Friday Feasts #190 & #191

From Friday's Feast: A Buffet for your Brain

Feast One Hundred & Ninety One

Appetizer: What is the nearest big city to your home?
I'm in a good spot here on the east coast - within an hour of Philadelphia and within 2 of Washington, DC, and New York City

Soup: On a scale of 1-10 with 10 being highest, how well do you keep secrets?
With my DH, 0 to -5. I rarely keep anything from him. In general, however, I am about an 8 or a 9. If someone asks me to keep a confidence, I do.

Salad: Describe your hair (color, texture, length).
Gillian Anderson was my "hair idol" in the 90s. My cut and color was very similar to her. The color remains some shade of red, but I've been getting it cut shorter ala Mariska Hargitay's new do for this season. My stylist tells me this is an ideal cut for someone with baby fine hair such as mine.

Main Course: What kind of driver are you? Courteous? Aggressive? Slow?
I am a fast, aggressive driver, though I have slowed down over the last few years. I'm not aggressive just to be mean - it's just that I hate driving and like to get where I am going as quickly as possible. I'm fine as long as people stay out of my way. I will add, however, that I always take road conditions into consideration and never drive too fast for the conditions or the area. Also, whenever possible, I will move over into the next lane to allow someone to get onto the highway, something my driving instructor in HS instilled into each and every one of us.

Dessert: When was the last time you had a really bad week?
An entire bad week? Probably a year and a half ago. I get the random bad day here and there, but really no long stretches of bad days in recent memory.

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Feast One Hundred & Ninety

Appetizer: When someone smiles at you, do you smile back?
Usually, yes I do.

Soup: Describe the flooring in your home. Do you have carpet, hardwood, vinyl, a mix?
In our current house, it's tile in the front entry, carpet through most of the rest of the house except for the bathrooms and kitchen where there's craptastic vinyl flooring. In our NEW house, it's tile in the entry, carpet in the LR, DR, hallway and bedrooms, tile in the bathrooms and kitchen, and hardwood in the family room. At some point, the DR will be getting hardwood as well.

Salad: Write a sentence with only 5 words, but all of the words have to start with the first letter of your first name.
Jennifer jumps joyfully.

Main Course: Do you know anyone whose life has been touched by adoption?
More than the average person, I think. My husband and his two first cousins are all adopted. I also used to baby sit for a couple who adopted their son after many years of trying (unsuccessfully) to get pregnant. Soon after they adopted him, they found themselves pregnant with his sister, and another one followed shortly after.

Dessert: Name 2 blue things.
My beloved dark blue Dallas Cowboys Troy Aikman jersey and my nearly as beloved Tiffany Blue Boxes.

Tea Drinker's Tip

I drink a lot of tea, and I suspect quite a few of my fellow stitchers are tea drinkers as well. I usually drink my tea hot with a touch of honey and milk, and since I drink so much tea, I buy honey in bulk at the local warehouse store in a large plastic bottle. Sometimes I get lucky and can use the whole thing before it starts crystallizing, but sometimes, it starts crystallizing by the time I am halfway through the bottle, and it's hard to use.

However, I found a great tip to cure that - microwaving. Put some honey in a small glass jar and microwave on high until it melts, stirring occasionally (every 15-20 seconds). You need to be SUPER careful when you do this and you cannot leave the honey unattended. Honey in the microwave gets very hot, very fast. Be very careful when you do this! I tried it the other day, putting thick, crystallized honey into the jar. It melted down nicely, and more importantly, has STAYED melted. I was afraid it would go back to its crystallized state once it cooled, but it hasn't so far. So if you have problems with crystallized honey, give it a try!

Vera Bradley on Sale

I know how much my fellow stitchers love their Vera Bradley stuff, and I just ran across a sale on ebags.com that you might be interested in. They have a few discontinued colors - I picked up a couple things in Nantucket Navy, but there are limited quantities of other discontinued colors and styles as well. Definitely worth checking out - the prices are GOOD!

