December Swirls

Holy crows! I nearly forgot to post this!!! I did finish the main part of Bent Creek's Snapper Year. I've been contemplating starting the border soon. This was a really fun project to stitch...except for frogging that May block when I had that disaster of a miscount! Every block was very easy and I will miss this one after the border is done!

I never did decide what to stitch in 2011. Unless I come up with something quick I suppose I will just stitch whatever comes to hand. It's not like I don't have three large WIPs and that border on Snapper Year to do! The past two years of having a set monthly stitch have been very enjoyable. I really like the 12 month blocks but one can only have so many calender-type stitches hanging around, right? Maybe 2011 should be my "finish stuff" year?

Best wishes in the new year!

Thank you for visiting my blog today!

xox

TUSAL Prizes

As I mentioned yesterday, prizes for the Totally Useless Stitch A Long have started to arrive! I thought I'd post pictures as things come in to motivate everyone to keep posting their Totally Useless Updates...

From CJ, of Tea and Stitches came this lovely packet of goodies! It's LHN Gardening with the overdyed threads (Crescent Colors) to stitch the design, another set of Sampler Threads overdyes in Spring colors and a yummy piece of Bubblegum pink fabric from Enchanted Fabrics.

Another prize was pledged by Lynn, of Minding My Own Stitches...a $25 gift certificate for The Loopy Ewe! Try as I might I could not get my computer to bring up their website. Maybe their server is offline?

Thanks for the prizes, ladies!

If you are interested in joining the TUSAL please click here.

If you would like to donate an item for the giveaway email me at daffy-cat AT hotmail DOT COM and I will send you my mailing address. Prizes such as fabrics, threads, patterns, needles, scissors, fobs, finishing materials and stitched & finished items would be treasured by the winner of the giveaway. Please, don't send me extremely heavy items...I must be able to afford the mailing costs!

Thank you for visiting my blog today!

xox

A Christmas Package

In November, Michele, of Just Another Stitching Blog celebrated her 4th blogoversary with a giveaway. Guess who won??? Yup, it was me! Since it was coming up Christmas Michele decided to make the giveaway a darling basket of Christmas goodies. There was chocolate, fun pencils, two lovely fat quarters of finishing fabrics and a beautiful seasonal scissor fob. I love the cute little box the fob came nestled in ~ snowman! Thank you for a wonderful prize, Michele!

Just a reminder...it's less than a week until the first New Moon of 2011! There is still time to join us in the Totally Useless Stitch A Long! Click the link for details. I've already received stuff for the giveaway and believe me ~ you don't wanna miss out!

Blog Stuff You Should Do: Add a photo to your account! Especially if you actually have a blog and are following other blogs. If you don't have a photo your "no picture" gets shuffled to the back of the list and you don't get seen. You want people to see the picture and wonder, "Who is that?" and come visit your blog. Choose an unusual photo! You know who it is when you see my dancing cow, right? It doesn't have to be an actual photo of you. Find something that screams, "It's me!" and keep it forever. You wouldn't know what to think if I changed that dancing cow, would you? Brand recognition!

Thank you for visiting my blog today!

xox

Waiting for Santa

The presents are wrapped. The dinner is planned. The excitement is building. It's almost Christmas! I'm SO FAR behind in my blog reader...I'm hoping to get caught up soon ~ I miss you!

Wishing everyone the merriest Christmas you've ever had.

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Thank you for visiting my blog today!

xox

2010 Congratulations

Super-huge congratulations to my daughter, Jessica and to her boyfriend, Matt, who have graduated from Oklahoma State University today. Their commencement ceremonies were lovely. Jessica earned a BFA in Theatre and Matt earned a BS in Management Information Systems.

We are so proud of both of you.

Way to go kids!

Thank you for visiting my blog today!

xox

*faints*

Look what happened over the weekend:

100,000 visitors? Are you freakin' serious? And I've reached 500 followers as well? This is a joke, right? OMG Don't you people know how completely boring and ordinary I am? I truly don't deserve such kind and faithful readers...you all make me feel wonderfully special. Thank you.

This also happened over the weekend:

One Christmas tree ~ up and decorated! Rick came home with a new artificial tree for us as our old one was pretty ratty. Maybe I'm finding my Christmas Spirit after all? I've been admiring all the cross stitched ornaments I have and I realized I don't have any stitched by me. Every single one came as a gift or an exchange! I should stitch myself a few, don't you think? But I so love stitching for others...

