I'm a Winner!

Lucky me!  I won ten 20-yard skeins of hand-dyed floss from Nancy at Victorian Motto Sampler Shoppe!  She designs the loveliest Victorian motto charts and has giveaways on her blog all the time!  In fact, she is having another giveaway on April 1st for Alphabet Ornament charts.  Leave a comment on her blog HERE and tell her that I sent you so I'll get another entry!

I also bought these Q-Snap Huggies, handmade by Christine at Christine's Q-Snap Huggies. I'm looking forward to using the Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas designs with my Q-Snaps whenever I'm stitching a design for those holidays. Be sure to tell Christine that I sent you!

I haven't gotten much stitching done lately (surprise).  I skipped an entire weekend of Prairie Schooler designs, when I was supposed to start an April chart and Santa's 2nd Day of Christmas.  Be on the lookout for pics of these next week instead.  There is just too much good TV to watch!

Here's a pic of Teddy today, longingly looking out the window.  He gets his first private dog training lesson today, since he just couldn't get along with the other dogs.  Wish us luck tonight!

Halloween House SAL update #9

Halloween House update #9

What a cute little green goblin peeking out the window! I will stitch the other window and try to do more back-stitching next week.  You can check Linda's Halloween House page to see everyone's progress!  Everyone is stitching a different part of the chart, even though we didn't plan it that way!

Mr. Mittens has a head!

Mr. Mittens update #6

Mr. Mittens the snowman is finally coming to life!  I couldn't wait to see his face!  He is still waiting for his hat, scarf, sweater, and more gloves.  I couldn't get the French knots all the same size for his smile, though.

BBQ Queen update #6

This pretty little lady has her blonde hair and another sleeve on her dress.  I also stitched some white on white for her apron, which was actually enjoyable.  I was dreading that part.

Teddy wasn't very polite in doggy school, so now he will have 5 weeks of private training.  The other dog parents moved to a different class just to avoid him. :-(

Liebster Blog award!

My stitching buddy, Linda, from Stitchin with my Furbabies, just gave me a Liebster Blog award!  Be sure to check out her blog, since she is planning to have 100 new starts this year! 

Here are all the details about the Liebster Blog award:

Liebster is a German word, meaning favorite, dearest or beloved, and the Liebster is awarded by bloggers to other, newer bloggers who have fewer than 200 followers, to spread the word and help the new(er)bies gain wider recognition.  The award comes with four conditions that each recipient must satisfy when accepting:

1.  Choose five up-and-coming blogs (with fewer than 200 followers) to award the Liebster to.

2.  Show your thanks to the blogger who gave you the award by linking back to them.

3.  Post the award on your blog.  List the bloggers you are giving the award to with links to their sites.  Leave comments on their blogs so they know about the award.

4.  Share five random facts about yourself that people don't know about you.

I am giving the Liebster Blog award to these great bloggers:

1.  Adrienne from TryllaCraft (Be sure to check out her Crazy January Challenge page!)

2.  Caitlin (Mangogirl) from Naughts and Cross Stitches (She started a beautiful Jardin Prive sampler!)

3.  Katie from Jeremiah's Mom (Her Happy Holidays WIP is adorable!)

4.  Margaret from Artsy-fartsy. A little bit gutsy... and everything in between (I love the way she writes in her blog!)

5.  Shaunterria from Ca11i0pes Reviews and Stitching News (She stitches beautiful gifts for her family!)

Five random facts about me:

1.  My favorite class in school was Calculus, and I always wanted to work for the Jet Propulsion Laboratory and design spacecraft! I have visited JPL three times and saw the Cassini spacecraft before they sent it to Saturn and the Mars rover before it went to Mars.
2.  I am addicted to competition TV shows, where someone gets eliminated each week.  I watch American Idol, X-Factor, The Voice, Dancing with the Stars, Project Runway, America's Next Top Model, HGTV Design Star, Top Design, Food Network Star, Top Chef, and Face Off (special effects makeup).  I have also watched a show for over-40 models, a hairstylist competition, and a dog grooming show!
3.  I never saw leaves change color in the autumn or snow fall in the winter until I was 25 when I moved to Tennessee.  I lived in TN and AR for 6 years, then came back to Sunny Southern California!
4.  I have visited Europe twice with my daughter, France and Italy.  Then I sent her on a 30-day vacation to 10 countries in Europe after she graduated from college.
5.  I have worked from home as a medical transcriptionist for over 20 years and am very happy to wear pajamas and slippers to work!  I can also cross stitch on company time if there is nothing for me to type!

