Been Gone Too Long

It's August already? Summer has been fantastic.

My master plan includes opening a gift shop after retirement (featuring handcrafted inventory - of course!) and I've been blessed with an opportunity to try some things out. A friend has a beautiful, quaint giftbasket store & offered me display space in exchange for marketing/advertising advice & running the shop on Saturdays. Definitely a win-win situation for both of us. Here are a couple pics of the shop - isn't it great?






The best part of the whole deal is that every Saturday I take along projects to work on when I don't have customers (lol), so I'm consistently crafting! My display will focus on cross-stitched handtowels, pillows, bookmarks, ornaments, and framed pieces along with handpainted figurines, angels & santas that I love to do. Figure I'll be ready to setup the display shortly after Labor Day so stay tuned for pics.

In the meantime, I've finished the back of the Beachcomber Tunic and most of the left side. Here are my progress pics....

Tunic Progress

Almost at the back neckline of Beachcomber - then on to the crochet bottom edging......yeah!! It's been ages since I've completed a sweater and can't remember making one for me. Consistently made sweaters for my girls as they were growing up, but you know the story...... by their teen years they preferred sweaters, caps & scarves from Gap, Old Navy & Guess to handcrafted "Mommy Gear". Now that they're grown, I have a long list of requests. But they'll just have to wait in line!

Beachcomber Tunic

I have my own little min-rotation going. Splitting my time between knitting the Beachcomber Tunic from Interweave Crochet's spring issue and cross stitching M Designs Rejoice Tree ornament. Here's my progress pic of the tunic back. Excited to finish the knitted part so I can see how the crochet edging will complement it. I'm substituting the recommended yarn with Crystal Palace's Cotton Flamme. Loving the texture!

Y'all know I love a sale & what could be better than something knitted on sale. I picked up this Cable Knit Hobo Bag from Old Navy today. On clearance - it was $8.99! I couldn't knit one for that price. We're talking fully lined with wallet & cell phone compartments. The strap is short but perfect to carry around my projects. They carry it online (it's on sale there too) & it's made from a combination of paper straw & cotton - whatever....... it's sturdy.

I finally have a couple of days off, so I'll be back with pics of Rejoice ornament as soon as I finish a couple more letters.

Stitching Cruise

Stitchers Aweigh Cruise - Sponsored by Accents, Inc (New Orleans LNS).
October 11 - 15; Sailing from New Orleans to Cozomul, Mexico on Carnival Cruise Line.
Stitching Room available during the day.
Goodie bags, fun & surprises throughout the week.

PACKIN' MY BAGS!...............

WIP & Stash

Killing 2 (or 3) birds with one stone last week - traveled to New Orleans for business, visited with daughter & attended Essence Festival. Suprisingly enough I actually worked on my Rejoice Tree (thanks to a 3 hour flight delay). It's coming along nicely & I can't wait to add the seed beads to make it sparkle.

Of course no trip to New Orleans is complete without an excursion to my favorite home-away-from-home LNS Acadian Corner. In addition to the new Mirabilia Design "Daisy" (is it just me or does the absence of facial features seem weird?), I picked up a 28 count opalescent raw linen, a hand dyed jobelan called "Thyme" (beautiful with the Dark Forest Silk 'N Colors floss), a lilac linen & a sandstone linen. And for my angel fix, I picked up Lizzie Kate's "Angel's Work" chart.

Even managed a quick trip to the local Michaels. Headed straight to the clearance section where I got a small project organizer ($7) & floss keepers ($2). Not long ago I stocked up on those photo totes from Bed, Bath & Beyond - not knowing what I could do with them - but hey they were $3.99!! Well, spotted the 14 count perforated paper & the lil lightbulb came on: why not stitch inserts instead of using pics? Maybe a small angel & inspirational words or something. Sounds like a plan!!!!! Hopefully I'll finish the tree by my next post............. happy stitching y'all.

The Big 50

Yesterday was my 50th birthday and as many have attested - it's a major milestone. I'm blessed to believe this is the halfway mark of life & I have much to be grateful for:




- My girls are grown and living on their own;
- I have 2 intelligent/healthy grandkids;
- my Mom is retired and living carefree;
- I am in good health and my faith is strong.


I also have much to look forward to. I finished reading "50 Things To Do When You Turn 50" and was very moved by the following excerpt:

"For a woman turning 50, the challenge is to move beyond living for and through others and focus more on oneself. If you have spent the first five decades of your life graduating from being someone's daughter to being someone's girlfriend to being someone's wife to being someone's mother and then grandmother, this can be a joyous time of discovery - a time in life to figure out what it would mean to be someone in your own right. You are not being selfish or irresponsible; you are reaching for wholeness."