Here is where I'm at on my Bent Creek Snapper Year. Slow going. I've been working on a couple of other things (remember my blogoversary giveaways?) I don't think I will have any trouble finishing up in time. Then, THEN! I still have to work that horrifying border. You forgot about that, didn't you? It still scares the living daylights outta me. *sigh* one stitch at a time, right?

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Thank you for visiting my blog today!

xox

Mistletoe Reindeer

This one is for Barbie who bitches incessantly asks sweetly about a new reindeer every time I turn around! Just kidding there, Barbi! Inspiration finally arrived, if leaving it a little late ~ since Christmas is just around the corner! But he will be quick to stitch and will match my other reindeer, if you have already stitched them. I didn't wait to post this freebie until I stitched it myself or you'd be waiting too long...I am not the Queen of Slow Stitching for nothing, you know!

Introducing:

Mistletoe Reindeer

I think perhaps this little guy didn't duck far enough when he passed under the mistletoe or maybe he's only waiting for a pretty doe to notice him?

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

You must have the free Adobe Reader installed on your computer to view/print the pattern, or a similar PDF viewer.

If you'd like to see my other free cross stitch designs, including the matching reindeer, click the kitty cat in my sidebar!

Thank you for visiting my blog today!

xox

A Totally Useless Stitch-A-Long

Notice: The 2012 Totally Useless Stitch-A-Long is now open for sign-ups, click here to go!

I received so many comments & emails about the Totally Useless Stitch-a-long that I decided to "revive" it for next year. I will change the link in my sidebar to link to this post since it now links to a blog which no longer exists.

If you would like to join the SAL for 2011, leave a comment on this post. The rules are simple...

1. Get a glass container and save your thread clippings or ORTs (Old Ratty Threads!) Some stitchers include fabric trimmings, thread bands or any other stitching cast-offs they gather.

2. On (or about) each New Moon take a picture of the ORTs in your jar and post it to your blog. Yes, you MUST have a blog to be included. Reasonably "late" posts will be accepted...posting several updates at once is cheating!

3. Yes, you can use your current ORT jar. This is no contest...the stitcher with the most ORTs doesn't automatically win!

4. You must post a picture each New Moon, even if there has been no "progress" to show.

5. Label your Totally Useless posts with "TUSAL" to make it easier for me to find your posts at the end. If you don't know how to "label" your posts email me.

Why numbers 4 & 5? Because...those that have commented here AND made their 13 New Moon 2011 updates will be included in a giveaway! That's right...every stitcher commenting here will be added to the drawing. If your name is drawn, I will check your blog for your New Moon updates, if they have been made ~ then you win...if not, another name will be drawn!

Wait! This is a giveaway, you ask? What is the prize? To be totally honest, I have no clue!!! I will start collecting stash...adding it to a box. Would it be fun to have participants & fellow bloggers add stash? I think so! If you'd like to add an item to the giveaway you can email me at daffy-cat AT hotmail DOT com & I will give you my mailing address. Please, don't send me an 8 pound bag of crushed walnut shells...or I'll not afford to mail the package to the winner! I'm thinking handmade items, charts (respect copyrights, no photocopies!) fat quarters, fabric and finishing materials. Sound good?

Please DON'T comment on this post if you are not joining the stitch-a-long! Since some of you have multiple blogs, please tell me the name of the blog you will be posting your updates to. I will add your name & blog link to a list in this post. If you have commented and you have not been added to the list within a few days...I may have overlooked you...email me! Questions? Feel free to email me! International bloggers are welcome!

2011 New Moon Dates:
January 4
February 3
March 4
April 3
May 3
June 1
July 1
July 30
August 29
September 27
October 26
November 25
December 24

