What's That White Stuff?

My first winter back in Texas and I am welcomed with a wonderful snowfall....

December 2009 Snowfall

This is very unusual for the Houston area and I am not too sure when I will see it again. For me it was a mere "dusting" but for the natives it was reason to close schools early, close shops early, dump 2 bags of sand at the entrance to the bank, and for some a reason to drive down I-10 with the hazard lights on. Like so many others, I left my house with camera in hand to capture the moment. When I am wishing for the whitecap mountains at Okemo in Vermont, I will grab this picture and glance at the "whitecaps" on my house. Yes, we had snow one day and 71 degree temperatures the next!

With all of that snow, I am ready for Christmas. I spent much of the day turning the tree from this:

To this:

Just in time to hang this gorgeous ornament from Pilar:

2009 Year Long PS Exchange ~ round #4
Stitched by: Pilar

The ornament is stitched on very tiny count; it looks like 40ct over two (?) ~ truly perfect stitching and finishing. Pilar inserted dried lavender inside so the ornament smells wonderful, such a nice touch!

Thank you so much Pilar for the beautiful ornament, I shall treasure it.

Here is a sampling of some of the cross stitch ornaments hanging on the tree this year:

Thanks to the old and new visitors that take time to stop by ~ I enjoy and appreciate all of your comments!

Until next time...

Fabulous And Fun Exchange

In 2007 I participated in 24 exchanges, in 2008 I topped off at 28 and my 2009 total (thus far) is 28. That is a total of 80 exchanges and I am SO happy to report that I have finally been blessed with a wonderful piece stitched by Edgar! I have been an admirer of his work for quite some time and secretly wished to one day receive something stitched by his hands. If I saw his name on the list of exchange participants, I would think “oooooh, maybe this time!”


My DH walked in with the mail and handed me a box. You can imagine my excitement when I saw the return address label…Yahoo, my heart skipped a beat! As I rushed to open it I was running my mouth about Edgar and his amazing stitching, I am not sure my DH understood a word that I said. I carefully opened the package and saw this fantastic Pinkeep:

Designer: BBD
Design: Trix or Treat
Stitched By: Edgar

I did not get to gaze at it too long before my DH took it from my hands and, impressed with what he saw, commented that it is quite nice. Edgar select a BBD (one of my favorite) titled Trix or Treat and stitched it on 28ct Birds Of A Feather Sandpiper using WDW and Gentle Art threads.

And look at this fun backing fabric!

Cute huh? Edgar also included the display stand, which was sweet of him.

He packed the box with a bunch of fun, and I mean fun, Halloween treats.

2009 HOE Halloween Exchange from Edgar

I love everything but I especially loved the Lip Pop and Pez dispenser. Not only did they make me laugh they made me wish that I had thought of sending that in my exchange ~ very cute! It would be an understatement to say that I am over the moon with this exchange. I guess you can say that wishes really do come true! Edgar, I cannot thank you enough for the wonderful pinkeep and the many treats; you certainly made my day!

I spent the last two days at the huge quilt show here in Houston viewing beautiful quilts and walking in an out of over 900+ vendor booths. My company has left, the house is quiet, I am exhausted, and I am definitely ready to plop on the couch and stitch for as long as I can keep my eyes open.


Thank you Edgar for the wonderful exchange I am so excited and very grateful. Thank you to all that find time to stop by for a quick read, do come again.

Until next time...

Treats And More Treats

And what a treat it was to open my Halloween exchange from Paula C and find this beautiful Halloween Ornament that Paula stitched:

I truly love it! “Happy Jack” makes me smile; he is so very cute (and perfectly stitched and finished). The design was taken from the 2009 JSC Halloween edition.


The box was packed to the rim with so many wonderful treasures:

I gasp when I saw the box of See’s chocolates…my very favorite. It did not take long for me to gobble that up! I shall save the other edible treats for later. Paula also treated me to some of her very useful scrubbers. These top my list of favorite kitchen gadgets they really do work! My kitchen is now looking more festive with the Halloween dishtowel, orange scrubber and washing cloth. There is also a cute pumpkin pincushion, two fabulous Halloween fat quarters, ribbon, and post it notes. Thank you so much Paula for this amazing exchange it was such a treat and you are such a treasured friend! :)

My Halloween Annalee Doll is the perfect place to display "Happy Jack" ~

Fair & Square round #15 arrived today as well. Bridget stitched this cute square:

Thank you Bridget, your selection was perfect!