I am sooooo ready for the next 50 years!

Rejoice

Actually have a couple of reasons to rejoice.

First, here's the framed piece I did for my mom. Couldn't believe the frame was on sale at Target for $2.58....... what a bargain & how perfect for the piece! I gave it to her for Father's Day (she was the initial Supermom for brother & me). It's very special cause it signifies she has a new home - not just a new apartment.

My second reason to rejoice is my current linen project. I've started M Design's REJOICE ornament tree. Chose a hand dyed linen - 28 count - from Acadian Corner in Metairie, LA. I've completed the first E stitching "over 1" instead of "over 2" - something else new for me but I'm loving it. Somehow it seems easier on the hands (but not on the eyes). I promise I'm moving away from the earthtones for my next project, but hey - that's what always catches my eye.

Please take as minute to jump over to my friend Crystal's new blog & welcome her. She's new to blogland but not to stitching.........

At Last.....A Happy Dance

All I needed was the feel of the needle in my hand to get my mojo back. This is a freebie from Glory Bee Designs completed on Heatherfield White Birch. Sorry couldn't get it placed straight on the scanner but you get the idea. Will mat & frame it this week as a gift to my mom who just moved to a senior retirement community after living in the same house for 33 years. We thought it would be traumatic but she's settling in very nicely. Between the jazzercise classes, bid whist card games, parties & picnics - her social calendar is more full than mine. Enjoy it mom - you deserve it.

On to the next project!! By the way - time just flew by! My one year blog anniversary was at the end of May........ don't even remember stitching life before the blog.

Worldwide Knit In Public (WWKIP) Day

June 9th is WWKIP Day. You can go here WWKIPDAY to get all the details but hey - who needs details????? Just do your thing!

I plan to spend most of the day manning my friend's giftshop so what better way to spend the downtime than working on the tunic that I've been neglecting.

In other stitching news, last week I actually picked up a needle & linen and started a quick stitch project. It felt so good to get back to something I love so much. Hope to have pics real soon.

Knit & Crochet Happiness

This is one of those times I'm happy I learned to both knit and crochet. The spring issue of Interweave Crochet has this beautiful summer tunic that is a combination of knit with crochet edging.

Think I'll use the Crystal Palace Cotton Flamme yarn I bought awhile ago. It's a beautiful coral color that will look great for spring. Of course that means I have to finish it in time to wear for spring............

Tonight was the Stitch-N-Pitch baseball game sponsored by the Washington Nationals MLB team. I bought my ticket months ago with high hopes but wasn't able to leave work in time to attend. What a great concept: bring you needlework project (cross stitch, embroidery, knit, crochet, etc) and stitch the night away during the game. If anyone is familiar (they supposedly have them scheduled all across the country), please let me know how it went. Maybe I can travel up the road for Stitch-n-Pitch with the Orioles.

2007 Avon Walk for Breast Cancer

Although this deviates from my normal stitching-related posts, it ends a very busy chapter in my annual commitments which now frees my time to get back to stitching - so here goes:

3,000 Walkers + $7.4 million = One Great Weekend!!!

I survived the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer this past weekend. One of the best ones yet. D.C. broke its record for the most participants & the highest dollars earned since the beginning of the event. This is my 5th year participating – each of which I say is my last – but truthfully, it’s probably not. At this stage of life, I am so blessed and it feels good to be part of something bigger than myself, and that I’m helping someone, somewhere, get the treatment they need & maybe can’t afford. If that means I have to walk a little gingerly for a few days & soak my feet a little more often – so be it. I say THANK YOU to everybody who supported me financially, emotionally, spiritually or otherwise. A special thanks to Bill, who’s always there to pick me up from the finish line when I don’t think I can take another step - and my girls, Jaimee and Janelle, who always check on their mom & promise that next year is the year they’ll join me (I’m still waiting)……..

The Saturday morning journey began at 6:30 a.m. at the Kennedy Center with emotional speeches from survivors. Once the show of hands begins from survivors; then family & friends who have been affected; and finally those who just want to see a cure – there is a joining of hands in solidarity………. They have you hooked for the entire 39 miles cause you can feel why you’re there! The first year I participated, the biggest show of hands was for a cure – now the biggest show of hands is from family & friends that have been affected.

