Finished Four Christmas Ornaments

Last month I received a surprise from Julianne, my long time blogging friend.  She sent me Halloween ornament from one of my favorite designers: Prairie Schooler.  I wanted to surprise her with a little something so I stitched up this PS ornament...

2013 Gift 

Designer: Prairie Schooler

Design: O Christmas Tree ~ Book 183

Stitched for: Julianne P

I love the designs in PS Book #183 so much that I used the leaflet once again to stitch up this HOE Ornament Exchange for Becky K...

2013 HOE Ornament
Designer: Prairie Schooler
Design: O Christmas Tree ~ Book 183
Stitched for: Becky K

Such wonderful designs and what a great finish!

A few months ago Shirlee and I decided to do a Personal Ornament Exchange. We scanned through our many JCS Ornament magazines, came up with a list of about a dozen ornaments, and exchanged our list.  We were to select one ornament however, I wanted to stitch two for Shirlee and here they are...

2013 Personal Exchange
Designer: Little House Needlework
Design: Blue House in Winter
From JCS 2012
Stitched for: Shirlee H.

2013 Personal Exchange
Designer: Cathy Jean for Victoria Sampler
Design: Christmas Robin
Just Cross Stitch 2010 Ornament Issue
Stitched for: Shirlee H

The past three days I have been busy trying to construct a Christmas Wallhanging for a friend in Austria.  He works with my husband and I had the pleasure of meeting him when he came to our home last summer.  He often jokes with my husband about sending him a Christmas tree so when I saw this....

Pattern: Christmas Glitter

Designer: Susan Probst

Size: 19 x 28

I decided that it would be the perfect gift. This afternoon I completed the top, I just need to machine quilt and then embellish it ~ I will be busy this weekend!

Thanks for stopping by and...

Until Next time ~ remember:

The key to a happier and positive life is only surrounding yourself with those who appreciate you, talk kindly to you, love you, and make you feel better.

I surround myself with:

Last Exchange Of 2012

The days of 30 exchanges per year are gone for me.  For the past 3 years I participated in about one exchange per month which made stitching more relaxing.  A HUGE thank you to Carol S. for coordinating the exchanges on Hooked On Exchanges!  

The last exchange of 2012 arrived at my house yesterday.  Nicole S. stitched this sweet little ornament:

Designer: Erynne Chard

Design: Merry & Bright

Stitched by: Nicole S.

She included Christmas fabric, DMC wrapped with colorful bells, plaid ribbon, and a Canadian pen and pencil.  The 3D holiday card is adorable.

I was not familiar with designs by Erynne Chard so I looked it up and came across her blog called Stitcheree.  She offers some great freebie designs that you may be interested in, just click on the designer link above.

Thank you very much Nicole, I truly appreciate all that you sent!

My DS (G&D) were here for the entire week but will be leaving tomorrow.  We enjoyed time spent together celebrating Christmas, my birthday, skiing, laughing, and hanging out.  I always love to see their smiling faces stroll into the house but I hate to see them leave. Having them home was by far the best Christmas gift....

G

D

I just signed up for my 1st exchange of 2013 (HOE Shepherd's Bush Christmas)...I think I will head to my sewing room, drag out my stash, and select a design to stitch.  

Thanks for stopping by....

Until next time...

Summer Stitching

I received a wonderful ornament from Kathy K. who stitched for me in the HOE Christmas Bird Exchange. She selected two different birds from Homespun Elegance and constructed this beautiful two sided ornament...

2012 HOE Christmas Bird Ornament

Designer: Homespun Elegance

Design: Merry Birdies

Stitched by: Kathy K.

What a great ornament.  I also received some sewing gadgets that will certainly  come in handy.  Thank you Kathy, I love what you sent.

My dear friend Carol offered up a few LHN patterns to me.  It did not take long for me to complete this one...

2011 Monthly Ornament

Designer: LHN

Design:Cardinal Winter

It now sits in my "finishing basket" along with a number of others.  Thanks again Carol!