Here is the block that I sent to Bridget:

Designer: Prairie Schooler

Design taken from: When Witched Go Riding

I have not posted any pictures of the dogs lately so I shall leave you with these:

Lily (1 year)

Misha (12 years old)

They are both tuckered out from their visit to the vet for annual shots.

Thanks for stopping by and I hope that you have a wonderful week!

Until next time...

Halloween Happiness

And just look at this smile (this guy loves his self portrait)...

The minute I saw this skeleton doll I knew what I would do with him ~ I was going to make him the main attraction in my personal Halloween exchange with my good friend Paula C. I had planned on stitching a design from the new Prairie Schooler Boo Too You leaflet and when I saw this doll, I knew exactly which design I would stitch ~ the skeleton. He is stitched using DMC glow in the dark white and finished using a glow in the dark trim that I found on eBay. It did not take long before I knew that I would like to have one of these for my house. I rushed back to the store to get the other doll but sadly, someone else loved him too, he was gone. That is okay, I am just happy that Paula loves him as well!

There are so many wonderful designs in Boo To You leaflet, I could not help but stitch this Haunted house for Paula as well....

And here is the entire exchange:

2009 Personal Halloween Exchange

Designer: Prairie Schooler

Design: Boo To You

Stitched for: Paula C.

Back in late July, I mailed a SBBC Exchange but did not post a picture of the birthday exchange that I sent so here it is….

2009 SBBC

Designer: Prairie Schooler

Design: Summer Breeze

Finish: Project Bag

Given that the entire day has been rainy and a bit gloomy, I shall leave you with this "Wishing Custom"...

When Lightning flashes across the sky, make a wish

Wishing you a week that is filled with many hours of enjoyable stitching!!!

Until next time...

Summer Exchanges

Two wonderful exchanges arrived on my doorstep. The first was a Fair & Square exchange that was sent by Darla. She stitched me the cutest design taken from the Gift of Stitching magazine (great online magazine). I just love that there is a little dog and that she changed the design up a bit and added my initials. Thank you so much Darla for the wonderful blocks!

Fair & Square #14

Stitched by: Darla

The next exchange piece was from Moni who was my stitching partner in the FTT: Seasonal Exchange Summer rotation. Moni stitched a decorative hanging heart with a strawberry motif. The backing fabric on this is truly perfect; it has tiny strawberries growing from the vine. I love pieces like this that I can easily display on door handles, knobs, or pegs. This beauty is hanging from a peg on my hall tree.

In addition, Moni treated me to a very generous piece of fabric, a pretty piece of backing fabric, ribbon, variegated floss, floral buttons, 2 wonderful patterns, and a delicate and very pretty crochet sachet that has a scented heart shaped soap inside. I venture to guess that Moni made this, it is beautiful! A special thank you to Moni for making this summer exchange extra special.

FTT: Seasonal Exchange ~ Summer

Stitched by: Moni

So, what did I stitch for Moni?

This is the first time that I finished a piece as a fabric basket. I received one from Chris back in the summer of 2007 and loved it. It only took me 2 years to finally get around to making one myself!

FTT: Seasonal Exchange ~ Summer

Designer: LHN

Design: Season of Growth

Stitched for: Moni

Okay, are you wondering how I remembered "who sent me what" over 2 years ago? I have a horrendous memory so I assure you that I did not rely on that! When I first entered the world of exchanging, I started a photo album to document the exchanges that I sent and received:

I do have the pictures on the computer but this book has become a great resource and a source of enjoyment. Sometimes I just like to grab the album and a cup of coffee (naturally), sit on the couch and flip through it.

In my last post I showed you the beautiful squares that I received from Jill in the F&S Summer Exchange. Let me share with you the squares that I sent her ~

Fair & Square Summer

Designer: Prairie Schooler

Design: A Prairie Year Book #13

Stitched for: Jill F.

Life is GOOD…my Primitive Wizard of Oz arrived and I rushed to pick it up. I would start it TONIGHT however, I was unable to get the fabric and must wait until that gets ordered. Jenn, keep those “FYI” links coming and thanks again for this one.

For now I shall leave you with this "Wishing Custom"...

JUG
When blowing into a jug, if you can get a sound on the first try, make a wish.

Until next time...

Christmas In July

If it were not for the postman it certainly would not feel like Christmas; it is much too hot for that!

I received a beautiful ornament from Verona. She stitched for me in the HOE Christmas in July and selected a LHN design titled, Holly and Berries.

This is such a wonderful ornament that has been stitched and finished perfectly. I love the silver bells dangling from the ribbon! Verona treated me to a new pair of scissors, an array of ribbon, some adorable winter buttons and a little photo key chain.