Saturday’s 26-mile walk took us through Arlington, Georgetown, Embassy Row, Bethesda, Chevy Chase and ended in Silver Spring. For those of you from this area, that included the dreaded hill up to Sibley Hospital (somebody’s idea of a joke I’m sure). The rain held off until we were into mile 23 which was great because by then your feet are tired & your muscles are so sore you don’t notice a bit of rain (lol). Those last 3 miles of Day 1 are always the hardest for me so I tend to slip into my zone. That’s so I don’t hear all those folks at the cheering stations who have good intentions by saying “Just a little further” or “Right around the corner” when you really have miles more to walk. My tentmate arrived in camp before I did so the tent was already up - wahoo. After a hot shower, hot cocoa, green chili enchiladas (you don’t even wanna know), and a final rubdown with Icy Hot - I was tucked into the sleeping bag by 8 p.m. Slept like a baby until around 6 a.m. when I heard other campers rambling around. Wish I had stock in that Icy Hot cause after layering up for the chilly morning weather, I started out strong on Sunday. With only 13 miles to go, we headed back into D.C. via the Sligo Creek trail, Piney Branch Road and 16th Street. Once the sun came out & the day heated up, we were doing a walking strip tease. The cheering stations ranged from Girl Scout troops, to sorority sisters (Delta Gamma Rho – I think), to oncology nurses and included residents from an assisted living facility who passed out pink scarves. Food & Friends provided lunch on Day 2 and also had groups along the route passing out fresh-baked chocolate chip & sugar cookies. Very inspiring! The final block before the Kennedy Center was lined on both sides with cheering family, friends, volunteers, & crew.

Been Such A Long Time

Wow - have not posted progress pics in soooooo long. Seem to have lost my cross stitch mojo - lots of charts I want to start or finish but no motivation to just do it. Between a new job, training for the walkathon, relocating my mom, & all the stuff inbetween I can't seem to concentrate on detailed work. But I haven't abandoned needlework completely. Every night I manage to stitch at least 2 rows on the "plain Jane" afghan while I catch the late night news. It's now looking like this:

Really big & heavy.......... I'm on the last skein of cream yarn before starting the edging. Since the cold & wet just won't quit here in VA - I may get some use out of it yet this season.

A few weeks ago my brother gifted me with some great shelving units. With help of some vibrant cubes from Target & lots of file boxes & book/magazine organizers from ABC Distributing, my office & craft space looks really cool. check it out - even my yarn stash has a place.

Keeping the faith that life will slow down soon & my mojo will return with a vengence. Happy stitching to all!!!

Stash Delivery

Finally, finally, finally......... the rest of my reward stash arrived yesterday from Little Knits. It's Crystal Palace Cotton Flamme. The Cornflower Blue is what I plan to use for the remake of the Sampler Afghan and the Key West Coral will make beautiful spring sweaters. Must not get distracted - I already have so many stitching (cross stitch & knitting) projects in heavy rotation but life keeps getting in the way. I made a resolution this year to do some type of stitching every day - even if it's only one row at bedtime. That's how the blogs have spoiled me - I so admire the ladies that manage to do it everyday..........

But the weather has finally broken (I hope) and I must pump up my training for the next Avon Walk for Breast Cancer. May 5 and 6 will be my 6th walkathon & I'll be following it up in October with the Avon Walk in New York.

Stash Reward

I blogged about reaching my Weight Watcher goal a couple of months ago. Well, last Tuesday, I reached Lifetime status by maintaining my goal weight for 6 weeks. This means I can now attend any WW meeting, at any time, at any location - free! Huge incentive for me since I've been paying those folks for years. Any who......... to celebrate (without food) I decided to go on a needlework-stash-buying-binge. I am so excited - my first order was delivered today & boy was it a doozy!!!!!

As you can see lots of my favorite things - angels - as well as the rest of M Design's tree ornament series, an adorable baby in prayer, & a really cute cross stitch collector design that reads "..... A stitcher's passion is her pattern collection". All my goodies were ordered from 1-2-3 Stitch (saw it listed on another bloggers site). Great selection, really great prices, and obviously speedy delivery. I now have enough stash to keep me going until the end of time, but this was only my first delivery. I'm waiting on some gorgeous Crystal Palace yarn to start my spring knitting projects....... should be delivered by Monday. Needlework played such a large part in my weight loss journey - it only seems proper that I show my appreciation (lol)

