another arrival

Have you ever made a selfish gift? I mean, something you know the recipient will like but also something that deep-down, you’d gladly receive, too? That’s what I was busy with last month, LOL. The Plum Street Designs freebie I stitched for Cathi is something I fully intend to stitch for myself. And the Five Birds (an old freebie from Kathy Barrick-Dieter) pincushion I stitched for Anna falls into the same category. I matched some HDF silks to the called-for DMC and stitched it on a piece of 35 ct HDF linen. It’s stuffed with wool rovings to keep her needles sharp & clean.

I stitched this some time ago for an exchange, as well, but that time I just used whatever colors struck my fancy. I finished it as a mattress-style pincushion that time – a finish that I really like, but find awfully fiddly. (The photo’s not the greatest quality, sorry.)

My limited stitching time has been seriously curtailed by the very sticky weather we’ve had. Today was 34 (that’s a bit over 93 F!) and I think I might be melting. But when Annemarie arrived today, we did manage to fit in a little bit of stitching as well as a great lot of chatting. I subjected her to some of my homemade ravioli and foccaccia bread, which she survived. It was great to see her and I hope to make the trek over to her neck of the woods in the near future.

Here’s hoping that whatever the weather where you are, that you’re sitting pretty!

tiny treasures

Yesterday afternoon we were able to take the kids and dogs for a walk in the nearby community “forest” (okay, I’m from Maine and I just cannot call this a forest without cracking a grin). When we left the house, it was overcast and that helped a lot with the humidity, but while we were there the sun came out and it was sort of like a huge sauna. Hot stuff, baby. Anyway, in an ongoing attempt to figure out how to use my new camera better, I decided to take pictures only of special tiny things that came along during our walk. A sampling of tiny treasures.

On the stitching front, HOHRH has been put away for a couple of weeks so I can concentrate on some deadline stitching. Today I worked on our Quaker RR. Fingers crossed I won’t have the miscounting problems that I did with the last round! Dear friend Cathi let me know that her Independence Day gift has arrived – when I saw this freebie, I immediately thought of Cathi. I’m so glad she likes it. I’ve used HDF silks (the Be-series) on 35 ct HDF Bunny Brown linen. It’s backed with Moda fabrics and stuffed with wool rovings to make a humble pincushion. I just love how it came out and fully intend to stitch it again for myself … next year!

I hope your day is full of beauty, big or small!

comfort with cooking and conny

You know how some foods just make you feel good – a friend of mine was wild for Welsh Rarebit when I was younger and that totally freaked me out till I found out it’s just cheese sauce over bread. LOL. I’m very fond of mac & cheese if my Mom or Sara is making it. If I have to do my own comfort cooking, I’d have to say that homemade pasta fills the bill. Last night I made a double recipe of pasta (=1 kilo of raw pasta dough) and used that to make 90 mouth-watering ravioli. It took me most of the afternoon, but it really was worth it.

On a food note, awhile ago Dianne asked me about roasted bell peppers (I believe we were having gazpacho, or maybe I was using the roasted peppers in another soup). It’s a simple thing – just cut your bell peppers into large chunks, put them skin-side up under your broiler, and … well, burn them. Once they cool off, peel the burnt skin off and use the pepper how you want. T’hey’re excellent cut into strips and used in salads & pasta, or puree them for use in a soup. Yum. I don’t like bell peppers very much unless they’re roasted.

Not to make too clumsy of a segue, but spending time with certain friends can be immensely comforting, too. Arden I were happy to spend the morning and early afternoon with Conny at her home. As is always the case, actual stitching never actually got done, but we had a wonderful time talking, showing each other projects, eating, and laughing. Because we’d both had a birthday since the last time we saw each other, some gift-giving was called for. I could finally give this little Marjorie Massey project to its real owner.

 

And Conny thrilled me to bits with this Brite Birds (an older freebie from Kathy Barrick-Dieter) project – how clever is she? This is so gorgeous! It’s hanging by my front door for all to see and admire. She also gave me a bag full of gorgeous floss, ribbon, and finishing fabric that I’ve neglected to photograph (shame on me!) as well as a fun game for the kids that she bought in China. Thank you for a great day, Conny!

Hoping that your day is graced by true friendship!

flowers and leaves and wild-haired women

Sounds like a festival of Bacchus over here, doesn’t it?

I’ve heard from dear Su that she received the little seasonal exchange I sent her. Sadly, it’s our last. I really have enjoyed the seasonal exchanges – this year I had Su as a partner and last year I had Nicki. I have been terribly spoiled! Knowing that Su’s tastes are on the feminine side, but that she also enjoys primitives, I thought this Mary Garry design from Seasonal Mementoes was just perfect. I found a tiny wooden tea box that I sanded, painted pink, and sanded again, then inserted the cross stitched piece (with a little floral Moda border) after lacing it onto a piece of padded matboard. I had a lot of fun making this, Su, and I’ve really enjoyed our year of stitching for each other!