HOE: Christmas in July

Designer: LHN

Design: Holly and Berries

Stitched by: Verona

How lucky am I? I can hardly wait until Christmas when I will be able to hang this beautiful ornament on our tree. Thank you so much Verona for this very special exchange!

Not long ago, I entered a blog Give-A-Way on Deb’s blog and was surprised when I learned that I was one of the winners. Yes, one of the winners…Deb is not only one of the sweetest people she is also very generous. She has been known to give multiple gifts away in her drawing. I was the winner of this beautiful Needleroll Kit. Thanks again Deb, I look forward to stitching it!

Be sure to stop by Deb’s blog and read about “Elaine’s Quilt” ~ what a wonderful gesture of friendship!

Do you remember when a collection of my stitched, but not "finished", sampler pieces almost ended up in the trash? I am happy to report that most are safely framed and waiting to be mounted on the wall. I am waiting until after my window shutters are installed before I hang any pictures, stitching, or quilts.

Here are the latest framed pieces:

I stitched this for my younger son, who enjoys fishing, and put his initials in octagon shapes at the bottom.

Designer: Mary Garry Sewing Cabin

Design: Fishing (out of print)

I stitched this one to commemorate my oldest son's recent college graduation

Designer: Blackbird Design

Blog Sampler Contest

This one was stitched as a reminder to my husband that "the best thing in his life is me" ;D

Designer: La D Da
Design: Noble Wife

One of my very favorite movies is "The Wizard of OZ" so I had to stitch this

Designer: Drawn Thread

Design: No Place Like Home

Designer: Shepherd's Bush

Design: Wooly Winter (kit)

Some of you asked who the designer is on the Pray for Me piece ~ that would be Sheepish Designs:

Designer: Sheepish Designs

Design: Pray For Me

I am glad that you were able to stop by for a visit and do hope that you will come by again.

Enjoy your week ~ I shall leave you with this "Wishing Custom"

If you are riding over a bridge you’ve never crossed
before, lift your feet off the floor of the vehicle you’re
riding in and make a wish.
(The driver, for obvious reasons, isn’t suppose to make a wish)

Until next time...

OH SAY CAN YOU SEE…

This wonderful Patriotic Exchange that I received from Carol S. It certainly is a beauty, take a look…

FTT: Patriotic Exchange

Designer: San Man Originals

Stitched by: Carol S.

Opening her package was the highlight of my day! Carol’s does such gorgeous work I could not have been happier to see her name on the return address. She selected a very nice design by San Man Originals and finished it as a pinkeep; I love it! In addition, she sent me beautiful Gingher scissors, patriotic dishtowels, very pretty bookplates, and tasty mints.

Carol your generosity is amazing, I cannot thank you enough for all that you sent! You certainly made this an extra special exchange!

Dear sweet Vonna will be celebrating a birthday very soon so I decided to send this little gift off a bit early so that she could display it over the 4th of July (we know how she loves all things patriotic). When I saw this Annalee Patriotic Elf he was screaming Vonna’s name. I also knew that a Pinkeep would fit perfectly in his hands so I stitch this Birthday Pinkeep...

The Pinkeep is reversible with the other side looking like this:

I absolutely love how this turned out, cute huh?

When I saw this next design I knew immediately that I had to stitch it for my cousin. I call her my "direct link to God" and call upon her to "pray for me" with every "crisis" that I encounter. :) Now that I live far away from her I want to make sure that she constantly thinks of me (not sure that will happen but I am going to try). I am hoping each time she glances at this two things happen:

1) She thinks of me

AND

2) Smiles...Smiles BIG!

"When This You See Pray For Me"

There is another person in my life that is deserving of this same design and when I find the time, I am going to stitch it again! I seem to be doing quite a bit of that lately.

Only about a week left until my Blackbird Design give-a-way. If you are interested you need to leave a comment on my previous post before July 4th.

Tomorrow both boys will be leaving, can you hear me sobbing??? They are taking the long 1,677 mile "road trip" back to the northeast. I know that they are excited about their adventure but I'm not ~ they will be missed. I did have my son install a Web Cam on my computer so that I can video chat with them (can you say "helicopter Mom?"). Let’s hope that they answer when I “video ring” them!

"If you cross a state or county line when traveling in a land vehicle, make a wish three times out loud. This is one of the few times when custom allows you to speak your wish out loud" (from Wishing)

~Have a wonderful weekend~

Until next time...