A thoughtful gift from Marie

The other day, this very sweet gift arrived from Marie. She treated me to a wonderful project bag made from a tea towel (I'm prone to using plastic ziploc bags for many of my projects, so this will class it up a little).  And the little teapot embroidery reminds me so much of the iron on Aunt Martha's transfers (remember those?)  I used to do when I was younger.

Marie also included two locally handmade cutting boards, with holes drilled by one of her sons to form thread holders.  When I opened the box, my husband said, "Oh good!  One for me too!"  I'll have to find something special for these - I'm thinking some sort of PA Dutch pattern would be perfect.  And I also received my very first flower frog, something that comes in handy for many stitchers for holding their scissor collections.  This pretty clear glass one happens to fit perfectly on one of the glass bowls we inherited from my husband's grandmother.  But as pretty and as useful as it is, it will most likely live in a china cabinet for a few years, as there is a curious and not so careful preschooler in the house.  Better safe than sorry for a bit, right?

Thank you, Marie, not only for the beautiful, thoughtful gifts, but for your friendship as well!

Marie's blog is one of the very first I came across, and over the years I've gotten to know this lovely woman.  My blogging may be spotty, but we stay in touch regularly via email.  If you visit her blog, you will see that she has created some gorgeous ornaments, many of which have been gifted to others.  She also has a special talent combining her stitching with one of her other passions, quilting.  I am in awe of her talent with quilting - just look at her lovely treat bags and candle mats.  And did you know Marie is a prize winning quilter?  It's no wonder her blog is so fun to read!

I've also been paired up with Marie for the Fair and Square Exchange twice, and have actually finished both pieces into objects on display.   She knows my fondness for lighthouses, so for the first one, she stitched me this Prairie Schooler piece. Which just happens to still be in the living room on the shelf because I cannot get my act together long enough to come up with a decorating plan for our family room mantel, unless you count my Pinterest boards, and then I'm an EXPERT at decorating.

The second piece set a landspeed record for finishing because it happened to arrive as I was in the middle of finishing several other ornaments, so the squares went right into the pile and were also finished into an ornament right away so they could join the 50 or so other lighthouses on our Christmas tree.

Speaking of the Fair & Square Exchange, is anyone else interested in continuing it?  it's been dormant for over a year now, and perhaps if there's enough interest, we can convince Jill to get it going again.  I miss it - sometimes it was the only thing that kept me going with stitching because it was a small, manageable piece with a specific deadline, and it was so much fun meeting other stitching and choosing what to stitch for them.  I've made some truly wonderful friends through the exchange and I'd hate to see it die off.

Good friends

I swear, I know the nicest people. Last week, we got a lovely package from my friend Dianne (Dianne Rambling On). Dianne's a jack of all trades when it comes to crafting and has done some lovely collage pieces, one of which she gifted to us.

Why yes, that IS a lighthouse! (And I do wish I was there!)

Dianne made this pretty little piece which is now on display in our living room. I love how the design is layered and textured - the "sand" in the lower corner is actually teeny tiny little gold beads. Very cool!

Dianne also gifted us with this piece for Nick, appropriately named Nickademus, Raise the Roof Design's contribution to the 2010 JCS Ornament issue. Dianne and I were chatting and she said she had stitched this piece up. When I mentioned it was on my list to stitch for Nick, she asked if she could finish it as an ornament for him.

Now, I am a sucker for anything sentimental, so of course I said yes! I love when something has a meaning or a story or something behind it, and in years to come when we hang our ornaments on the tree, this one will always bring Dianne to mind. I'd like to teach my son about sharing his talents with other people, and also, how things don't always have to be sleek and shiny and mass produced to be special and valuable, how things that are made and given from the heart have great value.

I see kids with their video games and their computers and their cellphones and their toys that light up and blink and do all kinds of things and I wonder how much of an appreciation they have for things that don't need batteries or a power cord. I wonder how many kids would appreciate the time and effort it took someone to make something like this for them, and I want my kid to be the one that says, "Thanks! That was really cool that you would do that for me." And sometimes I worry that I'm going to be that weirdo mom that *isn't* constantly chasing after the newest, shiniest toy or that my kid is going to be that weirdo kid, the one that can entertain himself for hours with a pile of blocks or crayons or other simple toys. And then I think maybe I don't really care if we are those "weirdos".