Also, if you shop through Ebates.com, you can get an extra 6% cash back on your purchase. I've been using ebates pretty much since they started about 8 years ago, so I know they are VERY reputable and you don't have to worry about signing up with them. They have a ton of stores, and while the percentages don't seem like a lot, they do add up, and even 2-3% is better than 0%, right? And the nice thing about shopping through them is that you can also use coupon codes in addition to your cashback discount.

If you click through this link, you get $5 and I get $5 for referring you.

IMPORTANT TO NOTE: You DO NOT need to download the MoeMoneymaker toolbar. All it does is check where you are and remind you to shop through ebates if they have a discount. I always check ebates before I start shopping, so I do not use the toolbar. IMO, I don't particularly care for this kind of software anyway as I find it intrusive and cumbersome.

Finally, some stitching related content

But no pictures!!

Actually, I've been absent from blogging as much because we were deep in the midst of a house hunt, which, fingers crossed, has been successful. We had our offer accepted on a house and are now working on removing our contingencies, namely acquiring a mortgage, getting a home inspection and a radon test. We're hoping they all go smoothly and we can be in our new house sometime in June. This is our new house:

It's 4 BR, 2.5 bathrooms with central air, a 2 car garage, and a basement. The yard is smaller than we originally wanted, and it's in a development, but I think it's going to be a great house. It's been on the market almost a year, and was priced well above other houses for sale. Finally, the owners relented and came down in price, something our real estate agent was really surprised about. But I really did my research - I was well versed in every house for sale in 2 counties and part of a third, and I knew the offer we made was low but fair. I'm just really glad they accepted it!

And now for the stitching related content...

I finished up most of the stitching on the small version of Acorns and Threads, and decided I didn't want to do the title or the alphabet in the top portion, so I'm currently working out what to change it to. I was thinking about making it a Welcome sign for the front hallway. I originally thought to put in Willkommen (my DH is German), but it doesn't quite fit in the font I'm using and I've already stitched in the border, so I'm not tearing all of that out. I might just look for a different font, or I could stitch the larger version and use the Willkommen for that instead. We'll see.

I've also started a new freebie by Pelin Tezer, called Moire. I'm doing mine in shades of teal green and will finish it as a biscornu. It's a very relaxing pattern to stitch and I think it will be beautiful when it's done.

So that's what I've been up to. I hope everyone is doing well, and now I am going to catch up a little more on my sadly neglected Google Reader!

Friday Feast #188 & #189

Friday Feast #188

Appetizer: Name something you would categorize as weird.
This was hard to answer because I try to be openminded and tactful. Even if I don't agree with something or think it might be weird, I don't usually like to say so publically because I don't see the point in unnecessarily hurting other people's feelings. To each, their own.

Having said that, I will say that some of my eating habits are weird. For instance, I usually don't eat the bottom bun on a burger, usually because it is too soggy. Also, I usually eat what I like the most last, meaning I eat all the vegetables on my plate first. I've come to discover, however, that this is not as uncommon or weird as I might have thought at first.

Soup: What color was the last piece of food you ate?
Brown and white - I ate some parmesean breaded chicken breast

Salad: On a scale of 1-10 with 10 being highest, how much do you enjoy being alone?
Most of the time, about a 9 to a 9.5. I'm an introvert and being around lots of people, especially ones I don't know well, exhausts me. Once in a while though, I get a wild hair and crave social interaction. It's not often, and the craving does not last long. Most of the time, I am very content to be by myself or with my husband and / or a few close friends

Main Course: Fill in the blank: I will _________ vote for ___________ in _______.
I will definitely NOT vote for Hilary in 2008

Dessert: Describe your sleeping habits.
I prefer to go to bed very late (like 2-3 am) and wake up later (9-10 am) . That seems to be my natural cycle. I do not usually nap, but I do have a weird habit of falling asleep in the passenger seat of a car, sometimes even on short trips.

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Friday Feast # 189

Appetizer: What was your favorite cartoon when you were a child?
In the late 70s, early 80s, Saturday morning cartoons were the BEST. I loved Superfriends, the Laff-O-Lympics, the Smurfs, He Man and the Masters of the Universe, etc. I was also a big Jem fan and I loved Pirates of Dark Water.