The Totally Useless Guest List:
1. It's Daffycat
2. Fog City Dweller
3. Purple Peacock
4. Tea and Stitches
5. Something For Me
6. Kathy's Sit and Stitch
7. Before The Dawn
8. My Wee Stitchy Blog
9. The Auld Grey Mare
10. Needles Pins and Dragonflies
11. Threads, thoughts and other notions
12. Bonnie's World
13. Therapy by Thread
14. Colorado Stitcher
15. An Expat Kiwi Crafter
16. Are you In Stitches?
17. Sharlene's Stitching Site
18. Erica's Places
19. Simply Stitching In The Garden
20. Tangled Up In Sticks and String
21. Kttycat Cross Stitch Blog
22. Hanging On By A Thread
23. Just A Virginia Gir
l24. Chriz' Stitching Spot
25. Blissfully Stitching
26. B0nn13's Place
27. My Art, My So Called Life
28. Fireflies & Cats in the garden
29. Heartland Stitching
30. Hooked On Stitching
31. Faery Grandmother
32. Old Ragged Threads
33. Orts and Ends
34. Cathis Stitching Blog
35. Annette's Pieces
36. Pixelknit's Ponderings
37. Bits of My Own
38. Stitching Daze
39. It's Geek to Me
40. Cross Stitch Crazy
41. Sheila's Stitches & Stuff
42. Raised by Poodles
43. My Stitching Corner
44. A Cosy Little Place For Stitching
45. Just Alex
46. Debbie's Corner
47. Gr8dame's Place
48. Stitching Life in the Fast Lane
49. Me, My Bubble and My Stitching
50. Poppy Patchwork
51. Babs Stitching & Stuff
52. Cindi's Stitching & Stuff
53. Cheerfully Crossing
54. Lisa's Stitching Life
55. Jodie's Crafty Blog
56. Knitting Kitties
57. Caring Stitcher
58. Fairy Tales & French Knots
59. Grandma's Musings
60. The Last Remaining Brain Cell
61. Stitchen' My Life Away
62. Dominant Hands
63. Hello Operator
64. Never A Dull Moment
65. TeaTime Ramblings
66. Alyoops!
67. All I want...is everything
68. Minding My Own Stitches
69. Cha Cha's World
70. Revelations of a Delusional Knitter
71. A Bit of This and a Bit of That
72. quiltcat
73. Stitching Again
74. AuryTM
75. Days of a Sampler Lover
76. Little Knitables
77. Sense and Stitchability
78. Craftie
79. Stitching, Crafting and Life ~ OH MY!
80. Sarah ~ With an 'H'
81. Knitterofhats speaks
82. Random Ramblings
83. Cross Stitching
84. Helen's Hobbies
85. Midnight Stitching
86. Rikes (Kreuz)sticheleien
87. Taking One Stitch At A Time
88. Debbie's Cross-Stitch
89. Foxy's Toys
90. The Teakettle Corner
91. Eat Stitch Love
92. Cranberry Samplings
93. Reflections in the Pond
94. Life and Yarn or Yarn and Life
95. Blu Stitcher
96. Bec's cross stitch creations
97. BAP Attack
98. Én és a keresztszemezés
99. A Stitch in Time
100. Contented Stitcher
101. Bramblewood Stitches
102. Measi's Musings
103. Come Stitch With Me
104. Seasons Of My Mind
105. Kathy's Stitching and other comments
106. A Needle and some Thread
107. Mind Wanderings
108. Random Stitching Ramblings
109. Fabric and Thread and Needles and Patterns, OH MY!
110. Carol's Stitching and Stuff
111. Kearnel's Korner
112. Lesleyanne's Life of Stitches
113. Stitch Days
114. Kilijo's Musings
115. Nan's Needlework Notions
116. My Favourite Things
117. Stitched in Wales
118. Stitching Cats
119. Between Crosses with Nina
120. The Ramblings of a Knitting Goddess
121. Stitching and Stuff
122. Susan's Stash of Stitching and Books
123. Mark's Quilts
124. Keeping It Homemade
125. Loretta's Stitching Blog
126. Words of a Wikkid Woman
127. Stitching the Night Away in Illinois
128. Az élet naposabb oldala
129. Borduurmeisje
130. Aimetu's Stitching
131. Bunny Stuff
132. Emmie's Ramblings
133. Tűbarkács
134. needles-and-quilter-me
135. The Stitching Frog
136. More than just Cross Stichin'
137. Flossy Lady
138. Mi Pequeño Tesoro
139. Villa Loedana
140. Cseverke
141. Stitching is cheaper than Therapy
142. Yellow Flower Meadow
143. Home of a Floss Junkie
144. ziggyeor's loopyness
145. EEF's Needle
146. Flossy Bobbin
147. Kozi keresztszemes munkái
148. Sitches and Cats, Oh My!
149. Bronny's Bits
150. Pip Stitch
151. Creativity Has No Limits!
152. Sublime Pastimes
153. Maison de Montsaunes
154. Needle In Hand
155. Char's Crafty Days
156. Hesztia Liberty
157. Old Ragged Threads
158. Peace, Love and Stitching
159. BirchBee
160. Witch Stitches
161. x és más
162. Austin's Allandale in Stitches
163. A Stitch in Time
164. This is who I am
165. cenefas de flores
166. Anime Stitching
167. Stitch! Read! Write!
168. Lit and Laundry
169. Rebel In Ontario
170. A Stitch in Time
171. Gumbo And Grits
172. xszemekbe zárva
173. Annette's Acre
174. A Riot Patch of Pixels
175. Gennyysusamigas
176. Sherri's Sundries
177. Paco's Place CrossStitch
178. Just Sew' n' Sew
179. Wendy's Wips
180. Knitting before Knitting was Cool
181. sticken und sonst fast nix
182. Bizzi Hands
183. Time Travel Stitching
184. One Stitch Closer to Nirvana
185. Cross Stitching Nut
186. The Hera Chronicles
187. My New Perspective
188. A Stitch in Time*
189. Nutmegger Stitcher's Works
190. Midge's Crafty Corner
191. Life's a stitch...
192. Stitching My Life Away
193. Peaceful Threads by Fiona
194. Kay's Random World
195. Beth's Blog
196. The Sparklie Things Blog
197. Rhythm of Goals
198. Kate + Ice Cream
199. Home of Miracle
200. Stitching Through Life
201. Creative Carrie
202. Gathering Place
203. Tangled Threads
204. Dani: Black Belt Stitching Wizard
205. just a scrappin and stitchin chick
206. Trinabelle's
207. Phoenix Needlepoint News
208. By The Bay NeedleArt
209. Just Another Flamigo On The Lawn

