Sunday, July 31, 2016

Squeezing in One More Post

Hope you had a nice weekend. The time went by too fast.

I've been working on a small kit from Lauren Sauer...little more stitching left to complete.



I have a busy week ahead of me. Thanks for stopping by.

Thursday, July 28, 2016

Pictures for the Mad Tatter

Mad Tatter......Guess where I was tonight?












It was a great show!

Tuesday, July 26, 2016

Beady Eyes and More

Now my beady eyes look like they are in an "I Dream of Jeannie" bottle. You can see that, right? 😄





Sunday, July 24, 2016

Beady Eyes

I bet you are asking yourself, "What is she up to now?"




Thursday, July 21, 2016

Secret Stitching

I've been busy, but can't share quite yet what I am up to!




Looking forward to a stitchy weekend!

Wednesday, July 20, 2016

A New Technique

So, the sampler for Merry Cox's Stitch, Mend and Mark design is finished with a rolled hem. I have never done a rolled hem before. Easy to execute on 28 count, loosely woven linen. Not as easy to execute on 36 count linen. I did my best. The front side looks fine; back side could be better, but it's done.







I'm going to have to practice this one some more. Or next time I will do the nun stitch!

Sunday, July 17, 2016

Edinburgh Reticule


One more finish for today...Edinburgh Reticule by Betsy Morgan. Includes the reticule, a needlebook, and a scissor fob. Front and back...







Fruits of my Labor

I was able to complete a couple of finishes today. Hooray!

Here's the box that we completed in Spring Green, WI last Saturday during our class with Barb and Alma.




When you remove the box top there is a pincushion in the base. I had stitched most of it on the car ride home. Don't tell Alma, but I had started stitching her initials "AA" instead of my own, "CB!"




We made the pins in class (well, actually, Barb did!)

And here is another Blackbird finish - a pincushion. The design is in their book "With Needle and Thread."



That's it for now!

Saturday, July 16, 2016

Catch Me if You Can

Whew, finally made it to the weekend! The last nine days have been crazy - Stillwater, MN - Madison, WI - Duluth, MN - Atlanta, GA and now back home. I'm catching up on laundry and my household chores, but I must confess, I've already taken a catnap!

Was out in the yard for a little bit. Guess what's for dinner? Green beans and zucchini! I need to make sure I have all the ingredients to make a zucchini chocolate cake tomorrow.




And look at these beautiful flowers! This first plant we call a "balloon flower." The Mad Tatter has several of these plants along the side of her house. The hydrangea is starting to bloom too. What do you think my favorite color is?










I know you visit this blog for my stitching updates; there hasn't been much stitching going on in my world lately, so how about some finishing? I sent some La D Da prices off to the fabulous Faye and got them back recently.

Here's Birdy Stitching Roll...










Next up, Basket Weave Needle-Keep...








Here's the front of the Basket Weave Needle-Keep along with my favorite, Garden Maiden...









While I do a fair amount of my own finishing, sometimes it's fun to have someone else do the finishing (then I can stitch more!). Faye does a fabulous job!

Did someone mention catnap? I think I need a couple minutes of shut-eye and then I must get back to work.

Thanks for stopping!

Monday, July 11, 2016

Duluth and Lake Superior

After my one day fling to Spring Green, I'm back with the Mad Tatter and we traveled with our Austrian family members up to the North Shore. It's been years since I last visited and I think we all had a really great time!

Here's a picture tour...

Canal Park and the Lift Bridge






The Maritime Museum...


Then we traveled up past Two Harbors to Split Rock Lighthouse!












So peaceful...



On to Gooseberry Falls...









And we finished off our day at the infamous "Betty's Pies." Their Bumbleberry pie was delicious!



We had such a great time and so many good laughs!

Sunday, July 10, 2016

Jam Packed Weekend!

We are in the midst of a jam-packed weekend! We have relatives in town from Burgenland, Austria. We haven't seen them for five years; Reinhard spent three months here back in 1991. He was happy to visit again with his wife and daughter.




On Friday, we started our day in Stillwater, MN with a Paddleboat ride on the St. Croix River.










It was beautiful on the river.

After our cruise, we headed to the Mall of America - they just had to see it!









On Friday night, Reinhard went to a baseball game with my mother and the ladies went back to their hotel to catch up on some sleep.

On Saturday, our guests spent the day with my mother, in and around St. Paul. My friend Chris and I made a quick trip to Spring Green, WI for a class with Barb and Alma with Blackbird Designs.




The Country Sampler in Spring Green hosted the event.

It was great to see Barb and Alma again. Our project was a round cylinder box which holds a pincushion. Forgot to take a picture!

Here's the original sampler that the project is based on.







Look at these fun sewing boxes they made!






Lots of beautiful eye candy.







It was a great day!