I believe that Margaret gifted this pattern to Carol, who gifted it to me, and I will gift it as well.  If you would like this pattern just let me know in your comment.  If more than one person is interested in it then I will draw a name on July 20th. 

It has been less than three months since our sweet 15 year old Yorkshire Terrier passed away.  I wanted to stitch something for my sampler wall and decided on this LHN design...

Designer: LHN

Design: Dog House Sampler

I was up for a quick stitch so I selected this little BBD gem...  

Designer: Blackbird Design

Design: Peace

From: 2009 JCS Christmas Ornaments

Here is a little something that I stitched for my cousin...

Designer: Blackbird Design

Design: I Thee Wed

This should have been posted on June 19th ~ a bit late but here it is, my TUSAL:

TUSAL ~ June 2012

Thanks for stopping by...

Until next time...

Another Day in NYC

I participated in the HOE Snowman Exchange and was elated when I opened the package that arrived from Anne.  Inside I found this beautifully stitched and finished ornament:

2011 HOE Snowman Ornament

Designer: Little House Needleworks

Design: Frosty Flakes

Stitched by: Anne S.

As a fan of Little House Needleworks, I was so happy to receive a stitched design from their Ornament of the Month.  Thank you very much Anne, I look forward to hanging the ornament on my tree each Christmas!

This is what I stitched for my partner, Marie W.

HOE Snowman Exchange

Designer: Lorrie Birmingham

Design: Snowmen Trio

Stitched for: Marie W.

Now that I am in the Northeast, I am able to see my DS more frequently.  A few weeks ago, I headed into NYC for another day in the city with my oldest son.  He is so sweet; once again, he toured me around the city visiting Bryant Park, Central Park, the Garment district and Times Square. 

One of my favorite places is Bryant Park.  This is the perfect place to grab some lunch, relax in the park and enjoy the beautiful weather.

After a bit of a rest we headed to Central Park where we strolled through the park enjoying the sights. I especially enjoy seeing the horse and carriages parading down the streets of the city.

For me, a trip to NYC would never be complete without a visit to the Garment District.  Oh, to bask in the glory of all of this gorgeous trim...in every imaginable color!

Here is a picture of my latest trim purchase.  I feel so spoiled to have a son living in NYC affording me the opportunity to walk the streets of the garment district frequently.

As we wrapped up our day in the city, we approached Times Square and saw this friendly guy:

THE TIN MAN IN TIMES SQUARE

As much as I dislike having my picture taken, I could not pass up on this opportunity. So there you have it...I am off to see the wizard!

Thanks "G" for another wonderful day hanging out in the city with you, I am one lucky Mom. :D

As always thank you for stopping by!

Until next time...

HOE Quaker Ornament Received

I participated in the HOE Quaker Ornament exchange and received this beautiful ornament from Carol S.  What a gorgeous ornament that is perfectly stitched and finished! 

2011 HOE Quaker Ornament

Stitched by: Carol S.



A true bonus to receiving this ornament is that I had the pleasure of meeting Carol S. face to face at the Celebration of Needlework show in Nashua, NH last Friday.   I have been “blogging friends” with Carol for what seems like an eternity so having the opportunity to meet and spend time with her was fantastic.  Since I have moved from Texas and will be living in the northeast, I look forward to getting together with her again. Carol, thank you so much for the gorgeous ornament!

I enjoyed the Needlework show and managed to add some great items to my huge stash. I will post pictures of my purchases later.

Another highlight of my trip to Nashua, NH was meeting Carol’s friend Margaret, who I know I have exchanged with in the past. We had a great time getting to know one another over dinner.  How I wish that I could meet all of my blogging friends face to face.

Here is a look at what I sent to Carol S. for the Quaker Ornament Exchange:

My blog posts have been minimal but there is a reason, as I mentioned I am once again moving. I left Texas and am in the process of house hunting in the northeast. Yes, I have returned to be closer to my boys…Yahoo! Living 1600+ miles from them was just too difficult for me, I guess I will forever be a “helicopter mom” but I like it that way. :D


My weekend will be spent riding around with a real estate agent; hopefully yours will be a bit more exciting.