WIP & Stash

Here's progress on the second block of the Sampler Afghan. It's the Little Shell Stitch. Haven't received my new yarn so continue to chug away at the blah-blue. Saw a post asking for local donations of afghans for the homeless, so when I finish this one, it's headed that way. BTW, isn't the basket beautiful? Found it on clearance at Marshall's for $7.00. Great way to carry my projects upstairs & downstairs. Also treated myself to a trip to my LNS/LYS - In Stitches Needlework. Stopped in for silk floss for M Design's "Cherish" Tree Ornament chart. They had a few more of the designs, so I got the "Rejoice" and "Peace" charts. To really torture me, there was a 50% off yarn sale so I got this beautiful 100% wool - Andes (made in Chile). It's shades of gold & olive that should look great as a felted purse or tote. Have never tried felting but have collected some wonderful patterns online. As if that wasn't enough, picked up Lizzie Kate's Santa '04 chart. Have loved it since Sharon displayed hers on her blog. You're probably wondering when I'm getting back to cross stitch........ soon, very soon.

The Sampler

Nope - It's not a cross stitch sampler, but the Leisure Arts knitted Sampler Afghan. I bought the book ages ago with the intention of learning some really great patterns. It contains 60 stitch patterns that you can mix and match to create your own afghan design. Each block is 12 inches and the final piece takes 20 blocks. I finished my first block on the return flight from Houston - the Double Parallelogram. Now I'm on to a pretty Shell Stitch block. If you look closely at the pic below, there are some really great patterns in the booklet. My downfall is that I started using stash yarn. Yes - it's acrylic ; OMG it's baby blue; and there's soooooo much of it! In my own defense: (1) I didn't buy the yarn, it came by way of the yarn fairy; and (2) I didn't expect to like the finished pieces, just wanted something to do to soak up all the excess travel time. So to remedy the situation, I jumped online to the Little Knits site and ordered the Crystal Palace Cotton Flamme in Cornflower Blue (really soft & beautiful).
My first time using the site (saw it on another blog). The 10-skein bundles are a nice option. While I wait for my new (better) stash to arrive, I'll go ahead & use up the baby blue skin-irritant as practice pattern pieces. In the end, maybe I can give it away on my local FreeCycle.

Almost Instant Gratification

What a "quick knit"! Used 4 skeins of Lion Boucle Wild Berries (from the Dollar Tree) to knit up this hat & scarf combo. The subscription to Interweave Knits has my knitting mojo really coming out full force. A handknit sweater is definitely in my future.

But first, I just have to stitch this Waxing Moon Design. Definitely my motto for the grandboys. Headed out to Texas tomorrow on a biz trip so maybe between the airport layovers & hotel downtime I can have it completed before the weekend. Happy stitching to all .......

Quick Trip & New Stash

Spent a few days in one of my favorite places - New Orleans. Beat the Mardi Gras crush but just in time to catch a couple of parades & visit some of my favorite LNS. Number one on my list was Acadian Corner. It's actually in Metairie - just outside of New Orleans but very close to my field office (meaning I can sneak off at lunchtime). Family owned and operated, their selection of charts & precut linens are only rivaled by their friendliness and helpfulness. Was so excited to find the new "What Happens at Grandma's, Stays at Grandma's" chart by Waxing Moon Designs.

My next stop was Accents, Inc. This LNS was a regular for me back when they were Accents In Stitches. Post-hurricane, the owner & her husband have combined businesses so it's a combination art gallery, framing and needlearts shop. Very nice - the stitching side is small but chock-a-block full of goodies. I managed to get both the Cherish & America Tree Ornament charts by M Designs (loving them!) & a beautiful Eloquent Christmas design by ByGone Stitches. I'm so excited at their upcoming events. A stitching day camp in March, a 4-day stitching retreat in June and best of all a 4-day "Accents Stitchers Aweigh Cruise" to Cozomel, Mexico in October. Been to Cozomel before but the cruise is a definite for me just because I can hang with other stitchers - in fact my girls want to treat me as a birthday present - WAHOO. Looks like I'll be making quite a few more trips to the field office in the coming months........

Baby - It's Cold Ouside

Brrrrr .......... it's definitely winter which means I've been hibernating. Not much cross stitch going on but plenty of knitting. Here's my youngest daughter modeling the hat I made for her. Shes's the one who likes bright colors so I used Lion Boucle's Popsicle. Knitted on circulars using about 3 ounces of yarn. Super simple - straight knitting. She likes it so much I'll have to do a matching scarf. Still working on my "Plain Jane" afghan. It's getting big enough to serve double duty as a project & a lap robe.

