artful letters

Happy Queen’s Day, everyone! And guess, what …. It didn’t rain!! Sure, it looked like rain all day, which did a wonderful job of keeping the crowds down, and it was often very chilly, but it was dry!!

Queen’s Day is of course a patriotic holiday. Two of our kids got into the spirit with a bit of face-painting (our number two son was having a sulky day) and they look so very Dutch!

Queen’s Day is also, very importantly, a chance for everyone to sell their junk, spreading it out on blankets downtown. Sort of like everyone in town having a yardsale in the same place at the same time. It’s a lot of fun to wander up and down, looking at this and at that. Last year, I got lucky and picked up a hard-to-find collection of traditional Dutch cross stitch patterns. This year I found a truly wonderful book of folk art paintings of Dutch scenes by Dutch artists (for only 2 Euros!) and I simply have to share my favorites (scroll over the pictures for the artist’s names):

I also got my arm twisted into buying – for 25 cents –  a book of children’s stories written and illustrated by a Gypsy named Beshlie, and here’s one of my favorite illustrations from that book. (I think I’ll keep this for myself, actually!). The kids, as always, were able to choose a toy for a Euro or under. That was where the trouble with Nicky started – after he chose a very cute gorilla, he decided he didn’t want it any more and plauged us all with a long, monotonous wail for the rest of the day. There’s one in every crowd, isn’t there?

Arden enjoyed watching the clouds and tree branches pass by overhead, in a sort of semi-trance like state. Every time we stopped for more than a few minutes, he’d begin to squirm, eager to continue. Once home, he had plenty of energy for more tummy time and is now laying beside me as I type this.

On the subject of Dutch art, here is my own humble little contribution.

We have a chicken in the oven that smells pretty good, and the older kids are catching up on some TV they missed earlier. I hope that whatever you’re doing, it brings you a feeling of satisfied contentment. Thank you very much for your kind comments regarding my choice of color changes for “Reader” – and in saying how incredibly adorable Arden is!

silken letters

Thank you very much, Jan, for supplying the URL for the Casey Buonaugurio freebie, Reader, I Married Him. As both Niek and I are avid readers, it seemed a natural choice as a small gift to make him for our upcoming anniversary. I’ve completely changed the color scheme to one of warm earth tones, as you can see, using a gorgeous Silkweaver Solo 32 ct. linen and HDC silks (Autumn Leaves for the border and Fire Thorn for the wording). It’s early evening and I hope to get a good bit more stitched before bedtime, but I wanted to get a picture in natural light to show how warm the colors are.

And here is my faithful stitching companion, rounding out his second 30-minute period of tummy time.

Tomorrow is Queen’s Day here, so we’ll be out and about with the kids all day, enjoying the crowds and festivities … and the rain. It always rains on Queen’s Day. Wishing you a wonderful day full of sunshine and stitching.

love letters

Today – if I’ve written it down correctly on my calendar – is Jim and Gaby’s anniversary. Regular readers know that Jim is my biological father and that a couple of years ago, he and Gaby tied the knot. Their romance is sort of an American parallel of my own with Niek, in that Gaby has lived for a long time in the US but is German by birth. Sometimes, some of us have to wander a bit further afield to find the one that our heart seeks. I’m so very glad that Jim and Gaby found each other and that they are happy together. Happy anniversary! I love you two!!

not much

Zip-a-dee-doo-dah, zip-a-dee-ay
My, oh my what a wonderful day!
Plenty of sunshine heading my way
Zip-a-dee-doo-dah, zip-a-dee-ay

It’s the end of the alphabet, the end of the weekend … and I don’t have much to say, nothing to show you … just wishes for a happy weekend and a great upcoming week! My kids are all off school for the week, so I’m not really expecting much in the way of fascinating blog posts. I’ll do my best, though! Thanks for coming here to visit me – I appreciate it!!

PS: Can anybody supply the URL for the freebie “Dear Reader, I married him”? I didn’t save the chart, and for the life of me, I cannot remember who the designer was. I have plans to stitch this for an upcoming anniversary (mine)!

yabbiting along

When someone, myself included, talks on and on about nothing much, I refer to it as yabbiting. Today’s post is a bit of this, a bit of that, and nothing much that’s too substantial. Yabbiting.

Today started off with a volleyball game for Max (no pictures). It was the season finale and Max’s team came in 7th out of 17. Next year, Max will have to play at a higher level (due to his age) and his coach told us that Max’s playing abilities are not good enough to make the cut. We’ll have to talk to him this weekend about it – not really something I’m looking forward to.