I'm sorry. I didn't mean to get off on a tangent about these things, but sometimes I think we can all use a reminder that happiness doesn't always come from a box on a store shelf.

A gift for Baby Nick

Bless the Baby by Lizzie*Kate

A few weeks ago, I was pleasantly surprised (thrilled) to see a package in the mailbox all the way from Japan. Inside was the beautiful piece, stitched for my son by the lovely Yuko.

Once again, I am blown away by the generosity and kindness of my fellow stitchers. When I saw photos of this piece on Yuko's blog, I never imagined it would be coming our way. (You really must see the pictures Yuko took - so much better than mine!) It's a beautiful piece and now hangs proudly in my son's room. It was such a sweet gesture, and really touched me.

I must confess, I've been feeling a little out of sorts about some personal issues. It's nothing major, and may even be a little bit of the winter blues. But it seems like just when I need it most, something like this happens - a sweet gesture, a little gift, a phone call, a card, a note. Something that makes me feel loved and appreciated, something that lets me know another person thought about me, whether they're next door or half a world away. And when you've been let down by people who care more about their own image and agenda, it's amazing what a lift you get from something like this.

A long overdue acknowledgement

I am in the process of cleaning up my blog - deleting dead links, reorganizing, etc., and realized that I have never publically thanked Angela for a beautiful gift she sent me just before my son was born.

Gazette 94: Grille Gratuie 87
28ct Brittney linen in Iced Blue with DMC Threads

My jaw dropped when I opened the package - I never cease to be amazed, thrilled and deeply touched by the kindness and generosity of my fellow stitchers. What can seem like such a small thing - stitching up something because we love to stitch and want to share it - can really make a huge impact on someone's day.

Most stitchers will say, "Oh, it was no big deal. No trouble at all, really." But even if it is no trouble to you at all, you should know that your gift has brought a smile to someone and is quite meaningful. It's more than some fabric and threads - it's that someone thought enough of you to put their time, energy and materials into making something for you. And that, my friends, is no small thing.

So thank you, Angela, for your lovely gift, which is now very proudly displayed in my baby son's room.

Backing fabric

I've been a bad, bad blogger

But I have been dealing with a very serious Facebook addiction. Very serious, indeed, folks. Probably going to need rehab. (It's amazing what 20 years out of high school can dredge up out of your memories. Even more from elementary school! People I haven't seen in 30 years!)

But I simply MUST thank Sharon for her wonderful, wonderful package of goodies. Sharon held a giveaway in honor of World Diabetes Day and I was lucky enough to be the winner. Check out the goodies that landed in my mailbox!

All in my favorite color blue!!!! Sharon included some very cute charts, awesome threads, and some gorgeous blue fabric from Polstitches that I can't wait to stitch something on (I've wanted to try this fabric for a while now).

So THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU, Sharon!!!!! I am so thrilled with your gift! And for those of you that don't know Sharon, stop by and pay her a visit. She's always eager to meet new stitching bloggers, so be sure to leave your blog address so she can return the visit!

Blogoversary Giveaway

In honor of my first Blogoversary, I wanted to do a little giveaway. And I thought, what better to give away than something I made myself? I've been itching to try dying my own floss, picking up supplies along with way as they've been on sale. I finally amassed a bag full of floss and the necessary dyes, and went to town. (Yes, there will be a post on this.) To my surprise and delight, it came out VERY well.

I have four flosses up for grabs, each an entire skein of DMC cotton floss, dyed by me.

From L-R: American Girl (red, white and blue), Sweet Pea (pink and purple), Rainbow Sherbet (pink, yellow, orange and green), Candy Corn (yellow, orange and white)

To win one of these flosses, leave a comment on THIS post and let me know which one you'd like. I'll choose one winner by random drawing for each color. And if you like more than one, let me know, and I'll enter your name in all the drawings, but you'll still only win one floss. Deadline for entering is Tuesday, November 4th. I'll pick a winner on Wednesday morning.

As you can see, I was also messing around with creating floss cards / tags for each floss, trying out different fonts and such. (I collect fonts. I love to play with them) DH thought perhaps I could make a small business out of this, and maybe I will at some point, but for now, it's just for fun.