Soup: Pretend you are about to get a new pet. Which animal would you pick, and what would you name it?
I've always grown up with larger dogs like labs, so I love them, but my DH has always had schnauzers. Since we have a pretty anti-social cat, we'll probably start with a schnauzer, which should be less overwhelming for the cat. By family tradition, his (or her) name will be Fritzy. Once I get my labs though, I'm going to name them Dallas and Cowboy.

Salad: On a scale of 1-10 with 10 being highest, how much do you enjoy getting all dressed up for a special occasion?
If I have an outfit I like, I LOVE getting dressed up for a special occasion. It's finding an outfit that's the problem!

Main Course: What kind of music do you listen to while you drive?
It depends. I like a variety of classic rock with a pretty even tempo. I've noticed the faster the music, the faster I tend to drive, and I already drive pretty fast, so this is not necessarily a good thing. LOL I have a great iPod playlist that randomizes a selection of songs from sub-playlists, so I always have a new, randomly selected playlist to listen to whenever I get in the car.

Dessert: When was the last time you bought a clock? And in which room did you put it?
I can't even remember when I bought a clock, but it might have been the one that's in our bathroom. I like having a clock in the bathroom - it keeps me on track in the mornings. The last time piece I bought was a new wristwatch, about 4 months ago.

Friday Feast #187

Appetizer: Name a color you find soothing.
I find most shades of blue, except electric blue, to be soothing.

Soup: Using 20 or less words, describe your first driving experience.
Scary, stressful, and possible scarred for life

Salad: What material is your favorite item of clothing made out of?
Cotton.

Main Course: Who is a great singer or musician who, if they were to come to your town for a concert, you would spend the night outside waiting for tickets to see?
Hands down, Tom Petty. Not only is he my most favorite artist ever, most of his audience appreciates music and is there for the show, not to put on a show themselves. One of the things I found most disappointing about going to a Dave Matthews Show was that so many people in the audience knew 3-4 songs they screamed along with, and then just talked and carried on for the songs they didn't know. Most annoying!

Dessert: What is the most frequent letter of the alphabet in your whole name (first, middle, maiden, last, etc.)?
N

The Online Needlework Show

If you haven't checked it out yet, head over to the Online Needlework Show. Hurry though, because the show closes Monday, April 21 (sometime around 12 am EDT)

Not all the familiar designers are showing their work. There's quite a few over there that I wasn't familiar with, but I'm very glad I'm checking things out and getting to see "new to me" designers.


A few items that went on my wish list:

Notorious Knight by Arelate Studio
For my nephew, who IS a small but notorious knight.
He hasn't tried to ride a chicken yet though....

Home By The Sea by Designs from Pamela



A Virtuous Huswif by Cherished Stitches

Happy Anniversary

Count the Stars
Dimension Gold Petite Kit
(modified from the original)

Today is our fourth wedding anniversary and the weather is much like it was for our wedding day - gorgeous and sunny, and even a little on the warm side. The funny thing is we were married the week after Easter, and this year, it seems like Easter was AGES ago!

This is the piece that DH and I stitched together for our wedding. Whenever I make something for a wedding, new house, or new baby, I try to personalize it as best as I can for the recipient and our own piece was no exception. We were fairly new stitchers at the time, so we were lucky to find a kit that only required a little modification. We used stars as a theme for the wedding, partially because we are huge Dallas Cowboys fans. I would have liked more silver in the piece, since our wedding colors were navy blue and silver, but I couldn't figure out how to work in a silver or white sun, so I left it the original colors, and we framed it in navy and silver. You'll have to excuse what looks like some wonky trim there - I took this picture before we got it straightened out and properly framed.I should take a picture of the framed piece - it looks quite nice!

