Sea to Shining Sea

I had a great time stitching on Friday night for the Let’s Stitch blog’s weekly stitch-a-thon (SAT). My piece of choice this week was the new Sea to Shining Sea silk thread pack series from Diane Williams of Little House Needleworks.

I actually started this piece earlier in the week on Tuesday after getting home from the polls. I volunteered as a poll worker at my local voting precinct that day and felt like working on something a bit patriotic to unwind when I got home that night. Since this series is called Sea to Shining Sea, it seemed to fit the bill perfectly.

Here are my before & after pics for the SAT:

For some reason, must be the difference between taking the photos in daylight vs. night time, the fabric looks different in each picture. It’s 32-count Natural Raw linen as called for in the chart. The fibers are Belle Soie silks from Crescent Colors which are included in the thread packs.

Yesterday I went an all-day stitch tomorrow at my LNS. As usual, we had a great time and lots of good food. We always have a potluck and it seemed like this month everyone went for either hors d’oeuvres or desserts. There’s wasn’t too much in the way of “real” food, but we all enjoyed it none the less. I stitched a bit more on Sea to Shining Sea and also stitched on an ornament. I won’t be posting a picture of it though since it’s for an exchange coming up in a couple of weeks.

I know I’ve been remiss the past few weeks since vacation of getting my weekly walking schedule posted. I’ll try and get that posted tomorrow to help hold myself accountable. I really need to focus on it all the more now because not only is it training for my half marathon in June, but it will help me earn Activity Points for Weight Watchers. I realized this weekend that I really need the accountability of the meetings, so I went back on Saturday morning and rejoined. Even if it was cheaper, trying to lose weight on my own just wasn’t working. I’ll just have to find some other places to cut back a bit to help offset the cost of the $40 monthly pass to WW.

I do have a couple of areas in mind already on how to cut back a bit on my expenses. I’m planning to help accomplish that goal is starting to take my lunch again which will save me not only money, but calories as well since I’ll have more control over what I’m eating. The other plan is to start making my own iced coffee at home rather than stopping at Starbucks or McDonalds. That should actually save me quite a bit as well since I would normally stop a couple of times per week for coffee.

Well, I guess that’s it for now. I hope everyone had a great weekend!

I’m a Winner!!

I can’t believe it! I rarely win anything, but I made out like a bandit last week! I actually won TWO things.

The first item I won came through purchasing a fundraiser raffle ticket from Soup of Success. I ended up winning a Vera Bradley Linsday purse in the soon to be retired Pink Elephant print! I just received it today and I’m already loving it! The inner compartment is large enough to hold all my necessities, including my Kindle. There are also 2 nicely sized pockets on the front (under the flap) that are large enough to hold both my personal iPhone and work BlackBerry. I just want to give a big “THANKS” to West View Florist of Elkhart, IN for generously donating this wonderful bag to the fundraiser, especially since I won it. The ironic part is that I actually looked at some Vera Bradley bags a few days ago, but decided to hold off until my wallet recovers a bit from my vacation last week.

Here are some pics:

In addition to the VB bag, I also won a free chart in a trivia contest on the Little House & County Cottage Stitchers Yahoo group. Diane graciously offered up a list of her designs from which to choose. I opted to go with one of her latest designs and selected Holly & Berries. Here’s a photo of the design from her website:

Speaking of Little House Needleworks, I also received my kit for From Sea to Shining Sea from Drema at Needlecraft Corner. After volunteering at the election polls today, I was feeling particularly patriotic and decided to start it tonight while I have been unwinding before heading off to bed. Here’s a pic of the fabric and fibers right before I started:

Also, for those out there who, like me, are LHN fans, Diane has a new release coming out later this month that I’m very much looking forward to getting. It’s called “Something Old, Something New” and is a collection of eight previously released complimentary designs as well as two new designs. Here’s a computer generated image of the designs included in this release:

Well, that’s it from me for now. In closing though, I would like to offer my sincere congratulations to President Elect Obama. I know this had to be a very bittersweet day for him after losing his grandmother yesterday. I also want to commend Senator McCain for his very gracious concession speech.

