RAK & LK Exchange #3......

Week from hell....that is how I will describe my week. So I can't tell you how badly I needed this little pick me up. I received the cutest package in the mail today from Faye ....

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Though Faye is a NC state graduate and huge North Carolina fan (hmmm..how can that be), she stitched this cutie for me...hopefully her fingers weren't burning since we are their conference rivals! I love the way she finished it with the cute charm and love the back! Isn't this the cutest fabric and I love the pin and buttons. Faye does papercrafting too and made this cute card with the sweetest note. Even though I work for Clemson's in-state rival (gotta eat..right!?!) I plan on displaying it discreetly on my desk so I can enjoy everyday! I need this little reminder to keep me sane and remind myself that I am one day closer to retirement!

On another positive note.....

LK "Gather Friends" stitched on 28 ct evenweave w/recommended threads

Angela received her Lizzie Kate Exchange yesterday! I loved this design and am so glad Angela liked it too! I had issues with the finishing but I pleased with the end result.

RAK with some irony.....

Primitive Betty's Valentine freebie

After seeing this freebie, I stitched up a couple as pincushions to share with some special friends, Amy & Faye. This was a very fun design to stitch and I did take a few liberties with it. I love this design and will definitely stitch again for myself. Ironically, Faye received hers on Monday, which is the same day she had mailed my surprise.....great minds think alike I guess!

Thanks for all your comments on the Me,Myself & I exchange. If you have multiple personalities like me, you have just enough to form your own exchange! You can then have a pretty tree at the end of the year like me...and Amy! Oh well...off to stitch. Thanks for visiting and happy stitches....

Me, Myself & I Ornament Exchange.....

First, I have to blame Amy for this hair-brained idea! After seeing her Christmas trees packed with stitched ornaments, I decided I had to have one too. I know Amy not only stitched some of these ornaments but has received many over the years from gifts and exchanges. I love exchanges, but knowing myself, there was no way I could sign up for enough ornament exchanges to fill my tree by December. So....I decided I would start my own monthly exchange with me and myself. Over dinner one night, "we" formulated a plan, perused the JCS ornament magazines, discussed our likes and dislikes, and made a wish lists of our favorite ornaments. As with any good exchange, we had to have a monthly deadline and agreed we would get together on the 25th of each month to exchange said ornaments! If our calculations are correct, that would be 36 wonderful ornaments ready for my Christmas tree.

Well....here it is the, January 25th, and here are the fruits of our labors....

SB "2000 Years Ago", BBD "Quaker Medallion", Homespun Elegance "Starry Santa"

I would like to hone my finishing skills and decided to give try my hand at a strawberry...unfortunately it looks more like a carrot in real life! I believe we were all relatively pleased with our efforts and are anxious to start next month's batch.

On another note...

Thanks for all of the wonderful comments on "Truly Thine". I did find a white frame at Hobby Lobby so I just need to get busy and get it framed. After fondling my stash for a few nights, I finally decided to start an older design from Sheepish Designs.

I love the colors in this one...forgot to take a picture of my progress but here is the finished design. I t's stitching up quickly so hope to finish by this weekend!

Well...better get busy stitching. Happy stitches to you....

BBD "Truly Thine".....

My interpretation....

BBD "Truly Thine"
28ct linen w/GA Raspberry Parfait, Victorian Pink, WDW Moss

I really liked this design on the recommended fabric, but decided to reverse it since I didn't have a good second choice. As you see from the original, I made some major changes. I love pinks, reds and greens together so I changed the colors to suit my taste. My hubby gave me an odd look (because it really is that bright) but I like it and that is all that matters! I tried it with a rosy red mat I made from cardstock and loved the way it looked so I will be off tomorrow to find the perfect frame! I think it will make the perfect Valentine design.

I loved the phrase "Truly Thine" so I decided to whip up this pin cushion....

Stitched 32 ct linen w/DMC 498

Luckily, I picked out my backing fabric before I picked out the thread so I was sure it would match! (Usually I pick out the perfect thread but then find I don't have any fabric in my huge stash of fabric that will match....has that ever happened to you???) I even have some fabric left over so I am off to find another Valentine freebie to stitch.

Now I am at a lost of what to stitch.....Paradise Lost in fact. I have all these wonderful designs and I can't make up my mind what to stitch next. What to do ...what to do!!!!

Thank you, thank you, thank you ... for all your recent comments. I love reading them and appreciate everyone who takes the time to leave one. My friend at work loved the pillow and was very excited so my heart was smiling that she appreciated it. I am off to figure out what to stitch next so I'm wishing you happy stitches ....

Gift for a friend....

Lizzie Kate "Friends Are..."

Stitched on 25ct w/ DMC

I stitched this for a very special lady at work who has been a lifesaver for me over the last three years! I was told she is very creative and so I know she would appreciate something handmade. I was going to make into a wall hanging for her to put in her cubicle but then decided to make it a small pillow. I love the combination of pink and green, especially a mossy green, so I love the colors in this one. It may be a little bright, but it will definitely match her personality and hopefully brighten her day!

Thanks for visiting and happy stitches.....

Lizzie Kate Exchange from Angela....

I can't tell you how excited I was to see a package from Angela for the Lizzie Kate Exchange 3 and this is what I got.....

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Angela does awesome stitching and finishing so I knew it would be great. I love this design and she finished it into a pretty pinkeep. I plan to display it at work for Valentine's Day. Thanks again Angela...I'm so excited to have something stitched by you!

Now...I need to get mine packaged and send it on its merry way! Happy stitches....

Goode Huswife "Sheldon Hawks House"....

My first finish this year....

Goode Huswife "Sheldon Hawks House"
32 ct coffee-dyed linen w/ recommended DMC

Started on New Year's Day, this is my first finish for 2010! ( Thank goodness for all of the college bowl games on this past weekend....made it easy to stitch all day and night!) I picked this up this oldie but goodie last week at a LNS and loved it at first sight! The colors were kind of odd once I pulled them but I love them now that it is finished. I have another older Goode Huswife sampler, 1797 Ship Sampler, and will have to add it to my To Do pile.

Year in Review......

The best part about blogging is it truly is a "journal" of your stitching endeavors and I spent Sunday afternoon going through my finishes this past year. I was amazed at how many I had forgotten about and quickly realized by framing budget needs to be quadrupled! After a quick tabulation, my 2009 finishes included 68 total finishes which included...

26 SOS challenge (stitch own stash challenge=50)
9 ornaments (big bummer...should have been more)
19 exchanges (what wonderful goodies I received)

I put myself on a "stash diet" last year and challenged myself to stitch 50 designs from my stash before making any new purchases. I fell off the wagon a few times, but did cut back on my purchasing considerably. I still have so much older stuff I want to stitch so I plan to continue on my "diet" again this year. It was fun going through everything and "rediscovering" some older stash so it would be a shame not to stitch some of them. My goal this year is to stitch at least 25 with the understanding, of course, that gift money and gift certificates used for new stash don't count !

Thanks for looking and all of your wonderful comments! Wishing all of you happy stitches.....