Entries for the SAL are now closed!

A shout-out on your blog to let other stitchers know about the new Totally Useless Stitch-A-Long would be greatly appreciated!

Thank you for visiting my blog today!

xox

Last Totally Useless Post

I can't believe it's the last TU SAL of the year! This year went by way too fast. Our host for the SAL has disappeared. Yoyo, who blogged at Dragon My Needle, has removed her blog entirely. I wish she would have at least told one of us what was up...so we wouldn't worry about her.

However, the Totally Useless Stitch A Long continues. My offering for the New Moon is meager at best. It was a crazy busy month for me. I count myself lucky to have stitched what I did! My Totally Useless jar was photographed in front of all the stuff at the corner of my desk. You can see in the background the big jar of ORTs. Holy cow ~ that's a lot of ORTs!

Join us for the SAL? Grab an empty jar and save your ORTs (Old Ratty Threads) and post a picture on the New Moon each month. It is Totally Useless but a fun way to measure your progress! Plus, it gives you something to blog about when you are stuck for ideas. We have a date, right? The next New Moon is on January 4, 2011...

You don't want to miss the LOVELY Christmas freebie that Robin of Stitches and Cats, Oh MY! has created. I simply adore the design! Be sure to save her blog to your blogroll as well, you won't be disappointed.

Thank you for visiting my blog today!

xox

Snowmen Rock!

Angela let me know my Ornament Swap arrived yesterday. Angela said she likes snowmen and Little House Needleworks designs so when I saw this sweet snowman I knew I had to stitch him for her. I did change a few things: the design is charted with a white bird at the top of the tree and I made him into a Cardinal instead; the checkerboard pattern was charted in the same gold as the star and I stitched it in red Smyrna crosses. I backed the ornament with the red check fabric, sewed it into a pillow and stuffed it very lightly. The ribbon hanger was tea-dyed briefly to take off the brilliant white of it and was secured with two red & cream vintage buttons from my button box. If I hadn't been pushing close to the mail-out deadline I would have kept this one for myself! *grin*

Design ~ Frosty Flakes

Designer ~ Little House Needleworks

Fabric ~ 32 count tea-dyed Lugana
Fiber ~ DMC

Just a note about this exchange: We are a small group of friends swapping Christmas ornaments every other month. This exchange is not currently open to new swappers, sorry! But why not start your own swap? Choose five stitchers to exchange with...six including you...and every other month is someones turn to receive and everyone in the group stitches an ornament for them. This has been the best exchange. In fact, we have all enjoyed it so much we all agreed to go again next year. My turn to receive again is in March 2011!

Did you see the update on my last RAK post? Scroll down or click here to see who received that Raven Lunatic pin pillow...