Now it's time to take Teddy to dog training school.  I hope he doesn't try to attack his classmates (like last week).

Double happy dance! Two finishes!

Hurray! I finished Santa's FIRST Day of Christmas (11 more to go)!  I am stitching all 12 on one large piece of 28 ct evenweave, over 2.  The finished size will be 14" x 22".

"Santa's 12 Days of Christmas" (Day 1)
Book No. 125
Designed by Pamela Byrd Smith
The Prairie Schooler
Started 1/8/2012, Finished 3/13/2012

I also finished the March design in the Spring & Fall booklet.  I plan to display a different one each month, either in a frame or made into a hanging ornament.  Only 11 more to go!  Someone gave me three pieces of cross stitch fabric with a printed design around the border and a blank area in the center.  I was trying to be thrifty and creative, so I cut the pieces into fourths and decided to stitch right over the printed design.  What do you think?  Is it too busy?  I suppose I could stitch on the back side instead.  Only one piece will be displayed at a time, not all together.  I will start on the April one on Saturday.

"Spring & Fall" (March)
Book No. 90
Designed by Pamela Byrd Smith
The Prairie Schooler
Started 2/2/2012, Finished 3/12/2012

M-W-F SAL updates!

It's so fun to stitch on a certain project in a SAL on 5 days of the week.  It helps me to remember what day it is when I wake up!  I stitch on other random pieces every day with no set rotation schedule.  I have seen some stitchers use a random number generator to choose what to stitch, too!

Mr. Mittens update #5

My Monday snowman, Mr. Mittens, has shoes and another glove.  He will get a few more gloves and a sweater soon, then finally his snowman face!

BBQ Queen update #5

My Wednesday summer lady, BBQ Queen, finally has a face and is starting to get some hair.

Halloween House update #8

I decided to stitch on the side of the doorway to the window with a green goblin peeking out.  He will look so cute when he gets his back-stitching done.

Fractal 156 update #1

On one of the non-SAL days, I spent some time on the Fractal.  The confetti sections are downright vicious, with a different color in every square!  But I finally got to a small circle with shades of pink.  This is what it will look like when it's finished (Fractal 156 Bookmark).  Cross Stitch Collectibles has over 360 fractal charts, a large version and a smaller bookmark version, which is 5.25" x 14.25", much bigger than a bookmark.  They offer a different free fractal pattern each month.

Today it's Saturday, so it's time to start my Prairie Schooler SAL weekend!

WIPocalypse update #3

It's another Full Moon and time to check in for the WIPocalypse on Measi's blog!  Since my last check-in, I finished the Happy Easter Snow Globe and you can see a pic on my Finishes 2012 page.  I started a new cross stitch project for every day in January and February, and now I can give some attention to the pre-2012 cross stitch pieces!

Linda and I were having a SAL for Trick or Treat last year, and she finished hers, but I set mine aside to concentrate on stitching Christmas gifts.  This is where I left it in December 2011:

Trick or Treat update #11

And this is where it is today!

Trick or Treat update #12

Hopefully I will have it finished by the next WIPocalypse check-in!

I have also been stitching the black background for the Harley-Davidson logo.  I didn't finish it in time for Christmas, so I will also go back and make the orange stitches full crosses instead of half crosses (which I did to save time).  The free pattern is from battybat, and I bought the orange hand-dyed fabric from Stitchnmomma.

Harley-Davidson logo update #5

Please check out all my WIPs on my WIPocalypse page. I keep the most current updated pics there of every project I am working on.  Thanks for looking!

Two Prairie Schooler SAL updates!

