Canning

While it's lots of work, we do enjoy our home-canned vegetables, Here are the fruits of our weekend of work:



Speckled butterbeans ready to go in the pressure canner.









Nineteen pints of butterbeans and 25 pints of purple hull peas:












All of these we purchased at the Farmers Market Friday morning and shelled on Friday and Saturday. I only had one pint of peas that failed to seal, so guess what we are having for dinner tonight?

The Friday 56 3 July 2009

Yes, I know it’s actually the wee hours of Sunday morning – I’ve been busy – more about that later.

The Rules:

* Grab the book nearest you. Right now.
* Turn to page 56.
* Find the fifth sentence.
* Post that sentence (plus one or two others if you like) along with these instructions on your blog or (if you do not have your own blog) in the comments section of this blog.
*Post a link along with your post back to this blog.
* Don't dig for your favorite book, the coolest, the most intellectual. Use the CLOSEST.

HAPPY FRIDAY!

Something a little different this week – the book closest to me is the one I was reading a few minutes ago – and it happens to be on the hard drive of my computer.

WITH THE LIGHTNINGS by David Drake

Adele nodded curt assent. She was angry and frustrated, but it would be wrong to take it out on the aide. To prod the woman verbally would be pointless cruelty—safe enough because the aide was a flunky and unable to respond, just as a big carnivore behind bars can be teased. The aide was as much a victim of Markos, and of life, as Adele herself was.

It’s one of several I downloaded this past week from the Baen Free Library. This is a fantastic resource, and one I highly recommend. Take a moment to read Eric Flint’s introduction to the library. It explains the concept far more entertainingly than I ever could.

And since a Kindle is one of the things on my wish list, I’m pleased to note that all the free books are available in that format, as well.

BTW, I finished all four books by John Scalzi that I ordered from Amazon last week - good reads all, and I'll be looking for more by this author. (Old Man's War, The Ghost Brigades, The Last Colony and Zoe's Tale)

And how, you may ask, have I been so busy that I’m two days late with this posting? One trip to the Farmers Market of Alabama, three huge bags of vegetables and two days of shelling beans and getting ready to can same, that’s how. I will snap some pics of the finished product later this afternoon and share them later. Right now, it’s time to get some sleep so, Good Night!

Happy Fourth of July

Wishing you a Safe and Happy Independence Day!




This image is from Peachy Profiles

I Won!

I never win contests. That is an axiom.
Which is now proven untrue.
I WON!
Belinda drew my name, and I won!
Wow!
What will I do with a heart shaped yo-yo maker? Make heart shaped yo-yos, of course. But what to do with a heart shaped yo-yo? I'm open to suggestions. Anyone?

Tiny Treasures Received and Sent

For the Floss Tag Exchange on Tiny Treasures, I received a lovely package from Iza in Poland. A beautiful floss tag as well as some gorgeous overdyed floss and a postcard from Lublin. I've already used the floss on the left (New Vision by Carrie's Creation) in a special project that I hope to publish soon on my other blog. Here's a close-up of the butterfly so you can see Iza's meticulous stitching and the color variations in the floss.
I sent to Amanda in Italy, and she's posted that she received my package, so I can post a pic. Sorry for the blurry picture - I didn't preview it before I mailed my package out.
I totally love these floss bags, so I designed my floss tag to be used with them (and included a pack of bags with the floss tag). I also included a fat quarter of the fabric I used to back the tag:Aren't the cats fun?

I can't wait for the next exchange - I love making new friends all over the world!

The Friday 56 26 June 2009

Once again I'm on time - will wonders never cease?!

The Rules:

* Grab the book nearest you. Right now.
* Turn to page 56.
* Find the fifth sentence.
* Post that sentence (plus one or two others if you like) along with these instructions on your blog or (if you do not have your own blog) in the comments section of this blog.
*Post a link along with your post back to this blog.
* Don't dig for your favorite book, the coolest, the most intellectual. Use the CLOSEST.