Also, you should note that NONE of these flosses should be considered colorfast. I rinsed them very well until the water ran absolutely clear, then rinsed them again. However, I can't guarantee they won't bleed - no overdyed floss is guaranteed, and I wouldn't suggest stitching anything with them that needs to be washed.

I'd like to send a special thanks to Rachel for posting her methods, as I (mostly) followed them. Thanks, Rachel!

Sunday with Stitchers

Probably I should have posted this earlier, but I've been trying to catch up with a few things around here. This past Sunday, I spent a lovely afternoon at the home of Anna and The Dude. I was the first to arrive, so I had them to myself for a little while, which was nice. Then Jenna and her DH arrived, followed by Lee and Rachel. It was pretty funny to introduce yourself by name, only to be met with a polite, but slightly confused smile and an "Ohhhhkay" as the person you were introducing yourself to struggled to make sense of it. But mention your blog name and it was all, "Oh hey! Yeah! It's YOU!!" and big smiles. Hilarious.

BTW, the Dude does not stitch, but mention chess and he lights up. I suggested bringing my DH next time, who does indeed stitch, but also plays chess and laments that fact that he rarely has anyone with whom to play. The word playdate was met with a slight scowl by The Dude, but seemed to quickly disappate at the prospect of having a chess partner. He thought that perhaps he and Jenna's DH should come up with something "manly" to do, but in the end, they were more interested in hanging out with the girls.

I take responsibility for the political discussion, having remarked that it was a nice break from the near constant MSNBC on our television. Not that I don't enjoy it, but sometimes, you do need a break from it. And it was also my first Sunday with little to no football, as Sunday night football had a bye week, though I did get a call almost as soon as I got in the car to come home that our Cowboys had indeed beaten the Tampa Bay Bucs. WOO HOO!!! Almost a sweet as Penn State taking down Ohio State and remaining undefeated. (For those of you that don't know, DH is a 3rd generation Penn Stater and we are huge PSU fans in our house.)

All in all, it was a wonderful way to spend a Sunday afternoon, and we're going to definitely have to do it again. It's always awkward the first time you meet up with people you only know over the internet, and a big thanks to Anna for being brave and opening up her very cute house to virtual strangers. And for putting on a super yummy spread, which included some to die for pumpkin bread with a cream cheese spread. I could have eaten a plateful of that, but I tried to be polite.

And on a final note, you absolutely must check out the adorable pillow Rachel made for Anna. I must say that the picture does it no justice as it's just gorgeous in person. Not to mention super coordinated with the gift bag, Anna's outfit and apparently her bedroom as well. As for the other pictures, yes, they were taken. No, you're not going to see them. Anna refuses to be photographed for the internet without sunglasses, and I just refuse to be photographed in general, so Rachel, the only one that brought her camera, promised not to post them publically.

My very first Fair & Square Exchange

French Country Bunny by JBW Designs
Stitched by Michele with Sugar Maple Floss in Candy Floss
Fair & Square Exchange, Round #9
Isn't he adorable? Michele stitched this for me for my very first F&S Exchange and he arrived yesterday. I LOVE it - and I already know what I'll be doing with these squares. They'll be made into an ornament for my Bride's Tree collection that I am technically working on (but the project has fallen a bit by the wayside.) This fulfills the rabbit ornament, and it's even more special having been stitched by my new friend Michele.

Michele also included a cute little tin of mints featuring photos of the Seattle area. I've never visited the West Coast, but it's definitely on my list of places to see (do you know how many lighthouses are out there? LOTS!) and I hope to include Seattle in my journies some day. The mint tin will be perfect as a needle case once the mints are gone and a bit of sticky back magnetic sheet is installed. I think it will fit neatly into one of the mesh pockets in my traveling stitching bag.

I also finished up the stitching on Michele's squares, and photographed them this morning, so they'll be going out in the mail tomorrow. I am absolutely thrilled with them and I can't wait to share pictures, but of course, Michele gets to see them first.

