My Mary Wigham is DONE!

It's party time! I finished Mary Wigham last night. This morning I checked it for missing parts since multiple page charts seem to promote omissions for me. I only had to add one stitch and I only found one "personalization" (doesn't mean there aren't more). But I decided to leave it. I spent so much effort to not fix the errors in the original, I decided to leave my own for others to find.

I hope everyone else has as much fun stitching this as I did. And so far, everyone in my family whose seen it wants it. Not gonna happen. They can fight over it after I die!

Now I just have to put together the next project. In the meantime, I'm going to work on a UFO for a few days.

Tweet

Early version of Fabulous Friday

I won't be able to post tomorrow so I thought I'd bring you an early version of Fabulous Friday. Here are some of my new favs on Etsy.

I just love the colors and design of this scrap caddy from thequiltingattic . But I'm a sucker for blue and teal.

This great Knitting project bag from lauraatblacksheep is so clever. It makes you want to start a new project.

This strawberry Hanging pillow from bethanderson is stunning. (I love the new watermelon one too!)

These precious little cupcake needlecases from pinkyandboo will charm your stitching friends and keep your needles handy.


So check all of these out and find your own on Etsy.

Tweet

Ready for Part 9 of Mary Wigham

I told you I get obsessed when I get close to the end! I really need to get to work on some beading, but I can't stop stitching. (Sorry about the color. I was in the shade and forgot to change the settings on the camera.)

Tweet

Mary Wigham is Getting Close!

I told you I was going to spend more time stitching this week and I have. Frankly, I needed to be in my "happy place" as DH calls it. I've been in a real funk for several days and I don't know why...unless it's that old woman's face I see in the mirror every morning that is scaring me to death. When did I get so old? Maybe I just need a haircut. And maybe some color. Maybe a face transplant.

Anyway, back to my happy place. Mary Wigham is really moving now. I'm about a week behind the downloads so I should be done in a couple of weeks.So I find myself planning my next project. Those of you (most of you, I'm sure) who work on many projects at once are saying, "yeah, so what?". Well, I am a one-project-at-time girl, so when I get close to the end of a project I start putting the next one together. Because heaven forbid that I put down the needle on one piece and not have a needle ready to thread for the next piece. Don't laugh. You know exactly what I mean!

But it's a daunting task. I have so many things in my in-box. It's July already and I haven't had the Christmas panic attack yet. DH has mentioned it several times. I really need to make the list and figure out if I'm stitching new stuff this year or pulling stuff off the wall. Don't give me that look. My sisters are thrilled to get stuff off my wall. They already have their initials on what they get when I die. And it's not like I don't have enough to choose from. I have 34 samplers hanging in my dining room alone. (As you can tell, this is only a partial view. If I step back any farther to take the pic, the chandalier gets in the way.)I have about 40 pieces on loan to my local needlework shop. The rooms in my house are decorated according to the style of needlework hung in each one. The problem with giving away the ones on my walls is that I don't really want to part with them!

Back to my in-box...I haven't completely decided what I"ll work on next, but I'm pretty sure. But you'll have to wait to find out.

Tweet

I Love Pink!

This is one of my favorite needlework accessory sets. I love the rosy pink color scheme with the silver accents. I almost don't want to sell it, but I feel that way about a lot of them. Hopefully, it will find a good home. Each item can be purchased separately, but they make a great set for people who do cross stitch and needlepoint. Great gift too.

Tweet

Squirrels and Hummers

Well, the squirrels were not satsified with devouring my hibiscus. Now they've decided to eat the hummingbird feeders. I assume they're trying to get to the juice, but they've destroyed several bee guards and the pegs the guards are mounted on, as well as some of the perches. So my ingenious DH constructed these cages around the hummer feeders. He's built these cages around all of our seed feeders and they have been pretty effective at keeping the squirrels at bay. Cable-tie engineering at it's best! The hummers adjusted to the cages right away, so at least they're getting fed.

