I received such a nice surprise from Carol this weekend!
I found an envelope from Carol in the mail and opened it to find the most lovely Halloween pinkeep:
Thank you so much, Carol!
We went out sailing again today, but this time we had visitors – Anna and The Dude. They brought a lovely basket of Italian foodstuffs that was greatly appreciated and will be gone in no time flat, I’m sure. 🙂
We had great winds on the way out, in fact too good. We were heeling over a little bit more than any of us were comfortable with at some points, due to gusts of wind, changes in direction, etc. However, by the time we turned around to sail back to the marina, the winds had abandoned us for locations unknown and we had to resort to motoring back. It was okay, though, as we were all getting rocked to sleep by the lunch in our bellies, the waves and then the hum of the engine. We’ll all sleep soundly tonight!
I hope they had a good time, as their company was a fun addition to our time out on the water. Fortunately, today was a bit warmer than yesterday, so I didn’t come back with a chill and hopefully neither did our visitors. 🙂
Tonight is for costume making. I made some more progress on mine and am nearly ready to put all of the pieces together for the finished product. Terry started cutting out his pattern pieces, so soon he will be ready to take over the sewing machine from me. If I’m lucky, he’ll give me a little help so that I can finish faster. I’m still not terribly confident in my sewing skills, even though I’ve done well so far. The wedding reception to which we are wearing these outfits is next Saturday, so we should have pictures to share after that.
I think I’ve decided to take mine to work to wear on Halloween, as well. I need to get as much wear out of it as I can, before the medications that I’m on cause me to gain enough weight that I can’t fit into it anymore. I’m already up about 5 lbs or so. *groan* I’m trying to fight it, though. I need to get more exercise and hopefully that will do the trick.
I’m tired of my startitis. No more. I have projects in various states of progress all over the place and I have actually lost my Halloween project. It was a cute purple bat with plaid on its wings that said “Drop In For a Bite.” Isn’t that cute? Yeah, it was neat, but it’s missing. Crud.
I’m sick of this. So, I have decided that enough is enough. No more new starts until I have some finishes. I’m not going whole hog or anything, I just want 5 finishes under my belt before I can start something new. I think that’s a reasonable goal that I can actually live up to, so let’s go for it.
And my first finish is the model I’ve been working on for The Sweetheart Tree. Another one will be Winter Dragon on Leslie’s RR, when I finally can get it finished. I have to say that Winter Dragon is giving me fits. I know that it’s giving Leslie fits, as well, so I don’t feel too bad in saying that I will be happy to see it go home to Leslie when it’s done. 🙂
On blog reading, that is. I just took the plunge and did the dreaded “Mark Folder Read” function on my Stitching Blogs folder. I’m sorry for anything I’ve missed, but I’ve been model stitching and working hard on my renaissance costume.
I have less than two weeks to get the renaissance gown done and this weekend is devoted to sailing, so I’m having to get the sewing done in the evenings after work. It’s been a challenge, that’s for sure, but I’m just about to the point of putting everything together. Which means that I have to stop putting off sewing all of the trim onto the sleeves by hand. Then it will be Terry’s turn to help with his costume. He hasn’t even cut out his pattern yet, but I’m trying not to stress about something I have little control over. I mention it and had him actually help me with mine last night, so I figure the sooner I get mine done, the sooner he’ll start on his.
I was determined to do this whole thing myself and I have already tackled many difficult parts, but last night, I gave in and asked for help. More because there’s just too much to get done than because I didn’t feel like I could do it. So, with Terry’s help, the bodice is nearly finished. I guess I’ll work on the trim tonight.
Then there’s the model stitching. I did some work on it this morning that I forgot to write down the start and stop times for. Which is fine because it will probably negate the time I need for frogging three of the specialty stitches on the piece that I figured out were off on the counting. Grrr… Darned frogs. I need an anti-frog charm, methinks.
I really want to get this model done and back to Sandie soon. If only to be able to work on something else for a while. Christmas is approached at an alarming rate and I have nothing planned and no lists made. That’s bad for me, so it’s about time to start thinking in that direction. If only the temperatures would come down out of the 80s and start feeling like Autumn already!
