2 months since last time I wrote...

so here I am. I have done some stitching since I last wrote so this will be a QUICK blog with some pictures.

I was on vacation for a few days and went with a friend to a shop in Effingham IL called The Last Straw. It's the kind of shop that if you want to do some decorating with knick-knacks, flowers, etc. you go there. They have good quality stuff(and you pay for it). I decided to see if they had something that I could hang Halloween ornaments on, and they did have some black bendable branch things that if you put 3 together, and anchored them in some container they would make a decent Halloween Tree that I could hang the ornaments on. I could have gotten branches off my tree, spray painted them and done the same thing, but that was too much work and bother. The sales lady also showed us a taller plastic black tree that the branches came off for storage like an artificial Christmas tree for around $30-35. This was too big for my plans and too expensive, but my friend, Ramona, owns the LNS and thought hanging Halloween ornaments was a great idea. So to finish this LONG story, instead of me buying the branches and making a tree for myself, I stitched the ornaments to put in the shop on their tree. Now some pictures------










The designers of these ornament are: Blackbird "Tis Halloween" Alphabet stocking 1 over 1, The Stitcherhood "Witches Stockings" 1 over 1, Lizzie Kates Halloween Double Flips 1 over 1, and Samsarah Pearls "Boo" linen and "Nevermore" on Aida 18ct.

I FEEL LIKE I AM IN A STARTITIS MOOD...BUT

I guess I have finished a few things. Though the few things that I have finished, are few and far between, and none of them have taken very much time to stitch.

The 1st thing, is something I designed for the shop's Camp Gotta Stitch Fall Retreat project. I stitched the front of the bag and someone else stitched the COUPONS design. I think the bag is so useful and everyone is trying to "GO GREEN" now, decorating the bag is a fun way to personalized it. The bags are very roomy too. If you would like more info click onto, CAMP GOTTA STITCH . The details about the retreat are on this newsletter page. They were having technical difficulties getting a link going from the newsletter to the sign up page, but if you are interested in signing up for the retreat, click here CONTACT PAGE and email them, or call. The retreat is always a fun get-together with other stitchers, and very reasonably priced. Here are some pictures of the project.







Another stitching finish is this one is by "Simple Stitches" I am going to make it into a door hanger, I don't think I want to frame it.





And then another baby announcement that I designed and stitched as far as I can, although not with a lot of time to spare, the baby can arrive anytime now. I will be stitching the baby's info inside the blocks, probably over one because there isn't that much space. I'm also showing a picture of what design the couple is using to decorate the baby's room, so you would see how the announcement fits into the overall decor.(forgive the stain on this picture, I spilled a little coffee)




I decided to have a small rummage sale today since I had today off because of the
4th. I went through my Precious Moment figurines, and sold quite a few of them. I used to belong to the PM collectors club and got about 2-3 a year from that, but really very few of them would have been ones that I would have gone out and bought from the stores. So they had no sentimental value to me. I sold about 30-35 of them and quite a lot of Christmas containers(tins, boxes etc), books, and yarn. I made enough on the sale to make all the work worthwhile. BUT I AM NOT GOING TO BE DOING ANOTHER RUMMAGE SALE ANYTIME SOON, If I get another bug to do another one, I hope that one of my friends will slap some sense into me.

Here it is June and the last time....

I put anything on my blog was in Feb. Man I really am behind aren't I. I really don't feel like I've done anything to put on the blog, but I'll go search my pictures and see what I can find. I'll be right back........

Oh I found one. This is one I stitched for my cousin's 1st Grandchild. I took a LK pattern "It's a Girl Thing" and didn't stitch the word thing and added another daisy. The baby's room was decorated in light pinks and light sage green, with the baby bedding from Pottery Barn for Kids, and it had the flowers like this on it. It's kind of hard to tell from the picture, but after I did the main stitching I outlined the flowers and stems through some quilt batting by backstitching, so it was puffy like a quilt. It turned out really nice and I loved the effect of the quilting. The new parents really liked it too.

I finished one for the shop too, "Amazing Grace". I don't have a picture of how they framed it but here's the stitched piece.






You know I am highly critical(Maybe you don't know, but I am) of people who talk on cell phones while driving because they don't pay attention and accidents happen so quickly, WELLLLLL I have got to keep my mouth shut now, because even though I wasn't talking on my cell phone, I was reaching for a kleenex out of the box that had fallen on the floor, and this wooden pole jumped right in front of me. I feel like I was so blessed, I wasn't going very fast and all I ended up with was some colorful bruises where the seatbelt tightened up on me. But it totaled my car, so I have been spending some time searching for another car. Here is what stupid looks like---




Well it's getting about time to shut the computer off and go pay attention to Jasper, he has been in here a couple time meowing at me to come in to the living room, it is time for him to settle down for the night and he wants to sleep a little on my lap. Bossy little thing isn't he, and I reinforce his behavior by doing exactly what he wants me to do. He's got me trained well.