Tweet

Mary Wigham update

Where does time go? I just noticed that I haven't posted here since last Thursday and I can't figure out what I've been doing. I certainly wasn't stitching all that time, as you can tell from my minsicule progress.

Oh, now I remember. I worked Friday afternoon and Sat. (not my normal days) at my local needlework shop, Angelwing Needlearts. And it's embarassing to admit that being on my feet all day one whole day requires at least another whole day of recuperation. I'm pitiful. But I worked hard to get to this sad state!

Anyway, I've also been pinning needlework for a friend. She does her Christmas stitching all year long. So now I have nine pieces on my work table ready to be framed. She's the most active, productive 70+ yr. old I've ever met and I'm proud to be able to do this for her. Her stitching is impeccable and she loves stitching on 32 count linen. So don't fall for that "I'm too old to see that linen stuff". That's why God invented magnifiers!

Time to get off my soapbox. Gonna go pin, then stitch. Maybe I'll make better progress this week.

Tweet

Great Giveaway!

Check out this DipDiddlyDesigns blog post for a giveaway including this great chart from La-D-Da. And the bonus is another great blog to follow!

Tweet

Life Lessons from Someone Who's Old Enough to Recognize Them

The following was written by Regina Brett, 90 years old, of The Plain Dealer, Cleveland , Ohio. "To celebrate growing older, I once wrote the 45 lessons life taught me.. It is the most-requested column I've ever written. My odometer rolled over to 90 in August, so here is the column once more:

1. Life isn't fair, but it's still good.
2. When in doubt, just take the next small step.
3. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone...
4. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends and parents will. Stay in touch.
5. Pay off your credit cards every month.
6. You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.
7. Cry with someone. It's more healing than crying alone.
8. It's OK to get angry with God. He can take it.
9. Save for retirement starting with your first paycheck.
10. When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile.
11. Make peace with your past so it won't screw up the present.
12. It's OK to let your children see you cry.
13. Don't compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.
14. If a relationship has to be a secret, you shoudn't be in it.
15. Everything can change in the blink of an eye. But don't worry; God never blinks.
16. Take a deep breath. It calms the mind.
17. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful.
18. Whatever doesn't kill you really does make you stronger.
19.. It's never too late to have a happy childhood. But the second one is up to you and no one else.
20. When it comes to going after what you love in life, don't take no for an answer.
21. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, save it for a special occasion. Today is special.
22. Over prepare, then go with the flow.
23. Be eccentric now. Don't wait for old age to wear purple.
24. The most important sex organ is the brain.
25. No one is in charge of your happiness but you.
26. Frame every so-called disaster with these words' In five years, will this matter?'
27. Always choose life.
28. Forgive everyone everything.
29. What other people think of you is none of your business.
30. Time heals almost everything.
31. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.
32. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.
33. Believe in miracles.
34. God loves you because of who God is, not because ofanything you did or didn't do.
35. Don't audit life. Show up and make the most of it now.
36. Growing old beats the alternative -- dying young.
37. Your children get only one childhood.
38. All that truly matters in the end is that you loved.
39. Get outside every day. Miracles are waiting everywhere.
40. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else's, we'd grab ours back.
41.. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.
42. The best is yet to come.
43. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.
44. Yield.
45. Life isn't tied with a bow, but it's still a gift."

I couldn't decide my favorite, but I'd love to know yours and why.

Tweet

Beaded Scissor Fobs and More!

It's been a while since I show you what I've added to the Etsy shop. And guess what? There are even more on the work table! I love my job. Some have matching counting pins. And, of course, I can always make coordinating pins for the ones that don't have them already.

This black and red combo is pretty funky. Perfect for the UGA alum.

The warmth of this gold and brown set just draws you in.

And aqua and black seems to be a pretty popular pairing lately, so I decided to try one.

And, my personal favorite is the Kelly green and blue set. This has always been one of my favorite color schemes.