Super Bowl Sunday

Super Bowl vs. Knitty Gritty - what's a girl to do?? O.k., I'll commit to the squares, but they can't expect me to miss the Super Bowl AND Prince at halftime(lol)!! Looks like a job for Tivo......


DIY Network is playing the field on Super Sunday with its first ever Knit In by encouraging needle arts enthusiasts to knit and crochet for charity. On Sunday, Feb. 4, when football fans are glued to the tube, DIY is challenging all knitsters and crocheters to pick up their sticks and grab some yarn to help kick off the network's commitment to create shawls and blankets for the less fortunate. DIY is partnering with Warm Up America!, a charitable organization dedicated to the creation of handmade blankets, clothing and accessories to help those in need. The 7"x9" squares knit and donated by DIY viewers will be sewn together into blankets, and distributed to women's shelters, nursing homes and daycare centers. For more information on how to participate in DIY's year-long initiative, including a pattern for the square, log on to www.DIYnetwork.com/knit.

Arghhhh!!!

After a couple weeks of stitching, I am really not liking "The Baptism". The model on the chart looks so great but I was suspicious of many of the colors when I picked them out. Sure nuff, why are there green stitches for hair & grey stitches in the skin tones? In my opinion it throws off the design. I am so frustrated!! It will be a major effort to start over after substituting all the weird colors. I'm certainly not up to that right now, so it goes to the UFO pile. I've pulled out the Yoruban Women kit as my next project.

On a much better note, I'm proud to announce that after 4 years on WeightWatchers, I reached my goal weight on Tuesday. I've gone from being an overweight (40+ lbs), fast-food-eating couch potato with high blood pressure to a marathon-walking, soon-to-be-50, fit vegetarian (lol). Biggest lesson has been that it's truly a lifestyle change & not a diet so I look forward to the next 6 weeks of maintenance to officially become a Lifetime member. Oops, forgot to mention how my stitching has helped. Its really hard to snack when you have needle, scissors, crochet hook or knitting needles in your hand. Speaking of which - I'm calling this the "Plain Jane" Super Bowl afghan. No real design or color pallette means I can pay close attention to the game while getting rid of some stash..........

Rewind

One of my favorite projects last year was the Better Homes & Garden's linen heart alphabet. It was my first linen finish and given to my best-sistah-friend for Christmas. I realized over the weekend how I missed seeing it in my finished pile so I began one for my house. Although it was awesome on linen, I decided a pillow worked best for me and I chose Valentine reds as a reminder that it will be done by then. Also stitched a bit on "Baptism". Loving the creme linen background that I chose. It's really making the picture pop.

Always on the lookout for unique frames for my stitching and from time to time Dollar Tree gets some really cool stuff. When I saw this one, the colors from "Skip Rope" came to mind. I now have the perfect excuse to finish another one. Getting into a crazy cycle of liking my finished pieces so much I wanna do them again. Unfortunately that's not helping me work through all these charts I've accumulated.

Retirement just can't come fast enough. Hope you all enjoyed a peaceful and quiet Martin Luther King Day.

Finished Skip Rope

Here's the finished "Skip Rope" from Cross My Heart design's Shoo Fly Pie booklet. I finished her on a Charles Craft Showcase Huck Towel. Very cute........ she's only 40 stitches wide by 70 stitches high so she fit perfectly.

Pampering Knits

I love all my mom's sisters (she has 9 & 1 brother) but I have a special bond with my Aunt E. Not only do we share a middle name, but since my mom has no skill with needlework, I like to think my skills were somehow inherited from my aunt. She is a master knitter, quilter, and crocheter who's creations I have admired since I was a little girl. We can be found in a corner at family gatherings talking about our latest projects or sighing over patterns in a craft magazine. Today I received this special package from her. It is a gorgeous cotton chenille washcloth that she made from a Crystal Palace Yarn pattern. And because she knows me so well she included the pattern & a skein of Crystal Palace's Cotton Chenille in "Spring Picnic". I cannot tell you how soft this washcloth is. Aunt E says the more you use it, the softer it gets. Can't wait to pamper myself and spread the joy by making a few of these as gifts for friends & family.

I got a little stitching done on "Baptism" over the weekend. Just as I guessed, there are lots of "confetti" stitches, so it'll probably be a while until I have a decent progress pic. Still believe it'll be on of my better projects cause it appears to be so detailed. Just hope my crafting ADD doesn't take over & I can stick with it. Definitely don't need another UFO.