This election has been a very long battle. I’m sure everyone, myself included, is glad that it’s finally over so we don’t have to see any more political ads, hear any more debates, get any more robocalls, etc. Well, at least, not for two more years until they start all this madness again. There really does need to be a limit set on how long these campaigns can run!

New Toy & Stitching Update

I got a new toy last week and realized today that I’ve not posted about it here on my blog yet. I got an Amazon Kindle. I.LOVE.IT!!! It’s so awesome to have so many books just a click away in something that weighs just over 10 ounces (.28 kg). Here’s a pic of my new baby:

On a lighter note, I’m sure by now many of you have heard the Oprah declared the Kindle her “favorite new gadget“. As a result of her announcement, Kindles are currently on backorder through Amazon (at least, they are according to the Amazon rep with whom I spoke today). I actually received mine two days prior to her big announcement, so I actually had something BEFORE Oprah declared it to be the latest thing. I guess that makes me one of the cool kids.

In stitching news, I’ve mostly been working on Hannah Beeby and Where There is Life lately. They are the two projects that I took with me to Hawai’i on vacation. Here are my latest progress photos:

Where There is Life (Little House Needleworks):

Hannah Beeby 1816 (Gitta’s Timeless Designs):

The little pin cushion in the Hannah Beeby photo is one that I picked up in a local Hawaiian quilt shop in Honolulu. They had some GORGEOUS quilts in there and it was really tempting to bring one home with me, but I managed to settle for just getting the pin cushion instead. :-)

We did manage to make our way to a local stitching shop while in Honolulu. It was called Fiddlesticks and they were so nice to us during our visit! I did pick up a couple of charts while there. I was mostly wanting to get some sort of Hawaiian-inspired design to stitch as a keepsake, but a couple of other charts somehow found their way into my stack, too.

Well, I guess that’s enough for now. I’ll post again later this weekend. I saw on the Fair & Square blog that my partner received her Autumn exchange that I sent, so I’ll post some pics of it then.

Another Finish

I really seem to be on a roll lately. I finished another piece from my WIP (works in progress) pile last night! It’s the Gingerbread Cottage piece from Country Cottage Needleworks that I posted a progress picture for just a couple of days ago. Since I was so close to having it done after the weekend, I sat down last night and knocked out the rest of it.

Finishing this piece also means I have officially met my WIP Killer Challenge that I set back in December! I’ve completed 10+ projects from my WIP pile without starting anything new other than one pre-defined SAL piece. So, I can start something new now!!

Even though I’m in a major stitching mood right now, I don’t know how much I’ll get done tonight. This is the last week in my current round of swim class, so I won’t be home from the pool until after 8:00 pm and will still need to eat dinner after that. If I do have time to stitch, I’ll work a bit more on Acorn Hill.

Overwhelmed

Life can be so overwhelming sometimes. That’s where I’m at right now. I’m just really struggling mentally right now and battling my depression demons. I’ve still managed to hold on to my eating plan and not give in to emotional eating, so that’s been a positive for me.

Since I was feeling blue, I just kind of hunkered in and stitched most of the weekend. I spent Saturday working on Acorn Hill by Little House Needleworks. Yesterday I switched things up and worked on Gingerbread Cottage from Country Cottage Needleworks. Here are my progress pics as of last night:

Acorn Hill:

Gingerbread Cottage:

Fair & Square Round 5

I received my squares today from Malinda for round 5 of the Fair and Square exchange. Her stitching is wonderful! She also included a LHN chart (Two White Houses) and some Belle Soie silks from my wish list. Here’s a photo of what she sent:

She used elements from a Blackbird Design called “Be Kind and True“. Thanks so much, Malinda!

More new LHN designs to love!

