Thinking of you

Hello there

I won't be blogging for a few days because I will be here

It will be too cold to be in the water but I will sit and watch it as long as I can.  Who knows what I might see??

Take care.

Spring months

Hello there

The other day I showed my July block and said I would post the other finished blocks.  When I started this block a month project for some reason I started doing random months and finished March, April and May (not in that order).  My thinking now is if I skip June for now and start with July and then keep working in order, I could very possibly have them all finished in order.  In the shadow box in my kitchen, May had been hanging for about 2 years now.  I took May down and put up March and hope to now be on track.
Here is May in the shadow box with the glass open.  It looks a little washed out because of the dismal day today.

Here is April

Then March

I love the little Irish lass.

Hopefully, I will make some progress on July.

Take care.

Harikuyo Day

Hello there -

Susan Elliott is a friend of mine.  I am very proud to be able to say that.  I have learned so much from Susan and hope we go on for many years being friends.  Susan gets so excited about so many things and in that excitement makes them events for all to share.  Susan is a fantastic stitcher and puts so much research and detail into everything she stitches.  One of the things I learned from her is about Harikuyo - the Festival of Broken  Needles which occurs Feb. 8.  If you go to her website - plays with needles - you will learn a good bit about this festival (and sooooo much more plus lots of eye candy).  I, like many other stitchers, embrace this day because we all get such joy and fulfillment from the work our needles perform. 

Susan has also created a needlebook based on this day with a page for broken needles.  She taught this class to our Crazy Quilt group and then offered it online and so many people registered to take the class, she was blown away.  They all loved it.  Here is my needlebook

I love my needlebook.  I use it all the time.  I have my space for broken needles, although for some reason I don't seem to break many needles.  I have been excited for today to celebrate my two broken needles.  I have some bent pins I am going to put to rest with the needles.  This is how much I use this needlebook you can see all my threads hanging out.

Here you can see my special place for needles.  What am I planning on doing with these needles today you might ask?  I am going to wrap them in a little piece of fabric and bury them by my rose bushes.  I am thinking they might like resting near something lovely and my perhaps my roses might learn a thing or two about working harder.  However, I have to wait for the rain to stop.

So on this day of thanking hard workers, I would like to thank Susan for all the hard work and information and creativity she shares with the stitching community, her friends and especially her family, on a regular basis.  Thank you Susan for all that you do and thank you Susan for being my friend.

Take care.

More bracelets (old news)

Hello there

This will be my last post about my trip to New Mexico but I wanted to share this.  I have two good female friends that live in New Mexico and I wanted to have a bracelet for each of them when I went out there.  I also wanted to make a bracelet for me.  You saw the first bracelet I made



This was for my friend in Albuquerque.  It is made with clear quartz, malachite and little silver bits.
The bracelet I wanted to make for myself was with moonstones (which I love) and I wanted it sparkly so I used crystals.  It was fun to make and I think it came out pretty well.  I wanted to use a moon button but I didn't seem to have any.  I collect buttons and have for years.  I am particularly fond of moon anything so I would assume I would have some moon buttons, alas, I did not.  I like the button I chose to use and can't decide if I will continue to use it or search out a moon button.  Here is a picture.  I wish you could see how much it sparkles in the sun.

For my friend in Santa Fe, whose birthstone is turquoise, I made a turquoise and silver bracelet.  I was very pleased with how this came out.  The best thing of all is that my friend is now interested in making these bracelets.  I have been trying for years to get her interested in doing something like this that we could have in common and finally she seems interested in this.  She doesn't have as much time as I do.  She still works full time and her time is limited, but she seems to be enjoying making the bracelets..  It was fun bead shopping with her.

Well all good things come to an end and our trip to New Mexico has faded into the sunset (New Mexico sunsets are spectacular).

Take care.

February return

Hello there -

It has been quite sometime since I have been here as you can see.  I wish I could say that I have been doing exciting things or going wonderful places but, alas, I have not.  I have just been trying to survive January.  Now that we are into February, I think things might be looking up some what.  I wish the temperature, early in the day, would go above freezing so  the pool could open again.  I am pretty sure that will happen soon.

A couple of years ago I decided I was going to make a block for each month with special significance to me.  I mentioned this at my CQ group and someone suggested I make an individual block for each month and change the month.  I thought this a great idea and have a small shadow box hanging in my kitchen to hold each month.  Unfortunately, I only completed 3 months so I don't change them often.  I am now determined to finish these and that is what I am working on now, in addition to my tree skirt of course.