I have several copies of this year’s Just CrossStitch ornament special issue, for those of you who have not already gotten your hands on one. I also have the 10th anniversary ornament collection book from Just CrossStitch. Plus, this year’s Holiday Harmony series of beaded ornaments from Mill Hill, November Topaz Fairie from Mirabilia and 2006 and 2007 Santa cards from The Prairie Schooler.
I decided today that I wanted to do a little bit of beading. I started another purse pin, this time with my own materials, so it won’t have the pretty bow pin; it will probably just have a safety pin and a jump ring to attach it to the purse “handle.” I don’t have a photo of it because I didn’t finish it yet.
I also started a chevron design that was going to be a bracelet, but I didn’t have enough length on my Nymo thread after two false starts and having to cut out a knot that formed, so I decided it could be a nice little bookmark. It is only half of the diameter of my wrist.
It’s kinda cute and is made up of jet black, metallic midnight blue and metallic medium blue beads. The scanner didn’t pick up the bead colors correctly at all, so it is nicer in real life.
On the stitching front, I am still working on a model for The Sweetheart Tree, Winter Dragon for Leslie’s RR and a kit that I picked up at CATS by Enchanting Lair called Twinkle, Twinkle. I don’t think the kit came with enough thread (Dinky Dyes silk) for me to finish stitching it without having to buy a skein of at least one of the colors. Kind-of a bummer, but hey, I carry Dinky Dyes silks, so it’s not toto bad.
I am also ready to start a new project after I finish some of the above-mentioned projects. I think it’s going to be Peacock Stitching Chair from The Cat’s Whiskers Design Studio. I have the fabric and the threads, so it’s ready to go.
I am also ready to get back on the wagon. I need to stop buying stash because I’m running out of room for it. So, the goal is to work out of my stash as much as possible. The only exception is an order that I have already lined up from OSL. But, seriously, it’s time to clean house, not just in my stash, but my actual house, as well.
If only I could get my focus back! I need to get my medications straightened out so that I can get back to my normal self. Right now, I cannot seem to work on something for more than 30 minutes (and that is a near-record). I’m waiting for a call back from the psychiatrist. He changed locations and partners again; he really seems to flit from place to place, so I’m hoping to get him on the phone at some point by the beginning of next week. Wish me luck! 🙂
I just finished Little House Needleworks’ Berries collaboration kit today. I substituted our last name for the word Berries and yes, I left the leaves off at the bottom because the right one was going to run into the “g.” This seems like it would be a cheerful little banner or pillow for our home.
What else? Well, yesterday saw the start and finish of another Petite Purse kit from Mill Hill, this time in royal blue and silver. It’s up for grabs, for whomever wants it.
And last, from my last night in the stitching lounge (Friday night) at CATS, my first punch needle finish. It’s supposed to be a star, a moon and a sheep. The sheep isn’t well-defined and neither is the star, even though I punched along the guidelines perfectly (the back proves my point). I need more practice with this new-to-me needlecraft.
I have some blank weaver’s cloth, thanks to Sandie asking a local shop owner who was also a vendor at CATS to bring some for me. I will be able to draw my own designs. Maybe I’ll get good enough to sell designs someday? It really is a fast and fun little hobby, once you get into it. 😉
I have to say that I have the most wonderful friends. I am so blessed!
When we returned home late Saturday night from Hershey, worn out and glad to be home, I found a package in my mail box from my friend Barbara. I hoped it and found that she sent my birthday gift early (a good thing, especially with how slow the USPS has been lately). I didn’t open it right away, but wrote to her to let her know that it had arrived and to ask whether I should open it now or wait until my birthday.
She responded that I could open it whenever I wanted, so I ripped into it this morning. I starting have a bit of a down period yesterday and while I’m starting to feel better already today, I figured I could use the pick-me-up. Besides, it’s my birthday month, so close enough, right? 😉
Lo and behold, that little brat Barbara was able to get her hands on the Ashley embroidery scissors from Gingher that I was unable to find online or in my local Joann store. What a sweetheart that Barbara is!
She also stitched me a quaker hedgehog using a beautiful rainbow of colors on purple fabric, with a luscious deep purple ribbon. And she stuffed it with a lovely lavender mix which makes me want to eat it! 😆
My heart overfloweth as I sit here in tears. Thank you, my dear friend!
Work on The Sweetheart Tree – Pretty Posies