Crazy Challenge Finish #11

Yes, another crazy challenge piece finished! One of my friends asked me earlier this week, "Did you ever think you would finish as many pieces as you have?" My answer was, "No!" When I started this challenge in January, I did it to have fun and I really didn't expect to finish as many projects as I have. There are always new projects that peak my interest and get in the way of finishing those projects that are already started. Can you relate to that? Well, I know for certain that I won't finish all 15 and maybe this is the last one that I will finish, but I have had fun. I really need to get busy now and stitch up some ornaments for the holidays!

Without further ado, here is Crazy Challenge Finish #11!

Tis the Season
Blackbird Designs
from the Joyeux Noel book
36ct Pear by Lakeside Linens
CC Belle Soie

Hope you have a wonderful weekend filled with much stitching!

Tatted Pincushions

Tell me what you think about these...I've been trying to think of a way to incorporate my mom's tatting into a pincushion. She tatted a couple of motifs for me; I tacked them down to some bright colored wool using invisible thread and then made a pincushion using an old zinc lid for the base. As luck would have it, I just happened to have some coordinating trim in bright colors. So, what do you think???

Always Playing Catch-up!

How's it going? I love this time of year. Cooler temperatures, beautiful colors - fall is my favorite season! My mom and I drove to Wisconsin yesterday to visit with some family members at their annual fall "booya". It was a crisp autumn day and the food was delicious. We had a nice time.

I have spent more time reading blogs this past week than I have spend stitching! There are a couple of very tempting sampler projects out there that are calling my name though.

The one that I can't get out of my head is Mary Allen. Terri/Chocolates for Breakfast has it pictured in her blog header; Laurie at Corgi Cottage is working on it and doesn't have too much more to go; Margaret/Days of a Sampler Lover is stitching it too and we know that with her smoking needles she will have it finished in no time; and one more Mary Allen finish - check out Robert's blog, A Gentleman's Samplings. I know I have a lot of projects in the works right now, but how can I resist this one?

I've also signed up to receive the La D Da mystery sampler; I'm just too much of a La D Da fan to pass this one up. I know, I know, I haven't even finished my last mystery sampler yet! I think next year's challenge will be to finish up some of the WIPs I have started this year!

So, while there hasn't been a lot of stitching going on, I do have a couple of pictures to share with you. Remember the quilt top that I shared with you last weekend? I used the scraps to make a table runner. I had some additional fabrics from the same line that I added to it. I used the "quilt as you go" method. It was quick and easy.



And on the stitching front - I'm working on Blackbird Designs Tis the Season. Sorry, I didn't take time to iron it!



That's all I have for you today. Enjoy your day and thanks for stopping by!

What Have I Been Up to Lately?

Well...not much I guess since I haven't posted for quite awhile. I've been stitching, but have also been busy with other things. We're approaching that time of year when time slips by quickly!

Last weekend, as we remembered and reflected on the events of September 11, I decided to stitch up a sampler that has been in my stash for a long time. On that Friday I was reading the weekly newsletter from Attic Needlework and in doing so, remembered that I had this pattern in my stash. Attic Needlework had another version of it in their newsletter; I had the original pattern from BBD. It seemed like an appropriate stitch to mark the occasion.

Home of the Brave
Blackbird Designs
30 count R&R Irish Creme
Victorian Motto Antique Red

I modified my pattern slightly to add "We will always remember September 11, 2001" similar to the Attic Needlework version. On the original pattern, just the year is stitched in this area. I enjoyed stitching this while reflecting on the events of 10 years ago and also while watching the Sunday football games that followed!

I took some time off of work this week and spent some time cleaning my house and cleaning through my stash! Now here's a little secret that I'll share with you...I've always wanted to be a quilter. I love the fabrics -- oh so many colors and patterns and designs to choose from! And there's nothing like snuggling under a homemade quilt! Over the years I've purchased fat quarters and patterns with the idea that I might quilt someday, but not much ever materialized from those purchases.

In late July/early August, my sister-in-law and I visited a couple of quilt shops that were participating in the Quilt Minnesota Shop Hop. Quilt Shops all over the state of Minnesota participate in this two week event and they even have fabric designed specifically to commemorate it! Long story short - I loved this year's fabric - the colors and the designs were right up my alley! I was determined to make a quilt!