Spring & Fall - March update #4

On Saturdays, I stitch on the monthly designs from The Prairie Schooler, Spring & Fall and Summer & Winter, with Linda and Rosemary.  The lion has a head now!  It looks like I'll finish it next week, and then I can start on the April chart.

Santa's 12 Days of Christmas update #7

On Sundays, I stitch on Santa's 12 Days of Christmas with Linda and Kaye.  It looks like Santa needs some pants!  I would have kept stitching and finished the other half of the pears, but I dropped my needle and couldn't find it, so that was my sign to pack it up and wait until next week.

I actually stitched outside for a little while on Sunday.  The sunlight was fantastic, even better than my Ott light, but it got to be too hot at 88 degrees so I gave up and came back inside.  I will try it again some day!

Bon Noel finished and Halloween House SAL update #7

I finished my second Christmas piece for the X-Stitching Christmas Challenge!  I used variegated green for the tree and DMC Jewel Effects floss for the red ornaments.  My plan is to finish it by following Vonna's tutorial for a Flat Ornament.  Now I just need to find some fabric and ribbon!

"Bon Noel"
Designed by Claire Findlay
gazette94
Started 2/4/2012, Finished 3/3/2012

I have moved it from my WIPocalypse page to my Finishes 2012 page.

Halloween House update #7

 

For the Friday SAL on Halloween House, I stitched the grass in front and more of the black wrought iron fence.  I wonder which direction I will go next Friday, to the right or left or above?  Blueberrie approves!  (My daughter named him that because his eyes were blue but not anymore, and she spelled it wrong on purpose!)

BBQ Queen SAL update #4

BBQ Queen update #4

Linda and I are both stitching charts by Diane Arthurs on Wednesdays.  I finished stitching her arm, part of her purple dress, and collar.  I hope to start on her face next week.

 

Day #60 is Boules Baroques, a free chart from Vava's blog.  I am stitching these in different colors on perforated paper, then I will cut them out to make ornaments.

Linda and I extended the Ultimate Crazy January Challenge (31 starts) to February (29 starts) for a total of 60 new starts!  But Linda is going all the way to 100 new starts!  I am happy with my 60, plus a few previous WIPs.  Everything is listed on my WIPocalypse page.  I don't know how many I will finish in 2012, but hopefully at least half of them!  Thank you so much for watching my progress and cheering me on!

Bird finished for WOCS, and two new starts!

Bird - finished!

Hurray!  I finished this Bird for World of Charity Stitching!  Everyone used the same free pattern found HERE, and chose their own floss color and also provided fabric for the border.  I found material with blue swirls on it, which was a perfect match!

"Bird"
Designed by Claire Findlay
gazette94
Started 2/6/2012, Finished 2/28/2012

 

Day #58 is Leo, a free design from Stitch Alley.  I am using black floss on red 14 ct Aida, just like the Quoth the Raven design from Day #45.  This will be a gift for my daughter, whose birthday is in August.  I am not sure how I will finish it, but I'm thinking of something that can hang from a doorknob or maybe a little pillow.

 

Day #59 is Merci, another freebie chart from gazette94.  I will also stitch the Thank You design and put them back to back and hang from a ribbon.  Both designs are found HERE.  The fabric is 14 ct Mint Parfait Aida, and I am using pink variegated floss.  This is also for my daughter, who hopes to live and work in Paris some day!

Mr. Mittens update #4

I finished all the checkered squares and started the shoes for Mr. Mittens, for my Monday SAL with Linda.  You can barely tell he's a snowman, since he's covered with clothes!

Santa's 12 Days of Christmas SAL update #6

Santa's 12 Days of Christmas update #6

I am really enjoying stitching Santa and the pear tree!  I think I will finish after two more Sundays, then I can start on the 2nd day of Christmas!

Feeding the Rabbits

Day #57 is Feeding the Rabbits by Handmaiden Cross Stitch.  I am using pink hand-dyed 14 ct Aida and DMC 3765, Very Dark Peacock Blue floss.  The finished size will be 11" square.  I think this will be so pretty!

It is finally raining here in Southern California, which is very rare.  Perfect weather to sit inside and stitch!