
3. a band, a song and an album:

plus:
1. one thing you like about me:
2. two things you like about yourself:
3. put this in your blog so i can tell you what i think of you

Really? My life is exciting?

2009-04-21T14:34:00.001-04:00

I wouldn't think so, but apparently I would be wrong.

You Live an Exciting Life

You are anything but a bore. You make sure that life is full of excitement.

You have an adventurous spirit, and you don't like to sit still for too long.

If you feel like doing something, you don't think about it. You just do it.

There's no way you could ever live a boring life. There's too much to do and not enough time.

Is Your Life Boring?

Interesting...

2009-04-01T09:00:00.000-04:00

You Are Energetic and Productive

When You Are Comfortable:

You are a hyper, restless person. You need to keep busy, and you always are willing to take charge in life.

People see you as energetic and motivating. You inspire people to be the best they can be.

When You Are At Your Best:

You are a hard worker. You need security and stability in your life, even if that means putting in long hours.

People see you as solid and dependable. You are always able to see the good in situations. Other find this comforting.

When You Are in a Social Setting:

You are a shy, quiet person. Underneath your shell, you are compassionate and giving.

People find you to be friendly and welcoming. Your home is a place of comfort to them.

What Do Your Initials Say About You?

Word of the day?

2009-03-30T17:00:00.001-04:00

Your Word is "Peace"

You see life as precious, and you wish everyone was safe, happy, and taken care of.

Social justice, human rights, and peace for all nations are all important to you.

While you can't stop war, you try to be as calm and compassionate as possible in your everyday life.

You promote harmony and cooperation. You're always willing to meet someone a little more than halfway.

What's Your Word?

Becoming a sweater

2009-03-29T23:54:00.001-04:00

DSCN0313
Originally uploaded by GirlWithNeedles

It's coming along nicely! I took this picture Wednesday afternoon. Since then I worked on it all night Friday and a little on Saturday night. I have about 6 cm left until I work the part where the ribbon goes is done. I love how it's turning out.

Just stuff

2009-03-22T21:34:00.003-04:00

Just a few things to update those who might be interested about what's been going on.

Thursday was my 2nd appointment with the Rheumatologist. She looked at the x-rays of my hands and was very happy with how they looked. Apparently there is no joint damaged yet. So, now we can start treatment. I'll be starting Methotrexate, a DMARD (disease-modifying antirheumatic drug) at the end of next week. Methotrexate is considered an aggressive treatment for RA, so I'm happy with her decision and the information she gave me. I'll go back to her in 7 weeks and we'll see how things are progressing. Until then I'll continue to take Prednasone and sometimes the Mobic (for pain mostly) along with the Methotrexate and folic acid.
For someone who has never been good at taking lots of medicine for an extended period of time, on a schedule, this is going to be harder then it seems.
My new sweater is coming along, have about 10 cm of the back done, need 30 before I start the next section. Right now I can work on it without a pattern, love that kind of pattern.
Went yesterday with DF Melody to the local ANG meeting. I enjoyed myself. Even worked on the canvas piece I've had a few years. I managed to finish up 2 of the squares on it. I'll have to get a picture this week and post it. I thought I might start my FSU Santa canvas, but I didn't. I did get some wonderful help on ideas for stitches. I think it's going to look great. When I start I'll take pictures.
Today's ReGenesis service was great! Or at least I thought it was. We had somewhere between 91 and 97 people in attendence. I'm so excited that the service is growing.
The coming week looks busy. I'm wondering what I'll manage to do, and what I'll have to leave undone. Only time will tell.

Hope everyone had a great weekend and has a wonderful week. I promise some pictures of what I worked on yesterday and the framed "Little Green Acorns" later this week.

As much as I can right now

2009-03-15T23:06:00.006-04:00

So, I've finished as much as I can on Traditional Elegance II. I am on hold until the Japan Thread arrives from Needlecraft Corner. (I completely forgot to link to Drema's site the last time I mentioned this, so here you go. If you stitch and you've never ordered from her, I highly recommend this shop. Everyone is always nice and helpful.) I know, you want to see some eye candy, so here you go...
I'm very happy with the way it looks now, so I can't wait to see what it looks like with the added sparkle.

I also worked on the Baby Surprise Jacket I'm making for one of my co-workers who's baby boy is due any day now. Didn't get a lot done on it, but at least I got a few more rows done.

Can't believe the weekend is over. Thursday is my next appointment with the rheumatologist. Hopefully this time we'll talk more about treatment protocols.

Saturday's are too short

2009-03-14T23:01:00.004-04:00

Is it just me, or do Saturday's seem much shorter then other days of the week? Intellectually I realize that they aren't, but they do feel shorter. And I can't seem to get much done during them lately. I have big plans, but then I want to do silly things like sleep in, eat more for breakfast then a bowl of cereal, watch the ACC basketball tournament (or more specifically FSU play in the ACC basketball tournament), and the whole day is suddenly gone.

All in all though it was a good day. I did accomplish getting the lemon trees trimmed up, so hopefully they will produce more lemons next year. I was going to stitch and watch the basketball tournament, but I couldn't seem to do both, so I gave that up and just watched. I did get my last name put on the sampler before I gave up though, so that's something. It ended up being the only stitching I managed to do today however.

I was craving catfish, so I took mom & dad to Whitey's, my place of choice of catfish, for dinner. As always it was yummy. Ended up getting both catfish and some oysters. (Ok, color me extremely surprised that Whitey's has a website. But I guess I shouldn't be. I've grown up going to Whitey's. It's very different now then it was when I was a teenager. Much more "upscale", but still it's a fish camp and you can eat out on the porch any day of the year.)