Thank you for visiting my blog today!

xox

November Twirls

Gosh, last minute finish for November, iddn't it? This month was tooooo busy. Can you believe this is the last day of November? I'm so glad I passed on doing NaBloPoMo this month. I would have failed miserably! Ahhh, but I finished my November Snapper Year with a day to spare (last night ~ I mean) so all is good in my world. I liked this month's stitch ~ the colors were fun and it went really fast ~ when I actually sat my butt down to work on it! I will kit up December this evening and start work on my Blogoversary prizes. You didn't think I'd forgotten did you? Well, if I hadn't gotten distracted by hot pink fabric and raven's...

Update on Carol's project: We did get the threads for my sister's new stitch. Thankfully, Drawn Thread had the DMC alternates already listed on the chart. Amazing! I like charts like that. Carol changed out the pinkish threads for colors that were more red, to match her house. And best of all, we went to Michael's on Thanksgiving day and got 30% off. Wait, was it 30%? I forget...something like that. Unfortunately...Carol was a little shocked at the fabric...she cannot see it! So the actual stitching part is going to have to wait until Carol has visited the eye doctor and has gotten her some "old lady glasses" like the rest of us wear! Hurry sis!

Thank you for visiting my blog today!

xox

She's Crazy

You all know who she is (or someone just like her.) She's the one who starts impossibly huge projects then has the nerve to complete them. She makes wild plans and pulls them off. She even makes you laugh uncontrollably with the funniest writing. You love her because she brightens your days. But she's crazy. And that's all there is to it. Back in the day lunatics were put away in bedlam. However, a crazy stitchy friend is a different bird altogether!

With my crazy friend in mind, I designed this freebie.

Stitched it up on blazing hot pink fabric, which I knew she'd adore. I even dyed the fabric myself. Maybe I'm a little crazy too?

And sewed it into a pinpillow stuffed with walnut shells. This is being mailed off as an RAK to my crazy friend. I hope she likes it!

This RAK went to

Missy Ann of Deep Inside Missy!
(Post edited to remove link to a now defunct blog.)

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If you would like to stitch Raven Lunatic email me for a copy at: daffy-cat AT hotmail DOT com. Please, put "freebie request" in the subject line and tell me the title(s) of the pattern(s) you are requesting.

You must have the free Adobe Reader program installed on your computer to view/print the pattern, or a similar PDF viewer.

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Thank you for visiting my blog today!

xox

November Progress

Here is how far I've gotten with Snapper Year. There would be more...but I keep being tempted with your blog posts. They are so interesting! I love seeing what everyone is stitching and hearing your news and celebrating your finishes!

My sister, Carol called me on Friday. From left field, she has decided to cross stitch this Winter! Carol hasn't stitched in years so she wanted a little help deciding what fabric and such. She chose Wayward Garden by The Drawn Thread. Very pretty! I helped her order the chart & fabric from 123Stitch and she got notice it was shipped today. I'm hoping we get it in time to do a little thread shopping on Friday (after the crowds thin out lol) and pick up anything else she may need. Oh, hey! Anyone have the DMC list for this design? That would be handy. Evenweave fabric will be new to Carol but I have no doubt she will pick it up easily. We are both quite excited about the new project! Mmmmm, I see lots of Stitchy Saturday get-togethers in the future!

Thank you for visiting my blog today!

xox

I Believe...

...do you? I hope you enjoy this little freebie pattern I created. It stitches up very quickly...I'm slow and I was able to stitch it within an hour or so. Click the link below the picture to save your copy. Remember to send me a picture if you stitch it!

 Believe

If you would like to stitch Believe please email me at: daffy-cat AT hotmail DOT com to receive a PDF copy of the design. Tell the the name of the freebie you are requesting!



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

I was able to finish the stitching part of my exchange project. Now, it needs finish~finishing. This one is for the exchange host and I can't decide how I want to do it! I also started my Snapper Year block for November. And...I really need to get caught up on all your blog posts! If it isn't one thing after another! Oh, and Barbi? I'm really just waiting for inspiration on that reindeer...

Thank you for visiting my blog today!

xox

Thanks and More Thanks

Big thank-yous all around. I had 114 entries on my Blogoversary post! Wow ~ I am truly overwhelmed. It is just flabbergasting to have this many people actually interested in my blog. Thank you all so much for your support over the past three years. I drew the winners for my Blogoversary giveaway. That's right, you heard me correctly. Winners. I had so many entries I decided to draw two winners! Surprise!