HAPPY FRIDAY!

In general, the book closest to me will be what I am currently reading, and that is true this week. The book closest to me is Yankee Pasha The Adventures of Jason Starbuck by Edison Marshall.

"And that blood will tell!"
"Then it's a wonder you came."
"It was the last straw to make me come. No, I'd decided to already, if you were foolish enough to ask me."

One of my passions is collecting antique books. For my collection, I consider anything over 50 years old as an antique. This edition of Yankee Pasha was published in 1948. In 1954, Jeff Chandler and Rhonda Fleming starred in the movie adaptation, also titled Yankee Pasha. Altho current reviews of the book classify it as a romance/action-adventure, it is told in 1st person by the hero, Jason Starbuck. That's certainly not a modern conception of a romance, is it?

TUSAL and WIP

Hey, I actually remembered to take a photo of my ort jar for the TUSAL! I began collecting on 1 January of this year, but with one thing and another, did not take monthly pictures (until now!).
I've made no attempt to push the contents down, altho I expect I will have to before the year is out.
All the white orts on top are from my current WIP, Papillons enchanteurs, which was offered as a freebie on 16 February on Club Point de Croix. Gosh, I have collected so many wonderful freebies from them. You do have to join the site, but membership is free, and a new graph is posted each day and remains free for five days! Do check them out. BTW, here is a pic of my WIP on Papillons enchanteurs: Two of my favorite motifs: butterflies and roses. How could I resist? Sorry the picture is so dark - I snapped the photo just a few minutes ago.
I'm stitching it in DMC B5200 on 28 count natural linen. Just a few more stitches and I'll have to figure out how to frame it. I haven't measured it yet, but I suspect it will need an oddball size frame, which might just require going out to the shop and firing up my compound miter saw to make a custom frame (I haven't done any woodworking in months, because of my eye problems and surgeries, so this should be fun!).
Let's see, what else is going on?
I finished reading Death Angel by Linda Howard, and also finished Dead Heat by Dick Francis and Felix Francis. Both were very quick reads. I don't have anything else new in the house to read until my order arrives from Amazon, which I think is due on the 24th.
Oh yes, I bought a bread machine. I've never used one before, so this should be interesting. I decided to get one and try it, 'cause I love homemade bread, but the last two loaves I made a couple of weeks ago crippled me for several days with the arthritis/bursitis (whatever) in my shoulder. Anyone have any experience with a bread machine? I could certainly use the advice.
It's getting late, so I must say
Good Night.

The Friday 56 19 June 2009

Hey - It's actually Friday and here I am. Things are looking up!


The Rules:

* Grab the book nearest you. Right now.
* Turn to page 56.
* Find the fifth sentence.
* Post that sentence (plus one or two others if you like) along with these instructions on your blog or (if you do not have your own blog) in the comments section of this blog.
*Post a link along with your post back to this blog.
* Don't dig for your favorite book, the coolest, the most intellectual. Use the CLOSEST.

HAPPY FRIDAY!

The book closest to me is Corruption of Blood by Robert K Tanenbaum.

Let me just grab my reading glasses.......

What really happened in the first half hour or so after the first shots. George is connected to the people who run Dallas, and to the extent that the investigation might affect them, especially in a negative way, George has got to be on top of it. Does that make sense?

This was in a lot of books that someone gave me. I'd never read Tanenbaum before, and finished this in the wee hours this morning. Turns out there are several books he's written, all with the same main characters. I haven't quite decided if I liked this one enough to seek out more of his books.

I picked up a Linda Howard yesterday (Death Angel), and will begin reading it tonight. I also placed an order with Amazon for 4 books by John Scalzi - another author new to me. Has anyone read anything by him, and what did you think?