A FINISH........

YEAH!!!!!!!!. I was stalled on my Counted Canvas picture, and I think it's because I really didn't like the last few rows of it. It is by From Nancy's Needles and its called Hearts and Flowers . I don't like the zig zag too much, so I stopped at the hearts row, and I like it better. . What do you think???? I'm going to take it to the shop and get it framed today.

When I go to shop today I have to get some floss to start some new projects. I have a birth announcement to do for my cousin's son and daughter-in-law. The baby is due in March, and I am going to stitch a display for the shop. So since I did not have any of the floss that either of these called for I decided to do a quick project. I had the girls get the book when they were in Nashville last weekend. It's from Cat's Whisker's Designs Cupcakes Glorious Cupcakes . I got the silicone cupcake holders last weekend and wanted to do one. Isn't it adorable. It only took me a couple of hours from start to finish. I'm going to sit in on my desk at work. I'll have to take a few pictures of some of the other things that I had them get for me, but right now I'm charging the batteries in my camera. After I took the cupcake picture, my batteries died.

I'm off from work "bless those Presidents" so I have a free day. I've got a load of clothes in the washer, and I'm making a crockpot full of Weight Watcher Free Points soup(yes I'm back to doing WW). Tomorrow is weigh in day for me. I stopped doing the WW seriously, and gained back about 30 pounds. BAD GIRL BAD BAD BAD. I started back doing it the 1st part of January. I'm not losing as quickly as I did before which is frustrating, but I have had a loss, sometimes slight, but a loss every weigh in. So far it's been a little over 9 pounds since joining again. I have to weigh at the evening meeting which is a bummer though. What really irritates me is that I was within 20 pounds of goal weight, now I'll have to lose 50 to reach it. I have no one to blame but myself.

Well I'll write more when I get back.

I started a new project..

and it is kind of fun. Let me explain. When the girls and I were down at St. Charles last fall for the trade show, we found the vendor, maybe some of you might remember her, "From Nancy's Needle". Her designs used to have small wreaths that you glued onto the design that you cross stitched. They were really popular for awhile. This time she had what is called Counted Canvas. It is needlepoint, but the design is not painted onto the canvas, you count just like cross stitching, and you use needlepoint and embroidery stitches, and pearle cotton flosses. They were gorgeous, and we each got one, and the girls got a few for the shop. Well I hadn't started the one I got yet, and last week when Ramona and I went to The Stitcher's Station in Hillsboro I found another one there that I liked even better than the one I got in St. Charles. So I bought it. I started it last Sunday and here is a picture of my progress. Of course I changed the colors that the pattern called for (don't I always?? LOL).

The design is called "Hearts and Flowers" The finished size will be a little bigger than 8 1/2" square. I will post the finished picture later.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!

Today is January 1, 2009, and I want to wish anyone who is reading this a Happy New Year. I hope that all your days of 2009 are filled with Love, Peace, Joy, Laughter, and LOTS of STITCHING TIME.

Susie-q

Taking a little time out...

from working etc to sit down and write a little blog. I haven't written much in awhile. I guess there are just some Christmas's that you just have very little HO HO HO in you, and just want the holiday over, and some when you go around singing carols, buying presents, baking etc, and are really into it. This is one of the very little HO HO HO years for me. I took a vacation week right after Thanksgiving and really enjoyed the leisure time off, I had plans to tear into the house and got a couple of games for the computer instead. I got hooked on them and played them until I had come to the end of each one. This took many, many hours. Then I didn't want to work on my house. I stitched, napped, and read too. I have stitched some of my presents, and I was really into stitching ornaments. I had several cute ideas, and played around with them. I'm not putting up a tree at home this year, but I did at work, so here is a picture of the one at work with some of the ornaments I made. The tree is about 12" tall.



The snowmen and Santas around the tree with the exception of 1 are by a local artist Angela Diltz. The bigger Santa is made from a gourd, and the smaller Santa is a pine cone.

Here is a picture of the Lizzie Kate ornaments I made over one close up
They are the Christmas Double Flip Its. I only got 6 of them finished, maybe I'll get the other 6 done by next year.

A good friend of mine NancyJ stitched this surprise for me.

It's a floss tag(I think that's what they call it)ring. You put your floss bags on the ring and use that to organize your project. It is a LHN pattern. ISN'T IT PRETTY?? She is a very thoughtful lady. THANK YOU NANCY I really, really love it.

Last but definitely not least, I going changed the picture of THE BOSS Jasper on my blog, here is the preview. He's all curled up in his bed by the heat vent.


Until next time and incase I don't get back until afterwards,

HAVE A MERRY CHRISTMAS, AND HAPPY HEALTHY NEW YEAR!!!!!!