So that explains the flowers and wild-haired women. This little WIP will explain the leaves. And perhaps those other things are either berries or rose hips? Anyway, this is a Marjorie Massey design (Nos Amis les Bêtes) that I splurged on when Lili mentioned that a very good French shop was having a no-shipping-charges sale. I must admit that I was nervous when placing the order because I don’t speak or read French, and the online translator sometimes gives very strange translations. LOL! But it all worked out well, and this ONS would probably become a true favorite if only the language were not such a barrier. This is stitched on 35 ct Peach linen from Vikki Clayton using Irish Blues silk from the Thread Gatherer. It will be a gift, so you probably won’t see it again for awhile…

Thanks for bearing up under my little National Geographic presentation yesterday. Those birds just completely fascinated me. Today I noticed a blackbird going in and out of the section of hedge that had housed a dove, so I guess the doves have moved on. I’d hoped to catch a glimpse of the little ones, but it wasn’t meant to be.  Here’s a picture of the feline responsible for all the hoop-la.

Thanks also for all the super-nice things you said about my productive weekend. I wish they were all like that, but of course then I’d lose my sense of enjoyment and simply expect more. As for the kit so kindly gifted to me by my well-intentioned neighbor, that will hit the posts for Jennifer. Hopefully it’ll catch a strong tail wind and arrive in about 10 days.

keeping busy

Thank you for your kind & supportive comments. You guys are great. I’m keeping myself occupied, assuming that I’ll eventually feel more myself and in the meantime, I may as well get something done.

Max’s birthday gifts have been the ‘biggie’ – his birthday is a week from today, so I thought I better get cracking with the finishing. I’ve stitched him a needlecase/project pocket, a scissor fob (with some DMC scissors he’ll love), and a floss fob (which just cried out for his first experience with Vikki Clayton’s silks), and I found him a hand-carved wooden bead tray (and naturally started him off with some beads and charms). I hope to still stitch a pincushion, but at least these gifts are ready to go. Not pictured are some Silkweaver cuts and a journal for him to track his stitching projects (or whatever he wants to use it for). You’ll notice the bunny theme – the design styles are all over the place, but it was the bunnies that I was going for. Probably he’ll like the Helga Mandl designs (on the needlebook/project pocket) best, but I must say that I loved the floss fob from The Needle’s Content. The funky fob is a detail taken from a 1916 crochet pattern – on the back it says, “Happy 11th birthday, Max!”

There’s also been some Easter activity, both finishing of stitched goodies and a tiny bit of crafting. I have not finished Mary Garry’s Spring Cookies and although I plan to have it done, I’m not going to sweat it if I don’t finish it for this year.  Yesterday, I picked up Rowen’s birth sampler and worked on that for an hour or so instead of Mary Garry. Go where the Muse leads you, right?

And in closing, here’s an adorable (IMHO) picture of Arden enjoy some quality time in the garden with his Daddy after work yesterday.

hopping down the bunny trail

Yay! I have a finishing pile! I’ve been trying to get enough done so that it could qualify as a “pile”. LOL! Thanks to my latest finish, French Bunnies from The Sampler Girl’s Companion Booklet 3, I think I can call this a pile. Albeit a rather small one. Hopefully Spring Cookies will join it by the end of the weekend.

I only ordered Tanya’s latest booklet last night, but when she sent me the PDF (lightening-fast, I might add!), I just had to start  French Bunnies immediately using the goodies that had come in the day’s mail from Vikki Clayton. So this is stitched on 35 ct Bunny Brown using Fagales Chocolate, Cocoa Bean, Haystacks, Spinach Delight, and Fish Pepperika. I like the vintage look it has.  And what a way to enjoy stash when it’s hot off the presses!

Happy weekend, everyone!!

yippee skippee

Su’s exchange has reached her and she’s happy with it – hooray! I love having this year-long exchange with Su, but I’m always very insecure about my choices and finishes for her because she is so insanely talented and because I don’t have that ‘feminine flair’ that so elegantly marks her stitching. But my Prim Fem Sampler Bird, finished with vintage lace and floral backing, was a hit. And knowing that Su (like me) is a huge Brightneedle fan, Mama Bird was also well-received. (I didn’t follow the color scheme for this design, and I omitted the bottom-most part of the design.)

I also finished the Swirly Girls (freebie by Sharon Crescent, 2007) for a breast cancer quilt square. The lady who’ll receive this is wild about flowers, and I thought the blue and yellow color scheme was both restful and cheering. She is currently recovering from a grueling operation, and I can imagine both rest and cheer are important.