As for me today, it's Sunday, and you know what that means. Football. Plus my beloved Dallas Cowboys are the Sunday Night game, so I'm excited about that. Can I tell you how absolutely annoyed and disappointed I was that they had to play on Monday night? I cannot STAND the crew that does the MNF broadcast on ESPN and I was happy to see we only had one Monday Night game this season. Tony Kornheiser annoys me in ways I can't even describe, and I'm not a big Jaws fan, although he's tolerable when Kornheiser is not around. Kornheiser is just awful - he's not funny, he knows very little about football and he NEVER SHUTS UP. Ugh. It's enough to make me insane. I even prefer John Madden to Kornheiser. It will be a happy day for football fans everywhere when they fire him from the MNF broadcast.

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.

SBQ, Thank You

I'm a poet, and I don't even know it. (I crack me up). Actually, I could use a good laugh now and then, just to deal with this house hunting. I want to say thank you to those who have offered advice, support and hugs. It means more to me than I can adequately express and I really appreciate the time taken to leave a comment or send me an email. Hopefully we'll have good news soon.

I did get a lovely "unbirthday" gift from Barbara yesterday - the coolest bookmark I own. Unfortunately, the weather today was cloudy and dim, so I didn't take a picture yet, but rest assured it's a lovely piece, one that I will treasure. It's also the very first piece I've ever received from another stitcher. (And if for some strange reason you don't know who Barbara is, do head over to a blog and "meet" her. She's just wonderful!) I will try to take a photo tomorrow - just wait until you see it!

And now for this week's SBQ (yes, I know I just did one yesterday...)

04/03/08: What items do you consider essential to your needlework that you keep in your stitching bag? (Submitted by Terri)

I usually use a plastic box with a snap on lid to keep my stitching in, unless we're traveling, and thanks to Nicole, I purchased a sweet Vera Bradley Little Travel Case. I haven't tried it out yet (we haven't traveled lately), but Nicole just loves hers and I'm sure I'll love it too. They're discontinuing the style, so if you're interested, pick one up soon. Mine is in Nantucket Navy (my favorite!) from eBay, but the Vera Bradley site is offering them at almost 1/2 price.

Most of the time, I keep my tools in a small, plastic lined cosmetic bag. I'm still without a decent scissor sheath, so I don't want any renegade scissors poking holes in my fabric or my fancy new stitching bag. Obviously scissors and needles are the most important tools a stitcher has, and despite LOADS of temptation from you guys, I have yet to succumb to Gingher scissors. (I confess to checking them out online and maybe possibly looking for them while I was out this afternoon, but I resisted!) My scissors are pretty boring - I use a pair from a set of scissors I bought at Garden Ridge a while back. They get the job done, but I will probably end up treating myself to a nicer pair sometime in the future. Say, oh, I don't know.... these that dear Janet brought to my attention.

They're called Scissoroos and they have a KANGAROO on the scissors! I adore kangaroos - I've been fascinated by all things Australian for as long as I can remember, and I actually collect kangaroos. I have probably about 2 dozen stuffed ones, not to mention a few pieces of kangaroo jewelry, some figurines, etc. I even have a kangaroo coffee mug.

Anyway, I also have a Needle Nest I found in the quilting section to hold my needles. The white part is magnetic and the lid snaps closed. Very handy, and I will occasionally use it to park threaded needles if I am working with color changes.

I usually buy regular old size 28 needles I use to stitch pretty much everything. I did pick up some fancy John James needles here and there, but usually I just use the DMC ones you can buy at Michael's. I have a few other needles of different sizes, but I like the 28s the best.

I do have a needle question though - my DH, who is also a stitcher, has on more than one occasion broken a needle. Literally snapped a needle in half while stitching. This has never happened to me and I thought it was strange that he actually broke a needle while stitching, but perhaps it happens more than I realize? Have you ever had a needle break on you while you were stitching?

Other essentials in my tool kit include:

a leather thimble - I don't use it that often, but it's nice to have. I do have to keep it hidden from our cat who has a distinct fondness for leather (we keep our leather shoes and shoes with laces on the steps down to our front door - where he can't get to them). The leather is nice because it's adjustable - if it's too small, you can snip the thread that holds it together and use a bigger piece.

Thread Heaven - I didn't think it was necessary to have, but I've found it makes hand-dyed threads so much easier to work with! DH even likes it on regular DMC threads.

A seam ripper, for when the dreaded frog pays a visit. I find it's easier to work with one of these if I have to take out a large section. Rather than trying to unstitch or use my scissors to cut out the stitches, I use the seam ripper and it works out much better.