Until next time...

It Doesn't Feel Much Like Fall Around Here

Oh how I love the fall, especially Halloween but I must say I am missing "Fall in New England".  It just doesn't feel much like fall around here so I decided that I had to get busy and drag out the Fall/Halloween box to decorate the house.  Now that so many of the stores have all of the Halloween decoration out on the shelves I need to try to stay out of them; I always seem to find something new that I must have.

A new wreath for the door…

A new centerpiece for the table…

A newly decorated vintage tree…

And yesterday I received a wonderful Halloween package from Erin W. that contained some great new decorations:

HOE Halloween Exchange

Stitched by: Erin W.

Take a closer look at the fabulous pillow:

Designer: The MonkeyWorks

Design: In The Graveyard

Can you see the beaded skeleton? Erin, clever stitcher that she is, decided to forgo the white floss and use white beads instead (the picture on Erin's blog is better so be sure to pop on over and take a look). I shall prop this pillow up on the mantel in my family room for all to see. The cute ghost bell and Halloween plaque are displayed on the vintage tree. Thank you so much Erin for all that you sent, you made this an extra special exchange!

My exchange has quite a distance to travel so I do not expect that it will arrive until next week. I will wait to hear from my partner before posting pictures.

Your comments make me smile and knowing that you visited makes my day so thank you all.

Until next time...

So Glad To Say It's Done

WAHOO! The quilt is back from the quilter and is complete, except for the label that is. I spent last night applying the binding and as soon as I finish this post, it is up to the sewing room to make the label. Here it is in all its glory…

It's Done!

College Quilt for Connor

Design: Shimmer

WAHOO! Primitive Wizard of Oz is stitched and framed, in record time I might add.

It's Done!

Designer: Midsummer Night Design

Design: Primitive Wizard of Oz

WAHOO! Scatter Seeds of Kindness is complete. Okay, the stitching was completed in 2001 (no, this is not a typo ~ it has been stashed in a drawer for 9 years) but it is finally framed.

It's Done!

Designer: Mary Garry

Design: Scatter Seeds of Kindness

Mary Garry designs may well be my favorite!  Seeing this one framed makes me want to immediately stitch all of the charts that I have in my collection.  Although I probably will not do this, I am moving some of them up on my "to do list".

I got my son to hang both on the sampler wall. Here he is in action:

Naturally, he had to do a bit of clowning around. Yup, made me laugh!

I am happy to say that he follows instructions well and returned the pictures to their correct position.

It is difficult to get a decent picture but here it is:

Just when you think that life can’t get any better, the mail person delivers this…

HOE Early Christmas Exchange

Designer: BBD

Design: House on Holly Hill

Stitched By: Sadie

Sadie had my name for the HOE Early Christmas Exchange and stitched this beautiful ornament! I immediately recognized that it was a design by BBD (one of my very favorite designers). Thank you Sadie, it will make a wonderful addition to my Christmas tree!

I hope that you are all enjoying your weekend.  It is rather hot and humid here in Texas so I shall remain indoors and stitch.

Until next time...

Another Prairie Schooler Ornament Completed

Just a quick post to share a picture of the Ornament that I sent to Janet for the HOE Early Christmas Exchange.

HOE: Early Christmas Exchange

Designer: Prairie Schooler

Design: Songs of the Season

Stitched For: Janet B.

Songs of the Seasons is such a great leaflet, I love all of the designs!  I am finishing up on yet another one of the designs (that makes 3) and have plans to send it off as an exchange piece.  I really would like to take some time and stitch all four designs for my Christmas tree; it's only May, I still have time.

Guess who is home from college for the summer???

GOOFY :D

Yup, I'm happy!

Thanks for stopping by~

Until next time...