Two finishes

What, with it being Christmas and all the goings-on, I completely forgot to share this little finish with you. Here is a precious Hanukkah ornament I made for my dear sister, Carol. I created this using Mill Hill's Tiny Treasured Diamond kit Star Of David. These little ornaments look so complex but are insanely simple...and I am not one that easily follows written directions. From start to finish, this was one evening and one morning. I highly recommend these for a super fast and easy finish. Oooo, and all the bling!

Last night I watched Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix on my laptop and finished Summer Joy! It was true satisfaction to put that last stitch in! This was such a fun piece to work on. I must have taken a zillion pictures but this was the best I could get. The fabric color is acually much richer. I still can't decide how I want to finish-finish it. Any suggestions?

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After I finished Summer Joy, I unkitted it and put away all the floss I recived for Christmas. (No, Cindy, they were just the 3000's!) By then, Harry Potter was over and LOTR The Fellowship of the Ring, extended edition was going...yes, I was up past Midnight! Then, I got out the floss for the Crabby All Year stitch a long and played with it. I have it all sorted but still need to cut the threads. (I cut all DMC into 8 equal lengths.) Maybe I'll share a photo shoot of the kitted SAL next. I seriously thought about converting the DMC to GAST and WDW but with 46 colors, sheesh! Plus, I already have les Moutons going in GAST.

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Thank you for visiting my blog today, your comments make me smile!

xox

Zzzzz

Yes, it's that after-Christmas lethargy settling in. I just feel like lazing around, playing with my presents! We had a very nice Christmas. It was quiet; which was exactly what was needed this year. I am very glad it is over though. Working in a grocery store during holidays can really suck!

I had some very nice presents! My dear friend, Lindsay emailed me a couple of weeks before Christmas saying I had a package coming and to have Rick hide it if I wasn't able to resist opening it before Christmas. I was good...when it arrived it went directly under the tree. I didn't even unwrap the mailing paper which I discovered hid lovely Christmas wrap when I opened it. I was very excited when Christmas morning arrived and I found this beautiful etui!

Thank you, Lindsay! You know me so well!

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Rick bought me lots of DMC and some fabrics. Plus, a gift certificate to The Silver Needle.

Jessie gave me this a pretty notebook filled with page protectors for my patterns.

She also gave me two matching ORT jars, one for ORTs and one for DMC bands. Don't ask me why I save 'em...OCD symptom or something. I really needed larger jars as my old ones were nearly full, so these were really appreciated! Do you have any idea how difficult it is to photograph clear shiny glass?

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Rick received a ginormous bottle of Jack Daniel's, a photograph of him on his motorcycle and really nice hair clippers. Jessie had gift cards, DVDs & lots of clothes. Santa didn't forget the pets either! Taco received a tiny stuffed catnip tiger and Sheba had a squeaky stuffed penguin. Sheba promptly ripped the pompom off her penguin's hat and Taco plays with that pompom instead of her little tiger, go figure!

I haven't gotten much stitching done, as it has been busy around our house! Christmas Eve morning, as I was headed off to work, I sprayed the window washer on my truck and had to stop and scrape away the resulting ice. Friday, it was so warm outside, Rick and I went for a motorcycle ride in short sleeves! Wacky weather!

Thank you all for the happy Christmas wishes!

xox

Wishing...

...everyone a very Merry Christmas!

I hope all your dreams come true!

Mail day

Jessie texted me, "Ooo, you've got lots of mail!" When I got home I found packages!

Michelle from Little Rabbit Miniatures had loads of giveaways these past few weeks. I won this chart. Michelle included a really awesome Christmas greetings card and a pack of Mandarin orange chewing gum.

Thank you, Michelle!

Then a total surprise from my friend, Marie-Hélène in France, no blog. A lovely card and sachet she made for me with lavender from her own garden. The sachet smells heavenly; lavender is my favorite scent!

Thank you, Marie-Hélène!

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The rest of the mail was Christmas cards and buttons for Crabby. I am slowly warming up to the seasons festivities. I just really don't feel like it's Christmas time. Jessie got fed up with me and she and Matt (her boyfriend) put up the tree this week. It looks great too and there are presents wrapped underneath.

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I actually stayed up past midnight last night stitching away! It is really rare for me to stay up late. I watched an entire disc of Supernatural, season 2 and Summer Joy is nearly ready for a happy dance. I'm trying hard to finish up WIPs instead of starting another new project! The urge is strong though...

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Thank you for visiting my blog today!

Too cool

I see my designs are liked well enough that people are stitching them! I'm all warm and fuzzy now.

First up is Staci's reindeer. Staci of Snippets and Stash, stitched this beautifully! She left off the jingle bell beads and it blends perfectly with the other design she stitched. Go visit her blog and read how she finished this one! Awesome, Staci, thank you!

Then there is Sari's version. Sari's blog is A Needle and Some Thread. This one is way too charming! I love the rustic fabric and I think she used larger beads, which I really like. Thanks for sharing, Sari!

Scroll down a couple of posts to download your copy of the reindeer.

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Thanks for visiting my blog today!