One of the shops we stopped at was Rosebud's Cottage in White Bear Lake, MN. Roseanne (shopowner) had designed a pattern using the Minnesota themed fabrics that surely even a novice quilter like me could finish! I've been dying to put the quilt top together and so that's what I worked on during my time off. And, as of this morning, the quilt top is finished!

Barn Square Quilt
Design by Rosebud's Cottage
Fabric by James Meger for Quilting Treasures

I must admit, I had a couple of issues, but I worked through them and in my humble opinion I think it looks great! Once I get it quilted and put the binding on, I'll share another picture.

Well, so that's my update. I hope you are all finding some time to enjoy a bit of stitching (or quilting!) this weekend. Thanks for stopping by!

Labor Day Finish

Sunflower House
Blackbird Designs - Loose Feathers #9
28ct Friendship Blue
GAST Fibers (substituted Endive for Grecian Gold)

The Great Minnesota Get Together

The "last 12 days of summer" (aka known as the last 12 days leading up to and including Labor Day) we Minnesotans get together at our State Fair! Today was Day 11; tomorrow will be the last day of the 2011 State Fair.



When we were young, my brothers and I used to go almost every day to the fair. One of our uncles had a food stand at the fair (he charcoal broiled chicken). As young kids we'd go with him prior to the fair and help get the stand ready - sweeping, mopping, painting, dusting, etc. Once we were old enough, we all worked at the stand too; it was a great way to earn extra money. Many of the same people always came year after year (and some of the fair workers would come several times during the fair) to eat at the stand and you'd get to know these folks pretty well; it was always good to see them again the next year. Once the fair gets in your blood, it's kind of hard to let it go!

Fairchild, the State Fair mascot!

My children are both avid fairgoers too; in fact; my DD was just 3 weeks old when she attended her first fair! My kids haven't gone as often in recent years; while most elementary and middle/high schools in Minnesota don't start school until after Labor Day, many of the colleges and universities start before, so they have been in school and haven't been able to go as much as they would like.

(I don't know who that guy is; darn him for getting in my photo!)

My mom is there every year as she demonstrates tatting at one of the buildings on the fair grounds. She is planning to be there tomorrow and will have gone 10 out of 12 days this year. Here she is with her little tatting display. (She says she's demonstrating tatting, but we think she spends most of her time talking and watching people!)


My family went to the fair twice this year (actually, DD went three times) but today was my first and only fair day. When we go to the fair, we always do the same things. Our first stop is at the Pronto Pup booth just inside the main entrance. We are Pronto Pup snobs -- no corn dogs for us!

My second stop is at the Creative Activities building. My family usually goes off and does their own thing for about an hour or longer so that I can take my time looking at things without feeling rushed. In this building you will find all things handmade - sewing, knitting, crocheting, quilting, cross-stitching, scrapbooking, woodworking, etc., etc. I didn't think there was very much cross stitching entered this year; I'm not sure why. I took a few pictures for you of some of the things that were on display:

Hardanger!

Beautiful stumpwork!

This quilt was made using Minnesota themed fabrics from the 2010 Quilt Minnesota shop hop.

Do you recognize Mary Wigham?
Not sure who entered this, but they did a beautiful job on it!
It was stitched with blue and green color scheme.

More Hardanger!

We ventured all over the fairgrounds checking out displays and collecting free stuff. One of the new foods this year was Sweet Corn Ice Cream; I had mine with the Butter Bacon sauce. It was good - although I probably wouldn't have it again (it just can't compete with the Dairy Building malts!)



We tried lots of other foods - walleye cakes, walleye fingers, egg rolls, chicken on a stick, cheese curds, honey candy, fudge puppies (chocolate covered waffle on a stick). I should have taken more pictures!

One of our "must see" items is the State Fair Parade; it happens every day at 2pm. Many high school marching bands come to the fair to march and perform in the State Fair Parade; on the first Sunday even the University of Minnesota Marching Band is in the parade. Today we had only one high school marching band, from the city of Worthington; there were other musical groups to fill out the rest of the parade. Here are some snapshots from today's parade:

For my flamingo loving friends...