The first winner is Lizy of LizyMorales. Lizy is a young but dedicated stitcher who's finishes are amazing. If you haven't seen her blog before I encourage you to check it out!

The next name drawn was Ma Teakettle of The Teakettle Corner. Ma's blog is full of darling stitching and she is so much fun ~ she is sure to keep you laughing. Another blog to add to your must-read list.

Congratulations, girls! I will start stitching you each something special very soon. Be patient, though...I am a really SLOW stitcher!

Since this post is all about thank-you's, how appropriate was this gift I received yesterday? The winner of my recent hidden giveaway was Bekca of The Stitching Lion. Well, Bekca decided she must make me a thank you gift in return and here is what she created...

Bekca made me a darling Halloween treat bag, sent three lovely threads and stitched a Margaret Sherry kitty (which she must know I adore Margaret Sherry kitties above all else) and created a greeting card out of it.

Isn't that the CUTEST kitty ever? I might need to carefully take apart the card and sew this kitty into a Halloween ornament. What do you think? Thank you so much Bekca. I love everything you sent!

I am behind on my blog reading ~ again. I still haven't finished my exchange project. Still haven't started my November Snapper block. *sigh* It's been one of those weeks, I guess. Here's to catching up!

Thank you for visiting my blog today!

xox

Another Totally Useless Post

I knew it was the New Moon on Saturday. I had planned for it all week. Then, when the time came...I was so excited to share my free pattern with you my TU SAL plans flew right out the window. Yup, I forgot! Sheesh!

Not a whole lot of threads in the old ORT jar for this month, but acceptable. I'm sharing my frog jar as well as one of the little critters showed up when I was working on my design. It really sucks having to frog when you are stitching something you designed, isn't that crazy? However, it wasn't too bad, and the hot pink threads are pretty in the frog jar!

I would share stitching with you but I'm working on an exchange ~ so nothing ~ I got nothing. Plans ARE made for finishing my exchange project by the weekend, then starting my November block of Snapper Year. I still need to kit it up. (UGH!) Kitting up these blocks takes a bit of work each month since the suggested threads don't match the model photos...maybe I've been dawdling at doing that!

Some of you are curious as to what next year's monthly stitch is going to be. I'm clueless. Nothing has jumped out at me yet. Any ideas?

Thank you for visiting my blog today!

xox

I Fight Like A Girl

Okay, so Breast Cancer Awareness Month was October, which was last month. So, I'm late. But it's usual for me to come up with stuff after the fact...

I hope you like my freebie design to support Breast Cancer Awareness. If you like this design, please make a donation to a breast cancer organization for research or support. Save those ta-tas!

I fight like a girl

To receive a PDF copy of the pattern email me at: daffy-cat AT hotmail DOT com. Tell me the name of the pattern you are requesting.

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

If you stitch this...won't you let me know? I would really love to see a picture of your creation!

Thank you for visiting my blog today!

xox

Three!

It's my 3rd blogoversary!

Join me in celebrating with a Tootsie Pop!

Photo created using the photo captioner at Lolcats.

Those of you that are too young or from outside the States can click here to understand my use of an owl and the number three. Or you can just click there to see the fun commercial!

To have an even bigger celebration, leave a comment on this post to enter my blogoversary giveaway. I'm going to stitch a special gift for the winner and maybe add in a goody or two or thrrrrree. I'll draw a winner on Sunday, November 14th. I won't stitch the prize until I know who wins so don't expect an immediate picture!

Entries for the giveaway drawing are now closed.

The winner will be announced soon!

Thank you for visiting my blog today!

xox

Happy Meowloween!

For more fun kitty photos click here.

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Thank you for visiting my blog today!

xox

All Blogged Out

I visited your blog today! In fact, I spent all day visiting EVERY single blog in my reader...over 600 blogs. I added them one by one into my bloglist in the sidebar. Once again, would you please check to make sure your blog is there? I also weeded out those blogs that haven't been updated in months or that no longer exist or those that have disabled their feeds. That brought me down to a grand total of 510 blogs. You will notice that some of the blogs in my list are still linking to the feed page. They were NOT doing that when I only had 50 to 100 in the list. Once I got quite a few in there they started turning/changing that way. My guess is that Bloggers list can't handle so many blogs at a time so maybe it drops those that haven't been updated recently? I don't know. I am hoping for a fix from Blogger one of these days, but I'm not holding my breath.

