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.

Happy New Year's Eve!

My final project for 2006 is a scarf and glove set for ME! Just using up the yarn remnants from my Mom's afghan (it is so warm & cozy). Couldn't decide whether to knit or crochet so I knitted the scarf, added a crocheted edge & crocheted the gloves.

While at Michael's yesterday getting linen & floss for my first cross stitch project of 2007, I picked up these goodies. DD#2 wanted her gloves in red & black. That child loves bright colors - so I found a combo. The 50% off coupon from last week's paper was burning a hole in my pocket so I finally picked up the Weekend Knitting book that was on my Christmas list. Most importantly I have all the materials to start "The Baptism" tomorrow. I chose a 28 count creme linen as the background. With any luck, I'll have weekly progress pics to share.


Here's wishing everyone a happy, healthy, prosperous New (stitching) Year!!

Switched to the New Blogger

I made the leap to the new Blogger & I'm liking it. You won't notice much of a change except that I divided up my favorite blogs and added links to other sites where my crafts are showcased. Oh yes, & changed my avatar to reflect my wishes for a happy, healthy & safe New Year for all!

Guess I better get started on my Stitching Resolutions for 2007. In a perfect world, I'd complete one project a month in addition to one year-long "biggie". Unfortunately, I don't live in a perfect world. Will have to settle for spending more time in 2007 doing what I love ........ STITCHING!

Christmas Gifting

Hope your Christmas Day was a merry one. Mine was wonderful - full of fellowship and dining with family and friends. After trying unsuccessfully (over & over & over again) to make the "Fetching" fingerless gloves shown on the left for DD#1, I made a cute little crocheted pair. No matter how hard I tried, couldn't get my knitted stitches tight enough between the double points. The crocheted ones were quick & easy (thank goodness, it was Christmas eve). The yarn is Paton's Nuance - a mohair blend with a gold metallic thread running through it. The gold doesn't show up in the photo but it gave them a nice sparkle. Mirrored the double-crochet pattern in a matching scarf (sorry no pic & DD's gone back home). Was stressing about whether she'd like them but her sister has put in an order for a pair in something "bright & colorful" which is always a sure sign that I've hit on something. Committed to taking a class on how to make socks so one day I can make a pair of the Fetching gloves for myself (y'all know I'm stubborn - can't let it beat me!)

Attention Knitters .....

Run - do not walk - to your nearest Marshall's dept. store. In the clearance section you will find this fantasic book for $3.00!! Yes - $3.00!! It's called Hollywood Knits Style and supposed contains modern designs worn by the stars (Jennifer Lopez leg warmers, Russell Crowe ribbed cap, etc) but who cares - it's $3.00 and has some really great patterns.

I'm sure shoppers were snickering at the crazy lady ooohing and aahing as she flipped through the pages - but take a look at just 2 of the 30 designs contained inside. The "Everything Bag" will be carrying my everything very soon and although these old abs can't sport the "Zip-up Pullover", I'm sure my DD could do it justice. There's also a great "Long Shawl-Collar Coat". My store had lots of copies - in fact, what was I thinking? I'm headed back to get more for my knitting buddies - what a great gift. Happy Shopping!

Ready for the Post Office

Here's my final batch of baby caps for "Caps to the Capital". Will tag and mail them tomorrow so they can get to the Save the Children Foundation before the January deadline. They were really fun to crochet and brought back memories of my babies (now grown) and grandbabies (not so grown).

Putting the final touches on my handcrafted gifts. Don't want to post pics and spoil it for the recipients (you never know who's reading the blog) so I'll post pics after the holidays. Got some much needed help from my Aunt Eunice on how to knit those darn fingerless gloves for DD. Gonna give it one last try & hopefully have them boxed and bowed on Christmas morning. Thanks Auntie........

The Reason for the Season

Twas the month before Christmas
When all through our land,
Not a Christian was praying
Nor taking a stand.

Why the Politically Correct Police had taken away,
The reason for Christmas - no one could say.
The children were told by their schools not to sing,
About Shepherds and Wise Men and Angels and things.

It might hurt people's feelings, the teachers would say
December 25th is just a "Holiday".
Yet the shoppers were ready with cash, checks and credit
pushing folks down to the floor just to get it!

But as Targets were hanging their trees upside down
At Lowe's the word Christmas - was no where to be found.
At K-Mart and Staples and Penny's and Sears
You won't hear the word Christmas; it won't touch your ears.

At the top of the Senate, there arose such a clatter
To eliminate Jesus, in all public matter.
And we spoke not a word, as they took away our faith
Forbidden to speak of salvation and grace.

The true Gift of Christmas was exchanged and discarded
The reason for the season, stopped before it started.
Choose your words carefully, choose what you say
Shout MERRY CHRISTMAS, not Happy Holiday.

Artist: Johnny Myers - The Only Solution

Holiday Cheer

I know I've been AWOL for quite a while. On the downslope of my mission to complete one handcrafted item for everyone on my gift list. Things were going really well until I started these fingerless gloves for oldest daughter. I've seen them on a couple of blogs & their real claim to fame is that it should only take a weekend to whip up a pair. I've never knitted gloves or socks but sheesh - it can't be as difficult as I'm making it (Am I really supposed to knit with 3 needles?). I've read through the directions countless times and have started and stopped just as many times. Gonna go to my "how to" books to decipher what I'm supposed to be doing. Hopefully in time for DD to get these at Christmas (lol).
In the meantime, got some great stash this weekend. First, I'm at my favorite Dollar Tree store and there on the bottom shelf is Lion Boucle!! I cannot pass up $1 yarn but I did limit myself to 8 skeins (how's that for willpower?). Next stop - Michael's - where I was supposed to be just grabbing a small circular needle to make hats for the grandbabies. But the Bernat Matrix was shouting at me: 2 skeins for $4.00!! What's a girl to do? Of course, buy it.......
I know it looks like I've forsaken my favorite pasttime - cross stitch - but don't be fooled. The cold weather here in VA has me hibernating so there's a little bit of everything going on. The new year of course will bring new projects and I've decided to tackle "The Baptism" from Green Apple Southern Roots series. It's 239 x 140 stitches - large by my standards. I'm looking for the just the right linen cause the colors are so muted & it's definitely one that I'll keep for myself. Happy stitching, knitting & crocheting to all. Be back soon........