In the words of Smokey the Bear says "Only YOU can prevent forest fires!"

And as the parade announcer says every year "there goes a lot of beef!"

We headed home around 4pm; it had been a long day and the fair was quite crowded with people at that point. It was a fun day. Looking forward to next year's fair!

My Husband's Hobby

Well, since I don't have any stitching pictures to share, I thought I'd show you the project my husband has been working on for a few (actually, several) years. He does auto body work for a living, but his real passion is restoring old cars.

When I met him, he had a 1935 Chevrolet Master Deluxe that he drove around. It was completely restored (with original parts if I remember correctly.) He always wanted to have a 1952 or 1953 Mercury though. With two kids we couldn't afford to have two old cars, so he sold the 1935 Chevy to fund his "next project." One weekend he drove out to South Dakota with a flatbed trailer that he borrowed from work and he brought it home. It had been sitting in a barn for the last 30 or 40 years so it didn't have too much rust on it (but it had a number of dead animals in it!)

So he's been working on this "little" project on and off for the past "few" years and this summer, it's finally driveable. He has spent many Friday and Saturday evenings at various car shows and outings in the Twin Cities and loving every minute of it.

Here's Tim and his 1952 Mercury:



Can you see the green flames that are painted into the front hood? You have to look at it at just the right angle to see them! (Oops, didn't realize you'd see my reflection in the hood too!)



The interior still needs to be done; it's something that he can't do himself, so it will continue to be a "project" for awhile longer. He's having fun though.

Group Project

Each year our Friday night stitching group likes to work on a project together; the group has been doing it for five or six years now, this was the second time since joining the group that I participated. Last year's project involved some elaborate finishing (see this post from last August) and so this year we did something that was a little bit easier to finish.

We chose to stitch the friendship squares from Little House Needlework's Dear Diary series! During the year, we each stitched six of the squares and added our initials in the top corners. When we got together a couple of weeks ago we swapped squares so that we each had a square stitched by one of the other group members. Then we put our boxes together. I wasn't able to be with the group this year when they did their finishing, and I just got around to finishing my box last night.



As you can probably tell from the pictures, each stitcher chose her own color fabric. We laced the designs to matboard and then sewed them together. What do you think, isn't it cute? I love it!




Here are some photos I took of Joan's, Jill's, and Lori's boxes:



And you can see additional photos on Jill's blog and on Joan's blog.

Fun,fun...

Where Does the Time Go?

Poof! Another week gone. I've been under the weather this past week; caught a summer cold and just can't shake it. But I think I'm on the mend now. My mother says I need to rest more. Just can't do it.

This morning my daughter went out to the garden to pick vegetables. We have an abundance of cucumbers, tomatoes, zucchini, and summer squash. I needed to do something with all of them! So, I made creamed cucumbers (little mayo, sugar, and cream on sliced cucumbers and onion)- we'll have this with our supper tonight. Then I baked a chocolate zucchini cake (yum!) I've been grating and freezing the zucchini too so that we can enjoy zucchini cakes later this winter. I also cooked up some of the tomatoes with celery and onion; this will be frozen and then used for chili later this fall and winter. I think we're going to have roasted zucchini and pasta with our supper tonight! Veggie heaven. (I should invite Joan over - ha, ha! She doesn't eat vegetables!)

Did any of you watch the premier episode of "The Pioneer Woman" on the Food Network Channel this morning? My daughter and I watched and we quite enjoyed it. I think that I will be making the chopped tomato salad for dinner tonight too (gotta use up those tomatoes!) It looked delicious! I'm going to have to visit her blog more often.

Believe it or not, I have another finish to share with you. I haven't felt like doing much with this cold, but I did get some stitching done. Let me introduce you to Crazy Challenge Piece #10!

Quaker Medallion Sampler
C Street Samplerworks (Ruth Ann Russell)
36-count Summer Khaki
DMC Fibers

It was a joy to stitch. I have another one of Ruth Ann's pieces in my WIP pile that I need to get back to (I Sigh Not for Beauty). I really like her designs.