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Ouchie. My hand aches from mouse-clicking.

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Thank you for visiting my blog today!

xox

Which Witch?

MY witch, of course! I won day 22 of Missy Ann & Annette's 31 Days of Halloween giveaway! The prize from Missy Ann arrived today. I got the ugliest witch ever made...she is beautifully stitched and finished but holy crows, is she ever a crone! It's a lovely tin filled with candy corn, a creepy spider thread winder, beautiful handmade pins and a bag of trick-or-treat candy. I love it all. Thank you Missy Ann!

A big thank you to Missy Ann and Annette for such a wonderful month-long adventure. The prizes are over-the-top and I've had loads of fun. There are only a couple of days left of the 31...so hurry on over to enter!

Thank you for visiting my blog today!

xox

Who likes pie?

I like pie! Pumpkin, pecan, chocolate. I'm not as fond of fruit pies but I'll still eat 'em. Of all though, I think pumpkin is my favorite. I took a Lizzie*Kate design and used two of the squares in it to make up a tiny little fob. Just the right size for these pretty silver scissors.

One side is pumpkin...

...and the other side is pie! Is this cute or what?

Design ~ November Flip It #F32

Designer ~ Lizzie*Kate

Fabric ~ 28 count scrap

Fiber ~ DMC

Finish ~ Scissor fob

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This wee fob is on it's RAK way to someone soon! Could it be you? What is RAK, you ask? An RAK is a Random Act of Kindness...a little gift sent in surprise to brighten someones day. Of course ~ I can only send an RAK to someone if I already have their address. It HAS to be a surprise! If you don't think I have YOUR address maybe you'd better email me. *hint hint*

This RAK went to Valerie at

Fog City Dweller!

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I'm still having trouble with the blogs in my sidebar linking to feeds instead of the actual blog. Google's Blogger Help Forum SUCKS. I cannot figure out what is wrong. No one else seems to have the problem. I may have to just delete the whole freakin' thing and add my blogs into a link list. I have well over 600 blogs in my reader so that is going to take a while! Daunting task. So don't panic if my Blog List disappears and suddenly you aren't listed in whatever I decide to use. I will get to you!

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Thank you for visiting my blog today!

xox

Reindeer finish

I've been doing a bit of finishing here and there. My Holly Reindeer looks quite spiffy made up as a pillow ornament, doesn't she? I used the red swirl fabric for the back and stuffed lightly with fibrefill. Aren't those swirls perfect for antlers like that? A rustic bow of jute made the hanger.

Design ~ Holly Reindeer

Designer ~ Me! Daffycat Designs

Fabric ~ 28 count tea-dyed scrap

Fiber ~ DMC

My Uncle Jack was down this month visiting from Nova Scotia. We were able to go out for a late lunch with him and my parents. Holly Reindeer went home with my uncle. I received a nice thank you note from my Aunt Ruth in return!

This design is still available as a freebie. See this post here. Or click on the cat in my sidebar to see the rest of my free designs.

Thank you for visiting my blog today!

xox

Magnetic Needleminder Tutorial

So many of you have asked how I make the needleminders I decided to try and make up a tutorial to show you how. If you have any questions feel free to email me, I am always happy to help out!

First, gather supplies. You will need:
1. A stitched piece, about an inch in size.
2. Backing fabric that compliments.
3. Fusible interfacing for light to medium weight fabric.
4. Craft magnets. I get mine from Hobby Lobby. They look sort of like watch batteries.
5. Metal finishing form ~ two pieces, 1.5 inch size. I get mine from The Silver Needle.
6. Thick white glue that dries clear and is fabric safe. I use Aleene's Tacky Glue.
7. Sewing thread and needle.

First, wash your fabrics and iron dry. Then, iron on the interfacing following the manufacturers instructions. Please, pay attention to ironing on the interfacing. I embarrassed to admit I have ironed it on to the front side of my stitching...or adhered it to the ironing cloth instead of the fabric...or scorched it black.

Now, cut your fabric pieces into circles. I have a juice glass that fits these perfectly and I can see through it to see if I'm centered. The circles should be about 2.5 inches.

Here are my circles, finishing forms and magnets.