After the volleyball game, Max went to play at a friend’s house and I walked down to the petting zoo with Arden, Rowen, and Nicky. The weather was glorious and we had a great time. The goats were off-limits due to a recent lice-treatment, but there was plenty of other stuff to keep us busy.

When we came home, we decided to go downtown so Niek and I could enjoy a summer beer at one of the terraces the ring the market square. That was really fun, and to my surprise, an American family sat next to us. The family was from Connecticut, but the grandma was the widow of a Mainer. Small world! Her husband actually used to work in Machias…. It was so nice to relax and talk with people who have similar backgrounds.

The mail man also came by and dropped off this amazing gift from Becky SC. Becky, wow! This is so cute!! I’ll think of you every time I use it!

The kids amused themselves while Niek made dinner … and I opened up Dragonfly in Amber. Wow, that arrived fast! I can sense that it’s going to be a struggle to put the book down long enough to get any stitching done.

Now the kids are all in bed and I’m struggling to keep my eyes open. I guess I’m not used to a full day outside! LOL!

In my online wanderings, I’ve stumbled across this webshots album full of lovely freebies. Click the thumbnail to go to the album and view all the others.

by gazette94

xs is not for extra small

I wish the xs in my life stood for extra small, but despite being quite short, I’ve never taken an extra small in my life. LOL!

I’m pretty happy with the xs for cross stitch, though. Whatever did I do with myself before I started stitching? Sara taught me the basics over 15 years ago, when my doctor sternly ordered me to find some stress-reducing hobbies for numerous stress-related ailments. I still have the chart from the first sampler I did – a very simple ABC affair with a border. Over the following few years, I picked it up and put it down, not really accomplishing too much. I did manage to finish a few projects, including this one I  made for Sara when she and Ken got married. The text, “And for all this, Nature is never spent/There lives the deepest freshness deep down things/The world is charged with the grandeur of God” is from a poem by Gerald Manley Hopkins. I made up the design from bits and pieces gathered from here and there.

The next project that I have a picture of from this sporadic period is a very simple sampler I made for Max when he was a newborn. It’s sort of a birth sampler, I guess, though it’s not personalized. Since I was 100% certain I would never have any more children (can you hear me laughing now?), I guess I didn’t see the need to stitch his name on it.

Another long period went by between this simple sampler and the one I stitched for Nicky. Again, this is made up of bits taken from here & there. The poem excerpt, “Hurt no living thing/Ladybug nor butterfly/Nor moth with dusty wing” is from Christina Rossetti’s classic poem.

And then Rowen’s birth sampler makes an appearance (it’s still a WIP, though!). It was around this time that I began stitching nearly every day, started using higher counts of linen, and began collecting patterns (freebies at first). I joined the online community in March 2005 when I set up a gallery at Cyberstitchers, where I met Annemarie, Jennifer, Dianne, Harmien, Maria, and several other truly wonderful and generous women. Not long after that, I set up this blog – and it’s like the doors of the world opened unto me! I’ve completed somewhere around 190 cross stitch projects in the past three years and tried my hand at a few other kinds of stitching.

My most recent finish (the only one this month!) is a simple bookmark for the Stitching for Literacy drive. I’ll be sending it to Nordic Needle, Inc. The pattern is one that Michelle included with my gifts for winning her 250th blog post giveaway. I’ve stitched it on a scrap of DMC linen using one of Vicki Clayton’s premium silks (from a grab bag, so I don’t know the name).

To borrow from yesterday’s post (which I now wish I’d done differently), I’d love to know your answers to the following 5 Ws:

Who taught you to stitch, and were there any special circumstances or memories surrounding this?
As I mentioned, Sara taught me to stitch as a way of relaxing. She was a remarkably patient teacher, and I can remember the hours we spent stitching in her living room in Westbrook, Maine like it was yesterday (rather than 15+ years ago!).

What’s your favorite thing to stitch? (A project, a kind of stitching, etc.)
My favorite thing to stitch has changed over the years, but I still love designs that blend the primitive with the traditional, and I love it when a project has a bit of text that really speaks to me. I love samplers, but I’ve also enjoyed learning how to make stitching smalls and other ‘practical’ projects.

Why do you stitch?
I stitch to relax, and to have the feeling that I’ve actually accomplished something during my day. Chasing after a houseful of kids and trying to keep the Board of Health from knocking my door down doesn’t really provide a solid feeling of accomplishment most days … but seeing my stitching projects progress does! It’s also a bit of a release for my ‘artistic’ urges.

When is your special stitching time?
I stitch in the evenings, after the kids are in bed. If Niek’s home, he’s usually playing online chess or working, so our living room is comfortably quiet with the two of us happily engaged in our favorite past times.

