Valentine Exchange....

JBW "French Country Heart"

I receive a note that Sally received my HOE Valentine Exchange so I am posting my finish. I loved this design as soon as I saw it and can't wait to stitch it again for myself. I especially like the border around the heart...would make the perfect stitched mat! Hmmm....well off to stitch!

Totally Senseless SAL....

Well...Dragon My Needle had great idea for a SAL and I decided to join in. Basically, we save our bits and pieces of thread in a jar and post our "progress" each month on the full moon.


As you see my jar is empty, but I hope to recitfy that shortly! It will be interesting to see how much I can accumulate in one month! Want to join in? Follow the link above and you can sign up too!

Happy stitching....

Beer and stitching....

Well....DH and I have had a wonderful day! We volunteered at the World Beer Festival in our city today and had a great time. Unfortunately, we could not consume the beer as volunteers (and we love great beer!), but had a great time as pourers for several breweries. We met some great people and fellow home-brewers so the day was good!

Fortunately, we were able to go to one of the local brewpubs after our shift and enjoy some great beers and dinner. Though I didn't get any pictures at the festival, DH did "pose" for an after pic at dinner!

Now....on to the important stuff: STITCHING!

I started BC "Season of Change Row" on Sunday and had hope to get farther on it this week. Unfortunately, work got in the way and didn't get to stitch as much as night as I had hoped. Hopefully, I will get the chance to stitch more this week and finish in the next week.

Lastly, my Valentine exchange for HOE was sent on its merry way this morning and should arrive at its destination by the end of the week. I will post pics once received...I really love the design I stitched and can't wait to stitch again for myself. Well....off to watch some t.v. and maybe stitch if I can stay awake! My feet hurt and I think I could go to sleep right now! Happy stitching and sweet dreams to the rest of you...

Ornament finishes and getting organized....

Nostalgic Needle "Tudor Rose"

SB "Noel"

Here are two ornaments I finished for the 2009 Christmas Ornament Challenge. I stitched them last weekend and finished today. My goal is to finish two each month.

I also decided to get organized...at least in my mind. When I am ready to start something new, I usually just randomly pick something. Of course, gathering everything I need to actually start can be a challenge...especially if it requires too much effort! Since I am trying to reduce my stash this year, I have picked out some designs I plan to stitch and decided to "kit" them so that I can start at anytime. I usually am a "one project at a time" gal so I will definitely have to resist the urge to start them all!! So waiting in the wings are.....

Paula Vaughan "Tea, Roses, & Romance"
Shepherd's Bush "She Tends"
La D Da "Old Glory Angel"
La D Da "Bushel & Peck"
Blackbird Designs "Autumn Bouquet"
Bent Creek "Seasons of Change Row"

Will have to see if anyone else will be stitching these too. Now....which one to stitch first!!!!!

Gotta love the $$$ Dollar Tree $$$....

Most of what I stitch is for myself and I love small, simple designs. I found a great 5*7 frame at the Dollar Tree that fit the Summer ABC's perfectly. After looking through my finished stuff, I found a few more stitched items that would fit in 5*7 frames. Back to the dollar store I went and for $4.00 I was able to finish four designs to display around the house or my office.

Lizzie Kate Summer ABC's

(Tip....I made the mat out of cardstock, which cost me pennies.)

Heart in Hand's Liberty House Sampler

Triology Friendship

Bent Creek Wahoo...Life is Good

I really love the way this one turned out. I glue rusted stars to a piece of cardstock to fill the small windows.

I have so much more to frame and need to locate a new framer since we have moved to another city. The little shop I used from my hometown closed last year. They were so good and very inexpensive so I know I will probably faint when I see how much it will cost to frame one item in our new town. However, I did make a commitment not to buy any new stash this year so I hope to use that savings to frame some of my favorite finishes. We moved in our house in September and I think we have maybe 5 prints hanging in the entire house... I could definitely use some more stuff on the walls. Oh well....back to stitching.

Some finishes...

Hope everyone is having a great new year! I have been able to finish a couple of things since the new year. One is for an exchange so no pics at this moment, but it is a JBW design that I think I am going to stitch again for my self.

Blackbird Designs' "Sunflower Sampler" was my last finish for 2008 and finally framed it today. I love this design and had to stitch it as soon as I received it in December.



I finished this freebie Thursday night and wanted to finish into a small pillow today. I couldn't find a fabric that I liked in my stash so I will have to wait until I can get back to Joanns.



I had planned to start PV "Teas, Roses & Romance" on Jan. 1st, but realized my fabric was not the correct size, which I was able to pick up today, so I hope to start it soon. Tonight I have a Christmas ornament ready to for tonight. DH gave me the BBC "Sense & Sensibility" DVD for Christmas and I thought I might watch it again. I just love Jane Austen! Oh well....better get to stitching!

First finish of 2009....

Happy Dance!!!!! This is a UFO from I believe early 1998. It was a SAL started with the Pals Cross Stitch group and for some reason I just never finished it. I only had the backstitching left to do so that is probably the main culprit. I picked this up earlier in the week and finally made the decision to finish it in the new year! Fortunately, I had a pink mat and frame so was able to finish it ready to hang. I take this as a sign that this will be a great stitching year and it is already off to a great start. Thanks for looking.