Hoffman’s just released the photo of one of Diane’s Nashville releases. I LOVE this piece, too! So, this is another new Little House Needleworks design definitely going on my “must have” list.

There will be another new design debuted on Diane’s site at 5:00pm MT. I can’t wait to see what that one looks like, too! Nashville releases are always so exciting.

Edit to add the other Nashville release. Love this one, too!

Home of a Needleworker (Too)

Ok, here is another new design that is DEFINITELY going on the wish list! This is a recent release from Diane Williams of Little House Needleworks called “Home of a Needleworker (Too)”. I have the original “Home of a Needleworker” stitched and framed already (you can see it here), but I LOVE this updated version, too! My original one is currently on loan to my LNS as a model, but when I get it back, I think these would look awesome to have hanging together.

Diane is also supposed to be updating her website on Friday with her Nashville releases. I really love her designs and can’t wait to see the latest releases.

Happy stitching!

S.E.X. & Jewelry Making 101

I had a GREAT weekend! On Saturday, I went and all day open stitch class at my LNS. As per norm, there was lots of stitching, laughing, and shopping. I tried to restrain myself from buying too much, but the owner extended her moving sale which meant kits were still 35% off and charts were still 15% off. So, I did end up picking up a couple of things. Here’s what I bought:

Brave Hearts - Little House Needleworks
A Chill is in the Air - Homespun Elegance (Limited Edition Kit) - photo does NOT do the beautiful colors in this piece justice!
Snowman - Shepherd’s Bush (I haven’t found this at any of the online stores, so this is a link to someone’s completed piece that I found on Webshots.)

I’ve also picked up a few other new stash goodies last week that I don’t think I’ve mentioned yet in my blog. I’ve definitely be taking advantage of some of the shops offering year end sales, that’s for sure!

Crescent Colors floss for Curly Q Ewe - Little House Needleworks
Belle Soie silks for Acorn Hill - Little House Needleworks
Belle Soie silks for Prairie Sampler - Little House Needleworks
Summer Sampler threadpack - Little House Needleworks
Autumn Sampler threadpack - Little House Needleworks
Winter Sampler threadpack - Little House Needleworks
Quarter cut of Weeks Dye Works 30-count Parchment linen

After leaving the LNS, I headed out with my stitching buddy Nancy to her house for the evening. Her DH is a musician and had a gig that night, so we decided to just extend our stitching day into the night. Ironically, neither one of us stitched after leaving the shop. She recently started making jewelry and decided to indoctrinate introduce me to this whole new world. By the time I went home that night, I had a new bracelet and 3 pair of earrings. They’re all make with sterling silver hardware and Swarovski crystals. All in all, I think I did pretty good for my first effort. Here are a couple of pics:

Well, that’s all for this update. I hope everyone is having a great December thus far and that all the holiday craziness isn’t making everyone crazy. Happy stitching!

Ho Ho Ho Happy Dance

I finished another piece a couple of days ago. This is the 2007 limited edition Christmas kit from Lizzie Kate. It was a really fun and fairly quick stitch. I think I’m going to finish it into either a pillow or I may take a shot at making it into a flat fold. I’ve never done the flat fold finishing technique, so it would be something new for me.

Designer: Lizzie Kate
Fabric: Light mocha cashel linen
Fibers: Crescent Colors cotton floss & DMC cotton floss
Extras: Kreinik 032 blending filament for snow (not called for in the kit)

I’ve also joined a SAL on one of my Yahoo groups. We’re all working on Gingerbread Cottage by Country Cottage Needleworks. It’s a really cute piece and I’m hoping to get it done in time to finish it as a pillow for Christmas. Here’s my first progress photo taken yesterday at the end of my first day of stitching on it:

Designer: Country Cottage Needleworks
Fabric: Unknown hand-dyed linen from a grab bag of fabric
Fibers: Crescent Colors cotton floss and DMC cotton floss

That’s it for now. I’m off to do some more stitching. Happy stitching!