Where is your special stitching place? (An accompanying picture would be great!)
If there’s still any daylight left, I stitch at the dining table because of the huge window there. However, if it’s dark out, I stitch in the living room beside the brightest lamp we have.

w is for kipling

I started my professional writing career as a newspaper reporter, many moons ago, and of course any news story worth its salt is supposed to answer the Five Ws. Kipling figures in because he made the Five Ws (and one H) famous in The Elephant Child:

I keep six honest serving-men
(They taught me all I knew);
Their names are What and Why and When
And How and Where and Who.

What’s up today? I was on an emotional roller coaster due in part to the weather. The day dawned gray and wet, then it cleared up, and later it began to rain in such a way as to make Noah nervous. It’s still raining. I started my last bookmark for Nordic Needle, tried to find the rest of the Gabaldon series at the local library (they’ve remodeled and I found it quite difficult to find anything), entertained a very full house of children (Nick and Max both had friends over after school), and made dinner.

Why am I emotionally affected by the weather? Why can’t I just disengage from it the way the Dutch people around me seem to? And more pressing, why does retail therapy work?? LOL! I’m still on the wagon, don’t worry, but I did break down and order the next few novels in the Outlander series from bol.com … and felt ever so much the better for it!

When I couldn’t find what I wanted at the library, I poured over the tiny two racks devoted to English-language novels and eventually came out with Lost Souls by Michael Collins and The Seventh Beggar  by Pearl Abraham.

How does reading affect you? I have authors that I love and can count on time after time – like Anita Shreve and Tom Robbins – to deliver a well-written, engaging novel pretty much no matter the subject matter. There are other authors that I like, but who tend to depress me, like Ruth Rendell and Minette Walters. There are authors like Iain Banks, who really make you work for your enjoyment of the novel, but who are also well worth the effort. There are authors like Ann Taylor with whom I can imagine sitting down together to enjoy a cup of coffee. There are authors that fill me with promise, but then make me feel let down, like Carolyn Chute. And there are authors who just make me marvel at their productivity and craftsmanship (as opposed to artistry) such as Stephen King.

Like most people who love to read, I’ve dabbled in creative writing. The stories that rattle around in my head are all placed in New Hampshire and Maine, where I spent my life from about age 6 to 18. We also lived there off and on before I was 6, as my mom’s family all comes from the area on and around Mount Desert Island.  Maine is the where of my heart and imagination. Where do you go, when you wander in your mind?

Who do you like to read about, or write about? Or who would you most enjoy meeting, if it were possible? I’m pretty caught up in Jaimie and Claire’s adventures at the moment, which is kind of unusual for me … I have to admit it’s not a series I’d probably have picked up on my own, but I’m glad Sonya set me on the path!  Generally speaking, I enjoy reading about women such as those who populate Anita Shreve’s novels – adult women who’ve lost something that they’re seeking to replace, or even to identify; women who are intelligent and motivated, aware of the risks associated but unafraid to take them. Hmm. No need for analysis, okay?

Tomorrow is x day and I’ll be covering some cross stitch (xs), which is what this blog is supposed to be about anyway! Till then, wishing you all the best for your Five Ws!

verra fine, lass

Just as I (reluctantly) finish one gift – the very engaging novel Cross Stitch by Diana Gabaldon from Sonya - I received a packet in this afternoon’s mail. Oh goodie! I was rubbing my hands together in delight when I saw that it was from Michelle, but I made myself wait till the kids were in bed before opening it. What admirable self-restraint!

And even then, I opened it slowly, to savor the moment.

I first read Michelle’s card (oh, Dallas looks so pretty in that picture!) and admired the freebies she’d sent – both with a bird theme. And then I finally allowed myself to open the gifts. Oh, Michelle! You’ve spoiled me silly! I feel like it’s my birthday!!

The charts are from Blackbird Designs, and I do indeed love them! The needlebook/threadkeeper is My Pink House, and Bluebirds Needles & Pins is the chart used for the pincushion. The needleminder and wee fob are over-one excerpts from My Pink House. Charming, don’t you agree? And here’s a view of the inside.

I love the way she’s finished the inside. I love it all! Such me designs, and such attention to detail! Michelle, I’ve already displayed them in my cool little zinc “pail” that holds my sweet smalls that I don’t display hanging from the Wall of Smalls.

Oh, today’s letter was v and I’ve cheated a bit by using it for verra fine. That Scottish accent is contagious!

 

try, try again

A concept that’s such an ingrained part of my character … partly through hearing my parents say it approximately one million times during my childhood and partly soaked up through stories and books I read … t is for try, try again.