Also, the original piece had the phrase "Look towards Heaven and count the stars", but we changed it to what you see now. If you don't recognize it, it's a line from a poem by ee cummings that has very special meaning to us.

silently if,out of not knowable
night’s utmost nothing,wanders a little guess
(only which is this world)more of my life does
not leap than with the mystery your smile

sings or if(spiraling as luminous
they climb oblivionvoices who are dreams,
less into heaven certainly earth swims
than each my deeper death becomes your kiss

losing through you what seemed myself;i find
selves unimaginably mine;beyond
sorrow’s own joys and hoping’s very fears

yours is the light by which my spirit’s born:
yours is the darkness of my soul’s return
–you are my sun,my moon,and all my stars

My DH is a scientist, but developed a great appreciation and fondness for ee cummings. If you're not familiar with the poet, he's actually quite romantic and several of his poems made it into notes and cards from my DH while we were dating. I knew we had to include something from this poem in our wedding, and changing the wording on the piece was perfect.

We also used a line from another poem on our wedding invites: one's not half two. It's two are halves of one. So there you have it. Happy Anniversary to us!

A Stitching Meme

I saw this on Stitch Bitch a few days ago...

1. How do you hold your fabric? Unless a project is very small, I have trouble stitching "in hand" and prefer to use scroll frames.



2. Floss licker? Yep, ever since childhood when my grandmother instilled some basic sewing skills. I occasionally experiment with a threader, but find it much more conveniet to just lick the floss.



3. How do you thread your needle? Trim the end if necessary, lick the floss, and thread it through. Easy peasy.



4. What needle do you like best? I'm not too picky about brand, though I won't turn my nose up at a nicer (more expensive) needle. I prefer size 28s as I usually stitch on linen, evenweave or high count aida.



5. Are you a needle loser? Having stepped on a needle (or pin) or two, I am SUPER careful about keeping track of my needles. I use a magnetic "Needle Nest" to store them and that seems to work out for me. I also like sticking threaded needles right in the bobbin



6. What fabric do you prefer to stitch on? Evenweave. I'm a big fan of Lambswool Jobelean. I'd be hard pressed to ever want to stitch on 14 ct. Aida again.



7. Bobbins or floss bags? Ahhh, here is a bone of contention in my stitching world. I prefer bobbins and all of my DMCs are on bobbins. HOWEVER, my DH is also a stitcher and does not like the kinks bobbins put into the threads; he prefers working off the whole skein and keeping floss in snack size ziploc bags (way cheaper that the same thing labeled as a floss bag). So we have 2 sets of DMC - one on bobbins and one in skeins. It's just easier that way. And I try to keep a lid on specialty threads, so they're usually only purchased for specific projects and kept with the projects.



8. Are you a scissors collector? Sometimes I'd think I'd like to be, but I can't afford it. I'd rather spend the money on new materials or projects. I have a few pair of scissors, but I try to keep pretty good track of them, even though none of them are particulary fancy.



9. Do you do your own framing, and if so, do you lace or pin? I have done my own framing, unless I can talk my DH into doing it for me. He's far more patient than I am. And I cheat - I use the sticky mounting board. (Hey, it's acid free)



10. Are you a floss floozy? I am a sucker for pretty colors



11. Silk? I like it as much as anything else, though I can't really see what the big deal is. Maybe I haven't stitched enough with it?



12. Railroader? Sometimes, but only on the top leg.



13. Are you a pattern or designer snob? Not really. I don't even know what this question means. If I like something or find a pattern suitable for an occasion, I'll stitch it. I don't care who designed it.



14. Do you get antsy when you give someone a stitched gift? Not really - I try to make the gift as appropriate to the recipient as possible.



15. Have you reached S.A.B.L.E.? I don't think so, unless you start counting all the freebies I have saved. Then maybe I have. But really, what does it matter? It doesn't cost anything to feed them, as my father would say.



16. Do you wash your projects? Most of them that I stitch with DMC floss, I'll wash. I hesitate to wash ones with overdyeds because I do not rinse them before I start stitching. I'm just extra careful to be clean with these projects.

My Unbirthday gift from Barbara

This is the Unbirthday Gift that sweet Barbara sent my way:



And this is the cool backing fabric she used for it:

I don't know if Barbara realized it at the time, but I am a huge reader and I adore bookmarks. So once again, THANK YOU!!!! I absolutely love it.