Tweezers - yep, regular good old slant tip tweezers that you can buy at any Target, Wal-Mart, etc., in the health and beauty aisle for a couple bucks. These are enormously useful in conjunction with the seam ripper for getting threads out of my fabric as well as picking out the occasional cat hair or two. I also keep a pair or two of tweezers in my beading box as they're quite useful there too.

Scroll frames - I like stitching on these. Stitching in hand causes my hand to ache and I can't do it for very long. If something is just too small to get on a scroll frame, I use a plastic embroidery hoop. I find I stitch better when I have consistent tension in my fabric.

Fray Check / Pinking Shears - I use a combination of fray check and pinking shears to keep the edges of my fabric from unraveling. For sturdier fabrics, I find pinking shears to work just fine, but for more delicate fabrics like linens, fray check works better

Pencils - colored and regular - I always keep a pencil and eraser with my stitching for making notes and marking charts if necessary. Pencil erases easier thank ink! I like to use a mechanical pencil with a retractable lead so there's less chance of a rogue pencil marking up fabric or stitching projects. I find colored pencils useful on hard to read charts - I color in each symbol with a different color and it makes the chart easier to read. I've also used highlighters for this purpose.

Ruler / Measuring tape - I have a 12 inch plastic ruler that lives in my stitching box and gets used for absolutely nothing else, so I don't have to worry about anything transferring to my fabric from the ruler. I also have a retractable measuring tape. I'm obsessive about measuring two, three, six times before cutting.

Finally, I like to have some baby wipes around for wiping my hands if I can't get to a sink (I have a few individually wrapped ones I keep in my stitching bag. And I need to restock, but I like to keep Shout wipes handy in case there are any accidents. I'm usually very careful with my stitching, but better safe than sorry!

A thank you and some progress

I've been bad about blogging - I'm spending most of my time stalking the real estate websites looking for a house. (Yes, I have an excel spreadsheet for it. Shut up). It's not nearly as much fun as I thought it would be, and my eyes are starting to glaze over at the mere thought of looking at a computer screen. I have been trying to keep up with reading blogs, though. It's a welcome break from real estate listings.

I've also been bad about sharing something I got in the mail a little while back. Sweet Dianne sent me these two lovely ATCs (artist trading cards). She also sent me a Cape May Lighthouse chart - Thank you, Dianne!

Aren't these so cool? Dianne knows my fondness for lighthouses, so she featured one, along with the cutest sandpiper, on a card for me. And for my husband, she did one with goldfinches from an antique book! Goldfinches are his favorite birds, and he was really touched by Dianne's gift. She even included a "certificate of authenticity" to sign the cards.

And in keeping with a somewhat nautical theme, check out my new friend, the Blue Crab.

I picked up the kit for this one maybe last year or the year before at Sea Needles in Bethany Beach. All the DMC threads and Aida fabric were included, but I switched out the white Aida for a more sand colored lambswool Jobelean (I love, love, love this fabric) He's coming along quite nicely, especially since the chart and I have long since made peace. The pattern is done by a local artist, Judy Greer Carmean, and the chart is handwritten. I struggled to read it for a while, until I got smart and made a copy of the chart, which I proceeded to mark up with highlighters and colored pencils. Ahhhh! MUCH better. If you've never tried this and you're struggling with a chart, I urge you to try making a copy and use colored pencils to separate the various symbols. I picked up a pack of pencils and a sharpener that will have a permanent home with my other stitching tools.

This has been stitching up quite nicely and makes for a very relaxing evening. I have an attachment to crabs - both the crab motif and eating them. Hardshell crabs were popular with my family and we had them every so often - a big pile dumped on a paper covered table with a hole in the middle (and a bucket underneath for the shells). A little Old Bay seasoning and maybe some vinegar for dipping, and we were set. I got very good at picking the meat out of the crab, something that frustrates my husband to this day (he doesn't enjoy hardshells quite as much as I do). And I do like the crab motif - we have 2-3 crab ornaments for our tree, and I've been eying up a crab chip and dip plate at several beach gift shops.

Okay, I've fooled around long enough. Time to do my Friday Feast and get back to those listings!