New start, finish and a Christmas surprise

It has been getting unnerving waiting for the New Year and the Crabby SAL. I just want Christmas to be over and it to be 2009 and let me begin stitching! ROFL I desperately needed something new, so yesterday I started a little ornament for a somebody special. She sometimes reads my blog so I can't post a photo...but I can give you a hint:

Yes, my new start has loads of beads! Here they are in my Tacky BOB. Do you use a BOB? That is the handiest thing for working with beads! Click the link and scroll 1/2 way down the page to lookity. I never lose beads now!

I finished up the ornament in no time flat so my new start is now a finish. It turned out so nice too. Hum, now what to do?

A Christmas Surprise!

Look what was in my mailbox. Wow, it is a Christmas present from my floss kid Lisa, in Scotland! She sent me a beautiful stitched kitty ornament, a box of fudge (nearly GONE already) and a kit from my wish list! I love those hieland coos! Can you see how the fabric on the ornament is sparkly? Oh, I just love everything!

Thank you so very much, Lisa. You are such a sweetie!

I haz new bud

Yup. New buddy. I haz one.

Everybody, please go say "Hi!" to Cheryl of Wicked Witch Maggie's World, my new best bud. Hey, she even says so! Cheryl is joining us on the Crabby stitch along. Welcome to blogland Cheryl!

Jinglebell Reindeer freebie

I love reindeer. They are one of my favorite Christmastime symbols. Here is a little Christmas quick-to-stitch freebie for you. I hope you enjoy him!

Jinglebell Reindeer

Please email me at daffy-cat AT hotmail DOT com to receive a copy of the pattern. Please, put "freebie request" in the subject line and tell me the title of the pattern you are requesting

You must have the free Adobe Reader program installed on your computer to view/print the pattern.

Thank you for visiting my blog today!
xox

Snuggly

Today is a snuggly kind of day. It's bitter cold, windy and wet outside. We are having a bit of snow but it's only the snarl-traffic kind of snow not the snow angels and snowman kind of snow. Ho-hum. Yes, it's a keep-under-the-covers-warm day and I had to work. I did have the foresight to start a pot roast in the slow cooker before I left, so I arrived home to savory smells and a toasty warm kitchen. It was yummy.

Can you believe I haven't blogged since Friday? Creepy! We had a very productive weekend. Rick cleaned the garage while Jessie and I tackled the basement. The stacks of stuff in the basement were becoming rather Dr. Seuss style! Rick hauled two pick-up loads to the Salvation Army. Yes, two loads. We have said for years we should have a garage sale but it was never going to happen. Why waste a Saturday taking quarters for your outdated curtains when you could be riding a motorcycle or stash shopping? It was a massive clean-out and a nice tax deduction and it felt good! The basement is sparkling clean which pleases me to no end. That is our tornado shelter and I think we have been in more danger of being buried alive than blown away.

Have you noticed how appliances have such bright lights on them these days? We have a new coffee maker and I swear you could make a sandwich by it's clock display at night.

My fabric has arrived for Crabby All Year. It is all I can do to resist starting it! I even bit the bullet and purchased those ridiculously expensive buttons, which should arrive soon. I know I won't need the buttons for another year but I had to. I just had to! It will be fun to get them out for trial runs, right? The threads still need to be sorted, cut and bagged, maybe this coming weekend? Oh, and I found another blogger, Missy, who is just finishing Crabby up...aww, it's so fun and silly! There are a few SAL partners lined up with me for 2009 and it looks like a go! We still have about three weeks before the SAL begins so you have time to get the charts and supplies and join us!

Here is an update on Summer Joy since last time. This is an easy stitch but I haven't gotten much time for it this week. Nice progress though.

Jessie brought home Tales of Beedle the Bard. I'll read it soon. Although, I am still depressed that the Harry Potter series is over. I would still like to read the Twilight series before I see the movie. Wow, there are tons of movies coming up that I want to see. I can't remember the last time we went to the movie theatre...not counting the drive-in movies last summer! Where am I going to get all this time?

Thanks for visiting my blog today!

Does your printer not work?

I know several of my blogging friends are having trouble with their printers. This causes problems when you are a cross stitcher. I know there is no way I could get by without my scanner/printer. I think I may have the answer. No, not how to fix, but maybe why your printer doesn't work correctly. Visit the link below to see a video.

Printer broken? Click here.



BTW, I will not be held responsible for your uncontrolled laughter.

Windy Wordless Wednesday

Clueless

I have no idea what it is but I just found it in my clothes washer.

I could understand finding such things if I had a three-year-old but my child is nearly 21.

A really BIG thank-you & wow, a WIP!

I wanted to say "Thank you" to everyone who put up with me and my incessant posting in November. Although I am not officially a member of NaBloPoMo, I did make myself a personal challenge to post every day for one month. And I did. Go me! I tried my best to make my posts interesting and interest people in visiting my blog. I hope I succeeded! Thank you for visiting. Thank you for commenting. Your friendship means a lot to me. OMG; Group hug!!!

Holy smokes! I can show an actual WIP photo! It's been so long and I've really missed doing that! Here is where I'm at on Summer Joy. There is a complete picture of it and a link in my sidebar. I am in love with the pretty colors in this design. The Gentle Arts threads are so lovely and are fun to stitch with.

Thanks for visiting my blog today. You ROCK!