Mourning Doves

On our front porch, we have three hanging planters. The first year, I planted peonies in them, and when the plants died back at the end of summer, I put in some silk flowers, so the baskets wouldn't be bare. The next spring, when I started to remove the silk flowers, I was surprised to find a pair of mourning doves nesting in the basket. We have had at least one pair nesting every spring and early summer since then. The chosen basket varies from year to year, and I don't know that it's the same pair, but I like to think so. The parents pull out flowers from the middle of the basket, allowing the unwanted stems to fall to the ground. So I leave the poor bedraggled silk flowers, not wanting to ruin what the doves obviously think is a fine home.
We so enjoy their quiet cooing drifting through our open windows, and the whirring sound they make as they take flight. This year, I was able to take a few pictures of one of the parents and a nestling, shortly before the fledglings left the nest. These were taken through the glass storm door, using the telephoto option on my camera.
We had the pleasure of watching the parents caring for the nestlings, and witnessed their first flight. The nest is deserted at the moment, but the pair may be back to hatch another family, so I'll be leaving the baskets alone for the moment.

The Friday 56 12 June 2009

Yes, I know it’s actually Saturday – that’s the story of my life. But here it goes, anyway.

The Rules:

* Grab the book nearest you. Right now.
* Turn to page 56.
* Find the fifth sentence.
* Post that sentence (plus one or two others if you like) along with these instructions on your blog or (if you do not have your own blog) in the comments section of this blog.
*Post a link along with your post back to this blog.
* Don't dig for your favorite book, the coolest, the most intellectual. Use the CLOSEST.

HAPPY FRIDAY!

The book closest to me is Fatal Voyage by Kathy Reichs.

Primrose clicked to the age column and asked the program to sort by that criterion.
Air TransSouth 228 had carried only six passengers over the age of fifty.

I began reading Kathy Reichs a few months ago. If you are wondering, yes, I picked up one of her books because of the connection to Bones, one of the few TV shows I watch nowadays. So far, I’ve read only two: Death du Jour and Break no Bones. I’ve barely started reading Fatal Voyage, and I may have to make the effort to find all the books in the series so that I can read them in order. I am not finding her writing as compelling as other authors, such as Jodi Picoult or Diana Gabaldon, and I’m wondering if I’ve missed too much of the back story by not reading them in order. I certainly found that true with the JD Robb In Death series and the David Weber Honor Harrington series– I enjoyed them so much more when I went back and read the entire series from the beginning.

Thoughts, anyone?

Addicted to Cross Stitch

At Last! It feels like I've been waiting forever for this freebie - although it's actually only a few weeks. Hop on over to Better Cross Stitch Patterns and check it out!
So much stitching - so little time. (heavy sigh)

And how did you spend your weekend?

I spent mine reupholstering six dining chairs.

I inherited my grandmother's 1940's Duncan Phyfe dining table. While it was used (and abused), it's still a very pretty piece of furniture - and it's on my list for a badly needed renovation. We use it in our sunny yellow sun room as a breakfast table.

The chairs did not survive her ten children - so I only have the table. Luckily, I found a set of Duncan Phyfe style chairs at a price I could afford - and since they were upholstered in a white on white fabric, I knew when I bought them I would be recovering them. I found fabric I liked about six months ago - and grabbed it and put it away in my craft room until I would have time to re-upholster the chairs.

This past weekend - the time had arrived. I couldn't stand it anymore. Doesn't look too bad at first glance, does it? Look a little closer: Grandkids and puppy dogs and goodness knows what have all taken their toll.
The seats were held on to the frames with four L brackets and screws - easy enough to remove. But then the staples! My Berry Staple Remover and pliers got quite a workout. I lost count of the hours I spent removing staples. DH pitched in a couple of times - but I did the majority of it my little ole self.

In contrast, recovering the chairs only took a couple of hours. CDB helped by ironing the fabric pieces (a bit wrinkled from being stored). I admit that it would have taken longer if I didn't have an air powered stapler. I have (in my foolish youth - lol!) re-upholstered a lo-o-ong sofa and two chairs with a manual stapler - and my hands were sore for months. Now, I wouldn't even attempt it without at least an electric staple gun - but I am lucky - and have a compressor and multiple tools to go along with it, including the stapler!
The end results are, I think, well worth the effort: You can see a bit of the table to the left of the chair. I promise to take before and after pics of the table renovation - it's surface is really very sad at the moment.