This has been a nice family weekend. We celebrated my father-in-law’s birthday with Niek’s siblings, nieces & nephews, aunts and uncles. I especially enjoyed watching Nick and Rowen playing with their cousins – but of course, I’d neglected to bring my camera and therefore have no pictures to share. Lola’s mom and dad were also there, which was kind of fun. Lola is bigger than her mama, and I do hope she’s reached her adult size now.  One big dog is enough – LOL!

Another busy week is looming and I wish you all a most wonderful one.
Thank you for visiting!

sometimes appliances are okay

When we first started living together and I got a trash can for a holiday gift, I firmly explained that household goods and appliances are notholiday gifts. And since then, things have hummed along happily. But our dishwasher died about two months ago and after repeated threats that we were going to revert to eating off paper plates with our fingers, Niek decided that the day after Valentine’s Day was the moment to remove our built-in dishwasher and install a new one. No preparation or anything, so I was busy working but he found two hearty males to help him out with the heavy stuff and as I type this, he’s putting the final touches on the installation. Hooray!  

But this is what my dearest surprised me with on Valentine’s Day.

And this is what I presented him with. (Great backing fabric from Su, with some Moda quilt squares from my stash.)

We’re all stuck with various stages of a cold on this wet, gray day. Thankfully, we had Scooby Doo to cheer us through the afternoon. Other than snotty noses and sore throats, we’re in good condition here at Chateau Chaos – and I hope that all’s well in your part of the world, too!

Edited to add: The sale on a couple of the French magazines fell through, due to the shipping costs, and I’d just like to point out that the special hearts issue and the blue issues are now available if anyone is interested.

exchanges and giveaways

Phew, I can finally post some pictures of something that’s actually finished! I see that Lynn received the Prairie Schooler exchange I sent her, and she says she likes it …. It was a little bit of a challenge, as she seemed to like very soft colors and projects (or so I felt, after browsing her blog) and  most PS designs call for an earthier palette. But I adapted Sow Dry and stitched it with DMC linen threads on a low-count burlap-style linen to create a slightly primitive door hanger, and then ‘girlied it up’ with a strap of vintage lace and some heart-shaped shell buttons. I have to admit, I was pretty pleased with how it turned out.

And if Lynn received this, than I can only assume Roberta received the gift I made her for my 3 1/2 years of blogging un- birthday giveaway. (Or it’s taking the long way around the globe!) I didn’t photograph the extras – I always forget to do that. I believe Nic received her gift packet some time ago, and I hope Deb received hers as well. They certainly were mailed long enough ago. I never did hear back from the 4th winner regarding her contact information, so only three packets were sent and only Roberta’s had a hand-made gift. This is Here Birdy by The Sampler Girl stitched in my choice of OWS threads and finished as a door hanger with a piece of floral ric rack and gorgeous glass buttons made by Karin.

 
On the subject of giveaways, I’ve held a monthly giveaway for the better part of the year (and before that, I frequently had impromptu ones) but … I’m going to stop doing that. I have to go all the way back to September to find any winners who even acknowledged receiving anything. It’s been fun to do, but I’ll stick to special occassions for future giveaways.

Yesterday I really did get back on some sort of rotation, though I tinkered around with my Prim New England Village till 10 pm. I worked on Rowen’s Moira Blackburn birth sampler for a little over an hour. Not an exciting picture, but borders don’t look like much till they’re done (and this design has two!). As this one is now on the 11 inch Q-Snaps, it’ll probably get attention for the rest of the week. Perhaps a week-long rotation would work better for me?

We’ve had a day of white weather – not snow, but something like frost suspended in the air. It looks pretty, and brings visions of the film Anna Karenina to mind. (The BW version with Garbo, I mean.)

Today will also see us all visiting the dentist. I don’t think he likes it when it’s our turn to come – we fill up the waiting room and spill out into the hallway. LOL. Arden thinks its funny because he’ll probably be able to skip this visit, with only 3 teeth.

Wishing one and all a wonderful day!

literary wanderings

I decided to try to keep track of what I read this year – I have the awful tendency to consume books and forget most of them shortly after – so I started a little list in the sidebar. I took the kids to the library this morning and picked up two other novels by John Connolly because I absolutely LOVED The Book of Lost Things.

I’ve also been occupying myself by whipping up a bookmark for The Godsend (aka my neighbor) because in addition to being an angel, she’s also a very avid reader. The bookmark will accompany a book gift certificate – inadequate, I know, but at least it’s a token of my gratitude.

I’m hobbling around steadily better, though I think I won’t be resuming my 30 minute jogging sessions during the next few days. Thank you all for your thoughts, comments, and best wishes!!

And now, I’m off to watch Mary Poppins with the kids! Have a great weekend!!

 

 

Edited to add: I just stumbled across a lovely 12 part “Mystery SAL” (all 12 parts are now available, so it’s not much of a mystery) that you might be interested in at Crown Stitches.