The hand embroidery didn’t go quite as well as I’d hoped yesterday, but I was determined to personalized Rowen’s hand-me-downs to her taste. After the jeans, I tried my hand at a gray pullover – what better than a snail, which is my darling daughter’s favorite beast? This picture still shows the remnants of my “magic” fabric pen, but Rowen snatched the shirt away from me before I could properly iron it (which removes the pen marks). She is sleeping in it now…(and no, it is not a pajama – LOL).

Then I tried another pair of pants, but before beginning, I pulled out a very old embroidery book to see if I could glean any extra tips. The book was part of my first-ever eBay purchase, just as an odd side fact. It’s in Dutch so I can’t provide the correct English names of the stitches. Anyway, I tried the chain stitch differently, as diagrammed in the book, and all of a sudden, it worked! I’ve added an extra holding stitch to the flowers because this is children’s clothing and will be worn rather roughly. Here’s a closeup of one of the flowers (simply a loose chain stitch with a buillion knot center):

And a picture of the embroidery now decorating the area just below the left pocket of the pants (a variation on the chain stitch to create the vine):

The right leg has a row of flowers at the bottom (a Y stitch with buillion knots):

And the shirt that will go with the pants for Friday’s ‘blue’ performance in the school play (a chain stitch with buillion knots):

I also used the hem stitch to create flowers on a green pullover, but I forgot to take pictures of that one and I’m too tired to do it now.

happy earth day!

This afternoon, the kids and I gardened. Finally. Yes, even our neighbor – who usually overlooks my haphazard gardening attempts – came out to to comment that it was about time we got our front yard into shape. The first job was to dig up all the weeds that were thriving, which caused the displacement of one toad, countless snails, and a great many earthworms. Rowen became shepherdess to the snails, lining them up by shell markings and speaking quite sternly to them whenever they broke ranks. I put the earthworms back so they could keep doing their good works. I kept quiet about the toad, after an unfortunate experience Nicky had with a toad or frog at school that resulted in yet another conference regarding his … liveliness. Max trimmed the buxus hedge – I’m not a perfectionist, and I sort of enjoy the wave-like appearance it now has. After everything had been turned over, cleaned out, and levelled, I put in four big lavender plants, two lilacs, one butterfly bush, one rose, and one wisteria. Oh, and one tiny tomato plant – the only one that made it home from the garden center unbroken. I suspect it will happily feed a number of Rowen’s snails. No pictures, as I was far, far, far too dirty to touch the camera. LOL.

 

s is obviously for stitching

I’ve been doing some embroidery as well as cross stitching, though the truth be told, I’ve not been doing very much of either.

The first task has been remedying my daughter’s wardrobe woes. She’s in Friday’s school play, in which the kids all dress up as colors. Rowen was chosen for blue … and is furious about it. “Blue is for boys! The teacher said I have to wear jeans! I don’t want to wear ugly jeans!!” So of course Mama promised to make those jeans pretty. The first pair came out okay, but the second pair I tried to do entirely freehand and that didn’t work out as well. I obviously need to draw the design on first, and then stitch over it. Lesson learned.   I went back to the second pair of jeans and added to the rather sad flowers to try to improve the design and realized that I need new “invisible markers” – mine are getting old and really areinvisible! LOL! As an aside, a nice online place to find illustrations of lots of embroidery stitches is here.

A little tiny bit of cross stitching has been done. So little that I’m embarrassed to show you, so you’ll have to settle for a closeup of the adaptation of Peep, by Prairie Schooler, that I used on a patch to beatify Rowen’s jeans.

I’m not sure what’s going on with my stitching this month. I’ve done so well this year (26 finishes up till now) but all of a sudden, I just can’t seem to get my act together. But hopefully next month will see a change for the better.

S is also for sunshine, something we’ve been enjoying these last few days. Yesterday, Nicky and Rowen made use of the sunshine by honing their biking skills on bigger bikes – Nick gets Max’s old one, and Rowen gets Nick’s outgrown one.

S is also for serious. Here’s our Max, looking serious and solemn (something he’s good at).

And to counteract such a serious photo, s is also for silliness. Here’s a shot of Nicky at this afternoon’s dance recital. His dance class ended today and he said he’d like to sign up for a new one.

And of course, s is for sweet. What can be sweeter than this little fella?

In closing, to answer the Stitching Bloggers question of the week, “What’s your favorite guilty pleasure?”. Hmm. I’m guessing they mean a stitching-related guilty pleasure. I guess in these on-the-wagon days it would be daydreaming about all the things I want to stitch, instead of actually doing something productive with my time. LOL!