My dear DH spent the weekend refurbishing our sun deck - and on a brief foray in for ice water, brought me these lovely roses from our garden. They are from one of our few surviving rose bushes - the naughty furbabies (aka Annie and Nellie, the Gruesome Twosome) chewed the rest of the rose bushes to the ground - thorns and all!
So, what did you do over the weekend?

Grab Bag Giveaway

Simone is having a Grab Bag Giveaway to celebrate her second Blogoversary - isn't that a mahvelous idea?
Of course I entered (and sincerely hope to win!), but you can enter , too. Click on Simone and follow her instructions. But hurry - her Blogoversary is 9 May!
Good Luck!

You Must See This!

Antwerp Station - The Sound of Music
Enjoy!

A Big Biscornu

Jean received this biscornu I sent her for the Tiny Treasures Exchange, so now I can share a picture: It's leaning up against a six-inch pot, so that will give you an idea of the size.
The design is A Spring Garden by Jodi Larson, which was a freebie on thegoldenhoop.com (Now closed, but checkout Jodi's blog). Jean has a better close-up picture on her blog.

In other news, Mama is now in rehab (praise God!), and doing well. We have hopes she'll be able to go home in a few days.

It's actually time to get up, so I'll just say Good Morning!

Tiny Treasures Exchange Received and Snow!

I received a lovely package from Audrone in the Tiny Treasures Biscornu Exchange - look at the goodies! Audrone designed and stitched the butterfly biscornu just for me - it's so pretty and delicate! The mag is a Lithuanian Cross Stitching magazine - Audrone tells me it's the first in Lithuania.

Back on March 1st, we had snow! It's a rarity in Alabama, and therefore, we get all excited when we do have some. Lookit the pretty pictures:

That's the dogwood and ring of azaleas in front of my house. And my van, with it's blanket of snow.

The DGs had a great time - making snowballs and trying to build a snowman. We made them come inside every 15-20 minutes to warm up, much to their disgust.

Mama is doing much better - she's off the vent, and has had her trach capped for the past day. Because of my sinus infection / cold, I haven't been able to see her this past week - too much danger of her catching something from me - so I've had to depend on my sister and Daddy for updates.

I did manage to get my next eye surgery scheduled for mid-May. I'm so looking forward to getting my right eye fixed too. Oh, that was purely pun-intentional - lol! BTW, mine are/were PSC cataracts.

It's quite late (as always!), so I'll say Good Night!

Scattergories

Found this at Annie Beez Folk Art

"Scattergories
If you play leave a link in the comments so I can go and look at your answers!

Rules:
IT'S HARDER THAN IT LOOKS!
USE THE 1ST LETTER OF YOUR NAME TO ANSWER EACH OF THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS.
THEY HAVE TO BE REAL PLACES, NAMES, OR THINGS--NOTHING MADE UP!
TRY TO USE DIFFERENT ANSWERS IF THE PERSON IN FRONT OF YOU HAD THE SAME 1ST INITIAL.
YOU CAN'T USE YOUR NAME FOR THE BOY/GIRL NAME QUESTION.

Have Fun!!"


1. What is your name: Nita
2. A 4 Letter Word: Neat
3. A Boys Name: Neil
4. A Girls Name: Nora
5. An Occupation: Novelist
6. A Color: Neutral
7. Something you wear: Necklace
8. A Beverage: Nectar
9. A Food: Nachos
10. Something found in the bathroom: Night Cream
11. A place: Narthex
12. A Reason for being late: Nyctalopia
13. Something you shout: Noooo!!

Won't you play?