A week ago, I had the opportunity to sing the National Anthem with a group from work at the Minnesota Twins baseball game at Target Field. What an awesome ballpark. On this particular evening they celebrated Jim Thome's 600th homerun (which he hit at an away game a few days prior.) Unfortunately, this was also one of Jim's last games as a Minnesota Twin (he was picked up by the Cleveland Indians this week.) Here are some photos from the ballpark that night...








The last photo is of Joe Mauer of course!

And for anyone who might be interested - here's a link to the National Anthem that night. Let me tell you that it is an awesome experience to sing our National Anthem in a ballpark like this. We stood behind home plate. Gave me goosebumps!



Before I go...my thoughts and prayers are with my stitching friends on the East coast. Stay safe!

Crazy Challenge Finish #9

Happy dance time! On Sunday night, I finished this sampler from Heartstring Samplery. Poppy Maye is one of Jenny Bean's friends. This sampler appealed to me the minute I first saw it. I like the dark linen and the floss colors. I was so excited to stitch it that it was the first Crazy Challenge piece that I started on January 2. It took me awhile to finish it though; those alphabets were tedious! But, she's done now. I can't wait to get this beauty framed.

Poppy Maye Russell
Heartstring Samplery
35ct WDW Cappuccino linen
WDW fibers

You know, when I started the Crazy Challenge in January, I didn't really think that I'd get all 15 pieces finished - and I still won't, BUT...it sure has been fun working on these pieces throughout the year! I hope to finish at least one more (or maybe two). It's that time of year though when I start thinking about the holidays and I need to start working on ornaments and such for gifts. We'll see how things go.

That's all I've got for you today!

Framed!

Before we left on our trip I posted a photo of this finish; I took it in for framing just before we left. It was finished when we returned, but I didn't dare post another photo until now. This was a gift for some very special friends. My mom and my children go to their cabin for a few days every summer. They have a blast boating, swimming, four-wheeling, sitting around the campfire, and playing cards. Each year they take a "thank-you" gift along; it's always my job to come up with the appropriate gift. This year I stitched this design for their cabin. My mom and daughter visited them last week and gave them the sampler so now it is safe to post!

Tall Pines
Little House Needleworks
32 ct Summer Khaki
CC/WDW/GAST/DMC (as charted)

We Resume Our Regularly Scheduled Program

This is a stitching blog after all. And, while I thoroughly enjoyed sharing our trip to Austria and Hungary with you, it's time now to get back to the business of stitching! (I did find some more pictures of the Hövej embroidery though which I will share at the end of this post...)

Let's start with a finish! Since arriving home I had time to work on this patriotic design that has been in my stash forever. The pattern calls for this design to be stitched one-over-one; you all know how much I LOVE stitching one-over-one (NOT!) I switched out the linen for 36ct Summer Khaki and stitched the design two-over-two. Since this linen color is a little darker, I had to make some adjustments to the floss color for the sheep, but otherwise, it is stitched as charted. Without further ado, here is "Flag Day" from With Thy Needle and Thread!

Flag Day
With Thy Needle and Thread
36ct Summer Khaki
DMC Fibers

Last week and this week the quilt shops in Minnesota are hosting their annual Quilt Minnesota Shop Hop. What makes this event particularly fun, is that every year there is a line of fabrics designed with a Minnesota theme. Click on the link if you would like to see this year's fabrics.

Over the weekend I took time to visit some of the shops in the Twin Cities. I've dabbled a little bit in quilting, but never have completed a large project. I bought some fabric this weekend and am going to attempt to make a quilt. Will let you know how that goes!

I found a few more photos of the Hövej embroidery that I didn't share with you on my initial post (The Embroidery of Hövej, July 27). Here a few more pictures for you to enjoy.

One afternoon we had lunch at the home of one of my mother's cousins. She had the panels inside her china hutch lined with Hövej embroidery.

Then, in another room, she had another hutch and each shelf had edging that was made from Hövej embroidery. Isn't it beautiful? (Sorry for the reflection.)

Notice how each circle is filled with a different design. (Click on the photo to make it larger.)

We enjoyed a beautiful today; temperatures have finally cooled down a bit. We cleaned up our garden a little bit; pulled some weeds, picked cucumbers and yellow squash. In a few days we are going to have a boat load of tomatoes (as soon as they all turn red!)

That's all I've got. Hope you have a fabulous week. Do some stitching!