Tweet

Mary Wigham weekend

Well, this was the weekend for the July SAL on one of my Facebook groups, so I worked on Mary Wigham all weekend. Unfortunately, there were several unstitching incidents so I didn't get as far as I wanted to. But I am almost caught up with the downloads. Maybe I should slow down so I don't get ahead...NOT.

For those who haven't seen it before, I'm working on 36 count Flax linen with Splendor 833 (dark green). I may have to go into a third skein...not sure yet.

Tweet

Cross Stitch Letters Bible Giveaway

Are you always looking for a good alphabet for your stitching? Check out this great contest on Violarium's blog. They will be giving away a copy of this great book next week!

Tweet

Fabulous Friday is Back

Okay, so I’ve missed a couple of Fabulous Fridays. It’s been a hectic summer so far. But there are still some great needlework finds on Etsy and I’m here to show you a few more.

For instance, this tatted bookmark from Petitcoeur is absolutely beautiful. It would be great for a Bible or baby album or wedding album.

And this little frog tape measure from Feltmates is so cute you’ll have to hide him from the kids.

And this sweet pink Dogwood pincushion is just precious. Dogwood is my state tree and one of the prettiest spring bloomers you’ll ever see, so I’m partial to this one, but Thedailypincushion has lots of styles from which to choose.

So check out all of these and find your own treasures on Etsy.

Tweet

Mary Wigham Coming Right Along

As I mentioned previously, while visiting my mom, I stitched while my husband played carpenter. So this is where I am on Mary Wigham. I'm still a couple of weeks behind the downloads, but that doesn't bother me. I'm really enjoying myself. I seem to have remembered how to count and therefore gotten over the unstitching binge.

And my husband, the engineer, has turn out to be a pretty good, if slow carpenter! Now the back stoop at my mom's house is large enough to allow you to open the door without stepping down one step. And the steps are wide enough that the old, blind-in-one-dog can go up and down them sideways. Unfortunately, I was enjoying the finished product so much that I forgot to take a picture. Oops. But you get the drift.

Tweet

I Stitch, He Builds...What a Deal!

I hope all my fellow American friends had a great Independence Day and my international friends had a fun Saturday. We are visiting my mom for a long weekend and I'm hoping to get a lot of stitching done while my hubby rebuilds the back deck on Mom's house. What a guy!

We had dinner at my sister's house last night which doesn't sound all that exciting, but they've been in the midst of remodelling hell since last August. This is the first meal they've cooked at home since Labor Day last year! The kitchen is beautiful...still not completely finished, but usable. And you could feed about 40 people in there! Which frankly, doesn't sound like a lot of fun to me, but whatever.

I sold several scissor fobs this week, so in a flurry of activity right before we left home Friday morning, I listed this really funky, eye-catching one. I really love it. The combination of bead styles and colors just fall into place sometimes.

And one sweet lady sent me a photo of her fob on her scissors. I thought that was great.

Well, I'm off to work on Mary Wigham. Maybe I'll have a new picture for you tomorrow.

Tweet

How Time Does Fly

Okay, I don't know what I've accomplished this week, but it's Wednesday night already! How did this happen? I've felt like a cold was coming on all week, but now I think I imagined the whole sore throat, achy thing. Must have been a psychological barrier to productivity.

Anyway, I have stitched some on Mary Wigham. In fact, this week I've done more stitching than unstitching. That's progress, I think. Better than last week. I basically have the top third done. I love it more every day.
I also managed to take some photos and stitch a couple of bookmarks for the Etsy shop. I sold all that I had in stock, so a couple of hours, some perforated paper, and Watercolors and voila! Bookmarks.

I even managed to take some new photos of a needlework accessory set that I haven't listed yet. But I love it so much I'll preview it for you here. Blue and Kelly green is one of my favorite color combinations. I'm not sure I can give this one up.

So now I can add blog to my list of accomplishments, such as it is. Maybe I'll even clean my house tomorrow...nah. I'd rather stitch.

Tweet