Serendipity and Other Sagacities

While looking at Clarelis' site (love those butterflies!), I followed a link to blog de valy and thereby discovered The Butterfly Project. I am totally commited to completing some butterflies for this project, and am sending info to my DGS's teachers about the project and learning opportunities there. Deadline for the museum to receive the butterfly projects is 30 June, 2011. I'll be sure to post some pictures here.

You know that I love reading - right? I was checking out the blogs of other participants in le-marquoir-de-sophie, and saw a name I recognized from the Tiny Treasures - YoYo of Dragon my Needle. Of course I had to hop over and check out her blog - some loverly stuff there. And while I can't quite recall how I started from there and ended up at Tonya's blog (I spend way too much time cruising - lol!). I'm glad I did. Look this Friday for my post on:


There's a neat giveaway over at Ginny's Quilts that I ran across this evening - of course I'm entering for the giveaway!

Health issues continue to occupy most of my time. Mama is now in her 5th week in the ICU. Tomorrow there are plans for a couple of procedures that will hopefully improve matters - say a little prayer for her and all of us, please.

The frog has been visiting me regularly, and I was fairly confused about why - until I realized that four to five hours of sleep per night is leaving me chronically sleep-deprived. Automatic stitching is the result. So I'm going to close this and get into bed with a final reminder to myself and anyone who happens to read this that healthy living relies on four major factors:
Healthy Air (breathing)
Healthy Water
Healthy Food and
Healthy Sleep.
Good Night!

Another Freebie Site Found!

I was actually googling for cross stitch lap stands when I ran across Better Cross Stitch Patterns . com. Well worth your time to check it out. Be sure to read the About Us page - Katherine and Allen appear to be very sweet people.
Enjoy!

New Craft Creations Magazine Download Available

A real quick post to let you know there's a new issue of Craft Creations Magazine available for downloading: Issue 48
And wait until you see the Easter Surprise! It is too cute!

Mama Update: Please continue to pray for her - we're now in the fourth week in the ICU, and she's having problems weaning from the ventilator.

CDB Update: She continues recovering from her hospitalization last December / January - but has contracted mycoplasma pneumonia (which is responding well to treatment) - a very big warning that her health is still very fragile!

My meditation for today is on Psalm 18:32-36.
"It is God who arms me with strength,
And makes my way perfect..."

Keep Looking Up!

les Pyrénées

I was browsing through some blogs this evening and happened upon le blog de fanou and in particular the article les Pyrénées - some absolutely stunning pics there! Very nice blog, Fanou!
But I have to confess the silliest question occurred to me - wonder what made the builder of the home in the fourth photo choose that particular spot? It appears to be a random choice, but wouldn't you like to know why?

Mama is still in intensive care, and we still don't know why she's ill - it's so frustrating. The good news is that various tests show she doesn't have a host of diseases (including uterine cancer!) . The bad news is she seems a little worse every day - she's very difficult to rouse, and she does not interact very much at all. The doctors tell us she is getting a little better every day, based on blood counts and such. Please continue to hold her in your prayers.

I must share a funny little story. Saturday was my eldest grandson's birthday, and in the interest of ease of serving, the beverage we offered was Capri Sun (a juice drink in a disposable pouch, in case you didn't know). They come with a small straw attached, and you have to pierce the pouch with the straw. My 5-year-old grandson was having difficulties with the operation, so I offered to help.
"My teacher can do that," volunteered the little angelic DGS.
"Well, I'm having a bit of a problem with it," says I.
"My teacher isn't old."
splert!

And life goes on....

My Mom and Pics to Share

My life - it's a soap opera - and a very badly written one at that!

Last week, my mom was admitted to the hospital - she's stable for the moment, but still in intensive care - please remember her in your prayers. I've been spending every available moment at the hospital with her and Daddy - and trying to follow the admonition in 1 Thessalonians 5:17.