I have hopes that tomorrow I'll manage to finish the sampler except for the parts that I'm waiting for the thread. (Oh and Ria, it's easy to sit and stitch. Kind of like sitting and knitting. Plus I'm never JUST stitching. I usually am watching TV, or listening to an audio book, or something else while I'm stitching. And for some strange reason I find it relaxing, at least most of the time. The movement of putting thread through the fabric can be zen-like. But then so can knitting, so hey.)

I was due a new start

2009-03-14T01:48:00.007-04:00

Seriously, I was. Not a start that HAS to be finished, but one that I want to do for me. It all started on a trip to Barnes & Noble. Really I shouldn't be allowed in there by myself, although I don't really have friends who can oversee me, or themselves for that matter. So, on my trip I managed to score several knitting magazines (and a book of course). Amongst the magazines is one I've never purchase. It's from the UK and it had the most adorable items in it, including this one...

Empire Line Top

The first think you'll notice, especially if you know me well, is the color of the yarn I chose. Although it kind of looks purple, it's more rose colored. I will admit that the yarn co. calls it "Orchid" so maybe it is kind of purple. Anyway, it's lovely. AslanTrends Glaciar del Cielo . So soft too. I love how wonderful it is to work with and that it's cotton so I can wear it almost all year long here. I'm actually changing the size a little, since I'm afraid it wouldn't fit unless I did. Just went up 1 size from the largest size listed. Would be wonderful to have this finished to wear on the cruise at the end of next month, but I'm not going to hold my breath.

Also got these lovelies for a purse in the latest Debbie Bliss magazine.
I might even start it this weekend. We'll see how things go. I really need to get the baby present I'm working on finished before the baby is born and is too big to wear what I'm making!

Almost but not quite

2009-03-12T23:55:00.001-04:00

Traditional Elegance II
Originally uploaded by GirlWithNeedles

So, it's almost finished. I have to finish my name and the row at the bottom that matches row 1 then add in the gold thread I'm waiting on from Drema. Depending on how I'm feeling this weekend and if my thread gets here, I might get this one finished. I'm not sure why I picked this one up, but it's gone really quickly since I started working on it again.

Sorry for the major hit and miss with the blog lately. I got sick last week and mainly just slept for a few days. Didn't begin to feel half way decent until Monday at least. Finally went in to the office today (Thursday) after not being in since last Tuesday. That's sick. I hope none of my friends gets whatever this has been.

So, stay tuned. I might actually even blog for a change.

Finally

2009-02-25T19:00:00.000-05:00

Today finally came. The day I went to see the rheumatologist for the first time. Had to be there at 8:30 AM and it took a good hour to drive over to that part of town. Not that I had to cross the river or anything, just traffic. I was smart enough to bypass NAS JAX, since at that time of the morning it can be a little busy around there.

First off, I like Dr. B so far. She was friendly and nice without being cloying or too perky. She also took her time with me and asked a lot of questions and told me why she was asking them. She also examined me, which mostly comprised of her pressing on joint areas and down my spine. Some were more uncomfortable then others. Not much to report though. She confirmed that my tests do indicate RA and not Lupus. That the inflammation levels weren't too high, so that may be a good sign. However, she wants to do one more set of blood tests to make sure there is no sign of Sjogrens and that my liver is functioning properly. I also have to go for some X-rays so she can see if there is any damaget o the joints. I go back March 19th when we'll discuss what type of treatment she wants to put me on. Until then I'm to cut in half the dosage of Mobic I'm taking. (It helps to treat the swelling and stiffness from arthitis.)

That's all. I also dropped off "Little Green Acorns" at the frame shop. It will be ready in a couple of weeks. Of course I haven't put the other one I picked up on the wall yet, so I should probably get that done some time soon.

Thanks everyone for the good, positive thoughts and prayers that have been sent my way. I do appreciate them and am blessed to have such great people around me. I am truely blessed.

Thursday? Really?

2009-02-19T18:23:00.002-05:00

Thursday's are so odd sometimes. I mean, it's not the middle of the week and it's not Friday, although it's almost Friday, which is good. And this week, I only worked 4 days, so today seemed like it should be Wednesday, but it's not.

I have decided I want my office to be MY office. The family business has been closed over a year and there is still more stuff from that in here then my stuff. That is all slowly changing. Each night I'm trying to take stuff and get rid of it. Some has to be shredded, some can just be thrown away. I've bought a few more things to put on the walls. I have filing cabinet drawers to clear out and bookshelves to clear out and replace all that stuff with my stuff. My knitting books and my crafting books and well, just my books. And in those filing cabinets? Hopefully the tall 4 drawer one will be completely emptied and I can get a matching bookshelf for where it is now and have even more space for my books and magazines and the like. Some of this stuff I have no idea what I'm going to do with. But I'm sure I'll figure something out. Some of it might end up on eBay. It's not a quick project, because most nights I only have 30 minutes or so. In fact tonight I'm working on clearing some stuff while running jobs for work. Nothing like multi-tasking.

Then, when it's done, maybe I can relax more and enjoy being in here and designing or making cards or whatever. Maybe I'll even finish my scrapbooks from the trip to Israel & Egypt! But let's not get too crazy. First, let's just see if I can bring order to this chaos, total order.

In "2009 For Me" news:

I finished a couple of books lately, 4 total this year so far. Enjoyed A Flaw in the Blood by Stephanie Barron. It was an interesting concept and I thought it was well written. Even though I knew the idea behind the book, I enjoyed reading how this author treated Queen Victoria and her children.

Stitching you got yesterday.

Knitting I'm behind in. The 2009 season of knitting for Victory Junction Gang Camp has started and I haven't picked up my needles for it yet. This Sunday I'm sure I will work on something for it though. Right now I'm frantically trying to work on the two classes I'm teaching this Sat.

Have to run to my meeting, so everyone have a great Friday!