On each of your fabric circles make a loose running stitch (use regular sewing thread) starting from the front and ending at the front. You don't have to be perfect either! I usually use a thread close to the color of my fabric but I've used black here so you could easily see it. I'm almost done here...see the big knot? You need to be able to pull the ends tight to draw up the circle so use a big knot that's easy to grab. End close to your knot and leave a long tail...

Here, I have started drawing in on the thread. Get it cupped and then insert your form. and draw it in tight. Careful! Not too tight or you might break your thread or tear through your fabric! This is why you use interfacing...it gives the fabric a little more strength.

I've finished the backing side. Here is the front side with the magnet. I use a little drop of glue on the magnet (to keep it from moving around) but it does stick to the form by itself.

Finish drawing in your threads, pull gently until it's good & tight. Check the front to make sure it's centered. You can gently slide the fabric around on the form until you have it centered nicely. Then tie the ends of the threads together to hold tight.

Now, using a tooth pick, spread white glue over both pieces, being careful to get close to the edges but not getting the glue onto the areas that will be visible. Once your glue is on, place the backs together and squeeze them gently, make sure to get the edges even. The magnet will tend to hold them too. I don't bother...but you can place the needleminder under a book until the glue dries.

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The finished needleminder! Was that easy or what?

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Thank you for visiting my blog today!

xox

A Hidden Giveaway

No one knew it but my Spooky Cats post was a hidden giveaway! That's right...everyone that commented on that post was secretly entered to win the Spooky Cat scissor fob and needleminder set. This was only a little "thank you" for commenting on my blog. I'm always astonished how many comments I get on posts and by how many followers I've attracted, so I wanted to give a little something back. Oh yeah, you wanna know who won, right? The winner is Bekca of The Stitching Lion. Congratulations, Bekca! If you could email me with your mailing address I will get the package sent soon! My email is in my profile. Thank you all for your comments and your encouragement. I am truly a fortunate blogger.

I'm working on another little pumpkin for the Great Pumpkin Challenge. This is from Lizzie*Kate's November blocks. Just a little quickie stitch to keep myself busy.

Some of you eagle-eyes out there will have noticed the Blogroll in my sidebar is different. Blogrolling announced it was shutting down as of November first. Sad, I've used the Blogrolling for my blog list since I started my blog. I went ahead and changed my list to Blogger's version and put in those blogs I'm following and imported from Google Reader. However...my old Blogroll had around 650 blogs and the new list only has around 450. Some are missing! *Gasp* This is terrible! If your blog is missing from my list let me know ASAP! And does anyone know why some of my blogs are listed as an Internet Explorer feed? WTF? Grrr, I hate change.

Thank you for visiting my blog today!

xox

October Curls

Can you believe I finished my October Snapper Year already? I'm thinking this design was the whole reason for stitching this project! I love this silly pumpkin. Ooo ~ this counts as a pumpkin challenge finish too, doesn't it? This one had nearly every color changed from the recommended ones. I enjoyed stitching it a lot...it was so easy and quick. Now, I have three whole weeks of stitching whatever I feel like before I can start the November block. It's hard to believe I finished so early. Remember when I stitched May's block early then had to frog the whole thing? Yay, this block is in the correct place!

Today is the New Moon! That means it's time for a Totally Useless update. My ORT jar is plum full. See all that orange thread from stitching pumpkins? Autumn colors are the best! Join us for the Totally Useless Stitch a Long...grab an empty jar, save your ORTs and post a picture on your blog on the New Moon.

It was back to work for me today. Blech! But not too bad ~ it's almost the weekend already, right? Oh, what I wouldn't give to be a lady of leisure with nothing to do but stitch and stash...

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Thank you for visiting my blog today!

xox

Spooky Cats

Two more finishes for the Great Pumpkin Challenge! I stitched one spooky cat and pumpkin over-one and finished into a magnetic needleminder, then another over-two and finished into a fob to match. I love how they turned out.

Design ~ Spooky Cat

Designer ~ Heart in Hand

Fabric ~ 28 count Jobelan, tea dyed

Fiber ~ DMC

Just couldn't decide which photo to use...

This post was a hidden giveaway!

The winner was announced on this post.

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I'm making the most of my time off work. The house is squeaky clean. Two finishes have been completed. October's Snapper Year is started. Netflix movies are being watched. Stash is being sorted and organized, somewhat...lol. Stuff keeps appearing in my cart at 123Stitch. I'm having the time of my life!

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Thank you for visiting my blog today!

xox