I do want to share some pics of the Christmas present I received from my younger DDThis is her first attempt at satin stitch - don't you think she did a wonderful job?
Must share her story behind making this: Several months before Christmas, she mentioned to me that she to do a pattern that called for satin stitch, and she wasn't sure how to do it. "That's OK - just bring it here, and I'll show you", says I. Consternation! - lol! Obviously, she managed to figure it out.
After Christmas, she told me she worked on this while watching the Alabama (ROLL TIDE!) games each Saturday . How she managed to concentrate during the games is beyond me - Alabama football last year was intense!

On other fronts - CDB continues to recover and is trying to move on with her life. The DGS are settling in to their new school, and making new friends. DH has been ill for several days, but appears to be on the road to recovery. And I just keep on keeping on.

PIF

I've published a PIF (Pay It Forward) on my other blog Finishing Ideas for Handcrafts, and I invite you to come and join the fun!

CDB is Home!

My elder DD, whom I’ve always called CDB, was admitted to the hospital on 4 December 2008 with critical and life-threatening illnesses. CDB is the mother of our two grandsons. We prayed and solicited prayers from our friends and family for her recovery. Folks all over the world prayed for our precious CDB (our most sincere gratitude to all whom prayed with us for her healing!) Through the healing grace of God, she is recovering, and we brought her home on 9 January 2009. We brought her to our house so that I could continue to give her care while she completed recovery and regained her strength. We rejoice!

I solicit your prayers again – for strength for CDB and us all. Her marriage has been troubled for a while, and on 12 January, her husband brought their two sons to our house and left them, telling CDB he wanted a divorce. He did not bring any of the boys’ personal belongings. Over the next week, we managed to recover most of their belongings, and transfer the boys to a school near us (they lived almost an hour away and transportation to their school would have been very difficult, if not impossible). CDB has been far more gracious to her husband than I would be, allowing him to see the boys on Sundays. He has a long history of not keeping a job, and has not worked at all since sometime in December (and prior to December, had not worked for many weeks), so he tells CDB he has no money he can give her. DH and I are taking care of our daughter and grandsons, but it grates on CDB’s sensibilities that right now, she can’t contribute anything to their support. So please pray for CDB’s emotional health, for our dear grandsons and for us, as we manuever through this difficult time.

Happy Birthday DGS

Yesterday we celebrated my DGS's 8th birthday. He's Star Wars mad - so deciding on a gift was easy - found this costume online and ordered it from http://www.buystarwarscostumes.com/ (not affiliated in any way - just a happy customer). Here is DGS in his costume:

He also had a special request for his cake and called me a few weeks ago:

"Grandmama, can we make a Buzz Droid cake for my birthday"

"Sweetie, I don't know what a Buzz Droid looks like,"

"I can draw you a picture!"

So he did:

And here's my interpretation:

DGS: "It's pretty good - but you got the colors wrong."

Memo to self - figure out how to convince my dear grandchildren that "Grandmama can do anything!" is not a true statement.

BTW, the cake tasted delish and was enjoyed by all - even though it was the wrong colors!

Quaker Giraffe

I just finished stitching this Quaker Giraffe (from http://www.aurytm.com/). I love all her Quaker motif animals, but when she published this, I just had to stitch it first - it called to me.

It's stitched with 2 strands of Weeks Dye Works 4101 Trick or Treat on 14 count white aida.It turned out about 7 X 7 inches. But now, I don't know what to do with it! I love the colors for this, but it matches nothing in my house - oranges and browns are not really my colors. So I'm soliciting finishing ideas - what would you make with this?

This was my first time using WDW floss. The colors available are fantastic - but I didn't like the stiffness of the floss - guess I've been spoiled by my more recent experiences with silk floss. I also am not used to using these smaller skeins of floss - this one had five yards, and it took almost the entire skein for the giraffe :-( I did take steps to untwist the thread as I worked,, but the free end seemed to tangle and knot frequently.

All in all, I think the stitching turned out well - but I'm going to wait a while before trying another of the WDWs (I have another 23 skeins in assorted colors in my stash - so I will use it sometime - lol!)

I hope some of you have some ideas on finishing - I need something to spark my creatitvity!