So, here is a picture of the one I am making now.  It is July.  This is the beginning stage so I will show the beginning and then the end.  There hasn't been any rhyme or reason to which month I work on but now I am going to try and work in order.

Each month has a fairy and July's fairy is The Honeysuckle Fairy.  Next I will show the other two months and the shadow box.

Take care.. 

New Mexico

Hello there

For Thanksgiving we were able to go and visit our very good friends in Santa Fe.  We try to visit every other or every third year for Thanksgiving.  It is a wonderful and relaxing time.  On Thanksgiving itself, we have a buffet feast and they watch football and I sit and stitch or read.  It is very relaxing.   They make turkey and gravy and we (or actually my DH Greg) make garbanzo loaf and brussel sprout salad (we are vegetarians).  There are several other traditional dishes they all put together.  It is a wonderful day.

This year while we were there we went to a wonderful place called Ojo Caliente, which is  a location for hot springs.  It was wonderful.  There are 6 or so different pools, each a different temperature and a different mineral for healing.  Then there is a wonderful hugh pool which is kept at a constant 84 degrees.  The sun is warm and they have great facilities.  Here is a picture of the area.

This is the Arsenic pool and the big pool in the background.   The big pool again below.

We also went to a lovely old town in northern NM called Chimayo where they do, and have been doing for almost 400 years, weaving rugs.  Chimayo rugs are very famous and were a very important commodity for export along the trading trails many years ago.  My friend works with a woman who has a lovely shop there and we were able to tour the shop and see the weaving in many different stages.  The stage I enjoyed the most was that they had just finished dying their wools for weaving.  They say they are able to do the dying in the spring and fall because there is more water in the river at that time.  Have a look at the wools.

Aren't the color just gorgeous.  The rugs are as well.  I wish I had gotten some pictures of the rugs but I did get a picture of the proprietor and my friend and one of their looms.  I wish I could remember the name of the shop.  If you ever have a chance to see Chimayo rugs, you will see how gorgeous they are.

We always have a wonderful time visiting these friends and I am always looking forward to going back again.  I lived in NM for several years and this last visit really made me remember what it is about the area that is so special.  It really it a very special and almost spiritual place.

Take care!

The Bride, the bouquet, and the quilt

Hello there

I know the bride and groom will be married two months tomorrow but I wanted to say some more about the wedding.  It was a beautiful day and very well planned out.

I was 13 years old when my niece Kimberly was born and I have been smittened ever since.  My sister was also 13 when I was born but she had 3 brothers in between she and I.  Kimberly was born when the Berlin wall went up and my sister and Kimberly couldn't go to Germany to join my brother-in-law at that time.  Both my sister and mother were working at the time and I took care of Kimberly.  She was my very own living doll to play with and I am not quite sure how she survived that experience.  When they finally went to Germany, I was crushed.  However, we had a special bond that has lasted all these years especially stronger since my sister passed away.  So her wedding was very important to me and I wanted to be very involved and fortunately, she let me. 

Kimberly did so many creative things for this wedding, some day I might post them.  She made almost everything - birds for wishes, lovely pearl balls for decorating, table decorations, so many things - and all very thought out and implemented.  She kept telling me for each thing that it - "only takes 10 minues".  She got many of her ideas on Pinterest.   Here is a picture of my sweet girl.

Here is the happy couple.  You can see how very tall and handsome her husband is.

And the bridal party.

 And here is our wish for the happy couple . . .

                                        . . . .   it says "Happily ever after"

In addition to all the wonderful things she made for the wedding, she made her beautiful bouquet.  She asked family and friends to send her a brooch or piece of jewelry and she mounted each piece to a stiff wire and made the bouquet.  It was gorgous and very heavy!

I am not sure what possessed me to do it but I decided to make them a quilt for their wedding.  I started out thinking a queen size but then was told they were getting a KING size bed.  I must have lost my mind and decided to make a king size quilt.  Never, I repeat, never again will I loss my mind like this and make a king size quilt.  It is hugh!  I had to have it professionally quilted it was so big.  Fortunately I found a wonderful person to quilt it.  It turned out pretty good.  It was over 400 inches of binding sewn on by hand.  It was all black and white and white and black fabric.  For some reason, I had to have 50 different fabrics.  I bought black and white fabric up and down the east coast.  They seemed to like it.  Here is a picture of the quilt on their bed.  Oh yeah, I decided they needed to have matching pillow cases to go with it, go figure

Well I hope the newlyweds enjoy their two month anniversary and have nothing but happiness the rest of their lives.