Pendibule

Have you seen a pendibule? They are neat little ornaments made by stitching a square, folding it into a triangle, stitching the two sides, and bringing the points together.
Here's one I made for an exchange on the EMS board - the theme was redwork:

Russian Magazine

On the EMS Cross Stitch Board, a link was published to this Russian magazine. There are dozens of very pretty cross stitch patterns if you click on "Embroidery"

The charts are not keyed to a specific floss. Instead, they appear to have generic names, like black, green and brown. I've spent some time with Google Translator, and here is a list of the Russian color names I've managed to translate:

Черный = black
Зеленый = green
Коричневый = brown
Коричневый темный = darkest brown
Коричневый cветло = light brown
коричневый средний = medium brown
Temhый = dark
Светло = light
Зеленый светло = light green
Оранжевый – orange
Бежевый = beige
Белый = white
Красный = red
красная вишня = cherry red
красный рождество = Christmas red
красный ясный = bright red
синий = blue
желтый легчайших = lightest yellow
желтого светло = light yellow
желтый = yellow
желтый средний = medium yellow
пурпурный = purple
фиолетовый = violet
серебристый = silver
серый = grey, gray
светло-серый = light grey
золотой = gold
бирюзовый = turquoise
голубой = light blue
ясные = clear
синий = dark blue
темно = dark
Золотой = golden

There are still more, but maybe someone bilingual in Russian and English will help us out - Hint - Hint!

Found this Interesting

I am not a Catholic, but I found this article very interesting.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080513/ap_on_re_eu/vatican_aliens

What do you think?

Vikki Clayton Silks!

I have just finished stitching my first project with Vikki Clayton's Hand Dyed Fibers! These are beautiful hand dyed silks, and are a joy to work with. This is Tales of Wonder, a freebie by Jennifer L. Aikman-Smith Dragon Dreams. I used a couple of the "dragon" colors, and I'm quite pleased with how it turned out. (I also added a pennant to the castle - it just felt like it needed one!) Here are the HDF silks I used:

5143 Kodiak Bear
2125 Mermaid Blue
Mountain Shadows
Victorian Mint
3255 Luteous Green
Huckle Berry
Dragon Fire
Dragon Hoard (used for Herringbone stitch, Four-Sided stitch, Rice Stitch and Long Tied Cross stitch)

I used Mill Hill Petite Glass Beads (gold) instead of French knots for the eyes.

The fabric is a 36-count hand- dyed evenweave I received in an exchange, so I don’t know what the fabric or color are called.

I plan to finish this as a bell pull with gold hardware, if I can find a source that is not outrageously expensive (might be time to put on my crafting cap and figure out how to make my own hardware - hmmm?).

Next project for these silks? Don't let the Weeds.

Some last minute finishes

A quick note to show off a few last minute finishes:

Bookmarks for Daddy and Mama for Christmas

I charted Psalms 57 - the Dove is from "70 Christian Symbols", purchased from http://www.patternsonline.com/ and the Resurrection Lilies is a freebie from http://www.michaels.com/ which I changed slightly. The pre-finished bookmarks are from CharlesCraft.

My parent celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary this month. In honor of that, I did this small design from Carinne's site: http://users.skynet.be/bk236098/CARINNE/ (it's 21CoeurNoceArgent), again with a little change. The oatmeal color of the aida doesn't show up very well. I wanted to frame this in a square frame, set on point, but couldn't find one I liked, and ran out of time to make one, so it's framed in an 8x10 frame I found that looks kind of antiquey.

I'm doing the finishes on bookmarks for my DD this evening (she came down with the flu - poor thing). I designed the bookmarks for her, so I'll post a pic when I'm done.

Back to stitching....

Daisy Stitches Mail Art Contest

Well, I didn't win or place, but had fun, nevertheless. You can see all the entries at http://www.daisystitches.com/mailart.html, including mine.

I didn't take an pics of the construction process, but this is not the last Mail Art I'll do, so next time, I'll photograph all the steps and publish them on http://jcbsleep.wordpress.com/, my finishing ideas blog

Currently reading: Innocent in Death by JD Robb

Currently stitching: scissors biscornu; Halloween ornaments for wXSw SAL, EMS Kitchen alphabet and last, but not least, Needle Guardian by Teresa Wentzler

At Last!

Thought I was gone forever, didn't you? No such luck - lol!

But I have put some content on my finishing ideas blog - check it out here: http://jcbsleep.wordpress.com/

More to come - later!

Our New Furbabies

Say hello to Annie and Nellie:
They are mixed breed 9 week old sisters. It has taken us a while to decide to adopt more furbabies since our beloved Dolly passed away. But Annie and Nellie have stolen our hearts.

I had forgotten how much energy puppies have - they easily wear DH and I out every time we play with them. They are very typical sisters - each wants what the other has!

They may look close to identical in this pic, but they are not: Nellie's ears are carried farther out than Annie's, and Annie has a broad white/black brindle patch on her chest, while Nellie has a small white patch on her chest.

Annie

Perhaps one day I'll be able to get a pic of them sitting or standing - right now the only time they are still is when laying down chewing on something, or when fast asleep.

Nellie

The Courtyard of Alhambra

Let me introduce you to a new designer: Lady Periphaeria. I’ve just completed the stitching on The Courtyard of Alhambra (PD- #4), and it is beautiful! I used 28 count natural linen, and stitched it with Caron Waterlilies® Arroyo. Check out her other designs at Periphaeria Designs.

Now to decide how to finish. Lady Periphaeria shows it finished as a biscornu (always a good choice), but I hate to cover up any of the design by a button or bead in the center. Perhaps a needlecase? Or the start of an accordion book, or a flat fold? Hmm, this is going to take some thought.

Currently stitching: A surprise for the One World, Many Cultures Exchange on the EMS Board
Currently reading: Owlsight by Mercedes Lackey and Larry Dixon.

Happy Birthday to me!

Received the nicest surprise today - my personalized bookmark from the EMS Cross Stitch Board Exchange. Isn't it beautiful?

I love to participate in these exchanges. I've made new friends from all over the world.

Yes, it is my Birthday, and I'm proud to be here. My life has been blessed, and I like to use my birthday as a very special time to thank the Lord for his many blessings: My beloved DH (and in 9 days, we'll celebrate the 36th anniversary of our first date, and in June, our 35th wedding anniversary), my children, my wonderful grandchildren, all of my family, and all of my friends, both in RL and virtual. Praise God for you all!


My DH is taking me to dinner this evening - and I'll have my once a year treat of Coca-Cola Cake with vanilla bean ice cream from Cracker Barrel. I promise I'll savor every morsel!

In other news, I've been thinking about publishing some tutorials, so I'll be looking for a site to do that on - cost is definately a factor. But I do love to create, and I love to teach - so I'll work on it and publish here when it's ready. I've already been taking photos and writing instructions for the first one - a covered Altoid box.


Currently stitching: Breadcloth for an EMS Exchange
Currently reading: Andre Norton's final fantasy Three Hands for Scorpio

January is almost gone!

I can't believe this month is almost over. Where did it go?

Thought you might enjoy seeing the finished presents for my co-workers. The baskets contain candies and a scented candle.

I've completed a biscornu and a bookmark for exchanges on the EMS Cross Stitch Board. Currently working on a breadcloth for another exchange.

Don't you just hate to get a brilliant idea and not have the time to carry it out? That's where I am right now - I've got to finish the breadcloth before I do anything else, but I've jotted down notes, so hopefully the brilliance won't fade - lol.

It's tax time again - Yuck! I hate filling out all these forms. Wouldn't it be nice if they'd just take the money through the year and then leave you alone? I know, I know, that's a simplistic view - but I think it anyway, every year!

Have lots of errands to do today, so this will have to end here. Take care, and God Bless!